Individual & Group Lesson Guidelines

OVERVIEW

There are 15 lessons in the autumn semester and 17 lessons in the spring semester, including the end of the term concert. The application process is done through Eepos, our online portal.  Teaching for students enrolled in the autumn term will continue automatically for the spring term, so a new application does not need to be filled out after the end of the autumn teaching term. We also accept students after the term has started; for these students, the semester rate will be calculated based on the remaining lessons for the term. In these cases please consult the ISM Principal. Cancellations need to be confirmed at least a week before the start of the term by emailing the ISM Principal. We unfortunately cannot refund students who drop out mid term as we are committed to pay the teachers for the whole term. Private lessons are provided by professional teachers in English, Finnish and many other languages.

ENROLLING FOR LESSONS:

We will need an application form (click here) from each student before the lessons start. Personal information in the form will not be shared with parties outside of ISM Finland. Please inform us of any changes to your email address after enrollment, since the email address on the application form will be used for invoicing and communication with you via our newsletter.  We occasionally take photos of our students in teaching situations and at ISM concerts, and the form has the option to give or deny permission to publish these photos. Students need to fill out a renewal form at the start of every autumn term, and students enrolled for the autumn term will be automatically enrolled in the consequent spring term.

LESSONS:

The teacher is in charge of the content of the teaching. The goal for the school year will be planned together with the student. The teacher will communicate and keep a teaching diary using Eepos and update the student’s homework book (recommended, but not required) for each lesson so that parents may follow their child’s progress.

COMMUNICATION:

Information during the term is communicated through the ISM newsletter, on our website, and through our Facebook and Instagram pages. Please follow these as they will be used to publish important information regarding the term’s events. Teachers will keep students informed of dates for these events well in advance.

INSTRUMENTS AND LESSONS:

Each student needs their own instrument for practicing purposes. A practice book is recommended in which the teacher will make notes after each lesson for homework practices. Practice at home is essential for improvement. Instrument teachers will advise students on purchasing their own instruments and other age-specific requirements. Some instruments can be rented from ISM, if needed, by contacting their own teacher or ISM’s principal.

ABSENCES:

A student/parent must inform the teacher at least 24 hours before the lesson in the case of an absence, in which case a make-up lesson can be arranged according to the teacher’s schedule. There is a limit of one make-up lesson per semester. If the student fails to inform the teacher, the lesson will not be made up. There are no refunds for missed lessons. If a teacher is absent for any reason, they will arrange a substitute teacher. If no substitute is available, the lesson will be rescheduled and a make-up lesson wil be held.

INVOICES:

Invoices are sent to the email given in the application form at the beginning of the term. Please check your email inbox and spam folder for messages, as ISM is not responsible for messages lost due to a spam filter. Please let us know of any changes in your email addresses.

The following additional fees apply to enrolled students:

• Paying in installments: To pay in installments, you must contact our invoice provider (Visma) after receiving a payment reminder (In Finnish: maksuhuomautus) for the semester’s lessons. The reminder is sent approximately two weeks from the due date of the original invoice. The total cost of paying in installments includes the payment reminder (5€ plus interest) and the installment fee (37,20€ plus interest) for the payment period.
• Late payment fees vary from 5€ to 30€ (plus ALV 24%) when paid after 14 days from invoice date
• Additional invoices: 3€ (when there are 1-5 lessons), or free (for more than 5 lessons)

All these fees are defined and charged by Visma PPG, the company we use for invoicing, and are subject to change. For questions regarding your invoice, please email fsf.asiakaspalvelu@visma.com .

If you have any other questions, please contact our principal.

TERMINATION:

Please inform the ISM Principal by email at least a week before the term starts if you wish to cancel music lessons. Informing the teacher is not sufficient. If we are informed less than a week before teaching commences, we will charge half a term’s fee. If we are informed after the lessons have started, we will charge the whole term’s fee. We unfortunately cannot refund students who drop out mid-term as we are committed to paying teachers for the whole term. Please contact us with any concerns regarding the above or any other matters.

SAFER SPACE PRINCIPLES

ISM Finland is dedicated to providing a safer space for students, teachers, and all others who participate in ISM lessons, events, and workshops, and meetings.

It is important that every person involved with ISM Finland feels safe and comfortable. This is especially critical since our teachers and students come from many different cultures, nationalities, backgrounds, and identities.

ISM adheres to the following Safer Space Principles:

• Do not assume anything about others; instead, ask. Avoid making assumptions about sexuality, gender, nationality, ethnicity, religion, values, socio-economic background, abilities, and health.
• Discrimination in any form will not be tolerated. Negative comments regarding sexuality, gender, nationality, ethnicity, religion, values, socio-economic background, abilities, or health, and any other comments that can be considered discrimination are not allowed.
• Respect the opinions, beliefs, experiences, and differing viewpoints of others. The space should be free of judgmental words, actions, or behaviors that could humiliate, insult, or ridicule another person.
• Respect others’ personal space. The teaching space must be comfortable for all parties involved, therefore any touching or breach of personal space must be done only with permission and be completely professional.
• What to do in harassment situations. If you see a situation where these guidelines are not being upheld, you can intervene directly if you feel comfortable doing so. In other cases, please reach out to the ISM Principal or any of the admin team members.

We believe that feedback can only enrich these principles; therefore, if you have any suggestion to improve these principles, please contact the ISM Principal or any of the admin team members. We believe that music is for everyone and everyone deserves to learn and work in a safe space.

These guidelines are inspired by https://yhdenvertaisuus.fi/en/guidelines-for-safer-spaces

EQUALITY GUIDELINES

Download and read our guidelines on equality (in Finnish) here.

School guidelines have been updated on 28.11.2023.

Links to School Info and Academic Calendars:

Käpylä Spanish School
European School of Helsinki
Finnish-American Kindergarten
International School of Helsinki
Kulosaari Primary School
Ressu

ISM’s teaching curricula (opetussunnitelmat) for 2023 are available for download by clicking the images above.

Note that the curricula are only available in Finnish.