English School of Kalba, Sharjah

Founded in 2002, the English Private School of Kalba (ESK) offers British education to students from Foundation Stage until Year 12. This private school in Sharjah offers a balanced academic program while focusing on the emotional development of each student.

The UAE’s Ministry of Education licenses the school. MOE guidelines are followed for Arabic (language), Arabic Social Studies and Islamic Studies (for Muslim children) and Moral Education.

The community of Kalba lies on the Gulf of Oman coast; you can spot it to the south of the emirate of Fujairah on the map. To date, ESK Sharjah hasn’t been inspected by any educational agency.

Residential communities in proximity to the English School of Kalba include:

• Al Hayl
• Al Qurayyah
• Al Bithnah
• Sakamkam

The nearest residential area is Al Hayl. The community is known for its historical sites, including the Al Hayl Castle. One can expect luxurious residential buildings, villas and several urban amenities to be developed in the area soon.

The English School of Kalba campus has excellent facilities. The hallways are decorated with children’s artwork to welcome parents and visitors. Similarly, classrooms are equipped with digital devices and have seating arrangements to promote interactions during classes.

Furthermore, one can find an IT suite, science labs, a computer lab, an art room, a prayer room, an outdoor playground, a meeting room, a canteen and a health centre. Besides these, the school offers transportation facilities for a safe commute.

As the name suggests, the English School of Kalba’s location falls in the region of Kalba. ESK Private School campus is situated in a well-established community where you can find residential apartments, lifestyle amenities and other schools like the American School of Kalba.

Even though the performance of ESK School Kalba hasn’t been outstanding, the senior management has clear goals to change the situation. Similarly, the newly established governing council strives to inculcate their experience, skills and knowledge in the classroom learning through new strategies.

English School of Kalba in Sharjah has divided the British curriculum into 3 sections.

Foundation Stage

English Kalba School Foundation Stage includes FS1 and FS2 for students aged 3 to 4 years. The curriculum design pays special attention to hands-on learning and caring and nurturing for children during lessons. The seven key learning areas are:

• Communication and language development
• Physical development
• Personal, social, and emotional development
• Literacy development
• Mathematics
• Understanding the world
• Expressive arts and design

Primary Level

Students are taught the best national numeracy and national literacy strategies at the primary level as per the British curriculum. Subjects offered at this stage include English, Language and Literature, Mathematics, Science, Design and Technology, Computing, History, Geography, Physical Education (PE) and Arabic.

Also, Year 6 students must appear for the Standard Attainment Tests (SATs). The challenging curriculum during the primary level allows students to develop skills, knowledge and understanding for secondary level education.

Secondary Level

The secondary level includes Key Stages 3 and 4. The school follows the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE). Students appear for the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) examination in Year 11. All students are offered Arabic and Arabic Social Studies. Islamic Education is only available to Muslim students.

Subjects to be attempted in GCSE and IGCSE are divided into compulsory and optional courses.

Sixth Form

The Sixth Form is Key Stage 5; it includes Years 12 and 13. Graduating students can apply for admission to both local and international universities. The Sixth Form ends with A (Advanced) Level examinations.

The school’s approach is to develop students’ knowledge, understanding and skills in the following:

• Subject content – application to new as well as unfamiliar situations
• Intellectual enquiry
• Flexibility and responsiveness to change
• Working and communicating in English
• Influencing outcomes
• Cultural awareness

Following the pattern of other British schools in the region, the English School of Kalba’s academic calendar starts in August and ends in late June/ early July.

• The first term starts in the last week of August and ends in the second week of December, followed by a three-week winter break.
• The second term starts in the first week of January and ends in the last week of March, followed by a two-week spring break.
• The third term starts in the second week of April and ends in the first week of July, followed by a two-month summer break.

English School of Kalba timings for:

• KG 1 to Year 6 are 07:30 am to 01:20 pm
• Year 7 to Year 12 are 07:30 am to 02:10 pm
• Teaching team works from 07:30 am to 02:45 pm

The website doesn’t have much details about the admission process of the English School of Kalba. Hence, it is unclear whether the school conducts entrance exams or not.

