Job Discussion Forums

[CEngland]

I found this thread and thought that teachers would be the best people to answer my questions!

I have a 14 year old who will be entering 8th grade in August here in Doha, and I don't know which school to choose. While QA is very fancy and has amazing facilities, the discussion here concerns me.

I would like her to go to a very strong academic school, with a truly international environment, and my company will pay for either QA or the American School.

Any advice?
Thanks,
Christina

[livinginQatar]

Christina,

If your kids are American and going back to America, I'd suggest the American School. From my experience, the International School of Chouiefat and Doha College are both stronger academically than QA.

[Boy Wonder]

Please do not take up advice of previous poster....The Intl School of Chouiefat is not academically strong and suffers from lack of facilities and inexperienced teachers.......my girlfriend worked there for 3 years and some of the stories I heard would be enough to stop anyone sending their kids there.
The best Intl schools in Qatar are DESS....Qatar Academy....Doha College and the American School.....they have the best teachers and the best facilities.......i have been to all of them so speak from experience.

[livinginQatar]

Chouiefat had a bad reputation in the past (used to be Al Muneera School *shudder*). However, I heard that it has improved. As well they are moving to a new building in Defna (quite impressive). I know several parents (university professors) who have had their children there the past 2 years and they are quite pleased with it. Many of their students have been accepted into top universities in the US/UK after graduation.

If you can afford it, or your employer is paying, the American School is your best bet.

[gorgan]

I find Cheuiefet school very good acadamically. It is very strong and much better than DESS. DESS follow british style of teaching which means up to age of over 10 kids just play and don't learn anything. This is my own experience since I lived in UK for about 30 years. My kid is under 5 years old and can read and write english. How many kids in UK at that age can read and write?? I can assure you not many.
Before actually sending my son to that school I went to a few school and also talked to many Qataris and other people. Great majority of them suggested that school and now I am glad that I made the decision of sending him to that school.

gorgan

[Bindair Dundat]

[Stephen Jones]

[gorgan]

I take your points however since I myself left middle east at the age of 18 and therefore going through a similar way of learning I therefore have the first hand experience. Based on that experience I beg to differ from you. When I left middle east (Iran) and went to UK to further my studies, I was amazed and totally surprised by lack of knowledge of English classmates (And don�t forget that I couldn�t speak a word of English!!). I wasn�t particularly very strong since I didn�t take the studying seriously, but I cruised through the system to obtain my BSc and MSc in Electronics from good universities (Liverpool and Salford respectively). Yes I agree that you have to look at the children at the age of 18 and not after fortnight. Believe me when I was 18 I knew a lot more than my English classmates back in UK. I went through that system of studying and it never did me any harm.

gorgan

[Amy Sandridge]

Qatar Academy is a very strong school academically, with brilliant facilities. My daughter is in 6th grade there. It is her second year. We hope that our younger child will start there in September although we may go to ASD for her for a few years.

The difference between those two schools is that QA allows your child to interact with a higher percentage of Qatari children and ASD gives your child more of an American microcosm. For our older child we wanted her to be able to have as much of a cultural experience as possible. We have lived in the Middle East for her whole life so, for example, we've committed to the children learning as much Arabic as possible. The younger child we've had at the Palestianian School, again, for the purpose of learning Arabic. Now that it is time for her to enter 1st grade we're trying to decide whether or not, possibly for 2-3 years, it might be adventageous to send her to a school that represents her own "Western" culture. (The elder child was at the British School in Riyadh for those early formative years.)

In terms of the long run, I went to college in the USA with many students who had attended foreign schools and I think that even if you are in the area for only 2-3 years with an intention of returning to the USA it is still worthwhile sending your child to QA for the international environment and the facilities.

QA isn't a perfect place by any means. The Qataris are primarily from the affluent class and therefore your child only sees a narrow window of the culture - but then so are the other children at QA as well as the children at ASD!

[shadrack]

We will be new to Qatar this coming August/ September and must make a good choice from the schools there. There is a choice between

American School of Doha
Doha Academy
Doha College Qatar
International School

I have 2 sons: 11 years old and 6 years old. I am British and we are aiming our sons at University in UK in the far misty future. A strong academic and personality-building education is more important at this stage, though.

Which school should I choose? Suggestions greatly appreciated.

[wilberforce]

This info comes from gal pals teaching at these places.

No comparison. ASD is probably the best equipped school in town. The school is very well run with excellent teachers and admin. Doha College is a close second. Qatar Academy plays nasty by throwing out kids who don't measure up. They want to claim they have the best students in the country so the only way to do this is to get rid of borderliners, never mind if they've been at the school for 5 or 6 years and their parents have invested a lot of money. At least one kid I've heard of filled himself full of pills when he was kicked out of QA a few years ago for 'not making the grade'. He's beengetting A's at ASD and has a place at Yale. So there QA!!!! You made a mistake! Elite snobbism - it doesn't wash.

[indigorawa]

I don't agree. Few schools go so far as giving the boot to kids who fail. Perhaps this school is better than you think. Even the kid who supposedly has a place in Yale, may have changed his MO after being kicked out of his previous institution.

Sounds like they have standards there. This is something that is missing in most schools all over the international circuit.

After all, it's become such a money racquet, who can afford to show paying customers the door? Though this is exactly what must be done if high academic standards are to be maintained.

"Snobbish?"
I think the writer should think that position over again.

[wilberforce]

[Green Acres]

Whatever the criteria, so long as the students are aware of the standard before it is enforced, I see nothing wrong with asking students to leave who do not make the grade.

Why do you feel that this is wrong?

If someone wanted to enter a top university in the world, they would have to prove that they belonged, that is, meet the entrance criteria. Many students cannot meet this criteria, and thus, do not get the same opportunity. If this system of acceptance is fair, then why not the same system of maintenance?

[veiledsentiments]

In general I would agree that any private school can set its enrollment rules any way it wishes... BUT

IMHO, I would consider it wrong if they then advertise themselves as being the best school because their students get the highest grades. The truth is that their students get the highest grades because they have stacked the deck. Winning on an uneven playing field is cheating... pure and simple.

So, the school is guilty of false and misleading advertising.

VS