Type: Public accredited European school
Location: Southern Luxembourg (Differdange and Esch campuses)
Age range: Primary and secondary education
Language sections: English, French and German
Leaving qualification: European Baccalaureate (Baccalauréat Européen)
School website: https://www.eide.lu/
The École internationale de Differdange et Esch (EIDE) was the first to be established of Luxembourg’s public European schools. It offers multilingual education through English-, French-, and German-language sections and follows the European Schools curriculum leading to the European Baccalaureate. EIDE has suffered considerable controversies including results for its first graduating cohort being dubbed “bottom in Europe” and recurring difficulties of lead and other heavy metals pollution, as well as a one-off more serious toxic leak, at its main campus in Differdange which is close to an industrial installation.
Differdange International School Ranked Bottom in Europe, Lux Times
The station at Rue de la Chiers is the closest environmental monitoring station for heavy metal pollution to the Differdange campus. Esch is also monitored (similar to many towns in the South) however there is no active steel production or high optical visibily of metal pollution in Esch.
monthly airborne metal pollution measurements around Differdange
Multiple metal and heavy-metal pollutants are typically measured as above the reference values at this site. Lead is considered particularly relevant as there is no acceptable dose of lead: any measurable dosage leads to measurable cognitive impairment.
WHO: there is no level of lead exposure known to be without harmful effects
EIDE is led by a school director (Gerard Zens, at time of writing, 2026) operating within the framework of Luxembourg’s public European school system.