For those who have not yet read "Growing The Pie" by London Business School Professor Alex Edmans, grab it straight away, as the concept of pie growing is happening right now in the British international schools market.
Instead of an international education market, where British international schools overseas carve up the same pie between them, online schools are growing this pie with international students who would not previously have considered attending a traditional British international school.
How can an online school be competition for a real school?
The current popular view of online schools is outdated and has missed the rapid growth in this market of professional educators, orchestrating the growth of professional online schools that are able to offer outstanding British trained teachers, assessments and qualifications, without the huge fees and constraints of a physical school.
Student Well Being
The best British international online schools offer well being hubs, after school clubs, networking and support for parents, success coaches and personalised learning. They provide flexibility for families to travel and take their school with them, move jobs and take their school with them, and a model which fits into their lives if their children are participating in high level sports or the arts. We should also include here students who are particularly gifted who have not been served well in traditional classroom setting, as well as those who have other specific needs.
High Quality Teaching And Learning
The best British international online schools limit their class sizes to twenty or less, and are not constrained by the number of rooms available to them as physical schools are - it's a lot easier to add another Google classroom than a real one and much easier to supervise lessons if the senior leaders can drop in any time to a session via their laptop. Personalised learning is developed through the use of online platforms and tools and AI, and parents are able to observe learning - there is no place for low quality teaching and learning in an online school.
The Future Of Education
In a world where the pandemic is not going to go away for some time, political unrest is growing and nation to nation sanctions and disagreements seem set to continue, a British international online school provides overseas expat and international children the opportunity to receive a first class British education that is uninterrupted, of high quality and promotes digital skills so necessary for 21st century success.
With many of the British Online international schools now attracting between 1500 and 2000 students each, their success is proof that through a combination of educational technology, the internet and some very inspirational education entrepreneurs, the market for British international education has been given a new pie grower, and it looks like that growth is limitless!
Angela Fairs
CEO Full Circle Educational Consultancy
Senior consultant: online school strategic development and 21st century pedagogy, inclusion and technology integration