Private School

Inspection Report

Al Muneera Private School

Academic Year 2015 2016

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 Al Muneera Private School

Inspection Date April 18, 2016 to April 21, 2016

Date of previous inspection May 11, 2015 to May 14, 2015
General Information Students

Total number of
School ID 206 678
students

Opening year of Number of children

2010 113
school in KG
Primary: 368
Number of students
Principal Lamia Yazid Elbehisy Middle: 197
in other phases
High: 0
3 years 8 months to 17
School telephone +971 (0)2 582 7005 Age range
years

Street 28, Bani Yas, Sharq 3, Grades or Year

School Address Grades 1 to 9
Abu Dhabi Groups

Official email (ADEC) [email protected] Gender Mixed

% of Emirati
School website -------- 4%
Students
1. Syrian: 29%
Fee ranges (per Very low to low: Largest nationality
2. Yemeni: 18%
annum) (AED 9,859 to AED 12,150) groups (%)
3. Sudanese: 15%
Licensed Curriculum Staff

Main Curriculum Ministry of Education (MoE) Number of teachers 43

Number of teaching
Other Curriculum ------- 4
assistants (TAs)
External Exams/ Teacher-student KG/ FS 1 : 28
MoE
Standardised tests ratio Other phases 1 : 14

Accreditation ------- Teacher turnover 30%

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 Introduction
Inspection activities
Number of inspectors 4
deployed

Number of inspection days 4

Number of lessons observed 101

Number of joint lesson 5

observations
Number of parents
115; (return rate: 19.9%)
questionnaires
Inspectors observed lessons, break periods, students
arrival and departure and assemblies. They met with
Details of other inspection school leaders, students, parents and teachers.
activities Inspectors reviewed students work, analysed
performance data and documents provided by the
school.

School
To graduate students with high levels having
School Aims inveterate cultural and traditional awareness and
qualified to face the global challenges.

To provide an educational system with a universal level

School vision and mission which encourages all students to compete globally.

Students and parents are interviewed by school

Admission Policy
leaders. There are no entrance tests.

Leadership structure
The governing body has managerial oversight. The
(ownership, governance and
principal is supported by six subject coordinators.
management)

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 SEN Details (Refer to ADEC SEN Policy and Procedures)
Number of students
Number of other students
SEN Category identified through external
identified by the school
assessments

Intellectual disability 0 0

Specific Learning Disability 1 0

Emotional and Behaviour

2 0
Disorders (ED/ BD)
Autism Spectrum Disorder
0 0
(ASD)
Speech and Language
0 0
Disorders
Physical and health related
2 0
disabilities

Visually impaired 0 0

Hearing impaired 0 0

Multiple disabilities 0 0

G&T Details (Refer to ADEC SEN Policy and Procedures)

Number of students
G&T Category
identified

Intellectual ability 0

Subject-specific aptitude (e.g. in science, mathematics,

4
languages)

Social maturity and leadership 0

Mechanical/ technical/ technological ingenuity 2

Visual and performing arts (e.g. art, theatre, recitation) 8

Psychomotor ability (e.g. dance or sport) 6

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The overall performance of the school
Inspectors considered the school in relation to 3 performance categories

Band A High performing (Outstanding, Very Good or Good)

Band B Satisfactory (Acceptable)

Band C In need of significant improvement (Weak or Very Weak)

School was judged to be: BAND (B) Acceptable

Band C
Band A Band B
In need of significant
High Performing Satisfactory
improvement
Outstanding

Acceptable

Very Weak
Very Good

Weak
Good

Performance Standards

Performance Standard 1:

Students achievement

Performance Standard 2:
Students personal and
social development, and
their innovation skills

