When Finland and later Singapore and other countries of the world sought to make a deeply-rooted human and developmental progress, they focused first on their educational status and its fundamentals and requirements and realized the importance of changing it radically until they became on a par with leading countries of the world in terms of education and development.
 
These countries are giving nowadays inspirational examples, lessons and stories to the entire world in that they achieved success over a few years, during which they were able to change everything including difficult circumstances and challenges in their favor.
 
We are not less ambitious or strong-willed than those countries that have nowadays become an important station in modern education, providing competitive qualitative outputs. We have the will, determination, ambition, vision and potential, coupled with firm convictions that Zayed the founding father, may Allah rest his soul, instilled in his sons, prompting them to have enough ambition to be unique and achieve one milestone after another.
 
Any new idea has its supporters and opponents; this is universally unquestionable because having no conflicting viewpoints, commodities would remain unsold. Although education is an investment in the future, criticism must be constructive and based on agreeable, clear and sound justifications, while conflicting viewpoints should basically seek optimization.
 
It is now five years since the Emirati School Model started to be developed together with its subsequent educational programs, plans and policies. Some may inquire what difference this system has made and if we are heading in the right direction. To all those hesitant, distrustful and supporters, we say we have nowadays world-class curricula and education courses that adapt to the aptitudes of our students. We have an education system, which is based on the aspirations, programs and plans of the UAE Centennial 2071.
 
We are nowadays building a new generation that began to absorb the modern education concepts after having attended the launch of the Emirati School Model and gained all its features, knowledge, values and skills. We are nowadays no longer relying on instruction but assimilation, critical understanding and skill have become features of Emirati students. We have nowadays a higher education strategy that keeps pace with the future of other developmental sectors and labor market requirements. Educationally, we are nowadays prepared for the future more than ever because the vision is clear and the goals have been carefully and meticulously set.
 
The Emirati School Model has nowadays become an incubator for creativity and innovators and is playing several social and reciprocal roles as seen in parents’ interaction with our students’ inputs, innovations, ambitions and hopes; or when we talk to them about their aspirations and they say they want to embrace space and study engineering, genetics, mathematics, robotics and artificial intelligence; or when they assert that their ambition is to be number one, which the wise leadership instilled in their thinking, approach and life.
 
We are at stake; to be or not to be that hard number and exceptional case in the region from the educational perspective. There is no doubt that all of you share with me this dream, which has come so close, thanks to our concerted efforts, solidarity and the belief in the importance of change and our ability to succeed in achieving this noble goal of ours if we adopt an optimistic outlook towards a bright future and sustainable education, God willing.
 

HE Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi
Minister of Education