Sunday 17 / November / 2024
Muscat: A’soud Global School (AGS) is not here to compete with the other International Schools in Oman, the founding headmaster of the school has said.
“We would like to start as the other International schools, but with a better standard of education,” Andrew Hurst, founding headmaster of AGS Muscat, said on the sidelines of the announcement of the opening of AGS in September.
“Curriculum wise, we would be similar and we would like to be equal to the very high standard and reputation of many schools in Oman,” he asserted.
“We would like to work together with other International schools, such as BSM, ABA, etc. and help each other,” he added.
According to him, most of the schools in Oman have good quality of education.
“We are looking to offer a different type of education, based on the independent school model, which is so renowned in the U.K.,” Hurst said, explaining the education model.
“The British independent school model of Pre-Prep (3 to 7 years old); Prep (7 to 13 years old) and Senior (13 to 18 years old) is something that appeals to parents because it is clear how the school’s curriculum will adapt to different stages of a pupil’s development,” he clarified.
Speaking about the admission for the current year, the headmaster said, “A large number of parents are showing an interest and we are getting a good number for registration.”
According to him, half of the admissions are students from other schools, who are looking for something different.
“We are hoping to start our operations with over 200 students,” he stated. Speaking about the teachers and staff, Hurst said, “We have nearly 32 staff and among 25 of them are teaching faculty; and all the class teachers have a Bachelor’s of Education or Bachelor of Arts with PGCE.”
“Our teachers are all qualified to British standards and also understand the international context of the school; all of them have the experience of British Schools in both the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East,” the headmaster asserted.
“We want the same high expectations of a British independent school, but we also want to celebrate Omani culture, Arabic language and Islamic faith in order to educate and prepare our young people for an international life,” he added.
Speaking about the Omani workforce in the school, he said, “20 to 30 per cent of the staff are Omani nationals and we want to develop them and make them familiar with the curriculum.”
“We follow the National Curriculum for England adapted to include further academic rigour, along with Arabic, Islamic and Social studies through the Ministry of Education,” Hurst said.
He added that they are providing a wide variety of extracurricular opportunities and learning outside of the classroom.
According to the school officials, admissions are open among all nationalities.
“We are getting a good response from the Omani families, as well as the expatriate residents in Oman,” the head master said.
“Actually, this mixture will help the students develop their individuality, because they are exposed to a different culture and different nationalities,” he added.
He also confirmed that the admission process will continue till seats are completely filled. As per the school officials, the opening of the classes will be on September 4 and they are arranging a grand opening of the school towards the end of August.
According to Satish Gopinathan, business development director at Al Najah Education, one of the partners in school owners English Education Management Company (EEMC) AGS Muscat’s facilities rank as amongst the best in the Middle East.
“Classroom sizes are very generous, giving lots of space for the creative style of teaching we advocate,” he said.
“In addition to the impressive sports and swimming facilities, there are large indoor play areas, specialist music rooms, a dance and aerobics studio, cafeteria and a dedicated Apple iMac laboratory for computing and ICT,” he added.
AGS Muscat is the second project for EEMC (joint venture of Al Tamman Holding and Al Najah Education), following the successful establishment of the Horizon Kids International Nursery located on Al Mouj.
