Courtesy of King’s College International School Bangkok
When we choose a school what should we be looking for? So many parents have asked me this question, as there are so many ways to compare schools. The size of the swimming pool? The number of activities on offer after school? The number of nationalities? At King’s College International School Bangkok (King’s Bangkok), we have answers to all of these questions; we have world-class facilities, including a 50m swimming pool (and splash pool for the younger students); we have over 200 after-school activities, and we are proud of the 28 different nationalities that we have on campus. However, we believe that these questions do not tell you what to look for in a school for your children. I would like to explain the things that make King’s Bangkok the right school for so many families in Bangkok and how we focus on developing great hearts.
Clear Vision
We have three central pillars of our education: academic excellence, a wide range of co-curricular activities, and outstanding pastoral care, which means that the students’ well-being is at the centre of our work. These three pillars are central in developing the whole child, in helping students understand their passions, and in preparing them for life after school. Underlying these pillars is a strong foundation of values: good manners, kindness and wisdom. Even students who have been with us for just a few weeks understand the importance of being well-rounded and showing our values.
Learning From Excellence
Through our collaboration with King’s College School, Wimbledon (King’s Wimbledon), we have the ability to lean on nearly 200 years of experience from one of the world’s most academically successful schools. Our partnership covers all areas of the school: Mr Andrew Halls, OBE and former Head Master of King’s Wimbledon, has been helping us as our Honorary Principal, and the team in London is involved in the interview process for every teacher in order to ensure that we recruit the most qualified teachers and highly experienced senior leaders. To date, we have recruited 127 teachers from a pool of 7,000 applications. This has helped us centre our teaching on our mission to ‘engage, inspire and extend’ every member of our community. Alongside this, they support us with governance and quality audits to ensure we are supported to be the best possible school in all areas.
Grow Together, Go Further
We truly believe that childhood and teenage years are precious and should be enjoyed. We believe that young people should be celebrated, encouraged, and recognised for their contributions to the school. This is regardless of whether they are exceptional at maths, or exceptional at being kind to their friends because both are equally important at King’s Bangkok. This is why we are so proud that every student, parent, carer or member of staff works together to help our students go further. Every day we have happy faces flowing through the school turnstiles, events at which everyone can come together to celebrate the efforts of our students, and why we all work in partnership to create something truly special. When every member of the school feels valued and supported, they are able to achieve success in whichever format is best suited to them. When we shift the focus from the narrow goal of achieving top grades in exams and instead focus on supporting each individual to achieve success in their chosen area, we allow students to flourish in new and exciting ways, pushing the boundaries of what success looks like.
So when we choose a school, what should we be looking for? Whilst it is tempting to look only at world-class facilities and numerical comparisons between schools, I would encourage you to look beyond this.
What are The Early Years Like at King’s Bangkok?
Each morning Early Years children are welcomed to their classroom by the adults who are there to care for them throughout the day allowing for a holistic approach to their education. Learning is interwoven in their child-led play and supported by quality interactions with the adults in their classroom. Their play is interspersed with bursts of whole-class, shared time; time to sing a song, read a story, practise a skill or to simply find out what others have been learning and playing. At King’s Bangkok, we follow the UK’s Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Curriculum, and as such have a strong focus on a child’s Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Physical Development and Communication and Language Development. In addition to the EYFS curriculum, Early Years children also are taught by specialists for Music, PE, Swimming, Thai Language, Thai Culture and Mandarin. Our amazing staff also organise special community events, such as our Teddy Bear’s picnic, to maintain a sense of community and exciting playful experiences using the different learning spaces available such as our Early Years climbing wall, allotment and Splash Zone to foster a child’s excitement towards learning. Early Years education is so much more than preparing a child for Key Stage 1. A good Early Years education is crucial for supporting a child’s development and is a strong foundation to help shape the adult they will become; our whole school values of good manners, kindness, and wisdom start in Early Years where the seeds of empathy, respect and independence are sown and nurtured.
Primary School: A Whole Child Education and Another Step Further to Develop a Great Heart
Teachers at King’s Bangkok work hard to get to know their children as individuals and to build positive relationships, so our children walk into school each day feeling happy and secure. Our personalised approach to education puts the child at the centre of this experience.
In Key Stage 1 (Years 1 to 2), the children build on the strong foundations already laid in EY. Students are given the opportunity to question, collaborate and explore through a play-centred curriculum which helps them develop a range of soft skills, in addition to the key knowledge required by the English national curriculum. Igniting a love for education at this age ensures our children grow into lifelong learners.
In Key Stage 2 (Years 3 to 6), the children hone their skills through units of enquiry, carefully planned by our skilled teachers. We see children grow into curious, resilient and self-motivated learners who can tackle complex and interconnected problems. We encourage children to question things, to build their own opinions and think critically about information presented to them.
To help prepare our students for the move up to Senior School, we provide a carefully tailored transition program designed in partnership with the Senior School, and with input from our colleaques at King’s Wimbledon. Throughout Primary, the children are also taught a wide range of specialist lessons in subjects including: Art, Computing, Drama, D&T, PE, Swimming, Music and languages. They also have access to a range of educational technology which is used to enhance the learning experience.
The Primary school is a place where children begin to discover more about who they are and where their passions lie. The broad and balanced Primary curriculum on offer at King’s Bangkok, along with our extensive co-curricular programme and child-centred pastoral care, enables our children to find out what those passions are and allows them to truly be the best versions of themselves: citizens of an ever-changing world who will embody our steadfast values of good manners, kindness and wisdom and carry these with them, every step of the way.
King’s Bangkok now welcomes applications for girls and boys aged 2-17.
Please email us with any enquiries at [email protected] or visit www.kingsbangkok.ac.th or call 02 481 9955.
