Dubai: GEMS Wellington Academy Silicon Oasis (WSO) has gained approval to become the first IB World school in the region to offer students A-Level study courses and the International Baccalaureate (IB), it was announced on Sunday.
WSO is now the only IB World School in the UAE accredited to offer A-Level and the IB Diploma Programme (IBDP) and the IB Career-related Programme (IBCP), offering students the choice of either curriculum.
The school, which promotes the vision of the GEMS Education Group to drive impactful communities of learning, has also partnered with ArtsEd, a UK performing arts academy that celebrates 100 years of world-class training, and which launches in Dubai this year.
Kevin Loft, principal and CEO of GEMS Wellington Academy, said: “We are thrilled to be able to offer students a choice in either [the] A-Level programme of study or IBDP and IBCP. This is a first for the region and for GEMS Education, and we hope to pave the way for other schools so that there are a variety of pathways and options for academic study. Our partnership with renowned UK performing arts academy ArtsEd is a welcome addition to our offering in extra-curricular training and will ensure that we deliver on our promise to educate ‘World-Class World-Ready’ future citizens of the world.”
ArtsEd has been running under the presidency of Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber since 2007. It will deliver bespoke training in the arts with partner schools in the UAE and will work with GEMS Wellington Academy to achieve the school’s strategic goals to harness creativity and develop essential skills amongst students and teachers.
From September 2019, WSO will be the flagship school for ArtsEd, with a specialist arts academy based at the school.
