--- title: "KHDA Framework for Dubai Maths | Times Tables Software | XTables Champions" description: "Dubai's KHDA is mandating full inclusion for SEND students in 2026/27. Here's what it means for primary maths teachers and how to meet the new standards." lang: en json-ld: | [ { "name": "XTables Champions", "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "WebSite", "url": "https://xtableschampions.com" }, { "name": "XTables Champions", "logo": "https://qtrypzzcjebvfcihiynt.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/base44-prod/public/68cac2c61c34894625d63273/cae3abbca_logo.png", "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Organization", "url": "https://xtableschampions.com" }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://math-magicians-academy-25d63273.base44.app/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "khda inclusive education framework primary maths dubai", "item": "https://math-magicians-academy-25d63273.base44.app/khda-inclusive-education-framework-primary-maths-dubai" } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the KHDA Inclusive Education Framework?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The KHDA (Knowledge and Human Development Authority) Inclusive Education Framework is a policy mandate being fully implemented in Dubai schools from the 2026/2027 academic year. It requires schools to provide tiered support for SEND students (referred to as Students of Determination in the UAE) within mainstream classrooms, with a strong emphasis on reducing stigma and ensuring genuine inclusion rather than separate provision." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How does the KHDA framework affect primary maths teaching?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "For primary maths, the framework means teachers need to provide differentiated support in ways that don't visibly separate SEND students from their peers. Timed drills or visibly different worksheets that highlight a child's difficulties run counter to the framework's ethos. Schools are expected to use approaches and tools where support is built into the activity itself." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What are tiered support packages in the KHDA context?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Tiered support refers to a structured model of provision. Tier 1 is universal, high-quality teaching that works for every child without additional intervention. Tier 2 is targeted group support, and Tier 3 is specialist, individualised intervention. The KHDA framework pushes schools to strengthen Tier 1 so that more students are well-supported in the mainstream classroom before additional tiers are needed." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What does 'Students of Determination' mean in UAE schools?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "'Students of Determination' is the term used in the UAE for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The language reflects the UAE's policy philosophy that these students should be recognised for their determination and resilience, not defined by deficit. Under the KHDA framework, these students have a right to full inclusion in mainstream school life." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How can multiplayer maths games support SEND inclusion in Dubai classrooms?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Multiplayer maths games can support inclusion because the activity itself is shared. When all students are playing the same game together, a child with SEND is fully part of the group experience. If the game also adapts difficulty automatically for each player, the child receives appropriate support without anything being visibly different about their participation." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is Smart Level Matching and how does it relate to KHDA standards?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Smart Level Matching is a feature in XTables Champions that automatically adjusts the difficulty of maths questions for each child during a multiplayer game, so every player is working at their own level simultaneously. This directly supports KHDA Tier 1 inclusion standards by allowing Students of Determination to participate in whole-class activities without feeling singled out or given different work." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How can a SENCO in a Dubai school use XTables Champions?