GIBS is a bilingual (German-English) secondary school (ages ten to eighteen). At present approximately 500 students attend the school.

The language of instruction is English in the form of "flexible monolingualism". When students come to GIBS most of them speak little or no English.After an intensive phase of language acquisition supported by all the subjects taught in Year 1, students reach a level of language competence which enables them to participate in lessons conducted in the target language. During the first five school years in particular, cross-curricular projects strongly support English language acquisition.

GIBS supports plurilingualism by offering a choice between French and Spanish from Year 3 and Latin, Spanish, French and another foreign language from year 5, History taught in French in Year 7. Native speaker co-teachers contribute positively to the authentic language acquisition of GIBS students.

Students from non-German speaking backgrounds receive instruction in German as a foreign language. Teaching, learning and communicating in several languages is one of the main goals of the GIBS program. The students’ excellent language skills should encourage their respect for cultural diversity inside and outside the school.