On September 1st 2020, Dubai’s first Chinese-curriculum school opened its doors.
In a physically separated event, Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed, son of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, inaugurated the school. The Chinese government will provide financial assistance to the Mirdif non-profit school.
It is a popular residential area with a large Chinese community, providing access to basic Chinese schooling for inhabitants of Mirdif villas for rent. The institution claims to offer cutting-edge facilities as well as strict adherence to sanitization and safety procedures.
Sheikh Mansour greeted the first-ever Chinese public school to open outside of China, in Dubai, after unveiling the commemorative stone. He described how this programme represented the UAE’s and the People’s Republic of China’s friendship.
The inauguration took place in Zhejiang, China’s capital, with the full event broadcast live online from there. The Hangzhou Education Bureau employed the school’s officials and teachers directly. The school will have a capacity of 2,000 students and will be modelled after Hangzhou No 2 High School, one of Hangzhou’s internationally famous institutions that provides high-quality basic Chinese instruction.
Students will study Arabic, Islamic studies, and moral education in addition to the national Chinese curriculum. The school would not cater solely to the Chinese population in Dubai, but would also welcome students from other ethnicities.
According to Chinese Consul-General Li Xuhang, the school will follow the motto “All for the Students” and make efforts to nurture and promote citizens with an international perspective and humanistic achievements in order to achieve the goal of establishing a globally recognised Chinese school in basic education.
CSD (Chinese School Dubai) is a win-win collaboration between China and the UAE that aims to promote cultural exchanges and bilateral relations. The school will recruit students from China and other parts of the world to study, work, and live in Dubai. People from all over the world are already flocking to the City of Gold because of the job opportunities. Property finders are very popular in Dubai because there are so many people looking for properties.
CSD is the first Chinese school outside of China to get funding from the Chinese government. With the addition of this school, Dubai’s private sector now offers 18 different curricula.
Yin Liping, the school’s principal, said that 200 pupils have signed up for the trial batch’s first term. The school is scheduled to offer studies till the fifth grade at first. She discussed the growing desire for a Chinese school among Dubai’s Chinese minority. It only took them six months to prepare for the school’s opening.
She went on to talk about CSD’s future ambitions, including how they plan to offer full kindergarten through senior high school and eventually accommodate at least 1,800 kids on the Mirdif campus. Yin stated that another campus would be established in the emirate soon.
Dr Abdulla Al Karam, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director-General of the Knowledge and Human Development Authority KHDA, stated that China and the UAE have had a long friendship. And there’s no greater place to symbolize friendship than a school. CSD aspires to bring together parents and teachers, making this school the heart of the Chinese community and fostering a healthy teaching-learning exchange.
During the inauguration, health and safety standards were also observed. Temperature scanners and a large screen were put directly outside the main school building’s entrance. . On the left side of the entryway, there was also a disinfection booth. Multiple isolation areas were located on the right side of the entrance. Nurses in PPE were on hand at the school clinic (personal protective equipment).
Face masks were worn by everyone in attendance for the ceremony. At least two meters separated the desks and seats. A touch screen with a list of all the students and teachers was placed at each classroom’s door. Each person’s body temperature was also mentioned next to their name.
After each class, teachers were seen instructing kids to perform basic exercises and stretching. The school’s opening coincided with the beginning of the new academic year across the country. Schools have reopened, companies are gradually returning to normal, Dubai villas are available, and students are expected to return to school with tight safety measures in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
