Doha: The Ministry of Education and Higher Education has asked schools to address learning losses among their students that occurred due to the closure of schools because of COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have directed schools to address learning losses of their students with the support of all available resources utilising their presence in classrooms after a long gap,” said Director of the Educational Guidance Department at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Moza Al Madhaka.
Speaking in a Qatar Radio programme, she said the educational process is running smoothly with mid-term exam of first semester. The mid-term exam of first semester for day schools from grades 1 to 11 for the academic year 2021-22 that started on October 10 will continue until October 19, 2021.
She said that the Ministry assured that schools utilise the entire school hours, from the first lesson to the last, and the examination hour did not affect the course of the day, as the educational process is very much important. “On this basis, our students complete their school day in regular education in order to ensure bridging the learning gap and provide them with the knowledge and skills that qualify them to move to the next stage,” said Al Madhaka.
She thanked school managements and teachers for their great efforts in ensuring the continuity of education process during the pandemic. “Thanks to their cooperation, dedication and sincerity.
The Ministry has overcome the most difficult stage in the history of modern education, and the State of Qatar was able to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on students and their future.”
She said that allocating one period for mid-term exam of first semester in the primary and preparatory stages in some subjects is sufficient, noting that the time was taken into account with the number of questions, academic level, age of student and other criteria.
“We will not put questions that require an hour and a half from the student to solve and they are given only an hour. On the contrary, we give them more and not less time. If the exam time is an hour, the student can answer them in 45 minutes,” said Al Madhaka.
She said that many things have been taken into account in determining the time, and on the basis of this, the examination was set in a period for the primary and preparatory stages, and two periods for Arabic and English in the same two stages, considering other required skills such as writing, speaking and listening which take time.
