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PRESENTED BY LE SALLAY ACADEMY

Six reasons expat parents should consider distance learning or boarding school

A new academy is shaking up traditional distance learning with a combined approach that strikes the perfect balance for expat families.

Published: 5 September 2018 08:46 CEST
Six reasons expat parents should consider distance learning or boarding school
Photo: Le Sallay

Think distance learning and, chances are, you imagine a course designed for adults with lots of heavy books, solitary time and precious little social interaction. But education is changing and children can now avail of a distance learning program with one crucial twist: it combines home study with a learning camp.

Le Sallay International Academy is a pioneering school that offers a unique learning experience for children aged 10-14. As well as providing a world-class distance learning program, Le Sallay will also host a three-week learning camp at the beginning and end of each term in a 16th-century French château where the students will get to meet their classmates and soak up European culture and history. Altogether a third of the education takes place in study camps while two thirds is conducted through distance learning.

Find out more about the benefits of distance learning at Le Sallay International Academy

Photo: Le Sallay

Before the academy officially opens, Le Sallay has organised a seven-week pilot period in early 2019 so that both parents and children can get a taste of what to expect.

Read on to find out the benefits of the school’s new take on distance learning.

Get the best of both worlds

Many expat parents face the dilemma of whether to send their child to boarding school. For some parents, who move frequently due to work commitments, there is often no alternative. Le Sallay provides a solution to this parental predicament.

“We see the school as a hybrid model that combines distance learning and a learning camp. Separation anxiety and even abandonment issues are problems for many children who attend boarding school,” says Dr. Matthew McConnell, who is heading up Le Sallay’s humanities department.

He adds that with Le Sallay’s mixed model, children get to be at home more but they also become more independent and get the socialization associated with school by going abroad to meet their classmates.

The best teachers

Unencumbered by a specific location, Le Sallay is able to attract the best teachers to be part of their distance learning team.

“We are going to be able to hire teachers from a broad pool of applicants from all over the world. In most cases, we intend to have teachers with a PhD. We are confident that we can provide an educational experience that is unlike anything else,” enthuses Dr. McConnell.

They will form a close alliance with their pupils during the live classroom sessions, which will be enhanced in the personal contact established in the three-week study camps during the semester.

Yan Rauch. Photo: Le Sallay

Students will also get the chance to be taught by visiting lecturers who wouldn't usually teach in a school or boarding school. Famous writers, scientists and professors from large universities are among the guest lecturers who will be invited to spend a week conducting lessons and talking to the students about their work. Already signed up are award-winning Vietnamese-American writer and journalist Andrew Lam, History of Science PhD Michael Barany and Digital Media guru Elizabeth Osder, among others.

Flexible learning

Distance learning provides the opportunity for a truly tailored education that suits your child. Students learn about time management when it comes to doing their lessons and how to handle online and offline work.

It’s also a balance that is particularly suited to science and mathematics education, explains Yan Rauch, who is Head of Maths and Science at Le Sallay.

“It suits my method well. I need the camps to create a human relationship and for the children to develop relationships among themselves. Once that basis is there, it doesn’t really matter if we proceed to solve puzzles online or offline.”

He adds that the heart of science doesn’t lie in the lab or in expensive equipment, but in teaching children how to look at the world with curiosity — a key element in all his classes.

“Anyone can buy an oscilloscope, but it takes some teaching talent to help your pupils discover what's fascinating about, say, water dripping from a tap.”

What’s more, it’s an approach that is suited to children from all backgrounds and all learning styles.

“Each task involves different possible depth levels so that the best-prepared children don’t get bored and those with no mathematical training don’t suffer,” says Yan.

Personalized attention

All students, including twice exceptional (2E) children with various learning disabilities, can flourish at Le Sallay, as McConnell explains. The school employs staff who specialise in working with 2E students, offering an individualized approach along with the concerted efforts of psychologists to support socialization.

The academy’s promise to cater for all children is among the reasons there has already been a great deal of parental interest.

“There isn’t anything else out there like Le Sallay. Our mixed model fixes some of the problems that are endemic with boarding school, such as bullying,” he says.

McConnell adds that even students who are neurotypical sometimes struggle in international schools but those pupils will get more personalized attention at Le Sallay. There will also be a dedicated psychologist for children with learning disabilities as well as an individualized approach to their education.