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "SENCOs can use the XTables Champions dashboard to track individual student progress, identify gaps in maths fluency, and plan targeted interventions, all without that monitoring being visible to the child during the activity. This gives SENCOs the data they need to fulfil their support responsibilities under the KHDA framework while keeping the student's classroom experience fully inclusive." } } ] } ] --- [ XTables Champions Part of the ESSTA Kids family ](/Welcome) [About Us](/About)[Rewards ](/OurRewards) Tips & Tricks [Games](/Games)Login [ XTables Champions Part of the ESSTA Kids family ](/Welcome) [Learn](/levels-and-progression) [Games](/GamesOverview) [All Games](/GamesOverview)[Connect Four](/connect-four)[Guess Who?](/guess-who)[Times Tables Bingo](/times-tables-bingo)[Snap!](/snap)[Play with Friends](/games/play-with-friends)[Play against Champion](/games/play-against-champion) [Every Learner](/times-tables-for-every-learner) [Adaptive Learning](/adaptive-times-tables-learning) [Schools](/ForSchools) [Lunchtime Clubs](/LunchtimeClubs)[SENCO Support](/SchoolSencoInfo)[Homework Setting](/SchoolHomeworkSetting)[Whole-Class Games](/SchoolWholeClassGames)[Level Matching](/SchoolLevelMatching) [Wellbeing](/wellbeing-and-safeguarding) [Pricing](/pricing) Log In / Sign Up [Back to all articles](/Blog) # KHDA Framework for Dubai Maths | Times Tables Software 22 June 2026 If you're a primary school leader or maths teacher in Dubai, the short answer is this: from the 2026/2027 academic year, the KHDA's Inclusive Education Framework is no longer optional guidance. It is a mandate, and your maths provision is one of the places where it will be most visible. I've been researching this closely since the KHDA policy updates started coming through earlier this year, and I want to give you a clear, practical read on what's changing, what it means for your classroom, and what genuinely useful support looks like for Students of Determination in primary maths. ## What the KHDA Framework Is Actually Requiring The Inclusive Education Framework asks Dubai schools to implement tiered support packages for SEND students within mainstream classrooms. This isn't about withdrawing children to separate rooms or creating parallel programmes. The whole philosophical weight of the framework sits on the word \*within\*. Students of Determination should be learning alongside their peers, supported in ways that don't single them out or make them feel different. For maths, this has direct implications. A Year 5 classroom doing times-tables practice, for example, can no longer simply mean one worksheet for most children and a different, visibly easier one handed to a specific pupil. The framework pushes schools to find approaches where differentiation is built into the activity itself, invisible to the student. The KHDA is also putting real emphasis on reducing stigma. That phrase keeps appearing in everything I'm reading on this. The goal is that a child with dyscalculia, ADHD, or processing difficulties sits in the same lesson, does the same activity, feels the same sense of belonging, and is still being supported at the right level. That's the standard being set. ## Why Maths Is Particularly Hard to Get Right Here I'll be honest: maths is one of the toughest subjects to make genuinely inclusive, especially around fluency and times-tables. There's a reason so many children with SEND develop maths anxiety specifically. Timed drills, public recitation, visible scores on the board. These are the things that research, and frankly, common sense, tells us create pressure and shame for children who are already finding it harder. **The real challenge isn't identifying that a child needs support. It's providing that support without making the child feel labelled.** From the schools we've been speaking to, this tension is exactly what SENCOs and classroom teachers flag most. They know who needs help. They're frustrated by resources that don't let them help discreetly. And now, with the KHDA framework coming into full force, that frustration has a policy deadline behind it. ## What Tier 1 Inclusion Actually Looks Like in Practice Tiered support in the KHDA framework starts at Tier 1: universal, high-quality teaching that works for every child in the room without requiring a separate programme. For maths fluency, this means the core activity itself has to flex. When I looked into what this means practically for a Year 4-6 classroom, a few things stand out. Teachers need tools where: 1. Difficulty adjusts automatically to each child's level, so no one is doing conspicuously easier work. 2. All students are participating in the same activity together, not in separate tracks. 3. Teachers and SENCOs can monitor progress for individual students without that monitoring being visible to the class. Multiplayer formats are particularly interesting here because the social dimension is built in. If every child in the room is playing the same maths game, the activity \*is\* the inclusion. No one is pulled aside. No one gets a different sheet. The child with SEND is fully in the game. ## How XTables Champions Was Built With This in Mind I work for XTables Champions, so I want to be straightforward about why I'm mentioning it here. We built our platform specifically for children with maths anxiety, SEND and neurodivergent needs, and the KHDA framework describes almost exactly the problem we set out to solve. Our Smart Level Matching means every child in a multiplayer game is playing at their own level simultaneously. A child who finds times-tables genuinely difficult is in the same game as their peers, competing and collaborating, while the questions adapt quietly behind the scenes. No one in the room