Local school given prestigious award for going international
On 11 October Ballyclare High School received the prestigious DfES International School Award at a high profile awards ceremony in London. Presented by the broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby, the winning school was also addressed by Bill Rammell MP, Minister of State for Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education and Professor Mary Stiasny, Director of Education and Training Group at the British Council.
Ballyclare High has been given the award for its fantastic range of international activities and links with many schools abroad, including Gymnasium Petrinum in Dorsten, Germany, and Lycée Camille Sée in Colmar, France. The school is also involved in School Aid Romania and the Achievers International Programme. The commitment to the international ethos of the Board of Governors, the Headmaster and the Staff also plays a significant role.
The International School Award is held for a period of three years after which a school must re-apply to the British Council for accreditation. Ballyclare High is one of only seventeen schools in the Uk to have been granted the award three times.
The Headmaster Mr D Knox commented:
“We are thrilled to be recognised in this way. Our global links have enriched our curriculum and given the pupils – and teachers! - a truly international perspective.”
The International School Award scheme is managed by the British Council and supported and funded by the DfES. It provides recognition for teachers and their schools working to instill an international dimension into the learning experience of all children and young people. Nearly 1000 International School Awards have been presented to successful schools since the scheme began in 1999.
The DfES ISA encourages and supports schools to develop the following:
- An international ethos embedded throughout the school
- A majority of pupils within the school involved in international work
- Collaborative curriculum-based work with a number of partner schools
- Curriculum-based work across a range of subjects
- Year round international activity
- Involvement of the wider community
- Provides ideas for developing collaborative curriculum-based international work with partner schools
For more information, visit www.globalgateway.org or contact Ellen Miller at the British Council on 020 7389 4939.
The British Council
- The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations.
- We operate in 220 towns and cities in 110 countries and territories worldwide.
- We build relationships and understanding between people in the UK and other countries and increase appreciation of the UK’s ideas and achievements overseas.
- The areas we focus on are creativity, education and civil society.
- We are a non-political organisation which operates at arm’s length from government.
- Our income in 2005/06 is expected to be £501 million, of which our grant-in-aid from the British government is £184 million.
