Complete Dubai 2020 School Inspection Results

This article is part of an editorial series on Covid-19

Our list includes the details of all those that have been inspected this year, schools whose inspections were postponed as a result of Covid 19, schools not yet due for inspection, and new schools opening in 2020-21, to create the most up to date list available.

Any change in rating will be highlighted in BOLD in our table below.  Please do read to the end of the chart to see changes.

Schools that had already notified WhichSchoolAdvisor.com of their inspection results include Safa British School, Dubai British School Jumeirah Park,  GEMS Wellington Academy Al Khail, Hartland International School - whose ratings improved from Good to Very Good, and Star International School Al Twar - whose rating improved from Acceptable to Good. Al Salam Primary School and  Star International School, Mirdif retained their Good rating.

Under the normal circumstances, the KHDA would have published the full inspection reports for Dubai schools during the month of May. That they have finally done so in July, without announcement, is a measure of just how "not-routine" this year's inspection process has been. The decision to  introduce a Distance Learning Evaluation for all UAE schools appears to have delayed the usual process.  At the time of writing, these results have not yet been published. Details of the process and results from a limited number of schools can be found here.  This article will be updated as more details become available.

Additional changes in ratings, which had not previously been announced, include Emirates International School, Meadows, and MSB (Al Ameen) Private School, both of whom have made the move up to Very Good.  This is all the more impressive, since EIS Meadows had been rated Good for the past 8 years, and MSB, for the past 9 years! 

North American International School also achieved a Good rating for the first time after having been rated Acceptable for 11 years - since inspections began. Al Adab Iranian School for Boys also improved its rating to Good, although the sister Girl's school retained its Acceptable rating. No-one should underestimate the amount of effort involved - especially for schools that have attained the same rating year in year out - in making the step up to the next level!

It was, unfortunately, not all good news. Dubai International School Al Qouz, GEMS Al Barsha National School for Girls and the Filipino curriculum United International School were downgraded from Good to Acceptable.  But on a positive note, the Philippine School Dubai together with the Grammar School improved their ratings from Weak to Acceptable.  Only two Dubai schools now fall into the Weak category - these being Gulf Model School and Pakistan Educational Academy.

Among new schools, inspected for the first time, North London Collegiate School achieved a Good rating - but clearly should have done better still!  Despite previous comments from the KHDA that schools could achieve a higher rating than Good at their first inspection, not one has yet achieved this.  However, NLCS came so close!  

Almost all ratings for Student Achievement were rated Outstanding or Very Good. Personal Development and Social Responsibility were rated Outstanding across the school. Both Teaching and Assessment were rated highly, with Very Good ratings for KG and IB Diploma students, whilst the Curriculum was rated Very Good across the board. The final two key performance standards of  Care and Support were rated Very Good, whilst Governance was rated Very Good, and the relationships with Parents and the Community, and Management, staffing, facilities and resources were rated Outstanding. 

The school's downfall - and NCLS is certainly not the first to struggle in this context - was the provision of Arabic as both first and second languages, and Islamic Studies - all of which were rated Weak. The school now has a major task on its hands to rectify this situation - with further improvements in overall rating likely to be stymied without a significant change.

The only new schools that were due to be inspected for the first time who actually went through the process are Alpha School and Newlands School - both of which were rated Acceptable.

All Indian curriculum schools were inspected prior to school closures.  In addition, following the announcement of the KHDA's revised policy in September last year, all schools that were rated Very Good or Outstanding in 2018-19 will retain this rating for 2019-20.

Our list now includes full details of all schools in Dubai with the relevant rating for 2019-20. Fee information is based on the approved KHDA fees.  Many schools - particularly newer ones - had already discounted their fees before the closure of schools due to Covid-19.  You will find up to date information about reduced fees under the Fees and Availability tab on each Review page.

Some schools have also made further reductions specifically to support families during this difficult period.  Full details of these reductions may be found in our schools offering fee reductions list.

This table also includes schools whose inspection was due to take place in 2019-20 where the inspection has not taken place.  New schools that have announced their opening in September are also listed.

We suggest that you use this list to identify schools whose curriculum, location and fees may be a suitable option, check the review on WhichSchoolAdvisor.com and details of the inspection rating both within the review and in the KHDA report, which will be added to the Inspection Report tab.

* The Arcadia School (Primary Section) includes fees for year 7.  Students in this year group will transfer to the new Secondary School in September 2020.

Many schools are arranging virtual tours and online admissions.  Contact details can be found under the Contact Info tab above each school review.