European students, on the other hand, generally specialise in subjects while still at school, and are often divided into separate academic streams. Rigorous exams are used to make these judgments. Marks therefore cover a wide range, often below 70 per cent, and those with high marks get admission to specialised schools or courses. Curiously, the situation is reversed for sports, traditionally a whole-class activity in the UK but performed by a squad of selected enthusiasts in the US. Teachers in the US are generalists, qualified primarily for an age group, while in Europe they are more specialised in a subject. The US system encourages children to be confident, and to present their work in public; British schools, especially the overseas offshoots of the major public schools, belong to a tradition of more didactic teaching, with knowledge tested by external examinations at the end of the course.


WHAT PARENTS EXPECT


There are surprises for every family arriving in a foreign school, from many directions. Frequent pinch points in the newcomers’ experience are lunch arrangements, school buses, perceptions of what to expect from a fee-paying school, and the role of the parents in the school community, among many others.


There will be local practical matters, imposed by the


climate or the economic status of the expat in the host country, and there will also be novelties reflecting the British or American culture of the educational system. A wise policy is to seek local advice from friends, remembering that they are judging the school through their cultural eyes, taking much for granted. It is obvious to Brits that some children should be selected for a more intensive


education than others through serious testing, and equally obvious to Americans that everyone has an equal right to the nation’s schooling and all deserve encouragement. How much can a child adapt to a strange system? It is impossible to generalise, but while primary children may have fewer clear expectations, at secondary age most Western children have firm ideas of what they like or don’t like. For them, first-time expatriation may be difficult. On the other hand, children who have grown up in


a succession of expatriate communities may have learned flexibility along the way. True, they may not have the sense of a home locality that their parents grew up with, but that is not essential to life. There is, indeed, an emerging global business caste.


PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE It is a good plan for parents to approach schools with


a list of their particular priorities jotted down beforehand. Major concerns may be about getting access to the desired school back home, having a grounding in the subjects and topics that they value as a basic education, having a cultural mix, or experiencing the host country.


How much of this will the school provide, and how much can you do yourselves? Is it, in extremis, better to stay at home? Very broadly, this may be a moment to choose between maximising the cultural consistency of home and school, or alternatively entering the global English-speaking ‘international’ community.


One thing is certain: a child educated overseas will not be the same as one raised at home. But remember, 258 million people now live outside their countries of birth, according to UN International Migration Report 2017. For the globally prepared child, the opportunities are limitless.


Keep Informed | relocateglobal.com | 63


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