Parent's Review of Anglo-American School of Moscow in Moscow, Russia

What is the name of your child's school? (Please report on one school per survey.)

Anglo-American School of Moscow

In what town or city is this school located?

Moscow

How would you describe this school? (i.e. American, British, International, Local, etc.)

Anglo-American School of Moscow is charted by the American, British and Canadian Embassies. The student body represents 60 nationalities and has a true international flavor.

What grade levels are represented at this school?

Pre-K (age 4) to Grade 12

How do most children get to school everyday? (bus, train, walk, etc.)

A large number of students walk to the school from nearby neighborhoods. Most other students come to the school via housing or embassy buses. The school runs shuttles from the nearest metro stop to the school for its employees, students and parents. There is a privately contracted bus service available for families. Traveling from school especially can be troublesome with the ever growing Moscow traffic problem.

How would you describe the facilities at this school? What extra-curricular activities are available?

Facilities are fantastic with a new aquatics complex and theatre recently being completed. The high school division just added new classrooms and a large all purpose room to its area. The entire facility is about ten years old. Extracurricular activities and athletics include most that you would find in an American school except for American baseball, American football and track and field. The elementary school after school program runs throughout the year. The high and middle school athletic and activities programs participate in the Central and Eastern European Schools Association in cities such as Warsaw, Vienna, Budapest, Istanbul, Zagreb, Prague and Bucharest.

What has this school done to help your child transition from the curriculum in your home country into the curriculum in your new country? Are there programs to prepare your child for repatriation?

While there are transition programs, they are more focused on orientation of the new student into the school rather than repatriating the departing student. The elementary school offers a parent workshop for assisting parents on the issues students may face during the transitions. (My view is that more work could be done in the repatriation area.) The curriculum at AAS is based on the standards and benchmarks of the countries of the chartering embassies and, by most accounts, the transition into the curriculum at another international school or home country is quite easily done.

How would you describe the social activities available for parents through this school? Are there parent-teacher organizations?

For any parent who wants to be involved, there is a very active Parent Teacher Organization. Social events run throughout the year beginning with the Family Picnic through the PTO Gala, the largest fundraising event of the year. The PTO has granted tens of thousands of dollars over the years for AAS program development. In the 2008-2009 school year the PTO is funding a pilot grant for teachers to develop new art programs, athletic offerings, and other activities. The PTO host coffees each year in various sections of the city to welcome new families. It has monthly general meetings and is headed by a PTO Executive Committee whose president is a member of the Board of Directors. It is very clear that parent involvement is encouraged and valued by the school. As a new parent, the best way to ease the transition issue is to get involved in the school. The parents will welcome you.

What advice would you give to someone considering enrolling their child in this school?

There is a waiting list for almost all grades levels so it is very important to complete an application as soon as you think you may be moving to Moscow. Tuition is expensive but since Moscow is rated by some groups as the most expensive city in the world, this may be a part of the reason. If you are not familiar with the International Baccalaureate programs, you might want to learn about them as AAS offers the IB in the elementary and high schools. For an international school, it is very well staffed with a school psychologist, speech pathologist, elementary literacy specialist and resources teachers in every division. If your child has a learning disability, make sure to let the school know as staffing only is availabloe for child with mild learning disabilities. Administration, teachers and the parent organization are eager to assist.

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