Results of the Shool Inspection in Dubai released

The results of the second year of school inspections in Dubai are released today and can be viewed on KHDA’s website: www.khda.gov.ae

They reveal few changes to the categories schools have achieved but a healthy level of progress within schools.

For the academic year 2009-2010, 209 public and private schools with a total of 202,441 pupils were inspected by the Dubai Schools Inspection Bureau (DSIB). Among these schools, 23 Indian and Pakistani schools were inspected for the first time this year (their results were announced last February).

Inspectors visited the schools (78 public schools and 131 private schools) between October 2009 and March 2010. They made observations of nearly 15,000 lessons. They conducted 500 interviews with students and staff, and parents of around 80,000 students completed an online questionnaire which asked them 20 questions about their child’s school, and invited their comments.

Another change this year is the publication of each school’s full 20-page inspection report. Last year, a two-page summary was made public and schools chose over whether their full report was to be made public.

The second DSIB Annual Report, which will give an overall picture of Dubai’s schools along with analysis by curricula and criteria, is due to be published in June.

The results of the inspection showed five schools have been ranked outstanding this year, up from four last year. Three of them are public schools and two are British curriculum private schools.

Of the four schools ranked outstanding last year, just one, Kings Dubai has retained its ranking. The other three have fallen to good.

Wellington International School is the only K-12 school to receive that ranking – the other four schools, Kings, Dubai; the Al Manhal Kindergarten; the al Nokhbah Model School and the Childhood Development Center are kindergartens or primary schools.

Repton and Dubai American Academy rankings disappointed parents, considering the high fees.

In total 66 schools have been ranked good – the same number as last year.
Also, 94 have been deemed acceptable, down from 97 last year, and 20 are unsatisfactory down from 22 last year.

Several schools have improved in the eyes of Dubai’s regulator but several have become worse.

Four good schools moved up to outstanding while 15 schools have moved up to good and 16 have lost that rank. Seven schools have moved up to acceptable while six lost that rank.