Internation Schools in Hong Kong with Strong Mandarin

M

Mamamia 1

Registered User
Here's my research to share with all parents out there looking for international schools in Hong Kong with strong Mandarin.

1) Chinese International School (CIS)
Location: North Point, Braemar Hill
Language medium: Dual Language Programme (2 teachers in classroom - 1 native Mandarin teacher / 1 native English teacher)
Mandarin as a second language offered to kids who join after Year 1
Mix of nationalities: 70% local kids / 30% English speaking (rough estimate only - check with school)
Curriculum: IB Year 1-13, PYP, MYP, IB Diploma
Fees: $12,500/mth (2009/10) Private Debenture: $60,000? Refundable when child leaves
Priorities given to Corporate Debenture holders currently priced at HK$3.6million for 2009/10!
Campus: Very nice

2) Kiangsu & Chekiang International School (KCIS)
(Playgroup to Year 13)
Location: Nursery to P1 - North Point, Ching Wah Street
P2 to Year 13 - North Point, Braemar Hill
Language medium: Nursery to Year 13 (75% classes taught by native English teachers/ 25% classes taught by native Mandarin teachers)
From P1, Mandarin class and Chinese Culture class constitute the 25% Mandarin. Mandarin classes are streamed into 3 levels.
Mix of nationalities: Most kids are from local Hong Kong families, some Eurasian kids.
Curriculum: British Curriculum Year 1-11, IGCSE exam in Year 11, IB Diploma Year 12-13
Fees: $6,000/mth, no Debenture
Campus: Both campuses are like typical local schools - somewhat gloomy

3) Independent Schools Foundations Academy (ISF)
(Foundation to Year 13)
Location: Cyberport, Pok Fu Lam
Language medium: (Foundation Year - Year 4: 70% classes taught by native Mandarin teachers/ 30% classes taught by native English teachers)
(Year 5 upwards: 50% Mandarin / 50% English)
This is a true English & Mandarin Immersion school. Cantonese or any other languages are banned in the playground.
Mix of nationalities: Majority of kids are from mainland and Hong Kong families, quite a few English speaking kids - British, American & Europeans.
Curriculum: ISF Primary Programme - similar to IB PYP,
MYP for Year 7-11, IB Diploma for Year 12-13
Fees: $11,500/mth, Private Debenture - $200,000 refundable when child leaves
Campus: Beautiful brand new campus / other wings under construction

4) International Montessori School (IMS)
(Toddler, Preschool & Primary school only)
Location: Preschool Campus (CASA): Aberdeen
Toddler & Primary Campus: Morrison Hill, Wanchai
Language medium: Medium of instruction in English with approx 1 hour of Mandarin taught in small groups daily. Streamed according to Mandarin ability.
Mix of nationalities: Real mix
Curriculum: Montessori Primary Curriculum
Fees: $10,500/mth, Private Debenture - $60,000 (2009/10) refundable when child leaves
Campus: Aberdeen - very nice / Wanchai - like a typical local school - somewhat gloomy


5) Singapore International School (SIS)
Location: Primary campus in Aberdeen, Secondary Campus in Wanchai
Language medium: (Prep 1 - 2) 50% Mandarin / 50% English
Instruction language ratio change from P1 - check with school
Teachers: 1/3 Westerners, 1/3 Singaporeans, 1/3 Mainland Chinese
Curriculum: IB
Fees: check on school website
Campus: quite nice

All the above schools teach traditional Chinese, the form used in Hong Kong, except for Singapore International which teaches simplified Chinese, the form used in China and Singapore.

For more up to date and accurate information, please check in the website of each school, go on school tours and talk to other parents.
 
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You are very welcome!! I totally understand the frustration that parents go through because I am one of them myself. I just wish that someone else presented me with a list like that last year so that I wouldn't be in the situation I'm in now - STUCK! We've missed the CIS reception deadline and now we have to settle for other bilingual schools which don't really compare.

