IB Curriculum:
Education now A Global Success Story khaleej times
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Framework for success Positive education ethos IB redefines global ff Sunmarke School
education so that students are better equipped to tackle challenges of an everevolving world
Farhana Chowdhury
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here are many factors that define the youth of this generation, a prominent feature being their attitude, which is incomparable to those from yesteryears. Evolving technology, diversification and progressive environments continue to mould them into smarter, more conscious and decisive individuals. In a global world, students require guidance beyond textbooks and classrooms, intertwined with personal, emotional and social development. These are just as essential as academic excellence in order to thrive and face a transitioning world of challenges. Catering to this need, the multi-cultural environment in the UAE adopted the Switzerland-based International Baccalaureate (IB), which is gaining attention for its uniquely designed courses that promote creativity and encourage students to adapt a critical mode of thinking. According to the International Baccalaureate Edu-
cational Foundation, over 6,500 programmes are offered worldwide, across 5,000-plus countries in 157 countries. Out of this, IB education has been active in the UAE since 1992, and the curriculum is offered in 48 schools, with programmes covering primary years, middle years, diploma, and career. Each cater to different age groups for a more concentrated approach, where children as young as three years old are enrolled for an early start and the oldest are 19 years of age. Gone are the days of passing knowledge, facts and theory down one-way from teacher to student. The IB programme encourages both teachers and students to take on an interactive style of learning that opens up routes for in-depth discussions and a hands-on approach to education. Teachers further take on the role of mentors, inspiring students to make decisions and select their own topics for special projects so that they are better involved in their subjects. Educators in IB strongly focus on research and writing, and note that peers stand as a role model of learning. Students are expected to develop critical thinking, which would later assist them in advanced university courses and real world scenarios. This, paired with evolving digital technologies, would help shape students into competitive and productive adults of tomorrow. 1992: IB curriculum active in the UAE 48: Number of schools offering IB education in the UAE
ff Emirates National Schools (ENS)
Putting community first Emirates National Schools provides a unique blend of courses in both English and Arabic Emirates National Schools (ENS) first opened its doors at Mohammed Bin Zayed City in 2002 and has now grown to include five campuses in Mohammed Bin Zayed City, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah. ENS is an IB world school and one of the world’s largest systems of private schools that is authorised at all ENS campuses by the International Baccalaureate Organisation. This is unique because ENS provides both an international curriculum (Common Core) and a national curriculum (UAE) in two languages – English and Arabic, in its IB programmes. ENS welcomed over 11,800 students across all the campuses in the academic year 2019-2020. Over 1,500 students have graduated since the opening of the school, and are now enrolled in the best local and international colleges in 58 different countries around the world.
Learning through experience
ENS applies an intensive in-class and community activities plan that involves students participating and planning events, which helps them develop a love of volunteering and community work to deepen the understanding the concept of tolerance. It is here that the students learn and experience tolerance first-hand by celebrating the similarities and differences in cultures, languages and beliefs. The School believes in learning through exploration and experience that enhances the students’ logical skills and deepens their
understanding and interaction along with the educational material provided to them as part of
the curriculum. To know more, contact 8002008, or visit www.ens.sch.ae
Sunmarke School focuses on building students’ character strengths
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ducation has developed exponentially over the past few decades with new and innovative curriculums and pathways providing exciting opportunities for students in the UAE. The International Baccalaureate (IB) programme belongs to the collection of initiatives offered across the region, designed to inspire children to become lifelong learners in their field across a range of subjects that focus on 10 key learner profiles. IB encourages students to focus on being principled, balanced, reflective thinkers as part of their learning journey. Sunmarke School, part of the Fortes Education Group here in the UAE, through its positive education ethos aligns itself with the fundamental ideals of the IB and its set of learner profile skills. Sunmarke offers IBDP, IBCP, A Levels, GCSE and BTEC – a multi-pathway model and empowers students with bespoke post-16 course selections, to find the most appropriate route to study the subject of their choice at the university or college of their choice. The school is determined to secure, and develop the major qualities such as risk taking and being open-minded found in the IB skill set, whilst being encapsulated with the character strengths of empathy, endurance and compassion. Dr Neil Hopkin, Principal of the school, is more than aware of some of the challenges facing the current education system but appreciates that the National Agenda set out by the UAE government is pivotal in ensuring that the young people who study here are offered quality first education through robust teaching and learning and pathways to suit all learners. Sunmarke School has achieved ‘Very Good’ rating from KHDA in only its third year of operation. Openly advocating the motto of the school ‘Where Amazing happens,’ Dr Hopkin continues to say, “What sets us apart are the more complex hard to measure qualities of the students. What you encounter at Sunmarke School is the process of building character strengths associated with our positive education programme alongside fulfilling academic potential. The IB further supports the development of these personable qualities. We pride ourselves on the relationships built in our community. Senior students guide and nurture our younger students to support our ideals. Teachers work hard to foster close relationships and role model our expectations and beliefs.”
