Jumeirah College... An exhilarating
place to learn, develop and explore
O
ver the past five years, there
has been a dedicated focus on
taking education to even greater
heights within the Middle East,
particularly in the United Arab Emirates.
In Dubai, schools have consistently
raised the bar in education, by recruiting
outstanding teachers, providing world-
class facilities, and employing cutting
edge technologies and strategies in the
classroom. These steps challenge both
staff and students into maintaining a
high standard of excellence year after
year. Among the outstanding schools in
Dubai, is GEMS Jumeirah College (JC),
a consistently exceptional school that is
renowned for producing excellent results.
Teach Middle East Magazine is
delighted to share with our readers
some of the good practice taking place
at Jumeirah College.
Jumeirah College was founded in
1999, and since then, the college has
maintained a keen focus on academic
progress and achievement. This has
resulted in the majority of the college’s
students opting to continue studies at
the university level.
While academic success is at the core
of what they do, the college ensures
that students are not defined by
qualifications only, but are also being
prepared to engage in the world as
dynamic and impactful global citizens.
According to Principal Simon O’Connor,
when students leave JC, they are
‘accomplished in academic skills and
22 | May - Jun 2017 |
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become architects of lives that exceed
expectations.’
‘A vibrant learning community
nurturing happy, confident and
accomplished students who,
through a commitment to academic
and personal excellence, progress
beyond limits.’
The Dubai Schools Inspection Bureau
(DSIB) has consistently rated Jumeirah
College as outstanding. When asked
about some of the programmes that
have led to their success, Mr O’Connor
shared: “The most important element of
the success of Jumeirah College is the
standard of teaching that the students
receive every day. We are lucky to have
an exceptional staff, who continually
work to improve their practice.” This mandate has been fundamental
in the development of the college.
According to Mr O’Connor, they
continually work closely with parents,
not only keeping them informed, but
also to actively engage them in their
children’s learning.
In recent years, the college has done
a significant amount of work to further
improve, the standard of feedback that
the students receive. This allows the
students to always have an awareness
of the next steps in their learning, and
how they can achieve the ambitious
targets that are set. “It used to be the case that schools
tried to avoid involving parents in
education. The impact of reversing this,
bringing parents into the College, to
hear their views and explain how we are
teaching their children, has been critical
to the successes we have achieved,” he
commented.
“We also closely monitor students’
progress to ensure the interventions
which are put in place are personalised
to the individual needs of the
students,” continued Mr O’Connor, “All
of this has created a very inclusive and
personalised culture which ensures all
students are able to achieve.” Jumeirah College delivers the National
Curriculum for England from Years 7
to 13. They boast a roster of students
from over 59 nationalities, which
gives credence to them being a truly
international school.
A successful school usually engages
effectively with the key stakeholders.
This is also true of Jumeirah College.
Three years ago, the entire school
community was asked about what they
hoped Jumeirah College would be. The
result of this consultation became the
college’s mission statement: -
Class Time
Today, schools are strongly encouraged
to ensure that students are prepared
to be global citizens who will be able
to successfully undertake jobs that are
not even yet created. Students will need
to develop a life-long approach to their
development if they are best placed to
navigate such an uncertain future.
Mr O’Connor and the team of dedicated
educators at JC are acutely aware of