UAE February 11th,2026: The United Arab Emirates is facing an increasing trend of student absences, especially on Fridays and on the days just preceding the occurrence of public holidays. Lawmakers and educators indicate that the trend, which has now been termed as mass absences, is posing a threat to the academic standards and discipline in schools. Officials say that both the school and the family have a role to play in ensuring that student absences are minimized and work towards ensuring that educational performance is consistent and the general educational environment is enhanced in the UAE.
Increasing Student Absences Sound Red Flags In Parliament
During one of the latest meetings of the Federal National Council (FNC), one of its members Dr. Moza Al Shehhi expressed worries on the fact that a record number of student absences is being registered during weekends and official holiday breaks. She described the problem as a major challenge facing the education system in the country and she urged the ministry of education to take serious measures.
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In reaction to the legislators, Minister of Education Sarah Al Amiri presented a new array of actions that will help minimize the number of student absences and increase the school attendance rates. These include:
- Ministerial Resolution No. 79 of 2025, the standardisation of attendance regulations in the public schools.
- Implementation of electronic systems of attendance monitoring to be able to trace students in real time.
- Immediate messages to parents regarding absence of a student.
- A detailed guide to attendance management in the 20252026 academic year including the establishment of coherent limits of absence.
Within the new policy, Fridays and immediately preceding a public holiday are considered as days where an absence is twice the penalty of skipping school.
Penalties On Excess Of Absence
Schools can go further to reinforce compliance by making stricter measures, when students have gone beyond the acceptable number of absences:
- Suspension of report cards of students who exceed the stipulated limit.
- Verbal commitments to be made by parents of the school absentees.
- Making referrals of cases of chronic absenteeism to child protection authorities where need be.
Even the regulations limit unreasonable student absences to 15 days in a year. This is not only meant to ensure that truancy is punished, but to also make students responsible and consistent.
FNC Speaker Saqr Ghobash emphasized that the task of the reduction of student absences is not the work of the Ministry only. He said that parents, and families have a role to play to ensure that children go to school on a regular basis and that they appreciate the value of learning.
Reasons Why Attendance Matters
Education authorities contend that regular attendance to school has a direct effect on achievement in academics, socialization and the eventual success of a student. Regular student absences particularly during holiday seasons will interfere with the learning processes and increase achievement gaps.
The newer policies on attendance are a continuation of a wider plan to enhance discipline and accountability, as well as education results in the UAE. Gauging absences and strengthening relationships with families, authorities hope to establish the culture in which the attendance at schools becomes the rule, rather than an exception. The ministry of education responded by putting up more stringent attendance measures such as real-time electronic monitoring, immediate parent notifications. According to the new regulations, Fridays and preceding holidays will be considered twice so that students do not have the intention of skipping school.
Student absences above the permitted number of absences could also be penalized by denying them report cards, signing parental pledges or referring them to the child protection experts in the worst case scenario. Maximum number of unjustified absenteeism is 15 days an academic year.
Officials indicated that both the school and the family have a role to play in ensuring that student absences are minimized and work towards ensuring that educational performance is consistent and the general educational environment is enhanced in the UAE.
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