Focus of Study :
The school offers secondary education from Years 7 to 13, for pupils aged 10–19. West Island School students follow the International General Certificate of Secondary Education program in Years 10-11 and pursue the IB Diploma and BTEC Extended Diploma in Years 12–13. The schools also offers AS-Level courses for Year 10 students pursuing in the study of critical thinking and entrepreneurship. The grades achieved by West Island students in IGCSE and IB examinations place them generously above similar schools across the world. In 2011, around 60% of IGCSE passes were at A* or A.
Benefit, Goal of this course :
Students who attend West Island School create strength from diversity. They have a deep awareness of our similarities rather than differences and prize each other’s race, religion, ethnicity, language and culture.
Learners become multi-lingual and appreciate others culture and values through the acquisition of language in both Chinese and another european language.
Learners acquire inter-cultural understanding through the study of global contexts in Years 7-9 as part of our MYP programme. These contexts bridge all of the MYP programme: identities and relationships, orientation in space and time, personal and cultural expressions, scientific and cultural innovation, globalisation and sustainability, fairness and development
During Years 10-11, learners explore knowledge of global events in more depth as part of their iGCSE courses.
By the end of Year 13, a choice of subjects through the IB or IBCP develops learners who understand a range of global issues and who are internationally minded because they are knowledgeable, inquirers, thinkers, communicators, principled, open minded, caring, risk takers, reflective and balanced.
Our Community Action and Service programme throughout all age groups develop learner’s engagement in a variety of local, national and global issues through discussion, collaboration and action.
Graduates of West Island School build strength from diversity and create a better world.
Curriculum :
To achieve our vision of every learner being the best they can be, we have developed a curriculum in Years 7-9 that allows young people to develop their whole brain through learning from a wide variety of essential disciplines. Students will study the following:
- Language acquisition (Chinese is compulsory and learners also study a choice of French or Spanish)
- Language and Literature (English)
- Individuals and Societies (Philosophy, Business, Economics, Geography, History)
- Sciences (Chemistry, Physics, Biology)
- Arts (Visual Arts and Performance Arts)
- Physical and Health Education
- Design (Resistant Materials, Graphics, Textiles)
During Years 10-11, students can achieve more personal fulfilment through our iGCSE programme. They will continue to study the following core curriculum:
- Language acquisition (Chinese and French or Spanish)
- English language and literature (English)
- Mathematics
- Physical and Health Education
- Sciences (Chemistry, Physics, Biology)
Students can personalise their programmes by making three choices from any combination of the following areas:
- Individuals and Societies (Philosophy & Religion, Business, Economics, Geography, History)
- Creative Thinking and Expression (Art, Drama, Music, Resistant Materials, Graphics, Textiles, Food, Dance, Media, Hospitality)
In addition, we are keen that our learners are ready for the jobs of the future that don’t yet exist. The ‘fourth industrial revolution’ described by the World Economic Forum identifies the skills of creativity, complex problem solving and emotional intelligence as critical. Students are therefore able to tailor a suite of experiences from non-examined courses across their two-year programme.
After Year 11, students choose once more to prepare themselves for future university or employment opportunities:
International Baccalaureate (A choice of subjects from six groups)
International Baccalaureate Careers Programme (A choice of five BTEC Subjects and any combination of IB certificates with a personal project, language portfolio and reflective project)
International Diploma (A choice of BTEC Subjects)
Foundation Diploma (A choice of individual courses designed to meet individual learning needs)
Across all ages, students will participate in lessons which prepare them for the challenges that face young people through the teenage years. This includes learning about relationship and sex education, emotional intelligence and digital citizenship.
All students will participate in our extra curriculum programmes through Community Action and Service (CAS) in every year group.
The school has a strong commitment to inclusion which means offering a wide variety of courses that offer different styles of learning and assessment. For some, offering additional support for EAL, literacy or specific learning needs.
