FAQ – Eng

One of the biggest strengths of International schools are their international environments where students and teachers from all across the globe gather together in the pursuit of knowledge. With this enriching and diverse atmosphere students develop a global mindset, adapting quickly to different cultures and possessing the ability and empathy to see issues from multiple perspectives. International schools have an academic curriculum of excellence and are focused on preparing intelligent students who achieve outstanding results. 

An International school is characterized by an International curriculum that increases knowledge in academic and cultural diversity without losing its ties with the country of origin. All subjects are typically taught in English, but the school curriculum includes teaching in the native countries language and adhering to all local education requirements.

Bilingual school should be just that, bilingual referring to classes taught 50% in the native language where the school is physically and the remaining 50% of the day taught in another language typically English. However, many bilingual schools do not follow a 50/50 language split.

Rio International School offers a program in which 90% of the English language is used daily and in a Brazilian bilingual school the percentage of daily English is on average about 10%.

An International High School diploma focuses its attention on other idiomatic competencies. Students are able to carry out this type of study in a bilingual manner and are additionally obligated to study another foreign language.

International diploma programs are also known for their ability to adapt to the mobility of their students, in addition to encourage their participation in creative, analytical, investigative, and autonomous activities, on a personal and academic level. Experience, reflection, and inquiry all play important roles during these last years of study.

On the other hand, bilingual education during High school years implies that between 30% and 50% of subjects studied by students are taught in a foreign language. In this way, high school level students in bilingual schools study the same number of subjects as in a non-bilingual school, with the exception being that more classes are taught in English.

International vision = This type of diploma allows students to finalize their pre-college studies with an international projection. In this way, academic and professional mobility is guaranteed to graduates, opening doors to universities worldwide.

Direct access to college education = Completing an RIS International Advanced Studies High School diploma affords students access to different colleges around the world.

External evaluations = The International diploma carries out its final evaluations by examining students based on the knowledge they have learned throughout their years of study. In order to guarantee maximum accuracy and objectivity in the results, exams are corrected by international professors who are experts on the subject.

Yes. RIS is accredited through Cognia formerly AdvancED. Students who attend RIS are easily able to transfer to schools and universities in other countries as well as schools within Brazil.

Yes, the RIS academic program is approved by Secretary of Education of the State of Rio de Janeiro, and only one of a three schools in Rio de Janeiro recognized as an International school. Our students take all subjects and fulfill the workload required by Secretary of Education of the State of Rio de Janeiro. They are also given the opportunity to receive the AP International diploma endorsed by the AdvancED program.

RIS offers an academic course of study based on the U.S. educational model and we add the American/International curriculum to the Brazilian curriculum basis.

 At the high school level, RIS has an enriched college preparatory curriculum offering a range of elective subjects and Advanced Placement (AP) classes.

At Rio International School, students receive 90% of their classes in English daily. English is the main language of instruction and the subjects (with the exception of Portuguese, Brazilian history and Brazilian geography classes) are taught in English by native or fluent teachers. RIS methodology is focused on student learning, academic excellence and our program is directed toward individual development and enrichment in intellectual, physical, moral, spiritual and social areas. Our students can benefit from a real cultural immersion and diverse atmosphere with international teachers.

In a regular Brazilian school students usually receive between one and five 50-minute classes of English weekly.

Rio International School offers excellent academic and multidisciplinary teaching, unlike what happens in Brazilian schools with a traditional format, the focus is on preparing the student for experiences abroad. However, there are many RIS students who choose and are accepted to Universities in Brazil.  RIS Secondary also has programs like “Zero Hour” before school begins, included in tuition, where teachers are available to answer questions and give special subject approaches, according to the objective of each student.

A typical Brazilian school has four to five hours of classes per day. RIS has a 7-hour school day journey, exceeding the workload required by Secretary of Education of the State of Rio de Janeiro. RIS also offers additional periods of activity before or after regular school hours.

