To educate the youth of the world to take their productive place as leaders in the global community.

PurposeOUR

and caring for each otherBeing dedicated to a culture of

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in what we doenvironment

RespectingExcellenceCommunicationIntegrityPassionateEnjoyable

Core ValuesOUR

A SUPPORTIVE, INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY

Academic Care

At GIS, we consider our learners’ well-being and happiness equally important as their academic progress and achievement. This notion of ‘Academic Care’ underpins everything we do at GIS and ensures every child can flourish during their time with us.

Our class teachers (Primary and EYC) and Secondary tutors offer ongoing support to children and parents throughout each academic year. By getting to know each child as an individual, they are able to support their academic, emotional and social development. Heads of Year, Senior Leaders and our dedicated team of full-time counsellors work closely together alongside our teachers to ensure that every child receives the support they need, whenever they need it.

Ensuring Students Feel Safe & Supported

By focusing on Social and Emotional Learning, we are able to help support our students’ wellbeing and emotional resilience.

Inclusion

At GIS, we are proud to be an inclusive school and we endeavour to meet the individual needs of all the students in our care. We offer a supportive environment that recognises and respects students’ different talents and learning differences, backgrounds and cultures.

We strive to ensure all students achieve their personal

potential by:

• Designing challenging, differentiated learning experiences, provisions in which the teaching, learning, achievements, attitudes and well-being of all the students matter.

• Engaging the expertise of the Inclusion Team to ensure students are happy and comfortable in their school experience and subsequently with their learning.

Inclusion at GIS means supporting staff and students across the whole school. We offer expertise in:

• Learning Support: Supporting students with mild to moderate learning differences through both in-class and targeted support.

• English as an additional language (EAL): Supporting our diverse community of English language learners through a comprehensive EAL programme that allows learners to progress at their own pace.

• Counselling: Developing emotional literacy in our students, as well as supporting their transition into GIS and beyond.

• Health Care: Administered via our caring nurses at our on-site Health Centre,

By working together to bring out the best in all our students, we strive to create an inclusive learning environment where all students can feel a sense of belonging and are able to fully engage with the curriculum.

We are a proudly diverse community, with families from 65 different nationalities. Genuinely inclusive, we offer exceptional

learning opportunities for students from a wide range of academic backgrounds and with a wide range of abilities. At

the same time, we consistently achieve some of the finest academic results in the country and our students achieve

value-added results that reflect extraordinary progress.

These successes are a real testament to our outstanding teaching faculty, our commitment to ongoing professional

learning, and to our whole-school learning culture.

Our holistically shaped programmes and approach, in which success is measured by more than just great grades, defines

what we do. I am incredibly proud of the high level of pastoral care that we offer all of our students, care that is coupled with

first-class teaching and fine-tuned academic mentoring.

Our Alumni are a testament to this success and go on to achieve great things all over the world. We believe it is the quality and range of the enrichment opportunities that we offer that helps to ensure every graduate leaves GIS with

the opportunity to reach their greatest potential.

We invite you to discover yours at Garden International School.

Welcome toGarden International School

Robert Stitch , Principal

Core ValuesOUR PurposeAND

British Syllabusfrom Preschool to Sixth Form

65Nationalities

AppleDistinguished School

GIS graduates attend the world’s best

universities including Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard and Penn

Co-CurricularProgrammes

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70 Years ofHeritage

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21ST CENTURY LEARNINGAt GIS, we believe that every child is capable of reaching their full potential, and year upon year we produce students who do just that. We are proud to share that GIS students consistently achieve some of the best examination results in the world and go on to attend the world’s best universities.

We strive to nurture well-rounded individuals who leave school with the right mix of skills, qualities and competencies to ensure they succeed in the world as young adults. We strongly believe it is this holistic approach, which underpins all of our learning at GIS, that benefits our students the most. To navigate our students through their learning journey, we have developed a set of common goals that are used throughout all areas of the academic and wider learning curriculum - uniting us in a shared belief of what young people can - and should - become. We call these our learner skills.

GlanceGIS AT A Learning CultureTHE GIS

The GIS learning culture is based around a shared belief that we can grow and learn together as a community. We aim to constantly develop each learner’s full potential by offering our students the very best learning environments, at home and at school. We aim to provide all of the tools and opportunities that our learners need, so that we can grow as individuals and thrive as a whole. The result is a learning environment where everyone benefits - not just our students.

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The GIS Learner Skills represent the unique profile of a GIS learner. Together, they enable our students to make connections across a wide array of disciplines - ensuring they are equipped with the knowledge and context to meet increasingly important and aspirational elements of 21st-century learning. By encouraging a deeper understanding of how to think differently, learn together, be resilient, ask questions and get involved, our students become true global thinkers, adaptable life long learners and well-rounded people in preparation for the wider world that awaits them.

