UAE schools excel at GCSEs – News

Several students score 9 straight on first written test since Covid-19 pandemic

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Students in the UAE did well in their GCSE results released today, with several students scoring nine straight in the exam.

This is the first time students have sat GCSEs since the Covid-19 pandemic. For the past two years, grades have been released based on teacher assessments.

“It’s no surprise that students in the UAE are doing very well,” said Jared Nolan, Director of the UK Curriculum School at Taaleem Education in the UAE.

“We are very fortunate that the transition from school to online learning has been very good here. The education of students has not been affected as it has been in some parts of the world.”

In the Taaleem network, over 40% of exams scored 9-8 (equivalent to A*) and 61% scored 9-7 (A*/A).

It has been a rewarding day for GEMS Education. Of the 3,128 students at the school taking the test this year, more than 1,500 achieved the highest possible grades 9-8 (equivalent to A*), 42% achieved grades 9-7 (A*-A), 82 % of entries are awarded grades 9-4 (A*-C).

From a network perspective, Jumeirah College Dubai 9-8 (A*) 55%, GEMS Wellington International School 9-8 (A*) 39% of all grades, GEMS Wellington Academy – Al Khail 9-8 (A*) of all grades 30% 9-8 (A*) and 9-8 (A*) at GEMS Wellington Academy – Silicon Oasis 31% of all grades.

Dino Varkey, Group Chief Executive of GEMS Education, said: “Our students are surpassing the UK national average and each and every one of them, regardless of their grades, should be proud of their achievements.”

Brighton College Dubai has announced that its second cohort of GCSE students achieved a combined 26% in Year 9 and 50% of Years 9-8 (A*). The academy’s top marks were awarded to principal Habibah Rashwan, who underwent a major spinal surgery before the exam, forcing her to attend the six-week course and exam remotely while still recovering from the surgery.

Brighton College Al Ain recorded an even higher percentage of Year 9 students than when they last took GCSEs in person in 2019. Students achieved very good grades in the sciences, with 63% achieving the highest grades (7-9), and 77% achieving high grades (7-9) in the humanities.

Students at Safa Community School (SCS) achieved 23.2% grades 9 and 43.7% achieved grades 9-7 (A*-A).

“As a group of students, we’ve seen how hard they’ve worked over the past two years,” said SCS Principal Leanne Fridd. “We’ve seen them grow into mature students who are now creating a lot of opportunities for themselves as they enter sixth form.

22% of students at Dubai British School Emirates Hills achieved their highest grades in Year 9 and 64% achieved grades 9 to 7.