Purpleuk | ExpatWoman.com
 

Purpleuk

Purpleuk
26
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Latest post on 31 May 2015 - 14:28
Thankyou! I'm happy to hear that as we are also Arab by origin but as we were born & raised in the UK our Arabic is not perfect but we want our kids to learn as much Arabic as possible. We can read & write to a certain level & we both speak the language in our respective dialects, my son also understands & speaks it as a second language. I think they didn't mention it as we have British passports, so they must have assumed we would go for the Arabic for non-Arabs...I will email them to let them know what we want. Thanks so much for that ☺️ Sounds like your background is similar to mine, in which case if I was you I would push for Arabic for Arabs. At GWPS they have different level groups within Arabic for Arabs, it's not that all children take the same because they recognise that there are children that move to Dubai as Arabs but don't speak Arabic, but have to take Arabic for Arabs so they try to accomodate. As long as you know the basics then you can help with the homework and might find that you learn some things yourself...or at least that's certainly the case with me as I speak our dialect of Arabic but struggle with reading and writing! I told them that we have British passports but I want my daughter to take Arabic for Arabs as we are originally Arabs and that was never an issue with the school. Worst case you always have the option to fall back on your British passports and ask for your children to be moved to Arabic for non-Arabs later in the year (I know people that have done this). If you have decided on GWPS, you'll find that the Arabic teachers are quite personable with the parents and will call to speak to you at any time on your child's progress which is reassuring as they tell you the areas where they may need particular focus. That's great. I've just emailed the registrar about it & hopefully we will be accepting their offer this week ? So happy that's out of the way! Can I just ask where do parents whose kids go to gwps or nearby schools live? We had a quick look and found that the area (jumeirah) is quite expensive! I know they have buses but, if we have to use it, I don't want my child in the bus for too long...
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 31 May 2015 - 12:04
Thankyou! I'm happy to hear that as we are also Arab by origin but as we were born & raised in the UK our Arabic is not perfect but we want our kids to learn as much Arabic as possible. We can read & write to a certain level & we both speak the language in our respective dialects, my son also understands & speaks it as a second language. I think they didn't mention it as we have British passports, so they must have assumed we would go for the Arabic for non-Arabs...I will email them to let them know what we want. Thanks so much for that ☺️
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 30 May 2015 - 23:25
Hi I think all schools have Arabic and Arabic B. I think if your child has an Arab passport they have to do Arabic A. You may be able to opt out of this at special request but the policy is designed to promote the Arabic language. Children with a significant special need can app,y to opt out of Arabic altogether. That's what I thought, but during the tour they never mentioned it so wanted to be certain...we have UK passports but would like my son to do more arabic if possible.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 30 May 2015 - 01:51
Hiya, I can't really help with whether or not you should pay for the assessment or not, because that is really a personal decision. What I can do is give you some reassurance with regards to GWPS. I have a child there in year 2 and my youngest starting in FS2 in September. My eldest has been there since FS2. I honestly have very little negative to say about the school. The current principal only started this year, and the school is going from strength to strength so I can only really seeing it improving. The biggest issue for me personally is probably Arabic and Islamic, but i'm not sure that those would be of much importance to you, and even then I can't say that they are bad it's just that the need to re-evaluate the way that they educate these subjects - which is something that I know is now of high focus for the school. This is an issue in a lot of schools and certainly not unique to GWPS, the methods for teaching Arabic and Islamic are somewhat dated and the curriculum is fixed by the KHDA so it's a tough area. I think if you have been to see GWPS and got a good feeling then I would just go with it. Everyone has a different opinion/feel about schools and you will never get a right or wrong answer, so go with what has given you the best vibe. You will have so many adjustments right now that I would probably try to keep things simple and at least give your mind some rest when it comes to the schools. GWPS is certainly not a bad school and I don't think you will regret your choice. I hope this helps! Sey83 - I wanted to ask you about the Arabic classes at gwps as I forgot to ask the school when I did the tour! I've heard some schools have two types of Arabic classes depending on the child- arabic A for those whose first language is arabic & arabic B for those who don't speak Arabic...is that the case in gwps aswell? If so, do the parents decide which one they want for their child? Thanks in advance.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 27 May 2015 - 11:55
