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Aldar Academies’ Al Mamoura Academy, Al Nahyan. The Review 2023.
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Background – A Benchmark for Outstanding Education in Abu Dhabi.

Primary age boys and girls in a Science Lesson at Al Mamoura Academy in Abu Dhabi

“At Al Mamoura Academy, we pride ourselves on the range of options and pathways that we can offer our young women to allow them to follow the direction that suits them.

We encourage students to make deliberate, informed choices about their future, allowing them the opportunity to map their own course that will enable them to be successful leaders of tomorrow.

The first decision that our senior students must make is whether they wish to follow a US or UK curriculum programme from Year 10/Grade 9.

As a school, we made the choice to follow the US curriculum rather than offering the IB Diploma programme as this allows for our students to access the model from Year 10/Grade 9, unlike the IB for which they would not be able to access until Year 12/Grade 11.

This ensures that our young women have wider options for their future from an early stage of their education.  This choice, however, is not limiting, as students will have the option in Year 12/Grade 11 of continuing with the US curriculum or transferring to the UK based International A Level programme; once more offering the power of choice.

Once they have made this choice, students have a plethora of subject choices available to them with learning facilitated by experienced professionals.

GEMS_INARTICLE  

Although the US pathway is a 4-year course, and the UK pathway is two, 2-year courses, it is possible in Year 12/Grade 11 for our student to continue with the US curriculum or to transfer to the UK based International A Level programme.

Al Mamoura Academy is resolutely focused on giving young women the power of choice.

Al Mamoura Academy. October 2021. Speaking exclusively with SchoolsCompared.com

Al Mamoura Academy was an intrinsic part of ADEK’s Future Schools Programme, the ambitious project to build 100 world class schools by 2020 to transform education in Abu Dhabi. More on our verdict on how (exceptionally) well the school has delivered in practice below. The school sits on a beautifully maintained 10 acre site in the Al Nahyan Area of Abu Dhabi near Al Salam Street. Families reside predominantly in the areas between Al Reem Island and Rabdan including Al Bateen, Al Mushrif, Al Muroor, Corniche and Al Reem Island, but a significant number of parents travel from further afield to secure an Al Mamoura Academy education for their children. The average commute time is 15 minutes due to the school’s advantageous location next to Al Salam Street.

In structure, Al Mamoura Academy has seen Aldar’s ADEK “Outstanding A1” Al Mushrif Primary re-branded to Al Mamoura; its students moved from Aldar’s equally exceptional “Outstanding A1” Al Bateen School. Al Bateen today serves as the automatic slipstream for boys at secondary phase whilst girls, from this year, progress through a choice of  American curriculum education to Year 13 (Grade 12) culminating in the awarding of the US High School Diploma, or British educating, through IGCSE, to gold standard A’ Level.

As of 2021-22, following its initial Good inspection, (the highest standard in practice for any first inspection), Al Mamoura Academy secured its ADEK Very Good with Outstanding Features accreditation – an award in our view very richly deserved. This is a verdict given by ADEK for schools that exceed the already high Good standard expectation expected of UAE schools in the UAE.

Al Mamoura seeks to set the benchmark for single-sex, girls only secondary provision in the Capital whilst primary phases is fully co-educational.

The school offers a genuine and comprehensive dual-stream English National Curriculum A’ Level and US Curriculum HSD at secondary phases and the English National Curriculum at Primary ages, this dual approach designed to best meet the whole-child and academic needs of individual children.

With its existing primary feeder, and secondary slipstreams already being two of the Capital’s most outstanding schools, and with the demand for single-sex female schooling, such is the demand pretty much nowhere else met at this level, the school delivers on its aims to be the flag ship in the sector and is, predictably, over-subscribed.

