MEAMARKETS / UAE BUSINESS AWARDS 2017 91 , Asya’s nursery is a British nursery based in the majestic Palm Jumeirah in Dubai. We profile the firm to explore the secrets behind its success. Award for Excellence in Childcare - Dubai Established in 2011, Asya’s operates under the philosophy that “children should be treated with warmth and respect and encouraged to reach their full potential”. To ensure that this is achieved at all time, the nursery puts a high priority on reaching the highest standards and maintains them by keeping up to date with the latest teaching styles and having a good relationship with feeding schools as to what the necessary requirements are to enter actual school. Children at Asya’s have priority placement in a number of schools. The nursery places themselves at a high priority on continuous professional development, with all staff having at least 18 hours of training each year. Courses include paediatric first aid, fire safety, and child development. As such the curriculum at Asya’s, in addition to the nursery’s regular EYFS curriculum delivery by its own teachers, the nursery has specialist instructors for French, Arabic and Gym for all of its little charges, including babies. These are free of charge to children enrolled in the morning. There are also other optional extra-curricular activities offered which parents may choose to sign their children up for. These include ballet, judo, golf, and football. Supporting both parents and their children, Asya’s offers flexible timings to help busy working families, with fees including meals to reduce the workload for parents. Overall, it is this client focused approach that has led Asya’s to the success it enjoys today, alongside to the dedication and consistent hard work of its support staff and admin team, as well as to the teaching and learning carefully run by the nursery’s Room Leaders. Looking to the future, the next step for Asya’s is to begin the Go Green initiative. Currently, two volunteer mums have formed a Gardening Club with the support of the teachers. They are helping children explore the life cycle of plants and where our food comes from. With the plants that they grow, they have started to make salad and bake muffins. To build upon this and gain entry into the initiative the nursery is seeking to continue the club and develop its outdoor space in which to grow more plants with the children. UA170052 Company: Asya’s Nursery Email:
[email protected] Address: Palm Jumeirah, Shoreline 10, Dubai, PO Box 117452, UAE Phone: 00971 4 435 6627 Web Address: www.asyasnursery.com UA170050 The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) is an independent, not-for-profit research organisation established in Australia, with branches around the world, all of which are dedicated to education research. We profile the firm’s UAE office to explore the secrets behind its success. Best Educational Management Company 2017 ACER United Arab Emirates (ACER UAE) is a branch office of the Australian Council for Educational Research Limited, one of the world’s leading educational research centres. The office undertakes commissioned educational research, capacity building programs and provides assessment services to the UAE Ministry of Education and a range of clients in the Middle East including government ministries, and schools. This work helps ACER to achieve its overall mission: to create and promote research- based knowledge, products and services that can be used to improve learning across the lifespan. Among the recent projects ACER UAE has undertaken is the establishment and implementation of the International Benchmark Test (IBT), an internationally administered program of assessments with tests appropriate for grades 3 to 10 in English, maths and science. The IBT allows schools to compare student performance internationally, between grades and overtime. Reports provide schools with detailed information about a student’s strengths and areas for improvement in all subjects. It is a high-quality skill- based assessment not linked to any national curriculum. This allows students from all countries to be compared fairly. The UAE office has also been working to implement the International School’s Assessment (ISA), which is designed specifically for students in international schools in Grades 3–10. It is based on the internationally endorsed reading, mathematical literacy and scientific literacy frameworks of the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Looking ahead, ACER UAE will continue to innovate and adapt in order to support the education market in the region and ensure that it remains at the forefront of the latest market developments. Company: Australian Council for Educational Research Limited Contact: Alan Egbert Email:
[email protected] Address: Block 11, Office G 06, Knowledge Village, Dubai, PO Box 502339, UAE Phone: 00971 4 3664098 Website: www.acer.org