American Cooperative School of Tunis
Encyclopedia
The American Cooperative School of Tunis or ACST is a comprehensive American, international, non-profit (BS), private school
located in La Goulette
, Tunisia
The school enrolls more than 560 students in grades PreK
-12,
The school is widely known for its International Baccalaureate Diploma Program which it has used since 2000. It is currently the only IB World School in Tunisia
.
only teaching Grades PreK-8. A ninth grade
was added in 1982 and a tenth grade
in 1993. Eleventh and twelfth grade were added in 1995 and 1996 respectively with the first graduating class being the class of June 1997.
The school's enrollment increased dramatically following the temporary relocation of the African Development Bank
from its headquarters in Abidjan
, Côte d'Ivoire
to Tunis
, Tunisia
in 2003
with completely new or renovated building dedicated to pre-school, elementary
, middle and high school
. A three-year expansion project was completed in May 2006 and includes a new elementary playground space with new equipment, an amphitheatre
and green space
. The admin/preschool building contains an elementary
library
with an amphitheater and elementary computer lab
. For the upper school
there are two science labs, two computer labs, two art rooms and the main library
with more than 12,000 volumes and a computer research area. Other buildings house a large music classroom, school store, copy center and warehouse
. The school
has a full gym
/auditorium
(with three classrooms), a second newly constructed gym
, a cafeteria
and a regulation sized grass-covered soccer/softball
field with a 400-meter track
being renovated this year. An on-campus parking garage for 74 vehicles was constructed last school year. ACST shares use of a newly constructed 25-meter swimming pool
located at the nearby United States Embassy to Tunisia. Bus transportation is available to and from the school from most residential areas of Tunis
, La Marsa
, Gammarth, El Manar and Carthage
.
. The ACST Diploma can be obtained by earning credits. These credits consist of four credits of English, Social Studies, and Mathematics as well as three credits of Science. In addition, two credits of Foreign Language, two credits of Physical Education, one course of Art, Music, Technology, and Health are also required. An additional four credits must be obtained by taking other courses to earn the required total of 24. Earning the International Baccalaureate Diploma
constitutes automatic fulfillment of the ACST Diploma requirements.
and Sophomore
years consist of American style high school courses designed for 14 to 16 year-olds created and regulated solely by ACST. The school offers English
, Math, Biology
, and Chemistry
as core subjects. However, ACST does not offer Physics
and thus only offers IB Physics at Standard Level in its IB Diploma Program. ACST also offers electives that students may take in addition to the core subject. The high school electives for the 2007-2008 school year include: Music, Art, Advanced Art, Modern Standard Arabic, Technology, Model United Nations, Drama, Introduction to Research, 20th Century African History, and German.
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
located in La Goulette
La Goulette
La Goulette is the port of Tunis, the capital of Tunisia. The Kasbah fortress was built in 1535 by Charles I of Spain but was captured by the Ottoman Turks in 1574...
, Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
The school enrolls more than 560 students in grades PreK
Pre-Kindergarten
Pre-kindergarten refers to the first formal academic classroom-based learning environment that a child customarily attends in the United States. It begins between the ages of 3-5 depending on the length of the program...
-12,
The school is widely known for its International Baccalaureate Diploma Program which it has used since 2000. It is currently the only IB World School in Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
.
History
The American Cooperative School of Tunis was founded in 1959, originally as an American Elementary SchoolElementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
only teaching Grades PreK-8. A ninth grade
Ninth grade
Ninth grade is the ninth post-kindergarten year of school education in some school systems. The students are 13 to 15 years of age, depending on when their birthday occurs. Depending on the school district, ninth grade is usually the first year of high school....
was added in 1982 and a tenth grade
Tenth grade
In majority of the world,Tenth grade is the tenth year of school post-kindergarten. The variants of "10th grade" in various nations is described below.-Australia:...
in 1993. Eleventh and twelfth grade were added in 1995 and 1996 respectively with the first graduating class being the class of June 1997.
The school's enrollment increased dramatically following the temporary relocation of the African Development Bank
African Development Bank
The African Development Bank Group is a development bank established in 1964 with the intention of promoting economic and social development in Africa...
from its headquarters in Abidjan
Abidjan
Abidjan is the economic and former official capital of Côte d'Ivoire, while the current capital is Yamoussoukro. it was the largest city in the nation and the third-largest French-speaking city in the world, after Paris, and Kinshasa but before Montreal...
, Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
to Tunis
Tunis
Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
, Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
in 2003
Facilities
ACST is located on a 10 acres (40,468.6 m²) campusCampus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
with completely new or renovated building dedicated to pre-school, elementary
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
, middle and high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
. A three-year expansion project was completed in May 2006 and includes a new elementary playground space with new equipment, an amphitheatre
Amphitheatre
An amphitheatre is an open-air venue used for entertainment and performances.There are two similar, but distinct, types of structure for which the word "amphitheatre" is used: Ancient Roman amphitheatres were large central performance spaces surrounded by ascending seating, and were commonly used...
and green space
Open space reserve
Open space reserve, open space preserve, and open space reservation, are planning and conservation ethics terms used to describe areas of protected or conserved land or water on which development is indefinitely set aside...
. The admin/preschool building contains an elementary
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
with an amphitheater and elementary computer lab
Computer lab
A computer lab, also known as a computer suite or computer cluster is typically a room which contains many networked computers for public use...
. For the upper school
Upper school
Upper Schools tend to be schools within secondary education. Outside England, the term normally refers to a section of a larger school. There is some variation in the use of the term in England.-State Maintained Schools:...
there are two science labs, two computer labs, two art rooms and the main library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
with more than 12,000 volumes and a computer research area. Other buildings house a large music classroom, school store, copy center and warehouse
Warehouse
A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...
. The school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
has a full gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
/auditorium
Auditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances at venues such as theatres. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens.- Etymology :...
(with three classrooms), a second newly constructed gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
, a cafeteria
Cafeteria
A cafeteria is a type of food service location in which there is little or no waiting staff table service, whether a restaurant or within an institution such as a large office building or school; a school dining location is also referred to as a dining hall or canteen...
and a regulation sized grass-covered soccer/softball
Softball
Softball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
field with a 400-meter track
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
being renovated this year. An on-campus parking garage for 74 vehicles was constructed last school year. ACST shares use of a newly constructed 25-meter swimming pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
located at the nearby United States Embassy to Tunisia. Bus transportation is available to and from the school from most residential areas of Tunis
Tunis
Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
, La Marsa
La Marsa
La Marsa is a coastal town in far north eastern Tunisia near the capital Tunis. It is located at around . The population is estimated as 65,742, as of 2006. The old summer capital of pre-colonial Tunisia, it is today a popular vacation spot for many middle class Tunisians.It is connected to Tunis...
, Gammarth, El Manar and Carthage
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
.
Upper School
The American Cooperative School of Tunis has American style high school graduation requirements offering their own "ACST Diploma" in addition to the International Baccalaureate DiplomaIB Diploma Programme
The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme is a two-year educational programme for students aged 16–19that provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into higher education, and is recognised by universities worldwide. It was developed in the early to mid-1960s in Geneva by...
. The ACST Diploma can be obtained by earning credits. These credits consist of four credits of English, Social Studies, and Mathematics as well as three credits of Science. In addition, two credits of Foreign Language, two credits of Physical Education, one course of Art, Music, Technology, and Health are also required. An additional four credits must be obtained by taking other courses to earn the required total of 24. Earning the International Baccalaureate Diploma
IB Diploma Programme
The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme is a two-year educational programme for students aged 16–19that provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into higher education, and is recognised by universities worldwide. It was developed in the early to mid-1960s in Geneva by...
constitutes automatic fulfillment of the ACST Diploma requirements.
Initial years
The initial years of the ACST upper school also known as grades 9 and 10 or FreshmanFreshman
A freshman or fresher is a first-year student in secondary school, high school, or college. The term first year can also be used as a noun, to describe the students themselves A freshman (US) or fresher (UK, India) (or sometimes fish, freshie, fresher; slang plural frosh or freshmeat) is a...
and Sophomore
Sophomore
Sophomore is a term used in the United States to describe a student in the second year of study at high school or university.The word is also used as a synonym for "second", for the second album or EP released by a musician or group, the second movie of a director, or the second season of a...
years consist of American style high school courses designed for 14 to 16 year-olds created and regulated solely by ACST. The school offers English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Math, Biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, and Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
as core subjects. However, ACST does not offer Physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
and thus only offers IB Physics at Standard Level in its IB Diploma Program. ACST also offers electives that students may take in addition to the core subject. The high school electives for the 2007-2008 school year include: Music, Art, Advanced Art, Modern Standard Arabic, Technology, Model United Nations, Drama, Introduction to Research, 20th Century African History, and German.