Private companies to part manage some Abu Dhabi schools

About half of all state schools in Abu Dhabi will be part-managed by private companies from the new term in a bid to improve standards in education.

A total of 147 primary and high schools across the emirate are taking part in a public-private initiative set up by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC), now in its fourth year.

The scheme links state schools with private education consultancies, which help run the school and improve the curriculum.

Mugheer al Khaili, director general of ADEC, told the National: “The change in the education sector is necessary to achieve the goals of the economic vision of the emirate.”

Last year 118 schools took part in the programme.

All schools retain their own teaching staff, but the private firm helps develop the curriculum to improve standards in Arabic, English, science, and maths.

The companies involved in the programme include the American charter school company Mosaica; a wing of the UAE-based education giant Global Education Management Systems, commonly known as GEMS; and the British firm CfBT Education Trust. Taaleem, the paper reported.

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