It is worth noting that fees have been reduced from those originally released to us and now rise only moderately from current levels at Al Bateen (54,490 AED – 68,830 AED Years 7 – 13). Al Mishrif fees had been around 43,560 AED across phase Years 1 -6).  At the new level (48,800 AED – 72,430 AED) there is, we think, exceptional value here when set against those of other equivalent Tier 1 ultra-premiums in Dubai which are up to 25,000 AED more expensive for a comparative level of academic and facility provision.

Aldar is insistent that part of its responsibility as a local education provider is to establish world-class institutions whilst maintaining value to ensure, as far as possible, inclusive access to its schools from the broadest spectrum of children and families. As a not-for-profit too, all income is re-distributed back into its schools and educational provision within the emirate.

 

School Leadership.

Photograph of Sarah Weaver, Principal, Al Mamoura Academy Abu Dhabi. Al Mamoura Academy is an Aldar School.

“At Al Mamoura Academy our vision is to provide: “An innovative learning community, where we nurture our learners through Collaboration, Leadership and Creativity.”

In our commitment to this vision, we strive to educate the whole child and to give every student the quality education and learning experiences that they deserve, whilst playing a full and active role in our local, national and international communities.

At Al Mamoura we endeavour to provide the highest of standards in all we do.

We give every student the environment to express creative talents and academic abilities in innovative and enterprising ways –  with a focus on cross curricular learning and a highly specialised middle school curriculum using our highly trained specialist teachers.

We aim to encourage: International mindedness; strong interpersonal skills; confidence and cooperation; leadership and social responsibility; innovation and creativity.

Underpinning these skills will be a quality academic provision based on the rigorous UK National Curriculum, UAE Ministry of Education subjects.

We are very proud to announce that we are continuing to enhance the breadth of opportunity for our students by launching a US Curriculum pathway in Year 10 from September 2021.

Our world class facilities allow young people to work with the latest technology, play in safe and exciting environments, explore their own ideas in our learning spaces, use a wide- range of resources and materials, and of course, have fun doing so.”

Sarah Weaver. Principal. Al Mamoura Academy. Abu Dhabi. 

Sarah Weaver brings to Aldar Education over 17 years of leadership experience within the UK and international contexts; with eight of those being in the UAE. Miss Weaver is now in her third year as Principal at Al Mamoura Academy and has already accomplished “Outstanding” judgements in the schools BSO inspection and led the school to achieving the “Developed” status, the highest rating possible, for its distance learning programme as validated by ADEK.

Miss Weaver brings experience of working in both an Outstanding school and in one of the most improved schools within her educational groups network in the UAE. She was a highly successful Deputy Head Teacher in East London for over ten years, supporting her school to be the 4th most improved school in the United Kingdom.

During her career she has developed specialisms in; through school assessment, school improvement and early years education and, as a result, she has supported schools during their UK OFSTED inspections, External Reviews and KHDA Inspections within these areas.

Speaking to SchoolsCompared (October 2021), Miss Weaver told us:

“Al Mamoura Academy is continuing to shape itself as a dynamic and innovative school striving to achieve excellence in all that we do. The development of a shared vision, strategic intentions and ground-breaking USP’s, that are supported by our stakeholders, are allowing us to stand out in the education sector ensuring we are the school of choice for families in Abu Dhabi.

Al Mamoura has a clear 5 year plan which will guarantee that sustainability is at the heart of all we do and that we will shape ourselves as a leading dual curriculum school, supported by Outstanding results.

During the last year Al Mamoura has developed its very own AMA Learner and Teacher DNA which successfully underpins student’s pastoral and academic development. The AMA DNA is rapidly shaping the culture of our school and the learning community within it.  We firmly believe this will support us on our journey to achieve the very highest of standards of education for all our students – and to become officially validated as an ADEK Outstanding school.

“Aldar Education has not only established itself as a leading Educational Provider within Abu Dhabi but it is also rapidly paving the future of the educational landscape for our students. High levels of drive, ambition and innovation within the group are ensuring that there is no ceiling on learning for our students.

 

Al Mamoura Academy – Core Strengths.

