A Global Education

Demystifying International Education Options for Parents

- Tim Kellow

If you are newly arriving parents to Chennai – whether relocating within or from outside India–one of the most important tasks is finding the best school for your child. Whether you begin with an internet search or decide to look and ask around, you may quickly become bewildered by the vast array of options. Making sense of these options is by no means an easy feat and, when every school seems to labeled either ‘International’ or ‘World’, how can you tell the difference?

As a relatively newly-arrived British expat who has recently surveyed the scene and now leads a new international school, I hope to provide an overview that will help you overcome that bewilderment and refocus on the important issues to consider and signs to look for.

What is an international education and why is it needed?

Although a debated term, international education can be summarised as an approach to schooling that develops children’s understanding of the world to better prepare them for a globalised society. A generation ago, an international education used to be a means for children of globe-trotting families to gain a semblance of consistency and keep their options open for the future. Now, it is becoming the norm.