This little text gives information to expats and families interested in international schools to choose and understand how they work and teach.
Barcelona is an international city, we can also say that it is an international capital, where cultures of many different places live together and in peace, sharing experiences and life, discovering and growing.
It is not casual, then, that has become a perfect place for expatriates of different countries. The Catalan capital has communities of different locations and one of the advantages of this is the possibility for the expatriates to give education to their children in bilingual schools and institutes.
The strict level of English of the students, who have to cross a thought selection process and interviews to get accepted, are one of the most important points to considerate for the parents.
International schools have a different way of teaching. It is true that there are some common points, but in this kind of centres, the teacher have more tasks than to be just a professor; the objective is to know every child and discover its special talent, and of course, help him to develop it during its school period. For example, if a kid has some ability with writing, the teacher team will be more exigent with him in this area, and they will give him extra work to develop this area t the excellence.
This personal approach in this kind of schools is worthy for the kids and the investment worth’s it for the families, who pay around 10.000€ for a year, in order to get for their child really high level of education and special attention of their specific abilities. To focus in these specific areas makes the child to know after their graduation what their best talents are, and give them the opportunity to focus their university studies on it.
It is important to say that in Catalonia, as in Barcelona in particular, education cannot be done only in English and by law the schools have to teach either in the official languages, that means Catalan and Spanish, however, the schools are free to choose another language as a main competence and have lessons of these local languages several days a week to give them the chance to integrate to the country and with its citizens. Another interesting point of the education in this country is that some subjects are specially focused in the local knowledge, like history and geography.
Some of the most important international schools in Barcelona are the next ones:
American School of Barcelona
www.asbarcelona.com
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 3 to 18 years
This year the American School of Barcelona is celebrating the 50th anniversary. Experience and confidence are offered in this North American school who gives lessons to children of 45 nationalities.
Benjamin Franklin International School
www.bfischool.org
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 3 to 18 years
This multicultural school prepares students to the entrance in the Catalan and Spanish Universities, the North American ones, and some other.
Santa Claus Academy
www.academysantaclaus.com
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 3 to 12 years
This school have as an objective to give to all the students a good level of Catalan, English and Spanish.
Saint Peter’s School
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 1,5 to 18
This school offer infant school in English, and primary and secondary school in Catalan, English and Spanish.
Saint George’s School
www.stgeorge.es
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 2 to 18 years
Saint George’s School follows the British national curriculum and have high levels of excellence, with their oldest students taking iGCSEs and then A levels.
English School Barcelona
www.colegioingles.net/
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 3 to 16
This school offer education in English, Catalan and Spanish at the same proportion, and adding French in secondary school as a 4th language.
Oak House School
www.oakhouseschool.com
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 3 to 18 years
Oak House School give UK National Curriculum education in primary school, and Spanish currículum in the secondary school. Elementary school is entirely in Spanish and children are not introduced in the national language till the age of 8.
British School Barcelona
www.britishschoolbarcelona.com
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 3 to 18 years
Considered one of the best international schools of Catalonia, the Bristish School of Barcelona offer an English national curriculum to its students with high levels of excellence. Catalan and Spanish are also complementary languages in the learning process.
The International School of Catalunya
Gender: Co-educational
Ages: 3 to 18 years
The school offer the English national curriculum, also with Catalan and Spanish, and French as a foreign language. This school focus this attention and give to their students the independent way of thinking as an international students and respecting their differences and particularities.
J. A. Hernando