THE IMPORTANCE OF STUDENT LEADERSHIPWe are proud to offer one of the most extensive and meaningful student leadership programmes in Asia.

Across both Primary and Secondary, nearly 200 student leaders have the opportunity to lead their peers and our community in ‘strands’ that inspire and motivate them. From environmental issues to student wellbeing, to sporting and community focused-strands to those focused on digital technology – our students are given a broad range of projects to take ownership of.

Whether they’re running charity events or interviewing new school leaders, introducing community recycling or coordinating musical performances, our GIS student leaders are empowered to really make a difference. In fact, many of our most successful community initiatives - such as our annual ‘Street Store’ and ‘Drop and Go’ weekly recycling project - have all been conceived, planned and led by our amazing student leaders.

A COMMUNITY OF LEARNERSAt GIS, we consider ourselves a learning community. That means we see our parents and teachers as learners, not just our students.

We offer a comprehensive programme of weekly parent workshops that are designed to engage and educate our parent community.

Delivered by a combination of expert GIS teachers and external specialists, these workshops cover a huge range of topics: recent examples include curriculum-based sessions focused on the teaching of reading and maths and wellbeing sessions focused on teenage psychology, anxiety and sleep. Our parent workshops are always well attended and are offered free of charge.

For teachers, we offer an outstanding professional development programme, widely recognised as one of the best in the region. Every week, all GIS teachers spend at least two hours developing their skills, building their knowledge and reflecting on their practice, all with the aim of having a greater impact on our students.

CONNECTING THE CLASSROOM AND COMMUNITY (SERVICE LEARNING)Community service lies at the heart of our school. We are committed to making a positive impact in the world around us and improving the lives of those in need by providing our students an unrivalled opportunity to develop empathy as global citizens, as well as nurturing first-rate project management skills. This is what we refer to as Service Learning.

The school supports five core local charities: EPIC Homes; Make A Wish Foundation; Free Tree Society, JREC and The GIS Street Feeding Programme.

Popular GIS fundraising initiatives and awareness campaigns include: Jeans for Genes, The Big Read, Movember (for our staff), our own student-led Refugee Sports Day and Christmas Party and UN Day, a much-loved cultural event for the whole community.

Wherever possible, GIS students lead our charity initiatives. Through community-focused CCAs, assemblies, tutor time sessions, Mufti (a long standing school fundraising tradition), and our annual Discovery Week.

We are extremely proud of our globally-minded students and the value we create for the communities and projects we work with.

At Garden International School, we believe that the curriculum encompasses the total learning experiences of the students, both inside and outside of the classroom. We refer here to the ‘taught curriculum’ that occurs within the classroom. The ‘wider curriculum’ refers to opportunities for learning beyond the classroom including the co-curricular activities (CCA) programme, the camps and trips programme, and Sports and Arts.

The student welfare programme provides a means to incorporate the reflective thinking and support that unify all the elements of the curriculum at GIS.

Garden International School uses the National Curriculum for England and Wales (NC) as a basis for its taught curriculum. At GIS, this curriculum is designed to bring out the best in international students and to provide a high quality and broad education which enables students to move to any other country fully equipped to succeed. Across the school, our courses are designed to enable students to acquire important subject knowledge, understanding and skills and also to develop the GIS Learner Skills as they strive to become effective global citizens.

Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum (EYFS)

A Unique Child• Playing and Exploring• Active Learning• Creating and Thinking Critically

Prime • Personal, Social and Emotional Development • Communication & Language• Physical Development

Specific • Literacy• Mathematics• Understanding the World • Expressive Arts and Design

Mandarin

Jungle School Programme• Outside of classroom learning in a natural environment

Learning Areas:

EYC 3-5 years oldNursery & Reception

National Curriculum for EnglandGIS Enquiry Units• English, Science, Mathematics, Humanities, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Art & Design

Specialist Teaching• Music, Physical Education (PE),

Modern Foreign Languages (MFL): Malay, Mandarin

KS1 5-7 years oldYears 1-2

National Curriculum for EnglandGIS Enquiry Units• English, Science, Mathematics, Humanities, ICT, Art & Design

Specialist Teaching• Music, Physical Education,

MFL: Malay, Mandarin

In Years 5 and 6, French and Spanish are added to the MFL programme, as well as the option to continue studying Malay and Mandarin

