Escola Secundária de Amarante
Our institute is an Intermediate and Secondary public school in Amarante, north Portugal. It offers good educational services to educate and form teenagers and young adults. It contributes to their intellectual, social and emotional development. Thus, it is a motor of social and economic progress. Amarante Secondary School provides full education and promotes the academic, social and professional success of its students. It fosters quality teaching approaches characterized by demanding and strict principles. It is attended by 1332 students (352 intermediate students: 12 to 15 year-olds – 13 classes; 970 secondary students (18 classes of vocational and professional courses and 20 classes of general science and technology courses: 15 to 18 year-olds). The 123 teachers are a stable group of work, 80% of them are permanent members of the staff of the institution. Although most of them have more than two decades of experience in teaching, they are willing to learn and to share the good practices they already use. The ambitious goals of our teachers and director are contradicted by the students’ disadvantaged backgrounds and by the evidence shown in the poor results obtained in some national and international tests, such as TIMSS 2015 and PISA Actually Amarante is included in the Tâmega and Sousa area, which displays the worst national scores. Thus, both our institution and its teaching staff must reflect and change their methodologies in order to invert this dark educational scenario.. That’s why the school and its staff are eager to work in partnerships and to develop projects which may help to gather information and to organize activities linked to new strategies that can help both to improve the students’ results and the teachers’ performances. The majority of our students come from disadvantaged backgrounds belonging to families with poor budgets and who don’t really value the school institution. 55% of the pupils are offered social and economic grants/ scholarships and 25% of their parents have attended school until the 6th grade. Only a minority 5% has got a degree or master’s degree. So most of these parents were early dropouts. Despite the unfavorable situation of the students, the school’s environment is very good and refreshing, since the human relationships are characterized by values of generosity, solidarity, respect and tolerance. It is an institution which promotes full integration; there are 68 students with special needs included in our classes. Therefore, it is an example of successful integrational policies. Even though it is celebrating its 50th anniversary, its facilities are really modern and updated since it has undergone complete renovation and extension works which have equipped the school and its classrooms with the best ICT tools. There are science labs, ICT rooms, interactive boards, etc.
