Abu Dhabi \u2013 Wednesday, 12 August 2026<\/p>\n
The General Secretariat of the Khalifa Award for Education, one of the institutions under the Erth Zayed Philanthropies, expressed its pride in the strong participation witnessed during the previous cycle from leading international institutions and researchers specialising in early childhood development in the Khalifa International Award for Early Learning.
\nThe General Secretariat noted that Sabre Education, from the United Kingdom, won the Best Programs, Curricula, and Teaching Methodologies and Practices category. The achievement reflects the Award\u2019s vision and mission of creating a positive humanitarian impact globally by highlighting outstanding scientific and practical approaches to early childhood care and by promoting educational environments that support children\u2019s healthy, educational and social development, while also enabling the early identification of their talents so that relevant entities can nurture them in the future.
\nHumaid Al Houti, Secretary General of the Khalifa Award for Education, emphasised the importance of the Khalifa International Award for Early Learning and its role in highlighting leading scientific and practical practices in the care and education of young children worldwide.
\nHe noted that Sabre Education\u2019s win reflects the success of its distinguished educational programme for children based on play-based learning. According to the organisation\u2019s studies, the programme has established a pioneering educational model for children and is being scaled nationally to reach more than 30,000 kindergarten teachers in Ghana\u2019s public education system, enabling each teacher to create vibrant, child-centred classrooms.
\nThere are also significant opportunities to expand the programme within Ghana\u2019s private sector, which accounts for 44% of early childhood education provision, as well as internationally through technical support for governments and non-governmental organisations seeking to strengthen early learning.
\nFor her part, Susan Place Everhart, Chief Executive Officer of Sabre Education, expressed the organisation\u2019s pride in winning the Khalifa International Award for Early Learning. She said Sabre Education is an international non-governmental organisation that works in partnership with governments to provide strong early childhood education for children in Ghana and across sub-Saharan Africa, implementing play-based learning at scale.
\nShe explained that Sabre Education\u2019s programme for training kindergarten teachers in play-based learning seeks to address poor learning outcomes in Ghana, where 62% of children still lack foundational literacy skills by the end of Primary 2. The programme uses a training-of-trainers model to strengthen the education system\u2019s capacity to support kindergarten teachers in implementing a play-based curriculum.
\nThe programme also trains officials from the Ghana Education Service at regional and local levels to train and support teachers. It equips school leaders with the skills required to mentor and support staff, while embedding play-based teaching, gender equality and inclusive learning. This helps children develop strong literacy, numeracy and psychosocial skills.
\nSusan Place Everhart noted that the programme\u2019s results are not only transforming children\u2019s futures but are also strengthening the status of kindergarten education in Ghana, shifting it from a less-valued professional field towards recognition as a critical stage in a child\u2019s education. The programme directly addresses one of the major causes of weak educational outcomes \u2014 the shortage of qualified kindergarten teachers \u2014 and has helped transform classrooms from environments centred on memorisation and rote learning into vibrant spaces rich in play, exploration and creativity.
\nSusan Place Everhart said: \u201cThe programme\u2019s impact extends well beyond its direct beneficiaries. Its success has led the Government of Ghana to involve Sabre Education in the development of key early childhood education policies and initiatives.\u201d
\nShe added that the organisation\u2019s training approach contributed to the development of an in-service training manual for kindergarten teachers, which was adopted in 2023 as a national standard for kindergarten teacher training in Ghana.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Abu Dhabi \u2013 Wednesday, 12 August 2026 The General Secretariat of the Khalifa Award for Education, one of the institutions under the Erth Zayed Philanthropies, expressed its pride in the strong participation witnessed during the previous cycle from leading international institutions and researchers specialising in early childhood development in the Khalifa International Award for Early …<\/p>\n