International Schools Award
Background
The British Council School International School Award
(ISA) is a benchmarking scheme that accredits schools as having an outstanding
level of support for its teaching practice to
add
- International Dimension in its curriculum
- Innovation to classroom curriculum transaction
In India it was launched in
2004 and till date 550 schools have received the award with an additional 330
more working on it in the current year. The range of schools participating in
the International School Award includes the elite private schools to government
schools from rural areas.
Why should schools work towards the
International School
Award?
Schools across the world are grappling with the
challenge of providing relevant education in a changing world scenario. Moving
away from the traditional chalk and talk model of content oriented teaching
towards process and value oriented experiential learning requires a
transformational change.
This type of change is hard to bring about by discrete
workshops or even extended staff training away from classroom where follow-up on
action is difficult to ascertain, achievements difficult to measure and success
rarely celebrated.
The ISA approach to school development is holistic and
mirrors and models the approach that we are encouraging teachers to use with
their students. It is also rigorous and evidence based.
The ISA is a leadership challenge, which will foster
teambuilding, innovation, and project management. Getting the Action plan and
dossier together will bring the staff together to examine each others practices
and evolve a new way of working. Keeping them motivated and going through the
course of one academic year will test the head teachers and ISA coordinators
leadership skills. As we know good leadership is second only to good teaching in
raising students outcome in schools.
It is content free and sits within individual schools
curriculum framework just harnessing the every human beings innate desire to
explore the world to drive learning. After all, the entire tourism industry
thrives on peoples desire to spend their free time going from one place to and
another and putting themselves to considerable trouble and discomfort only to be
able to come back to say they had a wonderful holiday.
ISA gives context to practice new skills in ICT and
pedagogy in a safe and structured manner. It adds the element of excitement and
enthusiasm that is needed to make learning joyful.
Participating in Action Planning workshop, online
community and the award ceremony brings together a large network of schools
across the country fostering rich exchange of ideas, broadening of vision and
creating of a strong community of education
professionals.
ISA allows learning to end on a positive note with each
project leader, the head teacher and the ISA coordinator receiving an individual
certificate from the British Council when the school achieves the award.
An ISA is not the end. The schools and teachers involved
in the ISA may remain engaged with the British Council programmes online beyond
the assessment year. Outstanding coordinators and schools may be invited to
become a British Council School Ambassador, join the ISA assessment Panel and
co-facilitate workshops.
Is your school ready to participate
in the International School
Award?
A school is ready to participate in the International
School Award if it has basic infrastructure and at least one computer with
Internet facility accessible to students. At least one teacher has to have
adequate working knowledge of English language.
The schools that benefit most are schools that are
seeking ways of improving teaching and learning practice in the classroom and
would like to see some transformational change from traditional methods to more
innovative methods.
What are the cost implications of
participation in the ISA?
All independent privately managed and funded schools
will have to pay a one time registration fee of Rs 15,000 to be eligible to
participate in the programme.
Government managed schools participating through the
sponsorship of their parent organisation will need to pay a discounted fee of Rs
10,000 per school if upto 50 schools from that organisation are applying
together and in this case a separate agreement will need to be signed of between
the sponsoring body and the British Council in
India.
Schools recommended and supported by a British Council
School Ambassador will be able to participate at a discounted registration fee
of Rs 12,500 only. Our BCSAs are copied on this
mail.
The one time registration fee entitles the school to the
support provided by the British Council as listed below but it does not cover
cost of travel to and from the workshops or award ceremony venues, incidental
project costs or accommodation costs if any are required.
The payment of registration fee does not entitle the
schools to the ISA which is granted after rigorous assessment of standards and
schools cannot claim the awards on the grounds of payment of the registration
fee. In case the school is unable to get the ISA in the first assessment year
then no fee needs to be paid for the second attempt. Thereafter a fresh
registration will be needed.
What support do schools get from the
British Council on their ISA journey?
British Council will arrange an ISA Action Planning Workshop and a ISA Dossier Guidance Workshop and Review Meeting
at their offices in Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai
and other major cities across India based on demand.
These are delivered by British Council staff and / or British Council School
Ambassadors (highly skilled and specially selected school teachers and head
teachers who have experience of working on ISA or are a part of the ISA panel).
Besides the two one day workshops it will also have
information and support available to schools through its portal British Council Schools
Online
Community and schools may seek help from registered
British Council School Ambassadors
for queries at any time through the process of working towards their
ISA.
Schools may also seek prior appointment and come into
the office and British Council libraries to view dossiers of successful schools.
What is the process involved in
working towards a successful ISA dossier?
They need to make an action plan with at least seven
specific activities for a range of year groups and a range of curriculum area
running through one academic year. The first draft of the action plan is
carefully assessed by an assessment panel and either approved or may be asked to
improve according to recommendation. Schools execute the activities and submit a
dossier of evidence. The evidence portfolio is assessed by the British Council
Assessment Panel. ISA panel may suggest recommendation for improvement and
resubmission after more work or approve the dossiers as
appropriate.
What is the
Award?
The schools that are able to complete their action plan
and present evidence will receive the ISA and will be able to use the ISA logo
on all their school correspondence for a three year period. They will also have
the opportunity to attend an award ceremony and the Connecting Classrooms
workshop held at any of the four metro cities across
India each year.
Those dossiers that demonstrate outstanding achievement
and innovation in delivering the international dimension in the curriculum will
be awarded a silver and a gold standard ISA in recognition of their exceptional
achievement the number and decision of such award will be at the discretion of
the ISA assessment panel.
Besides the award the outstanding schools will have the
opportunity to show case their dossiers at our offices and libraries, speak at
British Council events as resources persons, get invitation to selected events
and workshops and be may be invited to join the ISA assessment panel in the
future.
Signing up for the
ISA?
To sign up for the ISA please fill out the attached
registration forms and return to the address given below with the appropriate
registration fee. (Cheque/draft for the
correct amount may be drawn in favour of “British Council
Division”)
The Connecting
Classrooms School
Team
British Council
Division
17 Kasturba Gandhi Marg
New
Delhi 110001
The ISA Briefing Dates in the near future
are
20
January 2012 - 10.00 am – 4.00 pm
Delhi
23rd
January 2012 – 10.00 am – 4.00 pm
Bhopal
10th
Feb 2012 – 10 AM to 4 PM
Chandigarh
14th
Feb 2012 – 10.00 am - 4.00 pm Jaipur
24th
Feb 2012 – 10.00 am – 4.00 pm Delhi (depends on
seats available)
Please indicate your preferred date on the form. The
dates will be on first come first serve basis.
