Ras Al Khaimah: Scores of Arab parents complained on Monday that the management of an Indian private school had separated their children from classmates of other nationalities.
The management claimed that its procedures were for the good of the students and said that it was an internal affair which should not be questioned when the parents protested.
The parents failed to be persuaded, however, and forwarded their complaint to the Educational Zone. The parents added they had chosen the school to give their children the chance to practice English with their classmates.
The parents protested that the separation of their children from their European and Asian counterparts was against educational laws and was a racist move and that the school management should reverse its decision.
The parents said that their children were suffering psychologically due to the school's attitude. The parents added that the school management intended to increase classes in Islam and Arabic for non-Arab students and to decrease the number of English language classes given to Arab students. This has also angered Arab parents who rejected this new scheme, saying it was unfair on their children.
Some of the parents held a meeting with the school management to try to convince the school's officials to back down, but they insisted that their attitude was correct and was for the benefit of the students who should be separated in classes according to their nationalities.
Abdullah Hamad, who heads the Ras Al Khaimah Educational Zone, said according to educational rules and regulations, the school management cannot differentiate between their students.
"There is no room for racism and the management will not be allowed to take such measures and separate students of the same school into different categories," he said.
He added that the Private Education Department received the Arab parents' complaint and delivered it to the management of the Educational Zone which will take the necessary legal measures against the school very soon.
By Nasouh Nazzal, Staff Reporter