New international school for foreigners, refugees and locals to start next year

KUALA LUMPUR - Ideas International, a private international secondary school catering for students from diverse economic and national backgrounds including foreign and refugee students as well as locals, will open its doors in Cheras here in January next year.

Providing affordable world-class education, Ideas International shatters the status quo, offering the most competitive international school fees in KL starting at a remarkable RM10,800 annually, Stephanie van Aken, spokesperson for the school, said in a statement today.

Ideas International is wholly operated by Ideas Academy, an IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) private secondary school that is also registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

She said the curriculum includes coding or writing computer programmes as a compulsory subject - which is very much in demand among students in ICT today - from ages 10 years onwards (Year 5 - Year 11).

Besides this, other subjects offered include English, Mathematics, Combined Science, Global Perspectives, ICT, Physics, Chemistry, Humanities, Accounting, Economics and Business Studies, said Stephanie, who is also Head of Operations at Ideas Academy.

She said humanity and technology serve as the two key pillars shaping the school's unique approach, fused to nurture kind, socially responsible, tech-savvy leaders of tomorrow.

Through cross-cultural collaboration, students develop a global mindset that prepares them to thrive in an interconnected world.

A collaboration between MyTownKL, Ikano Centres and Ikea, Ideas International will operate from a repurposed four-storey-building spanning over 33,000 sq ft accomodating 650 students.

It would feature an array of facilities including skate ramps, multipurpose courts, green spaces and break rooms to create a healthy and balanced environment for students to learn, grow and thrive.

There was overwhelming response from Malaysian parents, she said, adding that those keen to know more could visit the Ideas International booth in MyTownKL.

A social enterprise, Ideas Academy was founded by Ideas, a local nonprofit think tank based in Kuala Lumpur and YRC, a Dutch based foundation aimed at raising funds for the refugee community. - BERNAMA