International School of Havana

The International School of Havana was founded in 1965 and currently enrolls some 200 students from 44 nationalities in a warm, caring environment with small class sizes and challenging, demanding academic programmes, taught through the medium of the English language, that run from the Early Years to Grade 12. ISH is accredited by CIS (The Council of International Schools) and NEASC (New England Association of Schools and College) from the Early Years Programme to Grade 10. ISH is also a candidate for accreditation in the recently added Grades 11 and 12 programmes, from both accreditation agencies and ISH is also a candidate for authorization by the International Baccalaureate Organization to teach the IB Diploma programme to students in Grades 11 and 12. The Early Years curriculum is adapted to the needs perceived for students growing up in Havana, from a well known UK Programme. In the Primary School - Kindergarten to Grade 5 - English, mathematics and Spanish programmes are complemented by the International Primary Curriculum (IPC) and are supported by courses in music, art, drama, PE and information technology. The standards of the English National Curriculum and the province of Ontario, Canada were taken into account in the formulation of the English, mathematics and other parts of the curriculum offering apart from the IPC. The mathematics course is IPM (Improving Primary Mathematics) which was developed in the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham, U.K. Secondary school (Grades 6 to 12) courses initially lead to the CIE (Cambridge International Examinations, University of Cambridge UK) Checkpoint examinations, which are taken at the end of Grade 8 in English, mathematics and science. In Grades 9 and 10 students follow courses from the CIE's internationally recognized IGCSE [International General Certificate of Secondary Education) programme in which students are externally examined at the end of Grade 10. In Grades 11 and 12 students follow the courses of the ISH Graduation Diploma which prepares students for university matriculation. The courses have been designed to meet the requirements of the International Baccalaureate Organization in order to smooth the transition into that programme once the school is authorized by IBO. ISH has recently been awarded the status of an International Fellowship Centre by CIE.