Finding the right school for your children is as difficult as it is essential.

The international schools landscape in Portugal continues to grow and evolve. Investment by global school groups has maintained its upward trend in the past year, not only in the Lisbon region but also in Porto. The Lisbon region still offers the largest number of English medium international schools in the Country by far, followed by the Algarve in the South and Porto up North. The Silver Coast is drawing more families every year and as such the offer is expanding, albeit more slowly.

English medium international schools in the Lisbon region offer  American, British or IB curriculums in their entirety or parts thereof. In fact, most international schools mix and match curriculums, making it trickier for parents to truly understand what type of education the school will offer. By contrast, all of the English medium international schools in the Algarve are full-through British schools, culminating in A-levels.

Despite its importance, curriculum is not the only factor one should consider when evaluating a school. A great school will make the most of any curriculum to make learning enjoyable, to provide children with the opportunities to discover their interests both inside and outside the classroom and support them in their personal development so that they can flourish into compassionate global citizens, driven to make the world a better place.