The international dimension can play a part in all curriculum areas.

The international dimension in language lessons
In Languages, the international dimension can be promoted by learning about the countries and communities where the target language is spoken and by raising awareness of the cultural similarities and differences. Students can also be provided with direct access to native speakers via virtual or actual links with students in partner schools in other countries. Using the internet with guidance from their language teacher also offers excellent opportunities for students to experience the language and culture of the country.

The International Dimension in other curriculum areas
If your school has a specialism, you may wish to link particularly to that specialist area.  All schools can however develop an international dimension across the whole curriculum.

• English – students can study literature from other cultures and exchange and develop stories with partner schools abroad. They can also seek opinions of their peers in other countries on works of literature (books and poems) which they may be studying, written by foreign authors
• Mathematics – Students can exchange data with their peers in partner schools and present this data in a project, comparing  findings in their own school with the school abroad
• Science – Students can learn, from contacts abroad, about environmental issues and compare and contrast data from different parts of the world.  Use of the Science Across the World website can facilitate links between schools and can also be linked to language learning. An example of a school which has linked science and languages, delivering science lessons through the medium of Spanish, is Huish Episcopi School. Read a case study about this work. 
• History – Students can undertake a joint study of historical events with partners abroad to gain a different perspective on them
• Geography -  Students can gain a greater awareness of the wider world and an understanding of sustainable developments. Links with partner schools can enable them to compare and contrast places in the UK and overseas at different stages of economic development. A reciprocal project about the origins of their families was set up at the Bourne Community College with a partner school in Spain.
• Art – Students can explore art work produced by artists in other cultures. Hove Park School participated in a British Council funded Comenius Project studying the work of a Dutch artist with their partner school in Holland
• Music – Students can gain an appreciation of music and musicians from other cultures and exchange opinions with those in partner schools. At one school they filmed a performance of Russian folk music to send to a school in Russia (coming soon)
• PE – Students can learn to compose and perform dances from other cultures and traditions as well as new games and sports
• ICT – Students can use ICT to communicate with contacts abroad (e-mail, video-conferencing, blogs)
• Design and technology – Students can be provided with contexts for projects involving enterprise activities with contacts in other countries. Hove Park School has a link with South Korea focusing on food technology and St Augustine's School works with a French lycée technique as part of the diplomas
• PSHCE– Students can gain an understanding of the world as a global community and learn about the UK’s relations within Europe and the wider world and their roles, rights and responsibilities
• RE – Students can learn about faiths in other parts of the world and compare and contrast them. Some students at Hove Park School have participated in a project with their partner school in Turkey comparing beliefs and visiting different places of worship.  
  

Good practice in the development of the international dimension occurs when schools adopt a whole school approach and have the active support of senior management. Staff need to be prepared to work with teachers in other curriculum areas to push projects forward. It is important for a statement about involvement of the school in the international dimension to appear in the school mission statement and development plan so that everyone is aware of the international ethos that the school is seeking to cultivate.