Paramaribo - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability of international schools? What has been your general experience with them, if any?
There are two major international schools in Paramaribo: QSI: located on the northside and about 15 minutes from the U.S. embassy . The new compound was completed in 2021. Great staff, nice facilities, afterschool activities available. It is adjacent to a new international mall - watch those teenagers! IAS: located on the south side of Paramaribo. Quite a few diplomatic dependents attend; I have not heard any complaints. https://suriname.qsi.org/ Both schools provide elementary, middle and high-school level education (pre-K to 12th grade). - Apr 2022
There are four English speaking schools here. Two of the schools are primarily used by the Embassy - International Academy of Suriname and Suriname International School. If you have kids from grades 8 and above, do NOT bring them unless they are extremely religious (IAS) and mediocre students. - Jun 2017
Two international English-language schools. If your child is in high school you owe it to them to consider going somewhere else or explore boarding school options. For junior high you can send them to the International Academy of Suriname (IAS) if you are alright with a school that has a serious religious slant. Both schools, IAS and Suriname International School, are fine up through probably 5th grade. Both Serious issues with professionalism of staff and standardization of curriculum, in my experience. Both are now accredited but have had accreditation issues in the past. - May 2016
Suriname International School - New school that's small and growing while we were there. Consider it pretty liberal. Our kindergartner got sex-ed for Easter without notice, 3/4 grade had ethical issues hour where they discussed gay marriage, and you got notes sent home if the school didn't consider your kids' lunch to be healthy enough. Mostly growing pains and things were tightening up as we left. Fogot the name of the other school just now - much larger and more established, better facilities, but the exact opposite in being too conservative and religous for our liking. By the time were left, I think both had come back to a middle ground somewhat and we knew parents happy with both schools, but nobody was super thrilled with them. At one point they both lacked accredidation and several families with teenage kids decided that was the last straw and left at that point. Both are accredited now I believe. - Dec 2014
There are two international schools, neither of which are currently accredited. AIS was much bigger and more established, but had a heavy emphasis on religion and some issues with disciplinary action. SIS was much smaller and more personal, but much less established as well. We knew people who were happy with both schools, but no one really loved either one. My child was only in kindergarten so I wasn't overly concerned. He really enjoyed the school. - Jul 2014
The main largest school is good, albeit a Christian school. It's called International American School - Paramaribo. It was ok for me, though. I am not a huge Christian guy or anything, but I think they set a good tone for most of their instructions and were not too pushy with their ideologies. My boy really loved the school and he and I both found the teaching to be more about kindness and caring than about the regimented ideals of religious teachings. There is also (at least there was when I was there) an alternate school called the Suriname International School. From all accounts it was also a very good school, but I would check into it a bit more because my boy didn't attend that one, so I don't really know too much about it. It was newly formed when we got there and so it was going through the regular growing pains that a new school goes through. However, I think it was generally considered to be a good school and wasn't a religious school. So, for those not wanting a religious school, it's a good alternative. I may have gotten more on its feet since we left, so check on that as well. - Sep 2013
I cannot comment personnaly but there are several options. There is a Christian school as well as a new one that recently opened as an alternative. - Nov 2010
The international school is a Christian school. They seem more interested in spreading the word of God rather than education. If that's your thing you'll be happy, if not than prepare to home school. That being said I have my 4 year old in Pre-K there and he enjoys it. Of course there's not a lot of education in pre-k, it's more about the interaction and there was the one slaughtered lambs coloring sheet, but we managed to laugh that off. There is one other English speaking school in town that a few Americans use. - Feb 2010
