Australian International School - Dubai
Executive Summary
The Australian International School - Dubai L.L.C has achieved an overall rating of Good for the 2023-2024 academic year. This reflects a commitment to continuous improvement, strongly supported by its leadership team, owners, governors, and parents. The school maintains a positive reputation for providing a balanced education.
Students' achievement in English, Mathematics, and Science is consistently Good in Primary and Secondary phases, with students learning English as an additional language making Very Good progress. The curriculum, based on the Australian National Curriculum and Ministry of Education requirements, emphasizes inquiry-based learning and supports independent and collaborative activities across all phases.
The school fosters a strong vision of wellbeing, creating a safe and happy learning environment, and is highly inclusive, committed to meeting the needs of all students. Students across all phases exhibit very positive attitudes and responsible behavior, contributing to a culture of kindness and empathy within the school community.
Overall School Performance
Outstanding
Very Good
Good
Acceptable
Weak
Very Weak
Australian International School - Dubai L.L.C Overall Rating
Good
Dubai Focus Areas
These three pillars represent the Dubai education authority's priorities: ensuring inclusive practices, prioritizing student wellbeing, and meeting UAE National Agenda targets.
The school demonstrates a highly inclusive ethos with effective leadership and an inclusion improvement plan. Identification procedures successfully support interventions, and most students of determination make good overall progress. Parents are well-informed and actively engaged in their children's learning journey. inclusive ethosindividual education plans (IEPs)good overall progress
The school's strong wellbeing vision creates a safe and happy environment, with policies and practices emphasizing its importance. Staff effectively identify and support student wellbeing, and students feel a strong sense of belonging. Wellbeing themes are effectively integrated into the curriculum, fostering a nurturing environment. safe, happy environmentwellbeing visionsense of belonging
The school's National Agenda action plan sets appropriate steps for improving student outcomes, informed by assessments. Teachers differentiate learning activities to meet varying needs, and leaders monitor the impact of these actions on student progress. The school is also striving to improve students’ reading literacy skills. National Agenda action planreading literacy skillsdifferentiate learning activities
Key Highlights
Standout achievements identified by the inspection team that distinguish this school.
Leadership Commitment
The leadership team demonstrates a strong commitment to the continuous improvement and development of the school.
Stakeholder Support
The school benefits from the significant support and engagement of its owner, governors, and parents in its ongoing development.
Strong Wellbeing Vision
A clear and strong vision for wellbeing ensures a safe, happy, and supportive environment for students to learn and thrive.
Inclusive Environment
The school is highly inclusive, demonstrating a strong commitment to identifying and effectively meeting the diverse needs of all students.
Positive Student Behavior
Students across all phases consistently display very positive attitudes and responsible behavior, contributing to a respectful school culture.
Academic Performance Breakdown
Students' achievement is consistently good in English, Mathematics, and Science across Primary and Secondary phases. However, attainment and progress in Islamic Education and Arabic remain acceptable.
Leadership & Management
Effectiveness of school governance, strategic planning, and leadership capacity to drive continuous improvement.
Leadership Approach
School leaders provide a clear strategic direction aligned with UAE national priorities and the Australian curriculum, fostering a positive learning culture. They demonstrate a dedicated commitment to ongoing development and school improvement, supported by effective communication and a distributive leadership model.
Inspection Findings
Students' Outcomes
In Primary and Secondary, students' achievement is consistently good in English, Mathematics, and Science, with very good progress for English as an additional language learners. Students' learning skills are consistently good across all phases, though attainment in Islamic Education and Arabic is acceptable.
Personal Development
Students demonstrate self-discipline, positive attitudes, and respectful relationships, contributing to a culture of kindness and empathy. They make healthy choices, are punctual, and show a secure understanding of Islamic values and respect for UAE heritage and culture. Older students engage in leadership roles and contribute to school improvement.
Teaching Quality
Teachers apply strong subject knowledge in lesson planning, leading to purposeful lessons and positive student engagement. Formative assessment is used well across phases, but teaching effectiveness varies in Phase 1, with inconsistent opportunities for inquiry and critical thinking. Questioning does not always involve all students.
Protection & Care
The school implements rigorous child protection policies and procedures, ensuring staff are aware of safeguarding duties. The environment is hygienic and secure, with very effective supervision. Strong relationships and mutual respect promote good behavior, attendance, and punctuality, and student wellbeing is a priority, closely monitored and supported.
Areas for Development
- •Raise students’ achievement in Islamic Education and Arabic to match that in other subjects.
- •Improve teaching and learning so that they are at least good in all subjects and phases.
- •Improve the use of assessment information, in modifying the curriculum to meet the needs of all groups of students.
- •Strengthen the roles of the middle leaders and the monitoring of teaching and learning in the process of self-evaluation.
- •Ensure the National Agenda and reading literacy action plans have named responsible individuals and clear timescales for review and completion.
- •Ensure students’ reading literacy assessment information is shared with all teachers.
- •Enable students to lead further wellbeing initiatives.
- •Increase the range and sources of wellbeing data to inform improvement planning.
- •Consolidate students’ understanding Islamic principles and the Prophet’s (PBUH) Seerah.
- •Improve students’ memorisation of the Holy Qur’an and Hadith.
- •Strengthen the connection between student learning and everyday situations.
- •Raise attainment and progress to be at least good.
- •Improve students’ speaking skills and use of correct spelling, punctuation, and grammar in writing.
- •Provide work in lessons that is linked to students’ years of learning Arabic.
- •Ensure that all assessments are appropriately aligned with the curriculum standards.
- •Improve students speaking and writing skills, especially in the upper grades in Primary and Secondary.
- •Ensure that teachers’ questioning enables all groups of students to engage in class discussions.
- •Ensure that students have more opportunities to talk about their learning, using appropriate mathematical vocabulary.
- •Increase opportunities for students to tackle mathematical word problems.
- •Allow more time for students consider a question and formulate an answer.
- •Raise attainment in Phase 1 to at last match that in the other phases.
- •Ensure that all students enjoy regular opportunities to take age-appropriate responsibility for aspects of their own learning.
- •Further enhance students' understanding of Islamic values.
- •Provide more opportunities for students to take part in schemes that promote conservation and sustainability in the local and wider communities.
- •Provide more opportunities for problem-solving and critical thinking opportunities, across the school.
- •Ensure there is consistent reinforcement for students in the early stages of learning English.
- •Record accurately children’s starting points in Phase 1 to enable more accurate assessments of their progress.
- •Ensure that identified gaps in the school’s vertical curriculum are addressed.
- •Adapt the syllabus in Arabic as an additional language, to better meet students’ differing needs.
- •Ensure that the curriculum is modified more effectively to meet children’s personal and academic needs in Phase 1.
- •Ensure that all safety measures and checks are consistently implemented.
- •Ensure that support is appropriately matched to the needs of all groups of students in all phases.
- •Ensure that in all lessons teaching approaches are suitably modified to enable students of determination to experience success.