The Foreign Service Journal, June 2013

86 JUNE 2013 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL EDUCATION SUPPLEMENT child. Teens with the profile of an “excep- tional learner”—i.e., either gifted and talented, or with learning differences, ADHD, etc.—may find that they will be more readily accepted and better able to thrive in an alternative setting. Families may use the education allow- ance to choose a different school. British schools are often a viable choice, because English is the medium of instruction and many international capitals have schools that offer a British curriculum, helping to ensure continuity for the student. When students reach the equivalent of grades 11 and 12 in the British system, they choose their A-level subjects, and most students focus more narrowly on either a math/science track or an English/history/geography track. At the end of the course of study, they are given external exams in those subject areas, and the scores are submitted to British universities. In general, there is also less focus on daily classroom work and more focus on exams in British schools. End-of-term exams are also externally graded (i.e., not by the same teacher who taught the course or knows the student). It is all very different from what families are used to in American schools. Some families choose the French or German system. French Baccalaureate and German Arbitur schools are known for being very rigorous and demanding, and a student needs to be highly moti- vated to push through the many require- ments in these schools. Like their British school counterparts, Successful completion of the International Baccalaureate diploma requirements is greatly respected by college admissions offices in the United States, but this course of study is not for the faint of heart.