• Home
• /
• UAE
• /
• Education

Do older teachers feel redundant in the UAE?

According to a 2015 OECD report, the UAE's teacher turnover is high (in a global context). The country has witnessed the trend of young, enthusiastic overseas teachers leaving in for a few years to make money and gain experience.

"I've been teaching here for 28 years and although teaching methods have greatly modernised over time, I still feel safe in my job as an older teacher."
Indian expatriate Poonam Vedi first came to the UAE to teach in 1988, with just six months teaching experience. Since then, the language teacher has remained in the same school in Abu Dhabi, teaching Hindi - quite a feat in a country used as a career stop-gap by many. According to a 2015 OECD report, the UAE's teacher turnover is high (in a global context). The country has witnessed the trend of young, enthusiastic overseas teachers leaving in for a few years to make money and gain experience.
But is this leaving the more mature teacher feeling redundant? Opinions swing both ways.
Vedi sees her 28-year teaching stretch as a strength. "Parents and teachers in my school tend to respect the more senior teachers because they have proved their worth, I guess," she told Khaleej Times.
But English expatriate VM says she feels left in limbo. "I've passed that enthusiastic young teacher stage, and I'm edging closer to that tired, worn out stage. It doesn't help that I am surrounded by young bucks." VM has been in Dubai for eight years, but said her teaching experience tends to get "overshadowed by new, modernised teaching methods".
Beena Mohan agreed. Mohan has been teaching for 32 years in the UAE and though she welcomes new learning techniques, she said young teachers have an advantage. "Older teachers need to be given more time to transition into this new digital teaching phase. The problem arises when we don't get the proper computer training to keep abreast with youngsters. But that does not reflect on our teaching abilities," she said. It is this constant changing of standards and unrealistic goal-setting that's taking its toll on VM. "When I see these younger versions of me boun-cing through the doors ready to take the teaching world by storm, I can't help but feel insecure in my job." But in an expatriate-filled country where opportunities are rife, she also says it's just part and parcel of the teaching game.
kelly@khaleejtimes.com