The Oxbridge International School (OXIS) is an independent Cambridge International School located in Trinidad and Tobago that aims to revolutionise teaching methods for children aged 3-19. This holistic learning model offers a unique approach to education tailored to each child’s educational, cognitive and emotional needs, which radically alters the traditional approach to teaching.
Dr Rolph Balgobin – a founder and current chairman of the school – asserts that ‘at OXIS, everything is about the child.’ The school uses Cambridge baseline assessments, then seeks further insight into what each child requires to augment engagement and cognitive development throughout the learning process. Balgobin credits the baseline assessment for making it possible to develop meaningful relationships with these students and their parents.
The holistic approach aims to connect traditional education with the real world, which allows students to apply what they learn to current and future personal and professional situations. This creates well-rounded individuals equipped with the knowledge needed to pursue success in any field, with remarkable academic qualifications to back them up.
These qualifications, which include SATs, IGCSEs, AS and Advanced Levels, are designed to academically challenge students while also developing broader skills, such as communication, collaboration and problem solving. Students also have greater control over their educational pathways, allowing them to pursue college and university after they graduate from OXIS.
The holistic learning model is one of the best modern approaches to teaching because it extends learning beyond the typical classroom setting. At OXIS, students are treated as unique individuals, not a homogenous group. This allows them to be stimulated intellectually, emotionally and socially, all while they continue to build knowledge and develop a rich, complex world view.
The ability to introduce critical thinking and creativity into every part of a curriculum is very important, but traditional education doesn’t account for that. This forces institutions to rely on standardized tests and static teaching methods, which may academically develop some children but can also exclude others and pull focus away from personal development, which is equally important.
Dr Balgobin is adamant that that will never be the case at OXIS, which also places a heavy focus on academic excellence by employing the ‘best syllabus in the world’. OXIS is committed to creating above-average individuals who are also great problem solvers and globally cultured thinkers. From initial assessment to eventual graduation, OXIS students thrive in a welcoming, diverse environment that challenges them and proves that unique, holistic teaching methods are the way forward.