Elite Education

1. Please mention about the school and its mission/vision and various infrastructural facilities.

Woodland Star School is a school like no other in Kenya, created to meet the need within the greater Nairobi community for an alternate and more holistic approach to education. Birthed from a forgotten tool shed in 2011, Woodland Star is nestled within a unique 100-acre eco-campus and provides a rare educational opportunity for learners aged 2-16. Located in the midst of an indigenous forest and botanical garden, Woodland Star is a small, progressive school that focuses on the unique strengths and challenges of each child, and is home to learners from across the neurodiversity spectrum.Woodland Star embodies an inclusive and holistic educational approach to the development of children, ensuring that each learner is met where they are at in their own educational journey. Our small class sizes foster friendships that are genuine and deep, and our physical classroom spaces with fireplaces, climbing walls, swinging benches and outdoor learning spaces make Woodland Star feel more like a home than a school.

2. Kindly mention about the prominent personality of the school and his/her role in the development of the school.

Woodland Star was founded by Mrs. Amy McKelvey, a remarkably and uniquely talented educator who has been in Kenya for almost three decades. Having taught for many years in different schools in the United States and in Nairobi, Amy saw that there was a void in the education most children receive. She watched as the passions of some of her former students slowly disappeared through the years, wilting under the weight of conformity, a missing sense of belonging, and a lack of people who cared to listen to them. Amy knew that it was time for change, so she decided to start a school where learners would have a safe-haven to see, to think, and to become. Many years later, Amy continues to take Woodland Star, its students and its teachers to new heights, using her background in ‘Gifted Education’ to bring learning to life through innovative and engaging teaching strategies, story-based learning, creative and performing arts and an endless passion to give each child the education they deserve.

3. Kindly describe about the various courses offered by the school and their salient features.

We offer similar academic courses to most other international schools, such as Literacy, Mathematics, STEM (Science), Art, Music, Physical Education, Languages, etc. We embed the pathways of individualized instruction, social-emotional learning and thematic instruction within each of these learning areas,  in order to ensure a deep and authentic understanding of academic content.

Our formal learning outcomes however transcend mere academic objectives, and include tracking the growth in areas such self-awareness, self-management, growth mindset, social awareness, communication, collaboration, global awareness, systems thinking and environmental conservation. These comprise our overarching long-term transformational learning goals at Woodland Star, namely for each learner to: Be Self-Directed, Belong in Community, Become Globally Mindful

4. Please mention what steps are you taking beyond the traditional curriculum to ensure overall development of the students?

Employing a theme-based approach in multi-age classes allows for meaningful integration across learning disciplines, authentic application to real-world problems and rich, curricular activities and field trips that are hands-on, project-based, interactive and engaging. Learning is never static or “one-size-fits-all”, and we seek to integrate learners’ strengths, passions, interest and talents into the learning process. In this way, learners are able to identify and utilize their individual traits, skills, understanding and experiences to aid both their own and others’ learning, thereby preparing them for their unique participation in and contribution to the world. 

Being an inclusive school, our classes include learners with significant learning needs and learners that are ‘gifted’ (and everthing in between!). This neurodiversity provides an unparalleled culture of learning and being that elevates preparedness for a diverse, complex and changing world.

5. What steps does the school take to motivate and develop the students’ interest towards education?

Our teaching and learning is highly differentiated, with work being scaffolded to meet the needs of the various learners within the classroom. As teachers plan units according to our unique termly themes, learners are given the opportunity to give input into the framework within which the upcoming work will be embedded, thus giving learners ownership of and choice within their own learning journey. As a result, learning is rich and meaningful, and fosters a genuine love of learning.

6. How are you providing financial assistance to the students in need?

Woodland Star offers near full scholarships to a limited number of learners from within its surounding community. Woodland Star also considers tuition fee reductions of varying degrees on an ongoing basis to families that require temporary financial assistance.

7. What are the career opportunities available to the students after completion of their courses?

Our WSS Alumni have continued on a myriad of career paths. We believe that each learner has a unique set of gifts, talents and strengths, and that as such each person is able to contribute to their society in a meaningful way. As our learners develop important life skills and ways of thinking and being within this complex world, there are limitless career opportunities for them to pursue.

