Learning Language at ISOCS

The International School of Central Switzerland’s main language of academic instruction is English. Language is truly the vehicle of learning and although we are committed to all students developing a second language we are not prepared to allow a deficit in academic language to be the cause of a deficit in cognitive learning development. Many young students easily master a social language competence through play and integration; however the ability to think deeply and develop meaningful academic concepts is usually rooted in one strong language.  The English language allows easy transfer to other IB PYP schools worldwide and provides the student with a widely accessible learning language.

At ISOCS we accept all students and all levels of English competency. We work extremely hard to ensure that the students develop a level of mastery in the English language such that they can access and expand the curriculum and share their experiences and developing understandings with others.

Students at ISOCS are often exposed to a topic together and we use multimedia to trigger experience and response. Students go on to work in small groups to develop their communication skills at their own level. We are constantly challenging students to connect their experience and linguistic understanding in another language to our learning programme. We also make direct connection with the teaching of English and German so that students learn to transfer ideas and skills across languages. For example in the Unit of Inquiry Self Expression students realized that the word “express” had the same prefixes and root as in German: “ex/aus” a prefix meaning out  and  “press/druck” a root meaning to push

Learning language is a complex matter in all international schools and the confidence and experience of our teachers are the key factor in our success!

All students read regularly at their own level for pleasure and information. All of our students learn spelling strategies and conventions according to their own level of challenge and all of our students are supported to express themselves confidently through oral and written presentation.

We regularly assess our students' level of learning in English and follow individual student understanding on an international continuum of language development.

ISOCS teachers plan for student learning by considering the contexts that will occur naturally in our planning cycle (about every half term 6 weeks). We consider both the contexts for natural and applicable language learning and the various stages that the students currently operate in.

 We then plan an inquiry into language of a certain type or genre. For example, in a recent Unit of Inquiry into Transport Systems the younger students worked at reading, following and giving precise directions. In the Number Systems Unit of Inquiry older students examined language that describes how number systems work. Recently our students have been anticipating field week and have been exploring how we communicate to socialize; introducing themselves to new friends, writing letters (in English and German) and sending emails and postcards!

At ISOCS we support individual learners towards language mastery, such that they can learn and communicate effectively in a variety of situations.