KS2 7-11 years oldYears 3-6

KS3 11-14 years oldYears 7-9

Specialist taught subjects based on National Curriculum for England

Core Subjects

English, Science, Mathematics

Compulsory Subjects

History, Geography Drama, Art, Music, Design Technology (DT) ICT & Enterprise, Physical Education

MFL: Malay, Mandarin, French, Spanish

English Literature

History, Geography, Psychology, Sociology

Mandarin, Spanish, French

Art, Craft and Design, Art and Design: Photography, DT - Product Design, Drama, Music

Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Physics

Business, Computer Science, Economics

Edexcel Extended Project or GIS Academic Enrichment Programme

Physical Education

KS4 14-16 years oldYears 10-11

IGCSE (Cambridge & Edexcel)

Core Subjects

Option Subjects

Mathematics or Fast Track Mathermatics,

English Language and English Literature,

Co-ordinated Science,

Global Awareness Project

Triple Science

History, Geography, Sociology

Art, DT Resistant Materials, DT Graphics,

Drama, Photography, Music

World Languages: Malay, Mandarin, French, Spanish

ICT, Computer Sciences, Business,

Economics, Accounting, PE

A Level (Cambridge & Edexcel)

GIS Diploma

KS5 16-18 years oldYears 12-13

Achieve at least three good A-levels (grade C or above)

Complete the Extended Project or Enrichment Programme

Complete the Community Sports Leadership Award or the Expedition Leader Award for GIS Gold International Award students

As well as completing a challenging academic curriculum, our students are also encouraged to extendthemselves by completing the GIS Diploma.

A GIS Diploma is awarded to students who:

CurriculumGIS

• CCA Programmes

• Dragons Sport Programmes

• Jungle School Programme• Day Trips• Outdoor Education Camps

• Immersive Environment• Free Flow• Apple Distinguished Programme

• Instrumental Music Programme (IMP)

• Singing Playground• Year Group Shows• Upper Primary School Production• Key Stage 3 Production• Secondary School Musical

• Personal, Social & Health Education (PSHE)

• Student Leadership Programmes• Community Sports Leaders Award

• The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award• Expedition Leader Award

Wider CurriculumSCHOOL’S

Specialist teachers support the teaching of Art, Design and Technology, Music, ICT and Physical Education. In Modern Foreign Languages, children are allowed to learn both Mandarin and Malay - the national language, helping them to develop the skills and passion to learn an additional language.

Courses in Drama, Art, Music, Design Technology, ICT, PE, History and Geography are compulsory at Key Stage 3, along with the core subjects of Maths, English and Science that they will continue up to age 16. They can also select two modern foreign languages chosen from Malay, Mandarin, Spanish and French. This extensive curriculum is taught by highly qualified specialist teachers who make full use of the school’s wide-ranging specialist facilities.

Class sizes average around 22. In English, Maths and Languages, teaching is responsive to meet the ranging needs. Individual mentoring is provided to students by their personal tutors.

There is a structured programme of camps that form an important part of the curriculum. These opportunities outsie the classroom are designed to develop interpersonal and leadership skills, environmental awareness, independent learning and time management skills.

As they progress through Key Stage 3, students become self-motivated, independent and enquiring learners and ready to take on the challenge of IGCSE courses.

In Years 10 and 11, all students follow courses in English Language and Literature or English as an Additional Language, Mathematics, Science and PE, in addition to a Global Awareness Project. Students choose a range of subjects suited to their individual aspirations and abilities. There is a detailed guide to the courses available and advice provided by senior teachers in helping students make the best decision.

In Years 7 to 12, students are able to apply to become a Student Leader within one of the nine strands - Learning, Action, Well-being, Green, Digital Learning, Arts, Sports, Mentoring and House. These Student Leaders form a key part of the decision making process in many areas of the school.

THE SIXTH FORM ADVANTAGEThe GIS Sixth Form promotes academic excellence in all students, offering International AS and A level qualifications. These are delivered by outstanding teachers with knowledge and expertise in Key Stage 5 education, who are always ready to go the extra mile to set their students on the path to success.

However, our philosophy of education goes far beyond that. We are proud of our bespoke Sixth Form Diploma that allows students to enrich their studies beyond the formal curriculum, develop leadership skills and nourish a love of learning. In Sixth Form, we recognise the need to furnish our students with the soft skills that will prepare them for life beyond our school, and are proud of the opportunities our students have to do this in work experience, THRIVE and our extensive CCA programme.

As a result of our track record of academic excellence, holistic approach and skills-based education, it is not surprising that GIS Sixth Form students are sought after by the world’s best universities.

