Rosary School, Muweilah, Sharjah Review
The story so far . . .
Started in 1999 as a branch of the Rosary School in the Halwan area, Rosary School Muweilah opened with a total of 400 students. Established under the patronage of HH Dr. Sheik Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, Rosary School Muweilah now educates roughly 2,500 students from over 45 different nationalities.
As the vision of the school depicts, Rosary School Muweilah aims to create inspiring, confident citizens, all empowered by knowledge, life-skills, compassion, and integrity. The school’s mission stresses the total development of each child (spiritual, moral, intellectual, social, emotional, and physical), working particularly to preserve the Arab identity within a community of diverse ethnicities – this is a school with a motto of ‘Unity in Diversity’.
“Rosary School provides [a] safe, secure, enriching and developing environment in which everyone can flourish and blossom.”
Co-educational for girls and boys up until Grade 4, Rosary School Muweilah becomes a girls-only school from Grade 5. Mixed classes in the Rosary Kindergarten accommodate a maximum of 25 children; class sizes in the Primary and Secondary school decrease once the school becomes girls-only. These smaller class sizes mean seats are much sought after at the school, with an extensive waiting list of well over 2,000 children.
The majority of students at this Coptic-run school are actually Muslim; to accommodate the mix of Muslim and Christian students, Rosary uses the time slots created by the Ministry of Education (MOE) to teach Islamic and Arabic content for Muslim students, and to teach the Christian faith to Christian students. In order to achieve this, Rosary School Muweilah employs a team of enthusiastic, experienced, highly-qualified teachers to work with students and understand their individual learning needs.
The school encourages an approach of kindness and understanding from its staff for all year groups, and regularly invites parents to the school for celebrations, creating a real sense of unity and home. This is seen through initiatives such as School Voice, a free mobile app for parents that allows them to stay immersed in what’s happening at the school.
At the head of this is the school’s principal, Sr. Sawsan Bader (Raphael), who explains that the school’s goal is to create critical thinkers, problem solvers, and inquisitive learners, which will allow students to become productive citizens with the effective communication and collaboration skills required in the 21st century. Ultimately, she assures parents that:
“every step is taken to educate our students about the importance of religious tolerance and coexistence and fulfil [sic] the dream and vision of our rulers to make UAE a land of peace, security and multiculturalism.”
What about the Curriculum?
Rosary School Muweilah follows the National Curriculum for England, culminating in IGCSEs, AS-Levels, and A-Levels.
The National Curriculum for England is a world-renowned method of education which starts with a ‘learning through play’ approach for younger students, followed by a focus on the core subjects of Maths, English, and Science. This is supplemented with MOE-required subjects such as Arabic and Moral Studies, as well as instruction is areas such as Art, Information Technology, and Physical Education, to ensure a well-rounded schooling experience.
The IGCSE syllabus starts from Grade 9 and, as is common in the UAE, focuses primarily on Science or Business streams. Grades 9 and 10 at Rosary School Muweilah offer students the following subjects: English as a Second Language; Arabic as a First Language; Biology; Physics; Chemistry; Mathematics; Business Studies; Economics; Accounting; Information and Communication Technology; and Environmental Management. Certain subjects, like English as a Second Language and Arabic as a First Language, are entirely covered in Grade 10.
In Grade 11, mandatory subjects include Mathematics, English as a Second Language, and ICT, and students then choose either the Science (Chemistry, Physics, Biology) or Commerce (Business Studies, Economics, Accounting) stream. After finishing Grade 11, students become eligible for AS-Level and A-Level study, with the following subjects available to them: Physics; Chemistry; Biology; Economics; Business Studies; Accounting; English Language; English Literature; Pure Mathematics; and Statistics.
While the school does not give a list of available extra-curricular activities, the school website does mention a variety of clubs, sports tournaments, and competitions. For example, Rosary School Muweilah celebrates events like National Day, Mother’s Day, and Grandparent’s Day, as well as running an annual Sports Day.
What about Inclusion?
Rosary School Muweilah offers no information on its school website about Special Needs Education (SEN) provisions.
What about Academic Achievement?
Unlike many schools in Sharjah and the UAE, Rosary School Muweilah publishes its academic results, and the majority of students seem to perform decently in their IGCSEs and AS-Levels.
Based on the 2018 IGCSE results, while there do not appear to be large numbers of students who excel, the majority of students do achieve A* – C results in most subjects. There is only a small number of failing grades (most predominantly in Economics). A full breakdown of results for each subject is below:
|
SUBJECT |
A* to B |
A* to C  |
A* to E |
|
Arabic 2nd Language |
29% |
85% |
98% |
|
Biology |
34% |
89% |
97% |
|
Business Studies |
5% |
59% |
82% |
|
Chemistry |
28% |
91% |
100% |
|
Economics |
11% |
33% |
78% |
|
English 2nd Language |
2% |
81% |
98% |
|
ICT |
7% |
82% |
100% |
|
Mathematics |
16% |
72% |
92% |
|
Physics |
31% |
92% |
100% |
|
Environmental Management |
14% |
71% |
86% |
Rosary School Muweilah students look to perform above world averages in most subjects, but Business Studies and Economics seem to be particular areas of trouble. As can be seen from the results, these are the subjects with the majority of low or failing grades – this could be due to a number of things, including staff, teaching methods, a lack of extra support etc.
