Culture & Education | Sunday 30 August, 2015 12:48 pm |

 The Swiss International Scientific School in Dubai (SISD), Dubai’s first ever private school to offer multilingual education in French, German, Italian, English and Arabic, opens its doors today with close to 270 pupils enrolled comprising of 40 nationalities, and 50 teaching staff. There will be 17 classes from Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 6 on the new Dubai Healthcare City water-front campus.

 

SISD Head of School Beat Sommer commented: “We are delighted to be opening the doors, after 18 months of construction, of our spacious and light state-of-the-art school campus. Our goal is to ensure that SISD offers an excellent academic environment for international and local students, but also provides a well-rounded curriculum including after-school activities, with a focus on personal development. We are committed to shaping the global citizens of tomorrow and providing a springboard to a successful future. Over the past few weeks, we’ve enjoyed preparing our motivated and experienced teaching staff for the new academic year and hosting team building sessions.”

 

The UAE is a melting pot of cultures, made up of 200 nationalities, who speak a multitude of languages. There is a diversity of local, regional and international families hailing from around the globe and naturally with that comes a growing demand for schools which reflects the cultural variety represented in the region. Many families here are also mixed-nationality, so people understand the intrinsic value of being multilingual. Parents in the UAE are therefore increasingly attracted to international schools, where students graduate as global citizens, with career ‘portability.’ Students of SISD will enjoy a multilingual education through the full International Baccalaureate (IB) continuum programme, which is an international education that develops the intellectual, personal, emotional and social skills needed to live, learn and work in a rapidly globalising world.

In line with the regulatory requirements, grades 7 to 12 will be added in the coming years. Once the school is at full capacity, the 67,845 sqm campus in Dubai Healthcare City’s new Phase 2, will cater to students from Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12 and will boast more than 2000 pupils, with 350 students boarding.