COMMENT | I wish I’d sent my children to international school

COMMENT | I have been working as a matron to six-year-old Adham for over a year now. This change of profession was not planned but a result of the pandemic.

Early this year, Adham joined an international school located in Petaling Jaya. The classes were conducted hybrid at the time, allowing online students to join lessons conducted in physical classrooms via Google Class.

The reason for this was to satisfy the demand from many parents who were still sceptical about the safety of their children following the pandemic.

Being a product of national school myself, and having sent my own children to national school for patriotic reasons, I was quite intrigued with the education system at the international school.

Adham’s journey began with a short interview via Google Meet. He spent a few minutes interacting with a school representative where his communication skills and reading skills were tested.

During week one of school, I sat next to Adham during his online classes, making sure he follows his lessons and does not face any technical difficulties. My role was more of an observant and not an assistant.

I must say that I was rather surprised with the classes he attended, especially since he is just six. The academic subjects and curriculum activities were combined well to ensure a very interesting day at school.

Among the academic subjects I was impressed with was Social Intelligence, where students were taught about social skills, how they can make their lives and the lives of others better by learning how to conduct themselves and making smarter choices in their daily routines.

International Primary Curriculum, or IPC in short, was another brilliant addition to the syllabus where science, history, geography and technology are merged into one compact lesson plan.

Information & Communication Technology, or ICT, trains the students to be computer savvy, enhance their typing skills and learn all about internet safety.

Every student, regardless of race, is expected to learn all the subjects together, including...