Abu Dhabi Week - Special Guide

TOP CLASSYOUR EDUCATION OPTION

includingOFF TO A FLYING STARTBritish International School Abu Dhabi opens with highest enrolment

THINKING GLOBALLY, ACTING LOCALLYMulti-cultural approach with focus on Arabic and Islamic studies

FULL DATESSchool-year calendar

Getting ahead in education

www.bisabudhabi.com | Pullout reference | 12 – 18 November 2009LearNiNG aNd GrowiNG

OPEN DAYThursday 19th November

9am – 4pm

auhwk_v02-i40_wrap_bisad.indd 1 11/10/09 7:45:08 PM

12 – 18 November 2009Getting ahead in education

British international School Opens in Abu DhabiBritish international School Opens in Abu DhabiThe British International School Abu Dhabi was officially

opened on 2nd November. The opening ceremony was attended by HRH the Duke of York, Prince Andrew.

The school opened with the highest number of pupils ever enrolled, said Nord Anglia Education’s CEO Andrew Fitzmaurice – which he hailed as a very positive result given the economic downturn.

BISAD is operated by international education services company Nord Anglia Education Limited, one of the world's leading specialist suppliers of independent education. BISAD is its first educational institution in the UAE and the largest international school to open anywhere in the world this year.

Nord Anglia's students enjoy high achievement across all age groups. Last year its schools were above global averages at all age levels, with an average pass rate of 90

OPEN DAY – Thursday 19th November | 9am – 4pm

percent in the International Baccalaureate. The state-of-the art facility at BISAD has a capacity of

1,500 students with modern, fully-equipped classrooms and learning centres, and extensive sports facilities that include and indoor swimming pool, gym, an athletics track and a football pitch. Principal Stuart Dennis says that additional sports areas are in the pipeline, particularly for rugby, hockey and cricket.

He adds that the school will always be looking to grow its footprint and aims to accommodate up to 2,000 pupils in the near future.

BISAD is a member of the Council of British International Schools and is recognised by the local Ministry of Education as a provider of Arabic mother-tongue and second language programmes.

emotional

• communication, language

and literacy

• physical development

• creative development

• problem solving, reasoning

and numeracy and

knowledge

• understanding of the world.

Children work toward the

EFYS’ Early Learning Goals

through organised play and

well-thought-out activities.

They are also exposed

to both Arabic and French

through ‘taster sessions’ that

involve singing songs, reading

stories, and using puppets.

BISAD then moves through

to Key Stage 1 and 2 (Years

1 – 6) for students between

5 – 11 years and Key Stage 3

(Years 7 – 9) for pupils aged

11- 14 years. While providing

the children with specialised

subject teachers, extensive

resources and learning

materials, the international

school discourages ‘spoon-

feeding’ its pupils and

mixes direct instruction

with collaborative,

exploratory and investigative

approaches.

For the most part, children

continue to be taught as

a class by dedicated class

teachers in groups of no

BISAD offers a British

International curriculum

to meet the needs of the

diverse and rapidly-growing

community of Abu Dhabi.

Its offering takes into

consideration the specific

cultures of its students

and conditions in which

they live in the UAE in

order to provide a relevant

and relatable educational

programme that will give

students the skills and the

attitudes required to achieve

anywhere in the world.

BISAD offers the National

Curriculum for England

and international GCSE to

children aged 3 – 16 years,

and intends to offer the

International Baccalaureate

Diploma to students over

16 years old, subject to

authorisation.

For little ones just starting

school, BISAD offers the

Early Years Foundation

Stage (EYFS) curriculum

which is divided into two

groups: Foundation Stage

1 and Foundation Stage 2.

This curriculum identifies

six primary areas of

development:

• personal, social and

more than 22 children.

There are however specialist

teachers for Music, Art,

Drama, Languages, Arabic,

Islamic Studies, Physical

Education, Computer

Studies, and English as an

Additional Language.

Key Stage 3 students are

encouraged to become more

independent learners and

take increased responsibility

for developing effective

personal learning processes

and useful study skills.

Specialist educators teach

all subjects; and a more

mature, analytical approach

to learning is expected, while

the homework load increases

considerably.

We consider assessment,

target setting and testing

to be essential to the cycle

of teaching and learning.

During the year, teachers

assess pupils continually and

we make use of standardised

assessment tests at different

points during the three terms

The Curriculum


12 – 18 November 2009 Getting ahead in education

OPEN DAYThursday 19th November

9am – 4pm

Term dates

A commitment to the creative

CONTACT

BISAD boasts a dedicated music technology room, recording studio and drama studio. These impressive and exciting features enable its students to explore and develop

their creative side in a modern environment.

With a degree in music and education Mr Dennis has a strong inclination toward the arts. He encourages arts and drama as a crucial part of personal development that enables pupils to develop creative and critical thinking skills from a young age. Students will perform regularly in front of an audience in order to build their confidence and enhance self-belief.

Tayna Subritzky, Admissions OfficerEmail: [email protected] | Tel: 02 586 6979www.bisabudhabi.com

Spring 2010Term Two

Wednesday, 6 January to Thursday, 1 April

School opens for teachers3 January

(3 – 6 January: Administration / staff training)

School opens for students6 January

School closes for half term break18 February

(25 February: Prophet Mohammed’s Birthday)

School reopens28 February

End of second term1 April – School closed for two weeks

(2 April: Good Friday; 4 April: Easter; 5 April: Easter Monday)

Summer 2010Term Three

Sunday, 18 April to Wednesday, 30 June

School opens for teachers14 April

(14 – 15 April: Administration / staff training)

School closes for summer

End of third term for students30 June

End of third term for teachers1 July

to help inform staff in their

planning and teaching.

Additionally we make use

of Assessment Tasks. BISAD

issues two Report Cards

per year, one in December

and another in June.

Mr Dennis explains that

BISAD puts a strong focus

on Arabic and Islamic

Studies. Three dedicated

teachers are assigned to

the subjects and students

have two hours of Arabic

and Islamic Studies lessons

a week as well as the

opportunity for extra-

curricular Arabic classes.

Arabic A is offered as a

mother-tongue course for

native speakers (or those

who are proficient at the

language) from Year 1 and

follows guidelines set by

the Abu Dhabi Education

Council. Arabic B will be

taught to beginners as

a native language and

as a second language,

using differentiation in the

classroom to work at the

varying levels.

Each member of BISAD

teaching staff is required to

provide at least one extra-

curricular activity a week

throughout the year. After-

school activities are a vital

part of the life of the school,

they include: drama clubs,

swimming, karate and music

lessons, sports clubs and

competitions such as soccer,

netball and basketball. An

exciting schedule of field

trips will be confirmed at the

start of each school year.

Going forward, the school

has set its sights firmly on

opening up Years 9 to 13, and

Mr Dennis says that BISAD

hopes to accept students

in the final year of their

diploma by 2012/13. A press

conference was held on the

day of the official opening

and attended my some

of BISAD’s most talented

students, one of whom

questioned the potential

of collaborating with the

school’s neighbour – Khalifa

University.

Mr Dennis said that

although no firm plans are

in place as yet, it would be

hugely beneficial to allow

BISAD’s older students

access to the university’s

facilities and this will be

explored in future. The

issue is both testament

to the analytical thinking

BISAD encourages and its

commitment to providing the

highest level of educational

services to its pupils. Beyond the standard curriculum


OPEN DAY – Thursday 19th November | 9am – 4pm

E-mail: [email protected] | Website: www.bisabudhabi.com


Abu Dhabi Week - Special Guide

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