Thriving together: Inside Ras Al Khaimah’s inclusive education system

​​The recent start of the academic year​ has​ offered a moment to reflect on the continued evolution of Ras Al Khaimah’s education system. ​​​​The latest cohort of graduates highlight the rich diversity that defines Ras Al Khaimah, with students from a wide range of backgrounds and nationalities learning side by side in the northernmost emirate of the United Arab Emirates.​​

​​​​This diversity is not incidental but central to our approach to education. Ras Al Khaimah Department of Knowledge oversees a network of 35 private schools serving a student body where expatriates outnumber Emiratis by three to one. ​​​​It is for this reason that the theme of our 2025 Festival of Learning “​​Together We Thrive​​”​​ felt especially apt. ​​​​​​ ​​​ ​​​ ​​​ ​

​​The festival brought together 89 projects from private schools across the emirate, each highlighting innovations in five key areas: inclusion, compliance, wellbeing, learning environment and innovation. ​The festival fostered inclusivity and collaboration as school principals spoke ​about the changes taking place within their organisations and highlighted how important parents have been in enhancing their approach to policy development. Other schools mentioned how their own student body contributed to initiatives, in one such example a group of students volunteered to ​launch​​ a cultural awareness week to celebrate the varied ​​background​​ of their peers. Though modest in scale, these initiatives showcase the Department’s ​​commitment to not​​ only academic excellence but to building inclusive learning environments that reflect, and serve, our multicultural reality​​.​​ ​​

Around the world, education systems are under pressure to become more agile, equitable and inclusive. What the emirate is doing is quietly significant: demonstrating how smaller jurisdictions can lead, not follow, when it comes to inclusion and diversity.

New education policy

​​T​he Department of ​​Knowledge has​​ built on this momentum by developing a new Inclusive Education Policy, created in consultation with school principals and educators across the emirate. The policy provides a framework to help schools examine their internal systems, from curriculum design to student support, aimed at removing the barriers that prevent equal access to opportunity. It encourages a culture of shared responsibility: inclusion is not just the domain of a specialist teacher or administrator.

This effort is not in isolation. It forms part of the UAE’s broader national outlook where frameworks like UAE Vision 2031 and Centennial 2071 call for inclusive, high-quality education and equal opportunities for all students, regardless of gender, background, or ability. These goals uphold education as part of a child’s fundamental human rights and Ras Al Khaimah is delivering on that promise, not only through celebration, but through regulation and sustained support. These ambitions were highlighted this year at the 19th annual RAK Awards for Educational Excellence, held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, who called education “the strength and character of our nation” and “the path to opportunity”.

Global recognition

Ras Al Khaimah’s trajectory has earned global recognition. In 2022, the emirate joined UNESCO’s Global Network of Learning Cities, positioning itself alongside cities worldwide that are committed to lifelong learning, inclusion and innovation. This badge also aligns us with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, notably SDG 4 (inclusive and equitable quality education for all) and SDG 11 (inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities). The link between local action and global principle is obvious. Human rights in education are​​ not only ​​protected through legal frameworks; they are realised through daily choices in classrooms, playgrounds and assemblies where young people learn to listen, lead and belong.

Ras Al Khaimah’s new Golden Visa programme for educators recognises the value of shaping the next generation. By offering long-term, self-sponsored residency, the initiative recognises teachers and school leaders as central components of inclusive, high-quality education, encouraging them to establish lasting roots in the emirate and contribute to Ras Al Khaimah’s sustained progress.

Commitment to inclusion

​​​Ras Al Khaimah’s commitment to inclusion, however, extends far beyond the classroom.​​​ ​As students move forward in​​to the next stages of their lives ​​they do so in an emirate that is genuinely committed to inclusivity, ​demonstrated ​through meaningful initiatives ​​for women, girls and people of determination, such as our forthcoming training programme for Learning Support Assistants (LSAs), who provide assistance to students of determination across the emirate’s schools.

Women remain championed in the workforce​​ with​ ​programmes such as the Women in Strength and Empowerment (WISE) Network established by colleagues in the emirate’s Investment and Development Office (IDO). WISE recognises that long-term progress and inclusive development depend on ensuring that women have the support and opportunities to help shape Ras Al Khaimah’s future, a commitment that the Department of Knowledge​​ continues to​​ uphold. 

Importantly,​ t​he RAK Club for People of Determination provides an environment where talent and perseverance are nurtured through sports and community engagement. Earlier this year, Abdulla Al Nuaimi, a member of the club, made history by winning the UAE’s first gold medal at the Special Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy - the first-ever medal for a team from the MENA region in the Games’ history. His achievement exemplifies the remarkable outcomes that can result from investing in access and fostering ambition.

From a distance, Ras Al Khaimah might appear to be a small player in the global education landscape. But from the ground, it serves as a microcosm of what inclusive schooling can achieve in a varied and fast-changing world. At a time when many systems are turning inward or struggling to embrace difference, Ras Al Khaimah stands out as a place where diversity is a strength, and inclusion a habit.

Dr Abdulrahman Al Naqbi is Board Member, Ras Al Khaimah Department of Knowledge