Performance Standard 3:
Teaching and assessment

Performance Standard 4:
Curriculum

Performance Standard 5:
The protection, care,
guidance and support of
students

Performance Standard 6:
Leadership and
management

Summary Evaluation:
The schools overall
performance

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The Performance of the School
Evaluation of the schools overall performance
The school has had a change of name to Al Muneera from Middles East Private
School under new ownership.
The schools overall performance is acceptable. Students attainment in all subjects
is in line with age-expected levels and they make acceptable progress. The school
is led effectively and this has resulted in an improvement in the quality of teaching.
Relationships between staff and students are respectful and caring. All students
integrate well with one another. Parents are encouraged to take part in school life
and they make an effective contribution to their childrens achievements. Provision
in the kindergarten (KG) is a particular strength. Children make good progress in
the KG because teachers channel childrens natural enthusiasm and excitement
about the world into effective learning. Progress in the primary and middle phases
is improving. To improve further, the school recognises the scope it has to make
better use of questioning and assessment, increase the availability of resources,
and broaden the opportunities students are given to experience different ways of
learning.
Progress made since last inspection and capacity to improve
The school has made improvements under the new ownership towards achieving
most of the recommendations from the last inspection, when it was called the
Middle East Private School. It now has a governing body that is providing helpful
strategic leadership and support. School leaders have introduced better processes
to measure students progress and attainment and to compare itself with other
schools. Teachers and subject coordinators are benefiting from professional
development programmes, some of which have been developed in collaboration
with other local schools. Teachers now have a better understanding of how
students learn and how to plan better lessons. Information communication and
technology (ICT) and science facilities have improved and the school now has a
library and librarian. Investments in resources for the KG and better teaching have
led to significant improvements in outcomes. In part, all of these improvements
have resulted from improved senior leadership and governance and the school has
sufficient capacity to improve further. This capacity will be enhanced when the
school fills the vice principal vacancy in the senior leadership team.
Development and promotion of innovation skills
The school is beginning to integrate innovation in all areas of provision. The impact
of innovative approaches to teaching and learning are most noticeable in the KG,
art and science lessons. In science lessons, students make large scale models of
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physical, biological and chemical processes, such as atomic structures. These
models are used to teach other students and, as a result, the school gains teaching
resources and the students gain confidence in working together. In art, students
collect recycled materials for installations. They are encouraged to use these in
imaginative ways and some have made models of nationally important buildings for
display around the school and in the gallery. These are early and encouraging signs
of innovation leading to improved outcomes for students.

The inspection identified the following as key areas of strength:

the impact senior leaders and governors are having on securing
improvements
the positive relationships between groups of students and adults
the contribution parents make to school improvement and the
communication between home and school
the smooth operation and day-to-day management of the school
the standard of teaching and provision in the kindergarten and the progress
children make.

The inspection identified the following as key areas for improvement:

opportunities students are given to solve problems, be critical thinkers and
to be independent learners
the resources available to students to encourage their innovation,
entrepreneurship and use of learning technologies
the use teachers make of progress and attainment data to plan lessons that
match the learning needs of all students
the pace of learning in primary and middle phases through better
questioning and assessment techniques.

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Performance Standard 1: Students Achievement

Students achievement Indicators KG Primary Middle High

Attainment Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable

Islamic
Education
Progress Good Acceptable Acceptable

Attainment Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable

Arabic
(as a First Language)
Progress Good Acceptable Acceptable

Arabic Attainment N/A N/A N/A

(as a Second
Language) Progress N/A N/A N/A

Attainment Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable

Social Studies
Progress Good Acceptable Acceptable

Attainment Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable

English
Progress Good Acceptable Acceptable

Attainment Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable

Mathematics
Progress Good Acceptable Acceptable

Attainment Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable

Science
Progress Good Acceptable Acceptable

Language of
instruction (if other Attainment N/A N/A N/A
than English and
Arabic as First Progress N/A N/A N/A
Language)

Other subjects Attainment Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable

(Art, Music, PE)

Progress Good Acceptable Acceptable

Learning Skills
(including innovation, creativity, critical
Good Acceptable Acceptable
thinking, communication, problem-
solving and collaboration)

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The overall quality of students achievement is acceptable. Attainment has improved
since the last inspection in all core subjects and is now in line with curriculum
standards and age expectations. School examination data, which is moderated
against four other schools in Abu Dhabi offering the same curriculum, indicates that
attainment has improved over the past two years. Continuous assessment
information confirms that children make good progress in the KG from low starting
points. Students who have special educational needs (SEN) or who are gifted and
talented (G&T) make similar progress to others.

