June 2025: Middle East Educators Discuss Future Readiness, AI and Effective Leadership
We’re excited to start a new monthly content series in which we’ll round up some of the recent news and commentary from across the region. This month, articles and interviews center on the rapidly shifting K-12 education landscape, driven by a commitment to prepare students for a dynamic, automated future.
Recent articles highlight several key themes shaping this transformation. A central focus is the shift towards holistic education, emphasizing real-world success and life skills beyond traditional academics. Significant attention is also being paid to the ethical and practical integration of AI into curricula, with schools actively exploring how technology can augment learning while preserving human agency. You’ll also hear about the well-being and professional development of school leaders and teachers in podcast interviews featured below.
Edarabia: How schools must help students 'unlearn' old teaching systems, become future-ready [Article]
“A child born today will enter the labor force around 2045. Yet, many of the systems we have in place to prepare them for the world that will challenge them are rooted in methods and models designed over a century ago,” said Ted Kemp, Chief Content Officer for Khaleej Times, at the recent Future of Learning: Innovation, Technology & Entrepreneurship event which focuses on strengthening the bilateral relationship between UAE and India. Siddharth Balachandran, Executive Chairman of Buimerc Corporation, stresses evolving models to prepare students for leadership, emphasizing incubation systems for real-world simulation, bridging the understanding gap rather than just skill development. Overall, speakers said “unlearning” outdated systems is important for future readiness.
Teach Middle East: Navigating School Leadership: A Conversation with Caz Jude [Podcast]
Caz Jude, a former school head and now leadership coach, believes coaching can be transformative for school leaders. In this conversation, she highlights how coaching provides a crucial space for leaders to reflect, celebrate successes, and navigate challenges in an often-isolating role. Jude, with over two decades of headship experience, shares insights on leadership transitions, cultural adaptations, and preventing burnout. The discussion also addresses specific hurdles for women in educational leadership, offering strategies for confidence-building and networking.
Education Middle East: Principal speak: How schools are preserving human agency in a world of automation [Article]
In a world increasingly shaped by automation, schools in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are actively integrating AI while making the preservation of human agency a priority. In this article, more than 15 school leaders from across the region share how their institutions are preparing students for an evolving future by equipping them with critical skills, without sacrificing fundamental human qualities. They advocate for ethical frameworks to guide AI integration, ensuring technology augments learning rather than replacing human interaction. Schools are adapting curricula, evolving assessment methods, and implementing risk management to promote responsible AI use and digital literacy.
Edarabia: Beyond Academics: Zubair Ahmad on Holistic Education and Real-World Student Success [Article]
Zubair Ahmad, Managing Director of Springdales School Dubai, champions a holistic education model emphasizing real-world student success beyond traditional academics. In this Q&A, Ahmad describes how his school sets priorities each year, the anticipated challenges for the next several years in education, how to keep students motivated in their learning, and how to help students build the skills for life after graduation. “My definition of success is the success of every learner who steps foot inside our school,” he says. “That can only be measured sometime after they’ve left the school.”
Teach Middle East: Teach Middle East Successfully Hosts Inaugural AI in Education Summit in Dubai [Article]
In April, Teach Middle East successfully hosted its inaugural AI in Education Summit in Dubai. The event united educators, school leaders, and technology experts to explore the integration of artificial intelligence in learning. Through keynote speeches, workshops, and panel discussions, participants delved into AI's impact, implementation strategies, teacher training, ethical considerations, and support for students with learning differences. Attracting attendees from across the GCC, UK, US, and Australia, the summit fostered a collaborative environment for sharing experiences and addressing challenges.
Teach Middle East: The Hidden Cost of Teacher Stress and How to Address It [Podcast]
Aakanksha Tangri, founder of Re:Set, shares her journey from political journalism to championing teacher well-being in the UAE, drawing inspiration from growing up with educator parents and experiencing burnout firsthand in her media career. Aakansha shares some of the signs of teacher burnout—including decreased engagement, emails after hours, increased sick days, and dipping morale—and practical strategies to address them. She also talks about aligning teacher well-being initiatives with the UAE National Well-Being Strategy 2031.