Discover Germany | Special Theme | Top Educational Institutions Switzerland
Peak campus, Lower and Middle Building.
Secondary art room.
Primary atrium.
Sports hall.
Helping students grow into open-minded and responsible world citizens The German Swiss International School (GSIS) in Hong Kong fosters a holistic, community-oriented approach to learning and understanding, resulting in high academic performance. TEXT: CORNELIA BRELOWSKI I PHOTOS: GERMAN SWISS INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL, HONG KONG
When asked what makes her school standout, principal Annette Brandt-Dammann states: “We can, with regards to our school, talk about academic excellence, holistic educational standards and cultural diversity. However, focusing on the individual development of the competencies and talents of each of our students, through every staff member, on the basis of a strong school community, is what makes us unique.” GSIS is one of the leading international schools in Hong Kong with a high reputation for academic excellence and 56 | Issue 46 | January 2017
outstanding achievements. Around 150 teachers and 250 staff members in total work with around 1,300 pupils yearly, from kindergarten to secondary level to the Business College, which offers wholesale & foreign trade and transport & logistics management training programmes. This comprehensive setup is a unique concept throughout Asia. The school is part of the network of German Schools Abroad and supported by the German government. As one school operating in two parallel branches, GSIS offers a German-based ed-
ucation with English as a second language and vice versa, respectively resulting in the German International Abitur and IGCSE and the International Baccalaureate® (IB) Diploma Programme (DP). The two branches are known as the English Stream and the German Stream. Cultural diversity is a given at GSIS, as pupils hail from over 30 different countries. The school was founded in 1969 by German and Swiss families looking for a bilingual education for their children, within international surroundings. For its first year, the German Swiss International School Hong Kong counted 73 pupils divided into eight bilingual classes. Stemming from these humble beginnings, GSIS has since grown into one of Hong Kong’s leading international schools, lo-