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81% of Dubai students attend private schools rated Good or better

by Belinda Breeze

Dubai continues to see improvements in educational quality, with 81% of students now attending private schools rated Good or higher, up from 77% last year, according to KHDA

This year, 209 schools with over 360,000 students were inspected, including 10 new schools. Among them, 23 were rated Outstanding, 48 Very Good, 85 Good, and 51 Acceptable. Two schools were rated Weak, with none rated Very Weak. Overall, 26 schools saw rating improvements, while three saw declines.

  • 209 private schools in Dubai were inspected
  • 10 schools were inspected for the first time
  • 19,782 classroom visits were carried out
  • 4,407 hours of dialogue with students, parents, and school leaders
  • 81% of students receive an education rated Good or higher
  • 83% of schools offer well-being provision rated Good or higher

Her Excellency Aisha Abdulla Miran, Director General of KHDA, remarked: “The continuous improvement by the schools indicates their commitment to offering high-quality educational opportunities. Our schools are among the world’s highest performing, according to international assessments, ranking sixth for literacy in PIRLS, top 10 globally for maths, and top 14 for science and reading in PISA assessments. These results reaffirm Dubai’s status as a world-class destination for education, in line with the leadership’s vision set out in the Dubai Economic Agenda D33 and Dubai Social Agenda 33.”

This year, 90% of schools improved in one or more quality indicators, with 67% related to student outcomes, 26% to school provisions, and 7% to leadership.

Dubai’s schools have made notable progress in teaching Arabic as a first language, with 64% rated Good or higher, up from 52% last year. For Islamic education, 77% of schools were rated Good or higher, compared to 68% in the previous academic year.

During the academic year, private schools in Dubai will not undergo full inspections, except for new schools completing their third year. This decision supports the teaching and learning process, allowing schools to implement development plans. The DSIB team will conduct quality assurance visits focusing on specific areas to monitor progress.

Full inspection reports and individual parent summary reports for the 2023-24 academic year are now available on the KHDA website and mobile app.