This means that in all that we do, we seek to commend the name of Jesus Christ. We want our students to have the opportunity to study the Bible fully and to begin or grow their relationship with God. We aim to teach spiritual disciplines such as prayer, worship, bible reading and service. We also hope that students will develop a good character that is one of integrity and become people of purpose that can shape society for the better.

Christian education, like traditional education, is based on a learning curriculum, but it adds the Christian perspective of the human being and the world around him, mixing conventional education with the foundations of the Christian worldview.

No, we are an open enrollment school that accepts families of all faiths. However, when enrolling your child at Rio International School you must understand that RIS infuses the message of Christian faith in all aspects of school.

Yes. RIS academic program is approved by Secretary of Education of the State of Rio de Janeiro and we provide the minimum workload required by Secretary of Education of the State of Rio de Janeiro for International Schools while adding an International curriculum to make our academic more rigorous than most. However, at Rio International School faith and learning go hand in hand. Therefore, we engage with discussions about Christianity throughout our learning. All students have Bible classes included in their week.

No. Our Statement of Faith follows a Reformed Evangelical position. Link to stat of Faith.

RIS offers English, Portuguese and French. English is offered from Preschool to 12th grade. Portuguese is offered from 1st to 12th grades. French is offered as a regular subject from 2nd to 8th grades. We are committed to encouraging students to see language learning as part of their engagement with a rich and diverse world.

RIS graduates gain admission to many of the world’s most prestigious universities including Harvard, New York University, and London Metropolitan University. 

RIS graduates gain admission to many prestigious universities in Brazil including Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, ESPM, IBMEC, Mato Grosso State University, PUC Rio.

The student is obligated to participate in at least 75% (seventy-five percent) of the total minimum workload required for the academic period to be promoted and it is not possible to correct insufficient attendance through educational recovery.

They are recorded in our gradebool platform, by the respective teacher. Absences do not free students´s from the obligation to fulfill homework or in class work they may have missed.

RIS students spend more time studying content with their teachers at school, with this, we assign less homework. With that, homework should happen occasionally. Activities such as Reading, spelling and didactic math games are part of homework and are daily. Homework is used to reinforce academic concepts learned at school.

Our art department provides an outstanding education in the visual and performing arts with an emphasis on Christian Worldview of the Arts. The faculty and staff have created a supportive environment in which students can grow in the fields of visual arts, expressive arts and music, including band and vocal programs. Students are able to demonstrate their learning in front of the entire school community at annual events.

RIS offers a robust School Program for students in grades K through 12. Students have the opportunity to learn and develop athletic skills and explore participation in several sports.

As part of our learning program students use the Google Education platform and all students receive an @ris.school email address that links them to their Google account and Google classroom. There are also many other platforms that each individual teacher uses and will communicate to parents and students.

Assessment of achievement is a continuous, diagnostic, cumulative, integral process, through all activities developed during the school year.

A teacher’s evaluation of a student’s assigned work product is an assessment of tests, arguments, research, work and / or activities, also taking into account the observation of the teacher regarding attendance and performance, included in the latter: attitudes, interest, relationship and punctuality, taking into account, preferably, the understanding of facts, the perception of relationships, the application of knowledge and other skills, as well as the acquired automatisms. In all high school, the student to be considered approved, needs to obtain a grade of 60 in the final average.

The assignment evaluations can be expressed as a percentage score or a letter grade. For percentage scores, the typical practice is to start at 100% and deduct points for deficiencies.

For each class, the student’s assignment scores or grades across the term are averaged according to weights established by the teacher. This produces the course grade. A report card lists all of the student’s course grades for the term, translates these to grade point equivalents, and calculates a Grade Point Average (GPA) weighted by the number of credits earned for each class. A transcript lists the course grades received during the student’s entire tenure at the school and compiles them into a cumulative GPA.

Rio International School will be able to provide its students, who demonstrate unsatisfactory performance during the school year, two types of recovery:

• Parallel Recovery, which accompanies the teaching-learning process throughout the school year adding makeup classes to current classes the student is taking.
• Final Recovery, which takes place after the end of the school year.