For a relatively new school, Al Mamoura Academy has three exceptional benefits for prospective parents, quite aside from the security of the Aldar brand.

First, its feeders and male slipstreams are firmly established trailblazing schools already.

Second, for parents seeking an all-girl secondary, it is hard to conceive of any more secure foundations for development than these established schools already being in place. The provision of single-sex education will be a draw for parents from all nationalities, Emirati and European, who share traditions that recognise the academic benefits of schooling children independently until University.

Third, Al Mamoura Academy offers considerable academic draw in its comprehensive provision of dual stream A’ Level/American High School Diploma options at Sixth Form (with a range of subject provision to match the best available); genuinely inclusive entrance (a testament to the quality of teaching and an approach that naturally avoids the hothouse risks of selective schools); and its proven record in Special Educational Needs [SEN] provision at both ends of the spectrum including Gifted and Talented children [G&T]. Project Based Learning is a strength of the school – an approach, for example, at the heart of STEM and STEAM approaches in education that link subjects to inspire creative problem solving, rather than walling of subjects without context. This is a core demand of global employers like Google who are far more focused on employees that have strength in creative problem solving and asking questions, rather than those armed with countless certificates but who can only regurgitate facts.

It is worth noting that its Al Bateen brother school offers a different parallel stream IB Diploma / A Level provision. It is also worth noting that, impressively, neither school offers International Baccalaureate courses only options at Sixth Form. This is because these are, we think correctly, not recognised by ADEC. In Dubai, regretfully, IB courses only provision is recognized – and we think this restricts the pathways available to children leaving school (IB courses alone are not recognised for entrance to top universities.)

Fourth, Aldar strength is its Arabic core curriculum education, arguably the best in the Emirates, and it is expected that its investment in research to define the future UAE history curriculum will feed into Al Mamoura Academy from Day One. Our view is that the teaching of Arabic language and culture is critical for all students – universities will expect students of all cultures and nationalities educated in the UAE to be able to demonstrate some immersion in, and appreciation of, their educational context. It is also a valuable USP for UAE educated students when set against the skills of children educated overseas. For Emirati students, specific attention is given to the Emirates Standardized Test (EmSAT) in Year 12 and 13.

Fifth, the school’s new Innovation and Enterprise department offers children opportunities to engage with the real-life outcomes of their learning journey. Teachers volunteer for Al Mamoura’s ICE Council (Innovation, Creativity and Entrepreneurship) and both the Innovation and Enterprise department and the ICE teams are empowered to bring industry into the classroom. A strong focus on graduation options includes University Fairs, AMA Talks and Enterprise Week.

Finally, student Innovation Hubs, the school’s industrial kitchen, its campsite – in combination with significant investment in technology, Science labs, Aeroponics and computing facilities, make real a commitment to ‘Learning by Doing.’ This is a school that brings education to life for children – making learning inspirational, relevant and meaningful. 

 

Empowering young women.

“At Al Mamoura, we are incredibly proud to offer single sex education to our female students from Year 7 onwards.  Whilst we understand the advantages of co-ed schools, we believe that what we offer is a choice that other schools do not.”

Al Mamoura Academy. Speaking exclusively with SchoolsCompared.com. October 2021.

 

Al Mamoura Academy students are offered the best of both worlds. A mixed gender education is delivered fir children in their formative years, enabling, as the school told us, “children to learn the social skills that will allow them to succeed in the wider world.”. However, from Year 7, the focus is resolutely on empowering young women.

“A recent study in the UK has found that girls who attend single-sex schools are generally more confident and in control that girls attending co-educational schools, and this supports a range of studies that focus on the resilience of girls in single sex schools.

We wish to develop strong, powerful and successful leaders of the future – and single sex education is a key component of this.

By opting for single sex education, we allow our girls a voice which can often be quietened in a mixed school environment.

They can be themselves in classrooms and can speak out openly and honestly.

The experience of single-sex education allows for a strong sense of sisterhood in which our young women support and nurture each other and encourage each other’s’ success.

