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All community service providers have leaders, and schools are no different. The decisions leaders make, the information they share, and the priorities and values they hold will influence every aspect of your child’s learning experience.
Yes, Green Shoots is the only school in central Vietnam to have been inspected and approved by the Council of International Schools and one of only two in the country to have earned membership of the Council of British International Schools, bringing us within the top 14% of international schools in the world. We are also an accredited Cambridge International Assessment school and a registered Cambridge exam centre.
There are two types of accreditation: the first is offered by curriculum providers, such as Cambridge. This monitors how their curriculum is being taught at a school. The second inspects all aspects of school operations, from governance to safeguarding, recruitment to kitchen standards, teaching to facilities. The most respected example of these accreditations is CIS. Only 14% of all international schools are members of this second group, making membership a true badge of quality.
We publish, and share via our website, the following reports:
Disclosure is an important part of good governance so that parents have the knowledge they need to make informed decisions about their children’s future. A good school will publish reports that share information about long-term decision making, safeguarding, and the appropriate use of fees.
We were established in 2011 and are the second oldest international school in central Vietnam. Our decade of experience means we can confidently promise a quality education for all.
Schools, like people, make mistakes when they are young. Do you want your child to be a guinea pig within an inexperienced school or to benefit from the experience of a more established school?
Ours is a truly values-led school, with a core value of Respect fed by seven others that we believe are important to the growth of a well-rounded human being. Values are integrated into lessons, assemblies, school events, mealtimes, and everyday interactions between staff, students and parents. No opportunity is lost to build a foundation for your child’s value system.
Our values are often so deeply ingrained that we don’t think about them, but we notice if others don’t share them. Values grow during childhood, and the school we attend can play a major role in their development, so it is vital that your child’s school nurtures and supports the same values that you are teaching at home.
Schools are communities, and communities are only as strong as the people in them. Ask probing questions about the school’s decision makers, teachers, students, and graduates.
Our owner is a long term expatriate who benefited from an international education in Singapore (UWCSEA) and London (SOAS). She holds two Master’s degrees: one in public service and one in good governance. Our Head of School led two international schools before Green Shoots and held middle management positions in three others. He holds two Master's degrees, in teaching and in school leadership, as well as teaching and school administration credentials from the US and a certificate in International School Leadership.
All schools will make promises to parents during a tour. Asking about the people at the top will help you understand how the promises you receive align with reality. Ask tough questions:
All of our teachers hold at least an undergraduate degree in teaching or a postgraduate teaching certificate. Many have also earned Masters degrees or post-graduate certification in specialist areas of teaching, school leadership, etc. All are fluent English speakers and almost all are native speakers from an English-speaking country.
In Vietnam, it is not uncommon for schools to cut costs by hiring unqualified teachers or people who hold an English-teaching certificate only. Ask what qualifications or specialisations teachers and co-teachers have, where they earned their degrees, and if these have been checked. To ensure your child’s safety, ask what hiring safeguarding measures are in place.
With 28 nationalities represented, we are international to our core. Our students and staff come from all over the world, our leaders network with schools around the globe, and our curriculum actively targets the development of international mindedness in children. Green Shoots ensures that no single nationality overwhelms the others by keeping a 25% cap on enrolment from each group.
There is a difference between an ‘international curriculum’ (the school’s programme) and an ‘international school’ (which offers exposure to multiple languages and cultures outside the classroom as well). When asking how international a school is, ask how many student and staff nationalities it has, and whether any single group dominates.
Our membership of CIS and COBIS mean that other schools and universities will immediately recognise the quality of our programme, making an international move much easier for you. Our secondary graduates have consistently outperformed the global IGCSE average and progressed (often with scholarships) to prestigious IB Diploma schools and world renowned universities. Ask us for evidence of this.
International families move around a lot, and any new school will need proof that the school you have left behind upheld the standards it promised before giving your child a place. What evidence can the school give to prove this?When your child finishes secondary school and is ready to move on to further education, what track record of success does the school you’re talking to have?
Ask detailed questions about how the teaching and learning process is run, how it is overseen and assessed, and how every aspect of every day is focused on supporting learning. After all, that’s what a school is all about!
Our maximum class sizes range from 14 to 20. Exact size is based on: A/ The physical space available, B/ The number of support staff needed, and C/ The children’s practical, emotional and educational needs.
Class size is important: too small and children cannot hold group discussions and work together on projects; too large and teachers will find it hard to give students individual attention.
We use an internationalised British curriculum and specialist in-house courses. Our programme and pedagogy are adjusted to make a British education accessible to children from around the world.
Different curricula tie learning to different sets of standards and values. Their quality is often viewed differently as a result. Ask how widely the one your school offers is respected and how transferable it is.
Progress is measured against British national and Cambridge standards using formative and summative assessment that shows how children have progressed through the year and performed in tests. This is shared via reports and regular parent conferences.
Having chosen a school, it may feel easy to leave teachers alone and not involve yourself in your child’s learning. While this makes sense, parents must be kept informed about progress, problems, and solutions. How does the school ensure this is happening?
