Luxembourg City, Luxembourg Report of what it's like to live there - 09/06/12
Personal Experiences from Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
School Name:
International School of Luxembourg
Background Information:
1. Are you the parent of a child(ren) attending this school? A teacher at the school? Or both?
Paren
2. What grade or grades do/did your children attend at the school? During what year(s) did they attend the school?
2nd through 6th
3. During what years were you affiliated with this school?
2010 - present
4. What was your reason for living in the city where the school is located (e.g., government, military, corporate, NGO, retired)?
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?
B+ - Seems to be ok - haven't heard of favoritism.
2. How would you rate the school's support and welcome/integration of new students and their families, and why?
B - they offer lots of "get to know" thing nights in the beginning.Yet, sometimes you need to ask other parents for the details of why decisions are made or why policies are enacted.It helps to get to know other parents.
Administration & School Procedures:
1. Describe the general climate of the grade level that you teach or your child attends:
General climate is good - supportive.
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 - seems pretty fair and equitable to me.Kids don't complain about others being treated better/worse/differently.Guess that says something given how rich some of the families are and what kind of corporate backing they have.
3. How is the overall communication between teachers and parents, and the administration and parents? How is communication facilitated?
B - Depends on the teachers - like anywhere else.Some are good, some not so good.
4. Services for gifted students who need academic challenge and students with learning difficulties:
B - Not sure as kids haven't been labeled either way.Haven't heard lots of positive or negative things on this issue by parents.
5. Availability and variety of after-school activities for various ages:
B+ - Pretty good for a western international school. Good sports, great travel opportunities.Big trips cost extra money, so be prepared to shell out money for that.
6. Maintenance of appropriately high standards for all students:
B+ - so far appears to be pretty good.
7. Homework assigned (quality, quantity):
B+ - seems ok so far.
8. Administration-parent communication:
B+ - Pretty good so far.
9. Teacher-student communication:
A - kids appear to know what is expected of them and the communication appears respectful.
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 - not that I know of.
11. Does your child receive any special-needs assistance or instruction at this school? If yes, what types? Who provides services and where:
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:
14. Does the school offer a wide variety of elective or non-core classes such as art, music, and drama?
Yes - art teacher is sending our kids home with some great skills, music is the same, also yearbook, newspaper, etc.
15. Please describe any classes or programs that you believe are missing:
16. Are there academic requirements such as trips or other activities that cost money in addition to school fees?
Yes - and it adds up if your kid is in sports.
17. What activities do you feel are missing?
None
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
20. Please describe any problem areas or challenges in social interaction at the school:
Again - the privelege factor.Kids come from wealthy families and there is a lot of pressure to have all the same gadgets as everyone else.
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?
B- Teachers seem ok, the lower school counseling has a bit to be desired - concerned they label kids prior to sending them on to the next grade.
2. Does the school have a library? How large is it? How updated are the books? Can students borrow books to read at home?
B+ - Kids are always bringing home great books.Haven't gotten to the reference sections really yet, but so far so good.
3. How are information technology resources at the school. Are they up-to-date? Is there a computer lab?
B - Looks to be ok, although I've heard that compared to some other International schools around the world not as good particularly given the amount of money at the school.
4. Describe the physical education resources at the school. Is there a gym? A swimming pool? Are there playing fields or tennis courts available?
A - appears to be pretty good - no complaints from the kids.They say they enjoy it.
5. What is the approximate teacher-to-student ratio in the grades that your child attended?
B+ - Pretty good for a western international school.
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?
B+ - appears to be pretty good.
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)?
A - School has excellent art/music/drama programs.Of course they can be supplemented with private lessons which abound in the city.They programs are structured, there's good participation among the student body.Teachers seem very committed.
9. Are the teachers at the school required to speak English as a first language--or at least fluently?
Yes
10. What services are available for gifted/advanced students at the school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
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?
Yes, as mentioned above.
Social & Emotional Well-Being:
1. Do expatriate students socialize with local students at the school? Are both groups successfully integrated into the school culture?
No - the only socialize with eachother.This is a rich group of kids with everything at their fingertips so there's lots of intermingling with eachother outside of school w/eachother.
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.
Not that I'm aware of.
Overall Impressions:
1. What is the greatest strength of this school?
The involvement by parents/teachers and the enriching afterschool activities.
2. Greatest challenge?
3. Would you choose this school again? Why?
Absolutely - its a great school.