Thanks so much for the feedback guys. So I have just come back from the tours of horizon & gwps...I'm definitely happy with both schools & I like the fact that they are smaller schools as you have all mentioned too. Repton is very different in that it is a big school. I am going to go with one of the smaller ones & just cancel Repton. I'm leaning towards gwps at the moment, but will wait until we get a reply from horizon on the assessment results. Thanks so much, I'm feeling much better :)
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 27 May 2015 - 00:47
Regarding Repton The 1500 AED ( 500 registration fees+ 1000 assessment fees ) You can go to the tour without paying that sum of money. Check the school facilities and how do you feel about it. Or You can pay registration fees and ask to postpone the assessment if you want to take your time Hi Mesho- I don't live in the UAE yet, we're just here for this week as my son is on half-term, so we don't have time to postpone the assessment or to do the tour beforehand. So I basically have to make my mind up now.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 26 May 2015 - 23:17
Is that the original Horizon (near Safa Park) or Horizon International? Is the 1500 for one child or for more? Repton did achieve outstanding in the recent round of inspections. How did the other schools fare? Have you done a tour of Repton to see how it feels to you? Hi plum2- yes, it's horizon next to Safa park. The 1500aed is for one child...everywhere else they ask for 500aed. I am having a tour of Repton on the day of the assessment. The other two I will tour tomorrow morning. Im worried that I'll be wasting 1500aed on Repton...we might not get accepted, and, even if we did get accepted, I don't even know if I would take their offer over one of the other two schools mentioned. If we decide not to bother with Repton then I will need to cancel the assessment. I think if we hadn't received the offer from gems wps so soon then I would have definitely been happy to go for the assessment at Repton, but now that we have an offer I keep thinking what's the point in paying so much for Repton...
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 15 May 2015 - 12:51
I'll tell her to look at schools in the mirdiff area then. I've heard school of research science isn't good? Sheikhandbake- from my understanding there are schools which have a small population of Arabs. For example, Horizon school which I've applied to seems to have much more British/European families & very little Arabs. But I've never visited any of the schools so I can't really judge...
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 15 May 2015 - 01:10
Kings nad el shibas admission fee is 1000dhs and not 500dhs Check out safa community as their fees are lower than kings and the old safa has a good reputation. Mrssak: I didn't realise it was 1000aed! I guess that's even more of a reason to hold out & visit first, want to make sure that it's worth it first. Thanks for making me aware of that :cool: I will check safa school as well.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 14 May 2015 - 21:29
Purple, just out of curiosity why have you chosen these three schools? All are very very different, in fact you could not have picked three more different schools if you tried. Don’t worry about the assessment they all have places, as long as your child does not have any major issues she will be fine. Hi lolacat...I've contacted many schools & these are the ones that have spaces which I'm "ok" with...also, there fees are within my budget too. What do you suggest? Well you know the answer to that question! Seriously though the whole finding a school thing can be a nightmare when coming from abroad so you need to narrow down your choices on what sort of education you are looking for. The established schools will probably be full for this age range, but may be worth a quick email just in case they do have a space come up. Some of the newer schools may have places and I would not write off a newer school yet, which is why i mention them below. I would use your time wisely and visit a few schools. You mentioned a strong language program, well some schools do not have that. You need to ask yourself if a big school is right for your child, where have they come from, will they cope. What sort of nationality mix is the school made up of? You asked so I will answer, the Hartland discovery centre, meet the Head, Safa community school, Kings Nad al Sheba/Al Barsha, Dubai British Foundation and Foremarke (if budget allows). Try to meet with a Head at these schools. These are all quite small schools at the moment. It may be worth popping into NAS to get a feel for the place, they may have a place last minute. There are a few other new schools opening as well. GEMS have quite a few new schools that will probably have places. Re Budget, you may not be aware that schools can raise their fees based on their KHDA inspection results, this can in some cases be yearly. So be aware you may have budgeted for what is advertised but the fees may well go up from that figure, not all schools have released their increases yet. New schools have to fix their fees for a few years and do not come under inspection for a few years, which is why they come in on the higher end at first but it soon evens out after a few years. Also ask how the fees are collected, some schools take a small deposit and it comes off the first terms fees and fees are paid termly, others require a large deposit with cheques for a year. If you are paying your