# American vs British School system



## vinp (Aug 11, 2015)

Hi

My family will be relocating to Dubai from Canada. Our kids are 6 and 8 yrs old. Looking for guidance on whether we put kids in American vs British School System. Our focus is more on academics vs extra curricular. Was thinking American but have been advised not to overlook British System. We will return to Canada in 3-5 years

Any guidance appreciated!


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## Fat Bhoy Tim (Feb 28, 2013)

British curriculum is generally more challenging, but the US curriculum will probably be closer to what they'll receive in Canada. 

Here's school rankings in Dubai, the best are overwhelmingly British curriculum: School Inspection Reports


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## TallyHo (Aug 21, 2011)

School rankings should always be taken with a grain of salt. It's useful to an extent but one should never fall into the trap of thinking that x school is automatically better than y school because one is Outstanding while the other is Good.

KHDA places a lot of weight on the quality of Arabic instruction and Islamic studies in the scoring. Some schools don't care to faff around with those, which is why they end up with a lower score despite all other subjects being ranked outstanding on an individual basis. A case point is the American School of Dubai. It does not offer Islamic Studies as a separate course and as such will never receive outstanding reviews despite that it is easily one of the top schools in Dubai.

To the OP: Canadian families usually opt for the American or IB schools. Lots of Canadian kids at ASD which gives preferences to both American and Canadian passport holders. Lots of Canadians at Dubai American Academy as well. 

If your child is at primary/elementary years I don't think it makes much of a difference whether it's an US/Canadian system or a British curriculum school. It becomes much more important in the secondary years because of preparing for national examinations and university entry and the UK schools secondaries are focussed on the GCSEs and A-levels, while the North American schools don't have the equivalent. 





Fat Bhoy Tim said:


> British curriculum is generally more challenging, but the US curriculum will probably be closer to what they'll receive in Canada.
> 
> Here's school rankings in Dubai, the best are overwhelmingly British curriculum: School Inspection Reports


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## twowheelsgood (Feb 21, 2013)

If they take the British curriculum, they will learn to spell correctly.

Contrary to what Microsoft might tell you. 'US English' is not a language but is English for those who cannot spell correctly, or are too lazy to write out complete words


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## TallyHo (Aug 21, 2011)

I don't think we can boast about our grammar skills any more.

The number of British English teachers in Dubai who still can't differentiate between your and you're is shocking. It's a national embarrassment. 



twowheelsgood said:


> If they take the British curriculum, they will learn to spell correctly.
> 
> Contrary to what Microsoft might tell you. 'US English' is not a language but is English for those who cannot spell correctly, or are too lazy to write out complete words


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## Fat Bhoy Tim (Feb 28, 2013)

TallyHo said:


> The number of British English teachers in Dubai who still can't differentiate between your and you're is shocking. It's a national embarrassment.


lol wut?

Typos I can appreciate, but seriously?


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## Yussif (Jul 27, 2015)

TallyHo said:


> I don't think we can boast about our grammar skills any more.
> 
> The number of British English teachers in Dubai who still can't differentiate between your and you're is shocking. It's a national embarrassment.


Are you serious?


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## iggles (Jan 4, 2015)

English all the way. It's a privilege that your child will carry for the rest of their lives, to say that their education is British.


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## TallyHo (Aug 21, 2011)

Yep.

Look at the various threads started by new teachers on here. 

I belong to several sports groups that include teachers from the British schools. If their emails are anything to go by let's just say I'm thankful I don't have children in Dubai schools. And one of teachers is an English teacher at JESS....



Yussif said:


> Are you serious?


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## omar92 (Oct 8, 2013)

Honestly I would go for the best school, regardless of whether it runs on the British, Canadian, or American curriculum. Plenty of kids manage to 'switch' before high school with no problems. I'm assuming you're a non-Quebec Canadian, so French schools are out of the question? 
Having finished high school just 5 years ago, here are my 2 cents: 
A 'British' curriculum following the National Curriculum (England+Wales) gives your kids a thorough grounding in a wide range of disciplines, and in the Gulf tend to produce very disciplined and diligent students. School culture is more formal (uniform etc.). My school was brilliant because for the most part we had wonderful teachers, a lovely campus, tons of extra-curricular activities, and a wonderful sense of community and belonging. That's the best kind of school, and will make your kids' years in Dubai memorable ones. However going to a school with a poor academic reputation, high staff turnover, low student retention rates, an unappealing campus won't make it enjoyable for your kids, and could also result in academic problems that would take years to undo. 
I'm not particularly fond of British high school-GCSEs/A levels (Key Stage 4/5) I didn't really learn that much. The trend was headed towards IB. However I remember the British government began reforming those to make them more competitive down the line.


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## vinp (Aug 11, 2015)

Thanks for the guidance. We are non Quebec.


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## Rakesh Shetty (Dec 29, 2021)

omar92 said:


> Honestly I would go for the best school, regardless of whether it runs on the British, Canadian, or American curriculum. Plenty of kids manage to 'switch' before high school with no problems. I'm assuming you're a non-Quebec Canadian, so French schools are out of the question?
> Having finished high school just 5 years ago, here are my 2 cents:
> A 'British' curriculum following the National Curriculum (England+Wales) gives your kids a thorough grounding in a wide range of disciplines, and in the Gulf tend to produce very disciplined and diligent students. School culture is more formal (uniform etc.). My school was brilliant because for the most part we had wonderful teachers, a lovely campus, tons of extra-curricular activities, and a wonderful sense of community and belonging. That's the best kind of school, and will make your kids' years in Dubai memorable ones. However going to a school with a poor academic reputation, high staff turnover, low student retention rates, an unappealing campus won't make it enjoyable for your kids, and could also result in academic problems that would take years to undo.
> I'm not particularly fond of British high school-GCSEs/A levels (Key Stage 4/5) I didn't really learn that much. The trend was headed towards IB. However I remember the British government began reforming those to make them more competitive down the line.


Can you please mention the school name which you attended in Dubai . Thanks


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