Microsoft Bahrain, in collaboration with the Kingdom’s Ministry of Education, hosted a series of workshops over three days to discuss “Education Transformation” with representatives from the public and private education sectors.

These workshops are part of the efforts undertaken in order to facilitate the adoption and integration of technology in the education process.

Nawal Al Khater, assistant undersecretary for planning and information, Ministry of Education, said:  “Educational reform is a vital part of Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030 and we are really pleased to have Microsoft, a global leader in the Information and communications technology (ICT) sector as our technology partner. We highly value their support in keeping our team up to date with the latest technologies and applaud their continued investment in the Education sector locally and globally.”

Sherif Tawfik, general manager for Microsoft in Bahrain and Oman, said: “We are really excited to meet with the education community in Bahrain, listen to their challenges and introduce them to the latest solutions available to help them do their jobs more efficiently and achieve their learning objectives.”

“At Microsoft, we assume our responsibility to provide Education institutions the needed training resources and building the local community to support the teaching of 21st century skills that prepare today’s Bahraini youth for the competitive future workforce,” he added.

The two-day workshop, held in November under the theme “A Transformation Framework for Education: Critical Components and Conversations for the 21st Century” was attended by over 30 Ministry of Education staff members. This workshop discussed the critical components needed to drive large-scale education transformation and technology deployment and introduced the participants to the latest technical solution designs.

Nabil Khalil Saleh, e-Learning Implementation director at the Ministry of Education applauded Microsoft’s relentless efforts in supporting the education community in Bahrain and encouraged the players from the different educational institutions to benefit from these sessions that shed light on different global learning trends with a focus on the Gulf region and the lessons derived from these initiatives.

The “Education Day 2014” workshop held recently, attracted professionals from public and private schools as well as higher education institutions from across the country; this one-day think-tank session provided participants insights into the latest technologies that can create a smart learning environment to meet the needs of today’s students.  During the course of the day, speakers from Microsoft Education and Tablet Academy highlighted the role that technology plays in pedagogy to deliver an enhanced learning experience to the students and support the teacher’s beyond the walls of the classroom.

The workshops were delivered by international experts such as Aidan McCarthy, director of the Global Digital Learning Strategy team for Microsoft Corporation’s Worldwide Public Sector organisation and Wole Moses, Education Devices Lead, Worldwide Education team at Microsoft Corporation; both veterans flew in to Bahrain specifically to deliver these sessions.

Tawfik concluded: “We believe that education is a very important investment in the future of individuals and nations and a vital component to achieve sustainable social and economic success. Consequently, we will continue working closely with the Ministry of Education and all educational establishments in Bahrain towards achieving the educational reform as part of the Bahrain Economic Vision 2030.” – TradeArabia News Service