Outstanding achievement

RIFFA Views International School (RVIS) has been deemed ‘outstanding’ by schools inspectors, coming under the educational quality spotlight shared by only two other schools in the kingdom.

The impressive rating by the School Review Unit of the National Authority for Qualifications and Quality Assurance of Education and Training (NAQQAET) sees RVIS join the elite ranks of St Christopher’s School and the British School of Bahrain.

The independent body is established to raise standards in education and training and is responsible for evaluation and reporting on the quality of provision in all private schools and kindergartens. During the review, class lessons and other school activities were observed. Aspects such as the quality and effectiveness of teaching and learning, students’ personal achievement and development and quality of curriculum implementation were parts of the evaluation process.

Dr Kurt Nordness, director of RVIS, said: “While we’ve known our school to be one of quality, to have it recognised by the NAQQAET review team as outstanding in every way is indeed worthy of celebration for the whole school community. RVIS’s board members wished to personally congratulate and thank the whole school community by attending a school wide assembly, where the students organised a short presentation of their outstanding school, followed by a celebratory cake cutting ceremony.

“It is a great honour to have received the rating, it affirms that the curriculum and programming we have adopted and solid teaching staff members we have hired are on the right track in establishing a high quality school.”

The school’s accomplishment is even more impressive considering it is a relatively new educational establishment, compared to the BSB and St Chris.

In August 2008, RVIS opened its doors to 89 students, enrolled for Grades 1-5. Alongside a team of 23 teachers, two administrators, and 10 support staff. During its first year of operation the enrollment numbers grew to 181 students by the start of the following school year.

Since then the school has reached more milestones, with the addition of a Middle School in 2009 and a High School in 2012, with the introduction of Grade 9. This academic school year marks a significant one for RVIS, as grade 11 students enter the International Baccalaureate Diploma programme, as  reported in GulfWeekly.

Dr Nordness said: “We are honoured to be accepted into the IB organisation and our intent is to make this programme the best it can be. We also look forward to our first graduating class next school year. When we were first founded, we did not have a high school programme, so having our first graduates will be a cause for celebration.”

The assessment committee concluded their report with the recommendation to RVIS ‘to spread the outstanding practice amongst other schools’.

 “We have begun partnering with another school to share ideas for teacher professional development opportunities. We will continue to seek similar opportunities with other schools who express an interest in such partnerships,” explained Dr Nordness.“We are delighted with the rating. The evaluation outcome is a reflection of the high quality of instruction at RVIS and demonstrates our commitment to continued school improvement.”

Atif Abdulmalik, chair of the Board of Trustees, says the accomplishment is a very significant one for RVIS, as the school enters its seventh year of operation.

“Our winning formula has been hiring the best teachers from around the world and our continuing commitment to small class sizes,” he said.

“This allows for a special bond between our faculty and students and ensures each student receives the individual attention they need. In this way, RVIS provides a personalised educational experience for each child. As the school continues to grow, we are looking forward to our first graduating class in 2016.”

As an international school, there is a diversity of nationalities with more than 40 different countries represented at the school. RVIS is the only International Schools Services (ISS) managed school in Bahrain, an organisation which boasts more than 58 years of experience in developing and managing schools around the word.