Rome International School

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Rome International School (RIS) is a private international school in Rome, Italy. The school offers international education to children aged 2 to 18 years from Nursery through to Grade 13. The language of instruction is English. RIS is an International Baccalaureate School offering the IB Primary Years Programme in the Elementary School and the IB Diploma Programme in the last two years of High School. Students in Grades 10 and 11 sit the Cambridge IGCSE.

RIS opened its doors to its first Elementary School students in September 1988. The Middle School opened in September 2001, and the High School was launched in 2007. RIS was authorised to deliver the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme in June 2009.^[1]

In 2018, Rome International School was integrated into the Globeducate network (formerly known as NACE Schools).^[2]

RIS has been an International Baccalaureate World School since June 2009.^[3][4]

In July 2012, Rome International School received authorisation from the IB governing body in The Hague, The Netherlands, to offer the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP).^[5]

RIS is a meritocratic school: advancement is based on individual ability and achievement. Admission to the school is selective, subject to interviews, entrance tests and reports from previous schools, and scholarships are available for worthy international students.^[6]

The Nursery accepts children aged 2 and up.

The curriculum of the Kindergarten consists of programmes incorporating Language and Literacy, Mathematics, Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Physical Development, The Arts (drama, music, visual arts), and Units of Inquiry; these provide a trans-disciplinary approach to the teaching of Science and Technology and Social Studies and may incorporate Language and Mathematics and other subject areas where appropriate.

Transition class pupils continue working towards clearly defined learning targets, building on the work done in the Kindergarten.^{[clarification needed]}

The International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (IB PYP) is a transdisciplinary programme for children from 3 to 12 years of age. The PYP encourages children to take responsibility for learning and build their skills to become lifelong learners.^[7]

The PYP is transdisciplinary, meaning students investigate big ideas supported and enriched by the traditional subject areas. The IB is committed to assuring that students in IB programmes meet and exceed local or national standards.^[8]

Students at Rome International School are educated in a transdisciplinary way in the following subjects:^[9]

• English
• Italian
• Mathematics
• Science
• History
• Geography
• The Arts:
  • Drama
  • Music
  • Visual Arts
  • PSPE (Personal, Social and Physical Education)
  • Music
  • ICT
• Science
• History and Geography (Social Studies)

The school is not pursuing full implementation of the IB Middle Years Programme. However, many of the fundamental concepts of the MYP are included in the Middle Years curriculum with the aim of developing the qualities of the IB Learner Profile.

The Middle School programme is a stimulating and varied curriculum that seeks to develop and enrich the learning skills formed in the Primary Programme. It draws learning material from a wide range of global contexts and the range of learning resources available for Cambridge Secondary Education.^[10]

During the academic year 2015/16, the school introduced Cambridge Checkpoint for Grade 9 students, a diagnostic tool designed to assess learners at the end of the Middle Years.

The school offers a choice of French, Spanish or Chinese languages and also offers students the opportunity to follow an Italian curriculum with the international curriculum. At the end of Year 9, these students take the Italian state Licenza Media examination.^[11]

Grade 10 and 11 students follow the Cambridge International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) examination at the end of Grade 11. Successful applicants can then enter the pre-university two-year IB Diploma Programme.

In July 2014, Rome International School relocated to a new campus in Via Guglielmo Pecori Giraldi, 137. The campus is situated in a natural park of over 3.5 hectares and has a covered surface area of around 9,000 square metres. It features a 230-seat auditorium, two gyms, a cross-country running track, large external sports grounds, and ample recreational and study areas.^{[citation needed]}

As of the academic year 2010/2011, RIS has a Scholarship Fund Programme. This programme is intended to promote the growth of the school’s international community, and to give promising non-Italian students whose families lack sufficient financial resources a chance to have a high-quality international education.^{[citation needed]}