VBS and DLP

General Introduction

Our world is getting smaller. With two languages your child has twice as many opportunities. Open the door to your child with our two English programmes, Vienna Bilingual Schooling (VBS) and Dual Language Programme (DLP).

The aim of both these programmes is to offer students from different cultures a bilingual general education in German and English. Our students should acquire the language abilities and general knowledge that are necessary in order to be able to succeed in the international working world. Furthermore, they have the opportunity to develop an understanding of and a respect for cultural diversity and thus for other people and their varying lifestyles.

Target group

With our VBS and DLP programmes we aim primarily to reach reasonably ambitious children with German / English as their mother tongue / lingua franca (in the VBS), as well as those with a special interest in the English language (in the DLP). Attendance at a bilingual primary school or a GEPS (Global Education Primary School) is therefore a recommended foundation for applicants but is not an absolute necessity.
Broadly speaking, the same parameters are also valid for our VBS-branch in the upper forms.

VBS/DLP lessons

In our VBS / DLP branch we teach in both languages with the support of progressive teaching methods on the basis of the Austrian syllabus for upper secondary education. Due to the regular use of both languages in and outside school we achieve a considerable proficiency in foreign language skills. Additionally, the focus on intercultural learning should encourage our students towards open-mindedness and tolerance.

An essential aspect of our VBS / DLP concept is the principle of team teaching. Many subjects are taught bilingually in teams. These teams consist of an Austrian teacher and an English native teacher. Both enjoy equal rights.

In the VBS classes most subjects include native teacher input and in the DLP classes two or three subjects per year have this special bonus. Consequently, in the DLP- branch there is more English than in a regular class, but less than in the VBS-branch.

Organisation

Students who are interested in our VBS/ DLP programmes are invited at the end of January to attend a VBS or DLP orientation talk (oral only) before entry into the lower forms, or a VBS orientation exam (written and oral) before entry into the upper forms.

Registration can either be made online via our webpage or using the relevant printed forms by the beginning of January.

Following registration you will receive a letter in mid-January with the details (place and time) of the orientation talk / orientation exam.

You will be informed of the results of the orientation talk / orientation exam for your child as soon as possible. As a result, there is still time to sign up in our school or an alternative school of your choice.
Your child can only register for one orientation talk at a VBS / DLP school.

The specific differences between the VBS and the DLP Programmes are as follows:

VBS	DLP
VBS = Vienna Bilingual Schooling	DLP= Dual Language Programme
German and English are equally important classroom and working languages.	German is the main classroom and working language and English is taught using the CLIL- method (Content and Language Integrated Learning) in selected subjects
There is Native Teacher input in most subjects	There is Native Teacher input in 2-3 (varying) subjects per year
In our school VBS is offered in the lower forms (one class per year), as well as in the upper forms (two classes per year)	In our school DLP is only offered in the lower forms ( one class per year)
The aim of the VBS is that our students achieve mother tongue language proficiency in German and English before the school leaving examinations (“Matura”)	The aim of the DLP is that our students have a realistic chance - after the lower forms and a successful orientation exam- to change to our VBS- upper forms system
A VBS- orientation talk (lower form, oral only) or a VBS-orientation exam (upper form, written and oral) for VBS beginners is compulsory, as well as being the main criteria for admittance	A DLP- orientation talk is compulsory, as well as being the main criteria for admittance

If you want your child to apply for a first form with a special focus on English, you can only register for EITHER a VBS-orientation talk OR a DLP-orientation talk!