Dublin, Ireland Report of what it's like to live there - 03/15/11
Personal Experiences from Dublin, Ireland
School Name:
International School Dublin
Background Information:
1. Are you the parent of a child(ren) attending this school? A teacher at the school? Or both?
Parent
2. What grade or grades do/did your children attend at the school? During what year(s) did they attend the school?
Kindergarten, 2nd Grade
3. During what years were you affiliated with this school?
since 2009 to present (2011)
4. What was your reason for living in the city where the school is located (e.g., government, military, corporate, NGO, retired)?
US government
Admissions & Welcome:
1. Are the admissions and placement procedures clearly stated to prospective families, either on the school website or through other means of communication?
A very transparent and open
2. How would you rate the school's support and welcome/integration of new students and their families, and why?
A amazing support, never felt more welcomed into an existing school community in all my previous moves
Administration & School Procedures:
1. Describe the general climate of the grade level that you teach or your child attends:
warm, friendly, welcoming, encouraging, encouraging initiative and building confidence
2. For the following attributes, down to the next blank box, grade your experience at the school on a scale of A (excellent) to F (unacceptable/terrible) and provide comments:<br><br>Overall fair and equitable treatment of all students and families:
A this is the only International School in Dublin, so it has a large percentage of expats, but also a nice number of local families which is great for stability
3. How is the overall communication between teachers and parents, and the administration and parents? How is communication facilitated?
A never had better, the school welcomes parent participation and engages all avenues (e-mail, talks, conferences, coffee mornings, website, etc) to encourage two-way communication
4. Services for gifted students who need academic challenge and students with learning difficulties:
Athe individual attention to each of my boys' talents and levels is very high, the small class sizes help too
5. Availability and variety of after-school activities for various ages:
Adifferent clubs offered after school and also very good contacts into the local community programs
6. Maintenance of appropriately high standards for all students:
Athrough the individual attention and close watch on the learning continuum all students are appropriately challenged
7. Homework assigned (quality, quantity):
Amy Kindergartener has homework maybe once a month, just to get the idea, my 2nd grader has homework Mon, Wed and Fri - good amount but not overwhelming
8. Administration-parent communication:
A also excellent, the administrator is a parent herself and an excellent communicator
9. Teacher-student communication:
A both my sons are very confident with their teachers and comfortable talking about anything with them, never an issue
10. Academics, answer the following questions "yes" or "no" with an explanation if appropriate:<br><br>Are there any classes or subjects where students are not appropriately challenged?
no
11. Does your child receive any special-needs assistance or instruction at this school? If yes, what types? Who provides services and where:
no
12. Do you believe the special-needs assistance is appropriate and fills your needs? Explain:
13. Does the gifted and talented program meet the needs of students? Please explain:
yes
14. Does the school offer a wide variety of elective or non-core classes such as art, music, and drama?
Art, music and drama are all part of the regular curriculum and in addition can be chosen as after school clubs
15. Please describe any classes or programs that you believe are missing:
I would welcome a better PE facility, the school is well aware of the space issue and is currently looking for a new facility
16. Are there academic requirements such as trips or other activities that cost money in addition to school fees?
for some field trips extra cost is incurred, after school clubs also have a fee
17. What activities do you feel are missing?
sports - but it's easy to find sports clubs outside of school here since everything is in English, so not an issue
18. Have your children participated in the activities offered? If no, please indicate why:
yes
19. Does the school provide appropriate assistance to new students?
yes, the settling in process is very well supported
20. Please describe any problem areas or challenges in social interaction at the school:
Academics & Resources:
1. What personal or academic counseling resources are available at this school? Is there a dedicated college counselor at the school? Is he/she familiar with universities worldwide?
Awhen a conflict issue arose at one point with another classmate it was handled expertly, as well as during personal tragedies experienced by other students (death in family)
2. Does the school have a library? How large is it? How updated are the books? Can students borrow books to read at home?
A-small but very well stocked library
3. How are information technology resources at the school. Are they up-to-date? Is there a computer lab?
A state of the art equipment (interactive white boards, etc)
4. Describe the physical education resources at the school. Is there a gym? A swimming pool? Are there playing fields or tennis courts available?
Afor effort and finding ways for PE even with a small campus (draw-back of the downtown location, which is also a huge plus though)
5. What is the approximate teacher-to-student ratio in the grades that your child attended?
A the largest class has 12 students, the smallest has 6 - wonderful!
6. Are Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses available in upper grades? If this is an IB school, is the full diploma required of all students?
A They offer the PYP program and plan on expanding to the Middle Years program soon
7. Is the amount and type of homework generally appropriate for the age and grade of the students?
yes
8. What fine arts electives are available (music, drama, visual arts)?
Agreat music art and drama programs
9. Are the teachers at the school required to speak English as a first language--or at least fluently?
yes, they are all native English speakers
10. What services are available for gifted/advanced students at the school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
It's not called that, but each child is supported and challenged at their level
11. What extra-curricular activities (including sports) are available at this school? Have your children participated in these activities? What activities do you feel are missing at the school?
a nice selection of clubs that changes each term
Social & Emotional Well-Being:
1. Do expatriate students socialize with local students at the school? Are both groups successfully integrated into the school culture?
yes, a lot
2. Are there are any problems with exclusionary behavior, cliques, or bullying at this school? Please describe any problems your children may have experienced in this area.
no, not at all since it's mostly expats
Overall Impressions:
1. What is the greatest strength of this school?
warm, very welcoming family atmosphere, dedicated to very high standards (IB)
2. Greatest challenge?
young school (founded in 2007), trying to find better facility
3. Would you choose this school again? Why?
Absolutely, my sons couldn't be happier and adjusted so quickly to living here thanks to the school, the IB curriculum is fantastic, and ISD is the only school that offers it for the primary years (soon also the middle years). Wish we could take ISD with us to our next post!!
