Learning Support
Personal Counselling
Every child in the school is assigned to a homeroom teacher - this is the classroom teacher in the Elementary School and one of the child's specialist teachers in the Secondary School.
The homeroom teacher is the main point of contact regarding student well-being for the student and the parent.
The school provides a variety of Personal Social Education (PSE) classes throughout the various grades in homeroom classes. These are based around student choices and topics include personal organisation, teamwork, anti-bullying, sex education, drug awareness, first aid courses, etc.
In case of need, the school refers students to the various Austrian authorities in order to receive additional support.
English Language Development (ELD) Support
Extra support is available for students with a limited command of English from specialist English Language Development (ELD) teachers and classroom assistants.
Students who are new to English are taught by an ELD specialist teacher in small groups from Grade 1 to Grade 10; this is in place of German in Elementary and Secondary School. Students that need these New to English sessions are invoiced additionally for this course.
ELD assistants work with ELD students in mainstream classrooms from Grade 1 to Grade 10 when there is a need. Grade 6 to Grade 10 ELD students are withdrawn from French/Spanish and taught by an ELD specialist teacher if numbers necessitate the class.
Many teachers at DISV are qualified to teach English as a Second Language (ESL) or have completed an ESL in the Mainstream class course.
Learning Support
It is believed that at least fifteen to twenty percent (Sindelar 2000) of all school age children have some kind of learning difficulty. Some students therefore need additional support in order to ensure that they are fully engaged in the learning process and excited to do so.
As the school accepts children with mild and sometimes severe learning difficulties, it endeavors to provide the support needed for them to reach their full potential.
Any student who exhibits difficulties in accessing the school’s curriculum may require learning support. The responsibilities of the learning support staff are twofold: Firstly, they are to identify students who have learning difficulties and secondly, they are responsible for overseeing the implementation of a sound programme for specifically diagnosed students.
The school will provide a learning support specialist for an additional charge depending on the needs of the child. Costs are listed in the fees section of the website.
The school liaises with other international schools and the Austrian authorities in relation to this educational area.
Gifted and Talented
Within every school students naturally possess a range of talents and gifts, either academically or in other spheres. The IB Programmes offer a real challenge to students and in particular the open-ended inquiry-based approach enables students to proceed at a pace suitable to them. Teachers are trained in differentiation to ensure that all students are challenged, no matter their ability level.
