Under the patronage of his Excellency Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, a workshop was held on Wednesday, November 5th 2014, at Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University in Dubai, the workshop is entitled dropout of students from higher education, with the aim of discussing the causes of dropout of students from Government or private higher education, with the participation of educational institutions in the State the strategic partners of the Ministry in order to come up with recommendations and a strategy to address the causes and mechanism of attracting students to the educational environment, taking into account the results of the opinion poll conducted by a joint team of the Ministry of Higher Education and educational institutions led by the University’s Chancellor, on the causes of student’s dropout of completing their education.
His Excellency the Minister took a field tour accompanied by Dr. Mansoor al Awar, Chancellor, Governing Board Member of the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education (IITE), and a number of Vice Chancellors of the University, and was briefed on the integrated learning environment available to learners and the University’s smart facilities, as well as the University-led initiatives in support of the smart transition, in line with the vision and directives of his Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, and Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and the University President.
His Excellency listened to a detailed explanation from the learners on virtual classrooms, which is a quantum leap in terms of promoting flexibility and quality of smart education, based on the most advanced techniques for the rehabilitation of a generation capable of building a smart and sustainable economy, the Minister was introduced to the smart vocational guidance services offered by the University, which aims to strengthen the bridges between future and current learners, alumni and the business community.
His Excellency Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mubarak was presented with the Cloud Campus, the first initiative of its kind based on the provision of high-quality e-learning via social networking sites, which allows students of different age groups the opportunity to have direct access to high-level educational resources within a virtual interactive study environment under the supervision of a qualified team to provide academic guidance and support to meet their aspirations for the future.
The Minister, at the end of the visit, praised the role of the University as a leading institution of higher education in the field of smart higher education, and he expressed his confidence that it would provide the State with qualified and required national cadres during the developmental stages of the developing future disciplines, in response to the requirements of the transition to a green economy.