8. How the school tackled Covid-19, share your experience.

Like all international schools in Kenya we have complied with the Covid safety measures (and more) as required by government directives, including social distancing, face masks, health checks, hand-hygiene, etc. Our comparative advantages in this respect have been that we have small class sizes, a big, green, spacious campus, lots of formal, outside learning spaces and a wonderfully supportive and compliant school community, all of which have aided towards very minimal disruption to learning, despite Covid.

When required to shift online, we thought very critically and reflectively about what would work best for our learners, and about how to retain our philosophy and approach to learning. As such, we continued to provide a high level of differentiation and personalized learning, ensuring that learning continued to be collaborative, fun and engaging. We stayed away from full, live school days online or whole-group live teaching, rather focussing our efforts on individual student needs and providing one-on-one or small group instruction.

9. Please enlighten us about the school’s major awards/achievements, its accomplished/renowned alumni, remarkable collaborations, and major accreditations.

Woodland Star has not received any formal accolades or awards, nor are these of greatest importance to us. Our most notable achievements lie in the stories of our learners and their families, many of which have experienced genuine transformations at Woodland Star: the lonely have found friends, the unheard have been given a voice, the excluded are celebrated, and those written off are given a chance. The struggling are not left behind, those bored are pushed to their potential … everyone is known and everyone belongs.

We are working towards formal accreditation.

We have over the years established a growing list of remarkable partners, including EduAfrica, The Anne Frank Project (SUNY), Stenden University, and Brackenhurst Botanic Garden & Forest, and through this rich network of partners, our learners even had the opportunity to sing one of our own eco-songs (“We must plant trees”) on our school campus to the First Lady of Kenya!

10. Kindly elaborate on the future plans of the school in the same.

We are far from perfect, and keep learning each day. We will never be a large school given our education philosophy but hope to continue to grow and improve in such a way that every learner that comes to Woodland Star is provided with an education that is ‘just right’ for them. As we grow in our own understanding and experience, we would love our campus to develop into a ‘learning hub’ from which we can share valuable practices and expertise with local (and international) schools and provide training in educational pedagogy, environmental education, inclusive education, etc.

We are currently also looking into the formation of a Woodland Star High School, which we expect to take shape and come to fruition in the not too distant future!

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Brief History of The College

Pembroke House is a unique British boarding school in the heart of Kenya. We are a small, multicultural school of around 230 pupils, catering for boys and girls aged 6 months – 13 years. We were founded in 1927,and have had a 94 year history of private education in East Africa, our focus is on developing well-rounded, happy, independent, polite and confident pupils. Our Head is a member of the Independent Association of Preparatory Schools (IAPS) and we follow the British ISEB Common Entrance curriculum. Our pupils go on to top international schools in the UK, SA, Kenya and elsewhere around the world, with a high percentage achieving scholarships and awards to their next schools.

At Pembroke, the welfare, safety, happiness, and security of all our children is paramount. The vision is to bring out the best in every child, both in and out of the classroom. Our motivation is to provide a small, family atmosphere and instil our school values of dignity, duty, and constancy. We strongly believe that the ‘Pembroke Spirit’ is something to be valued and nurtured.

The Guiding Mission

Mission: to provide a small, friendly atmosphere where each child is nurtured to be the very best version of themselves. Some thrive as team members others enjoy the challenges of leadership. No matter what, Pembroke House expects the children to be totally engaged and committed to doing their best across the board.

Vision: To bring out the best in every child. 

Values: Dignity, duty and constancy. Pembroke children encompass a spirit to show courage, enthusiasm and kindness at all times no matter what the challenge.

The Pembroke Spirit

• We believe that education should go beyond academic results – Over 60% of our pupils’ gained scholarships and awards to their secondary schools in 2019.  We excel in building character and confidence, creating children that have initiative and are capable.
• We believe that every child counts and every moment matters – With 230 Children at Pembroke, including Pre-Prep and Mini Martlets playgroup, and class sizes averaging just 15 children.
• We believe in the importance of quality time at school and at home.  Juggling parenting, careers, school-runs and homework can beat the best of us and time together is not always quality time.  Our responsive boarding aims to address this modern-day challenge. We provide boarding that is like a ‘home away from home’ with a family feel and the very best pastoral care. 

