Education departments disseminate information, facilitate communication and provide news updates to schools, parents and students, besides helping locate schools in different areas.
The Ministry of Education (MoE) website that which is being revamped, on the other hand, is complementing reforms that are taking place in the education sector. Besides sporting a new look, its website is coming up with an integrated online system that aims to provide a learning gateway for students of 730 public schools in the next three years.
“Teachers can give assignments, students can upload projects, create forums and blogs and parents can track their child’s progress through our website once all the data has been uploaded,” Badria Yousif, Director of Technology at the ministry, told Khaleej Times.
The website even has a section, Ask the Minister, where students, teachers, schools and parents can send in their queries, which would be sent to Minister of Education Dr Hanif Hassan. An online calendar lists the events planned for the academic year, while a school finder section helps easy location of schools in the country. People can also subscribe to the news service of the ministry that will keep them updated regularly on new decisions, regulations and initiatives.
“Accounts of students, teachers and parents have to be set up. While our system and infrastructure is in place, we are waiting for schools to provide the data. Educational zones, schools and other departments are still working on giving us the data,” said Yousif, adding that different departments in the ministry will soon provide information on the process involved for providing different services.
“In case a student requires a copy of his/her graduation certificate, the department concerned would provide information, on the ministry’s website, on how to procure it,” she added.
The Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA), the body that supervises education in Dubai, on the other hand, provides tips to students, teachers, parents and administrators on different aspects like preparing for an examination, teaching strategies, choosing the right school and the standards expected out of a school. Its website also asks stakeholders for their suggestions to ‘prepare for the future’.