own fees these things can make a difference. Good luck with your search, I'm sure you will find a school that you will be happy with. HTH ;) Lolacat- I think at this stage I can't really be picky, it's a case of getting into a reasonable school & then deciding later on if we will stay or have to change schools. We're still in the UK so it's difficult to check the schools properly. I am planning to visit Kings Nad el Sheba when I'm out there as I am interested in applying but want to know what the construction etc is like before I pay the 500aed admission fee. Hartland sounds good but I'm not willing to take the risk of it being totally new...maybe in a year or two. I have emailed all the top schools and they have massive waiting lists...plus the majority of the "good" rated schools also have the same. I'm happy with the feedback I got from the 3 schools I mentioned...plus two of them have been rated "outstanding" so will see how it goes. Thanks :)
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 14 May 2015 - 21:18
Hi Purpleuk - the assessments are very straight forward for going into 2. Read 1 book, write a few basic sentences about a picture, recognize and read top 100 frequent words. read a paragraph answer the questions. Maths , what number comes next or before, put the numbers in order, simple addition and subtraction. 10's up to 100 and 2's up to 20, 5's to 50. Addition adding 2 digit numbers to 1 digit. Fractions in 1/2 and 1/4 and shapes. Count backwards from 20 to 1. British coins. Sorry it is a bit jumbled, just remembering all the things we did! Try this link, it is pretty good for year 1 items to complete for maths and English http://timestutorials.co.uk/category/maths/keystage1/year1/nc/ Good luck Dubaieye1- fantastic...that's exactly the info I needed :cool: Thankyou! Will check the link aswell.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 14 May 2015 - 16:16
Purple, just out of curiosity why have you chosen these three schools? All are very very different, in fact you could not have picked three more different schools if you tried. Don’t worry about the assessment they all have places, as long as your child does not have any major issues she will be fine. Hi lolacat...I've contacted many schools & these are the ones that have spaces which I'm "ok" with...also, there fees are within my budget too. What do you suggest?
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 07 May 2015 - 14:34
This article in The National suggests it has a high proportion of Emiratis enrolled. Hence you may not have much luck finding feedback on an expat forum? http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/education/parents-rush-to-enrol-children-at-ib-schools-across-dubai edited by Daza on 07/05/2015 Hi Daza- they were referring to the Australian school of Abu dhabi when they said over 90% are emiratis. But yeah, it could be the same with the ICE school which would explain why there isn't any online reviews. I would have loved to speak to some parents at the school. Thanks.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 07 May 2015 - 12:40
This many help http://www.icedubai.org Lovebubbles- yes, I have already looked at their website but I am looking for feedback about the school from parents. Thanks.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 07 May 2015 - 02:57
I've just found out that I'm not immune to Rubella even though I had the MMR vaccines as a child! Something I never even thought about! That's interesting, I never thought of that lol. Do you know if you ever had the booster as a child? I'm not sure, but maybe they never gave the boosters until recently?
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 07 May 2015 - 02:55
Some of the newer schools do not yet come under inspection (only after 2 years operation), so there will be nothing on them, please do not discount them based on that. Personally I don't let inspection results be the "be all and end all" of my view of a particular school, it's still quite a controversial topic. You really need to decide what sort of school and education you are looking for in order to narrow down a list. Yes, I completely agree lolacat. I guess it's just extra information which can be used as a guide. Either way, there aren't many schools with spaces available at this time of the year, so, as someone mentioned before, it's a case of getting him into a good enough school at this stage. Thanks for your input :)
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 06 May 2015 - 15:27
Fantastic. I've been checking the khda website but nothing yet...hopefully tomorrow. I will check out victory heights as I haven't looked at that one at all. Thankyou.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 06 May 2015 - 15:13
I am not in the country yet but I am due to visit at the end of the month so will check then. As long as they do the mumps vaccine then I can do the other 2 here privately. My eldest had the 3-in-1 6 years ago but my second was born premature so we've been abit cautious with the vaccines from birth, also autism runs in my husbands family so even though I don't believe there is a link I would rather do it separately for the sake of it. Thanks so much.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 06 May 2015 - 00:35
Hi, I posted earlier regarding this school and it seems to have disappeared :confused: Anyway, I would like to hear some feedback regarding this particular school. It's interesting as it's bilingual, however, there is absolutely no reviews online. Any advice plz...
