Islamiya English School, Abu Dhabi

Islamiya English School delivers the UK National Curriculum from EYFS through to Year 13, making it one of 105 British curriculum schools in Abu Dhabi — the largest single curriculum group in the emirate's private sector. The academic pathway runs from early years through to Cambridge IGCSE (examined at Grade 10) and Cambridge International Advanced Levels (IAL) in Grades 11 and 12, giving students internationally recognised qualifications at both secondary stages. The school also lists FBISE as an additional curriculum strand, reflecting the predominantly South Asian student body drawn from Pakistani, Egyptian, and Bangladeshi communities.

The school's most recent ADEK Irtiqaa inspection (2024–2025) rated overall performance as Good — an improvement from the Acceptable rating recorded in 2021 and a result that places IES among the 29 out of 105 British curriculum schools in Abu Dhabi rated Good at the most recent inspection cycle. The headline improvement is driven primarily by Arabic-medium subjects, where attainment is now rated Good across nearly all phases in Islamic Education, Arabic as a first language, Arabic as a second language, and UAE Social Studies. Mathematics attainment is also rated Good across all cycles, and teaching for effective learning is rated Good across all four cycles — a meaningful baseline for parents assessing classroom quality.

On international benchmarks, IES participates in PISA, TIMSS, and PIRLS, providing a rare window into performance against global standards. In PISA 2022, 15-year-old students scored 505.6 in reading (above the international average of 476), 490.5 in mathematics (above the international average of 472), and 483.1 in science (marginally below the international average of 485). In TIMSS 2023, Grade 4 students scored 500.61 in mathematics and 514.87 in science, both exceeding school targets and international benchmarks. In PIRLS 2021, Grade 4 students achieved a score of 542.73 in reading literacy. GL Assessment data for AY2023/24 shows Outstanding science attainment in Year 4 and Very Good mathematics attainment in Year 4, though results in middle years are considerably weaker, with Weak ratings recorded across Years 5–8 in mathematics.

The school's academic identity is shaped by a strong commitment to reading culture and bilingual literacy. The solar-powered library holds over 12,000 books including 1,540 Arabic titles, and structured programmes including the National Reading Challenge and I Read Challenge run school-wide. A student earning a Guinness World Record for the youngest person to publish a book — The Lost Rabbit — stands as a notable marker of the school's ambition beyond the classroom. The on-site Qur'anic centre and Arabic Writing Competition further distinguish IES as a school where Islamic values and Arabic language development are treated as academic priorities, not afterthoughts.

Inspectors identified several areas requiring sustained attention. English-medium subject attainment remains Acceptable across Phases 1 and 2, and Phase 3 English attainment has declined from Good to Acceptable since the last cycle. The Cambridge framework is still being embedded across Phases 2, 3, and 4, and its full impact on outcomes is not yet visible. Assessment practices are rated Acceptable across all cycles, with inconsistent use of internal and external data to inform differentiated instruction flagged as a systemic weakness. Identification and support for students of determination — only 2 formally identified across 2,144 students — and gifted and talented learners is described by inspectors as emerging rather than established. Persistent attendance issues have held personal development ratings at Acceptable across all phases. Compared to higher-rated British curriculum peers in Abu Dhabi, where 18 of the emirate's Outstanding-rated schools follow the British curriculum, IES has clear ground to cover in English-medium outcomes, assessment rigour, and inclusive provision before it can be considered competitive at the upper end of the sector.