Although scientists have designed several innovative daylighting system technologies to balance solar control and sustainable goals, many deep-plan classrooms established in hot, dry areas are still susceptible to visual discomfort due to glare and insufficient daylight penetration. Furthermore, the light shelves (LSs) and tubular daylighting devices (TDDs) are recognised for their ability to supply and redirect daylight. However, their combined overall effectiveness in addressing uniformity and illuminance penetration in these regions remain unexplored. This study investigates a hybrid TDD-LS system as an alternative to conventional side-lit classrooms, which could fill this knowledge gap. A scale model experiment validated simulation accuracy through in-situ illuminance measurements at summer and winter solstices (R2 = 0.994), revealing that single TDDs lose 89% of transmitted light > 1 m, which further highlights the need for developing synergistic methods. Comprehensive daylighting simulation was conducted using Climate-Studio Radiance in accordance with LEED v4.1 daylight criteria (sDA, ASE) as well as WPI, UI, DGP of five daylight configurations,: one reference model (RM) of windows orientated vertically; two standalone LS configurations (LS1 at 2.35 m and LS2 at 1.9 m); and two hybrid configurations combining TDD + LS1 and TDD + LS2. The findings indicated that the hybrid configurations satisfied the LEED criteria with a sDA of 100% and an ASE of 0%. Furthermore, the UI displayed better homogeneity throughout the deep zone, where its value increased from 0.16 for the RM and 0.30 for the standalone LS configuration to 0.57 for the TDD + LS1configuration. Glare analysis revealed that the hybrid configurations exhibited imperceptible glare (DGP < 0.40) throughout their operation, which was in contrast with the RM, which showed a disturbing-intolerable glare (DGP > 0.45) near the windows. The hybrid technique aimed to resolve the fundamental conflict between daylight depth and comfort in hot, dry classrooms by combining the omnidirectional light capture feature of TDDs with the low-angle reflection of LSs, thereby offering educational facilities a consistent, climate-sensitive design strategy.