UAE bans private tutoring in homes and all other facilities

The UAE’s Ministry of Education (MoE) has banned all forms of private in-person tutoring offered to students at residences, educational institutions or any other locations in the country, reported official news agency WAM on Thursday.

Remote learning offered to students is exempted from this rule.

The ministry said that the decision was a result of its preventative and precautionary measures to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus and to protect the health of students and the general public.

On Monday, the UAE government decided to extend the e-learning programme currently underway in all educational facilities, including public and private schools and universities, across the country until the end of the academic year in June.

Read: All UAE schools, universities to extend e-learning programmes until June

In the current environment of financial uncertainty, the extension of the remote learning programme has prompted parents to seek relief related to school fees.

Several schools across the country have responded to the situation by waiving tuition and transportation fees.

Read: Covid-19: Schools at liberty to cut tuition fee; transportation fee must be refunded – KHDA

Few schools such as GEMS Education have reportedly said it will offer discounts to parents subject to them submitting details of their ongoing financial situation.

Meanwhile, Dubai’s education regulator Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) has clarified that schools are at liberty to offer a discount on school fees during the period of distance learning. However, it clarified that all bus fees for Term 3 (Term 1 for Indian & Pakistani schools) must be refunded to parents.