The study reported in this chapter was carried out with students in four all-girl middle schools in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. The study took place during a large-scale education reform effort driven by the need to build a knowledge-based economy within the emirate. As part of the reform effort, inquiry-based learning (IBL) was mandated across all middle school mathematics classes to increase student engagement and their enjoyment of the subject. Given that attitudes towards mathematics are important determinants of whether students persevere and pursue further study and potential careers, the mandate held great promise. Despite the introduction of IBL across schools, after approximately five years teachers were implementing the approach with differing degrees of success, with some teachers struggling to implement the approach at all. This provided us, as researchers, with an opportunity to compare students’ learning environment perceptions and attitudes towards mathematics in classes where IBL was being implemented effectively with those that remained largely traditional in terms of teaching. The study involved a mixed-method approach in which both quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analysed. Quantitative data were collected from 291 students using two surveys, one to assess perceptions of the learning environment and another to assess students’ attitudes towards mathematics. Qualitative data, gathered from 27 students, were gathered to provide impressionistic tales aimed at contextualising the setting as well as giving causal explanations for the quantitative findings. Our results suggested that in classes with teachers exemplary in their use of IBL, students had statistically significant (p < .01), positive perceptions of their learning environment and attitudes towards mathematics. Qualitative information suggested that, in these classes, students were more engaged in their learning and had more agency. The nature of the IBL meant that students were able to use more real-life applications and, therefore, valued the tasks more. Further, IBL classes provided students with greater opportunity to carry out investigations. These findings are of significance to education providers as well as curriculum developers. Further, given the underrepresentation of girls in post-compulsory STEM education and related careers, compared to boys, our findings offer hope for education systems wishing to overcome this disparity. This chapter offers recommendations for stakeholders based on the benefits of these pedagogical approaches in UAE schools.