Attainment and progress are acceptable in Islamic education. For example, students
in Grade 5 can accurately describe the Al Israa wal Mairaj and the miracle beyond it.
Most students in Grade 8 can follow Tajweed rules when reciting age-appropriate
suras (verses) from the Holy Quran. KG children can pray correctly. Most students
of all ages are beginning to relate their learning to real life. For example, Grade 1
students can name Allahs creations.

The quality of students achievement in Arabic is acceptable. Children achieve age-

appropriate expectations by the time they leave the KG. At this stage they can read
their names and follow simple writing conventions. In Grade 1, students can recognise
and explain the Tanween at the end of words. By the time they reach the middle
phase, most students can construct stories following age-appropriate conventions
and most can use punctuation accurately.

Attainment and progress in social studies are acceptable overall. Progress is good in
the KG where children develop skills and show their understanding of the UAE flag,
and they sing the national anthem during assemblies. By Grade 6, most students can
explain how the colours of the UAE flag were chosen and they have a knowledge of
the history of the UAE before unification.

Overall achievement in English language is acceptable. Children enter the KG with few
or no English language skills. Teachers help children to develop skills through song
and choral repetition leading to good progress through the KG. By KG2, most children
are able to recognise English phonemes and letter shapes and the majority can write
simple words accurately. By Grade 5, students can replace present tense words with
past tense words. In Grade 6, most students can conduct age-appropriate
conversations.

The quality of students achievement in mathematics is acceptable overall. In the KG

their counting skills are developed well through active learning approaches. By Grade
2, most students can count up and down in units and tens accurately. In Grade 7, most

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students can identify when a sample is random or biased and explain the impact of
this on the accuracy of a data set.

Attainment and progress are acceptable overall in science and students are benefiting
from improved facilities in the laboratory. For example, Grade 3 students now work
in groups to explore conduction and convection. They can identify how heat is
transferred and explain the processes involved correctly. Progress is good in the KG
because teachers use multimedia approaches to stimulate childrens curiosity.

In other subjects, progress and attainment are acceptable overall. Students enjoy
physical education (PE) lessons and take part willingly. A few students lead activities
and this develops their self-esteem. In art, students create art work from recycled
resources. This promotes their responsible attitudes towards the environment. Older
boys enjoy coding in HTML and create webpages in ICT lessons. In this way their
entrepreneurial skills are beginning to be encouraged through the use of technology.

Childrens learning skills are developing most successfully in the KG where teachers
promote childrens self-reliance, initiative and creativity effectively. Students learning
skills are less secure in the primary and middle phases, partly because ICT is used
insufficiently in most lessons. In primary and middle phases, learning is based too
often on completing work in textbooks. As a consequence, students have less
opportunity to solve problems, be critical thinkers and to be independent learners.

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Performance Standard 2: Students personal and social development,
and their innovation skills

Students personal and social

development, and their innovation skills KG Primary Middle High
Indicators

Personal development Good Acceptable Acceptable

Understanding of Islamic values and

Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable
awareness of Emirati and world cultures

Social responsibility and innovation skills Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable

The overall quality of students personal and social development is acceptable.

Relationships are good between students and with staff. Children in the KG work
together well, share resources and take turns. At the primary phase, most students
show positive attitudes to their learning and behave well. The minority of students in
the middle phase are less attentive and can be uncooperative when their classwork
fails to engage their interest. Attendance is around 92% across the school, which is
acceptable. Attendance declines before and after holidays and, due to this, valuable
learning time is lost for a few students. Punctuality to lessons is generally acceptable
although a few boys are regularly late to school.

Students respect the UAEs heritage and culture. This is promoted through daily
assemblies, social studies lessons and participation in special occasions such as
National Day and Martyr Day. Students respect each others home cultures. During
open days they wear national dress and bring in traditional foods. They apply Islamic
values when they interact with others. For example, students greet adults
appropriately and socialise considerately at break times. In this diverse school,
children from different ethnic backgrounds relate well to each other.
Students have too few opportunities to be involved in volunteering and to be
innovative. A few students act as prefects and monitor behaviour at break times. A
few are involved in Red Crescent activities. A students council has recently been
formed and is beginning to contribute to school improvement. This is an encouraging
start to developing students social responsibility.