The Inspiring Leader

Deborah Boys-Moss’ career at Pembroke House has spanned over 16 years, during which time she has worked in a number of different roles.  She spent many years teaching Geography in the Senior School and being a class teacher in the Junior School, as well as being Housemistress of both Scholes House, (the girls’ house) and Mackie House, (the boys’ house) along the way. She was then Headmistress for seven years between 2009 and 2016 and during this time it was rewarding for her to watch the school develop, confidence grow, and the numbers to swell from 134 when she began, to 227 when she left.

Debs re-joined in 2019 and is very much enjoying her new tour of duty at school and she is excited at the prospect of all she can add in the coming years. She strongly believes the values fundamental to the ethos of Pembroke will always remain the same: courage, good manners, kindness and always trying to do your best. She is well aware that the world marches on and there are many new challenges to face from modern-day life, as well as much to embrace in the ever-changing world of education.

Our Commitments, Everyday Education Excellience  

Pupils: Boys and Girls aged 6 Month – 2 Years Mini Martlets, 2 Years – 5 Years Pre-prep, 6 Years -13 Years Prep, of all nationalities, creeds and ethnicities.

Curriculum: Common Entrance: A British syllabus leading to examinations at age 13, ideal for entry to British Independent Schools and as a foundation to IGCSE

Boarding: Full, responsive boarding: A full boarding school that also responds to the needs of its families. 

Religion: Christian values but tolerant of all religious beliefs. The school aims to be a source of ethical and moral education and discipline.

Instruction: Individual attention, an emphasis on understanding each child and tailoring learning to individual needs. The school commits to average class sizes of 15 children with a maximum of 18 children per class and a pupil teacher ratio of approximately 6:1.   Tutor groups are small and there is one-to-one tuition from the Coach House for those children who need individual learning support.

Pastoral Care: The pastoral care at Pembroke House is second to none. The school provides a home from home environment for each child. Family values combined with the structure and rhythm of each day, engenders confidence and discipline.

Educators Who Care

The team of teachers and assistants at Pembroke House is talented and experienced with a broad range of cultural backgrounds.  This means we can always find a member of staff who will relate to each one of our children and this gives them the necessary helping hand in relating to the traditions and learning practices of Pembroke House.

We have recently expanded our Library to allow children a larger space to be able to read in their free time and provide a space of calm and reflection. We encourage the children to voice their concerns through Pembroke Voices as well as Prefect meetings, a problem box and regular boarding house meetings. Every Friday evening, we have ‘Pembroke Presents’ where children in Years 6-8 present a topic of their choice and answer questions from the audience.

Beyond Traditional Curriculum

Adventure Learning sessions attempt to support the mainstream curriculum by bridging the gap between theory and practice, whether that be through artefacts, specimens or purely the experience of how what we do in a classroom links to the real world. The holistic nature of each session attempts to remove the compartmentalised attitude some students have to subjects, focusing on skills and experiences rather than content.

The Martlet Award is designed to enable every child to reflect upon their personal development, bringing together achievements from across the breadth of their learning and experiences at school.

Motivation for students

We have recently expanded our Library to allow children a larger space to be able to read in their free time and provide a space of calm and reflection. We encourage the children to voice their concerns through Pembroke Voices as well as Prefect meetings, a problem box and regular boarding house meetings. Every Friday evening, we have ‘Pembroke Presents’ where children in Years 6-8 present a topic of their choice and answer questions from the audience.

We believe that parents also deserve support.  It’s not always easy raising a child and we try to be of help where we can. Sometimes this is in the form of financial support for fees.  Pembroke House has been a ‘Trust’ school since 1959, meaning that we are “not-for-profit”. Therefore all income goes back into the school and it’s pupils.  We look to assist parents with bursaries, and scholarships where we can.  Bursaries are all means tested for fairness and we work hand-in-hand with families to identify what will work best for them and their children.

We are a prep school that prepares our children for Senior School in the UK, SA, Kenya and the Wider World.

