The school shines in various aspects, and even snagged a Teacher of the Year award.
PSA: International Community School (Singapore) rounded up the Education Awards 2025 with five superb wins! On top of Silver for Best Small School of Singapore, The Curriculum Awards – American, and Digital Technology in Learning Award, it also scored Editor’s Choice in Student Wellbeing Award. One of its teachers was also voted as Teacher of the Year (Secondary).
Don’t judge ICS based on its size
ICS has been won an award for Best Small School of Singapore for the fourth year running. The school may be small, but it’s definitely high up in the ranks! ICS uses size as its strength, creating a warm environment where every student is known by name. Learning can be personalised due to a low teacher-student ratio; while secondary school students from the National Honor Society offer tutoring programmes and one-on-one support to English Language Learners too. As you can see, ICS is all about community, and ensures that parents are inducted into the fold alongside its teachers and students. We love how the Parent Teacher Fellowship is a dynamic partnership that organises fun events like the recent Carnival and International Night, with parenting workshops that keep parents well in the loop.
One of the schools in town with an American curriculum
ICS offers students an American curriculum that is aligned with the Common Core standards. It’s accredited by both WASC and ACSI, with over 20 Advanced Placement (AP) courses available. It produces great results as well, with over 98% of AP candidates scoring a three or higher, 78% scoring a four or higher, and 45% achieving the full score of five. Students have access to customised academic counselling, which helps them develop their strengths and effectively work on areas for improvement. In elementary school, students take on inquiry-based projects. Older and younger students are also paired up for a buddy mentoring system, and benefit from a unique partnership with Johns Hopkins University’s Centre for Talented Youth. Beyond academics, students also take part in service projects that extend to various parts of Southeast Asia.
All this is guided by outstanding teachers who make a difference
A good example is ICS’ Rebecca Lafferty. Ms. Lafferty is the proud winner of this year’s Teacher of the Year (Secondary), as voted by her students and their families.
An ICS graduate, Ms Lafferty has come full circle. Stepping into the very classroom where she once sat as a student, she goes above and beyond to inspire the next generation. Fast forward 12 years, she is now the school’s middle school and high school bible teacher.She also assists with the service learning programme, which includes planning and leading overseas service learning trips.
Aptly put by Ms Lafferty, “When I was at ICS, I had teachers who invested into my life. What an honour it is to come back to ICS, and continue my lifelong journey of learning and growing as a teacher in the environment that truly shaped me in so many ways”.
Well done, ICS!
This post is in partnership with International Community School (Singapore).
