Overview – QAST

QAST Learner Profile

QAST empowers students to become innovators who master the knowledge and skills
required to create solutions for challenges that face Qatar and the world.

Continuous Learning
- I seek information on my own by reading, inquiring, and discussing.
- I engage in activities outside of school to stay healthy and happy.
- I follow my passions in subjects beyond what the teacher assigns me.
- My learning is never complete.
Creative and Critical Thinking
- I analyze concepts and ideas to better understand the world
- I apply my knowledge and skills to solve problems
- I create and design innovative solutions
- I reflect on my ideas critically
- I advocate for my own path of solving challenges with the knowledge I have gained
Global Citizenship
- I am a socially and environmentally responsible global citizen
- I can demonstrate and apply the knowledge and skills of intercultural awareness.
- I can speak, read and write in multiple languages.
Personal Qualities
- I practice resilience by meeting challenges with a growth mindset.
- I reflect on my success and failures as opportunities to adjust and refine my pursuit of education.
- I respect the learning environment by showing empathy within my community.
Teamwork
- I support all team responsibilities
- I actively listen to others
- I cultivate and maintain positive relationships
- I follow through on agreed-upon commitments
- I embrace differences in the team I am working with.

How We Learn at QAST

Knowledge and skills are necessary for meaningful learning. At QAST, we have very high knowledge acquisition expectations. Our students arrive with advanced abilities in mathematics and English speaking, reading, and writing. We then provide a fast-paced and rigorous curriculum in mathematics, physics, engineering, English Language Arts (ELA), social studies, Arabic history and Arabic. For those not learning Arabic, we offer French.

Skills are also taught. Whether it is how to use a dremel tool for smoothing plastic, designing a product using Solidworks, or using our 3D printers and laser cutters efficiently, all of these skills build to create a student who can use any medium and any tool to solve challenging problems.

Skills are also cognitive and we teach our students to think critically, analyze data, and communicate effectively.

We also teach our student how to collaborate effectively to reach a goal, research topics, or to approach learning with maturity and enthusiasm.

Combined, the knowledge and skills help our students learn effectively and achieve their academic goals as well as their ability to solve real world problems.

All of our knowledge and skills are taught using the process of mastery. This means that students do not receive letter grades and rather move along a continuum of improving ability. Yes, our students are required to actually learn the content and the skills. To do this well, our teachers view assessments as opportunities to grow and improve. Students can try again and again until they master the content or skill to an acceptable level.

Learning is a process and applying your knowledge and skills to real problems creates passionate and engaged students. A QAST graduate will have the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed at the best universities, transform ideas into real things, and over time, change the world!

What We Do

Curriculum

At QAST, we have developed a curriculum that nurtures our students’ passion for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) whilst opening the doors to the world’s top universities. The curriculum has been designed to meet our vision and help students master the knowledge and skills they need to create solutions to the challenges of Qatar and the world.

Alongside broad academic studies, our students are given projects based on Qatar’s Grand Challenges. These projects enable students to learn through real-world problems and begin to have an impact from day one. Our curriculum helps to inspire and support students, giving them a platform to demonstrate their abilities and grow.
Our Grade 8 and 10 curricula offer a solid foundation of key subject areas, including:

Arabic
Biology
Chemistry
Computer programming
Engineering
English
French
Islamic studies
Mathematics
Physics
Qatar history
Social studies

All courses meet or exceed the requirements for schools in Qatar, the US, and UK to ensure our students are able to study anywhere in the world.

Through our unique engineering lessons, students learn not only theoretical engineering practices, but also practical manufacturing skills by hand and using the latest 3D printers, laser cutters, and manufacturing approaches. This builds on their academic knowledge and skills to create innovative students with the knowledge and skills needed to approach problems in a systematic and practical way.

We enhance our curriculum through participation in international trips, competitions, and clubs.

