Deutsche Schule Melbourne

Since opening our doors in 2008, Deutsche Schule Melbourne (DSM) has gone from strength to strength. As a proud German school abroad, we offer a quality bilingual education for our children – and a vibrant, cohesive culture for our teacher and parent community. At DSM, we hold a strong purpose close to our heart.

We strive to nurture, challenge and inspire all our students, so they can realise their unique potential – and become confident global citizens. Today, we teach over 130 children across 10 nationalities and 15 languages. Thanks to the extraordinary commitment of our teaching team, every child at DSM feels supported and empowered. We do this by tailoring our learning environments to their diverse needs and offering extra support wherever we can. Our goal? To foster our students’ love of learning – and give them the best possible start in life.

As an accredited German school abroad, DSM represents a strong bond between Australia and Germany. Our curriculum satisfies the highest standards in both countries’ education systems. This creates a world of future study opportunities for our students. With our successful immersion program we make learning a new language easy. From Foundation to Year 2, we teach 80% of subjects in German. By Year 6, this reduces to 50%. What’s more, our students can study French from Year 5.

At DSM, we also offer our former students, and children with equivalent language skills in Year 7 or above, a place in our DSD program – their gateway to a German Language Certificate DSD II (Deutsches Sprachdiplom). A key to a world of opportunity, DSD II opens the door for students to study in German at universities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. What is more, it is extremely helpful for students undertaking the VCE German exam.

As the first and only principal of DSM, it has been an honour to watch our school grow… and our children flourish. To be part of such an inclusive community every day is a true pleasure. DSM helps students to realise their individual potential and become creative and confident participants in the global community.

• We inspire life-long learning by empowering students to lead their own learning journey.
• We inspire our students by offering learning experiences encompassing the heart, head and hands.
• We inspire our students to express themselves creatively and think critically about a world without borders.
• We nurture the whole child in our vibrant German, Australian and multicultural community.
• We nurture mutual respect, understanding and caring for the individual.
• We nurture inclusive classrooms in which everyone feels pride and belonging.
• We challenge our students to embrace diverse perspectives through bilingualism and by exposing them to an immersion program run by native speakers.
• We challenge our students academically by teaching according to the Victorian and the Thuringian Curricula.
• We challenge our community to live sustainably by reducing its footprint and taking care of precious resources.

Together we create and shape everyday school life within our small but strong international community. We value respect, trust, kindness, honesty and patience. Students and parents alike enjoy participating in a variety of school events that foster multiculturalism and life-long friendships.

Our school environment assists children to grow into balanced and confident individuals who are able to take responsibility for themselves and others. Being able to communicate in two mother tongues enables them to perceive the world from a range of cultural perspectives. It assists them in developing a global view on life and appreciating cultural diversity.

This is fostered by the school being an integral part of both local and German-speaking communities. With its strong sense of community among the students’ families and its cultural activities inviting the wider community to take part in the school’s life, DSM is more than an educational institution. Ultimately, the school provides students with the environment to live and learn two cultures.

The bilingual and bicultural education of children at DSM is delivered through the school’s immersion program and
reflects the philosophy of the school.