Dubai · KHDA · Maths by curriculum

KHDA schools in Dubai:
what maths looks like
by curriculum

KHDA regulates Dubai's private schools, but it does not write their maths. Each school teaches to the curriculum it chose — British, Indian, American, IB or one of a dozen others — so "maths at a KHDA school" means something different depending on the gate your child walks through. This guide sets out what each looks like and how to read the maths part of an inspection report.

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ClassArc is live one-to-one online maths tutoring for school-age children. One teacher and one child, for 55 minutes. The same teacher every week. Classes run inside our own classroom software, not a video call: a shared worksheet you both write on, a shared whiteboard, and answers that sync live.

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The short answer

KHDA checks the teaching;
the school picks the maths

Dubai's Knowledge and Human Development Authority, KHDA, licenses and oversees private education in the emirate. It does not set a maths syllabus for private schools. A British school teaches the English National Curriculum and its exam boards, an Indian school usually follows CBSE, an IB school follows the IB — and KHDA judges how well each one delivers the programme it chose.

For parents, three KHDA roles matter. It permits schools and the curricula they offer. It controls fee rises, and for 2026–27 it confirmed no fee increase for Dubai private schools. And it inspects schools, rating them on a six-point scale: Outstanding, Very good, Good, Acceptable, Weak and Very weak.

Sources: Dubai Media Office on the 2026–27 fee decision.

Inspections in 2026–27

KHDA inspections restart in 2026–27,
so many ratings are older than they look

KHDA ran no school inspections in 2025–26. It has announced that quality assurance visits return in the 2026–27 academic year in two forms: a full inspection by a specialist team, and a shorter monitoring visit that follows specific lines of enquiry. Schools will usually get no more than 24 hours' notice.

The practical consequence is simple. The rating on a school's website may be two or more years old, and a lot can change in a maths department in that time. Read the date before you read the grade, and ask the school what has changed since.

Source: KHDA announcement on quality assurance visits.

Who teaches what

British schools are the largest group
in Dubai's private sector

On KHDA's 2024–25 figures, published through the Dubai Media Office, the emirate's 227 private schools teach 17 different curricula. Five account for most students.

CurriculumShare of private-school students, 2024–25
UK (British)37%
Indian26%
US (American)14%
International Baccalaureate7%
UK/IB hybrid4%
All other curriculaThe remaining 12% or so

Source: Dubai Media Office, January 2025. If KHDA publishes a newer breakdown, the order at the top is unlikely to change quickly, but the percentages will.

Curriculum by curriculum

What maths looks like in each kind of Dubai school

By sixteen, most children in every system have met the same core ideas: algebra, geometry, probability, statistics. What differs is the order, the exam at the end and the words the teacher uses.

British curriculum schools

From Year 1 to Year 9 a British school in Dubai teaches the English National Curriculum, so a Year 8 pupil here meets the same ratio, equations and angle facts as a Year 8 pupil in Leeds. From Year 10 (Grade 9) the school enters students for domestic GCSE or International GCSE — and schools in the UAE often choose subject by subject.

  • GCSE maths is usually Pearson Edexcel 1MA1 or AQA 8300, tiered Foundation and Higher.
  • IGCSE maths is usually Cambridge 0580 (Core or Extended) or Pearson Edexcel 4MA1 (Foundation or Higher).
  • Sixth form is A-Level or International A-Level, with Further Maths at some schools.

Where it usually goes wrong Find the specification code before you buy a revision guide. Our IGCSE vs GCSE maths comparison explains what changes between them.

Indian curriculum schools

Most of Dubai's Indian-curriculum schools follow CBSE and work through the NCERT textbooks chapter by chapter; a smaller number follow ICSE and ISC. Board exams fall in Class 10 and Class 12.

  • In Class 10, students sit Mathematics Standard (041) or Mathematics Basic (241). Ask the school how the choice affects Class 11 subject options before it is made.
  • Since 2026, CBSE Class 10 has two board examinations, the second optional and used to improve a score in up to three subjects, maths among them.
  • Class 11 and 12 maths moves quickly into sets and functions, calculus, vectors and three-dimensional geometry.

