Dar Al Marefa Private School

Dar Al Marefa is located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in the Al Khawaneej district at Khawaneej 1 – 47th Street (PO Box 112602). The Al Khawaneej area is a residential community with convenient road access to central Dubai. The campus is a purpose-built, two-storey facility designed to support IB programmes and a broad range of facilities.

The school offers the International Baccalaureate curriculum from Pre-KG through Grade 12, including the Primary Years Programme (PYP), Middle Years Programme (MYP) and Diploma Programme (DP). Instruction is delivered in English and Arabic.

The school is co-educational and operates as a day school. It is the only bilingual English-Arabic IB curriculum school in Dubai.

Student nationality mix includes representation from many countries; sources indicate students from over 35 nationalities attend the school. Emirati students are the largest local group, with a substantial international presence.

The school provides support for students with Special Educational Needs (SEN). It maintains an inclusive policy and provides services for students of determination.

Affiliation with the United Arab Emirates. The curriculum aligns with UAE MOE requirements and KHDA oversight.

No formal religious affiliation; however, the curriculum includes Islamic Studies for Muslim students in accordance with UAE MOE requirements, and Arabic language instruction is required.

School hours are 7:30am to 3:30pm from Monday to Thursday, with a Friday schedule of 7:30am to 12:00pm.

Dar Al Marefa offers its own bus transport for eligible students. Arrangements are coordinated with the RTA; pick-ups and drop-offs occur at designated meeting points, and routes may change only with RTA and school approval. Students must follow bus rules and wear seatbelts where fitted.

Dar Al Marefa is an IB World School in Dubai offering the full IB continuum: Primary Years Programme (PYP) for ages 3–10, Middle Years Programme (MYP) for ages 11–16, and Diploma Programme (DP) for ages 16–19, with instruction delivered in English and Arabic. Arabic language is taught per UAE Ministry of Education requirements, with Arabic A for native speakers from listed Arab countries and Arabic B for non-natives when approved by KHDA; Islamic studies are also offered to Muslim students. PYP focuses on inquiry-based learning across transdisciplinary themes and fosters global citizenship, including Early Years within the programme. MYP connects studies to real-world contexts as the middle phase of the IB continuum. DP comprises six subject groups plus the core (TOK, EE, CAS); students in grades 11–12 may follow the Diploma Programme or a Diploma Programme Course stream, with a maximum of 45 points and KHDA equivalency considerations. Assessment and planning employ IB tools such as ManageBac to plan, assess, and report progress.

Dar Al Marefa approaches school life holistically, focusing on fostering a positive emotional state among students alongside academic achievement. Student well-being is an essential element and a determinant of success, with the environment and facilities designed to support mental health and well-being. The school emphasizes positive social relationships and active participation as part of its inclusive ethos. It follows UAE values and the Dubai Inclusion Education Policy Framework and provides and monitors special education services to support individual learning needs, enabling inclusive participation. During online learning, nine mindfulness strategies have been developed to relieve stress and provide direct individual support to students who need it.

The school states a commitment to inclusive education and provides and monitors special education services to support the individual learning needs of students with a learning need, adhering to UAE values and to the Dubai Inclusion Education Policy Framework. It aims for all students, including those with disabilities or SEN, to progress and participate as equal citizens within the learning community. The school is described as an inclusive bilingual IB Curriculum school rather than a specialist SEN institution. KHDA's 2023-2024 inspection rated Wellbeing as Good and Inclusion as Good, reflecting its inclusion practices. The school's public materials do not specify exact SEN categories or list a dedicated SEN center.

The school is the only bilingual IB Curriculum school in Dubai, offering instruction in English and Arabic. The language of instruction for the IB program is English. No separate EAL program is publicly disclosed in available materials; English is used as the language of instruction, with Arabic as the other language of instruction. Given the bilingual nature, EAL support may be integrated within the general provision, but explicit EAL program details are not published.

The Well-Being page describes a holistic approach to student welfare, stating that well-being is essential to student success and that the architecture and layout of the campus support mental health. It notes a focus on fostering positive emotional states and on social and emotional development. The school emphasizes well-being as part of daily life, beyond academics. For online learning contexts, nine mindfulness strategies were developed to relieve stress and provide direct individual support to students who need it. These elements are part of the school's broader commitment to mental health and well-being.

The school states an inclusive policy and follows the Dubai Inclusion Education Policy Framework, providing and monitoring special education services to support student safety and learning. It emphasizes equal participation for all students, including those with disabilities or SEN. Online safety policies and restrictions are described for distance learning to protect students in virtual settings. Safeguarding and well-being are interwoven with inclusion and are reflected in KHDA inspection outcomes, which show Good Wellbeing and Good Inclusion.

Dar Al Marefa offers the full IB Curriculum continuum (PYP, MYP, and DP) in English and Arabic. The admissions process requires completing the online Admissions Form, scheduling an assessment, paying 10% of the annual fee upon acceptance, and securing the place. Entry requirements include that Pre-KG entrants must be at least three years old by August 31 and toilet-trained; all students learn Arabic under UAE MOE guidelines with Arabic A for native speakers from certain Arab countries through Grade 12, and Muslim students take Islamic Education through Grade 12 (Arabic A or English B, per nationality). Online applications prompt a school representative to contact within 1-2 working days to arrange a visit and entrance assessment; the language of instruction is English and Arabic.