BTW, there's also the Victoria and Shanghai Academy in Aberdeen which is pretty much the only school I've missed out on the list with a strong Mandarin program. I haven't really bothered doing any in-depth research on this one. It looks really good on paper though - through train school from kindergarten to Year 13, IB Curriculum, native English and native Mandarin teachers, $7,000+ per mth - significantly cheaper than CIS, ISF and IMS. But kids are predominantly from Chinese speaking families. I've read in other forums that kids speak Cantonese to each other in the playground. But to really find out, don't just take other's word for it. Check it out and visit the school. Go to the playground and observe. Prepare a list of questions to ask the school. It's very important that you ask the right questions. Schools won't volunteer information if you don't ask.
 
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Just a few adjustments - CIS has not implemented the PYP, either has SIS. ISF primary English curriculum still needs a less local school approach. CIS English, Maths and Integrated Studies based on western curriculum models, SIS in primary based on Singapore's syllabus from the Ministry of Education.
 
Thanks Mamamia 1 for such comprehensive information!!!

Was wondering if you ever looked at the strength of Mandarin program at HKIS. Of course not up to the same strength as the schools you mentioned, but do you know how it is in general? Thanks
 
Thanks Mamamia. Would your top choice be CIS (read from your other thread)?

Is there a nursery/Kindergarten for CIS students? Thanks.
 
Hello all

Yes, thanks for the correction. The above 'research info' I typed up just from memory. So there may be a few details which are inaccurate. Hence I suggested that parents check things out for themselves from the websites and school visits.

We are having such a hard time with deciding on schools because we didn't do enough research. I try to put everything I know here for other parents to make things easier. The international system is in Hong Kong is so complicated that you really have to start doing your research when your child is born. When people told me that before I honestly thought they were kidding. They weren't!

Many international schools have different application deadlines, different curriculum and even different names for each grade level. It’s mind boggling! Someone really should draw up a chart to give parents an overview. I started doing a rough one in order to explain to my husband the differences of all these schools.

Yes, our top choice is CIS. But the chances of any child getting into Year 1 from outside is close to zero unless they have a Corporate Debenture which is currently valued at HK$3.6 M according to SCMP! That is just madness!! So yes, Year 1 places are very rare because nearly all kids from Reception go up to to Year 1. CIS is one of the best international schools in HK so why would any parents pull their kids out? Of course most kids will stay unless their family have to relocate. CIS also pick kids from families that are more committed to staying in HK for the long term. So the number of kids dropping out after Reception is not high at all. (Obiwan, CIS only has Reception before Year 1. That’s the equivalent of K2 in local schools. Yes, really silly! Why don’t all international schools have nursery, K1 and K2 and standardise the names for all grade levels so that it’s easy for parents to understand?!)

The only reservations I have about CIS is its snob values. I don’t know this for sure but I hear that some parents give teachers sharks fins and abalone for Christmas presents! So if you are not from the same socio-economic group then naturally you may feel rather out of place and you child may develop the wrong values in life. We are not rich by any means but we are prepared to sell our flat, trade down and use some of that money to pay the hefty school fees because we feel that it is an important investment for our only child. This snob value thing is something that will be a problem with any expensive international schools and something that we have to ignore or overcome if we want the best education for our daughter. BTW we are both educators hence the obsession with getting the ‘best’ school for our daughter.

At the moment, only ISF and IMS are on our list. Both are just as expensive and has distinct disadvantages. I’ve come to the conclusion that even if you can afford it and are willing to pay, there is no perfect school in Hong Kong.
 
Hi FutureHKmom

I don't know anything about HKIS. I visited their website and after looking at the school fees $16,000/mth, I've decided that is too expensive for us. Also, I don't think their Mandarin is that strong judging from their website. But I haven't really looked into it in detail.
 
Hi Barbwong_130

Again, I haven't done any research on Yew Chung because that's in Kowloon Tong. (We don't want to move there). I just hear from other parents that this is a school for rich HK kids and the academic/ English standard is not that great for the price you pay. Again, that's just what I've heard from other parents. It may not be true. Any parents who want to find out about a school should visit their website and go on a school visit. I was put off by what parents said about the snobbery in CIS and didn't even do research on it until it was too late. I am living to regret that now. So don't just go by what one or two parents say.
 
Mamamia 1 said:
Hello all


At the moment, only ISF and IMS are on our list. Both are just as expensive and has distinct disadvantages.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for this thread - it is really helpful! Given the strict Mandarin rules for ISF and the brand new campus, what are the distinct disadvantages from CIS? I saw they do not offer upper grades right now since they are too new, so perhaps that is the major disadvantage.

