News Update - Education from knowitall.ch

: Published: 06 September 2017

La Cote Oxbridge 500

La Côte International School has just announced that 2016 graduate Alex Constantinou has been offered a place at Cambridge University. This is the first Oxbridge admission for the school, which saw its first cohort of International Baccalaureate students graduate in 2015.

Congratulations go to graduate Alex Constantinou, who has been offered a place at Cambridge University, one of the most prestigious educational establishments worldwide, and ranked globally amongst the world's top four best universities year after year.

Alex will be joining Clare College, the second oldest of Cambridge's thirty-one colleges, founded in 1326 and located at the heart of the highly regarded British university town.

Wendy Ellis, Principal at La Côte International School, shared her delight with the entire school community: "We were very pleased with the news that Alexander Constantinou, who deferred his university entry by a year as he was too young, has been offered a place at Clare College, Cambridge to read Mathematics and Physics for this September."

: Published: 03 September 2017

La Cote Jardin d Enfants2

A bilingual early years learning programme has been created for children aged 2 to 3 years at La Côte International School in Aubonne. The new programme is a welcome option for parents, especially mothers who are looking for a flexible part-time kindergarten place for their child but who are often not granted a place elsewhere because they are currently not working. The new Early Year Foundation 0 class for children aged 2 to 3 complements the current pre-school offer at LCIS which runs from Foundation 1 (ages 3 to 4) to Foundation 2 (ages 4 to 5).

7 areas of learning

The new programme will be offered by what is effectively a Jardin d’Enfants, set up within the campus of the school. It will be based on the the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) educational programme, which prepares children for the English National Curriculum at Primary Level. So, in contrast to those creches which adopt a less structured approach, the new Jardin d'Enfants will get children involved in activities that prepare them on a pedagogical level, helping them develop clear milestones and objectives.

Explainining the concept in more detail to knowitall.ch, Principal Wendy Ellis told knowitall.ch, “By observing and recording each stage of their development, our practitioners will guide the children through play and planned activities, to ensure that they gain experiences based on all 7 areas of learning of the EYFS programme, namely: personal, social and emotional development; communication and language skills; physical development; mathematical learning; an understanding of the world; creative development; and, last but not least, a love of literacy!”

: Published: 31 August 2017

sapphireschool3

Intensive weekend course on 9 – 10 September includes wine tasting and glass making!

A new language school has opened near Nyon in Vaud with a special emphasis on having fun!

Created to provide students with the confidence they require to engage in local life, Sapphire School offers both individual and small group classes as well as intensive weekend courses, which include an element of local culture too.

Having lived in Switerland most of her life, Laure-Anne Piaget founded her new language school at the beginning of this year, when she was touched by the “teaching bug” following work as a volunteer in Laos, teaching English.

She told knowitall.ch, “The experience opened up many new opportunities for me…I told myself that if I could teach English abroad then I would really enjoy teaching French to foreigners at home! The aim of my school is to help students get to know Switzerland better and one of the best ways of doing that is by engaging with local people and activities in French!”

: Published: 27 August 2017

brillantmont birthday 1new

Brillantmont International School Lausanne, Switzerland celebrates its 135th anniversary.

Brillantmont International School in Lausanne, Switzerland, recently welcomed back over a hundred alumni to celebrate its 135th anniversary. The oldest had studied at the school nearly 70 years ago, whilst the youngest left very recently. Yet, they all hold the school in great affection and happily mingled, sharing memories and anecdotes over a delicious raclette lunch in Brillantmont’s beautiful gardens.

In 1882, Brillantmont was founded by the great-grandparents of the current owners, the Frei family. The school is the only Swiss boarding school which has belonged to the same family for five generations. At Brillantmont, the sense of family is felt at every level: amongst the school Board, the Direction and the staff, many of whom have been at the school for ten, twenty or even thirty years or more, but above all, the sense of family is felt amongst the 130-strong student community.

: Published: 07 August 2017

The Institut International de Lancy (IIL) is extending its existing curricula with the launch of a new syllabus for the 2017/2018 academic year which will provide fully bilingual instruction in English and French by immersion.

In order to meet the increasing demand for language skills from an early age, the bilingual class will open in September 2017 to children from 3 years old, with a full-time teacher for each language. This new concept, reinforced through the use of efficient teaching tools, will allow children to access the English and French curricula within the school, thus giving them the full benefits of a sound international education.

Outlining the new programme to knowitall.ch, IIL Director General, Norbert Foerster, who is also the President of the Swiss Federation of Private Schools, said, "In this age of globalisation and advancement of information technologies, multilingualism is a key asset for future adults, throughout the world. Whilst the acquisition of several languages from an early age has a positive influence on cognitive growth, it also broadens a child’s perception and leads to a greater understanding of society and foreign cultures."

Two first languages
The English-French bilingual class for 3 year olds represents an ambitious educational approach, which complements the Institut International de Lancy curriculum. It promotes the development and acquisition of language skills at native level in both English and French.

The new programme provides a comprehensive approach to language teaching encompassing emotive and cultural aspects, as well as the individual learning needs of each child. Through immersion, daily routines for the children will become fully bilingual, paving the way to personal and social fulfilment.