The United Nations International School: a model of diversity.

• Author: Endrst, Elsa B.

On the edge of the East River, about a mile south of UN Headquarters in Manhattan, stands the United Nations International School (UNIS), a model of ethnic diversity and scholastic achievement.

Here, approximately 1,300 students of 117 nationalities are instructed by teachers from 45 countries. And, in the opinion of UNIS Director Joseph J. Blaney, the school is "authentically global in spirit, in curriculum, in mission and in its purpose".

About one half of the student body are sons and daughters of diplomats and UN staff members, while the remainder are from families of various backgrounds in the New York City area.

There are two campuses: the Manhattan school with classes from Kindergarten through the 12th grade; and a two-story school in a quiet suburban setting in Queens, with 186 students in Kindergarten to the sixth grade.

The UNIS curriculum is rich in literature, science, mathematics, world history, physical education, biology, chemistry and physics. Languages, not surprisingly, are particularly stressed. Ten are regularly offered--English, French, Arabic, Chinese, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin, Spanish and Russian--and taught by native speakers.

But its curriculum is not as nationally oriented as some of the almost 400 other international schools around the world. "We try to use texts from as many countries as possible, especially in humanities. And the teachers bring with them pieces of their own culture, beyond their teaching abilities", says Mrs. Sylvia Fuhrman, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for UNIS.

Another important educational aspect is the International Baccalaureate (IB) degree that is offered. This rigorous pre-university programme for 11th- and 12th-grade students leads to a special international examination which fulfils the requirements of the many national education systems outside the United States. The IB, as it is called, is not based on the pattern of any single country.

First established in Geneva in 1965 under Swiss law, some 400 schools in 57 countries now offer this degree. UNIS in 1970 became the first school in North America to give IB exams.

Normally, at least 50 per cent of UNIS students opt for the programme and some 90 percent of those who do not follow it do take individual IB courses as part of their UNIS education.

A brief history

UNIS was founded in 1947 by a group of UN parents who were aware of a proposal by educators at New York and Columbia Universities for an international...