The Columbus School

Established in 1947, The Columbus School is a  U.S. style international school in Medellin, Colombia offering a bilingual education in a multi-cultural context to local and international students.  The school is accredited by the Colombian Ministry of Education and the Southern Association of Schools and Colleges through COGNIA. Upon completion of requirements, students graduate from the school with both the Colombian High School and the U.S. High School Diploma.

VISION AND MISSION

Our vision is for all students to become ethical, global citizens who are agents of positive change. We aim to form critically conscious citizens who:

• have a sense of responsibility towards global sustainability
• are enterprising and empowered, able to thrive with a sense of purpose in an ever-changing world
• are high performance learners with the capacity to succeed in the pathway of their choice.

Our mission is to:

• Connect people and ideas
• Create pathways and opportunities for all learners to grow
• Inspire and be inspired by a sense of engagement and purpose

STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES

The  school year 2022-23 has been identified as one in which providing a  “safe, supportive and engaged” learning environment is paramount.  Before they can go on to become agents of positive change, our students need to feel that they are in a learning environment which provides physical, psychological and emotional safety.   As a community, we need to provide a sense of stability and predictability, a sense of “normality” or solid ground from which our students can learn and grow.  We have therefore identified the following as our main strategic objective:

Ensure that all students are provided with opportunities to be effectively engaged in their development and learning within a safe and supportive learning environment

CURRICULUM

Early Years

Early Years comprises K4, K5 and 1st grade, the early years of school life at The Columbus School. These years are characterized by exploring in community and building social skills through play and routines while developing foundational skills in English and Spanish.  In K4 most of the day takes place in Spanish with one hour of English per day, while in K5 and 1st most of the day is developed in English with one hour of Spanish per day. Children work on motor, language, math, and socio-emotional skills in addition to social science and natural science concepts through a variety of methodologies. Within an Early Years child’s day, there are times to sing, play, listen, work in centers or stations, talk, think, read, write, debate, move, build, solve problems, make class meetings, and develop projects.

Elementary School

2nd through 5th grade students continue to explore and build skills and develop with peers through units and programs based on the Common Core Curriculum for languages and mathematics, Next Generation Science Standards for science, and ISTE for technology integration. They receive Social Studies and Spanish classes in Spanish 5 times a week. Additionally, all elementary school students have weekly classes in Music, Art, Religion, Ethics and Values ​​and Physical Education with specialist teachers.  Teachers work in homeroom teams to develop horizontally-aligned unit sequences and assessments. The curriculum is under continual review to make sure it promotes safe, supportive, and engaging learning for all students. The school is currently undertaking a viability study for the possible implementation of the IB Primary Years Programme.

Middle School

Our middle school curriculum contains programs and curriculum that help students form a solid base of knowledge and skills to move into high school, while honoring them through voice, choice, and social learning activities appropriate for their age group. Students work through the core areas focusing on problem solving. Students in middle school are part of a House system and also participate in a weekly Advisory period with adult mentors. Each year the curriculum is reviewed in order to ensure a coherent and meaningful scope of skills, concepts, and knowledge that are systematically taught and evaluated. The curricular maps are developed by the teachers of each department identifying themes and the units plans are continuously refined using a “backward” planning model.

High School

Our high school curriculum is based on internationally benchmarked standards and brought to life by teacher instructional practices. Departments have innovated many courses in recent years in order to bring the best pedagogy to the students in preparation for the future, and to innovate based on the needs of our ever-changing world. In grades 9 and 10 students fulfill many of the core areas with some elective choices, and in grades 11 and 12 students have more specialized courses to apply their skills in a context closer to their interest and future career interests. For example, a student pursuing an engineering career may take advanced Calculus, Physics, and Hands on Engineering courses, while a student pursuing a medical career may take Advanced Chemistry and Anatomy and Physiology. College Counseling forms an important part of the curriculum during the high school years to set students up to excel in the pathway of their choice.

Learn more about us at www.columbus.edu.co