Choosing a school – What Makes A School The Right One for my Child?

Reputation/School ratings

Discussions about schools, the pros and cons, rumours and gossip, are the focus of many conversations once parents start to consider schooling for their children. There will be much speculation about which is the “right” choice for your child. Whilst reading up on the rumours on various Social Media forums may offer some genuine insight into what is happening, do please bear in mind that individual parents may have their own particular requirements of a school or even an axe to grind. We would advise you to note such comments, but keep an open mind.

For a more objective view, we suggest you use at least 3 separate resources.

Our sister website – WhichSchoolAdvisor.com –  carries detailed reviews and visit reports for the majority of private schools rated Good or higher in the UAE and is constantly being updated with details for the most popular schools among parents as the priority.

In addition, you will also have access to the most recent Inspection reports published by the regulators.

A common inspection and rating framework was introduced in 2016, rating schools across 6 boundaries from Outstanding to Very Weak. The reports look at a wide range of performance criteria in terms of Governance, Health and Safety, Staff, Students and teaching standards across the core subjects of Maths, English, Science and Arabic/Islamic Studies.

In Dubai, the KHDA (Knowledge and Human Development Authority) inspects all Dubai schools on an annual basis (with an exception made for a handful of schools rated Outstanding, where the inspections will take place every two years). Please do note, though, that the first inspection in Dubai does not take place until a school has been opened for more than 2 years. This makes the reviews on SchoolsCompared.com and WhichSchoolAdvisor.com – gathered through our personal visits and discussions with the schools, as well as independent research – all the more valuable.

In Abu Dhabi, ADEC (the Abu Dhabi Education Council) inspects all schools every two years. The first inspection for a new school takes place at the start of year 2 of operation. The same regime is being introduced to the northern emirates, with the initial reports for Sharjah and Ajman having been made available via the Ministry of Education.

As with any research, the output will only ever be as good as the input!

The inspection reports have a fairly narrow focus, with more emphasis on some subjects than others. It is important that you consider what elements of the inspection matter to you – we strongly advise you to consider not only the overall rating, but the details of the report which will enable you to get a much stronger “feel” for what the inspectors found – and what they considered the priorities (which may not be the same as yours!).

Lastly, SchoolsCompared.com will enable you to review several schools at once by comparing them on screen. This will enable you to consider a range of common parameters (including fees) for an at-a-glance view of what each school offers.

A further important factor that may mean little to you, but is vital for ensuring curriculum and teaching quality, is accreditation. The next page explains the reason why.

Index
Overview – your framework to choose
Acceptable fees – what does that mean?
Reputation and school ratings
NEXT: Accreditation, why that matters
New versus established schools
Teachers and staffing
Facilities
Specialist subjects
Additional Language, or Learning Needs