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Performance Standard 3: Teaching and Assessment

Teaching and Assessment Indicators KG Primary Middle High

Teaching for effective learning Good Acceptable Acceptable N/A

Assessment Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable N/A

The overall quality of teaching is acceptable. Teachers have sufficient and secure
knowledge and they plan lessons that make appropriate use of the available
resources. As a result, most students make acceptable progress and are achieving at
age-expected levels. In the KG, teachers make effective use of resources and child-
centred learning approaches. At times, teachers in the primary and middle phases rely
on textbooks too much and this reduces the opportunities students have to work and
learn in other ways. Teachers enhance the learning environment around the school
by ensuring that the many bright displays share and celebrate students achievements
and encourage their work ethic.

Teachers have benefited from recent training and this has improved the quality of
learning. For example, improved teaching approaches in Grade 4 enabled students to
work in groups to complete research about the planets. Table leaders organised the
learning and students had to meet a challenging deadline to complete the task. This
training has yet to focus on helping teachers in the primary and middle phases to
make effective use of attainment data to match work to the individual needs of
students. Teachers at these phases are not using questions effectively enough to
probe learning and accelerate progress.

Teachers plan learning activities that are well matched to childrens needs in the KG.
They group children carefully into table teams and this enables them to ask well-
targeted questions. This approach also enables children to work together to solve
simple problems. As a result, children in the KG are more enthusiastic and make better
progress.

Students are provided with regular assessments which give them an indication of
their progress. The quality of teachers feedback is improving generally and in a few
classes is particularly helpful. Students themselves do not have enough opportunities
to self-assess or to reflect on their own work or that of their peers.

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Performance Standard 4: Curriculum

Curriculum Indicators KG Primary Middle High

Curriculum design and implementation Good Acceptable Acceptable N/A

Curriculum adaptation Good Acceptable Acceptable N/A

The overall quality of the curriculum is acceptable. At all phases it is broad and
balanced and meets all necessary requirements and guidelines. The curriculum is
appropriate for most students and prepares them sufficiently well for their next
stages in learning.
The curriculum in the KG is the most successful because it has been adapted to meet
the needs of children well. It brings together areas of learning effectively so that
children can make links across different subjects. For example, when children learn
about the heritage of the UAE and Islamic values they also practise writing and
speaking. In the primary and middle phases, the curriculum follows MoE guidelines
appropriately and subject leaders ensure it is properly planned to meet all
requirements.
The curriculum enables teachers to meet the different needs of students generally
well in the primary and middle phases. They adapt learning activities and provide
further explanations and help for students who need it. Higher-achieving students are
guided to workbook exercises which become more challenging. Childrens individual
needs are met most effectively in the KG. This is partly because teachers group
children together using assessment data as a guide and provide children with work
designed to accelerate their progress. For example, when children learn about a
letter, higher-achievers work together to categorise and write down the names of
objects, while others model the letter in clay. This approach ensures that high
achieving children develop simultaneously their skills in team working, higher-order
thinking and writing. In primary and middle phases, opportunities to link learning
across the curriculum are infrequent. Across the school opportunities to learn outside
lessons in clubs and from visits into the community are also infrequent.

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Performance Standard 5: The protection, care, guidance and support
of students

The protection, care, guidance and

KG Primary Middle High
support of students Indicators

Health and safety, including

arrangements for child protection/ Good Good Good N/A
safeguarding

Care and support Acceptable Acceptable Acceptable N/A

Arrangements for protection, care, guidance and support are acceptable. The school
community, including parents, is aware of the child protection procedures. All
teachers and staff have been vetted appropriately and their details are recorded on a
central register. Bullying is rare and, if it does occur, it is dealt with effectively.
Assemblies are used to inform students about how to stay safe and school staff
complete an early morning check to ensure there are no hazards around the school.
Maintenance routines are robust. Records indicate that the schools procedures to
ensure safety on school transport are appropriate and maintenance records are up to
date. Suitable adaptations have been made to the premises to enable physically
disabled students to be fully integrated into lessons and school life.

The clinic is appropriately resourced and records are kept securely. The nurse leads
lessons and assemblies about healthy lifestyles and monitors students health
throughout the year including, for example, their body mass index. Students physical
fitness is promoted in PE lessons and assemblies. Only a few students eat unhealthily
at break times. The outside equipment for the KGs was damaged in recent storms and
appropriate steps are being taken to remedy this.

