Is it good at ISF

Ms.M

mesmerising 發表於 13-1-18 13:03
Hello Kfy, nice to meet you.  Yes I still remember the book fair and the library! I volunteered at b ...

I have heard about similar story a few years back.   Sometimes about a bully girl, sometimes about a rich boy etc...
Luckily, my children have not had those kind of bad experiences.  Honestly, I am indifferent no matter those stories are real or not.  We are in real life world, this happens everywhere, in every school, I dare to say.   

kfy

mesmerising 發表於 13-1-18 13:03
Hello Kfy, nice to meet you.  Yes I still remember the book fair and the library! I volunteered at b ...

Hi mesmerising ! Though I can guess from your previous post, when I read your incident in details, I still feel very sorry for your son. School administration is always the most accused in this school. But the current primary school principal, who is a lady from Beijing, is very nice and gentle. The kids and parents like her very much.
My kid is just lucky that so far most classmates we met are pretty well in conduct, maybe some have a bit 公主病 or some are a bit too bossy. The teachers do care about the students' conduct too. Of course, I wish the luck will continue. But you can never tell. Kids are blank sheets of paper and much affected by families, peers and school. And family situation can change dramatically...

In a way, when there are more applicants to the school, the school can be a bit more selective. I believe that's why the situation may be improving over the years.  

shadeslayer

原帖由 Ms.M 於 13-01-18 發表
本帖最後由 Ms.M 於 13-1-18 13:35 編輯

Afterall, language skill is just a tool. I dont care much honestly.

Xxxxx

Thanks for explaining.  But isn't bilingual capability the biggest selling point of ISF? If someone is not looking for balanced bilingual education, why not an "established" IS instead?

mesmerising

回復 Ms.M 的帖子

True. Bully happens everywhere, but it all depends on the frequency, intensity and the way schools choose to handle them.

HKTHK

回復 shadeslayer 的帖子

Let me ask you another question, Yung Kee is famous for its roast goose.  Does it serve other dishes?  Are the other dishes simply bad because they are not the "selling points"?

HKTHK

I visit the school several times a week as well and the behavior of the students are pretty much inline with what I would expect.  Kids are given more freedom relative to LS and they take advantage of it.  They run around and can be loud.  I would not consider that inappropriate behavior though since kids are kids.  There are some families that do suffer from the "princeling" problem, i.e. spoiled rich kids.  Luckily they are a small minority in the classes that we have been in and can be easily avoided.  Most families are professionals who really care about their child and their education.

missq

It's known that ISF caters to many wealthy families from HK as well as some (more and more) from the Mainland. Do you feel that your child's behaviors / personal value is somewhat influenced by the fact that most of his classmates are much much richer than an average child outside?

Just wanted to know how parents feel about it. Please don't take me wrong - I am not for/against a certain group. In fact I have friends from HK/China/overseas - though most with similar family background to my own (middle class).

shadeslayer

原帖由 HKTHK 於 13-01-18 發表
回復 shadeslayer 的帖子

Let me ask you another question, Yung Kee is famous for its roast goose.  D ...

Good example. I go to Yung Kee and I must eat the famous roast geese. I will also order other dishes like seafood, etc. But i simply won't have a high expectation on Yung Kee's seafood, or chicken, or beef, ......  I will go to Sai Kung or example for fresh seafood which these restaurants are famous for.

No, it does not mean all other dishes besides the famous dish are bad, but a new restaurant has NOT demonstrated their strength in dishes other than the famous dish.   If I am not interested in the famous dish, but rather interested in everything else in the restaurant, then senses tell me to go to a well established restaurant which is all rounded and has a demonstrated track record.

If a family has a overwhelming desire for a balanced bilingual child, sending the child to iSF is understandable.

HKTHK

回復 shadeslayer 的帖子

Then show me a school with a demonstrated track record and also evidence of bilingualism

hkparent

CIS

shadeslayer

HKTHK 發表於 13-1-18 23:01
回復 shadeslayer 的帖子

Then show me a school with a demonstrated track record and also evidence of ...

You missed the point.  The other ISF parent said he/she doesn't really care about bilingual education.  Then I said why choose ISF if the parent does not care about bilingual education.  There are many established IS with demonstrated track records without selling bilingualism.
I am saying if the parent has a strong desire for balanced bilingual education, sending their children to ISF is understandable.

CIS indeed have demonstrated track record of great results but they are probably unique in HK.  KCIS is also quite balanced in languages and the overall IB results are on par with ISF.  Can you call KCIS demonstrated track record?  Not sure.  Is KCIS more established?  Yes.  Does it mean KCIS have less chance of a significant improvement compared to ISF?  Probably.

SIS is also good from what I heard in terms of bilingual education, but it has no secondary school.

mesmerising

回復 shadeslayer 的帖子

Good morning.  I didn't say language is not important at all.  But when there is a choice to make between how or what is said, people should think about stressing more on the latter. It is a lesson I have learnt, so I urge people to not put too much stress and be a bit more relax regarding biligualism.
The parents who left but choosing the IS route did go to the school you mention above. One to CIS, the other, all three kids to KCIS and they are both very happy there.

shadeslayer

Mesmerising,

I was not referring to you, I was responding to Ms.M who said she does not care much about language since it is just a tool.  In this case, it seems odd to me someone would choose ISF, a new school whose main selling point is bilingual education.

Ms.M

Final advice to those who plan to send kids to ISF.... to see and find out yourself and from someone who are existing parents of the school, instead of listening to someone who have never had kids studying there and judge based on hearsay. Good bye.

HKTHK

回復 shadeslayer 的帖子

Obviously you are still missing the point.  But I really don't have to patience to toil through all the arguments only to discover a thick skull in the end.  Since you take all your posts seriously, as you said in another post, I would suggest thinking a bit more before posting nonsense such as "does the school promise bilingualism?"

shadeslayer

All these times on EK I learnt one "truth"; everybody has a magic spot, me included.  If this spot is touched intentionally or unintentionally, behavior of the person would change dramatically without warning, including using offensive language. They usually become blinded with prejudice and deprived of good judgement they otherwise have.

I am not in the mood to argue with such a person.  And I doubt I ever have the mood to argue with such a person.

HKTHK

回復 shadeslayer 的帖子

Criticisms come in all shapes and forms.  mesmerising resurrected this thread with some valid and reasonable criticisms and I thank her for that.    I even came to her defense when she was criticized.  As for your "Does the school promise this?  It is a bold promise" comment, it is simply childish, immature and uncalled for.  Bilingualism is a selling point, maybe even a major one.  But promise?  Are there any parents here who has received a promise from any school about specific results?  What promises have you received from your daughter's school?

You should also get your facts straight.  SIS has a secondary school now but it is even newer than ISF.  I also believe it is a good school.  But to follow your twisted logic, does being new mean that it is a bad school?  Why do you think it offers good bilingual education?  What evidence do you have to substantiate that (especially at the end of primary school which I assume you are referring to)?


I will let others be the judge but the immature comments and fallacy in logic are irritating to say the least.

HKTHK

回復 missq 的帖子

There are certainly wealthy families at the school and you will see your fair share of Hermes bags and 7-seaters with drivers.  I don't think it is all that different from other non-ESF IS (e.g. CIS, SIS, Victoria) in HK though.  You will also get some birthday parties at AMC and this does bother me a bit after several occurrences.  That is the extent of display of wealth that I have witnessed.  At the end of the day, I think it comes down to the education at home.  
As for mainland Chinese families, you will have to remember that these are not 雙非 families but rather those who are educated or have worked abroad.  Most, if not all, of the ones that I have come across are finance professionals or other professionals like lawyers.  Personally, I think the ones that cause the most headaches are rich HK families rather than the mainland ones.

Have you also thought about the fact that some LS, esp the good and famous ones, also have a disproportionately large number of affluent parents?

21Ckid

回復 mesmerising 的帖子

You mentioned some isf students went to KCIS. Is KCIS good? Of course, been there and know the campus is pretty run down, but what about other things?