The Centre International de Valbonne has a long and distinguished history preparing pupils for international examinations. The Anglophone section is the largest of the six international sections currently represented in the school, all preparing pupils for the International Option of the French Baccalaureate, or OIB.
In 1985, three students from the fledgling Anglophone section sat the OIB; this year, over 190 are being prepared for the exam, alongside classmates from the German, Italian, Russian, Chinese and Spanish sections.
Students in the Anglophone section in lycée are taught language/literature and history/geography principally by ASEICA teachers, native English speakers who have been trained in their home countries.
Each week our students study English language and literature for 5 hours. The course they follow aims to encourage and develop enjoyment and appreciation of literature in English, as well as analyse and discuss personal response to texts. In the final exam, their response to literature will be assessed, and they will be required to demonstrate—
- Knowledge
- Understanding
- Analysis/insight
- Judgement and critical awareness
- Expression
- Organization
Students are also taught history and geography in English for three hours per work, supplementing the two hours’ teaching also given in French. This syllabus is set by the French Education Ministry. All other subjects are taught in French by Education Nationale teachers.
The great strengths of the program are its truly bilingual nature, and the fact that students benefit not just from a challenging academic environment but one that is culturally enriching, where the methods used, as well as the content taught, reflect the origins of the teaching staff.
2017-2018 Lycée English parent presentations:
What is the OIB?
The OIB (Option Internationale du Baccalauréat) is a variation of the French Baccalaureate. In the international option classes in Première and Terminale, everyone is considered bilingual. The international option gives emphasis to language, literature, civilization, history and geography.
The aim of the OIB is to take into consideration the international dimensions possible in education. The international option is offered to students who are bilingual and bicultural, who master both English and French, both orally and in written expression.
The literature and history/geography examinations replace the normal ones of the standard baccalaureate and have a very high exam coefficient, giving a student who does well the possibility of obtaining a very high score at the baccalaureate exam.
The French authorities consider that a student who is admitted to this program has the obligation to take the OIB exam unless his/her teachers advise differently.
The completion of this option increases the chances of admissions to some of the most prestigious schools and universities in France and abroad, such as Harvard, Cambridge, McGill, Imperial, Kings...