ABU DHABI // The final touches are being made to Al Dhafra Private School's new campus in Mohammed bin Zayed City ahead of the first day of classes on September 9.
Built for 2,000 pupils at a cost of Dh100 million, the 24,000-square-metre campus has more than 80 classrooms with interactive boards and large windows to let in natural light.
The facility is a far cry from the old villa campus, where the children were crammed into classrooms no bigger than 20 sq m.
At the new school, kindergarten classrooms will be on the ground level and higher grades on the top two floors, in line with guidelines issued by Abu Dhabi Education Council.
There are separate wings for boys and girls, featuring seven science labs and five computer labs.
The school's 1,030 pupils will be able to practise indoor and outdoor sports at a rooftop gymnasium. There is also a swimming pool and sports courts.
Dr George Nader, director general of Al Dhafra Private Schools, said the campus was designed to provide ample space for children to move about easily, and CCTV cameras had been installed in corridors to monitor safety.
The school's principal, Daniel Bokelman, said pupils would experience new teaching methods as well as a new campus.
"The objective is to build leadership capacity, so that we are capable of delivering the highest levels of international standards in teaching and learning across the curriculum," he said.
aahmed@thenational.ae
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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