Client Review on St. Dominics International School Portugal

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Goodness me, having just read the reviews here you would be forgiven for thinking that I must be a dreadful person for sending my two bright, kind, creative and generally wonderful children to this school! I'm not usually one for this kind of thing but I must speak out in defence of St.Dominics. Let us be clear, I am not a member of staff nor in any way connected to any of the owners of the school but I am a parent, with 2 children currently at the school, one in junior school and one in the senior school and we are just entering our third year here.There are some factual points that cannot be disputed; the school is sadly lacking in green spaces or playing fields, there has been student and staff turnover as new International Schools have opened and the results of the school are not definitely not topping any league tables right now and desperately need to improve. However, in my opinion, the school has a great Head of the Junior School who seems to be universally liked and respected and a great new Head of the Senior School who is British and is full of good ideas. The school is making changes to address the use of space, there are sparkling new facilities and an incredibly sensible plan to improve the academic results going forward.Yes, St. Dominics is non selective and yes, there are children with special needs but why isn't that a wonderful thing in a world where we could all do with being a little more patient and kind to each other? Why does sharing your class with someone who is a little different mean that you can't excel? The world that our children will be entering is going to require a whole lot more than a handful of academic qualifications to succeed in. Flexibility, adaptability, emotional intelligence, creativity and above all the ability to communicate with all sorts of people are going to be essential skills and I am a huge fan of a school that is prepared to welcome everyone.Please don't mistake me for someone that doesn't have high expectations for her children. My kids are academically very able and in some subjects able to work 2 grades above their year group. We have high aspirations of the results that they should attain and so we work with the school to make sure that they are stretched where necessary. Education is a partnership, I don't believe that you should expect to hand your children over to a school and get them back a few years later with top grades and no input from the parents. There have been times where we have had concerns and raised them and we have always had a response quickly to resolve the situation with senior members of the team who have then checked back to see if we are happy with the result. I'm not sure that I can ask for more than that?Right now, as an International School, St. Dominics has a very strong British Headmaster in charge of the Senior School, a long established and respected Australian Headmaster in full control of the Junior School, an exceptional British teacher who is coordinating the MYP, a new focus on SEN, new facilities and buildings and a really good and positive energy which I hope will only grow.Is it perfect? No. Is any school perfect? Of course not! We have come from the public school system in the U.K. where schools have breathtaking grounds and seemingly never ending facilities but that isn't all that education is about. It's surely about our children learning that with a positive attitude, a good team and hard work anything is possible. That their dreams are all achievable. That there is nothing to hold them back. And perhaps, with this new leadership, the new teachers and parents and children who want St. Dominics to be the successful and amazing school that it has the potential to be, we can make that happen too.