Damascus-SANA
Today, the Ministry of Communications and Technology, in cooperation with the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), held a workshop entitled “Digital Transformation in the Educational and Educational Sectors” at Al-Assad National Library in Damascus.
The Minister of Communications and Technology, Eng. Iyad Al-Khatib, stressed in a speech during the workshop that the ministry is committed to all its responsibilities and is working to provide full support to the Ministries of Education and Higher Education and Scientific Research in the field of digital transformation by creating the necessary infrastructure for this, following up on the implementation of related projects, and reducing the value of internet portals designated for schools and others. One of the measures that contribute to raising the level of education.
In a speech during the opening of the workshop, Assistant Minister of Communications and Technology for Digital Transformation, Eng. Fadia Suleiman, explained that digital transformation should not target technology directly, but should focus on benefiting from its capabilities as a driving force to achieve comprehensive and sustainable innovative growth to reach digital Syria and achieve radical transformations in all sectors.
Suleiman pointed out that information and communication technology, with its huge potential and availability of information, contributes to improving education and innovation, as the digital transformation of education is not limited to providing services in the education sector digitally, or accessing content and classrooms on modern means of communication, but rather it goes beyond it to improving teaching methods and creating what called smart classes.
In turn, the Regional Adviser to Technology for Development at ESCWA, Dr. Nawar Al-Awa, pointed out that the conditions of the Corona pandemic motivated various educational and academic institutions to take advantage of the available technological tools, and called on decision-makers to reconsider the legitimacy of accepting documents, paying fees electronically, and completing procedures digitally via the Internet.
Dr. Al-Awa added: With regard to the education process, resources have become available through digital platforms, and lectures have been transformed into virtual (online) lessons, leading to the processes of evaluating knowledge and skills that have become digital, indicating that (ESCWA) aspires to crown its cooperation with the Ministry of Communications and Technology in this regard. The path to success and to have a direct impact in promoting the national sustainable development goals and moving from the stage of recovery to the stage of achieving growth in Syria.
The work of the workshop was divided into three sessions, the first came under the title (Digital Governmental Transformation and Sectoral Plans) and included a presentation by Dr. Al-Awa in which he explained the concepts of government digital transformation and its reality in the Arab region, policies for digitizing education and best practices in the educational sector, followed by a presentation by the President of the Syrian Virtual University, Dr. Khalil Ajami On the structure of the digital transformation strategy for the higher education sector.
During the second session chaired by Eng. Fadia Suleiman, which focused on (Digital Transformation in Governmental Education and Higher Education Institutions in Syria), a set of experiences in this field were reviewed. Eng. Ahmed Yaqobi, Director of Informatics at the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and Dr. Yasser Noah, Director Informatics in the Ministry of Education gave a presentation on the experience of each ministry and its digital transformation goals, how it seeks to reach those goals, and the digital systems and programs it adopts in its work.
The session also included a presentation on the experience of the Syrian Virtual University presented by Eng. Ihsan Al-Refai, Associate President of the University for Digital Transformation, and another on the experience of the Arab Academy for E-Business, presented by the President of the Academy, Dr. Mona Hassoun, explaining the approved virtual education models and electronic systems and how to build capacities in light of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the jobs it provides. The process of digital transformation and the jobs that it will eliminate permanently.
During the third session, chaired by Dr. Nawar Al-Awa, the issue of digital transformation in private higher education institutions was addressed, as the experience of the Arab International University was reviewed by the Vice President of the University, Dr. Ahmed Basil Al-Khashi, while the presentation of the Dean of the Faculty of Computer and Informatics Engineering at the Syrian Private University focused on the development of a system Business intelligence of academic data analysis at the university.
The session included the impact of information technology and its investment in traditional and virtual schools in two presentations presented by the Director of Informatics at the Small Village School, Eng. Waseem Al-Sous, and the Director of Informatics at the Syrian Smart Virtual School, Dr. Maher Wahba.
At the end of each session, a discussion was held with the attendees, where a set of questions and inquiries related to the topic at hand were raised, and a set of proposals were presented that would enhance the process of digital transformation in the structure of educational institutions and reach a cohesive generation capable of dealing with modern technology and keeping pace with the latest developments in it.
Louay Hosamou
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