Benjamin Franklin International School (BFIS) in Barcelona is rated by Forbes as one of the top 50 schools in Spain.
BFIS is an international American school teaching children from Kindergarten through to 12th Grade. There are close to 700 students from 63 nationalities – with 28% of students from the USA and 33% of students from Spain.
In this MumAbroad Life interview we speak to Head of School Rachel Hovington about BFIS’ Vision for Learning.
The Vision for Learning is based on three pillars: experiential learning, creativity & innovation and individual potential.
To help students gain experience in the outside world older students take part in a work internship programme, while younger students are taken on a forest school programme in the Collserola hills behind the Barcelona campus.
To fuel creativity & innovation BFIS has just opened a new facility with robotics labs, design labs, music rooms and spaces for performing arts. Students can also take 1 of 53 courses such as AI, Japanese and more via the Global Online Academy Consortium. Students can also undetake ‘passion projects’ supervised by staff in their own time.
Individual potential is developed with a differential coordinator who assesses children with both learning difficulties and accelerated learning skills to enable them to reach their full potential.
Every students at Benjamin Franklin International School goes on to the IB Diploma programme in grades 11 and 12. BFIS has a strong pass rate with most students achieving over 24 points and receiving their IB Diploma. Students can also study for an American High School Diploma. Rachel says that 9th and 10th grades are being prepared to enter the IB Middle Years Programme.
Benjamin Franklin International School (BFIS) in Barcelona has 11 teams competing in local leagues for volleyball, soccer and basketball. There are two basketball courts and two volleyball courts on site.
Rachel joined BFIS in July 2021 with over 20 years leadership experience in international schools in the USA and Europe. She came from the International School of Hannover (Germany) where she was the school Director for five years. Formerly, she was the Deputy Head of School at the Atlanta International School in Atlanta, GA (USA) from 2003- 2016.
Rachel is well connected to best practice as a member of a number of international school organisations and boards and is currently Vice-President of the Academy of International School Heads. In addition, she has led and worked on teams accrediting schools for the Council of International Schools (CIS), the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) and other US accrediting bodies. She holds an M.A in Educational Leadership and Management, a Postgraduate Certificate of Education and an honors degree in Applied and Environmental Geology.
Read more about Benjamin Franklin International School here.
Read a blogpost about BFIS’ philosophy here.
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MumAbroad was founded in 2007 as a resource for expat mums who struggled without the support of their extended family.
By 2014, the network had grown to include information on child-related services, schools, family activities, shops, family holidays and restaurants across Spain and three other European countries. The international network is proud to feature a Women in Business directory, giving home-country, expat and immigrant women a platform to reinvent themselves after maternity leave and serve the MumAbroad community.
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