As a school, we believe that this is an integral part of our role, enabling women to strive for anything at all that they wish to achieve.

Single sex education also allows us to modify our curriculum to incorporate the interests of our students in order to engage them in their learning further.  It allows for teaching to be tailored to incorporate positive female role models and powerful women.

Our Innovation and Enterprise faculty offers our young women the chance to develop their awareness of industry and the opportunities available to them as they consider their futures.”

Al Mamoura Academy. Speaking exclusively with SchoolsCompared.com. October 2021.

It’s an approach that clearly works – and parents at the school are passionate about the impact it has had on their children:

“Our parents believe in the importance of single-sex education and are keen for their daughters to be in an environment in which they can flourish.

Our parents believe that single-sex schooling will allow their children to focus on their studies; be exposed to strong female role models and be pushed to work hard to fulfil their dreams.

We have an incredibly supportive community at Al Mamoura Academy and the views of our parents are always listened to.

We know that this single-sex model is the perfect way to cater for the needs of the #ourmamoura community.”

Al Mamoura Academy. Speaking exclusively with SchoolsCompared.com. October 2021.

For examples of just how effective this model of girls-only education can be within at Middle and Secondary Phases of a British education it is worth exploring exemplars of the approach including Cheltenham Ladies College, here, and Wycombe Abbey, here.  A review of CLC by our sister site, WhichSchoolAdvisor UK, can be found here, and Wycombe Abbey, here. The point is not that you can secure a better education in the UK, far from it – but, rather, to shine a light on just how empowering and successful an education can be when young women are given the opportunity to shine in a school that focuses exclusively on their needs, potential, ambitions and gifts. Al Mamoura shines an extraordinary light on the gifts of our future generation of young women – and for this it deserves significant credit.

Facilities.

Photograpg of children engaged in IT at At Mamoura Academy in Abu Dhabi

Facilities are first class including digital classrooms; Science laboratories and preparation rooms tailored to each science; individual libraries by Phase; Design technology rooms specialising in textiles, food and graphics; multiple Art studios including 3D Labs a pottery studio; Music suites including a dedicated recording studio; Recital Hall; Senior School Centre; cafeterias; Drama and Dance studios; two landmark auditoriums, one with theatre capabilities and an 850 seat capacity; video conferencing suites; EYFS soft play areas; and covered play areas for every phase of the school.

Sports facilities include a (beautifully designed) 25m swimming pool; extensive playing fields; full-sized football pitch; basketball courts and netball courts, gymnasium and athletics tracks. After-school activities are extensive including provision for art; graphic design; photography; pottery; jewellery making; Mandarin Chinese; Spanish; Arabic calligraphy; a book club; Quran club; music clubs and lessons; choir; drama and theatre societies; dance school; cookery school; football; cricket; basketball; netball; swimming; rugby; badminton; sailing and water sports; expeditions groups; and Duke of Edinburgh Award clubs.

Aldar has invested heavily in ensuring Al Mamoura’s success, not only financially (the school’s development costs were upwards of US$ 45 Million), but in the logistics of bridging the school seamlessly within its existing portfolio to provide a flagship, performing – and outstanding, school from Day 1. It would have been both far more “profitable” and logistically simpler to launch the school independently, notwithstanding the trade-off that Al Bateen will be able to expand to capacity following Al Mushrif’s effective move to the new school.

