A school that provides an international education for an international community is known as an International School. These schools are generally found in and around major cities as they focus on catering the education needs of children of the expat families in particular and the children of the host country in general. There are international schools aligned to different countries like the United Kingdom or the United States of America, France or Germany.
However, in the year 2009, the International Association of School Librarianship (IASL) set a few criteria as to the definition of an International School:
•A student’s education should be transferable across different international schools.
•A mobile population is there (more than that in state schools).
•A multinational and multilingual student body exists in the school.
•An international curriculum is followed by the students.
•The school/s is or are internationally accredited by the likes of the Council of British International Schools (COBIS) or the Council of International Schools (CIS).
•The schools/s is or are not selective.
•The main or the bilingual language is English.
But these criteria are not hard lined and there exist international schools that have deviated from this definition. For example, there are international schools that are selective in nature.
What Curriculum Does an International School Follow?
One mammoth distinction between international schools and national or state schools is that an internationally recognised and prescribed curriculum is followed by the former. These curriculums may include the English National Curriculum, the International Baccalaureate (IB). International GCSEs (IGCSEs) and the International Primary Curriculum (IPC). The existence of a uniform internationally recognized curriculum makes it possible and in fact easy for students to switch schools.
Benefits of Choosing an International School
The benefits of getting your child admitted in an international school are many. For a start, they give children an international multicultural education. This makes children have a first hand taste of diversity as they get to meet people who are from culturally diverse backgrounds. And all of them are united by that fact that English is their official language in the school. So the first “unity in diversity” lesson is learnt by the students while they are in an international school.
Since international schools have a mobile population with people leaving and new people coming in all the time, this makes the pupils of an international school incredibly adaptable. They open up and make friends quickly which in turn leads to an overall personality development, while it keeps the mental health of the kids at a very healthy level by making it easy for them to open up about things that they want to discuss.
Besides all this, extra-curricular activities tend to be a little better than other schools as pupils get a chance to show their talent in different sports as well as performing arts and to volunteering trips to other countries. This gives a huge bonus to the exposure that a kid gets and makes him a more confident person in life. In Delhi and the National Capital Region, The Shri Ram School is one such name that has become a potent force in this field and is in fact arguably one of the top international schools in Gurgaon. Their expertise, dedication and skills are top-notch and ensures all-round growth of children.
