Townshend International School is a private, Baháʼí non-profit International school located in Hluboká nad Vltavou in the Czech Republic. Founded in 1992, the school draws some 140 students from approximately 30 countries each year. The school uses the Cambridge curriculum at all grade levels from Kindergarten through secondary school, and is recognized as Cambridge International Examination Centre. The school has a strong Baha’i’ culture, where students are forced to attend prayers at least once a day, and non-Baha’i students have to attend a compulsory course named “Moral Development”. The school is named after the Irish scholar and humanist George Townshend, who was a Hand of the Cause of God in the Baháʼí Faith. Boarding students reside in either one of the two completed dormitories.
Academics
The school starts at pre-K and goes through high school. The school's curriculum follows the Cambridge International Examinations, and it is recognized as a Cambridge International Examination Centre. The language of instruction at Townshend is English. The school features a primary school program starting with a pre-kindergarten class, kindergarten, lower, middle and upper primary classes. The Cambridge Curriculum continues on through the lower high school grades 7, 8 and 9. In the Cambridge upper high school curriculum, as throughout the British system, Grades 10 to 13 are referred to as Levels I to IV. Cambridge qualifications are received after successfully passing Cambridge examinations at various grade levels. At the end of Level II, students take examinations for the IGCSE. At the end of Level III, students sit the InternationalAS Level examinations, and at the end of Level IV, the International A Level examinations. Students use Cambridge International AS and A Levels to gain admission to leading universities worldwide including Germany, Ireland, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, South Africa, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK. The range of Cambridge subjects includes standard sciences, humanities, and arts: Drama, Music, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Mathematics, English Literature, English Second Language, French, German, Spanish, History, Geography, Sociology, and Business Studies. In addition to the Cambridge courses, Townshend supplements the curriculum to provide courses that broaden student perspectives and address the social, spiritual, and physical aspects of education.
Campus
The Townshend Campus is situated on a hilltop with a view of a 13th-century castle, and the surrounding lakes and forests. It includes both modern and traditional elements. Across the path from the school stand 2 completed dormitory buildings, each accommodating approximately 50 people. There are a further two incomplete dormitories behind the school.