Dr Neil Hopkin Principal of Sunmarke School When it comes to planning for the future, Sunmarke School is a leader of excellence, thanks to
brilliant new initiatives, including financial literacy and entrepreneurship. Dr Hopkin believes that these enterprises are crucial to demonstrate to our students how to navigate the future world. “We see ourselves as nurturing innovators and entrepreneurs’ part of our entrepreneurship culminates in our monthly ‘Think and Thrive’ workshops where discussions are held between students and regional CEOs that encourage students to understand the world of business and the opportunities that are out there waiting for them,” he added. Dr Hopkin aims to create a safe, nurturing space for students to relish in the multicultural environment and appreciate similarities and differences. Rather than focusing on similarities, the goal is to promote an intercultural understanding amongst students who come from a variety of backgrounds to advocate the importance of being a global citizen.
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Business in a new age space race
London Business School inspires students to adopt future-ready strategies
John Mullins
With the UAE’s first astronaut set off into space inside the Soyuz MS-15 craft on September 25, it is an exciting time to focus on space and the promising new industries that could arise from it. Astronaut Maj Al Mansouri believes it is just the beginning of the emirates’ ambitions, which he hopes one day will involve the country land a man on the Moon and venture to Mars. The $64,000 question is, as always, how to get traction and build investment opportunities from this new age race into space? Government funding is frequently invoked and regularly appealed for, but perhaps UAE companies ought to consider Tesla and the irrepressible and audacious Elon Musk as better models for generating funds and building businesses. Tesla’s growth provides great instruction on how to make money from space. In his company’s early-stage growth, Elon Musk realised that boatloads of capital were required and decided to get his customers to fund growth. How? If you want to add some flash to your driveway with a brand-new Tesla, you will have to do certain things. First, you will have to put down a substantial deposit, $1,000 for Tesla’s new Model 3. Second, you’ll have to wait. And wait some more. Meanwhile, Musk gathers the deposits that his customers slap down – nearly half a million customers for the
Model 3 – and uses the cash to fit out the factory, make the tooling, and finally begin the manufacturing. Musk knows what many entrepreneurs know instinctively: what matters in a risky but still privately held venture isn’t profit, it’s cash. Tesla’s financing strategy raises an obvious question about the early players in the space technology industry. Here’s a novel illustration of what might be done — having got underway with a modicum of venture capital, a would-be start-up space entrepreneur turns to their customers and asks for deposits for the proverbial Monday morning departure to the moon. To the type of customer who will queue up for the first commercial flights to the moon, what is a few tens of millions here or there? The space industry is undergoing unprecedented technological change, and for UAE investors and companies to catch this exciting new wave of interest in this enthralling industry, a new approach to funding it will be critical. John Mullins, Associate Professor of Management Practice at London Business School, and author of ‘The Customer-Funded Business: Start, Finance, or Grow Your Company with Your Customers’ Cash’ (Wiley, 2014)
Enhanced learning experience Middlesex University Dubai provides academic programmes underpinned by innovative research and professional practice Middlesex University Dubai is the first overseas campus of the internationally renowned Middlesex University in London (UK). The campus, which opened in 2005, has over 3,400 students from more than 100 nationalities and offers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in a wide variety of subject areas in-
cluding Accounting and Finance, Business Management, HR, Marketing, Education, Psychology, Law, Computer Engineering, Robotics, Fashion, Graphic Design, Journalism, Film, Digital Media, and Advertising, PR and Branding. It is a global university committed to meeting the needs and ambitions of a culturally and internationally diverse range of students, by providing challenging academic programmes underpinned by innovative research and professional practice. As well as having all the advantages associated with being a British university, Dubai campus students can benefit from all the opportunities afforded by a rapidly developing modern
city in the heart of the Middle East, while experiencing the diverse nationalities and cultures that make up the population of Dubai. The campus is located in Dubai Knowledge Park, occupying spacious classrooms and study areas within four buildings. Find out more at www.mdx.ac.ae
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MBA: Make the right choice There is a growing choice of MBA options, and candidates should look for the best fit in terms of programme content, opportunities to personalise and learning format The business world, workplace and nature of work itself are all changing at an extraordinary speed but business management processes still apply – management and leadership, talent management, ICT, finance, operations, marketing and sales – as well as the corporate governance and ethical framework required to protect reputation and investors. The MBA remains the pre-eminent business qualification but it is changing to meet the new demands of business. Notable trends are the greater personalisation of content; shorter programmes attracting younger students and helping graduates achieve faster ROI; and a greater emphasis on entrepreneurial and soft skills to meet the increasing need to be agile in the face of industry transformation. Business education providers also have to meet the demands of a younger ‘digital native’ population of students who expect learning to reflect their digital view and experience of the world around us. Who needs an MBA? The Middle East region needs skills and access to talent, and the leadership that successful digital transformation and rapid diversification of the economy demands. Talent comes in different forms and soft skills are increasingly valued by business. These skills are easily transferable across industries, but not easily automated. LinkedIn Learning identified the soft skills companies need most in 2019, 57 per cent of senior leaders said soft skills were more important than hard skills — especially Creativity, Persuasion, Collaboration, Adaptability, and Time Management.
