Lighter, stronger, friendlier: UAE group unveils new schoolbags

A lighter and more convenient new schoolbag has been designed by a group of schools in Ajman which, in conjunction with a revised curricula aimed at fewer books, promises to reduce the students’ burden by 25 to 30 per cent.

The Habitat Group of Schools says it has developed a lighter, healthier and more convenient school bag for children, especially for those in the lower grades.

The school has also changed the syllabus to adjust the schoolbag’s weight.

The group claims that the new lighter bag has been developed in consultation with educationists, child health specialists, teachers and parents.
As a result, bags that are less in weight with better support for the back through straps, with a designated space for a lunch box.

The school has also undertaken considerable efforts to reduce the number of books children have to carry, considering that the number of books should be proportionate to the bag’s size.

“The school textbook committee has selected term books over subject books and avoided supplementary books for Grade 1 and 2, while complying with curriculum guidelines of the board. In these grades, a student may carry a single book instead of four books. This has taken us a step closer to the CBSE directive on, ‘Learning Without Burden,” explained CT Adil, the school’s Academic Director.

The idea, originally floated by the Managing Director of the Habitat Group of Schools, Shamsu Zaman C.T., is in the implementation stage now.

“Being a father myself, I have seen how children struggle to carry or pull heavily loaded school bags as they go to school. Studies have shown that carrying more than 15-20 per cent of their body weight can be damaging to a child’s health.

“Most of the bags children bring are not designed to address these issues. There are only a very few customised and size appropriate bags available in the market. This is what made us think of a new kind of school bag,” says Shamsu, who oversees three schools – International Indian School, Ajman, Habitat School Ajman and Umm Al Quwain School.

He maintains that, given the quality of the bag, it is relatively cheaper (between Dh60 and Dh75) than others of the same quality available in the market.

However, the school hasn’t made it compulsory for students to purchase the bag.

The custom-made bag featuring the Habitat Group logo, and has several features like a hip belt and foam rest on the back to support the body, as well as bag handles on the top and lateral side.

The bag will also help to categorise and identify students as they are made in three different colours and sizes for KG, primary and high school with a slot for student ID’s, Shamsu told Emirates 24|7.

“One major aspect of these bags is the way these bags can function as equalizers among students who come from as many as 31 countries, reducing the distraction that fashionable bags do cause,” he explained.

“The bag is carefully designed and has good features like hip straps which help in distributing the weight of the bag evenly across the back. This will reduce bending of the spine backwards, which otherwise can result in back pain. Coupled with the reduced weight of the bag itself and a reduction in weight of textbooks, it will considerably lighten the weight children have to carry every day to school,” said Dr Jamaludeen Aboobacker, a leading paediatrician and Director of  Metro Medical Center, Ajman.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.