Facilities in full include:

    • 4 Middle & Senior School Science labs
    • 2 Lower School Science Labs
    • 1 Textiles suite
    • 1 Graphics suite
    • 2 Food Technology kitchens
    • 2 aeroponics pods
    • STEM Lab & Innovation Hub
    • Wellbeing room
    • Libraries dedicated for FS & Lower/Middle/Senior school
    • 2 ICT Labs
    • Post-16 Suite including Study rooms/common rooms/kitchen
    • Drama & Dance Studio
    • 2 Art rooms including kiln
    • 1 Mac Suite / Music Technology rooms
    • 3 Music rooms
    • 6 peripatetic music teaching rooms
    • 1 clinic
    • Dedicated FS wing
    • 3 playgrounds
    • Restaurant/Cafeteria
    • Auditorium with theatre facilities
    • Sprung floor sports hall
    • 2 astroturfs
    • 2 specialised basketball courts
    • 1 main and 1 training swimming pool

 

Further Dedicated Learning Space facilities shine a light on the uniqueness of the school and include:

    • Interactive industrial kitchen
    • 3-d periodic table
    • The FS “Fairytale Kingdom and Library”
    • The “Al Mamoura Campsite”

 

Subject Options and Pathways.

British, English National Curriculum, IGCSE:

List of GCSE Subject Options at Al Mamoura Academy in Abu Dhabi

 

British, English National Curriculum, A Level:

List of A level subject options at Al Mamoura Academy in Abu Dhabi

American, US Curriculum, High School Diploma:

List of American High School Diploma subject options for students at Al Mamoura Academy in Abu Dhabi.

Speaking with SchoolsCompared.com in October 2021, Al Maoura emphasised that:

“The US pathway allows our students to access a broad curriculum with spiralling of knowledge throughout the course ensuring deeper learning.  It offers ongoing assessment opportunities and takes away the pressure of exams at the end of a two-year course; continual grading across all subjects will all contribute to a grade point average which will be reflected in their final diploma.”

Further options have now been added to the programme and we rate breadth of provision outstanding. This is in no small part due to the confirmed provision of Advanced Placement as the school beds in provision.

US Provision Year 10/Grade 9 to Year 13/Grade 12
Core Additional Lessons
English Physical Education
Mathematics Arabic (Native Students)
Science (with a focus on Physics) Islamic (Muslim students)
Enrichment
Options Subjects
Art Business Computer Science Design Technology
Drama Economics Food and Nutrition French
Geography History ICT Music
Physical Education Psychology Spanish

The alternative UK pathway pathway in Year 10 to Year 13 is traditional, based on study of two-year IGCSE courses in Year 10 and 11 including the core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science. With these students choose four option subjects (see below).  On entering Year 12, students elect up to 4 A Level subjects for their higher level study over two years.

Al Mamoura Academy highlights the key differences between UK and US pathways in terms of the “more specialised curriculum afforded by the British curriculum” and its enhanced rigor:

“The UK Curriculum is monitored, and quality assured by an external governing body and the exam system is rigorous and detailed. Specifications written by external bodies are the core of what is taught, and examinations are externally written and assessed; although some subjects also have a non-examined element which make up a percentage of the final grade given.

The UK pathway allows our students to specialise in the subjects in which they hold the most interest and can be used to target their learning towards their specific goals for future study at university. This pathway involves students learning fewer subjects than the US pathway yet learning goes into greater depth.”

Al Mamoura Academy. Speaking with SchoolsCompared.com. October 2021. 

UK Provision Year 10 to Year 11
Core Additional Lessons
English Language Physical Education
English Second Language Arabic (Native Students)
English Literature Islamic (Muslim students)
Mathematics
 Biology (Double Science Award)
Chemistry (Double Science Award)
Physics (Double Science Award)
Options Subjects
Arabic 1st Language Art Business Computer Science
Design Technology Drama Economics French
Food and Nutrition Geography History ICT
Music Physical Education Psychology Spanish

 

UK Provision Year 12 to Year 13
Options Subjects
Arabic 1st Language Art Business Computer Science
Design Technology Drama Economics French
Food and Nutrition Geography History ICT
Music Physical Education Psychology Spanish

We are particularly impressed with the breadth of options in Year 12 and 13, which include Psychology – a bridging subject between the Arts and Sciences valued, inter alia, by the Russell Group.

BSO 2020-21.

BSO Report - Al Mamoura Academy, Abu Dhabi - 2020 -21

 

ECAs and Whole Child ‘Bigger Picture’ Provision.

