UAE Weather. How likely is it that it will be remote learning for private UAE schools this week? Should we start planning now for school closures and distance learning on Thursday?
The decision as to whether it will be remote learning for private schools on Thursday 2nd May 2024 is edging closer – and we now know that schools have been officially advised to be on standby for transfer to distance learning following severely negative predictions for UAE weather this week. Guidance from the local emirates National Crisis and Disaster Management team, and the advice from each individual emirate’s local education authority, is expected on Wednesday latest.
The UAE National Crisis and Disasters Management Authority has announced that it is in the process of meeting to discuss the upcoming weather conditions, with actions and advice on school and office closures and remote learning options expected to follow.
View this post on Instagram
SchoolsCompared reached out to the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA), Dubai’s education regulator to ask when parents can expect to find out whether their children will be at home again on Thursday, but it was not able to officially comment at this time. We do, however, know that all governmental bodies are on stand-by following the learning curve of the worst floods in UAE history.
Our view is that, currently, based on weather forecasts, it does now seem likely that schools will be given the option to work remotely on Thursday based on the predicted safety of their local roads, potential for disruptive rain damage in their school – and the likely safety impacts of commuting. The KHDA has, for example, already made clear to schools that they must support the decisions of parents to themselves choose Distance Learning for their children if they believe their families safety is at risk. You can read about current KHDA guidance for Distance Learning here.
The key message is that no family, student, teacher or member of school staff should be placing themselves at risk – and that schools must be ready to provide some form of Distance Learning or other support for those who cannot attend school next week.
For now the advice is to continue to monitor communications from your individual school regarding whether remote learning will be implemented from Wednesday or Thursday this week.
Back to School has already been delayed for many families across the UAE who are still battling to return to normal after some of the worst storms and floods in UAE history. Many parents have lost their homes, cars and possessions in entirety. Others continue to battle electricity failures – and roads in some areas remain remain damaged. From cars damaged beyond repair, to families losing all their belongings, the impacts of the storms – and the severe damage that flooding has caused, are likely to require weeks, not days to resolve. If severe rains do occur, the impacts are likely to be more swiftly felt because of currently heightened groundwater levels ac ross the UAE.
This is a fast moving news environment and will be updated as we receive further information from schools, the government, KHDA and authorities.
Further Information
You can read about how we first learned about the historic floods here.
Learn about the impacts of the floods on the Return to School here.
Visit the National Centre of Meteorology.
© SchoolsCompared.com. A WhichMedia Group publication. 2024 – 2025. All rights reserved.
Leave a Response