In order to modernise country's education system, developing it to meet the needs of the job market, Minister of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) H E Buthaina bint Ali Al Jabr Al Nuaimi has launched national e-learning strategy. This strategy aims to make a qualitative leap in adopting advanced e-learning methodologies and modern educational technologies to raise education outcomes by also considering that the provision of e-learning basics extends to all parties of the educational process.
Several initiatives, performance indicators and four main strategic objectives were derived from the strategy to achieve the desired goal of e-learning. MoEHE Undersecretary, Dr. Ibrahim bin Saleh Al Nuaimi, stressed that Qatar, under the wise leadership of Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, is keen to raise educational efficiency. He said the education efficiency is achieved by preparing and qualifying teachers, adopting modern technology in the field of teaching and assessment, saying Qatar was one of the first countries to introduce e-learning into its academic system.
Al Nuaimi said the education and training sector strategy 2018-2022 and the Ministry’s plans include many initiatives and programmes for raising the capabilities of teachers and students in the field of modern technologies. The Undersecretary said the strategy will be beneficial in raising the level of educational outputs in Qatar and contribute to providing university education to students with technological capabilities making them compatible for job market, upon graduation.
Al Nuaimi said the strategy will fulfil the goals of Qatar National Vision 2030 that seek to invest in human resources through an excellent educational system that provides students and teachers with what meets their needs and the needs of Qatari society and responds to the current and future needs of the labour market.
In his presentation, Nasser Mohammed Daoud, Adviser at the Office of the Minister of Education and Higher Education and Head of the E-Learning Strategy Project Management Team, mentioned that the strategy aims to support the government educational sector on several levels. He said the strategy aims at raising the level of educational outcomes in the country, coordinating the efforts of the parties to the educational system, improving students’ experience, upgrading the skills of academic and digital stakeholders, and raising the degree of inclusion of the parties to the educational process.
Daoud said that the e-learning strategy development project aimed to study the best practices adopted globally and how to benefit from them. He said this is to determine the strategic direction and the required improvements for capabilities, educational processes and systems to achieve the targeted future situation, identify the challenges facing e-learning in the ministry, and draw an executive plan that includes initiatives and a plan for communication and management of change.
Daoud reviewed the five axes of the strategy. The first axis is the strategic capabilities, which includes the e-learning strategy, the regulatory environment, governance and performance management. The second axis is the requirements, which includes employees, capabilities, the digital environment and digital content. The third axis is the provision of educational services; it includes methodologies and educational assets, e-learning, programme design, e-curricula, educational technologies, and e-assessment. The fourth axis is operational capabilities and includes cooperation, partnership, educational analytics, digital education culture, and quality assurance processes. The fifth axis is education outcomes, including the quality of education and the learner’s experience to link e-learning with the quality of education. Daoud said the ministry has reached an in-depth understanding of the current gaps in the e-learning system, while recognising many leading practices regarding the five axes of the e-learning strategy.
