School Devises an Innovative Solution to Heavy School Backpacks

Experts say that students are carrying 2-3 times the recommended weight for school backpacks

Dubai, UAE, November 22, 2016:  Even with the increasing use of technology in education, heavy school bags continue to be a ‘weighty issue’ for students, parents, and school authorities alike. The ongoing concern regarding the weight of children’s school bags and the negative consequences of such heavy loads on the developing spine has been a much-debated topic in the education sector. 

Health and education experts repeatedly stress that carrying heavy backpacks can lead to musculoskeletal problems, cause back and posture problems in children and in some cases even hamper with their studies.  

However, the recently opened The Arcadia Preparatory School, located in Dubai’s Jumeirah Village Triangle, offering the National Curriculum for England, has done away with heavy school bags for its students. 

The school’s innovative Enrichment Learning Programme (ELP), a forward thinking and all-inclusive programme delivered as part of the extended school day, is designed to enhance and extend the school’s core National Curriculum for England.  The ELP’s in-school homework support sessions run by the school teachers alleviates the students’ need to do homework or carry books back home, resulting in lighter school bags. Also, the school’s Apple Distinguished status encourages the use of devices like the Apple iPad, which drastically reduces the need to carry heavy books in their bags.   

Graham Beale, the Founding Principal of The Arcadia Preparatory School, says, “We want our pupils to use their energy having fun while learning and not exhaust themselves carrying heavy school bags.”

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that student backpacks weigh only 10 to 20 percent of a child’s total body weight. On an average, pupils have been carrying bags that weigh anything between 5-12 kg to school everyday. This is 2-3 times over the recommended school bag weight.

“The Enrichment Learning Programme (ELP) and fully-integrated Apple systems in our school are just a few steps we are taking to ensure that pupils come to school and go home with lighter bags,” said Mr Beale.

The programme has been highly successful among parents as they now get to spend quality time with their children, instead of worrying about homework every evening after school.

Seamless communication between parents and teachers 
Further reducing the use of calendars or printed material, communication between parents, teachers, and students has been made seamless at The Arcadia Preparatory School with the mobile and computer-friendly application Seesaw. The student-driven digital portfolio empowers pupils and teachers to document what they are learning in school, in real-time.

Seesaw gives an immediate, personalised window into a students’ day so that if need be, parents can support learning at home and for the school’s teachers, the app saves time on organisation and communication with parents and makes formative assessment easier.