Photo: Le Sallay

Find out more about Le Sallay International Academy

Putting middle school in focus

Le Sallay intends to provide quality combined education for children aged 10-14. It’s a time in adolescent development that is vital but often forgotten about, says McConnell.

“There are lots of good elementary and high schools out there for international pupils but middle school can be a bit forgotten about. We really want to focus on those years (10-14) as they are transitional years that are crucial. Our plan is to take those years and make them productive for all of the pupils at Le Sallay.”

History…not just in the classroom

All the traditional school subjects like Mathematics, English, History, and Science are covered at Le Sallay, but the environment itself is just as educational.

Le Sallay’s learning camp will be hosted in a 16th-century château, which is situated in a private park of four hectares, and just two hours away from Paris. The location makes it ideal for sports and field trips, offering children a totally immersive learning experience.

McConnell explains that there will be lots of structure for children but, importantly, the chance to have fun too. There will also be guest speakers that you wouldn’t normally get in regular schools.

“We will be organizing field trips so they can learn about European culture and history. It is a chance to send your child on an adventure!”

Photo: Le Sallay

More time with your children

Saying goodbye to your child before they depart for boarding school can be heartbreaking for parents. Le Sallay’s mixed model ensures that children continue to have strong family ties while also getting the chance to socialize with classmates at the learning camp, meet children from different backgrounds whilst getting a quality education.

“You get to have your children around! They will be at home more but will also get that independence by going to the learning camps and being on their own while getting the socialization that is part of the school experience,” concludes McConnell.

Le Sallay’s first classes will launch in September 2019. A fee discount is offered to gifted children. Find out more about the academy and fill in an admission form on Le Sallay’s website.

This article was produced by The Local Creative Studio and sponsored by Le Sallay.

 
For members

EDUCATION

Inquiry calls for free after-school care for 6-9 year-olds in Sweden

Children between ages 6-9 years should be allowed admittance to after-school recreation centers free of charge, according to a report submitted to Sweden’s Minister of Education Lotta Edholm (L).

Published: 29 November 2022 15:54 CET
Inquiry calls for free after-school care for 6-9 year-olds in Sweden

“If this reform is implemented, after-school recreation centers will be accessible to the children who may have the greatest need for the activities,” said Kerstin Andersson, who was appointed to lead a government inquiry into expanding access to after-school recreation by the former Social Democrat government. 

More than half a million primary- and middle-school-aged children spend a large part of their school days and holidays in after-school centres.

But the right to after-school care is not freely available to all children. In most municipalities, it is conditional on the parent’s occupational status of working or studying. Thus, attendance varies and is significantly lower in areas where unemployment is high and family finances weak.

In this context, the previous government formally began to inquire into expanding rights to leisure. The report was recently handed over to Sweden’s education minister, Lotta Edholm, on Monday.

Andersson proposed that after-school activities should be made available free of charge to all children between the ages of six and nine in the same way that preschool has been for children between the ages of three and five. This would mean that children whose parents are unemployed, on parental leave or long-term sick leave will no longer be excluded. 

“The biggest benefit is that after-school recreation centres will be made available to all children,” Andersson said. “Today, participation is highest in areas with very good conditions, while it is lower in sparsely populated areas and in areas with socio-economic challenges.” 

Enforcing this proposal could cause a need for about 10,200 more places in after-school centre, would cost the state just over half a billion kronor a year, and would require more adults to work in after-school centres. 

Andersson recommends recruiting staff more broadly, and not insisting that so many staff are specialised after-school activities teachers, or fritidspedagod. 

“The Education Act states that qualified teachers are responsible for teaching, but that other staff may participate,” Andersson said. “This is sometimes interpreted as meaning that other staff may be used, but preferably not’. We propose that recognition be given to so-called ‘other staff’, and that they should be given a clear role in the work.”

She suggested that people who have studied in the “children’s teaching and recreational programmes” at gymnasium level,  people who have studied recreational training, and social educators might be used. 

“People trained to work with children can contribute with many different skills. Right now, it might be an uncertain work situation for many who work for a few months while the employer is looking for qualified teachers”, Andersson said. 

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