PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss issues and imbalances in the workforce in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that result from the nation's relatively recent emergence as a powerful economy in the world. A federal initiative entitled Emiratization is addressed that is intended to improve employment amongst the local Emirati population who, at present, make up a minority of the working population. The role that one federal tertiary education system, the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT), contributes to this process is discussed with specific implications and challenges for Emiratizing the education system.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on secondary research concerning employment statistics and policy in the UAE and observations of HCT, specifically the BEd program within the colleges.FindingsThree main challenges facing HCT in its attempt to train Emiratis for employment in the education sector in the UAE are discussed in the paper.Practical implicationsThere are practical implications and suggestions discussed for improving the Emiratization of the teaching sector in the UAE. This sector is highlighted as a core area for the Emiratization initiative by the paper.Originality/valueThe UAE represents a unique cultural context, a blending of languages, religion, politics and ethics, with calls for rapid modernization of its government schools. This paper maps out the growing pains and so is of value to both educators and policy makers in similar settings.

Purpose -Many believe that in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) the perception of a national identity, as a construct amongst Emiratis, is under threat at the moment. The purpose of this paper is to examine this concern and describe how one educational establishment in the UAE, the Sharjah Higher Colleges of Technology (SHCT), a context that presents unique language and cultural issues, used a digital storytelling competition to address this issue with Emirati students. Design/methodology/approach -A total of 150 students at SHCT used a variety of tools to create digital stories around the theme of "Proudly Emirati", a topic aimed at building a sense of self. Stories covered topics ranging from family traditions to cultural icons. A case study investigated this initiative and addressed how the process of creating digital stories shaped the students' perspectives of self and national identity. We collected feedback on the digital storytelling initiative using focus group interviews and surveys with the students involved. Findings -Strong support is voiced for the competition and its impact on helping students express feelings of national pride and identity.Research limitations/implications -The survey addresses a limited number/range of issues and many more points and implications are raised in the focus group meetings that we would like to include in future research of digital storytelling. Practical implications -The paper highlights the practical implications and huge potential of digital storytelling for learning environments. Originality/value -This is an innovative approach to highlighting a contentious social issue with the students and community.

Designing and implementing pedagogies that support collaborative groupwork experiences and which also incorporate the use of information and communications technology is a commonplace, yet complex, task. This article describes a case study that uncovered problems with such an approach that employed interdisciplinary group projects in an undergraduate business program. Described is how the use of computers, in this context, constrained the participants' joint activity and therefore did not foster the elaboration of knowledge and critical thinking hoped for within the ideals of an integrated approach. The participants, instead, specialized with some students working hard to piece together a report whilst others loafed.

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In this world of rapidly evolving technologies, educational institutions often struggle to keep up with change. Change often requires a state of readiness at both the micro and macro levels. This paper looks at a tertiary institution that undertook a significant technology change initiative by introducing tablet based components for teaching a hardware course across nine campuses in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) using a Learning By Doing (LBD) philosophy. This paper adopts a readiness for change model (RFC) as a method of evaluating the results from a case study that captured the readiness perceptions of both students and faculty. A survey revealed that, while faculty thought that introducing tablets was a good idea and that there was a high level of RFC, they also thought that the students would learn more about hardware from desktop kits. The students' responses also indicates a high level of RFC with many describing tablets as easier to work on yet they were divided about which technology was better for learning hardware concepts. In this context a high level of readiness for change, while supported by LBD, did not necessarily equate to improved learning and effective change.