Dubai – Data revealed by the Arab Reading Challenge Initiative showed that six million students have participated in the second round of the challenge since its launch in November, compared to 3.6 million in the first round. Participants reached around 56.7% girls and 43.3% boys.
Schools partaking in the challenge exceeded 40,000 from 15 Arab countries. Supervisors who were assigned to follow up with students reached 75,000. Under the care of supervisors and schools’ managements, students have registered summaries of books they read for discussions and evaluation. The National Month of Reading was launched in March by Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice-president, prime minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai.
Sheikh Mohammad said that today marks the beginning of UAE’s Month of Reading at our schools, universities and facilities. His Highness wished success for everyone and considered that reading will remain the cornerstone to establish a generation that leads the future. The number of students hiked to six million from 40,000 schools across 15 Arab counties, said Sheikh Mohammad.
His Highness added that 75,000 supervisors are assigned to look after six million students so that we ensure that each one will have read 50 books by the end of the Academic year. Our civilization’s resumption begins in schools, Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid said. He also thanked the UAE Ministry of Education’s teamwork for the rise in participants in the UAE from 160,000 to 303,000 in one year.
The event’s organizing committee announced that March will see more than 1,000 reading activities organized by more than 66 federal and national entities and institutions from the private sector.
The National Month of Reading aims to enhance reading sustainability as a social phenomenon attracting the biggest number of readers who will be part in various activities.
The statement noted that students participating from the UAE have exceeded 300,000, while the biggest registration rate has been from Algeria, with more than two million students till this day. So far, an Algerian student named Mohammad Jalloud won the first round of the challenge.
The Arab Reading Challenge launched by Sheikh Mohammad has been considered the biggest Arab project aiming to boost dedication for knowledge in the heart of coming generations and to raise awareness among them towards the importance of reading and how it builds personalities, nurtures perspectives, develops self learning skills, and promotes the Arab language among students.