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The Arab World is well known globally for deeply valuing human interactions and relationships. No surprise that the region has always considered face-to-face interactions important, and as a logical extension - the conduct of learning at all levels in traditional classroom setups.

With global technical advancement and its penetration in all aspects of life including education, the concept of digital learning has been drawing its share of attention.

Many conferences in the region over the last two decades have spoken about the growing importance of digital learning, and the role it can play in combating educational inequality and serving as a force that promotes steady economic development.

The last few years have also witnessed the setup of universities specifically for providing degrees through online education. For instance, the Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University (HBMeU), U21Global and Syrian Virtual University, the Universal of Liverpool/Laureate to promote the spread of virtual learning.

​However, the growth of e-learning and its convergence to mainstream learning had always primarily remained in the agenda as something planned out for ‘tentative’ adoption.

The unforeseen CoViD-19 pandemic however changed the status quo remarkably and at lightning speed. It made its ripples felt in the conduct of learning too. The tentative execution plans for digital learning switched to accelerated mainstream adoption. Today, it is safe to say that digital learning is paving the way forward for the future of learning.

​Now, both the government and the people of the Middle East realize that one cannot afford to neglect open and distance learning formats to stay up to date in the current world. It’s bundled with way too many upsides to ignore. 

Talking about relevance, the merits of digital learning in the Arab world are quite similar to that in other parts of the globe.

It enables individuals to learn from a university based in any part of the world and get access to quality high education that’s not limited by geographical boundaries. This is applicable for both higher education and advanced learning opportunities for career growth.

Digital learning also improves the quality of education at the primary levels for young learners by making learning interactive, fun, and sticky. It empowers teachers to actually accurately track the performance of every child in their class.

It also helps to combat educational inequality, by making the same quality of education available even in the remote and economically backward areas.

​The best part is that despite of the lack of physical human touch involved, it has proven its ability to ensure that learning delivered by it is sticky and effective.

Reaping the best outcome from e-learning necessitates an interplay of several factors.

This includes overcoming the digital divide for the masses and empowering them with basic infrastructure such as mobile and computer devices along with high-speed internet.

Moreover, what’s also imperative is the availability and access to proper online repositories that include quality academic content in Arabic. This is not just limited to online videos of classes, but also includes access to supportive resources such as e-libraries, e-books, learning platforms, additional online courses, and so on.

With the right infrastructure in place, its certain that digital learning has the potential transform and break barriers in traditional learning setups.
 
We at TechKnowledge are committed to making quality academic content in Arabic transcend geographical boundaries. Our suite of products and services span learning resources, e-library services, and digitization of content using the latest technologies. We offer full-text searchable databases of authoritative academic content in Arabic from the most reputed publishers worldwide.

“We must do far more to advance Sustainable Development Goal 4, to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all."
- UN Secretary - General António Guterres

January 24th marks an important milestone in the calendar of the academic fraternity. It stands for the fourth International Day of Education that shall be celebrated worldwide.

On this significant day, let’s pause and reflect on how much education has evolved, unexpectedly over the last two years.

One unforeseen global health crisis and the world has transformed into a one big family and producing a kind of inclusive learning culture that was unfathomable only a few years ago.

Technology, a virtue indeed, has permeated every aspect of our life. With schools, colleges, universities, and libraries closing doors to safeguard health interests of the communities, a new virtual world of education has taken simultaneous shape to ensure uncompromised continuity of learning.

Learning has become a lot more equitable, inclusive.

It is expected that with the influx of technology, the common obstacles to making education universally available to all will be overcome more easily. Be it addressing the teacher shortages, or making learning affordable, empowering all with access to quality learning resources, e-learning is expected to help build an educated global population much faster.
 
We believe that education, as a fundamental right, must be made accessible to all for its crucial role in –
·       Alleviating poverty
·       Providing safety against crime
·       Preventing terrorism
·       Expanding commerce and trade
·       Facilitating law and order
·       Contributing towards women empowerment
 
As a fact, our portfolio of offerings reflects this feeling as a common thread between all solutions – making education accessible.

The Al Manhal Platform has been empowering over 4 million researchers to continue with their academic pursuits in an uncompromised manner. It offers a full-text searchable database of content from the Arab world, including content by leading industry publishers. DeepKnowledge™, has been filling the gap to help universities launch their e-libraries and providing a means to continue with uncompromised research. Similarly, Nahla wa Nahil has been ensuring that primary children can continue their learning of the Arabic language in a fun, interactive manner – whether it is studying out of home or in-school.

