New teacher training institute to improve standards in Dubai

The Teacher Learning and Leadership for All or TELLAL will initially work in partnership with GEMS Education to improve best practice.

DUBAI // A teacher apprenticeship training institute has been opened to improve standards and encourage more Emiratis into the profession.

The Teacher Learning and Leadership for All, or Tellal, will first work in partnership with Gems Education to improve best practice.

The 10-month course starts next month for the first batch of 160 graduate students.

It will support new and existing teachers with training for early years, Arabic and special needs education.

“Tellal is a schools-led, schools-situated model of teacher learning, which has proven to work very effectively elsewhere,” said Dr Linda Rush, vice president of training at Tellal.

“Our conversations with education regulators in the UAE have shown how the apprenticeship model of teacher training has enormous potential for teachers here, especially Emirati teachers.”

The bilingual institute has been licensed by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority. During the course teachers will develop and learn teaching and leadership in school environments.

The pilot project will see training by tutors and mentors from Gems and Tellal.

“There is a great need to recruit and retain good quality teachers so our students get the best quality education in the world,” said Tony Little, group chief education officer for Gems.

“We also need to prepare them for higher education and for future jobs and this can come only if our teachers themselves are prepared.”

Next year, Tellal plans to expand to all education providers in the country.