BHS​​
Do you believe that traditional education is a failure in today's society?
Founded as the anti-traditional school to solve the failures of traditional education, Barcelona High School (BHS) is a one-of-a-kind private international American school in Barcelona Spain for students ages 3 to 18.
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What is the problem with traditional education?
The main problem with traditional education is that it is not flexible and it does not focus on what is best for the student.
Indeed, the traditional education system was founded on the principle of teachers having complete power over students as the method to control and teach them, instead of to inspire them.
At BHS, however, student learning does NOT come from having power over students, but instead from empowering students to find within themselves what makes them unique and amazing, which BHS refers to as their "superpower".
What is the problem with traditional schools?
The problem with traditional schools is that they unfortunately still use the rote memorization teaching method designed 200 years ago in the industrial age to indoctrinate students to simply follow orders in a factory.
This outdated teaching method erroneously rewards students based on how well they blindly memorize useless information and conform to society to be just like everyone else, instead of challenging them on difficult issues and encouraging them to think outside the box.
Moreover, traditional schools focus almost solely on academic grades and lack equal focus on the social and emotional wellbeing of students, therefore, failing to prepare students for this more complex world that exists today.
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Who founded BHS and why?
After the Covid pandemic exposed that the traditional education system was broken and incapable of solving the needs of students in the modern world, BHS was founded by American entrepreneur, Harvard graduate and Barcelona resident, Akida Mashaka, who became obsessed with the need for a better education model for his teenage son.
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What is the Mission of BHS?
BHS was created to be the school to specifically solve the failures of traditional education so all students not only have the opportunity to excel academically to attend the world's most elite universities, if desired, including universities in Spain and Europe with programs in English, but also to excel socially and psychologically in equal measure to truly find their superpower in order to have control over their own destiny.
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What is the BHS Pedagogy?
BHS uses its own entrepreneurial pedagogy known as the BHS Method™. In this methodology, the BHS stands for "Build. Harvest. Succeed." which means that students learn better by doing versus long and boring lectures and memorization as the best way to obtain the skills they will need for the world they will be in.​
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What is the BHS Philosophy?
At BHS, our philosophy is that the students are our customers. Our goal is to empower students, instead of always trying to exert power over them. Therefore, our responsibility to our students is to make sure they don't just like school, but that they love school. This also creates a one-of-a-kind relationship between students and teachers. This philosophy is much different than at traditional schools where these schools are only concerned with what parents want which is always not the best way for students to find their superpower to take control of their own destiny.
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What kind of school is BHS?
While BHS is a fully accredited US curriculum American school in Spain, BHS is the anti-traditional school and the first Social Wellness School™ in the world.​
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Why is BHS the fastest growing American school in Barcelona?
Besides its unique pedagogy and philosophy, BHS is the only American school in Barcelona that fully embraces flexibility, uniqueness and diversity of its community, and has a mandate for teachers to inspire their students and to do what is best for the child.
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BHS Middle & High School Campus
BHS started as only a high school, hence the name Barcelona High School, but then added a middle school to keep up with the growing demand of families who wanted the best modern education for their children. For this 2025-2026 school year, the middle and high school students are in our new secondary school campus in the innovative and startup zone of Barcelona known as District 22@.
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BHS Elementary & Preschool Campus
Also for this 2025-2026 school year, BHS has opened a new primary school campus with an elementary school and preschool, in the upper zone of the Gracia district of Barcelona, to fully serve as collectively the best international school in Barcelona for creating global citizens of the world and to fully revolutionize education as we know it.​​​
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Why do people say BHS is the best international school in Barcelona?
BHS is the only school in Barcelona that focuses on the social life and emotional wellbeing of students in equal measure with academics.
Moreover, BHS has a flexible schedule and teaching style and the school makes decisions based on what is best for the student, and not based on the preservation of the school system.
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In addition, BHS has the most internationally diverse student population from around the world while still maintaining a small student-teacher ratio unlike the other international and American traditional schools.
This unique focus on flexibility, academics and social and emotional wellbeing in equal measure, combined with small class sizes and unity in diversity creates the most amazing student life, community and core values.
This is why BHS students say:
"BHS feels like one big family where we get to make new friends everyday". ​
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Why is BHS not for you?
BHS is NOT for you if you prefer traditional schools because of their strict rules, educational philosophy that only "teaches to the test", or the happiness of your child is not your top priority.
BHS is also NOT for you if you prefer super alternative schools that don't value academic structure and the importance of a student's ability to reach their full potential through adversity and perseverance.
Why is BHS perfect for you?
BHS is the perfect school for you if you want a school that keeps its promise to holistically teach and inspire students to be problem solvers and in charge of their own destiny through academic curiosity, social engagement and psychological wellness, all in a caring and inclusive family-like community.​​