This blog is from one of COBIS' Supporting Associates.

Written by Debbie Eisenach, Finalsite

Your school’s website plays a critical role in helping prospective families narrow down their search. And it’s critical that your website explains your curriculum well. Don’t assume everyone knows what IGCSE means!

COBIS recently published the Annual Research Survey 2020 Summary Report which highlights key information from some of their 248 COBIS schools worldwide. It shows a variety of curriculum. It’s clear that schools offer a variety of curricula.

Furthermore, ISC Research, the leading supplier of data and intelligence on international schools, reports a high demand for international schools by local families. “When economies improve and incomes rise, more families aspire to better education standards for their children. This includes gaining a place at a reputable university, most of which are currently located in western countries and deliver their learning in the language of English. This is considered by many families to be a ‘passport’ to global career opportunities and prosperity. This is why so many families are turning to a local English-medium international school in their home country as their preferred choice of K-12 education.” 

What does all this have to do with your school website? 

A quick look at few school “About” pages you find the following:  IPC, IB MYP, (i)GCSE’s, IB Diploma and Careers Programmes.

With schools boasting 50+ nationalities, make sure your message is clear and understandable to everyone. Assume that your curriculum is not familiar to many of your prospective families.

It’s important to assess and update your curriculum pages in order to better serve your community. Here are the top three tips for improving your website:

1. Defining the Curriculum Framework
2. Detailing the Various Curriculum
3. Showcasing Course Descriptions

Part 1: Defining the Curriculum Framework

Doha College provides a world-class education for students from the ages of 3 to 18 years old. Their principal's message introduces families to starting their journey: “Choosing the right school is immensely important, whether it's identifying the right environment for a child first starting their school life, or indeed at any other stage in a nomadic expat life.”

Their Academics landing page contains image-based calls-to-action that help visitors easily self select the correct school.

When a user lands on the Primary school’s landing page, they are greeted with an infographic clearly outlining the curriculum and students' ages along with the core subjects. This is an excellent example and conveys information concisely and clearly.

Their Secondary landing page also provides an infographic explaining the various stages using accordions revealing more detailed information without having to navigate to another page.

St George’s International School Luxembourg augments their page with achievements and testimonials to further drive the benefits of their curriculum.

Part 2: Detailing the Various Curriculum

Many secondary schools offer more than one curriculum so it’s important to define each. Jerudong International School offers a comprehensive landing page that explains the difference between the IB Diploma and A Levels. The page also includes testimonials, infographics and university destinations providing a compelling story for prospective families.

The IB Diploma, not native to any country, is often explained through those popular IB diagrams, with multiple concentric circles. As an IB parent myself, I can attest to the fact that those circles require a lesson or two themselves.  Many schools just “throw” the circles on a page assuming prospective families and students understand what they mean. TOK and CAS need more explanation!

The United Nations International School of Hanoi showcases the IB Learner profiles at the top of their page explaining the different Programmes; they then explain on a broader level what the PYP, MYP and IB Diploma are. Visitors can then drill down to find out more about each programme.

When you look for further detail, the elementary school page is rich with videos, subject details, daily schedules and more. Of particular note on the secondary page are the academic pathways to success which helps families understand the link between course selection and the opportunities afforded each diploma type. 

Part 3: Compelling Course Descriptions

The online course catalogue anchors your curriculum pages. If their children are inclined towards science or the arts, parents are keen to understand what those courses look like; and prospective students are no different. It’s important to go beyond a PDF list of course offerings and bring it to life online through photos, text, videos and testimonials.  

The Kellett School offers interactive buttons to explain their courses with well-written summaries of subject areas. For prospective families who spend time on this page, they will leave informed in more ways than one — inspired by images, educated in how the school thinks about its classes, and provided opportunities to discover more.

St Joseph’s Institution International in Singapore provides a website page for each course making it easy to navigate while providing images and details that really sell each subject.

And for those that are truly ambitious, The International School of Beijing sets the bar for putting their whole course catalogue online. Often school’s struggle to pull this information together, but if you ask the teaching staff to help and show them the value of sharing their great work, you can pull this content together. Some would argue that there’s no better way to set your school apart.  Detailed and creative course descriptions can make a big difference in distinguishing your mathematics, science or arts from everyone else’s.

Key Takeaway

There is more than one way to showcase your curriculum but with increased competition in many school markets, it can really impact your admissions efforts. It can be a tedious and challenging job gathering the information, but it is more often than not a missed opportunity. Make it a 2021 goal to improve this area of your website, after all, curriculum is what makes a school.