International School of Aberdeen

ISA connects playful pathways for student-centred learning

At International School Aberdeen (ISA), they believe in empowering students to take control over their own learning in a caring, encouraging and supportive environment. Their student-centred approach focuses not on what students learn, but how they learn.

As Scotland’s first international school educating children from age 3 to 18, they take pride in using best practices in education from around the world. Their strength is diverse intelligence, providing something different when it comes to independent education.

Most recently, they have been exploring the connection between work and play and how the key to teaching (and more importantly, retaining) real knowledge is not held in the completion of worksheets.

They believe emphasis on repetitive learning and logic alone does not engage or inspire students to learn. ISA’s learning is wide, with no barriers.

Young children are curious about the world around them and they ask questions to connect new experiences to existing knowledge. In 2021, they continued their 100% pass rate in the prestigious International Baccalaureate Diploma with students scoring 10% above world averages in an already elite qualification.

They are proud of how the school has adapted to the many changes the global pandemic has brought over the last two years. Many of the students are from the UK, but many others join the school from around the world and as such, are well equipped to deal with change.

However, as a school, they are not fixated on handing out grades.

They encourage each child to be better than they were the day before.

They stand for helping students understand their own capacities and how to stretch them.

ISA’s team of experienced teachers know that by engaging students through methods like humour, storytelling and group activities, their brains will adapt to produce powerful results.