As advocates of proliferating universal access to education, we at TechKnowledge™ heartily extend our support to the year’s theme – Changing Course, Transforming Education.

Dubai, UAE (May 4, 2021): TechKnowledge is the leading specialized electronic information solutions provider in the Middle East, today announced that Nahla wa Nahil™, an Arabic Digital Reading Solution, was named a 2021 SIIA CODiE Award finalist in the Best Advanced Reading/Writing/Literature Instructional Solution category. CODiE Award finalists represent applications, products, and services from developers of educational software, digital content, online learning services and related technologies across the PreK-20 sector. 

​Nahla wa Nahil was created by Arabic language teachers to ensure that K-8 students at all reading levels have access to the appropriate resources they need to improve their Arabic reading and comprehension skills. Providing the most advanced Arabic educational e-reading platform, N&N’s unique game-based approach fosters student engagement and challenges them as they improve their levels of reading and comprehension. Usage tracking, student assessments and dashboards enable teachers to monitor student comprehension and progress, and tailor instruction to meet each student's individual needs.

​“Im very excited that www.nahlawanahil.com has been recognized by SIIA as a 2021 CODIE Finalist, in the Best Advanced Reading/Writing/Literature Instructional Solution category. It was an idea that we had 6 years ago, to empower young learners with the digital learning tools to improve their Arabic language and reading skills and save the Arabic language, to reality.
 
I am equally proud of our team for their creativity, hard work, perseverance, and, more than anything else, teamwork, to build the leading #arabiclanguage learning and levelled reading platform for children around the world”. says TechKnowledge CEO Mohamed Al Bagdadhi.
 
Acknowledged as the premier awards program for the software and information industries for over 35 years, the SIIA CODiE Awards are produced by the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), the principal trade association for the software, education, media, financial information and digital content industries. Nahla wa Nahil™ was honored as one of 152 finalists across the 42 education technology categories. 

“The CODiE Awards recognize the most exciting and transformative products in Ed Tech,” said Jeff Joseph, SIIA President. “This year, these leaders helped our nation respond to the historic pandemic, enabling learners, educators, administrators and parents to remain connected to each other and to critical educational resources via an array of innovative services and platforms. Congratulations to this year’s finalists for demonstrating the vitality, resilience and importance of this important industry.”
The SIIA CODiE Awards are the industry's only peer-recognized awards program. Educators and administrators serve as judges and conduct the first-round review of all education nominees. Their scores determine the SIIA CODiE Award finalists which accounts for 80% of the overall score. SIIA members then vote on the finalist products and the scores from both rounds are tabulated to select the winners. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Business Technology category winners will be announced during an online winner announcement celebration June 22, 2021.
 
Details about each finalist are listed at https://history.siia.net/codie/2021-Finalist

TechKnowledge is the leading eLearning solutions provider in the Middle East and North Africa. Techknowledge partners with globally recognized publishers, scientific societies and education technology companies; The company’s mission is to ensure that students, schools, universities, healthcare, government and corporate have access to the most current and critical information at their fingertips in order to improve and advance learning, research and patient outcomes.
Al Manhal, a division of TechKnowledge; is the global leader in Arabic language e-learning solutions. Their solutions include Nahla wa Nahil™, an Arabic language digital literacy solution for pre-school and elementary school learners, as well as its full-text searchable databases of Arabic scholarly and scientific publication for universities and research centers.
Together, TechKnowledge and Al Manhal aim to drive better outcomes in education, research, and healthcare by providing next generation learning solutions to its customers.

​The SIIA CODiE Awards is the only peer-reviewed program to showcase business and education technology’s finest products and services. Since 1986, thousands of products, services and solutions have been recognized for achieving excellence. For more information, visit siia.net/CODiE.

​SIIA is the only professional organization connecting more than 700 data, financial information, education technology, specialized content and publishing, and health technology companies. Our diverse members manage the global financial markets, develop software that solves today’s challenges through technology, provide critical information that helps inform global businesses large and small, and innovate for better health care and personal wellness outcomes.

Nahla wa Nahil is an award winning, e-literacy platform designed by Arabic language experts to help K-8 students to enhance Arabic literacy in the most engaging and interactive manner. With its unique and scientific design, it is developed to extend a customized learning experience to primary children at home and at school based on their unique cognitive pace.
 