Pembroke during Covid-19

When schools had to close due to COVID-19, Pembroke put together a comprehensive online learning programme to ensure there was no interruption to our children’s education. We supported our children academically by making sure that all lessons were ‘live’ with a teacher teaching full lessons through Google Meet.  Having Teachers teach proper lessons helped to inspire the children, instil discipline, create camaraderie, and provide continual support in the learning process. The school was mindful of the children and the teacher’s well-being and much thought was given to providing a balanced timetable with the inclusion of non-academic lessons and time specifically for well-being, exercise, and creativity away from a screen.

Our teachers stepped up to the plate and gave everything to ensure that our children were cared for as much as possible with ever more creative ways to encourage learning. On our return to school, new risk assessments were put in place and Covid protocols developed following Government guidelines to instil confidence and keep the whole school community as safe as possible. This meant changes to our daily routine but always at the forefront of our minds was the need to ensure the children and our staff had a safe and nurturing environment in which to live.

Awards, Accreditations and Collaborations

• IAPS – Member of Independent Association of Prep Schools School Inspection Company
• “Rated ‘outstanding’ by SIS for pupils’ personal development and the effectiveness of boarding provision.”
• “Throughout the school pupils’ personal development is outstanding and their behavior is excellent. They develop a strong moral compass, based on Christian values, and are respectful and caring towards one another.”
• “The quality of the boarding experience at Pembroke House is outstanding. The high level of care and excellent relationships in the boarding community enable the children to feel safe, happy and able to succeed.”

Spear’s and Carfax Education School Index Report –

“Pembroke House School, Kenya, voted a Top 10 Preparatory School Worldwide.” – Spears List 2020 “Pembroke House School, Kenya, voted as one of the top 100 schools in the world this year.” – Spears List 2021

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1. Please mention about the school and its mission/vision and various infrastructural facilities.

International School of advertising is a leading training institution in East Africa offering Marketing and Advertising programs that help aspiring and current marketing professionals sharpen their skills and attract huge career and business opportunities.

Embedded in your philosophy, pay it forward, we are committed to enable our students to become the best they can be in Marketing and Advertising related careers.

2. Kindly mention about the prominent personality of the school and his/her role in the development of the school.

Susan Makau , our Managing Director and Co-founder of the school has played a major role in the development and success of the school. She founded the school in 2014 after working in the advertising industry as a client for about 10 years.She noticed that there was a gap between agencies and clients yet a lot of infor intervention needs to be put in to ensure both parties work optimally with each other and partnership in order to maximize on returns on the companies. The bigger problem that she actually noticed was the fact a lot of roles practiced in agencies are not learnt in school and there is no form of onboarding process. This created the purpose of the school. Through this the school ended up bridging the gap between theory and practice that is required in the workplace. Furthermore, the school ended up creating employment opportunities because through the program, companies were and still are willing to take these students into the organizations because they are likely to be more effective.

3. Kindly describe the various courses offered by the school and their salient features.

Currently ISA offers courses like Integrated Brand Communication, which is in partnership with Ogilvy Africa. This course is a great transition for graduating students who are coming out of college or university and want to get into careers in advertising and marketing. It is a seven month programme that entails a three month apprenticeship program at Ogilvy Africa, one of the lead global agencies, where the students get an opportunity to practice and become more marketable.

Also we are an accredited centre for the Chartered Institute of Marketing UK(CIM) and therefore offer professional marketing certifications for marketing professionals at the entry level stage and also those who have practised.

In partnership with APReCOM we offer a course for graduate students called APReCOM Fast Track which is a uniquely interactive course that consists of short lectures, practical group work and class discussions. This course allows entry level Public Relation professionals to interact with PR professionals and client work. It also focuses on streamlining basic skills, attitudes and behavior needed in the communication industry. As part of their course, the students get to do their practicum at an APReCOM agency.

We also offer short courses like Marketing and Brand Planning, Strategic Advertising Management, Integrated Media Management and Digital for Business. These courses are taught by industry experts and ensure that our students have hands-on experience with the knowledge.

To add onto this, the school not only offers technical skills but also personal skills through our account management and life skills class. This course covers topics like personal branding, CV writing, emotional intelligence and presentation skills to ensure our students are more holistically prepared for the market.