The full pre-Covid ECA programme will gradually be re-introduced as the pandemic permits, but today Senior School activities include Pilates, Model United Nations, Careers Club, Hot Drinks and Design Club, Manassah Project club and with a subject specific invite only curriculum support clubs.

Online pre-recorded Enrichment sessions for pupils at the height of the pandemic included 5 Enrichment sessions each week under the subject areas: Academic, Arabic, Creative Arts, Discovery and Sporting. Examples included:

Academic – Phonics, English Comprehension, Spelling, Numeracy and Maths challenges

Arabic – Writing, speaking, basic vocabulary (all phase group relevant)

Creative Arts – Arts and crafts, drawing, themed design, competitions, mindfulness colouring

Discovery – Science experiments, languages

Sporting – Football skills, Rugby skills. Fitness, Netball skills, Basketball skills

Prior to Covid 19 and its many impacts on all schools, the ECA Programme ran to pages of opportunities. For example, in just Term 2, 2019/20, the most recent face-to-face program prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, offers included:

  • Crossword Club
  • IGCSE English Language Booster
  • Maths Problem Solving Club
  • Spelling Bee Club
  • Art in Arabic
  • Qur’an Club Y4-6
  • Let’s sing club
  • Girls only sports club
  • Mindfulness Yoga
  • Arabic Reading
  • Dabka
  • Jiu Jitsu
  • Dance club
  • Fun Phonics
  • Arts & Crafts
  • Board Game Club
  • Comic Book Club
  • Creating your own Story Book
  • Guitar Club
  • French club
  • Science Club
  • U11 Boys Football
  • U11 Girls Netball
  • U9 Boys Football
  • Scuba Diving Club
  • Reading Comprehension Club
  • Sudoku Club
  • Times Table Rock Stars
  • Times Tables Club
  • Cartoon Drawing
  • Costume Design Club – Aladdin
  • Handwriting Club
  • How to draw club
  • Technology Club
  • Cosmic Yoga
  • Go Noodle! Fitness

 

Fees.

Fees are Tier 1 premium, but on ROI based on the heavy investment in premium school facilities and British teaching faculty we rate ROI for parents outstanding.

Table showing School Fees at Al mamoura Academy in Abu Dhabi.

Investment in children – significant and on-going.

There has been significant investment in developing the learning spaces within the school including:

    • The opening of the Post 16 Centre
    • Stem Lab & Wellbeing room
    • FS Fairytale kingdom and library
    • Opening of new school entrances and exits
    • AMA Campsite
    • New fully equipped Resistant Materials suite
    • Aeroponics installation supporting sustainability vision
    • 3d interactive Periodic Table

Upcoming developments include:

      • A new lower school playground
      • Whole School library renovation
      • Theatre upgrade underpinning AMA as an Aldar Centre for The Performing Arts

Virtual Tour.

Travel through a Virtual Tour of Al Mamoura Academy here.

Bottom Line? The SchoolsCompared.com verdict on Mamoura Academy Abu Dhabi 2021-22.

Photograph of children outside Al Mamoura Academy buildings in Abu Dhabi

Aldar’s Al Mamoura Academy has the potential to set the benchmark for single sex, girls only schools provision in the Emirate. Many argue it already does so. It does this whilst being a standard bearer for delivering an inspirational and effective core Arabic syllabus within an academic, international (primarily British) and whole-child focused educational experience for its students.

The school’s first ADEK/Iritqaa Inspection Reports, both of which achieved a “Good” rating, will have disappointed the school. However, we think that parents should be aware that these are precisely the school’s first inspections, and no school, after such a brief period since opening, has the necessary statistical ability to provide inspectors with the data needed to reflect the school’s performance in academic attainment and progress with sufficient accuracy. Second, Mamoura Academy secured a statistically significant number of consistent “Very Good” ratings within both reports. Although a Good School rating in the minimum standard expected of every school operating in the UAE, the bar here was already set at a high level.

