Highlighted Article: 4 Rules to Live by for Ex-pats

4 Rules to Live by for Ex-pats by Pico Iyer

―My own first rule is to look for the distinctive good in any place and try to learn from it. The nature of expatriation is to live in a place very different from your own. You can either rail against these differences, or you can exult in them. In Japan, for example, the people around me are much more comfortable listening than speaking (especially with strangers), and they know how to make silence eloquent. I, therefore, though a verbal person, try to do without words in Japan.

―A similar rule is not to spend too much time in the company of other ex-pats. Fellow traveling foreigners can always afford a sympathetic ear, good counsel and a remedy for homesickness, but they can also wrap us in the particular fretting of an alien. Because the conditions around us will never change, the thing to do is to accept our circumstances and make the most of them.

―An ex-pat also has to develop, in most places, a strong sense of himself, as he would not have to do at home, where he is more or less typical. Part of the challenge of being an ex-pat is that those around you are likely to see you as something special, a symbol of opportunity. The hazard of being an American is that we come from the place that, to most of the world, is an epitome of power and influence. We can seem glamorous, or desirable, to those around us – as someone to be envied, or, more dangerous, befriended – and the ex-pat must neither be outraged nor flattered.

―Perhaps the most important rule of all for being an ex-pat is that you must learn to see the world through the other’s eyes. That is the whole point of travel. Of course, but what can be easy and exhilarating on a two-week trip to Mexico can be more punishing when one is sent there for five years. You are a guest in someone else’s house, in effect, and you must accept the host’s assumption – how he sees and decorates his world.

Reprinted from the article “Somewhere Man” by Pico Iyer, p.74, Modern Maturity, May/June, 2001.

Overview of an int’l school #2 – Berlin International School: excellence in education

How great that each international school is unique!

In this overview of an international school we would like to highlight Berlin International School in Germany.

Currently there are 4 international schools listed in Berlin on International School Community.


Berlin International School (B.I.S.) is the leading, non-profit day international school offering a comprehensive education program for students aged 5 to 18 in the greater Berlin area at Campus Dahlem.

Almost 1000 students from more than 60 countries attend one of the school’s sections or Kita International, the independent Early Childhood Center (Early Childhood Center for children 3 to 5; Primary School for students aged 5 to 11; Middle and High School for students aged 11 to 18); all on one campus in the beautiful, leafy Dahlem in the south-west of Berlin (Zehlendorf), conveniently located close to the Kurfürstendamm and the embassies around Tiergarten.

B.I.S. is an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School and a Cambridge Exam Center and also authorized to offer the IBPYP and IB-Diploma Programme. The school is accredited by both the Council of International Schools and the New England Association of Schools and Colleges in the U.S. and is a SAT Test Center. B.I.S. is also officially approved by the Berlin Department of Education.

At B.I.S., the focus is two-fold: excellence in education and the personal growth of every student. Students learn in a multicultural community where each person is respected regardless of nationality, race, or religion. Students discover the world, its people, and its cultures through direct experience. Through play, study, and the relationships they form, students at B.I.S. learn to appreciate their own strengths and to respect differences rather than fear them. Combined with academic rigor, this experience extends outside the classroom and equips students for success and global citizenship beyond school.

A strong academic program, centered around the traditional core disciplines, prepares students for entrance into colleges, universities, or other institutions providing tertiary education and training. B.I.S. offers the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB) and a U.S. recognized High School Diploma. In addition, the school provides courses and learning support services which address the needs of a student body diverse in educational background and ability. More than 90% of the graduating seniors enter universities and institutions of higher learning worldwide.

The B.I.S curriculum is designed to meet the needs of all B.I.S. learners. It is relevant, challenging and engaging, allowing students to fully develop their potential in terms of the skills, attitudes, values and knowledge required to meet their current and future needs. Consequently, inquiry, problem solving, opportunity for creativity and team-working are key features.

Learning opportunities are not restricted to the classroom; the wider world is embraced to further support learning, personal growth and development

The International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (IB PYP) is followed at the Primary School. The Middle School curriculum for Grades 6 through 8 is based on best practice for this age group from national systems around the world, adapted for an international context. The High School offers a rigorous and balanced program of studies allowing students to progress to the International General Certificate of Education and the IB Diploma.

The curriculum is dynamic and responsive – it evolves, responds and develops in accordance with the needs of our students and contemporary research into learning and teaching, while maintaining the highest international standards. The on-going professional development of our highly skilled faculty is a key resource for improving curriculum and student learning.

External link: Berlin International School »

**This article was taken from the TheLocal website.

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