can see that the levels differ. The child feels part of the group, not accommodated away from it. Our SENCO dashboard gives the adults the visibility they need without that visibility affecting the child's experience. Teachers and SENCOs can track progress, spot gaps, and plan interventions, all without the child ever feeling observed or singled out. We use games that children already know and love as the vehicle for that practice, because engagement is not a nice-to-have for children with maths anxiety. It's the precondition for any learning to happen at all. As our founder Gal Darrash puts it, "We built this for the child who dreads maths, not the one who loves it. If it works for that child, it works for everyone." That's genuinely what the KHDA framework is asking for: provision that starts from the most vulnerable child in the room and works outward. ## What School Leaders in Dubai Should Be Doing Now The 2026/2027 academic year is close. If you're in a senior leadership role at a Dubai primary school, or you're a SENCO trying to build your provision now, here's what I'd suggest thinking about. Audit your current maths fluency resources against the tiered support model. Ask honestly: does this activity work for a child with dyscalculia in a mainstream class, without adaptation that singles them out? If the answer is no, that's a gap the framework will flag. Look specifically at whole-class practice tools, not just individual intervention programmes. The framework's emphasis is on inclusion \*within\* the mainstream lesson, which means the tools you use for the whole class matter as much as your specialist support. And think about peer engagement. One of the things I keep seeing in the conversation around neurodivergent learners is that social connection is protective. Multiplayer and collaborative formats aren't just more fun. They actively reduce the isolation that makes maths anxiety worse. ## Talk to Us About Supporting Your Students of Determination If you're a school leader, SENCO, or maths lead at a Dubai or Abu Dhabi primary school preparing for the KHDA Inclusive Education Framework, I'd genuinely love to hear from your team about what you're working through. XTables Champions was designed for exactly this kind of provision, and we're at an early stage where conversations with schools are how we learn and how we help. Visit [xtableschampions.com](https://www.xtableschampions.com) or get in touch directly to talk about how our platform supports Students of Determination in mainstream maths lessons, and how it maps to what the KHDA is now requiring. We're happy to walk you through it, no pressure, just a real conversation. ## Frequently Asked Questions What is the KHDA Inclusive Education Framework? How does the KHDA framework affect primary maths teaching? What are tiered support packages in the KHDA context? What does 'Students of Determination' mean in UAE schools? How can multiplayer maths games support SEND inclusion in Dubai classrooms? What is Smart Level Matching and how does it relate to KHDA standards? How can a SENCO in a Dubai school use XTables Champions? ## Ready to help your child? Join thousands of families using XTables Champions to make multiplication click. Get Started Free XTables Champions Game-based times tables for children aged 6 to 11. No timers, no tears. For parents, schools and tutors. Part of ESSTA Kids. #### Platform - [Schools](/ForSchools) - [Levels & Progression](/levels-and-progression) - [Our Programme](/Programme) - [Rewards](/OurRewards) - [Pricing](/pricing) - [About Us](/About) - [Learning Philosophy](/LearningPhilosophy) - [Contact](/Contact) #### Community - [Insights](/Insights) - [For Parents Blog](/Blog) - [Tips & Tricks](/TipsTricks) - [Success Stories](/SuccessStories) - [Events & Competitions](/Events) - [Live Results](/Results) - [Lunchtime Clubs](/LunchtimeClubs) #### ESSTA Kids Expert learning programmes for children who need extra support. [Visit esstakids.com →](https://esstakids.com) © 2026 XTables Champions, An ESSTA Kids Programme. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy](/PrivacyPolicy)• [Terms & Conditions](/TermsConditions)• [Sitemap](/sitemap.xml) XTables Champions Game-based times tables for children aged 6 to 11. No timers, no tears. For parents, schools and tutors. Part of ESSTA Kids. #### Platform - [Schools](/ForSchools) - [Levels & Progression](/levels-and-progression) - [Our Programme](/Programme) - [Rewards](/OurRewards) - [Pricing](/pricing) - [About Us](/About) - [Learning Philosophy](/LearningPhilosophy) - [Contact](/Contact) #### Community - [Insights](/Insights) - [For Parents Blog](/Blog) - [Tips & Tricks](/TipsTricks) - [Success Stories](/SuccessStories) - [Events & Competitions](/Events) - [Live Results](/Results) - [Lunchtime Clubs](/LunchtimeClubs) #### ESSTA Kids Expert learning programmes for children who need extra support. [Visit esstakids.com →](https://esstakids.com) © 2026 XTables Champions, An ESSTA Kids Programme. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy](/PrivacyPolicy)• [Terms & Conditions](/TermsConditions)• [Sitemap](/sitemap.xml)