The Kilmore International School
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The Kilmore International School (TKIS) is in Kilmore, Victoria, Australia. She offers academic education which is considered unique in Australia in preparating all the students for the Diplomat of International Baccalaureate, to facilitate entry to universities within Australia and around the world including: The University of Cambridge, Oxford University, UCLA, Harvard University, University of Melbourne, University of NSW, University of Sydney, etc.
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[edit] History
The Kilmore International School is modelled on international schools overseas. The school itself is approximately 1 hour from Victoria's Tullamarine Airport situated in the township of Kilmore in the outskirts of Melbourne. It was established in 1990, not so much to fill an ‘education gap’ within the region to the north of Melbourne, but to provide a very different education experience for both local and international students who wished to study in a truly international environment.
The buildings of the school were originally built in 1887 by the Marist Brothers and became Assumption College for boys. When Assumption became a co-educational school the buildings and grounds accommodated the girls’ boarding section of the school and a new school was built on the western side of what was then the old Hume Highway (now Sydney Road and Powlett Street).
The buildings were vacated in the early 1980s and stood empty until being purchased by the current owners. The new owners completely renovated and modernised the existing buildings. New classrooms including a library, science wing, drama and music wing, art rooms, computer rooms, general classrooms along with staffrooms were added over the next fifteen years as well as a motel style dormitory for girls which currently accommodates 43 students and 2 staff.
In addition to these new buildings 10 homes have been purchased, either adjacent to or near the school, to accommodate boarding students. These homes have been extended and renovated to give students ensuite bathrooms and twin share rooms.
When purchased, the grounds of the school had never been developed and were basically bare paddocks. Since then, extensive work has been carried out and now includes 2 soccer fields, a baseball field, basketball court and tennis courts. The gardens have been tendered lovingly by a full time gardener and groundsman and have been ‘on show’ during previous open garden schemes.
In terms of student and staff growth, the school commenced classes in May 1990 with only 4 students. By the end of the 1990 school year, 22 students were attending. Student population has steadily grown over the past 15 years and is set to exceed 460 in 2006.
The current TKIS principal is Mr. J.Settle.
[edit] Campus and facilities
The main campus is in Kilmore, Victoria. It is located approximately 1.5km from the town centre.
Internet access, printers and computers are available at strategic locations throughout the school and in the boarding facilities.
[edit] Music & Arts Department
The current head of the music department is Ms. P.Robinson; a virtuoso flautist (flute player) that used to perform professionally in a few of the famous Victorian music circles. The main objective of the music department is to provide high class musical education to further hone the talents of the student and explore the scope of musical diversity in society. Frequent musical events held by the school and Kilmore township allows students to demonstrate the virtuosity of their talents and musical achievements.
Aside from the extensive musical curriculum ranging from traditional tribal music to the Romantic era opera, students can experience some of the great musical talents and events held in the city of Melbourne in person through field trips.
[edit] International Baccalaureate Curriculum
The International Baccalaureate Diplomat curriculum program is used by TKIS since 1990. Courses for year 7 to 12 (inclusive) were offered to promote "pursuit of academic excellence" for students seeking to complete their secondary education within a secure environment. The IB is internationally recognised and depending on a score out of 45 split between 6 subjects worth 7 marks each and 3 marks from a philosophical study know as The Theory of Knowledge or better known as TOK. Assuming that scores the highest possible score, 45, the student may be eligible to enroll into some of the worlds most recognised tertiary education institutions.
Subjects are split up into 7 subjects with a compulsory social science, natural science, native language, mathematics, TOK and secondary language and another further elective of any of the previous mentioned fields of study. These subjects are of course all compulsory. Each subject varies in difficult; split between 'High Level,' and 'Standard Level.' The difficulty of some of the subjects may equate to first year university studies.
[edit] English and other languages
All courses are taught in English with strong ESL support in conjunction with normal academic subjects.
All international boarding students are encouraged to speak English to each other at all times.
The school also offers a wide range of languages including Chinese Mandarin, French, Hindi, German, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean and Thai. Most languages are taught to the native language level by native speaking staff members.
[edit] Notable alumni
Neil Holdaway
Jason Andrews
Yusuke Watanabe
Chris Rees
Kishen Kaurah
[edit] Traditions
Football (soccer) is one of the main competitive games students enjoy to play at the school, this is against the trend of the local area where Australian Rules is the preferred code. The King of Soccer (KOS) Tournament is held every year since 2000, this tournament captures the school's imagination and is a refeshing distraction to the school's tough academic demands. KOS has seen some great players over the years including Neil Holdaway, Kishen "The Squid" Kaurah, Alec "Weird Guy" Poon (co-founder of KOS), Tom O' Connor, Jason "J.A" Andrews, Kenny Yoo, Jake "Foetus" Breen, Cailum Cherry, Anthony Widjaja, Na Dol, the Schneider twins (Simon and Cedrik) just to name a few.
[edit] References
Main Kilmore International School Website http://www.TKIS.com.au
[edit] See also
- List of schools in Victoria
- List of schools in Victoria, Australia according to 2006 VCE results
- List of boarding schools
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