Analytical View of Bahrain’s Government Schools’ Performance: A Quality Perspective

Since 2005, education in the Kingdom of Bahrain has undergone major reforms as part of the National Education Reform Project to achieve the goals of Bahrain’s Economic Vision 2030. The Education & Training Quality Authority (BQA) was created by a Royal Decree as an independent entity established that is responsible for ensuring quality in education and training in the Bahrain. The Directorate of Government Schools Review (DGS) is under the umbrella of BQA and responsible for conducting quality reviews for all Bahraini government schools. Upon successfully completing two cycles of school reviews (review cycle average is 4 years), this article compares the findings of two DGS review cycles. In December 2014, the DGS completed its second review of 206 schools. Generally, the results showed an increase in the polarity of the ratings. Analysis of the results showed the following: In terms of schools’ environments, it is generally safe with equal infrastructure and learning resources among most schools; the performance gap between male and female students is widening; the field of technical and commercial education still faces challenges; parental involvement is limited, despite opportunities for participation; and available technology is used inconsistently. In addition, some schools that are judged inadequate face increased challenges to improvement.