Pearson Hosts Webinars Series On #TheNewNormal

Pearson, the world’s learning company today announced that it will conduct a series of six interactive live webinars for education professionals and principals across the Middle East. For that, Pearson will bring together renowned experts across the region and from other countries globally, including Dr Abdulla Al Karam (Chairman of the Board of Directors & Director General, KHDA, Dubai).

The free interactive webinars will be offered covering topics including education in 2020, more than school, assessment in testing times and transitions’, experience-based learning, parenting, online and offline training in the new normal. Educators of all types will find useful tips and resources to help bring technology in their learning and take training to the next level.

Emma Whale, Vice President - Schools, Pearson Middle East commented, “The transition from in-person to online learning isn’t easy and having access to the right tools and information will help ease the stress of distance learning during this unprecedented time. Our aim at Pearson is to inspire educators to help equip students with the knowledge and the skills they need to make progress in their lives through learning. The ‘New Normal’ webinar series supports educators on their journey of discovery and learning, providing them with insights that will share the learning opportunities they provide for their students. We have already received an overwhelming number of registrations to date on our first webinar and are proud to welcome the Ministry of Education.”

Dr Abdulla Al Karam, Chairman of the Board of Directors & Director General, KHDA, and one of the panellists of the first upcoming webinar also commented, “We have never had such an opportunity to transform education as we do now. The physical closure of schools and universities has revealed their ultimate strengths: to bring people together and enable them to have the friendships that will help them thrive at school, at work and in life. As we begin thinking of what the post-COVID world will look like, we can be certain of one thing: that for high-quality schools and universities, what was good enough before will not be good enough after. We’re grateful to our friends at Pearson for the chance to be part of the Ramadan webinar series.”

The six-webinar series includes:

• Education 2020 and #TheNewNormal, 19 May, 4pm (experts: Dr Abdulla Al Karam, Chair and Director General – KHDA, Dubai; Kate Ancketill, CEO – GDR Creative Intelligence, UK; Rachel Brodie, Global Portfolio, Director, BETT, UK). The session will explore how COVID-19 has impacted education in the Middle East and globally. What is #TheNewNormal? How will what we are doing now impact education delivery in the future?
• More than a School in #TheNewNormal, 26 May, 7pm (experts: Dr Mary Ashun, Principal – Ghana, International School, Ghana; Dr Anurabh Singh, Director – Nehru World School, India; Kieron Peacock, Headmaster – The English School, Kuwait). Topic: what will the school in #TheNewNormal looks like and how will it lead us forward into a better future?
• Testing times and transitions in #TheNewNormal, 2 June, 7pm (experts: Emma Whale, Vice President, Schools, Pearson Middle East, Dr Ameena Hussain, Chief Curator and Programme Director – WISE; Lord Jim Knight, MD and Chief Education, Advisor –TES Global, UK; James Neill; International Director – GL Education, UK). Topic: In excess of 1.5 billion children have not been formally tested during 2020, so far at least. Teacher assessments are the centre of the agenda once more - a good thing or not? What have we learned so far? And whatever next for assessment in #TheNewNormal?
• Experience-based learning” learning outside the classroom in #TheNewNormal,
• 9 June, 7pm (experts: Xavier Lopez Ancona, Founder and President – KidZania, Mexico; Ekaterina Melikhova, Head of Children’s Projects Development Department - The Polytechnic Museum Moscow, Russia; Jasper Hope, Former CEO – Dubai Opera). Topic: Learning outside the classroom has become an increasingly important component of education. From work experience to school visits, learning outside the classroom adds purpose, independence and life skills. So, where does this leave us post-COVID-19, in #TheNewNormal?
• Parenting in the #TheNewNormal, 16 June, 7pm (experts: Professor Maggie, Atkinson, Former Children’s Commissioner for England, UK; Henry Platten, Founder and CEO – GoBubble, UK; Georgia Tolley, Freelance Journalist – BBC & Dubai Eye 103.8, UAE). Topic: The role of the parent as a co-teacher certainly made the headlines during the COVID-19 crisis. So, what happened, what has changed and how do we collectively cope with #TheNewNormal?
• Online/offline: Who is the teacher in #TheNewNormal, 23 June, 7pm (experts: Faisal Ali Balushi, Chair – Omani Society for Educational Technology, Oman; Janecke Aarnaes, Head of School – Dwight School, Dubai; Professor Colin Beard, Author, Thinker and Practitioner of Experiential Learning). Topic: What the new balance is like between online and offline schooling and what implications this has for the teaching profession. The essence of the matter may well be to ask ourselves who our new teachers are in #TheNewNormal?

The webinars will be hosted by Professor Dr Ger Graus OBE, Global Director of Education for KidZania, joined by thought-leaders from the education sector and beyond to discuss the current state of the industry, what the future may look like and lessons to be learnt. In #TheNewNormal, series of live interactive webinars, Professor Dr Graus will join a renowned group of scholars and leaders to discuss the effects of this global epidemic on education in the Middle East and Globally and extrapolate the new normal in education post Covid19.

"I am very excited to be hosting #The NewNormal and to be welcoming many of education thought-leader friends from across the globe. The concept we have developed is one of a ‘fireside chat’, cosy, informative, a little light-hearted where possible. The panel will be interested in you, who you are, what you do and believe, and what you ask of us. The topic of debate is likely to be difficult and challenging at times and the responses will focus on looking ahead and on silver linings, and on the affecting change for the benefit of our children’s futures,” added Professor Dr Graus.

One of the panellists, Faisal Ali Al Balushi. Chairman, Omani Society for Education Technology said, “There is an old saying in Arabic that says that the present is not lasting and change is inevitable. Little did we know that one day we would be confronted with a new reality that demands the change in education to be dramatic and rapid. We are now aware more than ever that the changes in the education sector due to covid19 is not and should not be temporary and that this new global epidemic is imposing a new reality on education that we need to cope with. The regional and global educational communities are joining forces to analyse the initial reactions and different educational initiatives to mitigate the impacts of school closure due to Covid19, and to envision the future of education post Covid19”.

Aiming to generate thought-provoking discussions and innovative ways to improve education outcomes during and post-COVID in schools, #TheNewNormal series by Pearson are designed to support schools and educational institutions in the UAE and across the Middle East region at this challenging time.