Cambridge International School, Dubai
KHDA Inspection Report & Ratings 2019
Last updated
Executive Summary
Cambridge International School provides a Good quality of education, as affirmed by the 2023-2024 inspection. Students demonstrate consistently high achievement in English and mathematics in the Secondary and Post-16 phases, with continued improvement noted in Islamic Education. Children in the Foundation Stage exhibit high independence and consistent achievement across English, mathematics, and science.
Students across all phases exhibit a strong sense of wellbeing, understanding the importance of healthy lifestyles and appreciating values such as modesty, honesty, and tolerance. Strong relationships between students and teachers foster confidence and maturity, while students also show pride in their own cultures and appreciation for others within the community.
Teaching is effective, particularly in the Foundation Stage and Post-16, where high expectations drive student achievement. The curriculum offers an extensive choice of academic and non-academic subjects, alongside a topic- and theme-based approach for younger children, promoting innovation and creativity. Safeguarding procedures are highly effective, with robust support systems for personal care and wellbeing, including effective counselling and inclusion teams.
Overall School Performance
Outstanding
Very Good
Good
Acceptable
Weak
Very Weak
Cambridge International School Overall Rating
Good for 13+ consecutive years
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 fosters a highly inclusive ethos, ensuring very good provision and access for students of determination. Barriers to learning are accurately identified, and individual education plans (IEPs) provide clear learning goals, supported by continuous training for learning support assistants. Students of determination make very good progress, often overcoming barriers with effective support from the inclusion team. inclusive ethosStudents of DeterminationIEPs
Wellbeing is a high priority and very well embedded, with governors and senior leaders ensuring resources for support programs. Students have direct access to adults, including counsellors, and opportunities for responsibility, shaping wellbeing provision. Staff morale is high due to professional training and welfare support, while students independently manage their wellbeing, adhering to policies, and benefiting from positive relationships and health monitoring. wellbeinghealthy lifestylesstudent agency
The school's overall standards in the National Agenda Parameter are good, with a large majority of students making better than expected progress in international assessments (PISA, TIMSS, PIRLS). Emirati students show expected progress, and reading literacy is a central focus, with a strong culture of reading developed by leaders. Leadership action plans are informed by assessment data, though monitoring of subject-specific concepts needs refinement. National Agenda ParameterEmirati studentsreading literacyPISA, TIMSS, PIRLS
Key Highlights
Standout achievements identified by the inspection team that distinguish this school.
Strong FS Start
Children make a very good start to their school life in the Foundation Stage, laying a strong foundation for future learning.
Commitment to Inclusivity
The school demonstrates a strong commitment to inclusivity, providing high-quality wellbeing, care, support, and safety for all students.
Strong Parent Partnerships
The school maintains strong partnerships with parents, fostering a collaborative environment for student support and development.
Developed Social Skills
Students exhibit highly developed social skills and a strong awareness of Islamic values, contributing to a respectful and tolerant community.
Efficient Assessment Data
The school efficiently collects and uses assessment data to inform teaching and support student learning and progress.
Academic Performance Breakdown
The overall quality of education provided by the school is good, with consistent high achievement in English and mathematics in senior phases and strong foundational learning in FS.
Leadership & Management
Effectiveness of school governance, strategic planning, and leadership capacity to drive continuous improvement.
Leadership Approach
The principal, senior, and middle leaders effectively foster an inclusive school environment, prioritizing teaching, learning, and wellbeing. They maintain strong communication with stakeholders, ensuring high morale and that all decisions are underpinned by the wellbeing of students, staff, and families.
Inspection Findings
Students' Outcomes
Students consistently achieve high outcomes in English and mathematics in secondary and post-16, with continued improvement in Islamic Education. In FS, children are highly independent, leading to consistent achievement in core subjects. Students demonstrate very positive attitudes to school and are keen to learn, with more mature students taking greater responsibility for their learning.
Personal Development
Students exhibit positive and responsible attitudes, enjoying self-reliance with rare incidents of bullying. They have an excellent understanding of Islamic values and Emirati culture, showing pride in their own cultures and respect for others. Students actively contribute to school life, initiating charitable events and demonstrating exemplary social responsibility and innovation skills.
Teaching Quality
Most teachers possess secure subject knowledge, with teaching being particularly effective in FS and Post-16 due to active learning and high expectations. Lessons generally feature clear objectives, but the consistent translation of assessment data into high-quality differentiation is still developing. While data is comprehensively analyzed and shared, the rigorous evaluation of its impact on progress needs further strengthening.
Protection & Care
Safeguarding procedures are highly effective, supported by comprehensive staff training, robust recruitment, and well-maintained, accessible facilities. Medical care is comprehensive, prioritizing the wellbeing of the entire school community. Students receive very good support from staff, counsellors, and the inclusion team, with effective arrangements for transition and career guidance, though counselling staffing levels face increasing student population demands.
Areas for Development
- •Develop effective teaching strategies to provide appropriate challenge for students, particularly in Islamic Education and Arabic.
- •Ensure that the high-quality student data and information which the school has assembled are used effectively in all lessons.
- •Review the various curricular strands and initiatives.
- •Develop a digital learning vision, strategy and plan for the whole school.
- •Extend the development of reading skills by helping more pupils to become excellent readers.
- •Refine monitoring across the curriculum by increasing the checks on the development of subject-specific knowledge, understanding and skills.
- •Review initiatives which support wellbeing in order to maximise their impact.
- •Improve attainment in the secondary phase of Islamic Education.
- •Improve students’ memorisation and recitation of the Holy Qur’an following Tajweed rules.
- •Provide more challenge in Arabic as a First Language for Secondary and Post-16.
- •Provide more opportunities for students to use their Arabic as an Additional language skills in different contexts.
- •Provide more opportunities for purposeful writing in the primary phase of English.
- •Encourage students to plan, draft and edit their own writing, particularly in relation to spelling, punctuation and grammar in English.
- •Embed the use of practical activities in Primary to establish and consolidate mathematical concepts.
- •Link complex mathematical problems to contemporary situations in Secondary and Post-16.
- •Extend the scope of science investigations, particularly in Primary.
- •Encourage students to be more precise and detailed in their oral and written communication about science, and help students to engage in extended discussions and explanations.
- •Develop students' use of digital technologies to support independent research in all subjects.
- •Develop students' skills of investigation, innovation and enterprise in all lessons.
- •Ensure that effective routines and monitoring are in place when students move between lessons.
- •Ensure that data analysis about students’ learning profiles is more consistently and effectively used in lessons.
- •Evaluate the use of assessment data.
- •Ensure that planned cross-curricular links are implemented in lessons.
- •Review the modifications made to the curriculum in order to ensure maximum impact on teaching and learning.
- •Increase the level of staffing available to support counselling services.
- •Ensure that personal goals are consistently considered when planning tasks for individual learning needs.