Thousands of pupils in the UAE celebrated their success after receiving their International A-level and IGCSE results on Thursday.
Children sat these exams in early 2021 and their final International A-levels and AS-level grades can be used for university placements.
While the UK government cancelled GCSEs and A-level exams in 2021 because of the pandemic, some international boards conducted modular exams in January for IGCSEs and international A-levels – the global equivalent of UK curriculum exams.
IGCSE is equivalent to the GCSE qualification, which is taken by pupils in Years 10 and 11.
Some pupils have been in distance learning for a year and have managed to get great results
An A-level is a qualification offered across several subjects to pupils in Years 12 and 13.
With modular courses, pupils can re-sit some of the modules if they fail to obtain good grades and the results do not influence the final results.
Pearson Edexcel and Oxford AQA, two major UK exam boards, cancelled A-level and international GCSE tests this summer.
At Gems Cambridge International School in Abu Dhabi, 269 pupils received either final grades or modular results.
At the school, 145 pupils sat the Year 11 IGCSE maths exam and 87 per cent received grades between nine and four.
For Year 13 psychology pupils, 75 per cent secured grades A or B in International AS and A-levels.
“I am very happy with the mathematics grades achieved by the pupils," said Kelvin Hornsby, principal at the Gems Cambridge International School.
“Some pupils have been in distance learning for a year and have managed to get great results.
“These grades give the teachers a wealth of externally validated evidence."
Pupils also took tests in International A-level biology, chemistry, physics, Arabic and English literature.
Those who sit IGCSEs and international A-levels are assessed throughout the year instead of taking one major exam in the summer.
This differs from the typical UK model, in which the main test is taken in summer.
International A-level pupils receive grades on a scale from A* (highest) to E (minimum required performance) and IGCSEs are graded from nine to one around the world.
At Al Yasmina Academy in Abu Dhabi, 70 pupils received their final results for IGCSE maths and 35 got their International AS-level grades.
"I am really happy after getting a score of nine in my IGCSE mathematics. This is the only exam I will be able to sit this year," said Jad Yacoub, a 15-year-old Year 11 pupil.
He scored 176 out of 200 in his maths exam.
"It feels great. Now, I can focus on my science subjects as I want to study medicine," he said.
"We are already celebrating and I will have a treat later today."
Jared Nolan, principal at Al Yasmina Academy, said pupils had their lives turned upside down by the pandemic but had the confidence to sit their exams.
For the IGCSE maths exam, 42 per cent of grades at the school were between eight and nine.
All year 13 pupils received grades form A* to B in the international A-level in biology.
Sixty-seven per cent of pupils who sat the chemistry and physics International A-level exams achieved grades from A* to B.
"To get these grades under the circumstances is incredible," Mr Nolan said.
"It’s a massive thumbs-up to families who have supported pupils."
Farah Hammad, a 16-year-old pupil at Cambridge International School, was ecstatic after she earned As in biology, chemistry, Arabic and maths in International AS-levels.
Her Arabic grades were final, while others were based on modular tests.
"It feels good knowing I worked so hard and achieved a good grade. I am definitely going to celebrate," she said.
"I was so scared because I did not know what to expect. I have never sat a board exam let alone A-level exams.
"It was hard work but it paid off."
She was unable to sit her GCSEs last year because exams were cancelled.
She said exams were a quintessential part of school life and she was glad to sit her tests.
Covid-19 safety inspection in a Abu Dhabi school - in pictures
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
Brief scoreline:
Manchester United 2
Rashford 28', Martial 72'
Watford 1
Doucoure 90'
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Healthcare spending to double to $2.2 trillion rupees
Launched a 641billion-rupee federal health scheme
Allotted 200 billion rupees for the recapitalisation of state-run banks
Around 1.75 trillion rupees allotted for privatisation and stake sales in state-owned assets
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
THREE
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
