Winners of the Education Excellence Awards were revealed at the inaugural event on Thursday 5th October, celebrating the best teachers, teaching assistants, support teams and head teachers in Dubai.
The awards ceremony, held on World Teachers’ Day, brought together the great and good from the education sector with 200 educators gathering at the Grosvenor House Dubai for a welcome reception, 3 course gala dinner, followed by the awards ceremony.
Winners were decided upon by an experienced panel of judges that consisted of Nalini Cook, Head of Global Research of ISC Research, Debra Forsyth, CEO of British Schools in the Middle East, Fiona McKenzie, Head of Education, Carfax Education and Liesa Grace Wilson, Editorial Director of Teach Middle East & schoolfinder.ae.
Dubai schools that are registered with KHDA were invited to submit nominations for their staff, with the awards recognising individual success, rather than the establishments themselves. More than 100 nominations were received, from 34 schools across the 17 categories that were awarded on the night.
Here are the winners of the Education Excellence Awards 2023:
SEN Programme/Department of the Year
GEMS Wellington International School
STEAM Programme/Department of the Year
Ambassador International Academy
Drama/Arts Programme of the Year
GEMS Dubai American Academy
Sports/Athletics Department of the Year
Dubai British School Jumeirah Park
Arabic Teacher of the Year
Shams Al Ghali, Uptown International School
Science Teacher of the Year
Princy Soosepper, GEMS Legacy School
English Teacher of the Year
Clodagh McDonald, Ambassador International Academy
Maths Teacher of the Year
Zerina Dervishi, Dubai Schools Mirdif
Teaching Assistant of the Year
Justine Santoalla, American Academy for Girls
Innovative Teacher of the Year
Bhawna Sajnani, GEMS Legacy School
Unsung Hero of the Year
Thyra Rego, The Aquila School
Principal/Headteacher of the Year
Matthew Burfield, GEMS Founders School
Outstanding Contribution to the Community Award
The Millennium School
Kindergarten/Foundation Stage Team of the Year
Dubai British School Jumeirah Park
Primary Team of the Year
GEMS Founders School
Secondary Team of the Year
The Aquila School
School Team of the Year
Deira International School