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In furtherance of Microsoft's resolute commitment to the enhancement of learning experiences worldwide, the company today announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with leading global education provider GEMS Education. The MoU is sharply focused on digital transformation in the classroom, and improving outcomes for students, based on Microsoft's own Educational Transformation Framework.
"Microsoft has a strong global reputation in education enhancement, and a distinguished history in the GCC of working with ministries and learning institutions to redefine what is possible in the classroom," said Mick Gernon, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Innovation, GEMS Education. "We are confident that what we achieve together, as part of this agreement, will produce in our students the skills and digital fluency needed to face the multi-faceted challenges emerging in the world today, and more importantly, those of tomorrow."
The GEMS Education -Microsoft MoU is built on two pillars; Enabling the 21st-century pedagogy and GEMS Education Leading innovation.
Enabling the 21st-century pedagogy will focus on transforming GEMS schools into centres of digital excellence, through established Microsoft programmes. These include the Microsoft Showcase Schools, The Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert Programme (MIEE), 21st Century Leading Design (21CLD), and Microsoft Imagine Academy.
The Microsoft Showcase Schools is a community-focused initiative that helps educators to more effectively implement technology solutions in the classroom. The platform will allow GEMS teachers to showcase and learn from an online educator community spanning more than 200 countries. The Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert Programme (MIEE) trains educators further in using technology to build their students' 21st-century skillsets. MIEE-certified teachers serve as leaders in promoting the use of technology as a tool to aid learning.
21st-Century Learning Design (21CLD) will allow school leaders to test and evaluate their readiness to embrace digital transformation to support futures-orientated learning; and Microsoft Imagine Academy (MSIA) is aimed at empowering every student, educator and institution to achieve more through developing a range of pedagogical and technical skills, matched to credentials which are focused and relevant for the future.
GEMS Education leading in innovation, will recognise the role that GEMS Education has to continue to lead in all aspects of innovation and establish new benchmarks for digital education across the region. The MoU will support GEMS Education in evaluating the adoption of AI capabilities in the classroom, using tools for invigorating the learning experience and predictive analytics in the classroom. The review process will cover the evaluation of Microsoft Cognitive Services, including the Bot Framework and Cortana Personal Assistant. Gaming technologies such as Minecraft in Education that offers a platform for promoting creativity, collaboration and problem-solving activities will also feature as a core curriculum experience for GEMS students.
"Microsoft is committed to helping every individual and organisation on the planet to achieve more," said Sayed Hashish, Regional General Manager, Microsoft Gulf. "When it comes to students and educators, we understand that technology is merely the means to an end. But digital transformation can inspire and engage students, while empowering teachers to bring lessons to life like never before. GEMS' excellence in innovation and digital learning is a matter of record; and now, with this agreement, our partnership will go one step further in making learning truly digitally collaborative and future focused."
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