From kindergarten to the end of primary school
Classes at Academia Bilingual School Basel are engaging and vibrant. Our students come from diverse cultural backgrounds. Around 35 percent of our children speak English as their mother tongue, 30 percent German while over 20 different nationalities are represented in our student population. In recent years, more and more monolingual families have chosen bilingual education for their children which aligns with the measured success and popularity of such educational programmes.
Academic success
Our dedication to smaller classes compliments our commitment to differentiation and individual differences. Internal assessments support targeted learning against both international and national standards. The majority of our students continue bilingual schooling at Academia International School. After the end of the compulsory schooling, a large amount of students successfully transfer to a local public college or to our English-speaking college.
Our teachers
Our teaching team brings a great mix of experience, passion and commitment to our school. We are proud that the majority of our teaching team have been with us for an extended period of time. Swiss, German, French, British, American, Canadian and Australian teachers make up our teaching staff.
Our students
We are a small school by design to meet the needs of the individual in a familiar learning community. Our students have normal or above-average aptitude. They have good learning habits and strong social skills. Admission is based on an interview, student recommendation from the current school, past report card and trial days where possible.
We welcome new students warmly. Our language booster lessons entail additional support in the second language to help newcomers commence at our school.
Our school day
At our day school we offer a comprehensive before and after school programme from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Our school bus (optional) ensures that all children arrive safely and on time in school in the morning and at home in the afternoon (tours within the city of Basel).
Our bilingual kindergarten starts at 8:30 a.m. (arrival time from 8 a.m. onwards). On Mondays, Tuesday, Thursdays and Fridays the Kindergarten day including lunch finishes at 2:45 p.m.; children can stay until 3:45 p.m. at no extra cost. Kindergarten ends at 11:50 a.m. on Wednesday.
Lessons at our primary school are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and from 8:30 a.m. to 11:50 a.m. on Wednesday. Children can arrive at school starting at 8 a.m.
An after-school programme is available until 6 p.m. within the scope of our before and after-school programme (subject to payment) for all children and youngsters wishing to stay longer.
Monolingual alternative
Are you looking for a German speaking school? Academia Primar & Sek offer a German only primary and secondary school in Reinach (Years 4 to 10).
Connection to Swiss state schools
For many families, a bilingual education is a soft landing into Swiss life and education. Students achieving at our school are typically successful should they venture into other educational systems throughout their schooling. Our school is cantonally recognised for the transition to secondary after year 6 (Übertrittsvereinbarung Privatschule – Sekundarschule). This means no examination is necessary to access state school pathways, rather the strength of our school report cards are accepted, thus easing this burden.
Continued schooling options
Those who complete their primary schooling with us can transfer without exams to the bilingual secondary school of Academia International School in Basel.
Alternatively, a transfer to public secondary school is also possible.
