Bangkok International schools are private schools serving mostly expatriate children (diplomats, multinational corporation executives, NGO staff), and usually some local families (that can afford the steep tuition). Student population is usually diverse, with students from many different countries. Most schools offer grades PK – 12 (ages 5 – 18), but some are restricted to high school or primary school, depending on the needs of the population.
International schools in Bangkok usually choose to follow a curriculum model from the US, UK, Canada or Australia/New Zealand. Sometimes you can tell by the name of the school (like the American School of Bangkok) but others are more ambiguous (like the International School Bangkok). Still others choose to pull from all different curriculum options, finding the mix that best suits their student population.
Many of these schools were originally established for children of people who worked at embassies or multinational corporations or who were missionaries. These families, living outside their home countries and likely to change countries as part of their job, were seeking a consistent type of education, delivered in English, at schools from which they could transfer their children to other countries without the loss of academic credit.
Broadly speaking, international schools are classified into three educational systems in Thailand: American, British and international. Although, the American and the British systems predominate, other national systems are represented as well e.g. Swiss, Japanese, French and German.
Courses offered by the Bangkok international school lead to internationally recognized qualification such as the International General Certificate of Education (IGCSE), the International Baccalaureate (IB), Advanced Placement (AP), and the General Certificate of Education at Advanced level (GCE”A”Level). These are academically rigorous courses, which enable students who have satisfactorily met the examination requirements to be admitted to universities or other institutions of higher learning either in Thailand or overseas.