American curriculum schools

American-curriculum schools in Dubai follow a US standards framework chosen by the school, and a course sequence along the lines of Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2 and Precalculus, then Calculus in the final years.

  • Ask which standards framework the school uses; it is not the same everywhere.
  • Ask whether AP Calculus or AP Statistics is offered, and from which grade.
  • Ask which external benchmark tests the school uses to track maths progress, and how the results are shared with families.

IB schools

IB schools teach maths through the Primary Years Programme and Middle Years Programme, then the Diploma. In the Diploma every student takes one of two courses — Analysis and Approaches or Applications and Interpretation — at Standard or Higher Level, and a written maths exploration counts for 20% of the grade.

  • The AA or AI decision is usually made in Grade 10, and it affects some university applications.
  • HL and SL differ as much as AA and AI do: HL carries 240 recommended teaching hours against 150.

Where it usually goes wrong Our guide to IB Maths AA vs AI covers the choice, with requirements from named universities.

Reading a report

How to read a KHDA inspection report
for maths specifically

A school's overall grade hides a lot. The maths judgements inside the report are more useful, provided you read them for the right stage of school.

Where we fit

One-to-one maths that follows
your Dubai school's curriculum

ClassArc is an online tutoring service, not a Dubai school or centre, so none of the KHDA ratings above apply to us. What we do is teach maths one to one, in 55-minute classes, to whichever curriculum your child's school has chosen — British, IB, CBSE or ICSE.

The same teacher takes every class. Before each one, the teacher checks which unit school has reached, so the lesson backs up the school course rather than competing with it. Teacher and student write on one shared worksheet in our own browser classroom, which means the teacher watches the working as it happens rather than marking it afterwards.

Our teachers are in India, ninety minutes ahead of Dubai all year, and that geography is also why classes start from AED 45 rather than local home-tutor rates. Full details are on the UAE pricing page.

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A school's maths grade tells you about hundreds of children. The first free class tells you about one.

Why we start with a lesson

Next

Start with your child's curriculum

If you already know which system your child's school follows, go straight to it.

Maths tutoring in Dubai

How classes fit the Dubai school week, and which curricula we cover for families in the emirate.

Dubai overview

IGCSE maths in Dubai

Cambridge 0580 and Pearson Edexcel 4MA1, taught to the tier and paper variant your child will sit.

IGCSE

IB maths in Dubai

Analysis and Approaches or Applications and Interpretation, at SL or HL, plus MYP.

IB

CBSE and ICSE maths

NCERT chapter by chapter, Standard or Basic in Class 10, and the Class 11 and 12 jump.

Indian boards

Questions about KHDA and maths

Does KHDA set the maths curriculum in Dubai private schools?
No. KHDA licenses and inspects private schools, but each school teaches the curriculum it is permitted to offer — the English National Curriculum, CBSE, a US framework, the IB and so on. KHDA's inspections judge how well the school teaches its own chosen programme.
Are KHDA ratings up to date in 2026?
Often not. KHDA carried out no inspections in 2025–26, so the rating a school displays may be two or more years old. Quality assurance visits resume in 2026–27, usually with no more than 24 hours' notice, so newer judgements should start appearing during this academic year.
Which curriculum is most common in Dubai private schools?
The British curriculum. KHDA's 2024–25 figures put about 37% of private-school students in UK-curriculum schools, then Indian at 26%, American at 14% and the IB at 7%.
What is the difference between attainment and progress in a KHDA report?
Attainment compares students' results with the expected standard for their curriculum and age. Progress measures how far students have moved from their own starting point. For maths, read both, and read them for your child's phase rather than for the school overall.
Can we talk to you on WhatsApp before booking?
Yes. WhatsApp us on +91 78781 48026 with your child's school, year group and curriculum, and we will suggest the right teacher and a time that suits your Dubai evenings. We reply within a day.
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