4. Please mention what steps are you taking beyond the traditional curriculum to ensure overall development of the students?

ISA was developed in response to the scarcity of an effective trained workforce ready to enter the market. Through the courses, we ensure our students get practical knowledge, current theories and are taught by experienced, seasoned professionals who are still in the industry. To ensure ISA produces empowered students who will hit the ground running and are equipped to create solutions through our curricula, we remain aligned with the industry through our partnerships with Association of Practitioners in Advertising(APA), APReCoM, Marketers Society of Kenya, Telma and Ogilvy Africa.

Furthermore through our industry partnerships we allow our students during this course to interact with relevant case studies and current data from our content partners like ReelAnalytics and Ipsos. Through the course projects students get to tap into statistics and research done by ReelAnalytics to create better and relevant marketing and communication strategies. Furthermore, through IPSOS and its research audience, students are exposed to a willing and ready audience to do their research in order to get current data.

5. What steps does the school take to motivate and develop the students’ interest towards education?

ISA programs offer inspirational talks to ensure that the students get to interact with our guest speakers, who are industry practitioners during the course. Also we ensure that their projects are interesting and current case studies that help students interact more, learn together and build industry relationships that will help them in the future as they do their projects.

6. How are you providing financial assistance to the students in need?

We understand that economic power is different but education is a necessity and we are intentional about being accessible to all potential students. We do offer our students flexible deadlines of payment. These included agreed upon and affordable instalment plans before the course commences and even during the course period. In some courses like APReCoM Fast Track we subsidized fees for certain students. Also in the past we have offered scholarships to students for courses and continue to do so especially for deserving students.

7. What are the career opportunities available to the students after completion of their courses?

ISA courses are designed to increase employability in our students in the marketing and communications industry. Courses like APReCoM fast track and Integrated Brand Communication allow the successful students to work with an APReCoM agency and Ogilvy Africa respectively, giving them a chance to learn and experience the industry. • Other than traditional occupations, what other career field options are available for them? Our school strives to prepare our students for the future and therefore open up our curriculum to new and emerging trends in the marketing and communications industry.

With courses students are able to get into data driven marketing careers, data analytics, SEO writing that are data led. These are fields that are coming up and we ensure our students are able to remain grounded in a data driven world. Also we foster the ability for our students to pivot and start their own businesses. Some of our alumni have become entrepreneurs and are now running their own full time businesses after their courses and we are proud to be part of their journey.

8. Please enlighten us about the school’s major awards/achievements, its accomplished/renowned alumni, remarkable collaborations, and major accreditations.

For the last three years we have organized thought leadership forums. Forums like APA week, which is a conference that calls on industry professionals to discuss the issues emerging in the industry and exchange ideas on how to embark on solving them. Also we have partnered with local schools like Strathmore University and Marketing Society of Kenya to host the Industry Breakfast Forum where we bring together stakeholders in the advertising and marketing fraternity to deliberate on emerging trends.

This is usually done quarterly. Furthermore we do organize webinars that are industry focused to help marketing and communication professionals navigate the industry. Webinars such as Adapt and Thrive Series in 2020 that helped marketers navigate the COVID 19 period and H1 2021 Review that updated industry professionals on audience data, expenditure data, consumer trends and advertising spends. This webinar did in fact gain traction in traditional media channels within the country. To add on to this, International School of Advertising is accredited by TVET(Technical and Vocational Education and Training), NITA(National Industrial Training Authority) and Chartered Institute of Marketing UK.

9. Kindly elaborate about the future plans of the school in the same.

As we try to pivot and transition into the new world, we are planning on entering the digital space and strategically focusing on adopting digital transformation in all our plans. Currently we are working to deliver convenient learning experiences to our students through virtual learning and Video on Demand lessons that allow our students and new students beyond our borders a chance to interact with our content at their own pace and offer digital tools that will be able to take their learning to a new level. Through our partnerships we plan to deliver to our students the most relevant information delivered in the easiest way possible whilst still being effective As an institution we look forward to delivering cutting edge content that is easily accessible beyond our borders