NewSchoolInspectionReport

RyanPrivateSchool

AcademicYear20142015

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RyanPrivateSchool

InspectionDate
SchoolID#

2629January2015
243

LicensedCurriculum

IndianCentralBoardofSecondaryEducation(CBSE)

NumberofStudents

1161

AgeRange
Gender

4to14years
Mixed

Principal

PrashantFernandes

SchoolAddress

Mussafah,AbuDhabi

TelephoneNumber
FaxNumber
OfficialEmail(ADEC)

+971(0)25527527

indianmodsci.pvt@adec.ac.ae

SchoolWebsite

Ryaninternational.org/rismussafah

Dateofopening

6April2014

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Theoveralleffectivenessoftheschool
Inspectorsconsideredtheschoolinrelationto3performancecategories
BandA Highperforming(overalleffectivenessgrade1,2or3)
BandB

Satisfactory(overalleffectivenessgrade4or5)

BandC

Inneedofsignificantimprovement(overalleffectivenessgrade6,70r8)

TheSchoolwasjudgedtobe:

BANDB;

GRADE5

Themainstrengthsoftheschoolare:

this new school has quickly developed a shared sense of purpose and a
vibrantethos
thepersonaldevelopmentofstudentsisstrongbecauseofthewaythey
arecaredforandvaluedasindividuals
students impressive growth in selfconfidence as a result of the many
extracurricular,leadershipandpresentationopportunities
studentsenjoyschool,arepositive,andbehavewell
students have a good understanding of the UAEs culture, values and
heritage
thenewbuildingprovidesasafeandinvitinglearningenvironment
school leaders and teachers demonstrate commitment, dedication and
engagementtoimprovingthequalityofteaching

Themainareasforimprovementare:

attainmentinArabicingrades69
progress,developmentandapplicationofinvestigativeskillsinscience
the quality of teaching, with particular regard to providing high levels of
challengeandthepromotionof21stcenturyskills
modification of the curriculum to meet the needs of all learners,
particularlythemoreableandthosewithSEN
making the best use of the available resources, particularly in KG, the
libraryandscience
accountabilityatalllevelsofleadershipandmanagementforthequalityof
teaching,andimprovingstudentsacademicachievement.

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Introduction
Theschoolwasevaluatedby5inspectors.Theyobserved64lessons,conducted
several meetings with senior staff, subject coordinators, teachers, support staff,
students and parents. They analysed test and assessment results, scrutinized
students work across the school, analysed 933 responses to the parents
questionnaireandconsideredmanyoftheschoolspoliciesandotherdocuments.
The principal and 2 viceprincipals were involved throughout the inspection
processandcompleted10jointlessonobservationswithinspectors.

DescriptionoftheSchool
Ryan Private School is a new school, which opened in April 2014. The principal
took up post in February 2014. This is the second Ryan school in the UAE and is
located in the Mussafah district of Abu Dhabi. The school currently admits
students from Kindergarten (KG) to Grade 9 and will expand to Grade 10 next
year. The new building has plenty of capacity for these students. The school
follows the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) curriculum and
implements the MoE curriculum for the subjects taught in Arabic. Students are
testedthroughouttheyearusinginternalteacherassessments.Accreditationisin
placetobeabletooffertheCBSEexaminationswhenappropriate.
The schools vision is: be premier global educational institution which develops
the human resource for our dynamic and expanding community, the state, the
nation, the region and the world at large. Through our institutions, we will
cultivate all round development of qualities in a student through excellence in
education that shall foster academics, understanding, brilliance, spiritual well
being, physical development, physiological strengths, resourcefulness and
creativeskills,socialresponsibilitiesandconcernforonesenvironment.
There are 1162 students; 53% are Muslim and 57% are boys. KG has 297 children,
primary 663, and middle school has 202 students. Almost all students are from
India with approximately 3% each from Pakistan and Bangladesh; there are no
Emiratistudents.Nostudentshavebeenidentifiedwithspecialneeds(SEN)oras
giftedandtalented.Theschoolisintheprocessofidentifyingthosewithtalents
inmusic,art,sportandleadership.Admissionisopentoalliftheyhaveacademic
records and all sit tests for language, mathematics and science to check their
attainmentonentryandinformteachersplanning.
The leadership team consists of the principal and 3 coordinators. Heads of
department, class coordinators and a female social worker also hold leadership
roles. There are 66 qualified and 11 unqualified teachers, all of whom joined the
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schoolwhenitopenedinApril2014.Themajorityofteachersarenewlyqualified
andnewtoteachingintheUAE.AnnualfeesrangefromAED12,500forKGtoAED
21,000 for middle school students, which are in the low to medium range
categories.

