UAE: Sharjah Private Education Authority announces results of 2nd edition of 'Itqan' programme

The programme aims to develop and improve the quality of education in private schools in the Emirate and achieve the authority's vision, where the performance of 63 private schools representing 9 different curricula out of 129 private schools in the Emirate, including 78,638 male and female students, was evaluated.

In its first and second editions for the academic years 2022-2023 and 2023-2024, the results of the programme showed a qualitative and noticeable improvement in the performance of schools by up to 80 per cent compared to the previous evaluation results conducted in the years 2018 and 2019.

The results proved that 100 per cent of private schools in the Emirate provide "acceptable" or better education, and 68 per cent of schools provide "good" or better education, which means that 117 schools in the Emirate offer "acceptable" or better education, of which 79 schools offer "good" or better education.

The final results included one school receiving an "outstanding" rating, 9 schools receiving a "very good" rating, 69 schools receiving a "good" rating, and 38 schools receiving an "acceptable" rating, while no school in the Emirate received a "weak" or "very weak" rating, which reflects the high level of educational services in the majority of private schools in the Emirate.

Comparing the current results with the evaluation results in 2018 and 2019 showed a significant improvement in the level of education in the Emirate, as all private schools now provide "acceptable" or better education, and the number of schools that provide "good" or better education has increased from only 8 schools to 79 schools, which in turn was reflected on the number of students receiving "good" or better education increased from 25,351 to 145,042, while the number of students receiving "acceptable" or less education decreased from 146,539 to 44,550, showcasing the efforts made by all parties in the educational field, and the teams of the SPEA, and Sharjah Education Academy.

The programme outcomes showed that about 145,042 male and female students out of 189,592, which is equivalent to 76% of private school students in the Emirate, receive a "good" or better education, while all students in the targeted schools, numbering about 189,592 male and female students, receive an "acceptable" or better education.

This announcement comes after conducting a comprehensive review of the quality of performance in 63 private schools out of 129 private schools in the Emirate, including 78,638 male and female students.

This edition focused on schools that had not been previously reviewed and schools that obtained an "acceptable" level or below in the first edition of the "Itqan" programme for the year 2023, in order to enhance school quality standards and distinguished educational practices within the context of the authority's vision to achieve "distinguished education" by 2025, and it was implemented throughout the current academic year - from January until last March.

Muhadditha Al Hashimi, Chairperson of the Sharjah Private Education Authority (SPEA), expressed their pride in the results of the "Itqan" programme and the continuous development witnessed by the education process in Sharjah private schools, in light of the support and follow-up of Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, and his insightful vision and wise and continuous directives, which are the main engine behind the successes achieved.

She said that what has been achieved reflects the authority's strategic vision and plan aimed at improving the quality of education and developing its tools in private schools in Sharjah, noting that the path to excellence requires a joint effort from all concerned parties, including the authority's work teams, school administrations, and parents, expressing deep thanks to everyone who contributed to this success and made the noticeable improvement in the quality of education, reflected in the evaluation results for the current year compared to the previous two editions.

She added that SPEA's continuation to strengthen development efforts and provide all aspects of support to the educational field, praising the fruitful efforts made by schools and cooperation with evaluation teams to improve performance in various evaluation standards, stressing the aspiration to continue the process of giving, to achieve more accomplishments. (ANI/WAM)