% of All Grades Awarded

A* and A (%)

A* to B (%)

A* to C (%)

3-Year Average

60

81

95

ExcellenceACADEMICA Level Results 3-Year Trend

United KingdomUniversity of Cambridge

University of Oxford

Imperial College London

Durham University

London School of Economics

University of Edinburgh

University College London

Architectural Association

King's College London

University of Bristol

University of Manchester

Barts, Queen Mary University

Central Saint Martins

University of Warwick

University of Bath

Royal Veterinary College

University of St Andrews

Bournemouth University

Lancaster University

University of Liverpool

University of Brighton

Loughborough University

University of York

University of Nottingham

University of Cardiff

University of Southampton

Keele University

University of Exeter

Aberystwyth University

University of Aberdeen

Sheffield Hallam University

University of Surrey

AustraliaAustralian National University

Curtin University

Monash University

University of Sydney

University of Queensland

University of Melbourne

University of Western Australia

University of Adelaide

North AmericaHarvard University

Brown University

University of Pennsylvania

Boston University

University of California, Berkeley

New York University

University of Washington

University of British Columbia

University of Toronto

University of California, San Diego

Illinois Institute of Technology

Lim College, New York

McGill University, Canada

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Savannah College of Art and Design

State University of New York

University of California, Santa Barbara

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

University of Dundee

Heriot-Watt University

University of London

University of Greenwich

University of Kent

University of Leicester

University of Strathclyde

University of the Arts London

University of Winchester

Nottingham Trent

Robert Gordon University

Brunel University

Rest of EuropeBreda University of Applied Sciences

Trinity College, Dublin

Dublin Institute of Technology

Erasmus University, Rotterdam

Leiden University

University College, Cork

University of Twente

Vienna University of Economics and Business

Institut Paul Bocuse

AsiaHKUST

Yale-NUS College

Seoul National University

Yonsei University, Seoul

IMU

Taylor's University

University of Nottingham, Malaysia

GIS UNIVERSITY DESTINATIONS

85�

will attend their 1st choice university

will attend their 1st or2nd choice university

96�

will attend a top 100 university

47�

In the last 3 years, we have placed GIS graduates at 86 universities worldwide including:

KEY STAGE 5

The Structure of A Level Study

A levels are mostly exam-based, although some subjects will have an element of Coursework as well. Most of the subjects that we offer are on a modular basis, with the opportunity to sit exams at the end of AS and complete half of the course, with the other half of the exams sat at the end of Year 13. Some subjects are linear, meaning that all external assessment takes place at the end of Year 13 only.

We offer a wide range of subject choices. In Year 12, most GIS students take four subjects at AS level, with exams at the end of the academic year. In Year 13, students can elect to continue with four subjects to A level, or they can choose to drop one subject, having achieved an AS qualification already. Such decisions are always made in close consultation with the student’s form tutor and Head of Year, with support from one of our Higher Education Advisors if necessary.

THE GIS DIPLOMAWe believe that Sixth Form education should be about more than just achieving fantastic A Levels: it also needs to prepare students for the future and develop them holistically.

For this purpose, we have developed our bespoke GIS Diploma. The transferable skills that are developed through the Diploma enable our students to be fully prepared for life beyond GIS. Every year, our alumni reach out to tell us about the versatility of the transferable skills developed as part of the programme.

Our Diploma includes the study of a range of electives, which help to prepare our students both for university and the challenges they will face in life beyond education, ensuring that all of our Sixth Form students leave us prepared for the future. We also offer a unique summer internship programme in conjunction with our global school alumni network, called THRIVE.

Every Sixth Former at GIS has the chance to complete the GIS Diploma or the GIS Diploma with Honours.

A GIS Diploma is awarded to students who:

Achieve at least three good A-levels

Completion of 2 electives, or

Completion of the Extended Project qualification

A GIS Diploma with Honours is awarded to students who:

Achieve at least three good A-levels

Completion of 2 electives, or

Completion of the Extended Project qualification

Complete the GIS ‘Thrive’ Internship programme (a four-week professional internship, unique to GIS)

THRIVE

Unique to Malaysia, THRIVE is our flagship internship programme.

Open to all Year 12s, the programme runs during the summer break between Year 12 and 13. The GIS THRIVE programme gives students the opportunity to undertake 4 weeks of work experience in their area of passion - usually connected to their intended undergraduate degree. From hospitals to advertising agencies, GIS students have the opportunity to develop ‘real world’ knowledge and skills in their chosen field. During their placement, students compile a portfolio of evidence to showcase their learning and progress, tied to the GIS Learner Skills.

AN ENRICHED CURRICULUMOur Wider Life provision gives our students access to a diverse and inclusive co-curricular programme, as well as ample opportunities for outdoor education and community service.

