The Federation of British International Schools in Southeast Asia (FOBISSEA ) is a membership association of British International Schools of quality around the region.

Valerie Thomas-Peter, Director of Schools for Alice Smith and Honorary Secretary of Fobissea talks about the aims, objectives and benefits of being a part of this organization.

What was the initial purpose of setting up this membership association?

It was actually formed in the early 1980s with six founding schools of which Alice Smith was one. In those days communications were very poor and it was quite hard to run a British curriculum school so far away from the UK and keep it to date with trends and education generally.

So the six head teachers of these schools decided to get together and form a federation to support each other; as a professional network of teachers as well as a network for students to participate in activities.

What are the requirements for a school to qualify as a member of FOBISSEA ?

First of all they have to be at least three years old. They also have to deliver a curriculum that can be found in a British school.

There are several elements to that; it could be the national curriculum which most British schools have, the International Primary Curriculum or the International Baccalaureate, providing it is recognised in the UK.

So a child could move back to a school there, he would not be at a disadvantage. In addition to that, the teaching staff have to be qualified; the majority of whom should have a British qualification or teaching experience in a British school. So there is a form of quality control.

Part of the qualification to membership is also the commitment to undergo an accreditation process or inspection every three years by an outside body. This helps ensure that the school remains a British curriculum school, and they are willing to contribute to hosting events and activities, as well as willing to invest in teacher development.

Another requirement is that the head of the school has an educational background and has autonomy in decision making. So we really make sure that the school does what it says it does on its application

What are some of the activities organised by FOBISSEA ?

Every year the organisation holds sports and games programmes. There is a set calendar that increases as we see fit. And there tends to be one major sports event that is focused on different age groups.

This is slightly regionalised but we also go by school size so we have the larger schools playing each other and the smaller one compete with one another so it’s a level playing field.

We started a Math Competition last year for students under the age of eleven, because most of the activities tend focus on the older age group.

The teacher set a math trail and they spent a whole weekend going around the KL area solving math puzzles. We also have a music festival and Model United Nations which are also relatively new

Are there any activities for the teachers?

We have a professional development coordinator who is based in Bangkok and she organises the training programmes. So each school takes turns to host what we call a Job Alike Workshop.

The workshops are an opportunity for teachers of the same level, teaching the same subjects to come together and talk about issues relating to their subjects and they will train each other.

The workshops can be subject based - art, geography, special needs - but what it does require is that schools take it in turns to host these workshops and take the lead with the programmes, particularly if it’s their area of expertise

How does being a member of FOBISSEA benefit the school, students and parents?

Being part of this group gives you access to activities for both students and teachers who have the opportunity for good professional development. It also provides a network of colleagues for head teachers where you can share your experiences and challenges of running a school.

For the students, participating in these activities it exposes them to the local cultures of different countries which is another element of the FOBISSEA policy. It’s not so much an academic development but on a more personal level it helps them interact with children from different backgrounds.

It’s part of preparing them to take on an international role in the future. Parents have the quality assurance that FOBISSEA schools having to undergo several inspections and accreditation are genuinely British curriculum schools.

One of these inspections will be carried out by the British government by a group called Ofsted which will help parents in the UK who are looking to move here, identify international schools that are approved by the government