IES operates according to three core principles: high academic expectations and aspirations, command of the English language and the importance of a safe, calm school environment. We are convinced that every child can achieve success, regardless of their background. For us, this is not just about academic success – it’s about helping our students go out into the world with confidence as responsible individuals. It means giving every student the opportunity and tools to achieve their full potential. It also means imparting a passion for learning and a view that knowledge is important.
Our aim is to continue to deliver according to these principles – which have guided our activities since IES was founded more than 30 years ago. The past school year is testimony to the fact that our philosophy is sound; the number of students qualifying for upper secondary education is consistently high, as are their results in the national tests.
We are also successful in demographically more challenging areas. One thing we are particularly proud of is that assessments of the added value of our schools show that our teaching model makes the biggest difference to students from non-academic backgrounds.
The important role of teachers
In all these areas, teachers are the key to success. Creating a safe school environment where learning is possible and students are happy requires teachers to act with both authority and warmth. This means seeing each individual and showing interest in their lives. We must treat our students with respect – but also demand that this respect is reciprocal. We have a significant responsibility to educate our students in social skills; in respecting their fellow human beings, and society at large.
Students who feel safe, who trust their teachers and the school environment, are more receptive to learning. They gain a sense of belonging to their school and have the courage to ask for help when they find themselves in challenging situations, at home, at school or in their free time. Strong relationships form the foundation for a safe environment, not only between students and teachers, but also with mentors, parents, student health teams, municipalities, social services and the police. We all have an important role to play as the social climate gets tougher. Safety and learning go hand in hand – one cannot be achieved without the other. We have an obligation to act immediately on any sign of wrongdoing.
We put great effort into familiarising our new teachers with our approach and providing them with the necessary tools to succeed in their important work. Our strong culture and well-established practices are important elements of this – but the more experienced colleagues are equally important. As the school provider (huvudman) we do not want to decide what happens in the classroom, but we must provide our teachers with tools and ideas to help them evolve their teaching – it’s a science, but it’s also an art.
One of the things which makes IES unique in Swedish education is that we have an academic coordinator who is responsible for the academic quality of teaching. This involves driving a continuous dialogue on grading integrity, an area of major focus in IES’ systematic quality work.
Promoting an international perspective
Several of our largest schools are located in, or directly adjacent to, marginalised areas. IES also has a higher proportion of students with a foreign background than the national average, 52 per cent compared to 27 per cent in Sweden as a whole. This is perhaps not surprising given our international profile. Our students are of many different nationalities. After Swedish, the most common mother tongues spoken in our schools are Arabic, English, Somali, Russian and Tigrinya.
Our name – Internationella Engelska Skolan – symbolises what we stand for: promoting an international perspective. One of our most important tasks is to convey why language is so important, not only for communication, but also for social and cultural understanding.
Supporting students throughout their entire time at school
Students come to our schools with a range of different baggage and therefore have different abilities. Our aim is for their knowledge backpacks to contain the same contents when they leave us. Promoting reading and writing skills is a priority area for us. Few children today have books at home – and if parents don’t read, their children don’t read either. That’s why we need to fill our schools with more books and encourage students to take them home to read. They also need to be given time and space to read in class and to write down by hand what they have read, as you need to think when you write.
Our investment in expanding our operations to include preschool class and primary school in an increasing number of schools has enabled us to identify needs and offer support at an early stage. Students with learning difficulties may struggle in a bilingual environment if they are not helped early.
Constant improvement – but the same core principles
We are proud of our achievements in creating confident individuals, who are well-equipped to face adulthood and thus contribute to a safer and well-functioning society. But we are not completely satisfied; our goal is to constantly evolve and become even better at what we do.