MIDDLE EAST


Clive Pierrepont, director of communications at Taaleem, an international school group with schools in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, believes that competition for places is helping to create stability, and that the future is looking bright for families relocating to the region. In line with Vision 2021, Taaleem is making significant


progress on new school developments. In September 2014, the group completed the third phase of its Uptown campus, in Mirdif, and opened the Dubai British Foundation School, in Jumeirah Islands. September 2015 saw the opening of Dubai British School, in Jumeirah Park.


KEY FACTORS Personal requirements vary, of course. However, the


2014 YouGov Education Investment Study into school choice in the UAE found that parents regarded academic record as the most important factor.


Other factors that were considered a priority were overall reputation, range of subjects taught, range of extracurricular activities on offer, and facilities available. Functional attributes, such as the proximity of the school to home, ease of access, and school fees were deemed less important, which suggests that parents in the UAE are willing to pay more or travel further in order to place their child in the right school. The survey found that, overall, 44 per cent of parents in the UAE believed that they received good value for money from their child’s school. Factors such as the quality of the class teacher, word-of-mouth recommendations, and the quality of the headteacher were all cited as contributing significantly to a perception of value for money.


ASSESSING SCHOOLS Evaluating the quality of schools is often not an easy task for families moving to a new region. For those relocating to Dubai, strict regulations set by the KHDA can help.


208 | relocateglobal.com | Keep Informed


Accreditation in Dubai is mandatory, and school inspections are conducted annually by the Dubai Schools Inspection


Bureau (DSIB). The KHDA’s Schools Fees


Framework, which was introduced in 2012, restricts schools to fee increases based on their inspection standards, in conjunction with the Education Cost Index.


Of 143 schools, 134 were eligible to increase their fees for the 2015/16 academic year based on these guidelines. In the 2014/15 inspections, 14 schools were rated as outstanding, 59 as good, 61 as acceptable, and nine as unsatisfactory. Ten of the 14 schools rated as outstanding offer a UK curriculum. All Dubai private-school inspection reports for the past six years are published on the KHDA website (khda.gov.ae). In 2015, for the first time, the reports included a review of the special educational needs provision at each school, as well as a new section designed specifically for parents, which gives information to support them with school choice. British-curriculum schools in Dubai are also eligible for British Schools Overseas (BSO) inspections. These are based on standards equivalent to those for UK independent schools, and are part of an agreement between KHDA and the Department for Education (DfE) of England and Wales. The BSO inspections are conducted by the Centre for


British Teachers Education Trust (CfBT), which is authorised by the DfE. Inspection reports are available from the CfBT’s website (cfbt.com).


QATAR – A GROWING MARKET


Qatar is predicted to see major growth in international schools over the next decade. According to ISC data, the country currently has 163 English-medium international schools, between them teaching more than 123,000 students. The majority of these schools are located in Doha, where more are urgently needed.


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