DUBAI // Enrolment growth at Dubai’s private schools this academic year fell to nearly half what it was last year, according to the latest statistics released by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority.
The figures, released in an infographic Sunday, show that the 2014-2015 academic year saw a 4.7 per cent increase in student enrollment – or 11,493 new pupils enroll in the emirate’s private schools. This is a 3.6 per cent drop compared with last year’s figures, which showed Dubai’s private schools registered an 8.3 per cent increase in enrollment, accounting for about 18,616 new pupils. In all, there are 255,208 pupils attending Dubai’s private schools this year, compared to 243,715 last year.
The KHDA, the emirate’s private school regulator, attributes the drop in student enrollment growth to new kindergarten admittance policies issued by the Ministry of Education that took effect in September. The new policy increased the minimum age that students could enter kindergarten from 3 to 4 years of age.
With the new rule in place, there were 46,727 students who registered for kindergarten this academic year, an increase of just 514 pupils compared to 46,212 who signed up the year before. Kindergarteners make up 18 per cent of the student population this year. The number of students who registered for primary education increased to 107,528 from 101,971 last year. These students make up 42 per cent of the student body. The number of middle schoolers also went up to 64,347 from 60,708 and high schoolers, who make up 15 per cent of all students enrolled in Dubai’s private schools, went up to 36,607 from 34,824.
Eleven new schools opened this year, bringing the total number of private schools to 169, raising the number of seats available in schools to 292,301. The KHDA said in its report that 87 per cent of the seats have been filled. Schools rated as outstanding, good or acceptable have achieved the most capacity, filling 98.5 per cent, 95.3 per cent and 90.9 per cent of their seats, respectively. Unsatisfactory schools are 79.5 per cent at capacity, while schools that have not yet been inspected are at 42.3 per cent of their full capacity.
Schools offering an International Baccalaureate curriculum were the closest to being full, as they are at 93.3 per cent of their capacity. IB schools are followed by Indian-curriculum schools, which are 88.6 per cent full; British, which are 87.5 per cent capacity; American, which are at 86.1 capacity and other, which are at 84.8 per cent capacity.
British schools registered 33 per cent of the student population, followed by Indian schools, which signed up 31 per cent of the students and American, which enrolled 18 per cent. The remaining 18 per cent of students were enrolled in MoE, IB, SABIS, French and other curriculum schools.
Tuition fees charged range from Dh1,725 to Dh98,649 per year, accounting for Dh5.35 billion in annual revenues. A majority of the students – 61 per cent – paid more than Dh10,000 per year for their education.
newsdesk@thenational.ae
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
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Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Other key dates
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Finals draw: December 2
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Finals (including semi-finals and third-placed game): June 5–9, 2019
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Euro 2020 play-off draw: November 22, 2019
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Euro 2020 play-offs: March 26–31, 2020
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Engine: 6.2-litre V8
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 0.8-litre four cylinder
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tips to avoid getting scammed
1) Beware of cheques presented late on Thursday
2) Visit an RTA centre to change registration only after receiving payment
3) Be aware of people asking to test drive the car alone
4) Try not to close the sale at night
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How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
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The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
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The team
Photographer: Mateusz Stefanowski at Art Factory
Videographer: Jear Valasquez
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory
Model: Randa at Art Factory Videographer’s assistant: Zanong Magat
Photographer’s assistant: Sophia Shlykova
With thanks to Jubail Mangrove Park, Jubail Island, Abu Dhabi