Middle School

Secondary Education

Overview

The education offered in the Middle School builds on the students' previous learning and knowledge from Lower Key Stage 2. In Upper Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 lessons are taught by a series of subject specialists with the class tutor having the important pastoral role of coordinating all aspects of the pupils' academic, as well as social and emotional development. The class tutor delivers the PSHE programme, which includes the global citizenship and health education. At ISM our expectation of our students are high - all participate in the learning process and each student's contribution to the school is very much valued.

Middle School Years 5 - 8 (ages 9 to 13)

The Middle School covers the English National Curriculum Years 5 to 8 (age 9-13).

Middle School specialist teachers deliver a balanced programme based on the English National Curriculum, but with additional factors such as the immediate introduction of science, and more time spent learning modern languages, with Russian lessons being taught daily.

Middle School children work with specialist teachers. All teaching staff are British Nationals, with appropriate teaching qualifications from British universities, and experience in delivering the English National Curriculum in British schools in the UK and overseas.

Each teacher also has the support of a Teaching Assistant. Teacher Assistants are recruited from the UK and as local expat hire. All are native English speakers or have a level of spoken English like that of a native speaker. Many of whom are qualified teachers of English as an Additional Language (EAL), this helps ensure that the highest quality of teaching and learning takes place in our classrooms, particularly in the areas of English and Mathematics.

As in Britain, Year 5 & Year 6 children take Standard Achievement Tests (SATs) in the three "core" subjects (English Language, Maths and Science) and these are then sent to Britain for evaluation and marking. The Curriculum also covers Art, Craft and Technology, Humanities, Russian Language, Information and Communication Technology, Music and P.E. These subjects, in addition to the core subjects of Maths, English and Science, complete the curriculum.

As well as using this summative assessment to track student progress throughout the school, teachers use a range of formative assessment techniques in lessons, including peer and self assessment opportunities, rich questioning techniques, personalised learning and target setting. This Assessment for Learning strategy enables every student to become confident, independent learners, that play a significant role in guiding their own learning needs and progress throughout their time at ISM.