As digital transformation has created ripples across the education sector and into modern day classrooms, the Ministry of Education UAE has embarked on a strategic partnership with Nahla wa Nahil, a digital solution by TechKnowledge, for grades K-8 blended learning.
 
The objective behind this move was to deliver the effective and engaging learning solution, Nahla wa Nahil, to young minds while simultaneously igniting their passion for their native language.
 
As a result of the partnership, Nahla wa Nahil was made a compulsory resource for all public and private primary schools to enrich Arabic learning outcomes across the Emirates.
 
The development took place in early 2020, right before the global pandemic placed a dent on the smooth functioning of schools and educational institutions on account of its social distancing restrictions.
 
This timely move has been a game changer. It facilitated in transitioning primary Arabic learning across the country towards what can be called a new era of education – backed by custom learning experiences for every student and hard data on learning outcomes achieved.

​ 
In addition to supporting schools, the Nahla wa Nahil platform has provided a solid means to raise the overall bar in Arabic reading, comprehension, and excellence among primary learners. It has complemented the blended learning needs of present times, while offering an exciting mechanism for children to learn the Arabic language at their own academic capability.
 
The extensive leveled content on the app is carefully curated covering over 160 subject areas, thousands of stories, and hundreds of print-and-do activities to ensure interactive learning experiences. Students get the option to read, listen and record their own pronunciation in Arabic on the Web and app-based portal.
 
The Nahla wa Nahil platform empowers educators with an efficient mechanism to conduct assignments, assessments, and competitions, and keep track of the learning progress through detailed reports and statistics. Parents of students also get a chance to gain an understanding of their child’s progress in Arabic language skills, backed by actual learning data – something that was not possible to this level of accuracy earlier.
 
Over the course of the past year, this partnership between the Ministry of Education UAE and Nahla wa Nahil, has brought substantial improvement in children’s Arabic language skills. This fusion of technology is here to stay in the Arabic learning system, paving the path for the entire academic community.

TechKnowledge, the leading specialized electronic information solutions provider in the Middle East, has been chosen by industry-leading education technology provider Top Hat, as an international partner for expanding the company’s footprint in the MENA Region. Under this exclusive reseller agreement, TechKnowledge will begin delivering Top Hat’s all-in-one courseware platform to higher education institutions and instructors seeking to improve the higher ed learning experience and support student success. 
Top Hat, the only all-in-one courseware platform for higher education, enables active learning — a proven student-centered teaching pedagogy that promotes deep understanding, critical thinking, and subject mastery — with interactive content, tools, and activities. For use in any classroom setting, whether in-person or virtual, Top Hat enables educators to deliver effective learning experiences with interactive digital content, assignments, lecture slides, and integrated assessment tools — all from a single platform.
 
“TechKnowledge has been at the forefront of bringing next generation education technology solutions to the Middle East for 15 years. We have supported our university and school customers to build their digital libraries, develop their learning management systems, and integrate digital textbooks and assessment platforms. These technologies have led to a massive transformation in education. 
 
“Top Hat has emerged as a key player in inventing the future of digital education.  We have seen few other technologies that have proven student/professor engagement and outcomes. We are very proud that Top Hat has selected TechKnowledge to be their strategic partner in the Middle East. We look forward to implementing their solutions in universities across the region, positively impacting students and teachers, and building value for all our stakeholders,” says Rany AlBaghdadi, President of Al Manhal.

​Top Hat is the only all-in-one courseware platform that enables active learning — a proven student-centred teaching pedagogy that promotes deep understanding, critical thinking, and subject mastery — with interactive content, tools, and activities. Millions of students at 750 leading North American colleges and universities use Top Hat to teach and engage with students before, during, and after class, in both in-person and online education.

​​DeepKnowledge™, a digital solution from TechKnowledge, is a specialized e-library platform designed to transform the way libraries operate in present day.
 
Essentially, it is a cloud-based platform that extends its subscribers with the most authoritative electronic resources and learning solutions in a cost effective and efficient manner.
 
Bundled with a host of carefully designed features, DeepKnowledge™ helps librarians and institutes ensure superlative in-house learning & research, while helping enjoy strong and efficient control over the library management tasks.
 
Why DeepKnowledge™?    
 

