← Back to the ranking
Porsgrunn, Norway · est. 2004 · Private
International School Telemark
Porsgrunn, Norway · est. 2004 · PrivateIllustration · Porsgrunn
71.3#28 in the country
Know this school? Leave a review →International School Telemark (IST) is a private, non-profit international school in Porsgrunn for grades 1 to 10, ages 6 to 16. It was conceived in 2003 by large companies in the Grenland region together with the development organisation Vekst i Grenland to support economic development and educational quality; the school opened in 2004 at Herøya and in 2012 moved to the former Hovet school. Today about 200 students attend; there are more than 25 nationalities among students, parents and staff, and most teachers are international. The school runs the IB PYP in the primary grades and the MYP in the middle grades; the main working language is English, all students learn Norwegian, and Spanish is added in the middle grades. The school is approved by Udir as a private school and receives state funding, so fees are very low for a private school. After grade 10 students continue with the IB Diploma at Porsgrunn vgs or Skagerak International School or go on to local videregående skole.
Key facts
Tuition
Price on request
Programmes
IB · PYP
Admits from
6 years
Languages of instruction
English
Languages taught
Norwegian, Spanish
School website
Students
about 200
Class size
no more than 21 students per class
About the fees Fees for grades 1-10 are 3400 NOK per month, 34000 NOK per year, in 10 instalments (no payments in July and August); the fee schedule does not state a year. Sibling discounts: the second child pays 30% of the full fee, the third 50%, further siblings are free (the website also gives amounts of 5780 NOK for two children and 7480 NOK for three or more). The school is a non-profit foundation and fees follow guidelines from the Ministry and Udir. Each year the school offers 10 scholarships to families who find the fees difficult, with applications by 1 June.
Admissions The school is open to children from anywhere in Norway who meet the requirements of public elementary school. Main admission: an information meeting in January or February, applications by 1 March, decisions by 20 March; rejected applicants are offered the waiting list. New students are accepted until 30 September, and after that only children with previous international or English language schooling. Before admission the child has a three-day trial at the school, the school assesses the level of English, and a transition meeting with the parents and the previous school follows. When places are short the priority order is: students with previous international or English language schooling; siblings of students; students with at least one foreign parent; children of staff; students on the waiting list. Udir has approved the school for 210 students, one class per grade and at most 21 students per class. Decisions can be appealed to the school board and then to the Statsforvalteren within three weeks.
Stages and year groups Grades 1-10. The IB Primary Years Programme in the primary grades and the IB Middle Years Programme in the middle grades (the website does not state where one ends), grades 1 to 10. In the MYP students must study English and Norwegian language and literature, a third language (Spanish), individuals and societies, sciences, mathematics, arts, physical education and technology; in the final year there is a personal project. The school operates under the Private School Act, and Udir recognises the IB as an alternative to the state curriculum; in grade 10 students receive Norwegian final points (grunnskolepoeng) for admission to videregående skole. There is no upper secondary section or IB Diploma; the school does not mention Cambridge programmes.
Address Hovet ring 7, 3931 Porsgrunn
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
IB · PYP · authorised programmeThe school is listed in the IB register and runs the Primary Years Programme. The school's website also names the Middle Years, but the IB register lists one programme for the school.
school is in an official registryconfirmed by a school document, by membership or by taking part in a networkclaimed by the school, no confirmation, not counted in the scoreGuide to all organisations →
What stands behind each entry
IBInternational Baccalaureate
A Swiss non-profit, working since 1968. Its programmes are among the most widely recognised school programmes in the world. Authorisation is granted stage by stage, so a school with the final stage does not necessarily run the younger ones; which stages this school holds is set out in the line below.
What the badge means for this school. The school is allowed to run this programme and to award its certificate. This is a confirmation of the programme, not a judgement on the school as a whole. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it. At this school: PYP (ages 3-12). PYP is the primary stage, ages 3 to 12. It is not a set of subjects but a frame for the whole school: learning is built around lines of inquiry, and there are no exams at the end.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →Exams and destinations from the school's official website
Exam results The school says its students perform very well in the Norwegian national tests and achieve excellent grade 10 final points (grunnskolepoeng); it refers to its yearly condition report for figures, which are not on the website.
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
✓Sports hall
✓Laboratories
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
✓Library
·Cateringnot stated on the website
·School transportnot stated on the website
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Sports ground or field · Art studio · Playground
Campus: Since August 2012 the school has been in the former Hovet school building in the quiet residential area of Hovet in Porsgrunn. There is a large hall and gym with changing rooms and showers, a library, extensive playground areas, a football pitch, kitchenettes, several large art and technology rooms and group rooms; the former kitchen has been converted into a science room. Nearby are ski tracks, orienteering routes, a wild area and a skate park, and Stridsklev swimming pool is a 10 minute walk away. After-school care (SFO) is available. It is a day school with no boarding.
Source: istelemark.no
Teaching staff from the school's official website
·Teachers listed by namenot published
✓Teacher qualifications
·Number of teachersthe school does not say
✓Students per teacher or class sizein the key facts above
What the listings show: Teacher qualifications include bachelor's and master's degrees in education, the British PGCE, a master's in special education and the Norwegian PPU and allmennlærerutdanning; where required, qualifications are recognised by NOKUT or Udir. Primary teachers are generalists, middle school teachers subject specialists, and all take part in IB training.
Most teachers are international and have trained and worked in many countries. Hiring involves at least three interviews and checks of at least three references; all appointments require a police certificate under Norwegian law.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
·Security staffnot stated on the website
·Access controlnot stated on the website
·Nurse or medical roomnot stated on the website
·Counsellornot stated on the website
·Child protection policynot stated on the website
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
✓Anti-bullying policy
The school states zero tolerance of bullying, discrimination, violence and harassment and refers to Udir's rules on the school environment. Every staff member undergoes a police check and thorough reference checks. There is a learning support coordinator.
Reviews
No reviews yet. The community rating counts towards the score once a school has five verified reviews - until then we do not show a zero, so as not to mislead.
Criteria breakdown criterion weight in brackets
"Scored on disclosed data" stands where we count only what the school has written about itself on its own site: exams and destinations, safety and wellbeing, teaching staff, facilities, clubs and activities. A low score here means the school does not write about this, not that the school does not have it: a school with good security and a sparse site will score low. A school can fill in its profile, and the score will be counted again.
The score is counted from 7 of the 9 criteria.Only those with checkable data count: programmes and accreditations from official registers, the fee from a published price list. Where it says "scored on the median", the school has no data and the middle of the list is put in its place, so that a gap gives no advantage. Admissions, teaching staff and reviews come in as their data arrives. The full methodology →