As predicted, Al Mamoura Academy secured a Very Good with Outstanding Features rating in its ADEK 2021 – 22 inspection – a ranking in our view richly deserved.

Standout at the school is the whole child personal development of children which we rate outstanding – the bigger picture investment in children is something to behold and this is resolutely not a school that pushes exam results to the detriment of the core human and ethical skills and values looked for by universities and modern business and industry. In many ways exam results are the easier part of the equation – developing empowered and inspiring young women able to forge a successful future in a rapidly changing world in which what is valued goes well beyond pieces of paper is by far the bigger achievement.

These are early days and we continue to believe that there is the potential, and capacity, here to deliver an Outstanding school. History and experience says that it’s just a mater of time…

For many young women Al Mamoura Academy will be nothing less than a lifeline to a happy education and an extraordinarily successful career making a difference in the world.

Highly Recommended.

Notes for Parents

(1) Further Information. 

Are you looking for a place for your child, and want help from our school consultants? If so, click on the link below, and we will forward your request for information to the school or schools of the same type that we are confident have availability. This is a free service for our readers from SchoolsCompared.com in partnership with our sister site WhichSchoolAdvisor.

Request School Information

 

(2) Click here to visit the official Aldar Academies’ Al Mamoura Academy web site.

© SchoolsCompared.com. A WhichMedia Group publication. 2023. All rights reserved.

Details to consider
2018/19 Overall ADEK / KHDA Rating

Good with Very Good features

2017/18 Overall ADEC / KHDA Rating

NA

2016/17 Overall ADEC / KHDA Rating

Good with Very Good features

2015/16 Overall KHDA / ADEC Rating

NA

Rating FS

Good

Rating Primary / Elementary

Good

Rating Secondary / Middle

Good

Rating Post 16 / High

Phased launch

Type of school

Private, not-for-profit
[Aldar Academies’ profits are re-invested into the developments of its schools and facilities]

WSA Good School

Yes (Al Mushrif Primary)

Full WSA Review
Average Cost Per Year

FS1: 48,800
FS2: 50,210
YEAR 1: 50,210
YEAR 2: 50,210
YEAR 3: 50,210
YEAR 4: 50,210
YEAR 5: 50,210
YEAR 6: 50,210
YEAR 7: 61,530
YEAR 8: 61,530
YEAR 9: 65,850
YEAR 10: 69,350
YEAR 11: 69,350
YEAR 12: 72,430
YEAR 13: 72,430

Curriculum

Primary:
National Curriculum for England
Secondary (dual stream):
National Curriculum for England (I(GCSE) O' Level & GCE A' Level)
OR
American (High School Diploma)

External Exam Boards

Cambridge
EDEXCEL
AQA
International Baccalaureate

Number of A Levels offered

18 + EPQ

A Levels offered

• Maths
• Physics
• Chemistry
• Mathematics
• Geography
• History
• English
• PE
• Psychology
• Drama
• Art
• Media Studies
• Economics
• Business Studies
• Music
• French
• ICT
• Design and Technology - Graphics, Food Technology or Resistant Materials
• Spanish
• Arabic

IGCSE A* to C

2021: 73.6% *-B (Grade 9-6), 98.4% A*-C (Grade 9-4).
2019: 97% Pass (75% of students achieved five 9-5/A*-B / Overall 52% of students achieved 9-6 grades (A*/B).).