• Intuitive and easy to use e-library infrastructure for both management and researchers alike

 

• Dedicated remote access facility supporting smooth off campus access for researchers

 

• Reliable hosting on fast & secure servers to support the best content browsing experience

 

• Compliant with latest GDPR compliances, ensuring uncompromised security for users

 

• Inbuilt simplified student communication tools such as MailBlast™, Chat, email and SMS Alerts

 

• Intelligent AI backed insights to maximize ROI from the spend in content resources based on actual usage data

 

• Cost effective & value for money solution offering high degree of efficiency & excellence

 

• Dedicated post-sales support

 
Owing to its rich array of useful features, DeepKnowledge™ has successfully become a popular and dependable choice for most Library admins, IT specialists, Faculty Deans, Department heads across reputed institutes the MENA region. Over 400,000 of DeepKnowledge™ subscribers vouch that it has enhanced the efficacy of their research learning.

Ministry of Education endorses a strategic partnership between United Printing and Publishing and TechKnowledge to Deliver Nahla wa Nahil™, an Arabic Digital Reading Solution, to all Public and Private Schools in the UAE.

The digital era has enabled schools and education systems globally to transform and dramatically improve their learning outcomes. With the introduction and advancement of technology in the classroom, students have entered into a new era of learning and development. With the rise in digital and distance learning, United Printing and Publishing has partnered with TechKnowledge, a leading eLearning company, to deliver uninterrupted academic progress through an award-winning digital reading solution to all k-7 public and private primary school students in the UAE. 
 
Dubai, March 16: UPP, a strategic service provider to the Ministry of Education, has appointed TechKnowledge to provide a digital Arabic reading solution for all K-7 native and non-native Arabic speaking students across all public and private schools in the Emirates.
 
This strategic partnership provides unrestricted access to the award winning Arabic Digital Reading Solution, Nahla wa Nahil™, winner of the Best Primary Resource prize in the GESS Education Awards 2019, to all K-7 students across all schools in the UAE.  
 
The main objective is to fuel young minds with passion to learn and read Arabic through this next generation adaptive learning literacy platform. The outcome will be significantly improved Arabic reading and comprehension skills across in all students across the UAE. 
 
With this valuable partnership, students will be better equipped to improve their Arabic language and reading skills at their own pace using an engaging platform which adapts to and enhances their unique abilities. Nahla wa Nahil™ will be integrated into the ministry’s Learning Management System for all public schools.  Private schools will gain access directly through the Nahla wa Nahil™ web interface.
 
“Our decision to provide nationwide access to Nahla wa Nahil™ is an outcome of the rapid digital transformation that the education sector is undergoing.  It is our objective to better prepare students for the 4th industrial revolution. With this strategic partnership, we are looking to embark upon the next generation of learning to help our students unleash their full potential and achieve greater excellence in Arabic literacy.”, says Dr. Hamad Alyahyaei Assistant undersecretary for curriculum and assessment sector at the ministry of Education, UAE.
 
“It is absolutely critical that our children rediscover the love of the Arabic language.  Language is the foundation of culture and heritage and the Arabic language has been at risk of erosion.  We are proud that the Ministry of Education, after thorough evaluation, has chosen Nahla wa Nahil™ to be accessible to all k-7 students.  We look forward to working with UPP and the Ministry to roll out access to all schools in the UAE.”, says Rany AlBaghdadi, President of TechKnowledge. 

TechKnowledge has been named the ‘Digital Business of the Year’ at the SME Gulf Capital Digital Business of the Year Award ceremony held on September 25, at the Ritz Carlton DIFC, Dubai.
The Awards identify start-ups, innovative SME’s with exemplary products and services, the SME’s who invest in their employees’ environments, customer strategies and the visionary entrepreneurs leading them.
In presenting the award, the judges noted how TechKnowledge has created products that are a perfect fit for the needs of our society. Specifically included in the judge’s acknowledgement were the contributions and excellence of the Techknowledge distribution business, Al Manhal, Nahla wa Nahil, and DeepKnowledge.
According to the UAE Ministry of Economy, the SME sector represents more than 94 per cent of the total number of companies operating in the country and provides jobs for more than 86 per cent of the private sector's workforce. In Dubai alone, SMEs make up nearly 95 per cent of all companies, employing 42 per cent of the workforce and contributing approximately 40 per cent of Dubai's GDP. The UAE Government has ambitious plans to enhance the contribution and performance of the SME sector.
Since 2012, Gulf Capital and MEED have annually presented the SME Awards identifying the UAEs SME growth champions and recognizing the organizations and people who are contributing to the ongoing development of this critical and challenging part of the UAEs economy.
Digital Business of the Year
Open to any UAE business trading online, this award is presented to the candidate that best demonstrates consistent growth and strong financial performance from e-commerce. Judges look for evidence of concept and product development, exceptional implementation, customer engagement & functionality and innovation. Also critical to the criteria is how the company been successful in delivering key goals, competitor advantage, growth and innovation. Judges also look for excellence in customer service, future growth plan, how the business is developing its employees and the leadership of the business.
About the Gulf Capital SME Awards https://smeawards.meed.com/
​

