International Students
Woodridge College & Preparatory School is an Eastern Cape, South African, private school close to Port Elizabeth which attracts students from a broad international community. This unique Independent School follows the Independent Examinations Board (IEB) curriculum which is recognised and accepted internationally.
A letter from Mr Breiding, father of Philipe who was a boarder from Germany and matriculated in 2009:
Before talking about Woodridge College and our son Philipe and how it happened that my wife Heidi and I decided to send him 12.000 km far away from Germany to let him study there, I need to apologize for my very bad English. Perhaps that’s one of the many reasons why I did not send him to my own former school in Germany, to avoid that he might share his father’s incapacities.
It may sound curious to you, but it’s true that we chose the international education system for him from pre-school up to 8th grade in an International Canadian School in Switzerland to get him prepared early enough for a future life as a real World citizen, open-minded to the interests of other people from different continents and societies, without any national restrictions. Fortunately our Philipe has always been together with children from all different parts of the World and has never had problems understanding their special mentalities and characters. No wonder that it was not a big problem for him, when he had to leave his Swiss mountain region and to give up his beloved skiing in wonderful powder snow to change for exciting and new experiences that awaited him at his new place in South Africa.
From Switzerland to South Africa; what a big adventure for a young boy of only 13 years of age! Can you imagine? I’d have wished when I was his age that I’d have been as courageous as he has always been meanwhile for two fantastic years. But why should he have ever felt uncomfortable at his new place Woodridge? From the very beginning on there were so many friendly people around him, who made him feel welcomed and accepted as a new member of the Woodridge family.
I can well remember the first day when we entered the beautiful Woodridge campus with its white Dutch style houses among lush green and blooming flowers. We had no appointment with the headmaster, but instead of putting us off to another day, he left his work undone giving us a warm welcome with a detailed information talk about and around the College life and structure. Knowing a lot about headmasters from European elite-colleges and their sometimes almost divine and arrogant attitudes towards parents and pupils, we were really surprised how friendly, human and competently he behaved towards us in comparison to them. He was that sort of headmaster whom parents and pupils could `touch` whenever needed and it was not astonishing for us that it was not long until Philipe was convinced that Woodridge was the absolutely right place for him to go.
The following time we learned that from the headmaster to the deputy headmaster, from the academic director to the teachers, from the travel manager to the book keeper, from the office- to the kitchen staff and from the 12 graders to the lowest grades there must be a very special and personal spirit that makes the school so different from many other private schools. Come and have a short walk on the schools grounds and you will easily understand what I mean, when you hear happy children of all ages and nationalities talking and laughing with each other, when you look into good tempered faces of teachers and staff members, when you’ll meet the place where lots of cats are meowing on the roofs, when it’s time for the numerous daily afternoon sports activities, when the steel band plays for a typical sundown braai. Come and get your own impressions and I am sure that you will feel as if someone has put a spell on you.
For those who never could have had romantic feelings of their own former school experiences, I can only advise them to come and visit Woodridge as quickly as possible. It’s a place where parents need not worry that their sons or daughters might become homesick or even get bored.
The academic requirements at Woodridge are definitely higher than they are actually in our European schools, where unfortunately the lowest common denominator in academic achievement is the measurement for general success. Diligence, enthusiasm and efficiency are no swearwords like in Europe and it is surprising to see how pupils at Woodridge are infected with the virus to do a bit more than usual to achieve a special award or colours or something else. So it would be for instance totally unthinkable that a German pupil would long for Woodridge’s famous `black blazer` (Honours Blazer) as he or she would always have to fear being physically attacked or just offended by those who are jealous and frustrated being less successful.
I do hope that you will not think of me as someone who is always looking for only the best performances and highest records in his son’s school career. But as we all need to prepare our children for a strong global competition where only the best ones will survive, I think it absolutely necessary that they will have the chance to visit schools like Woodridge where motivation is supported and not prevented.
In my opinion Woodridge perfectly combines all attributes of a modern school that does not forget about the good old principle `no pain, no gain`, but that is open-minded for all innovations that are convenient and necessary. Come and have a look and you will understand why we, the parents from Germany, are happy and thankful that our Philipe has the chance to become a proud and lucky Woodridgean.
Michael Breiding 28 May, 2007
