Garden International School (GIS) is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

, co-educational

international school An international school is an institution that promotes education in an international environment or framework. Although there is no uniform definition or criteria, international schools are usually characterized by a multinational student body a ...

in Mont Kiara,

Segambut Segambut is a sub-district and a parliamentary constituency in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. From the high-end condominiums of Mont Kiara and Sri Hartamas to the middle-class areas of Taman Sri Segambut and Bandar Manjalara, and the rural areas ...

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. Founded in 1951, GIS is one of the oldest and most prestigious private schools in Malaysia. GIS is part of the

Taylor's Education Group Taylor's Education Group is a network of international schools and post-secondary institutions based in Selangor, Malaysia that operates throughout South-East Asia. It currently holds several for-profit K-12 schools and higher-education institutio ...

and a member of the

Federation of British International Schools in Asia The Federation of British International Schools in Asia (FOBISIA) is a regional federation of leading British International schools in Asia. Founded in 1988 as the Federation of British International Schools in South East Asia (FOBISSEA), FOBISIA ...

(FOBISIA). GIS provides British-based education for students ages 3 to 18 years old, with an Early Years Centre (age 3–5),

Primary School A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

(age 5–11) and

Secondary School A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

(age 11–18). GIS is one of the biggest private co-educational schools in Malaysia, with around 2,000 students. Accredited by the Council of International Schools, GIS offers the British National Curriculum, including providing

IGCSE The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based examination similar to GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising prior attain ...

and A Levels examinations.

History

Origins

Founded in 1951 as Garden School, the school was established by Sally Watkins, the wife of Kuala Lumpur Fire Brigade Chief Lt. Col. F.F.C. Watkins, in the Lake Gardens of Kuala Lumpur. It was one of the first international schools catering for expatriates in the Federation of Malaya.

Campus location

The school moved to

Bukit Bintang Bukit Bintang (; stylised as Bintang Walk or Starhill, the latter being a translation of the Malay language, Malay name) is the shopping and entertainment district of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It encompasses Jalan Bukit Bintang (''Bukit Bintang ...

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

in 1955 due to a rapidly expanding roll and, after several moves to locations around the Klang Valley, moved to the present location in Mont Kiara in 1996.

International examinations

In 1966, Garden School was selected as the first school in Malaysia for the University of London's

General Certificate of Education The General Certificate of Education (GCE) is a subject-specific family of academic qualifications used in awarding bodies in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Crown dependencies and a few Commonwealth countries. For some time, the Scottish e ...

examination. It is fully accredited to offer both IGCSE and A Level examinations. Candidates sit examinations in the May/June series of each academic year.

Academic information

Early Years Centre

Garden International School's Early Years Centre (EYC) is a preschool following the British EYFS curriculum. The bespoke centre is located in the residential community of Desa Sri Hartamas and follows the EYFS curriculum. The EYC is divided into Nursery (age 3–4) and Reception (age 4–5) classes; a flexible 'Pre-Nursery' enrolment option is also available for children who join the term that they turn 3, providing they are toilet trained and show school readiness. The Centre offers a Jungle School programme, unique in Malaysia, which offers the children regular opportunities to learn and build confidence in a safe outdoor environment.

Primary school

Garden International School's

provides an international curriculum based on the National Curriculum for England and Wales.

Science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

History History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

Geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

and PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education) are taught by classroom teachers, alongside specialist teachers supporting the teaching of

Art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

Design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

and

Technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, science, ...

Music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

, ICT,

Physical Education Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorat ...

and Modern Foreign Languages.

Secondary school

GIS' Secondary School students follow a full range of courses leading to

International General Certificate of Secondary Education The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based examination similar to GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising prior attainm ...

(IGCSE) Examinations. The Key Stage 3 programme is based upon the

English National Curriculum The National Curriculum for England was first introduced by the Education Reform Act 1988. At the time of its introduction the legislation applied to both England and Wales. However, education later became a devolved matter for the Welsh government. ...

, with modifications to suit the school's context. The school offers

University of Cambridge International Examinations Cambridge Assessment International Education (informally known as Cambridge International or simply Cambridge and formerly known as CIE, Cambridge International Examinations) is a provider of international qualifications, offering examinations ...

, with students sitting the majority of IGCSE examinations at the end of Year 11. At Sixth Form, the school offers AS & A-Level (both

Cambridge International Examinations Cambridge Assessment International Education (informally known as Cambridge International or simply Cambridge and formerly known as CIE, Cambridge International Examinations) is a provider of international qualifications, offering examinations ...

Edexcel Edexcel (also known since 2013 as Pearson Edexcel) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational education and examination body formed in 1996 and wholly owned by Pearson plc since 2005. It is the only privately owned examination board ...

) courses. which are supplemented by bespoke subject electives and a summer professional internship programme, THRIVE. In recent years, some subjects have chosen to take

in place of CIE, such as GCSE PE, A-Level Mathematics, Drama & Theatre Studies and Psychology. In terms of academic performance, GIS' Secondary School is one of Asia's top performing international schools, with the majority of graduates going to the world's top 100 universities.

Staff

The Principal of Garden International School is Michael Bardsley. The Head of Secondary is Amy Ward and the Head of Primary is Nicola Nelson. The school employs over 85% of expatriate teachers, mostly originating from the UK. In addition to the large academic body, the school also employs administrative staff, specialist sport coaches, counsellors and student service staff.

Notable alumni

Rebekah Yeoh Rebekah Yeoh Pei Wenn is a Malaysian social entrepreneur, businesswoman and philanthropist. She is a Corporate Finance Director at YTL Corporation, Deputy Curator at Global Shapers Community Kuala Lampur, and the founder of Nimble Fingers Camb ...

– businesswoman and philanthropist *

Kira Narayanan Kira Narayanan is an Indian Actress and TV Presenter. She is best known for playing Aayat in "Jee Karda" on Amazon Prime Video, hosting ''Cricket Live'' on the Star Sports (Indian TV network), Star Sports Network and for playing the role of Pri ...

– actress, anchor, musician and TV personality

Subjects

IGCSE

The following subjects are available for IGCSEs in GIS:

A-Levels

Academic accreditations and awards

References

External links

Garden International School website
{{FOBISIA British international schools in Malaysia International schools in Kuala Lumpur Secondary schools in Kuala Lumpur Cambridge schools in Malaysia Educational institutions established in 1951 1951 establishments in Malaya