Establishing a Tes presence in the UAE will help alleviate regional teacher shortages and improve teacher quality
Tes has announced that it will open an office in Dubai to service the wider Middle East, demonstrating a commitment to reducing teacher shortages and helping improving teacher quality throughout the region. The company will be officially introduced to the Middle East market at the upcoming GESS event in Dubai, the region’s largest education event.
Tes has been supporting educators for over 100 years. Previously known as the Times Education Supplement, it is the world’s largest professional collaboration network for teachers, providing community, support, opportunity and inspiration for educators all over the world.
Highly qualified teachers from the UK engage with Tes on a daily basis. Having an office in Dubai will provide a link between a global pool of world-class teaching talent and schools in the Middle East looking for teachers that meet new regulations. Education leaders in the Middle East who are struggling to recruit high quality teaching talent will now have access to the extensive Tes network of global teaching talent, including teachers in the United Kingdom, USA, Canada, and Australia.
With the global teacher shortage impacting the Middle East acutely, being able to target highly trained teachers from abroad is expected to have a positive impact on teacher numbers in the region. The UAE relies on expatriate teachers for approximately 99 percent of teaching positions, with data from the International Schools Consultancy suggesting 47 percent of full-time teachers in the UAE are from the United Kingdom, and 13 percent are from the United States. Having access to a reliable pipeline of outstanding teaching talent will become increasingly important in the Emirates, as the student population looks set to grow significantly. According to Alpen Capital, student numbers are expected to increase by up to 20 percent by 2020, from 12.6 million in 2015 to around 15 million in 2020. The number of schools is also expected to increase substantially in the same period from, 1,200 to over 1,400.
As well as connecting schools in the UAE and wider region with this global community of teachers, Tes can also support schools and teachers through Tes Institute. A teacher training and professional development provider, it is accredited in the UK and is the UK’s largest specialist in delivering subject knowledge enhancement and pedagogy training to teachers through both online and blended approaches.
As governments and education institutions in the region invest heavily in teacher training to improve teacher standards, Tes Institute will make training more accessible and affordable, and more in line with the specific requirements of individual schools. Tes will offer tailored training and professional development programmes, where educators and school leaders can build bespoke solutions, choosing the subjects and courses that best match their needs. Many Tes Institute programmes are offered as online or blended options, ensuring flexibility and access for teachers across the region. There are also plans for Tes Institute to offer an International Postgraduate Certificate in Education (iPGCE)[1], giving GCC-based teachers the opportunity to gain a Master’s level qualification from a leading UK university.
Tes will also be able to support schools and teachers in the Middle East in other ways. Tes provides globally relevant education news and analysis. Plus, as the largest teaching resource-sharing platforms in the world, with more than one million resources downloaded on a typical day, Tes resources will help teachers in the region deliver proven, high-quality lessons.
CEO of Tes, Rob Grimshaw, will visit Dubai to attend the GESS event and launch Tes operations in the region. He says:
“Tes is delighted to be expanding its partnership with schools and teachers in the Middle East by opening an office in Dubai. The UAE, like many of its neighbours, has seen improvements in its education system over recent years, with student performance improving across all educational indicators. Tes can be a valuable partner in supporting further success in the region. This could be by offering teachers the support, inspiration and tools needed to excel at what they are most passionate about – teaching. And also through working with schools and leaders to support their plans to expand and attract more great teaching talent.”
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