Mother Tongue


VIS was a pioneer amongst international schools in recognizing the importance of additive bilingualism - that is, the continuing development of our students' home languages while at the same time learning the school language of English. A large number of research studies show very clearly that bilingualism can increase children’s language abilities and help their progress in school.

Both the Primary and Secondary schools at VIS are truly international in that the majority of our students speak a language other than English as their first language. Mother Tongue lessons in a wide range of languages are facilitated by our Mother Tongue Coordinators. At the moment, approximately 20% of all students in both schools are enrolled in Mother Tongue lessons.