SchoolsCompared.com Top Schools Awards 2019 – 2020. The Best Schools in the UAE.
Sasha Crabb took home Principal of the Year, while the joint nomination of DESS and DESC won Best School of the Year, just two of the awards taken home last night at the second, annual SchoolsCompared.com Top Schools of the Year Award.
The event was held at the incredible Rajmahal Theatre, in Bollywood Parks, part of Dubai Parks and Resorts. The theatre played host to over 800 leading educators from across the UAE.
In total there were 22 winners from 21 awards, with only one – Outstanding Contribution to UAE Education – chosen by the editors of Which Media, our parent company, which is also behind sister site, WhichSchoolAdvisor.com.
Outstanding Contribution to UAE Education was won by H.E. Dr. Abdulla Al Karam, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director General of the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA). He was described on the night as an “enemy of complacency”, and central to the success that the emirates had had in attracting global names to the country.
At the awards he told a packed audience that the successes being made in the UAE was due to its educators, their support and their trust. “Everything we do is always done for the right reasons… This award is only going to make us do more with you, so gear up and be ready!”
The remaining 20 awards were arrived at via a three phase process of an open nomination to schools and parents; to a shortlisting by our editors, and then online voting by seven independent judges.
Over the next fortnight we will be uploading the full analysis of each category, along with the justifications behind each finalist. They cannot be uploaded immediately as some contain material that cannot be made public. When published they will reveal, in glorious detail, the amazing things that are happening across UAE schools.
“The depth of quality of the UAE’s 580 plus schools is simply unparalleled,” the editor of this site, Jonathan Westley, said.
Until then however the list of last night’s winners and finalists is:
- Outstanding contribution to education in the UAE
Winner: H.E. Dr Abdulla Al Karam - British curriculum school of the year
Winner: British School Al Khubairat
Finalists
• Dubai English Speaking College (DESC)
• Cranleigh Abu Dhabi
• Dubai British School Emirate Hills
• Dubai English Speaking School (DESS)
• Jumeirah College - International Baccalaureate school of the year
Winner: Raha International School
Finalists
• Dubai International Academy – Emirates Hills
• GEMS World Academy Dubai
• Greenfield Community School
• Jumeira Baccalaureate School
• Uptown School - Best American curriculum school of the year
Winner: American School of Dubai
Finalists:
• Clarion School Dubai
• West Yas Academy Abu Dhabi - Indian curriculum school of the year
Winner: GEMS Modern Academy
Finalists:
• Ambassador School and Kindergarten, Dubai
• Delhi Private School
• The Indian High School (Senior Campus)
• The Millennium School - Arabic Blended curriculum school of the year
Winner: Sheikh Zayed Private Academy for Boys
Finalists:
• American School of Creative Science, Dubai
• Next Generation School, Dubai
• School of Research Science
• Sheikh Zayed Private Academy for Girls - IB Blended curriculum School of the Year
Winner: Jumeirah English Speaking School Arabian Ranches
Finalists:
• American Community School of Abu Dhabi
• Deira International School Dubai Festival City
• GEMS Dubai American Academy
• Nord Anglia International School
• Repton School Dubai - Best Primary School
Winner: Dubai English Speaking School
Finalists:
• GEMS Jumeirah Primary School
• Horizon English School
• Jumeirah English Speaking School – Jumeirah
• Kings’ School Dubai
• Victory Heights Primary School - Best Nursery
Winner: Aga Khan Early Learning Centre
Finalists:
• Children’s Oasis
• IDEA Early Learning Centre
• Little Land Nursery
• Yellow Brick Road Nursery - Best post-16 education
Winner: British School Al Khubairat
Finalists:
• Dubai College
• Dubai English Speaking College (DESC)
• Jumeirah College
• Jumeirah English Speaking School (JESS) Arabian Ranches
• Repton Dubai
• Sunmarke School - Best school for technical education
Winner: Dubai English Speaking College
Finalists:
• British School Al Khabairat (BSAK)
• GEMS Wellington Academy – Dubai Silicon Oasis
• Greenfield Community School
• Sunmarke School Dubai - Best new school
Winner: Safa Community School
Finalists:
• Cranleigh Abu Dhabi
• Dubai Heights Academy
• Kent College
• Nord Anglia International School Dubai
• Ranches Primary School - Best school for music
Winner: Nord Anglia International School Dubai
Finalists:
• American School of Dubai
• Brighton College Abu Dhabi
• Cranleigh Abu Dhabi
• GEMS Music Hub at GEMS World Academy - Best school for theatre and the performing arts
Winner: Cranleigh School Abu Dhabi
Finalists:
• American School of Dubai
• American Community School, Abu Dhabi
• Dubai English Speaking College (DESC)
• Nord Anglia International School Dubai
• Raha International School Abu Dhabi - Best school for art