MBA students benefit from new knowledge, tools and skills, career support and a professional network of contacts — all essential to maintaining long-term sustainable employability. Students’ motivation for studying an MBA is very personal but there is common ground. In many multinational organisations, the MBA may be viewed as a pre-requisite for a career in senior management and will help accelerate their careers. For other candidates, the trigger may be a plan to switch careers, start a company, or move from a specialist role to general management. Today, there is a growing choice of MBA options, and candidates should look for the best fit in terms of programme content, opportunities to personalise and learning format. Choosing a programme Choosing an MBA should start with research — building an initial shortlist of candidate schools based on reputation and ranking (the Financial Times annual MBA ranking, for example) and accreditation (triple MBA ranking is the gold standard) is a good start. Prospective students may also want to look at global rankings for return on investment in various MBA programmes. Following this, candidates should look for programmes that best suit their personal situations, learning objectives and interests — subjects, study formats (fulltime or part-time/blended learning) amount of face-to-face contact time with peers and faculty, international network and exposure, alumni network, careers support, entry criteria and cost.
Many business programmes are becoming more modular and flexible, offering a greater degree of personalisation and specialisation to meet specific learning objectives – for example through a range of elective courses. For working professionals aiming to consolidate their industry knowledge and accelerate a career, options include specialist part-time Masters programmes. The University of Manchester is already looking at industry-led part-time MSc options for the Middle East, covering leadership in education, and the real estate industry. Other alternatives include the two-year part-time Kelley-Manchester Global MBA, offering the best of British and US-style business and management education, with an MBA degree awarded by each university — Indiana University, US, and The University of Manchester. It is not just about customised content, but also about content delivery. It is no
coincidence that business education providers are delivering learning through channels in a flexible format that reflects the workplace, with learners working remotely in self-study mode online, liaising and collaborating with fellow students through social and other media, and then spending short bursts of intense face to face study time with faculty and peers, while continuing to work and earn. This is the reality of working life for many young and mid-career executives today. The next stage is to go and meet the shortlisted schools — and students and alumni, if possible — for deeper insight into the learning and student experience, as well as different perspectives on the teaching styles, calibre of student peers, and careers support services. Sustainable employability The essential key for business educators
is staying relevant and ahead of the wave of transformations that will no doubt continue to be a feature of business in the region. MBA content is being updated to reflect these rapid technological, social and workplace changes, with IoT, AI and Blockchain, all part of an increasing technology emphasis in business education. Students can now choose to add electives on Big Data Analytics, Digital Marketing Strategy, Information Systems and Digital Strategy, Managing Disruptive Technologies, and the Digital Economy to their core MBA subjects. Students can develop their skills through consultancy-style MBA projects rather than class based exercises, so this more closely mirrors the real business world. This also helps to build the soft skills and the confidence required to build a successful and sustainable career in business. The deeper trend in business education is lifelong learning to upgrade skills. Business executives continue to return to the classroom for the digital view of business, strategy and management, and the aim of building portfolio careers. At the heart of this is sustainable employability and the need to develop and sustain the transferable skills for the 21st century. Ultimately, business people only study for an MBA once in their lives and so prospective students should choose the best school and programme available to them — it should prove to be a career- and lifetransforming experience and a very good investment, whether you’re kick-starting a career or a new business start-up.