Our Grade 11 and 12 students will sit internationally-recognized and accredited examinations/assessments through the US College Board (Advanced Placement, AP) or other assessments such as but not limited to UK A level exams, SAT, ACT, etc. Each course curriculum is tailored to the individual students university preferences and the program is designed to ensure they are able to access further study wherever they wish to go. All students in Grades 11 and 12 will take part in internships and research, working with universities and industry on projects related to their studies enhancing their understanding and giving them stand-out experience. Students can select to follow their own interests with routes specifically designed to support interests in engineering, bio-medicine and computing.

Field Trips

At QAST, our field trips enhance our curriculum and help to inspire our students, driving questions that they want to be able to answer. They form a vital area of our curriculum and enable students to really understand Qatar’s Grand Challenges through discussions with experts, researchers, and those in industry working on solutions.

In 2018, we were honored to be the first school to visit Qatar’s largest combined cycle power and desalination plant, Umm Al Houl. During the visit, students quizzed experts on the operation of the plant, challenges to supplying sufficient clean water for Qatar’s growing population, and plans for the future. We were also able to visit the control room and see how the facility is monitored and controlled 24 hours a day. The visit launched a six-week project where students were challenged to answer the question, ‘How can we ensure there is enough clean water to sustain society?

Field trips can also bring subjects to life. In our physics class, we went to a go-kart track to feel the forces that act on drivers, measuring them with phone apps. Back in the physics lab, we were then able to use the data to create graphs and mathematical comparisons. This let us compare data with our experiences and get a better real-world understanding of forces.

Other field trips include to museums, local businesses and industry. Wherever possible we include field trips to support a better understanding of real-world applications for the skills and knowledge students develop at school.

International Trips

Each year, students at QAST have the opportunity to enhance their education through an international trip. These trips are designed to ensure students gain new knowledge and skills and gain a better understanding of different countries and cultures.

In April 2019, our students traveled to the Netherlands to take part in Haarlem’s Model United Nations (MUN). Students represented a country and take part in a committee to solve current, pressing international issues, including those of environmental concern that align with Qatar’s Grand Challenges.

The trip will also gave us opportunities to analyze how the country is creating a sustainable food supply by visiting universities and industrial research facilities. These visits helped our students develop proposals that answer the question – “How can we grow fruit in Qatar?”. A challenge set to them by local farmers and producers.

In future years we will develop opportunities to give support to local communities and work with students from similar schools.

QAST Clubs

Working with students we have selected three clubs to run in our inaugural year. As our student body grows we will extend the range and types of clubs we offer to help students explore areas of interest and try new activities.

Mathematics

Mathematics is a favorite subject of our students. Our mathematics club is an opportunity to go beyond the work we do in the classroom and look at how mathematics can be used in different ways. We are taking part in a Mathematics Olympiad for the first time this year and learning techniques to solve unusual mathematical problems. If you love problems and you love trying new things, this club is for you!

Model United Nations (MUN)

The Model United Nations is an “academic simulation” of the problem solving processes involved in the actual United Nations organization. Through participation we will develop our knowledge of the world, leadership, and communication skills. The MUN gives us a unique opportunity to view the world’s challenges through other countries’ eyes and builds empathy and understanding. In April 2019, we took part in a MUN conference in the Netherlands as part of our international trips.

Robotics

At QAST, we have Lego Mindstorm and Ozo robotics kits. These let us try building and programming robots for a variety of applications. In our robotics club, we are learning how to design and code robots to complete tasks and compete in competitions. Our first competition will be Sumobot in early 2019. At the competition, our robots will attempt to push the opposing robot out of a ring. Students are already hard at work designing and programming our first robots – stay tuned to see how we do!

We are currently developing an extended range of clubs for the academic year 2019-2020.

QAST Learner Profile

Continuous Learning

Continuous Learning

Creative and Critical Thinking

Creative and Critical Thinking

Global Citizenship

Global Citizenship

Personal Qualities

Personal Qualities

Teamwork

Teamwork

How We Learn at QAST

What We Do

Discover how far you can go with QAST.