The first Russian school in the Emirates

For the first time in the Emirates, students of a private Russian school in Sharjah began the school year in a new, purpose-built school building. At the request of our readers, we met with the founders of the school: Kurlykova Elena Mikhailovna and Magaref Samia Akhmedovna.

- Elena Mikhailovna in your tandem you are the director, the first question is for you: is it true that the first Russian school in the Emirates was opened in Sharjah?

E.K .: Indeed, it was so pleasing to God that our school is the first Russian school not only in the Emirates, but also on the entire Arabian Peninsula. We opened on September 1, 1995.

SM: Elena Mikhailovna is modest, silent, that the idea and implementation of this project completely belonged to her.

- Was it difficult to start first?

E.K .: It’s hard to say - to say nothing. New country, new laws, pessimism of others. In those years, everyone said: "The Russians are here temporarily, six months will not pass, and everyone will be scattered." Teachers did not believe, parents did not believe.

SM: But Elena Mikhailovna believed and was not mistaken. Imagine how it was for this fragile woman, the mother of three children, to carry such a burden. And so all 14 years: school, school, school.

- The result is obvious - three full editions, a beautiful new building, happy faces of children. Fourteen years is a story. Could you tell us a little about these years.

E.K .: We started in a small villa in Sharjah. I invested all my modest savings in class equipment, textbooks, and visual aids. There were teachers with me who believed in this project. All these years I was lucky because the main goal was to give a quality education to our children. And only a teacher can do this. A few people are still by my side. Then there were more children - the school expanded, we exchanged smaller villas for larger ones, but we always understood that no villa could replace a real school building. Children need space, they need specialized laboratories, compulsory sports. And how to do it in a villa, which was not originally intended for school.

The decision of the Ministry of Education to prohibit working in villas, no matter how difficult, we welcomed, since with the current number of students you can work only in specialized buildings. We are grateful to the Sharjah Ministry of Education for kindly providing us with a real school building.

- The story is glorious, but what is in the present?

E.K .: Land and construction of a new modern building.

- And again you are the first? Not hard?

EK: As we say in Russia: "The eyes are afraid, but the hands are doing!"

- Elena Mikhailovna and Samia Akhmedovna, when we agreed on the meeting, we decided that the conversation would be frank, so tell me, was everything smooth during these years?

E.K .: The answer is extremely frank - no, not all. There were difficulties with paperwork. There was envy and anger on the part of the losers. But we survived this, because we knew that our goal is to teach our children in a foreign land, and everything else is small and insignificant in comparison with this.

SM: As they say in your country: “You can’t throw a handkerchief on someone else’s mouth.” Of course, it is unpleasant when the parents, whose child is expelled for ignorance, begin to look for a reason not in their children, but they blacken the work of teachers and the director. But such, however, are few.

- You have competitors - a Russian school in Dubai. Is it difficult to work in conditions when you have to fight to attract students?

E.K .: I will answer sincerely - we have no competitors. There is some competition, but that’s good. This is an incentive for us, and for them to be better. Dubai Private School is a great principal. Often our teachers collaborate. Our English teachers are traditionally stronger, and so many students in the Dubai school take private lessons from them. The students of our schools are friends among themselves. It's fine. And the choice, where to teach your child, is ultimately made by the parents. Those who live in Sharjah make a choice in our favor, those who in Dubai - respectively, in favor of our colleagues.

SM: You know, for 10 years, we have been trying to quarrel among those who, looking at our successes, are going to open a third school. As a rule, these are people who see only business in education. It happens that a person, seeing the success of another, thinks that he can do it quickly. At the same time, he forgets that the school is not a stall, nor a cargo company. This is the fate of children, their future, and only then the material component.

- It turns out that you completely rely on the choice of parents. And how do they know that your school is better?

E.K .: We have a well-developed team of highly professional teachers, among whom over the past five years there has been no staff turnover. All teachers come from Russia. Moreover, there is a very strict selection for those who are going to work in the Emirates. Our math teacher, for example, has the title of “Teacher of the Year” in Russia.

You yourself made sure that we are located in the city center in a specialized, well-equipped school building. Computer classes are equipped with the latest models of educational computers. A computer science teacher gives high school students programming skills. The school library, which is used by both students and their parents, is fully equipped with educational literature, and also has more than 3 thousand volumes of fiction books. For full-fledged physical education, there is a equipped gym. A nurse is constantly at the school, and at the beginning of the school year and then on a monthly basis, children undergo a medical examination by a doctor. During the year, our doctor provides children with the necessary medical care.

