Overseas School of Colombo vows to produce student thinkers, visionary leaders

School’s Grade 11 student Senaka takes the media on Open Day tour

OSC Head of School Dr. Michelle Kleiss addresses the media with Primary Principal Jason Grandbois 

By Kurulu Koojana Kariyakarawana 

The Overseas School of Colombo (OSC), boasting to be the oldest international school established in Sri Lanka and shaping futures since 1957, said how academic excellence is merged with real-world relevance to produce student thinkers and visionary leaders.   

The OSC hosted its inaugural Media Open Day last week, opening its doors to leading journalists and media professionals for an immersive, firsthand experience of life on campus.  

The morning began with a student-led campus tour at the school’s Geoffrey Bawa-designed eco-premises, providing guests with a genuine glimpse into OSC’s unique learning environment.  

From state-of-the-art science labs to creative maker spaces and collaborative learning zones, the tour revealed how an authentic rhythm of a school day was taking place with over 350 students from 16 countries and representing about 40 nationalities. 

The media attendees were then invited to witness a screening of the OSC milestones video, a tribute to the school’s legacy and evolution of over six decades. Making a presentation on the school’s full International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum, OSC Assistant Secondary Principal and MYP Coordinator Jake Eagle explained how the students are prepared from preschool to Grade 12 and then to thrive at university and beyond.  

The press was then given an opportunity to pose various questions regarding the school’s education system, special facilities, how small classrooms with 1:5 teacher-to-student ratio ensures undivided attention and harmony among students representing various cultures, communities and religions.  

OSC Head of School Dr. Michelle Kleiss said how the school expected to set a new standard by opening its doors, hearts and soul to the media in its first-ever Media Open Day. 

She said the goal of the day was to let the stories speak for themselves through the unique lens of student voices, educator perspectives and campus energy without fanfare or orchestration. 

The panel of six key educators also included Primary Principal Jason Grandbois, Primary Assistant Principal and PYP Coordinator Samantha Wood, mathematics educator Nimal de Silva and Lower Primary Learning Leader Prashani Gamage. 

Among the accolades the OSC has achieved were its dual international accreditation (CIS and MSA), 100 percent IB Diploma pass rate, Sri Lanka’s only school to receive both the Eco-Schools Green Flag Award and MSA Programme of Distinction in Sustainability as well as to be the only IB World School globally to win both Gold and Silver at the International ARC Awards in New York.