International Schools Directory

St. Dominic's International School, situated 25 kilometres from Lisbon, was founded in 1964 by the Irish Dominican Sisters. The school operates under a charitable trust with a Board of directors responsible for defining general directions for the school; a management team guides all operational matters. It is a private co-educational day school serving students aged 3-18 years in the international community, through the medium of English. Its mission is to offer an international education of the highest calibre through curricula of all three International Baccalaureate programs: Primary Years Program (PYP), Middle Years Program (MYP) and Diploma Program (DYP). The Junior school offers English, Portuguese, Mathematics, Social Studies, Information Technology, Art, Craft, Music, Physical Education and Social Education under the umbrella of the IBPYP in Nursery, Kindergarten and Years 1 to 6. Class size in the Junior School is 22 students. The International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program is offered in Years 7 to 11 in classes of 18 pupils. In Years 12 and 13 students follow a curriculum which prepares them for the International Baccalaureate examinations leading to a full IB Diploma or to IB Certificates. There is also a multi-faith Religious and Values Education Program from Nursery to Year 11. English as an Additional Language (EAL) and support for students with Special Needs (SEN) are part of our educational services. Fully qualified teachers are employed from international locations; there are 14 nationalities in the teaching staff of whom 49 are women and 23 men. The average length of stay for overseas-hired teachers is three to four years. Locally hired staff generally remain longer term. The student population represents over 50 nationalities. Classes begin in early September and run to the first week of July with breaks for Christmas and Easter and shorter breaks mid-term. The school day is 08.30 to 15.30 hrs with 8 teaching periods for 180 days. A wide range of co-curricular activities is offered in senior school. The school is housed in two one-storey buildings. It has a self-contained Nursery/Kindergarten, 40 Classrooms, 2 Gym halls, 3 Art rooms, Library, Science and Technology laboratories, Music, Computer rooms and a multi-faith meditation room. There are facilities for Hockey, Soccer, Basketball, Volleyball, Tennis, Badminton and Athletics. The school has an open admission policy, but requires reports from previous schools; diagnostic tests in Mathematics, English and other subjects are sometimes required.