Education in the UAE--Let's Get Our Learn On!

As if moving across the globe weren’t enough of an experience, transferring schools midyear has been an experience I could have done without.
Mostly due to the fact we had to wait an inordinate amount of time for the sponsorship letter proving we would, in fact, be moving (who would make THAT one up?), we were unable to enroll the children in our preferred school. And, actually, our first three choices were full by the time we arrived. Finally, we chose the American International School. And while it was our last choice, it was only last based on geography. The boys have about an hour bus ride each way. Since buses are new experiences for Thomas and Lucas, they’re more than thrilled to wake 25 minutes earlier.
The curriculum is similar to the American, as it is an accredited American school. Basically, the only difference is that it’s set in Abu Dhabi. Oh, and they teach Arabic as well. Considering the boys were learning Spanish at their former school—a foreign language class is not that . . . well, foreign. Thomas excitedly showed us his name in Arabic from his first class. Poor kid has just mastered writing left to right, now we throw in Arabic, which is written from right to left. Studies show language acquisition is much faster for children, and pronunciation without a ‘foreign’ accent is less. And, as our world becomes more connected, multilingualism will be an invaluable asset in the workplace. Indeed, one of the benefits of taking this position was the fact we could offer opportunities to travel and learn that we would not otherwise be able to offer the children. To close, Albert Einstein said it best, “Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.”