20 Dubai students fly to Milan to experience Expo 2015

A 15-year-old Emirati student of Al Khaleej School, Khalfan bin Hableel, is all set for Dubai Expo 2020. "I don't want to wait till 2020 to contribute. The work towards making the Expo a success has already begun," said Khalfan.
He is among the 20 students of the school who visited the Milan Expo, held under the theme 'Feeding the Planet, Energy for life', earlier this year.
As part of a collaborative effort between GEMS Education and Etihad Airways, 20 students of Al Khaleej School were given the opportunity to fly to Milan to experience Expo 2015 first-hand.
The predominantly Emirati group also consisted of students from Egypt, Lebanon, Pakistan, and one Palestinian-American.
The students left for Milan on October 16 and returned in 10 days to say that their lives will never be the same again. The school has also decided to integrate the theme of Dubai Expo into the school curriculum starting January-February.
"The material will not be integrated into a textbook.However, students will be made to take part in projects and group discussions that will educate them about the Expo," said Ghadeer Abu-Shamat, Principal and CEO of Al Khaleej School. The lessons will be more research and enquiry based. "It will be entirely student-centric approach, where children will be asked to do projects and make presentations on whatever they've learned," she added.
When the idea was initially floated to the students, they had very little idea on what an Expo is. "We encouraged them to research the subject and read all available material about the Expo. The trip was not an excursion for the children. It was a business trip," she said.
Students who have already visited the Expo will give presentations to younger students, giving them valuable insights on how an Expo works. "This is how we are preparing the students to enter the market ready to face real world challenges," said Abu-Shamat.
"By 2020 many of the students will be in university and will be ready to become members of the workforce. By training them now, they will be ready by 2020," she added.
Life-changing experience
"It is unlike anything that I've ever experienced. It's not just a bunch of companies trying to exhibit and sell their products," added Khalfan.
According to the young Emirati, the Expo is an excellent opportunity to exchange ideas without barriers. "I saw members of the Qatar pavilion work and exchange ideas seamlessly with members in the Israeli community.There is no race, no colour, creed, or cultural differences. People are all working towards a common cause," said Khalfan.
"We left for the Expo on October 16, and returned on the 26th.Those 10 days changed everything for me," added Nada Sultan Darwish (16). "I was fascinated by the story of UAE that was presented at the pavilion. It was truly beautiful," she said.
Students were also asked to pick subjects of their interest, interview people in the pavilions, and make projects and presentations over it.
Emirati national Reem Fahd Al Awadhi (16) said that this was the first time she travelled away from her family and it instilled immense confidence in her.
"I learned to depend on myself and to be more accepting of other cultures," she said.
Another Emirati student Fatma Khalid Rehma (15) said: "Something very interesting that we noticed is that most people who we met in Milan were very curious about Arab culture. They were very keen about our abayas and traditional clothing and wanted to learn more about us, which is extremely positive."
dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai