Under ESF criteria, any child who can speak canto would automatically be downgrade...

L

Lily.hk

Registered User
Under ESF criteria, any child who can speak cantonese would automatically be downgraded to a Category Two priority.

I read it in this thread:

http://www.geobaby.com/forum/thread121414-2.html



Is it true?

I am new to HK but it will be permanent. I want my kids to speak and write chinese. Can they learn enough in international school or the best choice would be local school?
 
as stated in other of your threads, if you want your children to speak, read & write chinese, your ONLY option is a local school. chinese has thousands of characters that need to be learned and memorised. there is no way that an hour per day is going to cover it.

yes, it is true, if your child speaks cantonese, your priority for esf is downgraded. this is natural, esf is supposed to be there for childrent hat cannot speak chinese so that they still have an option for schoolling that is not outrageously expensive.
 
I don't think the criteria is about speaking Cantonese but rather being able to be educated in the local system. Two of my children are now studying in the ESF system and both can speak Cantonese but can't be educated in the local system because their written Chinese isn't good enough.

I also have a friend whose son studied in a local primary school until Year 7 and then was offered a place at an ESF school. She just told them that she couldn't manage to support him in the local system anymore because the Chinese was now beyond her.(This mother was English)

SARAH
 
* ESF children recieve less funding per student than 'local' students.
* Local schools (especially DSS schools) routinely discriminate against non-Cantonese speakng students: this discrimination takes two main forms:
(a) "Your child will fall behind too easily" (Translation: your child will not perform well enough in Chinese Language and Chinese History at HKCE level. Never mind al the other subjects.....
(b) "Your child is not local" - well, neither are a lot of kids in HK givernment schools. Translation: your child is not Chinese.

I am sick of the assumption (not here, but generally in HK) that the ESF is for anyone. It's not - any more than DGS or St Paul's etc etc are for everyone. Why is it that local funded schools are allowed to pick and choose their students, but as soon as the ESF prioritises English speaking students who cannot access local schools, then everyone gets upset or indignant or suprised??
 
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Darling,

Calm down. I am french who does not know anyone in HK! I've just arrived and I am trying to get familliar with all this vocabulary and the education system in HK! I was trying to gather infos from "Geobaby". It was all I had found to answer my questions so......... please understand that some of us are all new to that and really don't understand this type of comment!

With all my Respect,

Lily.
 
Hi Lily - that's why I have the comment "(not here)" in my post. I was trying to make you aware that this attitude exists in the wider community and it definitely colours people's perceptions of the ESF.
Good luck with finding a school place.
 
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