TheEffectivenessoftheSchool
Ryan International Private School is satisfactory. This judgement reflects the
schools position against both international standards and ADECs expectations.
Thisisanewschoolatthestartofitsjourney;ithasalreadyachievedagreatdeal
in 2 terms. The main priority was establishing the ethos of the school and the
Ryan Way. It is clear that students have settled in well and there is a vibrant
atmosphere.Theschoolfirmlybelievesintheallrounddevelopmentofthechild
encouraginganddevelopingstudentstalents.Studentsaremakinggoodgainsin
theirpersonaldevelopmentanddemonstrateimpressivelevelsofselfconfidence.
The new building provides a good quality, safe learning environment, which is
conducivetolearning.
The attainment and progress of students are satisfactory in almost all key
subjects, in line with CBSE and ADEC agerelated expectations. Teaching in all
subjects provides a range of activities to develop knowledge; there are
insufficientopportunitiestodevelop21stcenturyskills.Theimplementationofthe
curriculum supports learning effectively because it is enriched with a range of
activities that develop leadership and personal skills. The principal provides
effectiveleadershipandunderstandstheprioritiesforimprovementwell.
Studentsattainment&progress
Studentsattainmentandprogressaresatisfactory.Studentsachieveinlinewith
agerelated expectations in English, mathematics, science, information and
communicationstechnology(ICT)andsocialstudies.Attainmentandprogressin
othernoncoresubjectsaresatisfactory.AttainmentinArabicingrades5to9is
unsatisfactory because many students arrive from India with lower starting
points; their progress from this relatively low base is satisfactory. In Islamic
education, attainment and progress is satisfactory and improving because
students are able to accurately memorise short surahs (verses) from the Holy
QuranandreflectIslamicvaluesintheirbehaviour.
InKG,studentshaveanageappropriatecommandofspokenEnglishasasecond
language.Theyhavegoodlisteningskills,readingisdevelopingsatisfactorilyand
they can identify opposites of common words. Children can read and recognise
numbers to at least 20, most can manipulate small objects and hold a pencil

