As a teacher, I am very pleased, ellie.d, that you have managed to find a school where your children are happy. Unfortnately this seems to be the exception, rather than the rule, for many expat parents in Qatar.
Gumby has raised a very serious issue, namely the question of what parents are supposed to do when their English-speaking child is in a class in which the majority of the children speak Arabic. This is not being racist: this is a real problem for many expat families in Doha.
If your child does not speak fluent Arabic and most of the other children in the class do, then my guess is that he or she is going to be pretty lonely at breaktime. For primary school pupils, even a Maths or Science lesson will involve a great deal of language (reading, writing. talking and listening) and in most "international" schools that language will be English. Professional teachers will, of course, try to do their best for all of their pupils, but it is obvious that they will need to go much more slowly if they are going to cater for the needs of the children whose English is significantly weaker. This means that a native English speaking child is likely to get bored and frustrated.
As a teacher, I am very pleased, ellie.d, that you have managed to find a school where your children are happy. Unfortnately this seems to be the exception, rather than the rule, for many expat parents in Qatar.
Gumby has raised a very serious issue, namely the question of what parents are supposed to do when their English-speaking child is in a class in which the majority of the children speak Arabic. This is not being racist: this is a real problem for many expat families in Doha.
If your child does not speak fluent Arabic and most of the other children in the class do, then my guess is that he or she is going to be pretty lonely at breaktime. For primary school pupils, even a Maths or Science lesson will involve a great deal of language (reading, writing. talking and listening) and in most "international" schools that language will be English. Professional teachers will, of course, try to do their best for all of their pupils, but it is obvious that they will need to go much more slowly if they are going to cater for the needs of the children whose English is significantly weaker. This means that a native English speaking child is likely to get bored and frustrated.