International School Innsbruck - Innsbruck

Svetlana Williams

This review is in regards to IES VS ( elementary school) that is in transition to AES, principal Ms. Prazeller.
I’m writing to express our deep dissatisfaction with our experience at this so-called "international" school. Frankly, it’s baffling that the school even claims to adhere to any international standards, as it’s certainly not up to par with what one would expect in the modern Western world.

The principal's lack of knowledge about educating children with even the most minimal learning difficulties is astonishing. Her response to our request for help—"we never had this kind of kids in our school"—was not only dismissive but statistically impossible given the number of students. We were left to fend for ourselves, navigating local resources without any support from the school administration which is completely unacceptable.

While some teachers tried to be supportive, the leadership's ignorance and lack of expertise regarding learning difficulties are glaring. We’ve been contacted by numerous other parents facing the same issues—issues that the school should be addressing but clearly chooses to ignore.

The school system itself here is archaic and, frankly, barbaric.
The first three years of elementary school are a joke, with no real academic pressure, only for students to be thrown into a 4th-grade hell where they have to study incessantly—not to actually learn, mind you, but just to pass meaningless exams and get the grades necessary to move on to gymnasium. The idea that a child’s future academic prospects are determined at the age of 9 or 10 is absurd and downright harmful. If a child doesn't meet these ridiculous standards, they're shoved into local middle schools that theach obviously only in German, and the door to university is essentially slammed shut.

English-speaking children are particularly neglected. If they have even one grade that isn't perfect, they’re pushed into German-speaking middle schools with zero continuity or support from the school. The IES is supposedly transitioning to AES, which is supposed to be more inclusive and supportive, but we have serious doubts that anything will improve with the current principal’s outdated mindset still in place.

The bottom line: if you’re an English-speaking family passing through Innsbruck, don’t expect this school or the local education system to come anywhere close to meeting your expectations. As per local authorities "the system didn't change for the last 100 years and there nothing we can do".
If your child will get accepted to AGI ( only English Gymnasium around) do not expect that it will be in English as they advertised since this is misleading, the support for kids with learning dificulties there officially 4h a week but in reality is almost 0, so another layer of discrimination is obvious. Favoritism takes common place in acceptance to AGI, local children whose parents are "connected" getting first to go. Local children with bare knowledge of English have more chances to be accepted to the only Gymnasium in English in the city.

Wilhelm Costa

Andrea Wolfgang-Stock

Mohamed Elchazali