Frequently asked question

European Classes is a new branch of education in the Luxembourgish state-school system comprising Kindergarten, Primary and Secondary School. Their aim is to provide a multilingual and multicultural education of high quality, within the Luxembourgish national system. Our European Classes make part of Lënster Lycée International School in Junglinster (LLIS), Luxembourg, where they started in September 2018.

Although part of the Luxembourgish state educational offer, the European Classes follow the European School structure, syllabi and curriculum in general. Lënster Lycée International School is an Accredited European School and aims at leading its students towards the European Baccalaureate (EB) Diploma.

Further information is available on the official site of European Schools: https://www.eursc.eu/en & https://www.eursc.eu/en/Accredited-European-Schools/About

• Kindergarten – 2 years, age 4-6 years
• Primary – 5 years (p1 - p5), age 6-11 years
• Secondary – 7 years (s1- s7), age 11/12-18/19 years

The above age-groups are given as standard minimums. For a variety of schooling reasons, it is not unusual that some pupils be a full year older than mentioned above.

Three language sections: the Anglophone, the Germanophone and the Francophone.

Linguistic Sections of the European School system are defined by the dominant language used for the education of pupils in that section, e.g. in the Anglophone section pupils study English as their main language. This is the language they use for most subjects, therefore the language of the section (English, German or French) should be at mother tongue level or equivalent, for a pupil to be able to join that section.

Language 2 (obligatory throughout Secondary) and language 3 are separate subjects, and gain ever-greater importance, as pupils progress upwards in the Secondary School. Students joining the first year of the Secondary school should have a reasonable level of language 2, equivalent to several years of exposure to the language – A1/2 level is desired. As from year 3 in the Secondary (s3), the Human Science subjects are taught in L2 (first foreign language). Language 3 starts to be taught as a beginner’s language in the first year of the Secondary school, and is obligatory in the curriculum until s5. Nevertheless, L3 can be continued as an option subject in the Baccalaureate Cycle (S6 and s7).

There is an obligatory 2 period/week of Luxembourgish lessons for all pupils in the Kindergarten, Primary and Secondary. Besides, students of the European Classes mix with and share the same scholastic environment with Lënster Lycée National Classes students – an element which augments their exposure to the language of the country.

Pupils should have completed the equivalent previous education to the year they are applying for; be of the right age group and - depending on the section chosen, have English, German or French as their dominant language of education and/or family environment. Priority is given to the catchment area around Junglinster.

Anglophone Section                                      Germanophone Section               Francophone Section

Kindergarten                                                    Kindergarten                                                    Kindergarten

Primary p1-p5                                                   Primary p1-p5                                                   Primary p1-p4

Secondary s1-s7                                               Secondary s1-s7                                               Secondary s1 – s5

European Classes are willing to adapt their educational offer to match the needs of a vibrant multilingual and multicultural environment of present-day Luxembourg. Therefore, they aim to offer the students eligible for enrollment, the possibility to study as Language 1 (L1), a language which these students have been previously educated in, and which is not offered as L1 in any of our linguistic sections. It is the same model as the one used by the European Schools, called SWALS (Students Without a Language Section). This provision aims at helping students from families that have recently arrived in Luxembourg. SWALS provision implies the teaching of L1 at mother tongue level (4-5 hours/week), while the rest of the subjects takes place in the student’s L2 in one of our three linguistic sections. Creation of SWALS L1 classes will depend on the demand, and may be subject to number restrictions.

Question 9 refers. Furthermore, they follow a system of equivalence with different educational providers from Luxembourg, Europe and worldwide. Previous academic qualifications are preponderant to age. For a pupil coming from the Luxembourgish primary system, she/he should have completed the 6th year of the Primary, level 4.2, before being able to join the s1 in the Secondary school.

No. However, given the specifics of the European School curriculum, it is in the best schooling interest of pupils who are new to such curriculum to be guided to the appropriate level, or language choice. For this purpose, upon presenting a completed file for admission, some applicants may be asked to take a language test (Language 1 or Language 2), and/or a Mathematics level test.