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reasonably well. There are limited opportunities for discovery, exploring the
environment,developingindependenceandlearningthroughplay.
StudentsdevelopsatisfactorybasicskillsinEnglishandtheiractiveparticipationin
schoolassembliesmeanstheirspeakingandlisteningskillsareparticularlystrong.
Reading, grammatical accuracy and creative writing skills across all grades are
belowinternationalexpectations.Inmathematics,theattainmentandprogressof
studentsinthehighergradesisaroundinternationalstandardsbecausetheyare
givenopportunitiestothinklogically.Intheearliergrades,attainmentisloweras
studentsareunable tousemathematicallanguage,applytheirskillsandarenot
givensufficientopportunitiesforproblemsolvingandcollaborativework.
Studentshaveanappropriateknowledgeofbiology,physicsandearthsciencesin
line with CBSE expectations. Their understanding of concepts and laws is
inconsistentandsometimessuperficialastheydonothavesufficientopportunity
todevelopandapplytheirscientificskills.
Moreablestudentsmakeinsufficientprogressinmanylessonsbecauseactivities
lackchallengeandare notmatched to their specificneeds. Thereisnotargeted
support for SEN students and those who find learning difficult. Students 21st
century skills are not sufficiently developed across all grades and few
opportunitiesareprovidedinlessonstodeveloptheseskills.
Studentspersonaldevelopment
Thepersonaldevelopmentofstudentsisgood.Theyarewellcaredforandvalued
asindividualsandgrowimpressivelyinselfconfidence.Allstudentsenjoyschool
lifeandhavepositiveattitudestolearning.Theirbehaviourisgood,andthishasa
positiveimpactonlearning.Studentsexhibithighlevelsofrespectandtheirmoral
viewpointsarewelldeveloped;thisresultsinaharmoniousschoolcommunity.
Studentsareknowledgeable aboutthe UAE, itscultureandshowrespectforits
values. This is effectively promoted through assemblies, celebrations and the
curriculum.TheyalsohaveanexcellentknowledgeandunderstandingofIndia,its
culture, traditions, climate and geography. This was evident in the student
presentationsaspartoftheIndianRepublicDaycelebrations.
Students have a good understanding of the importance of leading a healthy
lifestyle.Theyreportthatthereisnobullyingandfeelsafe.Attendanceisaverage
at90%,andalmostallstudentsarepunctualtoschool.
Students have many opportunities to develop their talents and leadership skills
particularlythroughtheirrolesintheschoolparliamentandtheirparticipationin
assemblies and other events. The Head Girl leads assemblies impressively, with
thematurityandselfconfidenceofsomeonemucholderthanheryears.
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Thequalityofteachingandlearning
The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory across the school and in all
subjects. Teachers have appropriate subject knowledge, and relationships
between teachers and students are conducive to learning. Professional
development is increasingly effective in providing teachers with support for
planning and giving them the confidence to experiment in the classroom.
Teachers demonstrate a strong determination to improve, evident in their
willingnesstotryoutthesenewstrategies.Theyarebeginningtouseavarietyof
approaches to learning and create more opportunities for students to work
collaborativelyandindependently.
Teachers display learning objectives in all lessons, sometimes written in student
friendlylanguage.Teachersdonotconsistentlyexplainwhatstudentsneedtodo
tobesuccessful.Studentsarerarelyinvolvedineffectiveselfassessmentandonly
occasionally gave feedback to their peers. Typically, lessons consist of class
teachers asking closed questions with students recalling information and
repeating what they have learnt. Rarely do they have opportunities to develop
their higher order, critical and creative thinking skills. There were missed
opportunities to capture the imagination of students and develop skills through
investigationandproblemsolvingactivities.
InKG,childrenareenthusiasticlearners.Matchingtaskstotheindividualneedsof
the children is at an early stage of development. Baseline assessments are not
usedeffectivelyenoughinKGtoestablishthestartingpointstoinformplanning
for individual childrens learning needs. There are few opportunities for
experiential learning through a rich array of resources; there is too much rote
learningandrepetition.
Teachers know their children well and regularly plan differentiated expectations
for three levels of ability. In practice, many lessons are one size fits all, whole
classteacherled,sessions.Thereisinsufficientchallengeorsupportsothatmore
ablestudentsoftenfindtheworktooeasyandthelessablesometimesstruggle.
Teachers do not always know how to provide effective support to ensure
progress.Teachersundertakeregularassessments.Thesearenoteffectivelyused
tosetstudentstargetsforimprovementoraccuratelyrecordtheirprogress.
Meetingstudentsneedsthroughthecurriculum
Theimplementationofthecurriculumissatisfactory.Itisbroadandbalancedand
follows the expectations of the CBSE and the MoE for the subjects taught in
Arabic. The core curriculum is further enhanced by art, physical education (PE),
music, dance, French and Hindi. Students participate in a range of clubs,
extracurricularactivitiesandassemblieswhichofferextremelyrichopportunities
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forstudentstodeveloptheirmusic,dance,dramaandEnglishlanguagespeaking
skillsandtalents.Studentsparticipateinalimitedrangeofsports.Theydevelopa