SM: The merit of Elena Mikhailovna is that from the first day we have conducted additional classes in music and singing at our school. Starting this year, an art studio will be working at the school under the direction of the famous Russian artist - academician of Rostov V.K.

E.K .: An extended day group, which will start working this year, will allow students to prepare homework under the guidance of teachers, while parents are at work. And the main surprise of this year - thanks to the new building, we managed to get permission to open preparatory groups for the kindergarten, which is separated from the school and equipped with special playgrounds. There are even cages for a mini zoo.

- A kindergarten is wonderful, because the kindergartens that work in the Emirates now are far from perfect. Many parents, for example, are interested in food and transportation.

E.K .: Kindergartens, which are in Sharjah and Ajman, are not only not perfect, but also illegal, because they work without appropriate permissions. The issue of baby food is always important for parents. We offer children a weekly menu that is consistent with a dietitian. And cooking is done by professionals who have all the necessary permissions.

SM: A special employee is engaged in transport with us, who daily monitors the delivery and dispatch of children from Dubai, Sharjah, Umm Al-Quwain and Ajman. Each bus has a teacher attached, who is on the bus with the children during the trip. How does the school interact with parents?

E.K .: Very active. After all, we teach and educate our children together. We have a parent committee of the school, cool parent-teacher meetings are constantly held. The First Bell, New Year, March 8, graduation parties - all these events we organize together with the parents of the students, many of whom keep in touch with the school even after their children finish their studies.

SM: We have several children from the same family studying. Parents of such children are especially active and help our school a lot. The children of Sergey Khusnutdinov, Ismail Shangareev and many others are role models in our school.

- Please tell us about the discounts and tuition fees.

EK: The system of discounts is provided, both as assistance to those who do not have the opportunity to pay for the school in full, and to encourage excellent students. Of course, we provide discounts to large families, as well as those whose brothers and sisters studied or are studying at our school.

The cost of training at our school is higher than in others, since the quality of the education we provide is also much better. We always tell parents that a good education cannot be cheap. What thing do you wear with great pleasure - bought in an expensive boutique or in the Chinese market? And here you pay for the future of your child. How do you want to see it - expensive or cheap?

SM: We do not accept the position of parents who are trying to save money on school. But we always enter the position of those who want to give a quality education to children, but do not have the opportunities for this. This year we created a board of trustees, which included prominent representatives of business in the UAE, and appointed special awards for children from such families. But, of course, for children who study well.

- Who are these people, if not secret?

E.K .: There is no secret. These are respected people and companies both in the Emirates and in Russia. Rafik Salikhovich Gubaev, Rustar company; Nikolai Nikolaevich Martynov, TNK-BP; A. I. Mikhaylushkin, rector of SPGIEU; Sergey Vladimirovich Salov, General Director of Aeroflot in Dubai; Kirsan Nikolaevich Ilyumzhinov, President of the Republic of Kalmykia; Abubakar Alazovich Arsamakov, President of the Moscow Industrial Bank; Elshad Islamovich Abdullaev, Rector of the AMU.

SM: We also want to express our gratitude to the Consul General of Russia in Dubai, Sergey Alekseevich Krasnogor and his wife Larisa Arifovna, who do not leave our school without attention. Samia Akhmedovna, since Elena Mikhailovna began our conversation, you should complete it. You are an Arab by origin, and from the outside you can impartially say whether or not to give the child to study in Russian school?

S. M.: Yes, it is. Your education system is fundamental and fundamentally different from others. It is aimed at preparing a comprehensively developed personality. Everything is known in comparison: take certificates of Russian, Arabic and English schools. There are 14 items in the first, 7 in the second, and 4 in the last. Many of our children, who went to English schools without difficulty, came back saying that they were bored there. They are offered to teach mathematics and physics to the one that we studied two years ago.

- The trouble with the Russians is that they constantly scold themselves. But, actually, look - you are the best!

E.K .: The motto of our school is "With faith, hope and love!" for fourteen years remains unchanged. We believe in God, hope in Russia, and love our children.

- Thank you for the conversation, we wish you good luck in the new school year. And we offer our readers to receive additional information on the school website.

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