We are acutely aware of the deficiencies and limitations of the Cypriot educational system, public and private, evident from below average performance in international student assessments (e.g. PISA tests), and endeavour to provide a truly alternative educational approach, one that closely resembles values and practices adopted by successful systems such as Finland’s. Our approach is characterised by the promotion of a collaborative and research-based acquisition of knowledge/skills, personalised training and focus on the development of creativity, critical thinking and analytical skills, all in the context of enabling the student to acquire a foreign language or determine their future. We achieve this by actively adopting the following practices:
Friendly and Collaborative atmosphere
Promotion of a friendly and collaborative atmosphere in class, between the teacher and the student, and between students. We explicitly encourage students to view their teacher as an individual that provides the means to enable their learning in cooperation with them. We further promote collaborative learning (between students) via the assignment of group work and other activities requiring the contribution of multiple agents, such as the development of a common position in an argument e.g. in the context of a debate primarily aimed at improving speaking skills.
Research based learning
Implementation of a research-based learning, where, depending on the student’s age and level of proficiency, activities aim at encouraging the independent investigation of a topic and acquisition of information that have not been explicitly taught in class. For instance, an adolescent at the First Certificate level will be asked to develop an essay on e.g. the advantages and disadvantages of globalisation on the basis of our discussion of the topic in class and the use of information acquired from reliable web content or books/articles. A similar approach is implemented in the context of our consulting services, where the student is guided through the main points that need to be taken into consideration and, in collaboration with our team of consultants, more specific information regarding all the candidate courses/universities and their potential for a successful future is acquired.
Critical thinking and analytical skills
Development of critical thinking and analytical skills via activities suitable for the student’s age. For instance, very young students are encouraged to be involved in role play (e.g. in the context of developing their speaking and reading skills) and are asked open-ended questions, both known for their positive impact on the development of executive functioning skills , problem solving abilities and drawing of valid inferences. A student in adolescence on the other hand will be guided though some basic logical reasoning; they will be taught how to spot logical inconsistencies in an argument and how to develop a coherent piece of writing, characterised by factual information and valid argumentation.
Small number of students
Our classes are comprised of a small number of students, approximately 10. This allows the teacher to provide more attention to each individual, however, if more guidance is required, extra private lessons are frequently arranged.