Higher Education Revolutions in the Gulf

Over the past quarter century, the people of the Arabian Peninsula have witnessed a revolutionary transformation in higher education. In 1990, there were fewer than ten public universities that offered their Arabic-language curricula in sex-segregated settings to national citizens only. In 2015, there are more than one hundred public, semi-public, and private colleges and universities. Most of these institutions are open to expatriates and national citizens; a few offer gender integrated instruction; and the language of instruction is much more likely to be in English than Arabic. Higher Education Revolutions in the Gulf explores the reasons behind this dramatic growth. It examines the causes of the sharp shift in educational practices and analyses how these new systems of higher education are regulated, evaluating the extent to which the new universities and colleges are improving quality. Questioning whether these educational changes can be sustained, the book explores how the new curricula and language policies are aligned with official visions of the future. Written by leading scholars in the field, it draws upon their considerable experiences of teaching and doing research in the Arabian Gulf, as well as their different disciplinary backgrounds (linguistics and economics), to provide a holistic and historically informed account of the emergence and viability of the Arabian Peninsula’s higher education revolutions. Offering a comprehensive, critical assessment of education in the Gulf Arab states, this book represents a significant contribution to the field and will be of interest to students and scholars of Middle East and Gulf Studies, and essential for those focused on higher education

Towards a pro-active model of professional development for tertiary level teachers in the United Arab Emirates

This body of work identifies the professional development needs of teachers at Abu Dhabi Men\u27s College in the UAE as their role in the classroom and pedagogical trends change in response to the needs of the 21st century global workforce. The aim of the research was to identify what pedagogical changes had impacted the teaching and learning environment at the college and subsequently to identify strategies and professional development models to prepare the teachers for dynamic developments in their teaching and learning environment. A pragmatic, interpretive approach was taken in the study, drawing on qualitative data to explore ways to reflect and address the pedagogical challenges faced by staff at Abu Dhabi Men\u27s College. The study is presented as a three phased case study: a focus group, student results data comparison and a teacher\u27s workshop, formed the basis of this study. Findings from the study reinforced the perception that teachers need to be prepared to continually respond to the needs of the workforce by embracing lifelong learning and imparting the same philosophy to their students. A framework for professional development at Abu Dhabi Men\u27s College was constructed in response to the identified professional development needs of teachers at the College. It was found that working in a collaborative environment improved the professional learning environment and productivity for staff. The active participation of staff in the design of the professional development framework increased the potential for staff commitment to on-going learning

Training senior employees for ICT skills enhancement through “refocus”: The EUROPEAN project

Declining fertility rates and the ageing of the European population represents a major challenge to many governments within the European Union (EU) and its neighbouring realms, in the present and for the forthcoming decades. The increasing ageing workforce within several United Kingdom (UK) and the EU private and public organisations is an evident manisfestation. The workforce comprised of senior employees are often seen by employers as less mobile and flexible with low performance and thus, less able to deal with the rapid changes occurring in their organisations; as rapid developments require flexible and responsive workforce. The mobility of the senior employees is therefore a topical theme in the workforce market. The necessary knowledge and skills required for the senior employees can be taught through various Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) related training systems within an organisation. However, it appears that the development of training systems required for senior employees need careful investigation into the requirements of the problem situation. The reason is that the design of senior employees training systems should be more carefully planned, as literature indicates that it is significantly time consuming and is harder to train senior employees on ICT applications. This paper presents a European project – REFOCUS (oldeR Employees training on inFOrmation and CommUnication technologieS), an initaitive undertaken by the EU for enhancing the ICT skills of the ageing workforce. This project also aims at designing a new electronic learning (e-Learning) method that focuses on the needs of senior employees of 40 years of age and over – who can become a strategic resource for the European economy

Transformational leadership practices of deans and the perceived organizational culture of United Arab Emirates public universities : a regression analysis study

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Teacher Professionalism, Education Reform and 21st Century Skills in the United Arab Emirates

