If you are an expat living in the UAE, for example, one of your priorities will be where to send your children for their education. These days, we live in a highly globalised world and providing a well-rounded education with an international focus is more important than ever before.
The key component of every school, no matter where it is based, is what kind of curriculum it teaches. For schools in multi-cultural cities that provide education to many international students, the curriculum they use must be one of high quality and one that is well regarded internationally. Research concludes that four in ten international schools base their teaching on the British curriculum, but what advantages does this offer to students?
The Curriculum Advantage
First and foremost, a curriculum that is strongly based on the British model provides students with maximum flexibility. Given how highly regarded it is globally, a British education with an international focus allows students to transfer their learning to many other international educational institutions. Additionally, it also provides expats with the ability to smoothly transition from an international school to one back home in the UK.
More specifically, this curriculum focuses on the following:
- International awareness: As our world is moving ever close to the concept of the global village, it is important for all children to be aware of other cultures. This means that school is an important factor in teaching them about other cultures and the similarities, rather than the differences, between people.
- Technology: As our world is drawing closer together socially and culturally, it is also important to understand how technology facilitates this and how developments in technology impact our understanding of the world and our everyday life, whether in private or in business. A well-rounded education emphasises the importance of technology but places it in an appropriate context.
- Problem-solving: One of the key components of any solid education is in teaching children how to think, learn independently, adapt to change, and problem solve. The 21st century is complex, and even as technology offers us the chance to connect with each other, it can also divide and isolate us. It is therefore important for all children to learn how to accept and adapt to rapid change in our world and how to problem solve using modern tools so that they are well prepared for life as adults.
The International Advantage
For children at an international school that runs a highly-regarded curriculum, the learning opportunities are plentiful. They will not only receive a world-class education that is based on one of the world’s leading curricula but will also learn about living in a different country and adapting to a different culture.
The combination of a world-class curriculum and an international focus provides students with the capacity to adapt to the rapid change of the modern world and also allows them to understand their role in a globally-connected world where different cultures come together and learn from each other.