The British Schools of Montevideo
| The British Schools of Montevideo | |
|---|---|
| Motto | "Perfice" |
| Established | 1908 |
| Type | Private |
| Location |
Montevideo,  Uruguay |
| Campus | Carrasco |
| Colors | Green |
| Website | Official Page |
About The British Schools, Montevideo.
The British Schools, Montevideo, was founded in 1908 and celebrates its founders' day on 8 October each year. It was born from a joint initiative of The British Cemetery Society and The Anglican Church to establish an English school in Montevideo with "the object of giving children a complete education, both intellectual and moral, based upon the ideas and principles of the best schools in The British Isles". The School is organised as a private, coeducational, non-profit and non-denominational day school, which aims to provide an excellent bilingual education combining the Uruguayan national curriculum with a strong English language programme. The School is governed by a Board of Governors elected by The British Schools Society, whose Honorary President is the British Ambassador to Uruguay.
Located in the suburbs of Montevideo, in the residential area of Carrasco, the School site encompasses the Senior School, Junior School, Early Years Centre (EYC), Auditorium (seating capacity 420), Cafeteria, Sports House, Pavilion, Playing Fields, Hockey, Rugby, Football pitches, a synthetic Hockey pitch, outdoor Tennis Courts, Basketball Court, Gymnasium (1654m2) and Open Air Swimming Pool.
The School has an active parent and family community, who are organised in various groups through the auspices of the Parent’s Committee, Form Parents and International Mothers. The School also has very close links with and strong support from the School’s alumni, including The Old Boys and Old Girls Club. There are many opportunities for all parents to become involved in the activities of the School.
Educational Programmes
Parents are drawn to the School by its challenging bi-lingual programme and strong set of values. The School programme is academically rigorous and continues to achieve high success rates both in the national and international courses with over 90% of the students achieving a Bilingual IB Diploma. The implementation of a dual curriculum in Senior combines the benefits of an International Programme together with the content and experience of a National Programme. This unique positioning of the School in providing students with the dual curriculum experience has enriched the process of curriculum development for teachers, students and the community.
History
Classes began on 5 February 1909, in a building located in Juan Blanes Street. As was customary at the time, there were two separate schools: one for boys and one for girls, and only the Kindergarten section, situated in a different part of town, was mixed. In its inaugural year the School roll had a total of 82 pupils (44 boys and 38 girls/Kindergarten). By 1917 all three sections of the School moved to new premises and in August 1925 H.R.H. the Prince of Wales laid the foundation stone for a new building in the area of Pocitos, which had been "specially designed and built to meet all the requirements of an up-to-date British school". Dedicated by President José Serrato, in March 1926, the School had separate entrances, stairs and playgrounds for boys and girls and they were taught in separate classrooms.
In 1936 marked a watershed for The British Schools: in that year it went co-educational and the official Uruguayan Liceo section was incorporated. Ten years later, the Board of Governors, with a vision of the future development of the Schools decided to buy 10 hectares of land in the outlying area of Carrasco, on which to build a new campus. In 1958, the Senior School moved to Carrasco and finally, in 1965, the Junior moved from Pocitos to its present site. The 70's brought other major changes: The British Schools was amongst the first, worldwide, to introduce the International Baccalaureate; in 1977, two extra pre-university years (Preparatorios) were added to the Senior School, and the administrative structure was changed to include two independent Heads, one for the Senior and one for the Junior School in lieu of the overall School Headmaster. This structure was only revisited in 2007 with the introduction of the position of Principal who acts as the overall Head of the School. Remaining in the vanguard of educational practices, a pre-school class for 4 year-olds was opened in 1990. In 1993, a building across the street from the Junior building was purchased and refurbished to house this new Kindergarten.
See also
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