Winner: Brighton College Abu Dhabi
Finalists:
• British School Al Khabairat
• Nord Anglia International School
• Jumeira Baccalaureate School
• Jumeirah College
• Raha International School
• Springdales Dubai - Best school for sport
Winner: Dubai English Speaking College
Finalists:
• Dubai College
• British School Al Khubairat
• Jumeirah College (JC)
• Jumeirah English Speaking School (JESS) – Arabian Ranches - Best school for child progress and value add
Winner: Jumeirah College
Finalists:
• British School Al Khubairat (BSAK)
• Dubai English Speaking College (DESC)
• Jumeirah English Speaking School (JESS) – Arabian Ranches
• Repton School Dubai
• The English College - Award for outstanding use of technology
JOINT Winners: Fairgreen School and Jumeirah English Speaking School – Arabian Ranches
Finalists:
• GEMS Dubai American Academy
• Hartland
• Repton School – Abu Dhabi - Best international initiative
Winner: Riverston School Dubai
Finalists:
• Dubai English Speaking School (DESC) and Dubai English Speaking School (DESS)
• Dubai International Academy – Emirates Hills
• Fairgreen International School
• Nibras - School principal of the year, 2019
Winner: Sasha Crabb, Victory Heights
Finalists:
• Catherine Dando Dubai English Speaking School (DESS)
• Simon O’ Connor Jumeirah College
• Rachel Higgins GEMS Jumeirah Primary School
• Mark Leppard MBE British School Al Khubairat (BSAK) - Best school in the UAE, 2019
Winner: DESC and DESS
Finalists:
• American School of Dubai
• Brighton College Abu Dhabi
• British School Al Khubairat (BSAK)
• Cranleigh School Abu Dhabi
• GEMS Modern Academy
• Jumeirah Primary School (JPS) and Jumeirah College (JC) [Joint nomination]
• Jumeirah English Speaking School (JESS) Primary & Arabian Ranches [Joint nomination]
• Raha International School
• Sheikh Zayed Private Academy for Boys
All awards were arrived at only after painstaking analysis by the judges, who described it as one of the hardest things they had ever been asked to do. “Fortunately my grey hair could not get any greyer,” judge Lyn Soppelsa told us.
While decisions were difficult in all categories, the to final awards cause the biggest difficulties for the judges. “The Top School of the Year was a really hard decision in a field of outstanding schools,” Sara Rogers, Judge, Top Schools Awards 2019 said, before adding “but… it is very pleasing to see the investment in DESS, an older school that had many great traditions. These traditions have been built upon with out of the box thinking and truly transformed the education that is provided. With the partnership of a fantastic secondary school in DESC, every child is nurtured and their potential is achieved. A great holistic education of the highest quality.
Equally hard has been the choice in an outstanding field of fellow inspiring educators – but also an easy one. What a truly caring and inspirational leader Sasha [Crabb] is; she touches the lives of all those she meets and her whole school community feels cared for and valued by her. She lives and breathes education and the welfare of the whole community [at Victory Heights Primary] is her priority. She embodies the reason that we aspire to teach and make a difference to young people’s lives both now and in the future.”
“Hosting an event for UAE schools, and to play master of ceremonies for a theatre packed full of teachers is such an honour, commented Dubai Eye’s The Agenda presenter, Tom Urqhart. “You cannot over-state the importance of what these professionals do, and an event such as the Top Schools Awards has been simply over-due.”
The Awards also featured a show by the resident artists at Bollywood Parks™ Dubai during the intermission. “We hope that we were able to bring some magic to the awards. We know our dancers left the audience suitably wowed!” said Milton D’souza, Director of Operations Dubai Parks and Resorts at DXB Entertainments.
“This was the biggest awards event we have hosted to date. Education is very important to us and so when SchoolsCompared.com asked us to be their partner, we embraced the opportunity to get involved. Helping to put on a world-class event at our stunning theatre to celebrate the fantastic achievements of leading schools is of paramount importance to us.”
The second SchoolsCompared.com Top Schools Awards is now very much an annual event, James Mullan, MD of Which Media said. “This has inspired everyone at Which Media, and we hope the wider industry too…
“We hope to have given the whole industry the rocket fuel they need to go back into their schools tomorrow, with the energy that will power them onwards and upwards until our next awards.”
“We aimed, rather ambitiously, to build the Oscars of the education sector with these awards,” said the GM and Co-Founder of Which Media, David Westley. “At the beautiful Rajmahal Theatre at Bollywood Parks™ Dubai, I do believe we have taken one giant leap forward in that direction.”
- Full analysis for each category will be published shortly.
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