The study of an L1 (first language of education) is a fundamental aspect determined at the moment of entry at Kindergarten level, and dependent on the pupil's dominant language at that moment. L1 determines thus the pupil's language section for the duration of her/his studies towards the European Baccalaureate. When joining the school at a higher level, the linguistic section a pupils enrols in is determined by her/his dominant language of education in the previous years of schooling. Language 1 (L1) is carefully determined at the moment of entry in the school and, in principle, cannot be changed until the conclusion of secondary studies.

Change of L2 and L3 are possible in different stages of the Primary school, or at the end of s1, s2, s3 and s5 in the Secondary school. There can be no language changes between s4-s5 or s6-s7. Change of L2 and/or L3 cannot be done in the course of the school year.

In collaboration and discussion with the concerned language teachers, parents can apply for a change of their child's L2 and/or L3 preferably by the end of March of the current school year. From this moment the student starts preparing for a level test that takes place at the start of June. Depending on the student's performance in this test, as well as her/his motivation to change a language, the Class Council takes a decision on the language change starting from the next scholastic year. The decision is confirmed in the end-of-year school report.

https://www.eursc.eu/en/European-Schools/studies/syllabuses

Classes s1-s3 use the grades from the table below in their reports. As from s4 marks and half marks are used. In the last two years – Baccalaureate Cycle, marks with one decimal point are used. Reports given to parents/pupils per trimester or semester always contain a written comment by the subject teacher. Each syllabus contains specific attainment descriptors for each sub-cycle (S1-S3, S4-S5 and S6-S7) based on this scale that describe the level of performance of a pupil in a given subject.

A fundamental element of our work with the pupils of the European Classes is peer and self-evaluation. Our teaching philosophy is permeated by the principle that it is helpful for the pupils’ development to take learning in their own hands, as early as possible in their school life. Therefore, self-reflection with regard to the learning process is fundamental. Such reflection is harvested and encouraged by the Class and Subject teachers, and recorded at the start of the school year, as well as per trimester. Pupils have the possibility of making their target predictions in different subjects; follow the progress of their knowledge and timely reflect when improvement is needed. Pupils also develop their friendly critical spirit when given the opportunity to express a critical opinion in class, and get the tools to a healthy, social, argument-based debate. The help and encouragement of parents in the whole of this process is welcomed and considered very important. Peer and self-evaluation aims at developing the above skills in our pupils, but is clearly distinct from pupil assessment which, naturally, is an attribute of our teachers as course leaders.

Lënster Lycée International School has a well-equipped student Restaurant and Cafeteria. The details of this service can be found under this Link.

Yes. Such activities are open to all students of Lënster Lycée International School. They start after school, from Monday to Thursday, and last until 18.30 hrs. A list of such activities organized in the current year can be found on the school site, under Extracurricular Supervision.

Lënster Lycée International School is served by an extensive network of free school transportation, the details of which are available at: https://lensterlycee.lu/horaires/

Enrollment during the school year is not possible, unless it is a case of arrival into the country from abroad. The opening of the enrollment period in a year is generally preceded by a presentation evening in the early spring, where interested parents and other partners are invited to participate. Here, the school management exposes the educational offer for the coming year, together with the aims and objectives of the Lënster Lycée International School.

Subsequently, interested parents should complete the following online enrolment form, accessible here: http://lensterlycee.lu/inscription. Upon completion of the form, the required documentation should be attached and sent in, using the online registration. An update of the latest educational qualifications of the child should be sent no later than end of June of the current school year applied for.

For more questions please send an email directly to secretariat.eleves@llis.lu.

There is an obligatory 2 period/week of Luxembourgish lessons for all pupils in the Primary and Secondary (s1 – s3). From s4 onward Luxembourgish is a subject choice. Besides, students of the European Classes mix with and share the same scholastic environment with Lënster Lycée National Classes students – an element which augments their exposure to the language of the country.