Myanmar International School Yangon

MISY is an all-age school in Yangon, the Burmese (Myanmar) primate city. The school has (2015) some 630 students and has been in existence for six years. The school is (to date) the only one in Yangon to offer the full English National Curriculum from the Foundation stage (KG in the US and elsewhere) up to the International GCSE (taken at age 16 in about eight subjects) and Advanced ('A') level, taken in two stages at 17 and 18, for university admission. The school is accredited to the University of Cambridge Examinations Syndicate. The school has an enviable reputation for the excellence of its IGCSE results; this is now being followed up by a full range of Advanced Level courses. Students at MISY are, at present about 75% local nationals, with a sprinkling of expat students, children of diplomatic families and employees of the growing number of foreign corporations in the country, as well as NGOs. In its relatively short history the school has recruited a wide variety of able students at the senior end: young men and women of various nationalities have moved on from MISY to universities in South East Asia (Myanmar, Singapore etc) as well as to the UK, the USA, Canada, Australia and many European countries. University offers in the summer of 2015 include London, Manchester, Cornell, Pittsburgh, Melbourne, Monash, University College London and Singapore. The attraction of the externally-graded 'A' level examinations has seen students moving to MISY from other schools in the city: this has raised the profile of the school and widened the geographical spread of alumni at world universities. At present there are upwards of thirty young people studying for up to four 'A' level examinations. These numbers are expected to rise. All 'A' level students have a full academic schedule as well as a built-in community service programme. The school is active in community service and regularly supports local charities, ranging from flood relief in Myanmar to assisting monastic schools for the poor and destitute. The very active student council is deeply involved in this. The Learning Centre at MISY is a national leader in Special Needs education. The Primary School utilises the very best learning resources in following the English National Curriculum, including Jolly Phonics, Oxford Reading Tree, Wigan Maths, and a PSHE programme that includes an active House System and thematic weeks throughout the year. There is a growing Drama programme and an enviable sports tradition. MISY is one of the outward faces of a country which has only in recent years opened up to the world: MISY students are encouraged as a matter of school policy, to become world citizens and environmentalists.