Parents of Emirates Today reported that it is difficult to register their children in the Ithraa Academic Support Program, pointing out that the electronic system does not accept registration, schools put them on the waiting lists, in addition to the figures announced by the Department of Education and Knowledge to communicate with schools are incorrect. While the newspaper spotted the same complaints on the Department's accounts, on the social networking sites «Facebook» and «Twitter», in addition to making sure the Department published on its official website, old numbers, and is currently not available to seven of the nine schools where the program is available.
In particular, students called for expanding the number of schools offering Ithraa program, which is provided by the department as academic support for students after the end of school hours, or organizing Ithraa program sessions on two or three periods a day, to accommodate students and eliminate waiting lists, and provide an opportunity for national students. In private schools, citing difficulties in electronic registration, schools refused to enroll them, because there were no places.
Ithraa is an educational initiative available to public school students from grades 1 to 12 to enhance their level of science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics and equip them with the necessary skills. The department has been implementing courses since last October in nine public schools and educational partnership schools in Abu Dhabi, Al Dhafra and Al Ain, four days a week, two days for students and two days for female students.
Parents of students responded to the availability of registration through the website, or to go to schools to ask for help in registration, with a number of complaints, mostly about the problems of dealing with the electronic system, and described it as slow and unresponsive to registration attempts, pointing out that they failed to enter the system, Department officials are called to address the imbalance, increase the number of schools that provide “enrichment” to accommodate the increasing number of students, in addition to allowing national students enrolled in private schools to enroll in programs, especially as they rely on extra-curricular activities to develop students' skills in the fields of science and art Desi, languages and artificial intelligence.
National students studying in private schools stressed the importance of the program to include national students in private schools, who constitute 27% of the total number of students in private schools (about 68 thousand students), pointing out that the volume of publicity for the program in the streets of Abu Dhabi Emirate is not commensurate with The small number of schools it provides, and the emirate's students cannot be accommodated in only nine schools.
A student guardian, Nermin, commented on the official accounts of the Department of Education and Knowledge, on the social networking site, confirming that no options appear when clicking on registration on the program website. She was supported by the guardian of another student, pointing out that the system gives her a mistake in the identification number, while others pointed out that they have registered for some time, and did not communicate with them.
The Emirates Today informed the Department of Education and Knowledge of the complaints of parents of students, but it was not possible to get a response, and the Department issued a press release indicating its intention to open registration in the second phase of the program to new students, starting from the eighth of December, The first phase of the initiative included the organization of 15 courses, including 70 lessons, for 1793 students. It announced an increase in the capacity of the programs in the second phase, in response to the increasing demand, and offered an additional set of courses to receive more students, up to 5688 students.
Beginning on January 26, the second phase will offer 17 courses, which will be delivered through 109 courses, including topics such as programming, robotics, mechanical systems and the arts. In addition, it is possible to increase the number of schools and provide more specialized programs, as needed during the second phase.
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An educational session for 1793 students was included in the first phase of the initiative.
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Kholoud Al Dhaheri, Chairperson of the Student Enrichment Committee at the Department of Education and Knowledge, Khuloud Al Dhaheri, confirmed that the program “Enriching Students” is provided by teachers specialized in innovative teaching methods, to contribute to the preparation and empowerment of the future generation, and to provide a comprehensive and distinctive learning experience, capable of enhancing students' abilities and gaining them. Skills to deal with the challenges and requirements of the 21st century.
Beginning in 2020, students participating in the program will have the opportunity to travel to national and international centers renowned for excellence globally, keeping abreast of the latest technologies and vital innovations, such as renewable energy, financial technology, medicine, water conservation, encryption and robotics.