Nonetheless, you have to register your child online and submit the following mandatory documents to the English Private School of Kalba:

• Birth Certificate of the applicant
• Family Register Book (Emirati students only).
• Valid Passport of both the student and parents.
• Valid residency (Non- Emirati students) / (Student & parent).
• Valid Emirates ID of both the student and parent.
• Vaccination Card of the applicant
• Six passport size photos of the applicant
• Diplomatic card (Diplomatic parents).
• Behaviour certificate of the applicant
• Transfer Certificate (Should be stamped and attested by the school and the ministry).
• Last report card (Should be stamped and attested by the school and the ministry):
  • KG2 to Grade 10: last year’s report card
  • Grades 11 and 12: last two years’ report cards

Kindly provide the school with two clear copies of all the documents mentioned above.

Parents must be familiar with the age placement guidelines followed at the school when seeking admission.

This is based on the age of the students on 31st August (for schools beginning in September).

* This is to cater to students transferring from systems that admit students of a younger age)

English School of Kalba tuition fee is approved by the Ministry of Education. Here’s the breakdown to give you a better idea:

Addition charges include:

• Uniform charges (2 normal and 1 PE set): AED 350
• Transportation charges: AED 2,300 to AED 2,700

The canteen facility at English Private School Kalba strives to cultivate healthy eating habits in students. Healthy snacks and refreshments are offered at the school cafeteria. Parents can send lunch from home as well.

English School of Kalba Sharjah has a fleet of air-conditioned buses for students. These buses service Sharjah and some parts of Fujairah. However, parents and students must acknowledge the transport policies defined by the school.

• Each bus should have first aid kits proportionate to the number of seats.
• There should be a manual fire extinguisher on every school bus.
• Qualified or trained personnel should be appointed as school bus supervisors.
• A female school bus conductor should be present in all vehicles.
• Drivers and other school bus staff should always wear clean garments while engaging in school transportation activities.
• Every school bus should be kept clean and tidy.
• Each bus has an attendant who supervises the journey, ensures students’ safety, and communicates with parents.
• For questions regarding transportation, please get in touch with the school administration.

Annual transportation charges per child are:

• Fujairah area: AED 2,700
• Kalba area: AED 2,300

As for sports facilities at the English School of Kalba, a large green field is available outdoors where students can engage in various sporting activities such as cricket and football.

For the well-rounded development of students, extracurricular and co-curricular activities are arranged by the Kalba English School. Images posted on the official website show that students can participate in sports, music shows, drama, arts, writing and elocution competition held on the campus.

Field trips at ESK School provide a much-needed break to students and at the same time, allow teachers to continue the learning process outside the classrooms. ESK has arranged field trips to museums, factories, amusement parks, beaches and other tourist destinations.

ESK School Sharjah has a medical facility on the campus. The clinic is headed by a part-time MOH licensed physician and three full-time MOH registered nurses. The school clinic is well-equipped; the primary responsibilities of the clinic include:

• Providing first aid or emergency care to sick, injured students.
• Assessing students to detect early signs of health problems.
• Contacting parents to provide the necessary information.
• Evaluating the growth and development of students.
• Implementing a health education program for students, parents and staff.
• Organising a vaccination program for students in the school.
• Maintaining and submitting required records and reports as per MOH guidelines.

English School of Kalba in Sharjah encourages parents to use the platform and put their feedback, opinions, and recommendations on the table.

One of the most important modes of communication designed by ESK is the Parents Council which is responsible for the following.

• Establishing closer connections between students’ mothers and the school’s educational staff to help students become contributing members of the community.
• Identifying students’ needs and problems and coming up with solutions.
• Taking care of students with special needs and proposing programs that develop their capabilities in a way that contributes to raising their educational and social levels.
• Studying the requirements of the school community, helping solve problems that affect performance and preparing appropriate plans for its improvement.
• Confirming the role of the school in society.
• Educating students about caring for the school building and preserving its contents.
• Educating students about participating in school different competitions and activities.

Other than this, the English School of Kalba parent portal allows parents to access the academic calendar, school event schedule, students’ progress reports and attendance, account history and more.

Last, the English School of Kalba’s contact details are stated below for your convenience.

• Telephone Number: +971-9-277-8199
• Emails
  • General Enquiries: info@eskalba.com
• ESK Website
• ESK Facebook

Note that the cover image belongs to the English School of Kalba