Page 11 - DGPS - YearBook
P. 11

MESSAGE FROM THE

                 MRS SHEELA MISTRY                                                        ADMINISTRATION MANAGER

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                                                           020 has proved to be quite the milestone year for Dubai Gem Private School. Three years
                                                             short of our golden jubilee, this year has seen a sudden paradigm shift from traditional learning
                                                       and teaching techniques to a new era of e-education.


                                                       Brick and mortar schools as we know it have undergone a massive change – an upgrade, if you may
                                                       say. The global pandemic has affected numerous industries across the world and the educational
                                                       sector has been completely reimagined with new systems and new protocols in place to adapt to a
                                                       new generation of distance learning. A new model of teaching saw the implementation of multiple
                                                       collaboration tools including the likes of Zoom, Google Classroom, See Saw, Padlet and more –
                                                       which of course implied that the school’s infrastructure needed to be updated and new teaching
                                                       techniques introduced. Classroom-based examinations have now been replaced with online
                                                       assessments, allowing students to be evaluated remotely.

                                                       While this shift has immensely expanded our network and ability to host classes for our students
                                                       remotely, it definitely did come with its own set of challenges   dependence  on  availability  of
                                                                                                                               –
                                                       computers and internet bandwidth came into play and parents needed to be guided and educated
        on navigating and understanding the new technology.

        Dubai Gem Private School is committed to offering its students a seamless learning experience, and our team of support staff has worked
        tirelessly to help parents better understand the new system, ensuring that students are offered the same level of quality education, even while
        distance-learning. To further aid families that were financially affected by the current situation, the school has also offered a reduction on the
        regular fees, as a relief to parents impacted. Unfortunately, due to low numbers, Dubai Gem Nursery will be closing its doors in June 2020.
        However, the school continues to operate as the new normal for all classes from FS2 to Year 13.


        While a lot has changed in terms of teacher-student interaction, the internal processes and procedures have also witnessed a transformation. In
        addition to the usual DSIB inspection, this year the school had to undergo a DLE (Distance Learning Evaluation) conducted by KHDA. This was
        supported with surprise Zoom evaluations, wherein members of the KHDA team joined an online class to observe teaching techniques and
        monitor the quality of lessons conducted.


        The move from conventional to contemporary certainly had its challenges, but the stellar team at Dubai Gem Private School showed tremendous
        support and kept their spirits high throughout the journey for a smooth and easy transition. Teachers went through endless hours of training to
        perfect the system, paired with the exemplary support of the Senior Leadership Team and of course, the backbone of the operation, the
        indispensable Admin and IT staff. We will continue to ensure that students enjoy an unparalleled learning experience, while abiding by the
        instructions  received by KHDA.


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