GIS offers an exceptional programme of Co-Curricular Activities (CCA). One of the largest programmes in South-East Asia, the CCA schedule includes over 150 different activities and clubs across four key areas: Global Citizenship; Creative; Community Service and Physical Performance. Activities run during lunchtimes and after school.

GIS also offers many academic and cultural opportunities for Early Years students right up to Year 13. From Coding to French cooking club, Hip Hop Dance to Public Speaking, we offer students a broad range of co-curricular opportunities to enrich and enhance their learning and wellbeing. MUN (Model United Nations) is a particularly popular CCA at GIS and the school bi-annually hosts the KLMUN (Kuala Lumpur Modern United Nations).

For older students, we are able to offer some very specialist programmes such as our STEP CCA aimed specifically at female students interested in studying STEM subjects at university level. We also offer a very successful Oxbridge CCA that supports students interested in gaining entry to Oxford and Cambridge universities.

SPORT AT GISAt GIS we believe that sporting activity, both as part of a team and as an individual, is important for all aspects of character development and also provides the foundations for a healthy life.

We are very proud of our strong sporting tradition and the outststanding achievements of our sports teams. Our representative teams are called the ‘GIS Dragons’ and regularly perform at the highest levels in inter-school and regional competitions. Dragons sports include Football, basketball, swimming, rugby, touch rugby, cross country, netball, athletics, t-ball, tennis, golf and badminton.

We are a key member of AIMS, FOBISIA and SEASAC, school groups which offer many opportunities for sporting competition. Our GIS Dragons teams regularly participate in weekly league fixtures, weekend tournaments in Kuala Lumpur and international competitions within Southeast Asia. Recent GIS students have gone as far to represent Malaysia at the Southeast Asian Games.

Our Dragons teams are also supplemented by the GISKL Sports Academy. Run by experienced external coaches, our GIS Sports Academy is open to all students. We also offer a huge array of sporting CCAs, allowing every student who wishes to participate the chance to get involved and get active!

ARTS/MUSIC/DRAMA INCLUDING IMPAt GIS, we believe in the power of the creative arts to build our students’ confidence, develop key learner skills and build social connections.

Our Music and Drama departments regularly showcase our students’ talent and commitment through a range of successful concerts and productions. Recent productions have included the Primary production of Alice in Wonderland Junior and the Secondary musical, The Little Mermaid.

The school runs a very popular instrumental music programme (IMP) with over 300 students taking lessons every week. With 12 instruments on offer, both students and parents have the opportunity to take weekly lessons through the school. We also offer a wide range of instrumental groups and choirs and run regular concerts and events so that our young musicians have frequent opportunities to perform.

Our students’ creative arts endeavours are showcased throughout the year at exhibitions and special events, a favourite being the annual ‘Big Draw’ event, which sees our whole school come together with colour and creativity!

OUTDOOR ED, CAMPS & IA Our Outdoor Education programme involves bespoke residential camp programmes across both Primary and Secondary, with all programmes linked closely to our GIS Learner Skills.

From Nursery through to Year 2, GIS children take part in ‘Jungle School’, a unique programme which offers them the opportunity to build key skills and learn about nature in a safe jungle setting.

Annual residential camps run from Year 3 to Year 10, and offer students the opportunity to build teamwork skills and confidence through a wide range of fun and challenging activities. In addition, our annual ‘Discovery Week’ sees GIS Secondary students travelling across Malaysia every year to take part in sustainable community work which is linked to our five core charities.

Many GIS students further challenge themselves by undertaking the International Award (IA) and we are proud to run one of the largest award programmes in the region. Running since 1989, our IA programme provides our Secondary students with incredible opportunities for holistic development: as well as gaining a recognised qualification, students develop resilience, leadership skills, teamwork and have the opportunity to contribute meaningfully to our wider community.

ALUMNI We are proud of our strong alumni network and work hard to forge and nurture strong links with our Alumni community. A dedicated website, as well as a range of active social media groups, ensure that our Alumni can stay in touch with their classmates and with their school.

Our alumni benefit from the professional networking and support that these connections provide, and also have frequent opportunities to ‘give back’ to the GIS community. From offering internships through our unique THRIVE programme to speaking at workshops and events, GIS students have frequent opportunities to benefit from their knowledge, experiences and expertise. They have particularly valuable input into our Sixth Form programme, sharing insights into university life and helping students build connections to serve them in life beyond GIS.

Facilities

Visit gardenschool.edu.my, or email admissions@gardenschool.edu.myor call +603 6209 6888.

Printed in March 2020. Information is correct at the time of printing. Garden International School reserves the right to make amendments.

Campuses

Visit us online at

gardenschool.edu.my