The rise of international schools in Phnom Penh

• 25 September 2019
• Local News
• 4256 Views

By Eric Wong Chon Lap

The existing number of international schools in Phnom Penh is seeing the city have one of the highest number in Southeast Asia, as there are more accredited international schools than ever before. This is in response to the rising demand from Cambodian parents who seek culturally diverse environments, and of course the best schooling options for their kids. Apart from local demand, there are also a growing number of international students from expatriate families who choose to stay with their family members in Cambodia, due to lower tuition fees and cost of living.

As a result of the healthy growth in demand for English language education, we have seen more and more international schools being built and many of these are within residential developments. For example, Canadian International School of Phnom Penh (CIS) at the Diamond Island and Northbridge International School Cambodia (NISC) at the Northbridge Communities. This is in response to offering living and lifestyle opportunities to all the family members in one place. In the future, developers see the potential of international schools as a critical element in order to generate demand for their residential properties. Furthermore, this can also increase the value of their developments, and also the nearby land prices and properties.

In the past, we have seen successful developments such as the Canadian International School of Phnom Penh (CIS). Since the school opening its doors as a preschool in 2012, it expanded the main campus on Diamond Island in 2015 and opened their second preschool in Tuol Kork in 2016. CIS will also move their Tuol Kork preschool closer to the recently completed Olympia City. Furthermore, Southbridge International School Cambodia within the Borey Peng Huoth community on National Road #1 also offers affordable, world-class learning from nursery to Grade 9. The school also has plans to complete its new campus-facilities complex designed to accommodate more than 1,500 students for nursery all the way up to Grade 12. The curriculum at most of these international schools are taught by native English speakers, most are qualified teachers and their campuses are new and large with an impressive range of facilities from the professional-sized performing arts theatres and swimming pools to playgrounds, computer labs, and sports fields etc. The list of extracurricular activities offered by these international schools is also very impressive –they focus on language arts, science and social studies, as well art, swimming etc. to form an integrated approach to their students’ educations.

Westview Cambodian International School, an international school that is not invested in by property developers, also had its official launch ceremony recently. The school prides itself on its international standards that allow its graduates to compete globally and offers its International Secondary school program that is built on the American Common Core Standards (ACCS) – a world-renowned standard of education. It is also merged with Khmer language, history and culture into a single curriculum for Grade 7 to Grade 12.

Moving forward, the international school market in Phnom Penh will become increasingly competitive, as property developers start investing in this sector. Although not all schools are invested in by property developers, we may see more international schools inside the residential compounds, or being part of their future mixed-use developments, most likely if these property developments that have plenty of land area such as located, or relocation to the newly- designated residential areas which create a sense of community for everyone.

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