Abu-Ghazaleh Calls for a Change in the Traditional Learning System, Announces University of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh

30 May 2012


At the Gulf Education London 2012






The University of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh facilitates blended, self, and life-long learning within a student support and management learning environment. It accommodates global trends in e-Education offering in the form of blended learning, e-Executive education and an accredited distance education for a specific learner segment of the society-Abu-Ghazaleh 



LONDON-------May 30, 2012------- Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, chairman of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAG-Org) and president of the Arab Organization for Quality Assurance in Education (AROQAE) said “It is most appropriate that this event focuses on education in the Gulf region, where major improvements have taken place during the last decade, yet many challenges remain.  It is in the Gulf region that we have the opportunity and the challenge to set the pace and lead the transformation in the educational systems of the Arab world as a whole."



In his keynote speech at the Gulf Education 2012 in London, Abu-Ghazaleh said:"  "We can all feel the tremors from the tectonic shift that is taking place in the entire world and, more specifically, in our region today. These events and trends and the forces that are driving them are inexorable. No region or country is immune to the rapidly accelerating  pace of change and so we must all learn to cope with and master the forces of history and technology that are driving and shaping a new world around us.”



“An invasion of armies can be resisted, but not an idea whose time has come”. Abu-Ghazaleh stressed that the key operative word is, "to learn."



"Qatar succeeded in attracting a huge number of international academic and educational institutions due to the country's excellent educational infrastructure and today Qatar became a role model for others to follow," he said.



The launch of the first event, Qatar Education in 2011 had an overwhelming response, attracting prestigious sponsors and high profile attendees alike. The specialized conference program took place in London, and provided a solid platform for Qatari delegates and international participants to enter discussions and form partnerships - driving educational development in Qatar. The event has become Gulf Education Conference & Exhibition 2012 and acts as a showcase to the commitment and investment of the Gulf countries to an extensive well-targeted global audience.



According to Abu-Ghazaleh change in education is inevitable and opportunities for change and reform are tremendous. 



Therefore, Abu-Ghazaleh announced the establishment of the University of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, a Corporate Virtual Global Premier higher education institution with rigorous academic programs in business offering the latest knowledge and technical skills that are required in today’s global economy.



"The University of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh facilitates blended, self, and life-long learning within a student support and management learning environment. It accommodates global trends in e-Education offering in the form of blended learning, e-Executive education and an accredited distance education for a specific learner segment of the society," he said.



"To some extent, change in education is inevitable and has been going on as new forms of teaching and learning have emerged to accommodate globalization and technological trends. Much of the appeal of change originates in the judgment that the current educational systems have failed to address today’s challenges and the most pressing problems in our economy, society, industry, and environment. With advances in ICT technologies, education can be dramatically enhanced to support delivery to all citizens anytime and anywhere on earth. The creation of a wider educational infrastructure accessible to the globe at large has an amazing potential in its impact on enabling better education for all," he added.



Abu-Ghazaleh pointed out the current situation in the Arab region regarding education saying:" The Arab region is known to be rich in history, culture, tradition, religion, and art, noted as invaluable assets that can be utilized to root our educational systems at all levels throughout the region. Public university structures are dominant in the Arab region constituting over 65% of the total number of Universities. Available statistics have shown that government expenditures on higher education (except in GCC countries) is limited and does not exceed 10% of the expenditures of that made in the industrialized countries."



According to Abu-Ghazaleh challenges are enormous.



"The challenges and issues are enormous, which include limitations on funding, localized quality standards, lack of policy directions, and inadequate educational resources. Governments have been realizing the declining status of higher education and have put so much effort to improve performance through partnerships, establish effective support systems to provide more opportunities, develop ICT infrastructure and quality assurance systems to enhance competitiveness and productivity, increase spending, and launch effective research and development programs," he said.



Abu-Ghazaleh also took part in the closing panel with Dr. Abdulla Baabood from the Gulf Research Centre, HE Professor Dlawer Ala’Aldee, Former Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Kurdistan and Mr. David Lock, Director of International Projects, The Leadership Foundation, UK.



At the end of the conference Abu-Ghazaleh invited attendees to attend the fourth annual conference on “Methods for Consensus and Common Standards for Quality Assurance and Accreditation in Education” (www.aroqa.org), which will be held at the League of Arab States June 24-26, 2012 in Cairo, Egypt.



The Gulf Education 2012 is a strategic event that provides substantial opportunities for international businesses in the education sector to create partnerships; and strike up meaningful business agreements with GCC member states.