In terms of AS-Levels, a total of 15 students in 2019 completed between 4 and 2 AS-Levels. Top achievers attained 3 As and 1 B, while students at the lower end of the scale attained 2 Ds. If you’re looking for an academically-outstanding school, then Rosary School Muweilah might not be the right fit. However, it is a school that prioritises getting students the results to support their future careers, while also focusing on a holistic education.
What the Inspectors Say
Unlike schools in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Sharjah schools have not participated in regulatory inspections on a regular basis; while there were a few instances of inspections being undertaken by the Ministry of Education, schools did not generally publish the outcomes. With the initiation of SPEA (Sharjah Private Education Authority), the intention is that schools will be inspected using the common framework already in place in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
However, SPEA has decided to seek a collaborative approach with the schools for this process, and although we understand that initial inspections did take place prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, results of these inspections have not been published.
As a result of the pandemic, Sharjah schools have participated in Distance Learning Evaluations, implemented by the Ministry of Education throughout the UAE (these results have been published). In its most recent Distance Learning Review Report (2020), PEPS’s implementation of distance learning was rated as Developed.
Inspectors noted that student wellbeing is being effectively supported and results in high attendance, commenting that:
“In lessons, students understand what they are learning, and activities planned by teachers are engaging and are varied. The school ensures the students can access the on-line learning activities which aim to replicate, as far as possible, the curriculum that the school normally provides.”
Further observations on teacher performance commended the staff for carefully assessing student work and providing clear feedback to help the students improve. Inspectors also felt that parents were being well-informed about their children’s learning.
Finally, inspectors singled out that the school has “effective systems in place to help parents raise issues if they have concerns about their child’s academic work or general wellbeing”. In addition, Rosary School Muweilah was praised for providing adequate IT resources for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The report also provided suggestions for improvements that the school could make. Inspectors encouraged Rosary School Muweilah to further develop their long term plans, “to address the options linked to the possible scenarios that the school may have to face going forwards in September 2020”. They also suggested that the school continue “to build on links with parents through novel communication routes and the work of the parents’ council” – we can see evidence of this being worked on with the development of the School Voice app.
If you would like to read the full inspection report – which we strongly advise you to do in order to understand the reasons behind the ratings – you will find it here.
What about Facilities?
WhichSchoolAdvisor.com has found Rosary School Muweilah to be clean and exceedingly well-maintained. The school is large, with an appealing, cloisters-like exterior, and provides space and resources to provide the best quality of education for families who cannot afford bells and whistles fees.
The KG part of the school is housed separately, on the right hand side of the plot, with its own indoor courtyard and shaded outdoor play area with modern play equipment. Year groups are split across different floors, and all classes are bright and well-lit with double windows and white boards.
Further learning facilities include: an indoor playroom; Arabic activity room; art room; music room; indoor gym; shared clinic; ICT room; library; and party room. The school offers specialised science labs for biology, chemistry, and physics, and whole school facilities include an impressive 700+ seat auditorium, large shared sports hall with raised seating, and a swimming pool.
The Rosary School may be functional rather than fancy, without the expensive equipment or modern campus, but it’s clearly carefully tended and designed to give students everything they need.
The Buzz
WhichSchoolAdvisor.com has received a total of 6 reviews from parents of children at Rosary School Muweilah, and feedback suggests real support from the community.
In terms of student experience at the school, reviews seem to indicate that children enjoy their time at Rosary School Muweilah and are part of a positive environment. For example, 50% of reviewers said that their child felt a tremendous amount of belonging at the school, and the remaining 50% felt at least some belonging. Similarly, 50% of reviewers said that their children enjoyed going to school tremendously, while 0% said they did not enjoy it at all.
Regarding the running of the school, the majority of reviewers (67%) totally agreed that the fees they pay represent good value for money, given the quality the school offers. 67% similarly felt at least partially satisfied with the feedback they received from the school, and the majority (50%) felt satisfied with the disciplinary policy and its implementation.
Finally, moving on to academic achievement within Rosary School Muweilah, parents seem satisfied overall. 100% of responders felt satisfied or partially satisfied with their child’s academic performance, and although 50% of reviewers admitted they had thought about moving their child from the school, 50% reported that they firmly had not.
Ultimately, 67% of reviewers would recommend this school to another parent, which is always a key marker of a school’s success in the community. 100% of responders did note that they find it necessary to give additional tutoring to supplement learning within school, but 33% were either extremely confident or somewhat confident in school’s ability to meet their child’s specific learning needs. Weighing up all of this feedback, Rosary School Muweilah seems to come out as a school that parents are happy to throw their support behind.
If you are a parent, teacher or senior student at Rosary School Muweilah, please share your experience with other potential members of your school community by taking part in our survey.
What about Fees?
With a mission to serve those in the lower income bracket, Rosary school offers a lot for fees that range between AED 10,000 at KG-level and AED 17,200 for the senior years. Fees are paid in two instalments, one in the 1st term and one in 2nd term.
Books are not included in the tuition fees, and range from AED 924 in the lower years up to AED 2,200 in the final years. Transportation fees are also not included; the school provides transportation from Sharjah, Ajman, and Dubai, at AED 3,300, AED 3,650, and AED 4,400 respectively.
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