Rashid Al Kous: The goal is to focus on creative publications targeting children and young adults
Sharifa Mousa: We seek to support school curricula with literary products which is in line with the UAE Vision 2021
The Emirates Publishers Association (EPA) recently organised an introductory session titled, “The UAE School: Vision and Philosophy”, which brought together local publishers and representatives of the Ministry of Education at the Sharjah Publishing City (SPC). The meeting aimed to introduce local publishers to the ministry’s strategies in the field of educational publishing and the process to select publications that serves the education system in the country.
The meeting was attended by Rashid Al Kous, Executive Director of EPA; Sharifa Moussa, Director of the Department of Learning Resources and Educational Solutions at the Ministry of Education; Ousha Al Mazroui, Head of the Learning Resources Section; Mohammed Jameel, an expert in learning resources; and several representatives of local publishing houses and specialists in publishing and authorship in the country.
The ministry’s representatives introduced Emirati publishers to the strategy adopted by the ministry to support learning curricula with literary content and products that effectively contribute to strengthen the education system, keeping in line with the objectives of the UAE Vision 2021. Participants highlighted the current milestones established by the UAE in the book industry and called for further development through the release of literary and scientific publications that aligns with the education system.
Rashid Al Kous, Executive Director of EPA, said: “The meeting comes in conjunction with our strategic partnership with the Ministry of Education that was officially launched in May when Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, Founder and President of EPA, met with HE Hussain Al Hammadi, Minister of Education, during which they discussed ways of enhancing cooperation and explored means to develop the publishing sector in the UAE.”
Al Kous added: “The meeting identified the general framework for issues and topics that the two entities will continue to follow. The goal is to include more texts from Emirati publishers in the ministry’s curriculum and support students to hone their talent in creative writing by publishing their works as well as organising mini book exhibitions at schools to showcase locally made books.”
Sharifa Moussa, Director of the Department of Learning Resources and Educational Solutions at the Ministry of Education, highlighted the ministry’s keenness to support the publishing and writing movement in the UAE through its collaboration with EPA, as part of its efforts to be acquainted with approaches adopted by local publishing houses. The departments’ aim is to enrich the UAE’s education system with the highest quality of educational content, focusing on ethical values, scientific solutions, and innovations, among other literary works that can be incorporated into the ministry’s curriculum in the future.
Mousa pointed out that the ministry will continue to support the publishing movement in the UAE and encourage students to write, hoping that students’ works might be part of the ministry’s curriculum.
The meeting concluded with a host of recommendations beginning with the need to diversify books for children and youngsters to avoid repetition and stereotypes. Other recommendations include the importance of focusing on content that would contribute to developing student’s analytical skills, logical thinking, and problem solving on the grounds of scientific methods.
The Emirates Publishers Association (EPA) was founded in 2009 by Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi to serve and develop the publishing sector in the UAE, as well as to advance the role of Emirati publishers through training and mentoring programmes that help raise their efficiency. EPA represents the interests of professionals in the UAE’s publishing industry by working on advancing their rights. It constantly works to improve the conditions of the profession and its related laws in coordination and cooperation with concerned authorities in the UAE and beyond.