Colorado International School

There needs to be an accurate review of CoIS on this site. First of all, the teachers are great wonderful, loving and professional. However, the administration is a mess. Our family invested a couple years of our child s life in a school that has gone out of its way to treat us like dirt. One individual in particular, the one who usually shows around new families, has been the primary problem. She runs the school like a dictator creating and abolishing rules at will seemingly set on satisfying some pathological need for power. She is belittling to people and treats parents like naughty children. Bottom line is the school is small because it cannot get its class sizes to grow. The school tries to spin the small classes as a positive, but please don t ignore this red flag. As soon as there s growth, parents get so fed up from disrespectful behavior, they decide to go to a more professional school. In the end, you ll be forcing your child to re-adjust to a new school just to get away from CoIS. Think twice before enrolling here.
--Submitted by a parent

I am a prospective parent and I enjoyed learning about the school on a tour today. The teachers are all engaged with the small number of children in each class. It does seem like a great place to get individual attention. I am a rather shy and observant person, so I think the fact that I didn't ask many questions may have been off-putting to the person giving the tour. I actually felt somewhat attacked with a rapid stream of questions (ie, why are you here, you didn't ask any questions so I don't know what I can do for you, etc.). Not bad questions, but the manner in which they were asked was quite abrasive and only asked after the other parent left. The other parent on the tour was ready to turn in admissions paperwork and was catered to! I felt really uncomfortable, like I was a waste of their time! I wanted to learn what the school was like, and overall it is something I would consider, but I am weary of the lack of professionalism displayed today by the person giving the tour. This does factor into the my overall impression of the school. It was just one interaction so I will keep that in mind.

The teachers are fabulous. The administration is not the easiest with which to work. The parents and teachers have a common goal always. The care and education is apparent from the teachers.
--Submitted by a parent

Our son attends CoIS and we are very pleased with the education. He is speaking spanish at home and in the classroom. The teachers are both knowledgeable and educated and provide a warm and safe environment to learn. Language immersion schools are the future in education and CoIS is at the forefront of education in America.
--Submitted by a parent

I'm very happy with this school. It's a wonderful environment and I learn a lot by going here. I get individual attention and lots of stuff to work with. I love CoIS and it's teachers!
--Submitted by a student

My daughter is in her second year at COIS and loves it! Her Spanish is progressing rapidly, she has made many friends and loves her teachers. As a parent, I like the family feeling that the school has.
--Submitted by a parent

Children in language immersion schools test better than children in conventional programs. However, these gains are not recognized within the first three years. In fact, in grades one and two, children in immersion programs usually test lower than children in conventional programs, because of vocabulary issues. However, by grade three they are on par with their peers and by grade five exceed them. Parents who haven't done their homework, sometimes get upset when their first grader comes home with lack luster standardized test scores. This is not because the school does not teach core academics. Rather, it is because the child didn't know how to say parallelagram in English, only in Mandarin.
--Submitted by a parent

As another good school year draws to a close, I am happy to report that I am very pleased with this school. The children get incredible attention from the teachers who are very creative and nurturing. Also, I don't know where else in the city the kids could get such strong language skills. I investigated the other programs in town that have language immersion, and found this one to be the clear best choice. Thanks for a great year!
--Submitted by a parent

As a teacher, I must say that there is no other place like CoIS. My colleagues and I absolutely love the environment! Walking through the hallways, I am proud to be a part of such a multicultural, multilingual, and open-minded organization. I have never received so much support from the parent community as I do here at this school. I wouldn't dream of teaching anywhere else. I represent one of a group of 5 of us that have been with the school since its inception. We re still growing so that's about half our full-time teaching staff! The teachers here are all very special individuals that have made a strong commitment to the school. Our Board of Trustees has provided numerous opportunities for me to receive world-class training from the IB organization as well as important site visitations to other schools. I have the privilege of teaching small classes and bonding with my students in a way I never could in the public system. I encourage anyone interested to please take a closer look at CoIS. You ll be amazed!
--Submitted by a teacher

We have enjoyed what the CoIS staff and teachers have brought to our child s development. The curriculum is engaging and fun and this school is also a candidate for International Baccalaureate accreditation. Our child thrives on the positive learning environment. They introduce children to the larger outside world with thoughtful age-appropriate art exhibits, field trips, and enrichment programs that truly prepares them for a global future. The multiple rants of one other parent are devoid of understanding how the school always presents materials in an appropriate context to our children.
--Submitted by a parent