47 private schools barred from enrolling Emirati students in Abu Dhabi

Forty-seven private schools in Abu Dhabi have been restricted from enrolling Emirati students after being graded 'Acceptable' and lower in the latest inspection report.

According to the Irtiaq'a inspection, held by the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK), these schools will remain restricted in the enrolment process until further regulatory requirements are met.

Schools rated 'Acceptable' or lower were initially subject to restrictions on increasing student capacity and adding new grades within their system, but those were lifted only for schools demonstrating verified improvement.

The school performance report card shows that 23 schools have shown improvement and moved up the ranks to the 'Good' category.

As per the latest report, 13 schools have been graded 'Outstanding', 51 ‘Very Good’, 93 ‘Good’, 42 ‘Acceptable', and 5 ‘Weak’ schools.

Irtiqa’a, operating under the UAE Unified School Inspection Framework, remains the core regulatory tool to drive school improvement.

Schools are generally assessed on a 6-point scale: Outstanding, Very Good, Good, Acceptable, Weak, and Very Weak. In line with national expectations, Good is the minimum standard for every school in the UAE. Inspections are conducted biennially and evaluate schools across six core standards and 17 performance indicators.