News & Event

The Ministry of Education concluded  the symposium on “The Future of School Building” organized in conjunction with the Urban October Conference, implemented by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning under the slogan “Urban Planning and Sustainability of Cities”, at the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Through this symposium, the Ministry of Education seeks to develop school buildings architecturally and structurally in a manner consistent with educational developments in modern education paths, and to keep pace with national developments in the field of city development and planning in accordance with Oman Vision 2040, and the requirements of educational development in the field of education. It also seeks to develop modern visions of engineering and architectural designs for future school buildings as an attractive educational environment and raise the level of partnership and integration between the role of the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning in the field of school buildings. In addition, the Ministry aim to meet the educational needs and requirements in the field of the school building that incubates education, in line with education development plans and strategies, update the construction specifications for school buildings in accordance with advanced standards, and create a national partnership between the various segments of the educational community and civil society with regard to developing the school building for the future.

The symposium discusses the topic (planning policies for the school building), and the aspects of planning policies for establishing schools in the future, in line with national strategies, and aspects of selecting schools, their locations, type, and capacity. The second topic is (structural design of the school building), from which several aspects emerge, including the contemporary engineering design of the school building in accordance with the Omani environment, the engineering and architectural technical specifications of the school building, and the engineering technical specifications of school facilities in general. The third topic is (the

educational environment in the future school building) which addresses the future school environment in light of the visions of developing education in the Sultanate of Oman, and the trends in implementing vocational and technical education, with a focus on the educational dimensions in the school building, in accordance with the visions of students and teachers and their future expectations.

The second day of the symposium included four sessions, where the first session included the presentation of four papers. Muhammad Al-Yahmadi from the Ministry of Education presented the first paper on the educational environment in school buildings under the titled: “Schools of the Future in Light of the Development of the Curriculum”, and in the structural design theme, Al-Anoud Al Hinai from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning presented the second working paper, which was entitled “Blue Schools in the Sultanate of Oman between Thought and Design.” Basma Salama Mustafa from the Oman College of Management and Technology presented the third working paper, titled “Applying Energy Design Using Simulation Modeling to Remove Carbon from Schools,” and Uday Al-Fori, CEO of Uday Engineering Company, presented the fourth paper on “Architectural Innovations for a Better Educational Environment for Tomorrow.”

The second session included the presentation of (4) papers in the structural design theme, where Saif Al Rawahi from Presence Architectural Consulting presented the first paper entitled “Towards Sustainable Materials”, and Bassem Al Hadi from the Ministry of Education presented the second paper which was entitled “Technical, Engineering and Architectural Specifications in school buildings and its impact on the educational environment.” Dr. Louay Ali Jabouri presented the third paper titled “I Love My School: Developing the Design Reality of Schools in the Sultanate of Oman,” and the fourth paper was titled “The Future of Project Management in School Buildings” and was presented by Hilal Al-Alawi from the Directorate-General of Education in Al-Dakhiliyah Governorate.

The third session included the presentation of (3) papers on the topic of financial sustainability, where Ghosn Al-Rashidi from Namaa Company presented the first paper entitled “The Experience of the Namaa Student Company for Agricultural Production at Abdullah bin Al-Abbas School,” and Issam Al-Hosni from the Ministry of Education presented the second paper, which was titled “Investment and Financial Sustainability of School Buildings in Future Urban Plans.” Ahmed Al-Alawi from Al-Sultan Private School presented the third paper

titled “Financial Sustainability: Challenges, Solutions, and Strategies for a Sustainable Educational Future.”

The fourth session included the presentation of (4) papers in the theme of planning policies, where Mazen Al-Dhahli from Muscat Municipality presented the first paper entitled “Challenges of Private School Building Permits”, and Aya Abdel Fattah Abbasi from the International College of Engineering and Technology presented the second paper which was entitled “Learning Cities.” Ahmed Al-Bahri from the Ministry of Education presented the third paper entitled “Planning Policies for School Buildings,” while Rania Abdel Rahman Othman Bashir from the Oman College of Management and Technology presented the last paper entitled “Applying Energy Design Using Simulation Modeling to Achieve Reduction of Carbon Emissions in Schools.”

The symposium is accompanied with two corners of the Ministry of Education, Said Al-Kalbani, Senior Digital Services Specialist, said: “Based on the Ministry of Education’s keenness to integrate technology into education and all its services and facilities and its endeavor to attract and participate with all members of society with their ideas and perceptions about the future of school buildings, the Ministry worked to operate two corners accompanying the symposium: the first is a special corner for artificial intelligence, in which students, teachers, engineers, painters, and parents participate to produce pictures and drawings, whether using digital design or artificial intelligence, to express their ideas, perceptions, and aspirations for what the school building could, using advanced models of artificial intelligence that transform students’ thoughts into images reflecting their true ideas and aspirations, and are easier to read and recognize.”

The artificial intelligence team in the Ministry of Education also worked hard to create visions for future schools according to what artificial intelligence itself predicts. In addition to activating technology further and attracting students’ ideas, the Minecraft application was activated, which a group of students used to express their ideas and perceptions through building a virtual environment that contains the school building, its facilities, and its services. As part of its keenness to benefit from the ideas of digital engineers and designers, the corner attracted a group of them and expressed their ideas through digital drawing with the use of artificial intelligence in improving the ideas, which produced visualizations of school buildings that are compatible with many standards and are in line with the future of education.

As for the second corner, the Ministry directed it to review the developments in work and achievements made by the Ministry and the directorates in various aspects that support the educational process and society. Some of the participating directorates also reviewed their plans and aspirations for the coming period in line with the Ministry’s plans to move towards a bright educational future.

The Artificial Intelligence Corner witnessed effective interaction from the students and a prolific production of pictures and drawings that reflect the students’ ideas and perceptions about school buildings in the future, which the Ministry of Education will analyze and submit as recommendations to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning. Wissal Al-Battashi student at grade 5 at Khawla bint Qais School for Basic Education said: “Using the “Minecraft” program, I was able to convey my ideas about the future school building, which included mainly introducing elements of nature into the school building, adding solar panels, and allocating some facilities that enable the development of students’ talents and skills, such as a studio and the swimming pool.”

Hamza Al-Zadjali, student at grade 4 at Al-Azaiba Basic Education School in Muscat Governorate, said: “The School Buildings Symposium was keen to take our ideas and aspirations about the shape of the school building in the future, so I suggested that schools pay great attention to school sports, which creates new capabilities for students by including the school courts for all sports, such as karate, jiu-jitsu, and tennis.”

Elias Al-Maawali, students at grade 6 at Muthanna bin Haritha Basic Education School (5-9) in Muscat Governorate, said: “I participated in the school buildings symposium by presenting several ideas, including that the roofs of school buildings be treed by designing and constructing roof gardens. Trees increase the air content and to reduce environmental risks, I proposed providing these roofs with solar panels, on which the school’s lighting depends.”