I don't think school meals are contributing to obesity (Survey says: School meals in the UAE, November 26). As long as children are physically and mentally active, they will burn calories.
What contributes to obesity among other things is sedentary lifestyle, too much reliance on television and video games, portion sizes and mindless snacking. It’s time for parents to take some responsibility.
Jayadevi Machaya Palekanda, Dubai
More effort needed to deal with abuse
It is great to see that the UAE government is doing so much to improve legislation and create an infrastructure for the protection of children from domestic abuse (Hundreds of abuse cases unreported, November 26).
It is also impressive to see the speed at which these things are done here. However, it would be helpful if in your articles you could mention who women and children can turn to when they are in need of help.
It is also not enough to visit these families a couple of times, as children who are continuously abused need long-term help.
School teachers can be of great help in alerting the authorities to such cases, as they see the children every day and probably can spot an abused child immediately. They also must be trained to be more aware. They should speak to concerned parents and, if no change is achieved, should seek help from a government institution.
Rita Amer, Dubai
The reason why many domestic violence cases go unreported is probably because some women find it uncomfortable to talk about this issue. So what does this tell us? It proves that women do not have enough power to resist abuse.
Victims must be encouraged to report such cases to the police or seek help from their families. However, these are not a long-term solution. As a former criminal prosecutor, I have come across a large number of repeat offenders.
For years I have campaigned for women’s empowerment and against domestic violence. But at the end I realised it’s a futile exercise. The only way women can break this cycle of violence is by empowering themselves.
They should try to overcome the challenges and focus on the life they deserve. Anyone involved in supporting these women should try to empower them.
Suraya Turk, Dubai
How can we save Arabic?
I think having Arabic taught in the mostly expatriate schools is a very good idea, once three facts are addressed and changing them is made a priority.
First, there must be good teachers who understand how to teach other cultures. My sons were excited to learn Arabic before coming to the UAE, but lost all interest after being humiliated and bullied by teachers with yelling and other means, all of which is viewed as a teacher’s lack of personal control by western students.
Second, must be good curriculum. After two and a half years of Arabic, my eldest knows “yes”, “no”, “please”, “thank you”, five numbers, seven food items, six colour names, three days of the week, 12 months, four hair colours, four kinds of family relationships and 15 descriptive words like “fat”, as the teacher brought a larger kid to the class to demonstrate the term.
Third, is parental involvement. Many parents would help their child learn the language if there were a primer with the phonetics next to its Arabic word and its English equivalent.
If these changes are not made, we are only wasting valuable school time and causing our children to leave this country with a negative view of the Arabic language and Arabic culture.
Name withheld by request
I think a great idea would be if the Government were to offer local language courses for expatriates, similar to those in Germany.
As a Briton with just one language, I have been looking for a recognised, affordable way to learn the local style of Arabic. I know many others in the same boat. This would also fit in with the vision outlined in this article.
Flaming M, Dubai
Television needs an upgrade
I think television needs an upgrade (The gold standard, November 25). I have watched some of the dramas on du and they are just as violent towards women as any western drama. You have to try another source to see anything worth watching, in my humble opinion.
Jen Bishop, Abu Dhabi