Teachers plan lessons in line with the UK National Curriculum. We ‘map’ our curriculum to ensure that standards are vertically (from year to year) and horizontally (between subjects) aligned. These maps are reviewed and monitored by teachers and school leadership.
Children’s learning in one subject area must complement what is happening in another, and each year your child will move from one grade to the next. How does the school coordinate between all these moving parts, and how does it ensure that standards are maintained?
Our tried and tested distance learning plan allows for a seamless transition to online learning. Teachers and students know how to switch between learning systems and parents are informed of each unique closure situation.
The COVID pandemic creates uncertainty over future school closures and means that learning may be interrupted or stopped. How does the school provide education for students during closures?
Our campus is small but each space serves a purpose. Where we lack something on campus we ensure that this gap is filled using community facilities. For more on this important topic, please talk to our team.
A school’s facilities should serve only one purpose: to support learning. But how can you be sure of this? It is easy to build a ‘pretty’ campus, but be sure to ask how it benefits your child’s education.
Your child will spend seven or eight hours per day at school for up to 12 or 13 years! You need to know their physical and emotional safety is protected at all times, and that there are external inspectors checking that the school keeps its promises.
As a member of CIS and COBIS, our:
‘Safeguarding’ keeps children safe from physical and emotional harm from adults and peers, both online and offline, when at school or attending school-organised activities. It is often overlooked by unaccredited schools, which may not understand its importance or be willing to invest the time, expertise, and money needed to ensure that children are safe from harm. Be sure to ask probing questions about safeguarding systems and protocols and ask for evidence that these are in place.
Teachers differentiate lessons for a wide range of abilities within each class group. Modifications may be made to accommodate students’ different working paces, learning styles or skills. If additional support is necessary, the school counsellor will be consulted and a conversation held with parents to develop an individual learning plan with specific interventions, strategies and goals.
Children enter a new school from a range of different backgrounds. Once enrolled, they learn in different ways, at different speeds, and with different language abilities. All of this can impact their confidence as well as their learning. Ask how the school:
The Green Shoots school counsellor works with students in the primary and secondary school, allowing them to explore and understand their difficulties within a safe and confidential space. Where children need more support than we can offer on site, we try to connect them to experts in the broader community.
In addition to the normal emotional upheavals of growing up, moving around the world and living far from family can be traumatic for children. What emotional support is available to children, both on campus and through external links facilitated by the school?
We routinely inspect the campus play and learning spaces, and equipment, to ensure that all are in good working order. Safety equipment is used by all students and teachers when conducting science experiments, during cooking classes, or when planting in the garden. OUr staff are First Aid trained and we conduct regular Fire and Evacuation drills. Thorough risk assessments are made before any trip off campus.
Children learn through play and by making mistakes, which naturally leads to accidents and bumped knees. These are inconvenient but are a normal part of growing up.Beyond this, how does the school ensure your child is safe from serious harm when playing outside, conducting a science experiment, or taking part in an off-campus trip?
We all know the old adage ‘you get what you pay for’, so what exactly are you paying and what are you getting in return? Be sure to add up all the numbers and balance them against their worth to you and your child.
We keep things as simple as we can. Our Tuition fee covers everything that every child benefits from in the time period covered by that fee. This means: All standard teaching (excluding extra support lessons), all food, all regular day trips and excursions, books and learning resources.
Schools will include different items in their headline 'tuition fee’. You need to understand what is included, as any exclusions will find their way onto your invoice in another way. There is no right or wrong way to publish fees, but you need to understand exactly what will add up in your final invoice.
We charge an annual Development Fee which is used to cover long term expenses (in contrast to the short term costs that are covered by the Tuition Fee). These investments vary but may include: Facilities expansion or enhancement, service upgrades in line with accrediting agency standards, or investment in long term equipment such as IT services. Our Development Fee secures your place at the school. Enrolment fees are minimal and cover the cost of the enrolment process.
All schools publish their fees in a slightly different way, meaning it can be difficult to compare the cost at one school to the cost at another. Large additional fees are most likely to be:
No. We are upfront in our fee schedule; what you see is what you get. We charge separately for things that only some children use and list these separately. We do this because we believe that families who are not benefiting from a certain service within the school should not have to subsidise those who are. Examples of our separate fees are bus, extra support, etc.
As well as tuition, schools may charge for things like learning support, music lessons, food, uniforms, books, special equipment, exam entrance, and so on. These can all be valid cost, but before you sign up, you need to know:
A global survey of CIS schools shows that 51% are not changing their fees this year, 38% are raising fees, and only 3% are cutting them (the final 15% have not yet decided). Like other quality schools, we are here for the long term and are not willing to ‘sell your child short’ by cutting fees and cutting corners. We know times are hard and our published fees remain unchanged this year from last. As a sustainable school, we will continue to invest in your child’s education well into the future, ensuring that our growth - and your child’s - is strong and steady.
In this time of COVID, a small number of schools are offering discounts to attract new families, but studies have shown that discounts can damage the quality of service to children (which is why so few schools do this). If you are offered a discount, ask:
Green Shoots International School Campus
414/7 Cua Dai, Cam Chau District
Hoi An, Quang Nam Province
Vietnam
For information regarding enrolment, curriculum or general enquires, please send us an email.
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