Al Nibras Ideal School for Special Needs
Vision
We envision individuals who are independent, confident, self-accepting, socially integrated, productive, and work to their fullest potential.
"Success is everyone’s right."
Mission
Our learners will be supported to work to the fullest of their abilities and potentials so that they become independent, productive individuals, integrated into their society. Using an integrated and purposeful methodological system that believes inclusion is our approach to life, which is applied in a scientific, well-studied process, through the application of our educational occupational curriculum that was prepared in the Arabic language and by providing a natural, educational, attractive, and safe environment.
An integrated multidisciplinary team provides our services, with high qualifications and rich experiences, characterized by integrity and transparency in work, and respect for individual differences between learners.
“Together we make the difference.”
Al Nibras Ideal School for Special Needs (NISS) specializes in educating learners classified with intellectual disabilities. NISS earned the international accreditation from Cognia with distinction award in 2022. The school enrolls children aged six to twenty-one. Arabic is the primary language of instruction.
NISS employs an Arabic curriculum for special needs learners, which was developed by ICES and is implemented in the GCC countries.
Across its two divisions, foundational and occupational, the curriculum focuses on a mix of intellectual-academic, functional life skills, and occupational skills tailored for each learner documented in their Individual Educational Plan (IEP) to improve communication, self-confidence, socially appropriate behavior, and independence. Hence, our curriculum aims to impact our societal mindset toward learners with intellectual disabilities, being active, productive citizens beyond consumers.
The Foundational division educates learners from ages six to fifteen. The focus is on communication, self-care, social adaptation, motor skills and Physical Education, academic, Islamic education, and the arts. The Occupational division educates learners from ages sixteen to twenty-one. Functional academics are continued in addition to occupational training in areas such as secretarial, retail, arts and crafts, food packaging, technology application, and printing and copy center work. Learners have formal practical training inside the school and in community settings. For example, learners work in the school's organic garden, planting, harvesting, cleaning, and packaging their products. Additionally, the learners go across the entire campus of both schools and the company to sell their products, thus, gaining additional practice in academics, occupational, social, behavioral, and life skills. Community placements have included supermarkets, automotive centers, service centers (secretarial and reception), medical centers, and coffee shops. Learners are also trained for light factory work in the community. Moreover, some learners have completed a ministry-sponsored six-month formal computer training, passing the required examination, and earning a certificate resulting in community employment.
The ICES curriculum was granted equivalency by the Kuwait Ministry of Education based on the educational, occupational curricular approach. Accordingly, graduates can receive one of three diplomas as listed below:
- Nibras 1: Vocational Diploma with equivalence to Primary School
- Nibras 2: Vocational Diploma with equivalence to Middle School
- Nibras 3: Vocational Diploma with equivalence to High School
To date, NISS has graduated one-hundred and twenty-nine learners until the school year 2022-2023. Some of our graduates are competitively employed, with three employed at NISS; one as a school receptionist and two as classroom assistants. Approximately six of our graduates are employed by various government ministries as data entry clerks and receptionists.
The core facilities of NISS include twenty-nine classrooms fitted with modern technology, rooms for art, crafts, printing, music, an organic vegetable garden, and a health clinic. Additionally, the school is equipped with therapeutic rooms for speech and language, occupational, and physical therapy, including hydrotherapy facilities. NISS shares the outdoor playgrounds, the theater, the swimming pool, the library, and the canteen with its sister-school NIS. The school is well lit with wide corridors, adequate doorways, ramps, and elevators, ensuring safety and accessibility.
The learner-teacher ratio for each classroom is 5:1 or lower. Additionally, a multidisciplinary team of twenty therapeutic specialists, including speech and language therapists, occupational and physical therapists, psychologists, nurses, a nutritionist, and social workers, collaborate with faculty to address the needs of learners and families.
Al Nibras International Bilingual School
Vision
We envision our learners as successful individuals, proud of their identity, believing in themselves, enjoying learning, excelling in work and dedicated to achieve.
“Success is everyone’s right”
Mission
Our learners will be empowered to achieve the best of their abilities and reach their intellectual and personal potential. They shall become independent, productive, and integrated in their society through their life-long learning journey. This will be accomplished by implementing a complete, well-studied systematic inclusion system using our holistic approach in an attractive, safe, and nurturing environment.
Our services are provided by a highly competent, experienced, and multidisciplinary staff for whom integrity in work, transparency, and respect of individual differences are core values.
“Together we can make the difference”
Al Nibras International Bilingual School (NIS), established in 2009, is licensed by the Kuwait Ministry of Education, Private Sector, to provide inclusive educational programs for PreK-12 learners. NIS earned the international accreditation from Cognia with distinction award in 2022. NIS is committed to providing a learning environment where learners are challenged to learn and reach their full potential.
NIS adopts the Common Core State Standards, with additional programs like Genius MAP and STEM (Robotics). The core facilities of NIS include forty-two classrooms fitted with modern technology, laboratories for science and computer, a gymnasium, Padel courts, a health clinic, and a multisensory room, in addition to the shared facilities with NISS. Further, the disabled-friendly buildings feature wide corridors, ramps, elevators, and adequate doorways that allow for unrestricted movement.
NIS believes inclusion is a key strategy to develop learning, reach mutual acceptance, and equal opportunities. Recognizing that inclusive education is a challenging and complex process, we continue to find ways of operating the school and classrooms with the principle that all learners deserve the opportunity to participate fully in their society regardless of their different abilities and needs. We believe that inclusive education is critical to ensuring that all children have the right to succeed.
NIS has been empowering learners to achieve to the best of their ability and potential in an inclusive environment. NIS features customized programs for different groups of learners. Our integrated classrooms include general education and learners with learning difficulties, in which we allow a maximum placement of twenty-four learners. Learners with learning difficulties, who need more intensive support, are placed in the smaller classrooms of nine learners. The placement of learners in classrooms is evaluated annually by a multidisciplinary team to determine the most appropriate educational setting to meet learners' needs. The overall learner-faculty ratio is 6:1.
At NIS, we aim to fully understand our learners' abilities, strengths, and needs, so we can modify and differentiate based on our learners' levels. Our diverse staff of general education teachers, special education teachers, clinical specialists, counselors, social worker, and school leaders work collaboratively to provide for learners' needs through the Individualized Educational Plan (IEP). Further, the academic achievements of all learners are monitored, and notices of academic and behavioral concerns are issued to parents at different intervals throughout the year to ensure a plan of action is in place to address identified challenges.
NIS is committed to providing an education that enables its learners to be accepted in national and international universities, colleges, and institutions. Since 2014, NIS has graduated one hundred and ninety-four through ten classes of high school learners until the school year 2022-2023. Graduates have been enrolled in national and international universities or vocational programs studying medicine, engineering, business administration, finance, aviation, dentistry, law, human resources, and other areas of study.