Wellbeing

What is our Moral Education Program all about at DESS?

Moral Education at DESS seeks to provide pupils with the knowledge, understanding, attitudes, values and skills they need in order to reach their potential as individuals and within the community. The curriculum is carefully planned and also focuses on a strengths-based approach to the students and the wider community. 

At DESS we have embraced all the the values of the subject of Moral Education. These values are covered across four domains or pillars of education; Character and Morality, Individual and Community, Civic Studies and Cultural Studies.

The scope of these pillars ensures that at DESS, we build character traits that include resilience, perseverance, critical thinking and creativity. We teach students practical and ethical values that are represented in the ethos of the school, which includes tolerance, honesty, dignity, respect, and humility.  Students learn about culture, both of the UAE and of the wider world, and are enabled to see the value and the wealth of culture around them. The lessons are interactive and collaborative with the combination of IT, drama, role play and project work. Circle time is also used an integral part  of the lessons and is used as a safe forum for discussing and sharing issues the children may have and then working together to find solutions to help them.

As social and emotional wellbeing is paramount to the DESS community, the 24 Character Strengths are interwoven through the Moral Education curriculum in order to improve emotional health, wellbeing, resilience and academic achievement. These strengths are universally valued, they exist within each of us and that they can be intentionally nurtured. Using a strengths-based approach in education has shown it can have a positive impact by helping to manage and overcome problems, improve relationships and enhance health, & well-being.

The children are also encouraged to take part in wide range of activities and experiences across and beyond the curriculum, contributing fully to the life of the school. In doing so they learn to recognise their own worth, work well with others and become increasingly responsible for their own learning.

There are opportunities to become members of the School Council, Prefects, House Captains or Sports Captains. All of which help develop the children’s leadership skills whilst giving them the opportunity to have a voice at DESS.

They learn to understand and respect each other, to celebrate diversity and differences so that they can go on to form the effective, fulfilling relationships that are essential part of life and learning.