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 06 May 2015 - 00:29
Thanks all for your input. I will take a look at the schools mentioned too. So does anyone have an idea as to when the khda school reports are out for this year?
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 06 May 2015 - 00:27
Anyone?
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 05 May 2015 - 19:22
Why don't you check out Hartland? I am. But I am also interested to know more about this school as there's nothing said about it.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 05 May 2015 - 19:21
http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/education/parents-rush-to-enrol-children-at-ib-schools-across-dubai "The school has nearly 1,000 pupils, 90 per cent from Emirati families. " They were referring to the Australian school of Abu dhabi not the ICE school...
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 05 May 2015 - 14:55
Hi Purpleuk, The class size is ranging from 18-20, which is pretty much the same for most schools. Early years have a main teacher and an assistant. Some schools say 16, but then I understand that they mix two classes together for most activities anyway. We do approx. 20mins of homework per day during the week. There is for sure no balance, some schools have very little homework, some have a lot, some schools push kids, some don't. One big let down for Repton is the theatre is not finished, this has been going on for ages - it is a big deal? Not to me! In my daughters class, we are 18 - of the 18, there are 2 unhappy mums - one who wants more Arabic and another who wants more English - all others are happy! So the rumour goes Repton got Outstanding this year, so onwards and upwards I say. I am sure someone who is anti Repton will jump on this post and comment they will now increase the fees. All schools in this situation will do this. Agreed many people have left Repton to go to other schools, so of course there is mixed reviews. There has not been much bad press about the other schools, as they are really all in there first year or not even open yet. No one will ever say anything bad and admit to being wrong for making the jump, so on paper at the moment they do look great. I am sure give it a few years and all the new schools will be in the same situation. They will advertise as small classes, but I feel these with get bigger and bigger every year etc. As schools expand and grow, unfortunately some areas do become overlooked. I really feel for you, really hard to find a school that ticks all the boxes Thanks for that...very helpful coming from a parent at the school. I will check Repton out then :) It's difficult as I'm not in the country yet...we will be travelling end of May but hoping to do assessments in that week as it's the only time my son gets off of school...so really need to apply now.
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 05 May 2015 - 13:23
Repton in Nad al Sheba - I am very happy with the school, we changed from one of the mentioned below, and we are really glad we did, much better rounded happy children now. NAS / Hartland are both new schools first time in Dubai. Honestly all new schools are generally pretty good for the first few years as there is lots of hype, then the cracks start to show, been there bought the t-shirt. All school's have cracks, but I feel the cracks are minor at Repton. The areas that are important are very good. Good luck with the move Hi dubaieye1- regarding repton....I've heard mixed reviews...supposedly they are good academically but parents are complaining about there being too much work? Also, hearing they aren't good in other areas...year & class sizes are huge...I don't know really...
Purpleuk
26
Posts
EW NEWBIE
Latest post on 05 May 2015 - 13:11
Hi there, We haven't decided where we will live yet...I want to secure a school first & then look for accommodation. DIA finally replied & they are full. Nord Anglia is also full. I haven't looked into Safa community school but will check it out. Sey83- glad to hear your happy with GEMS WPS...I've also only heard good things about it, but yes a lot of people are also saying to keep away...all the Dubai schools are for profit I know so I wasn't sure what they ment by that. Oh well ;) I will have to research more into kings nad el Sheba...didn't know it was still in construction with only afew students! Wesoon- what year is your son in horizon? It was given an outstanding last year by KHDA so I'm abit confused as to why they still have spaces? A lot of parents are saying they are not 100% happy with the school even though their kids are... Lolacat- I didn't really look much into hartland...do you have kids at the school? Is it open already? Thanks so much everyone for the info so far...really appreciate it!
 
 
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