Dubai: Looking for the perfect school for your child in Dubai? With over 200 private schools offering 17 distinct curricula, it is important to make a choice that best suits your child’s and your needs.
To ensure quality education for every child, Dubai’s Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) conducts annual inspections through the Dubai Schools Inspection Bureau (DSIB), and the reports are published each year.
For this academic year – 2023 to 2024 – the school ratings were released by KHDA on May 2. While the detailed inspection reports will soon be released for each of the schools, you can currently access the overall results for schools across various curricula on the official KHDA website - web.khda.gov.ae
Here is a look at how to understand the DSIB ratings and zero down on the perfect school for your child.
Through these ratings and inspections DSIB provides the KHDA, the Government of Dubai and the wider public with an accurate and detailed view of the quality of school education in the emirate.
Source: u.ae and web.khda.gov.ae
Understanding DSIB Quality Indicators - key questions evaluated by DSIB
Here is a look at all the questions that DSIB raises during their evaluation:
1. How good are the students’ attainment and progress in Islamic Education?
2. How good are the students attainment and progress in Arabic? (Arabic as a first language )
3. How good are the students attainment and progress in mathematics?
4. How good are the students’ attainment and progress in science?
5. How good is the students’ personal and social development?
6. How good are the teaching and learning?
7. How well does the curriculum meet the educational needs of all students?
8. How well does the school protect and support students?
9. How good are the students’ attainment and progress in English?
10. How good are the students’ attainment and progress in Arabic? (Arabic as an additional language )
11. How good are the leadership and management of the school?
12. How good are quality of student's learning skills
When you see a report from DSIB, you will see how the school performed on each of these 12 questions and criteria. The report will also provide a summary of the following aspects:
• Student achievement - this encompasses progress and attainment in core subjects like mathematics, science, Arabic, Islamic studies, UAE social studies, and moral education.
• Student wellbeing - the inspection assesses the school's focus on fostering emotional well-being and social development.
• Teaching and learning - the report evaluates the effectiveness of teaching methods and curriculum alignment.
While the detailed inspection reports for the 2023-2024 academic year are yet to be released, as mentioned earlier, you can still explore reports from previous years to gain insight into the school’s progress.
Finding the perfect fit – how to check school ratings
Now that you have a better idea of the inspection criteria, here is how you can start searching for schools and shortlisting them
1. Access the online school directory from KHDA – Visit the KHDA website, web.khda.gov.ae, and click on the 'Find Education Institutions' from the menu. This section provides access to school ratings, academic calendars, and fee structures for all Dubai private schools.
2. Refine your search - utilise the advanced filters to narrow down your options based on curriculum type, school name, grades offered, rating, fee range, and location.
3. Take a look at the details of each school – with each school entry, you will have the option to click on ‘More details about this school’. Here, not only will you get a detailed breakdown of the school fees under ‘fees fact sheet’ and the academic calendar followed by the school, but when you scroll down, you will also see all the pdf reports of the inspections that have been conducted for the school. This provides a comprehensive view of the school’s progress and the areas in which it has rated well.
