BG GIBS

GIBS is a bilingual (German-English) senior secondary school for students aged 10-18. At present the school comprises more than 600 students and over 60 teaching staff. The rest of the team is made up of the French-, English- and Spanish-speaking co-teachers and the administrative staff. The language of instruction is English in the form of flexible monolingualism. The first three months of Year 1 take the form of an intensive phase of language acquisition after which the students have reached a level of language competence which enables them to participate in lessons conducted in the target language. Following the intensive phase, linguistic back-up for other subjects is provided when required in the English class. In Year 7 History is taught in English/French/Spanish. During the first five school years in particular, different subjects collaborate on broad projects that supplement language instruction. Between Year 6 and Year 8, the upper level course system ensures the interconnection and deepening of learning material. Students from non-German speaking countries receive instruction in German as a foreign language. Their evaluation is in accordance to §18/12 of the School Instruction Guidelines which allows students to select either German or English as their first language of instruction and be thereby assessed accordingly (Note: this does not apply to the final exam/Matura due to legal regulations). Mission Statement: Using a wide range of learning strategies to acquire skills and academic knowledge as a basis for life-long learning. Developing autonomy and team qualities through taking responsibility for one`s actions. Teaching, learning and communicating in several languages. Encouraging respect for cultural diversity. Developing critical awareness and constructive ways of dealing with criticism of oneself and the world at large.