Get any two or more mothers together in the Emirates and the subject comes up automatically: “Where do your kids go to school? Are you happy with that school?” And a conversation ensues. Parents are constantly in the process of comparing their kids’ school to those of friends and acquaintances. Shifting schools is almost a sport in the UAE.
This year we are making a leap of faith and moving our girls to a new school. We have had five-plus years of fabulous education at an A2 rated school. The teachers have been engaging, I have been extremely involved with the parents group and I trust the administration. So why are we moving? Our school is segregated by sex after grade 5. We were fine through grades 6 and 7 but now with them nearly in high school, we feel our daughters need a coeducational environment. It was not a decision taken lightly. Come September we will start back at zero in the new school.
While we see more benefits than challenges, the move is emotionally charged and very difficult to explain to other parents at the old school.
I spoke with other families who have shifted schools to find out why, and how it went.
Chloe was moved to a new school last year quite simply because the old one was too expensive. She was upset about it but says now, “I’ve just knuckled my head down and get on with the work. I will be finishing next year and am looking forward to that.”
Kerstin says, “We switched schools after four years because we felt the curriculum at the old school was not strong enough. I’m happier overall at our new school. And, as a perk, now my children and I have friends from two different communities – more even, because several other families left the first school as well and went on to a different school than us.”
Jennifer’s children moved to alleviate the morning traffic-filled commute. “What a relief from stress it was to reduce an hour and twenty-minute round trip to fifteen minutes. A closer school means friends from school live closer too. It was the best thing we could have done,” she comments.
While ensuring your child is in the “perfect school” might cause you great stress, try to relax. There may be more than one school that suits your needs.
It is a little bit like buying a new computer: you weigh all the features, costs and detriments but in the end, you must simply choose one from your remaining list. If you are careful in your research, you will choose wisely. If, for some reason you make a mistake, it can be corrected by shifting again.
“The good news about schools in the UAE is that they are very open. Students arrive and depart every year either due to shifting schools or as dictated by their ex-pat parents’ jobs,” explains Mandy. “That means if you make a mistake with a school or find one you think will be better for your kids, they will fit in just fine in the new school. They won’t feel different just because they are new.”