Across the whole school, in most classes relationships between students and staff are
positive. This is because teachers and adults communicate clear expectations for
behaviour and provide effective role models. Arrangements to ensure the minority of
students at the middle phase stay engaged in learning and remain cooperative are
not as robust as they need to be. School leaders ensure that parents take an active
role in supporting good learning behaviour.

Formal processes are in place to identify and diagnose students who have special
educational needs. Effective partnerships with external specialists enable school
leaders to develop accurate individual education plans to support their learning and
guide teaching. The school also identifies and provides suitable education plans for
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higher-achieving students and those who are gifted and talented. Teachers make
acceptable use of these plans and this ensures that most students make acceptable
personal and academic progress.

Parents receive regular updates about their childrens progress through a variety of
media including formal reports and electronic communications. Local colleges come
to school to talk about academic and professional options after Grade 9. The school
encourages attendance by working with parents to promote the importance of being
at school.

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Performance Standard 6: Leadership and management

Leadership and management Indicators

The effectiveness of leadership Acceptable

Self-evaluation and improvement planning Acceptable

Partnerships with parents and the community Good

Governance Good

Management, staffing, facilities and resources Acceptable

School leaders demonstrate their commitment to national priorities in the way they
promote inclusion for all and lead the professional development of all staff. For
example, leaders now observe lessons, provide feedback and organise peer support
programmes with partner schools. This is leading to improvements in teaching and
learning, most noticeably in the KG.

The schools improved development planning process has led to significant

improvement since the last inspection, with a focus on addressing the most pressing
priorities. Self-evaluation and development planning approaches are shared with the
school community so that proposed actions take account of the views of parents. The
capacity to improve further as a school is acceptable but presently relies too much on
the principal due to the lack of a vice principal. The school has credible plans to
address this weakness in staffing provision.

Parents are more involved in school improvement than in the past. Governors and
school leaders meet with parent groups regularly to gain their views on how provision
may be improved. This has led directly to improvements including, for example, in the
teaching of conversational English and science. Parents have also led training for
school staff. Reporting to parents on their childrens progress is regular and
informative and includes electronic communication methods. For example, teachers
in the KG use electronic media to show parents photos of their childrens work. Links
to the wider national and international community are not yet integrated sufficiently
in the schools provision.

The new governing body is helping to lead school improvement. For example,
governors educational expertise is used to lead staff development and training. The
governors offer effective challenge and support. They have a robust monitoring
programme, including visiting the school to observe learning and interview leaders.
Governors compare students progress with other local schools. They are not yet
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using internationally benchmarked data to assess students progress and attainment
levels.

The day-to-day life of the school is well managed and the school runs smoothly. All
teachers are qualified to teach and they receive appropriate professional
development and support. Adults are on hand to help children and keep them safe
when they are outside classrooms. Improvements have been made to the premises
and these are safe, clean and generally well maintained. Resources available to
teachers and students have improved. These include, for example, new MoE books, a
new library, and improved science and computer facilities. ICT facilities for teachers,
for example data projectors, are limited and have to be booked and moved to classes.
Occasionally, a lack of practical equipment in classrooms, such as scissors and rulers,
results in students waiting for too long before they can make progress.

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What the school should do to improve further:
1. Improve students learning and innovation skills, particularly in the primary
and middle phases, by ensuring that:
i. students work together to complete projects and solve complex
problems that require them to collaborate with one another
ii. learning technologies, such as ICT, are used more frequently to
develop students independence and provide more effective ways to
learn
iii. students develop critical-thinking skills by reflecting on their own
and others work to identify and plan how to make improvements
iv. the curriculum is enhanced and additional resources are made
available to allow students to take part in creative and
entrepreneurial activities both in lessons and outside lessons

2. Improve the standard of teaching and the progress of students further by

ensuring that:
i. teachers use internal assessments and externally-benchmarked data
to identify individual students strengths and areas for improvement
ii. lesson plans and resources are adapted to meet students individual
learning needs
iii. learning is improved through questioning techniques that probe
understanding, support progress and challenge students to think
hard before they answer
iv. students receive, and are required to respond to, assessment
feedback which gives them clear direction for how to improve.

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