Sama American Private School

SAMA American Private School was started in September 2012 in the Emirate of Sharjah, Al-Azra Private School district, just next to the Emirate of Ajman boarder. The campus is a modern purposely-constructed two story building – built to meet the international standards of student safety, protection and comfort and equipped with modern ICT infrastructure to provide internet to all classrooms and offices with interactive smart boards in all the classrooms. The school caters for students as of KG1 to grade twelve and offers quality education to K12 students whose parents are interested in a private school option that is characterized by high standards of discipline and high academic expectations.

Our priority is to ensure that both parents and students become actively engaged in our school’s vibrant community and benefit from the curricular and co-curricular programs that are provided by our school.

The school’s building has a library, three computer labs, seven science labs, three art rooms, a cafeteria, outdoor sport facilities, shaded areas, a multi-purpose hall, a clinic for a resident nurse and a part time medical doctor, classrooms that cater for 2000 students and offices for administrators. Initially, in 2012/13, there were 342 students; this grew to 550 the following year followed by 795 in 2014/15. By 2015/16 there were 1035 students enrolled and currently the school student population is 1303. The successful school’s student growth rate is mainly attributed to parent satisfaction which has contributed to the school’s success (as evidenced in the Parent Surveys). The continual improvement and enhanced reputation of the school is expected to continue year on year, hence requiring further expansion of premises.

The school is currently setting plans to add an additional building with an indoor gym and another spacious multi-purpose hall, in addition to some supplementary classes for the KG and primary sections.

Our staff comprises of 186 full time teachers, administrators and support staff. The faculty comprises of a school Principal, a Vice Principal, four Heads of departments, six section supervisors, a Social Counsellor, 85 teachers, 28 teacher assistants, 33 administrators and an additional number of support staff. All teaching staff possess the appropriate teaching qualification(s). This requirement is reflected in the selection process/policy prior to interview.

The modern CCTV system and surveillance cameras are installed throughout the campus to provide close supervision for all the school premises and common areas thusenhancing safety and security.

The school provides all parents with the option of “user-pays” transport services care of the school-owned buses, where the emphasis is on safety, comfort and appropriate supervision while in transit. All buses are brand new, equipped with surveillance cameras, have up-to-date vehicle maintenance and safety checks routinely completed. They carry first-aid kits and have operational air conditioning. They are all complaint with all applicable transportation laws of the UAE.

The school uses the American Curriculum/CCSS in all key subjects i.e. English, Math and Science and complies with the UAE Ministry of Education requirements in Arabic, Islamic Studies and Social Studies. The school complies with all statuary laws and derives its legitimacy from both the UAE Ministry of Education and Labour Law.

The main challenge for our school is the effective provision for SEN students as almost all such students approach our school for admission without prior assessment or identification of such needs. Most parents of SEN students are either unaware or unwilling to provide/disclose such important information upon registration which sometimes leads to some delay in discovering and referring such cases to licensed professionals for assessment.