New English School (Jordan)
Encyclopedia
The New English School is a bilingual school located in Amman, Jordan, teaching A-levels and International GCSE.
NES is divided into two main sections, the Primary and Secondary Department, though smaller divisions exist: Kindergarten, Infants (Grades 1 to 3), Juniors (Grades 4 to 6) and Secondary (Grades 7 to 12). Students graduate at the end of Grade 12. The school also caters for a small number of pupils with Irlen scotopic sensitivity syndrome
, a visual perceptual disorder affecting primarily reading and writing.
Based on the British system, students of the Senior School, in Grades 9 and 10, follow syllabuses laid down in a range of subjects by Cambridge International Examinations, preparing them for International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) examinations, and by the University of London
, preparing for O Levels
. The IGCSE is the international equivalent of GCSE examinations taken by students in schools in England and Wales at age 16 and above. These examinations are set, moderated and marked by the examining boards of the universities.
The student programme at this level includes compulsory study and examination of English Language, Mathematics
, Arabic, Religion
, Information Technology
and Physical Education
together with five further subjects chosen from a range including Physics
, Biology
, Chemistry
, English Literature
, French
, Economics
, Business Studies
, Computer Studies, Child Development
, Drama
and Art
.
After successfully completing at least six examinations at this level, students move on to the General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (GCE A Level) programme. This comprises a further two years of study according to syllabuses laid down by the aforementioned universities, Cambridge and the University of London. Normally, students will take two or three subjects at this level, from the same range as above, but there is provision for them to take four if they wish. In Grade 11, students follow A-S components, representing half of the ‘A’ level course and in Grade 12 they follow A2 components, focusing on the other half of the ‘A’ level course. The programme at this level also includes Religion, Information Technology, English and Communication, Numeracy and Physical Education courses, which are not externally examined.
In order to achieve equivalence for the Ministry of Education school-leaving certificate in Jordan students must have passed a minimum of six IGCSE or O Levels at Grade D or above plus a minimum of two A Levels at Grades A to E.
Most of the students from this school proceed to attend universities in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Jordan, while a small number proceed to studies in Lebanese universities.
Extracurricular clubs and activities which are available in the Primary School include Student Parliament, Environment Club, Ballet, and Girl Guides and Boy Scouts. School trips of an educational, cultural or sporting nature are organized from K-12. Various festivals and special events are also hosted by the school throughout the year.
Secondary School students also participate in extracurricular activities, including chess, team sport contests, a Students' Council, and a PR team, in association with the school’s administrators, plans social trips and events. The French Department supervises language courses in France and the English Department holds an annual writing contest and revue show entitled ‘Write To Be Heard’. The Arabic Department runs regular writing competitions and quizzes. The PE Department ensures that students are trained to compete in the private schools’ tournaments. The Art Department, assisted by senior students, runs an active Art Club. The Music and Drama departments collaborate to stage musicals; seasonal concerts are organised by the Music Department, and the Drama Department directs a variety of stage productions.
The school also runs its own Model United Nations club, which takes part in local and international conferences. The NES Model United Nations has taken part in several conferences abroad, including AISMUN in Cairo, PAMUN in Paris, and THIMUN in the Hague.
School profile
Scotopic sensitivity syndrome
Scotopic sensitivity syndrome, also known as Irlen Syndrome and Visual Stress Syndrome, approximating in some ways to Meares Irlen syndrome, and 'Visual Stress', refers to visual perceptual disorder affecting primarily reading and writing based activities...
, a visual perceptual disorder affecting primarily reading and writing.
Based on the British system, students of the Senior School, in Grades 9 and 10, follow syllabuses laid down in a range of subjects by Cambridge International Examinations, preparing them for International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) examinations, and by the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, preparing for O Levels
General Certificate of Education
The General Certificate of Education or GCE is an academic qualification that examination boards in the United Kingdom and a few of the Commonwealth countries, notably Sri Lanka, confer to students. The GCE traditionally comprised two levels: the Ordinary Level and the Advanced Level...
. The IGCSE is the international equivalent of GCSE examinations taken by students in schools in England and Wales at age 16 and above. These examinations are set, moderated and marked by the examining boards of the universities.
The student programme at this level includes compulsory study and examination of English Language, Mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, Arabic, Religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, Information Technology
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
and Physical Education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
together with five further subjects chosen from a range including 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...
, 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...
, 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....
, English Literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
, Business Studies
Business studies
Business studies is an academic subject taught at higher level in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom, as well as at university level in many countries...
, Computer Studies, Child Development
Child development
Child development stages describe theoretical milestones of child development. Many stage models of development have been proposed, used as working concepts and in some cases asserted as nativist theories....
, Drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
and Art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
.
In order to achieve equivalence for the Ministry of Education school-leaving certificate in Jordan students must have passed a minimum of six IGCSE or O Levels at Grade D or above plus a minimum of two A Levels at Grades A to E.
Most of the students from this school proceed to attend universities in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Jordan, while a small number proceed to studies in Lebanese universities.
Extracurricular activities
Secondary School students also participate in extracurricular activities, including chess, team sport contests, a Students' Council, and a PR team, in association with the school’s administrators, plans social trips and events. The French Department supervises language courses in France and the English Department holds an annual writing contest and revue show entitled ‘Write To Be Heard’. The Arabic Department runs regular writing competitions and quizzes. The PE Department ensures that students are trained to compete in the private schools’ tournaments. The Art Department, assisted by senior students, runs an active Art Club. The Music and Drama departments collaborate to stage musicals; seasonal concerts are organised by the Music Department, and the Drama Department directs a variety of stage productions.
The school also runs its own Model United Nations club, which takes part in local and international conferences. The NES Model United Nations has taken part in several conferences abroad, including AISMUN in Cairo, PAMUN in Paris, and THIMUN in the Hague.
Cambridge awards
The following table records the number of Cambridge awards the school received from 2006, onward. These awards were received for IGCSE.| Year | Number of national rankings | Number of international rankings |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 4 (Information technology, Chemistry, Physics, Drama) | 0 |
| 2007 | 4 (Mathematics,Information technology, Business, French) | 2 (Computer Studies) |
| 2008 | 2 (Business, Economics) | 1 (English as a second language) |