Universities I Colleges I Schools I Private Training I English Schools

The International School of Bergen (ISB) was founded in 1975 and is a non-profit, coeducational day school, enrolling students in pre-school through grade 10. The International School of Bergen, when created, was one of many components of Bergen's infrastructure attractive to international investors. The purpose of the school was two-fold: to provide an education for the children of expatriate oil company personnel in Bergen and to attract further corporate investment in the Bergen area. Typical of most international schools, once established in a community, ISB's programmes became known outside of the "corporate circle" and parents (both local and permanent foreign) began to seek admission for their children. Local children are most often enrolled because their parents have been abroad and the children have begun their education in an English-speaking school, which makes transition to "native language" schools difficult or impossible or, one or the other of the parents is an Englishspeaking foreigner married to a local citizen and wishes their children to attend an English language school in order to preserve a dual cultural identity. Foreign residents generally choose to send their children to an English language school in order to assure their children alternatives for tertiary education abroad. Yet another category of parent is emerging in the international schools network and much attention is being given to this group. These are local citizens who envision a future for their children which will demand total bi- or multi-lingual fluency and who believe, quite correctly, that a primary and secondary education in an English-language school, combined with daily life, language and cultural growth in yet another language medium, will achieve this goal. The inclusion of these more permanent students into a small international school such as ISB is positive in at least three ways. Firstly, the "international" aspect of the school is enhanced. Secondly, a "cultural bridge" between the school and local community is built and, thirdly, the presence of these children helps to stabilise the enrolment of the school and thus assure the continuity of the programme despite fluctuations in the number of multi-national corporate investors in the community.


ACCREDITATION

The International School of Bergen was accredited in 1985, then re-accredited in 1995 by both the European Council of International Schools (UK) and the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (USA). The school was awarded accreditation for a 10-year period, which is the maximum amount granted to schools. This indicates the high esteem the organisations have for our programmes. The school is also accredited by the International Baccalaureate Organisation to deliver the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme in Grades 6 through 10 and was last evaluated in 2003.


LOCATION AND PREMISES

The school, a purpose-built facility, is housed on the Slettebakken Skole campus, located approximately 5km. from the Bergen city centre. In addition to individual classrooms, ISB facilities include a library with an integrated media centre, a gymnasium (nearby swimming and ice-skating facilities are also used), a computer room, art and music rooms and a well-equipped science laboratory. The school has a high speed ADSL Internet connection.



STUDENT BODY

During the 2004-05 school year approximately 200 students are enrolled from more than 30 countries, with the larger representations being from the UK, USA, India and Norway. The atmosphere at ISB is warm, friendly, and supportive with individual attention given to the unique needs of each of our children. While academic standards are high, the teaching staff works with the students to provide the structure and study skills necessary to achieve success.



ACADEMIC PROGRAMME

The ISB academic programme has been patterned after the best available UK/US models. The curriculum overviews for the Pre-Kindergarten Programme (3 and 4 year olds), the Kindergarten through 5th grades, and the 6th through 10th grades are included in this package. Those students who have been successful in the ISB programme have reported that they have been very successful in the schools they have transferred to upon leaving Bergen. Our Norwegian students who have successfully completed the ISB programme and who have taken state examinations have done very well and report that they have been well prepared for study in Norwegian schools. We are particularly pleased by the success of our students who have enrolled in the International Baccalaureate Programme. It should be noted that ISB is the only school in Western Norway currently authorised to offer the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme, designed to prepare students for entry into the full Baccalaureate Programme at Bergen Katedralskole or similar.

International School of Bergen Villhelm Bjerknesvei 15 5081 Bergen Norway Tel: +47 55 30 63 30 Fax: +47 55 30 63 31. Email: murison@isb.gs.hl.no

Website: http://www.isb.gs.hl.no/