good understanding of the UAE, its culture, values and heritage through
assemblies,dailyrecitaloftheHolyQuran,andothercelebrations.
The curriculum offers few opportunities to develop 21st century skills due to the
lackofregularopportunitiesforusingICTduringlessonsandthedevelopmentof
investigative, problem solving and research skills. There is an over reliance on
textbooksandtheacquisitionofknowledge.Thecurriculumisnotsufficientlywell
adapted to meeting the needs of all students, particularly the more able and
thosewithSEN.
Theprotection,care,guidanceandsupportofstudents
The protection, care, guidance and support of students are satisfactory and
improving. The school creates a very caring environment where students feel
safe, well cared for and valued as individuals. Students report that there is no
bullying, and know to approach the counsellor if they have problems. There is
carefulmonitoringofstudentsattendanceandanyabsenceisfolloweduponthe
firstday.Studentsarepunctualtoschoolandtolessons.
Procedures for the recruitment of staff are thorough and the necessary checks
areundertakenandrecorded.Theschoolhasaclearchildprotectionpolicy,which
staff and students understand. First aid facilities are appropriate and provide
satisfactorily for students basic medical needs. The SEN policy is under
development,asarethestrategiesforidentifyingstudentswithparticularneeds
andmakingappropriateprovisionforthem.Therearenoadditionalresourcesor
specialist staff other than the counsellor. Academic progress is recorded, but
monitoring is not sufficiently focused on progress, and ensuring all students
achievetheirpotential.
Thequalityoftheschoolsbuildingsandpremises
The school is new, purposebuilt and is conducive to learning as classrooms are
clean, of good size with suitable lighting and ventilation. There are 3 science
laboratories, an ICT room, prayer rooms and dedicated rooms for dance, music
andart.Theclinicisstaffedbyafulltimetrainednurse.
Somepartsofthebuildingandpremisesarestillundercompletionincludingthe
externalKGarea,theresearchcentreareaofthelibrary,anddedicatedoutdoor
sportsfacilities.Thedisplayofstudentsworkinsomeclassroomsislimiteddueto
the lack of display boards. The school is safe and secure. A committee has the
responsibilityforhealthandsafetyandallequipmentisregularlychecked.Regular
evacuationpracticestakeplaceandproceduresarewellunderstood.
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Theschoolsresourcestosupportitsaims
Resourcesaresatisfactoryinsupportingtheschoolsaims.Teachersareadequate
in number, secure in subject knowledge, most are appropriately qualified and
demonstrate dedication to the school and students. The classroom assistants in
KGprovideeffectivesupportforstudentslearning.
ThequantityandqualityofresourcesinKGareinsufficienttosupportexperiential
learning. The library has too few books, particularly Arabic reading books.
Students choose books to read silently in library lessons but are unable to
continue reading them at home. The science laboratories are rarely used and
studentshavefewopportunitiestoundertakeexperimentalwork.Allclassrooms
haveinteractivewhiteboards.Teachershavebeentrainedintheirusebutnotall
use them effectively. Students are occasionally invited to use the interactive
whiteboards. The ICT room is wellequipped but there are no computers for
studentuseelsewhereinthebuilding.
School transport is well organized and maintained to a high standard of safety
and reliability. The school canteen is clean and offers appropriate seating and a
limitedrangeofsnacks.
Theeffectivenessofleadershipandmanagement
Leadership and management are satisfactory. The effective leadership of the
principalhasmeantthatthisnewschoolhasquicklydevelopedasharedsenseof
purposeandavibrantethos.Students,orRyanitesastheyarecalled,haveareal
sense of belonging to a harmonious school community, which runs calmly and
smoothly.
Thisisaschoolatthestartofitsjourney.Ithassuccessfullyrecruitedateaching
staffthatdemonstratesastrongcommitmenttoimprovingtheirpractice.School
leadersunderstandtheirprioritiesandhaveaclearvisionforimprovementthatis
realistic, appropriate and committed to supporting and monitoring the
developmentofteachingandlearning.Theprincipalhasaclearunderstandingof
theschoolsstrengthsandweaknessesandtheschooldevelopmentplan(SDP)is
wellstructuredandfoundedinaccurateselfevaluation.
Regular lesson observations take place with useful feedback to teachers.
Teachershaveimprovedtheirlessonplanningasaresultofeffectiveprofessional
development. Followup lesson observations do not monitor that specific
improvementsaresuccessfullyimplemented.
Theschoolhasdevelopedinternalassessmentsystemstotrackstudentslearning.
Ithasjust2termsofdatabasedoninternalschoolassessment;asyetthereisno
external standardized assessment until Grade 10 take CBSE examinations.
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Analysisofstudentprogressisnotinplaceandteachersandcoordinatorsarenot
heldaccountablefortheprogressstudentsmake.
Parentshaveverypositiveviewsofthequalityofcare,andeducationprovidedfor
their children. They are particularly positive about the many opportunities
provided for students to improve their personal development and talents. The
principal regularly seeks views of groups of parents, who feel their views are
listened to. They also appreciate the regular communication regarding school
eventsandhomeworktasksviathePortal.Thereareappropriateproceduresin
placefordealingwithparentalcomplaints.