I tried to call CIS but they said to call back when my child was 2, as you cannot get on the waiting list until then. So actually, I guess you can apply too early, as well!
 
Thanks Mamamia1. Does that mean a child should go to another nursery/K1 and apply for Reception later? What is the right age to apply for Reception? Apologies for my very basic questions, like you say, the HK international school system is pretty mind boggling to navigate for someone new to this :(

I am trying to find out how/when best to apply so that my child can have a better chance of getting into CIS. Thanks!
 
the HKIS program is catered to both expat families and Chinese families...they have 2 streams. basically once you're in one stream there is very little chance to switch to the other stream (unless you go from Chinese stream to expat stream)...there Chinese has been around for over 10years, but they do stress they are not a bilingual school where there focus is on English, so, the amount of time allocated to Chinese is a reflection of this. of course the amount increases as you move up, but whether or not the increment is enough, it really depends on your perception

as for having a better chance to get into CIS, I hear that your child needs to be able to interview in both Mandarin and English and that the average waitlist is about 2 years.....like all schools, there are advantages and disadvantages...one being (for CIS) the English is not so good (my friends say)...but, that again is a matter of perspective...I'm not 100% sure myself....I know corporate debentures, even if you are willing to pay, are not sold to "anyone" your company has to be "big" and "well known" in order to get one...go figure! :)
 
mamamia 1,
again, you have been a great help in contributing these info. good on you.
btw, do u know how to get in touch with the CIS corporate debenture buy/sell market? presumably these are bonds with maturity and yield interest income?
 
This wait list thingy --- everyone talks about the long wait-list, but you can only apply within the application period, so how do people end up being on a wait list couple of years long.

Like an earlier poster said, don't think we can apply early right?

Another question is ... what nursery/Kindergarten do you send your child to pre international school since many of them start in K2 or K3...
 
mamamia, I feel the same way as you do. My hubby's niece and nephews all graduated from CIS. We also know a few people who go there. All that snobbery is true. So a child who goes to CIS will fall in one of 3 groups: A. the super rich kids B. the academically strong ones C. land of no where.

I have heard of a case where a parent decided to pull out her child because they couldn't stand the snobbery. She felt that her child was given the wrong values in life.

ISF - I have "heard" that there is a frequent change in principals - apparently the result of the board which is made up of "knowledgeable" parents of different views. Also, as a school of short history, it could be of concern.


Victoria - My cousin enrolled her daughter in the primary school and decided to pull her out 2 years ago. She said the school was not yet settled, administration was chaotic, high turnover of teachers, no progress report to parents. I don't know how it is now.

SIS - our foremost choice. the drawback is simplified Chinese, but we will try to cope. Anyway, the international trend is simplified Chinese. After all, there is less than 30M people in the world still using traditional Chinese.

SIS primary school only has 8.5 hours of Chinese/week. In many ways, it is also taught as a second language, only at a higher standard. I think that it is important for parents to guide the child to do more Chinese reading because it is a difficult language to master.
 
Don't expect much for CIS Chinese also. It is also taught as a second language, so kids will naturally prefer English. Of course, the standard is better than ESF - IMHO, practically nonexistant.
 
ESF has in fact increased the overall time for Mandarin classes...some classes have daily chinese, some have every other day but longer times (45mins vs 30mins) - i think it is G2 or 3 that have alternative days...not 100% sure. still not great but the daily exposure is good.

CIS claims they are a dual language program at the primary years so that the language is not actually taught as a second language but rather immersed, which i think is why many parents are attracted to it...but unforunately like flo says, kids naturally prefer english because the environment in HK is just not conducive to the "proper" learning of Mandarin so making it difficult for children to find necessary to learn.

if you are really serious about mandarin I'd send your child to Kiangsu and Chekiang school for the primary school years (traditional stream)...had students go there before and even with no language environment at home, the kids (caucasians with 0 background in any form of Chinese) were speaking near perfect Mandarin and could understand it extremely well...I'm not sure what the school is like since I haven't visited but I have seen the Mandarin standard of kids and it is quite impressive.
 
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