Ljubljana, Slovenia Report of what it's like to live there - 05/20/16
Personal Experiences from Ljubljana, Slovenia
School Name:
Quality School International
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?
7-9.
3. During what years were you affiliated with this school?
2012-2015.
4. What was your reason for living in the city where the school is located (e.g., government, military, corporate, NGO, retired)?
Government.
5. Are other schools available to expatriates in this city? Why did you choose this particular school?
It was an English language school with an American curriculum.
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?
2. How would you rate the school's support and welcome/integration of new students and their families, and why?
A.
Administration & School Procedures:
1. Describe the general climate of the grade level that you teach or your child attends:
In general, I felt the teachers and school administration were very concerned about my child's welfare and well being.
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:
B.
3. How is the overall communication between teachers and parents, and the administration and parents? How is communication facilitated?
A. Always very responsive to my concerns; teachers communicated their concerns whenever anything came up.
4. Services for gifted students who need academic challenge and students with learning difficulties:
C. No pull-out classes; one teacher who was able and willing to work with students in math to move them ahead at their own pace.
5. Availability and variety of after-school activities for various ages:
D. Not many options and if you weren't into what was offered, you were out of luck.
6. Maintenance of appropriately high standards for all students:
B.
7. Homework assigned (quality, quantity):
C. Qality of work expected was not what I thought it should be; quantity was, for the most part, sporadic (lots of homework and then very little).
8. Administration-parent communication:
C. If you didn't drop your kid off at school it was easy to miss when things were happening until the last minute. Changes were often made to the school calendar without general school-wide communication being made. You could be caught off guard.
9. Teacher-student communication:
A/B.
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?
Yes. My child was often bored, even though they said they were working at an appropriate level.
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:
No. It was student directed with little involvement from the teacher.
14. Does the school offer a wide variety of elective or non-core classes such as art, music, and drama?
No.
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?
C. Teachers were generally good about spotting issues, however, there are always things that the kids hide from teachers. There was no professional counseling available to the students if they needed it.
2. Does the school have a library? How large is it? How updated are the books? Can students borrow books to read at home?
D. Very small library with older books.
3. How are information technology resources at the school. Are they up-to-date? Is there a computer lab?
C.
4. Describe the physical education resources at the school. Is there a gym? A swimming pool? Are there playing fields or tennis courts available?
C.
5. What is the approximate teacher-to-student ratio in the grades that your child attended?
A. 10 students to 1 teacher.
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?
D. Very limited Advanced Placement courses; no International Baccalaureate.
7. Is the amount and type of homework generally appropriate for the age and grade of the students?
Yes, in general.
8. What fine arts electives are available (music, drama, visual arts)?
D. They existed, but weren't of a high quality.
9. Are the teachers at the school required to speak English as a first language--or at least fluently?
Yes, but fluency also has its variations.
10. What services are available for gifted/advanced students at the school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
Yes. Online classes in lieu of regular classes.
Overall Impressions:
1. What is the greatest strength of this school?
I think the greatest strength of QSI schools is the small, family atmosphere that the administration strives to achieve.
2. Greatest challenge?
Since most QSI schools are in areas that are difficult to live in, I don't think they necessarily attract the best quality teachers.
3. Would you choose this school again? Why?
If we had it to do over again, I don't know that we would. We moved to another post/school with a much more rigorous curriculum. It took our daughter several months to adjust to the expected level and grades suffered as a result. In spite of their best efforts, I don't feel this school prepared her adequately for our onward assignment.
