Lughati Organises Evaluation Visits to Sharjah’s Public Schools

Lughati, the Sharjah-based initiative dedicated to supporting Arabic learning the smart way, has started the evaluation and assessment of its second phase, which targeted Grade 1 students and teachers, by visiting all public schools in Sharjah which benefitted from the initiative.

The first set of visits kicked off last month, to be followed up with a series of visits until February 2017, covering the 49 public schools in Sharjah. Each of these schools received smart tablets to strengthen their Arabic teaching programmes, and the evaluation will review how the smart applications are being utilised in classrooms by teachers in integrating creative learning into the Arabic curriculum to enhance the overall learning environment.

Aisha Saif Al Khaja, Chairperson of the Executive Committee of Lughati, Badria Al Ali, Manager of Lughati and Marwa Al Khatib, Assistant Manager of Lughati participated in the first round of visits.

“We have organised these visits to evaluate and assess the second phase of the initiative, and to ensure the interaction between the initiative and the targeted schools. We aim to measure the impact of using modern technology in the learning process, as well as receive feedback from teachers about the tablets, and how they are finding the use of smart applications in Arabic language teaching,” said Badria Al Ali, Manager of Lughati.

“We seek to continually follow up with the 49 schools which received the smart tablets to ensure the initiative’s effectiveness and success even after the distribution of the tablets and teacher trainings were completed,” Al Ali added.

The schools which were covered in the first round of evaluation included, Al Shifa bint Al Hareth School for Girls and Al Wadi School for Boys in Al Dhaid area, Al Hamriyah School for Boys and Al Qalaa School for Girls in Al Hamriyah, in addition to a number of schools in Al Madam, Al Thameed and Nazwa areas.

The second phase of Lughati initiative, with an estimated budget of AED 15.5 million, distributed complimentary smart tablets to Grade 1 students and teachers in Sharjah’s public schools, reaching a total of 2,977 students and 129 teachers in 49 schools. The initiative aims to reach 25,000 students and 1,000 teachers starting at the kindergarten level up until the fifth grade in Sharjah’s schools.

The campaign to support Arabic language education in Sharjah’s schools using new technology was launched by His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, in 2013. It was one of a number of initiatives aimed at developing the emirate’s educational sector and endearing the Arabic language to students by incorporating modern methods into the learning process.

The campaign was subsequently rebranded as ‘Lughati’ initiative, which was approved by His Highness the Ruler of Sharjah in January 2016. It comes in response to developments in learning methods, and will pave the way for the creation of a knowledge based society and contribute to improving the outcomes of education.