IGCSE A* to A

2021: 12.4% Grade 9, 31% A* (Grade 9-8), 53.5% A*-A (Grade 9-7)
2019: 33% of students achieved 9-7 grades (A*/A)

Number of I/GCSEs Offered

16+

I/GCSEs offered

• English (Core)
• Arabic (Core)
• Citizenship (not examined) (Core)
• Islamic Studies (Ministry of education/ Muslim only) (Core)
• Mathematics (Core)
• Physical Education (PE) (not examined) (Core)
• Science – Biology OR Physics OR Chemistry (Core)
• Statistics (Core)
• Art & Design
• Biology
• Business Studies
• Chemistry
• Design & Technology – Graphics, Food Technology or Resistant Materials
• Drama
• French
• ICT
• Music
• Physical Education
• Physics
• Psychology
• Spanish
• Economics
• Food and Nutrition

Selective

No (fully inclusive)

Value Added

Not published

Number of Students

Current role: 1112 (October 2021)
1800 capacity

Teacher to Student Ratio

1:10

Largest nationality teachers

British and Irish 70%+

Teacher turnover

14%

Year opened

2016-17

Location

( adj. Sea Palace), Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi

Student composition

Arabic (largest nationality) with significant representation from other nationalities.
Notes
(1) Emirati: 63%
(2) Egyptian: 3%
(3) Indian: 4%

Gender

Mixed, co-educational primary
Single sex, female secondary
(Al Bateen - co-educational secondary slipstream for boys)

School canteen

Yes

Owner

Aldar Academies

Admissions Telephone

00971 2 8132200

Web Address
Attainment Nur SEM

46.6%

Attainment Pri SEM

53.3%

Attainment Sec SEM

40%

Attainment Post-16 SEM

Phased launch

Progress Nur SEM

53.3%

Progress Pri SEM

60%

Progress Sec SEM

53.3%

Progress Post-16 SEM

Phased launch

Arabic Native Primary Results (Native)

50%

Arabic Secondary Results (Native)

40%

Arabic Post-16 Results (Native)

Phased launch

Arabic Primary Results (Add.)

40%

Arabic Secondary Results (Add.)

40%

Arabic Post-16 Results (Add.)

Phased launch

Islamic St. Primary Results

50%

Islamic St. Secondary Results

50%

Islamic St. Post-16 Results

Phased launch

Leadership

80%

Community

80%

Facilities

80%

Quality of teaching

60%

Student personal responsibility

80%

Quality of curriculum

60%

School Governance

60%

SEN Provision

66.6%

Strengths

• Single-sex, all girls schooling meeting significant, long standing demand from prospective parents
• Outstanding ADEC A1 school heritage
• Seamless slipstream and feeder school transition for both sexes
• Important protection of primary co-educational experience prior to segmentation
• Dual IB/A Level streams at secondary with huge subject choice and school ability to match closely the needs of individual children and their development
• Benchmark core Arabic subject provision
• Genuinely inclusive entrance with exceptional teaching and high value added
• Outstanding Special Educational Needs provision [SEN] across both sides of the spectrum
• Security of Aldar brand and heritage with not-for-profit re-investment
• Growing networks across Aldar schools with excellent sporting and academic linkages
• Location

Weaknesses

• Time will be needed to securely bed-in Secondary provision.

Rating
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A
B+
ExtraCurricula
A+
B+
Languages
A-
B
Sports
A-
B+
Arts & Drama
A-
B-
Teaching
A+
B
Communications
A+
B
Warmth
A+
A-
Differentiation
A-
A-
SEND Provision
A-
B+
Scl Community
A+
B+
Scl Facilities
A
A-
Opportunities

• Potential benchmark, A1 outstanding, single-sex, all girl, secondary school with seamless mixed coeducational primary feeder and KHDA A1 slipstream for boys. The choice of a US rather than IB Secondary pathway is an interesting and should significantly strengthen the school's offerings in sports and the Arts - two key strengths of US schools.

A
Our Rating
B+
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4%
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9%
Pass
4%
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17%
About The Author
Jon Westley
Jon Westley is the Editor of SchoolsCompared.com and WhichSchoolAdvisor.com UK. You can email him at jonathanwestley [at] schoolscompared.com

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Academic
Value
ExtraCurricula
Languages
Sports
Arts & Drama
Teaching
Communications
Warmth
Differentiation
SEND Provision
Scl Community
Scl Facilities