Combination creates powerhouse platform to drive EdTech innovation

Al Manhal FZLLC (“Al Manhal”) and TechKnowledge FZLLC (“TechKnowledge”), two of the most innovative EdTech providers in the Middle East and North Africa, formalized their merger on October 1, 2018.  The merged company will be privately held and operate under TechKnowledge General Trading LLC and the companies will combine business operations over the coming year.  The merger creates one of the most comprehensive education technology and learning solutions providers in the industry.

Mohamad Al Baghdadi, the co-founder and CEO of Al Manhal and TechKnowledge has been named as CEO of the merged company and Rany Al Baghdadi, the co-founder and President of TechKnowledge and Director of Al Manhal, has been named as President.  Both Mohamad and Rany will work together with management to ensure a smooth and successful transition to a single company.  After the merger, the company will have headquarters in Dubai with a significant office presence in Amman, Cairo, Riyadh, Ankara, Istanbul and Oxford. 

“We are very excited to bring together our two operating companies,” said CEO Mohamad Al Baghdadi “The combination of Al Manhal’s software development and electronic publishing expertise and TechKnowledge’s extensive sales, training and distribution infrastructure creates unparalleled value for our suppliers, partners and customers.”

Over the past 15 years, Al Manhal and TechKnowledge have enabled over 2500 libraries and 3 million students to benefit from digital learning resources.
​
The new merged company, with 130 employees across the region, will continue to drive EdTech innovation and provide its customers with world-class levels of support.

About Al Manhal
Al Manhal is the leading global provider of full-text searchable databases of Arabic scholarly and scientific publications, as well as creator and publisher of Nahla wa Nahil, the leading Arabic leveled reading program for K-5.  ‘The Al Manhal platform’ provides over 3 million students, researchers and professionals with access to hundreds of thousands of full-text searchable and downloadable Arabic eBooks, eJournals, eTheses, intelligence reports, conference proceedings, and videos.

About TechKnowledge
TechKnowledge is the leading specialized electronic information solutions provider in the Middle East, partnering with the world’s leading publishers, scientific societies, and education technology companies. Through these partnerships and its in-house developed e-library platform service, ‘DeepKnowledge’, TechKnowledge provides universities, schools, medical, corporate, and government libraries across the Middle East with the most authoritative electronic resources and learning solutions.  ‘DeepKnowledge’ provides librarians with a vast range of integrated modules allowing them to control access, manage subscriptions and trials, review usage analytics, and manage all content of the e-library.
 
www.techknowledge.me   
www.almanhal.com

​TechKnowledge, the leading specialized electronic information solutions provider in the Middle East, is proud to be partnering with Ain Shams University, the third oldest university in Egypt, to provide Scifinder for three successive years.

Techknowledge partners with the world’s leading publishers, scientific societies, and education technology (edtech) companies to provide universities, schools, and medical, corporate and government libraries across the Middle East with the most authoritative electronic resources and learning solutions.

Ain Shams University, founded in July 1950, comprised a number of distinguished faculties and academic institutes, which were later developed into university. Ain Shams University has played an undeniable role in developing the cultural and scientific life in Egypt and enriching human knowledge in general.

SciFinder is a discovery tool provided by Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) for chemical structure & reaction and forward cited-reference searches. Searches are performed across select Chemical Abstracts databases and Medline, which covers many disciplines such as biomedical sciences, chemistry, engineering, materials science, and agricultural science.
SciFinder® is a research discovery application that provides unlimited access to the world's most comprehensive and authoritative source of references, substances and reactions in chemistry and related sciences.

This new partnership will enhance the digital learning and experience for students, teachers and researchers at the university and empower the entire institute with unlimited access to the world’s most trusted and comprehensive chemistry information. Taking the whole teaching and learning process to the next level.