Abstract The United Arab Emirates National Agenda Vision 2021 calls for a ‘complete transformation’ of the current education system ‘to serve the knowledge economy’. The Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT), with 16 campuses, are the largest Higher Education Institution in the UAE. Aligning with the national vision, their strategic plan 2017- 2021 sets out key goals ‘to empower students with 21st Century skills’ and to ‘improve academic programmes’ through ‘blending traditional and innovative teaching methods to ensure student centred learning’. To promote this, HCT aimed to increase teacher professionalism through a collection of measures: HEA membership, a new professional pay scale, training in a learning management system and 40 annual hours of professional development, all orchestrated through a performance management tool. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, recurrent themes are identified which reflect the experiences of seven teachers, who come from countries with exposure to, and experience of, student-centred pedagogies. The in-depth interviews found that HCT strongly promoted a form of controlled professionalism, within which knowledge development and innovative teaching methods became subsidiary to the instrumental outcomes of the strategic plan. A managerial and administrative approach to accountability relayed control in a way that teachers’ agency and co-agency were significantly reduced. The higher order cognitive competencies, behaviours and values (21st-century skills) of teachers and students envisioned by the reform were constrained in the controlled model. The study was able to elaborate on how the positioning of the individual within the processes, procedures and accountability mechanisms that surround their work shapes their capacity to affect change. The findings present a professional model that moves away from the individualising concept of ‘performance management’, towards horizontal modalities, where advancement is positioned as both individual and mutual, locating transformation within an inclusive, institutional dialectic based on democratic participation

Pharmacy education and practice in 13 middle eastern countries

The Arab world has influenced the art and science of pharmacy for centuries. Pharmacy education and practice is continuing to evolve in the Arabic-speaking traditional Middle East countries, although relatively little information has been published in the English press. Our goal was to providea high-level synopsis of conditions in this region. We selected 13 countries for review. Information was obtained by reviewing the available published literature and individual university and program web sites, as well as contacting with program or country representatives. Seventy-eight active pharmacy schools in 12 countries were identified. At least 14,000 students (over 75% from Egypt) are admitted into baccalaureate degree programs every year. The 5-year baccalaureate degree remains the first professional degree to practice. While changes in pharmacy education have been relatively rapid over the past decade, the advancement of pharmacy practice, particularly in the private sector, appears to be slower. Hospital pharmacists often possess an advanced degree and tend to have a higher level of practice compared to that of community pharmacists. Despite the adversities that face academics and practitioners alike, there is a strong desire to advance the science and practice of pharmacy in the Middle East

Cross-cultural education: Arab women studying a non-traditional subject

The number of studies being carried out into the lives of Arab women in general and Arab women in education have increased in recent years. There has been little examination, however, of the phenomenon of modern Gulf Arab women and women of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) entering third-level education to study a subject that is considered non-traditional in their culture. This study aims to redress the balance by focusing on women of the UAE, where women have full access to third-level education and government policy stresses the importance of educated women participating in the workforce. The methodologies used are grounded theory, phenomenology and ethnography. Data was collected through the use of informal interviews and a detailed diary, which was kept throughout the study. Participants were selected using the theoretical sampling procedure, and collection of data was discontinued when the themes became saturated. Data was analysed using the constant comparative method. All of the women who participated in the study had made two specific choices with regard to their third-level education: to study Visual Communications and to study it through English. This distinction is important to the study because it places these women at the forefront of social change. Their choice to study through English and their choice of course reflects a definite career outlook. These students were aware that these choices meant a very real possibility of pursuing a career in this area, especially as this kind of work could be undertaken from the home. In all aspects of their lives these students have participated in meaningful discussions that will impact on how they live their lives both now and in the future. This is a very important change and heralds the other changes now taking place in UAE society, on all levels. This thesis concludes that the stereotype of Arab women as largely ignored, downtrodden, bullied and forced against their will to cover themselves is highly inaccurate. The Western notion of the Arab family as a controlling unit is far too simplistic. The Emirati family structure is complex: no single description can encompass its varieties and specificities

Factors that Influence Emirati Male Achievement in Higher Education

The success of Emirati male students in higher education is one filled with positive interactions between the students, faculty, and staff. The influence of faculty in the success of Emirati males is vital to the overall curricular success of this student population. The strong cultural ties to seeking out elders for guidance and influence is easily replicated on college and university campuses. In this manuscript we examine the history of education in the Middle East from its inception to the meteoric rise of higher education. Through examining the past and present education we will explore how the cultural and societal norms have provided an instrumental key to the factors that help to encourage success amongst Emirati males. A two-fold study explored the factors that Emirati males believed has the greatest influence on their curricular and co-curricular success in higher education environments. Findings indicate that Emirati male achievement in higher education may be mediated by a sense of patriotism, obligation to represent the family, and influenced by interactions with faculty members

COVID-19: 20 countries’ higher education intra-period digital pedagogy responses

The Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created significant challenges for the global higher education community. Through a desktop analysis leveraging university and government sources where possible, we provide a timely map of the intra-period higher education responses to COVID-19 across 20 countries. We found that the responses by higher education providers have been diverse from having no response through to social isolation strategies on campus and rapid curriculum redevelopment for fully online offerings. We provide in our discussion a typology of the types of responses currently undertaken and assess the agility of higher education in preparing for the pandemic. We believe there are significant opportunities to learn from the pedagogical developments of other universities, in order to strengthen our collective response to COVID-19 now and into the future