Capacityforfurtherdevelopment
The school is part of the Ryan international organisation and has access to
established policies and procedures. The proprietor fully understands the stage
ofthejourneytheschoolisatandrecognisestheneedtoimprove.
The principal understands the schools priorities, and has appropriate plans in
placetostageandphasedevelopments.Hehasalreadydoneagreatdealtoget
theschoolrunningsmoothlywithaverypositiveethos.Heistirelessinhisefforts
and has demonstrated that he has capacity to make further improvements. He
hasnoviceprincipalstosharetheworkload,butisassistedby3coordinatorswith
effectiveleadershipskillsandacommittedadministrativeteam.
The school has demonstrated that it has the satisfactory capacity to make the
necessaryimprovements.

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Whattheschoolshoulddotoimprovefurther:
1. Raise standards and accelerate students progress in all subjects and
gradesby:
i. ensuringteachersraisetheirexpectationsofwhatallstudentscan
achieve
ii. promotingskillsintheapplicationoflearningthroughinvestigation,
problemsolvingactivitiesanddeveloping21stcenturyskills
iii. developingthequalityofteachershigherorderquestioningskills
iv. providing greater clarity about the purpose of lessons and what
learninghasbeenachieved
v. ensuring plans for differentiated learning activities are
implementedeffectivelyinpractice
vi. extend the range of high quality resources and use them more
effectively
vii. using more effective baseline skills assessments in KG to ensure
that each child has identified plans for accelerating their progress
acrossthecurriculum.

2. ImprovetheguidanceandsupportforstudentswithSENby:
i. ensuring teachers and counsellorsunderstandhow toidentifyand
supportthesestudents
ii. increasing the range of resources and specialist staff who
understandtheneedsofSENstudents.

3. Improvetheeffectivenessofleadershipandmanagementatalllevelsby:
i. ensuring accountability at all levels for the quality of teaching and
improvedstudentoutcomes
ii. focusingobservationsonspecifickeyareasforimprovement
iii. trackingandanalysingstudentachievement
iv. appointing vice principals to increase capacity for rapid
improvement.

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InspectionGrades

Satisfactory

Inneedofsignificant
improvement

Satisfactory

Good

VeryGood

Performance
Standard

Very
unsatisfactory

Highperforming

Unsatisfactory

BandC

Satisfactory&
Improving

BandB

Outstanding

BandA

Poor

Standard1:
Students
attainmentand
progress

Standard2:
Studentspersonal
development

Standard3:The
qualityofteaching
andlearning

Standard4:The
meetingof
studentsneeds
throughthe
curriculum

Standard5:The
protection,care,
guidanceand
supportofstudents

Standard6:The
qualityofthe
schoolsbuildings
andpremises

Standard7:The
schoolsresources
tosupportitsaims

Standard8:The
effectivenessof
leadershipand
management

Summary
Evaluation:The
schoolsoverall
effectiveness

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