At its extensive private school network, Dubai offers a choice of fifteen different curricula. This excerpt from a white paper provides an overview of American curriculum schools and highlights critical resources for parents who need more information about the American curriculum. American schools in Dubai UAE are among those that are available, but what does an American curriculum indeed consist of? And how does it mold with Islamic Curriculum Schools ? How might the American curriculum in Dubai differ from that in the United States?
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What is the American curriculum like in UAE?
Since the last cycle of inspections, the 31 schools using the American curriculum’s performance has remained broadly stable. Performance at one school dropped overall. The percentage of American curriculum schools performing at an unsatisfactory level decreased from 20% to 5% over five cycles of school inspections. Similar to 2008–09, there are about the same number of Good and Outstanding schools.
Around 60% of schools using the American curriculum, according to the DSIB assessment, have a good or better curriculum, and the remaining 40% have an acceptable curriculum. In five critical subjects, students’ performance is generally acceptable and remained unchanged in 2012–13 compared to American curriculum standards. Arabic has the lowest attainment, and English has the highest. Writing independently in English still needs to be improved, and Arabic writing skills are still generally lacking.
There is still a dearth of opportunities for students to engage in investigative science, and many students cannot apply mathematics to real-world issues. In general, teaching continues to be of a decent standard in most American curriculum schools. Approximately one-third of the instruction is excellent or good, and there is less subpar instruction now than in years past. Most American curriculum schools continue to have good leadership overall, with a slightly higher percentage of good or better leadership than the previous academic year. Nearly all American curriculum schools now adhere to the Ministry of Education’s guidelines regarding the amount of time spent teaching Arabic and Islamic Studies.
What three things should parents be aware of if their child is enrolled in an American curriculum school in Dubai with Islamic curricula?
1. The new standards for the core subjects should be familiar to parents. These standards specify the knowledge, skills, and abilities that students at different grade levels are expected to have.
2. A curriculum includes instructional strategies and assessment techniques in addition to textbooks and courses. Discover more about professional learning communities (PLCs), a continuous process in which educators collaborate through group inquiry and action research to produce better outcomes for the students they serve. These group meetings cover topics related to instruction and assessment. This framework has been utilized by numerous American curriculum schools for many years. American curriculum schools use various assessment methods in addition to standardized tests. Parents should be fully aware of their child’s progress individually and in relation to other students in the same grade.
3. For school administrators and teachers, professional development is crucial in the curriculum. A thorough professional development plan for the entire staff should be in place in schools. This strategy must align with information from accreditation processes, inspection results, and other sources that the school leadership team has gathered. Your learner’s school should collaborate with US-based organizations to gain access to the most recent materials, industry standards, and academic studies on American curricula.
As seen from the above, choosing an American curriculum school for your child entails much more than simply looking at the campus or asking for recommendations from parents in the area. The unique characteristics that distinguish a school with an American curriculum should be better understood by parents.
These elements take many forms in schools following the American curriculum all over Dubai. Fortunately, tools such as those mentioned in this paper are available to assist parents in making more informed choices. To provide more specialized consultations on American curriculum schools, KDSL is also available to consult with parents, schools, governments, or educational organizations.
SCHOOLS MUST ADHERE TO THE MOE SIMENTENOSULY-ESTABLISHED ISLAMIC STUDIES CURRICULUM TO AMERICAN CURRICULA.
The MoE’s Islamic Studies curriculum and general guidelines for Islamic education must also be used by all schools in Dubai (and the UAE). The following elements are required for each grade level in the public standards document:
Divine revelation, the Islamic creed, Islamic values and morals, Islamic rulings and purposes, Syrah and characters, and identity and issues of the age are the fields for each grade level.
Every field has a variety of aspects. For instance, faith doctrine and mentality are two aspects of the Islamic creed.
Every aspect has a set standard. For instance, the standard for grade two’s divine revelation field stipulates that students must memorize a few hadiths, properly understand their meanings, and correctly apply their rules.
Learning Objectives: Each standard has distinct learning objectives. For instance, the aforementioned standard calls for students to be able to recite eight particular hadiths.
Level: Each learning outcome has a level that is usually between one and three. Higher-level learning outcomes are present.
Therefore, a Muslim student enrolled in an American-islamic school must complete Islamic studies through year 13. In a school that follows the American curriculum, Muslim students are also required to take Islamic Studies classes through grade 12.
