教育王國
標題: Is it good at ISF [打印本頁]
作者: Anne1999 時間: 12-4-2 21:59 標題: Is it good at ISF
What are the good points of ISF?
作者: Smileocc 時間: 12-4-3 16:46 標題: 回覆：Anne1999 的帖子
I like its stress on Chinese culture. I also see the kids there are truly bilingual.
作者: Anne1999 時間: 12-4-3 17:17
回復 Smileocc 的帖子
Are your kids studying there? that's what I want if they are truely billigual, are the kids speaking bilingual in between.. As Victoria, the kids all are speaking in cantonese in between, that might not help their speaking abilities.
作者: cecilau 時間: 12-4-3 17:35
ISF are truly biligual and no cantonese in Primary.
作者: Smileocc 時間: 12-4-3 18:27 標題: 回覆：cecilau 的帖子
I had a school tour a few months ago. All the school ambassadors spoke native/fluent English and mandarin. I went to washroom, and by chance it was also the school recess, I only heard kids spoke in near native English or mandarin. I was very impressed.
作者: elock 時間: 12-4-3 18:29 標題: 回覆：cecilau 的帖子
Cecilau, how about academic score? How does the school stress on this issue?
Also, are the students free to express their ideas in class? Will the teachers treat the questions as creativity or as challengers to their positions?
Thank you.
作者: Birkin 時間: 12-4-3 22:43
My little girl got offers from ISF and Harrow. Which one shall we accept?
作者: poonseelai 時間: 12-4-4 11:33
Can any parent share ISF's IB results and/or universities offers? According to IBO website, students of ISF attended IBDP exam in May 2011. I can't find any information in ISF's website.
作者: bobbycheung 時間: 12-4-4 14:08
The IB website says ISF is "authorized to offer the IB Diploma Programme since April 2010". Does it mean that its first IBDP exam will be in 2012?
作者: cecilau 時間: 12-4-4 14:48
2012 is the first IBDP for ISF.
作者: poonseelai 時間: 12-4-4 17:26
How about the remarks in the IB website at the bottom:
"IB Diploma Programme
Authorized to offer the IB Diploma Programme since April 2010, the programme is taught in English. The school is open to male and female students. The head of the school is Malcolm Pritchard.
Students at this school usually take IB exams in May.
In the last examination session, students completed the following exams: Biology HL, Biology SL, Bus.& Man. HL, Bus.& Man. SL, Chemistry HL, Chemistry SL, Chinese A1 SL, Chinese A2 HL, Chinese A2 SL, Design Tech. HL, Economics HL, Economics SL, English A1 HL, English A1 SL, English A2 HL, English A2 SL, English B HL, Geography HL, History HL, Mandarin B HL, Mandarin B SL, Math.Studies SL, Mathematics HL, Mathematics SL, Physics HL, Physics SL, Theatre HL, Theatre SL, Theory Knowl. TK and Visual Arts HL."
作者: caa 時間: 12-4-5 08:25
poonseelai 發表於 12-4-4 11:33 
Can any parent share ISF's IB results and/or universities offers? According to IBO website, student ...
作者: poonseelai 時間: 12-4-5 09:10
caa 發表於 12-4-5 08:25 
Couldn't you ask and verify with the school if you are already accepted?
I don't have the resources to send my kids to ISF. I asked this question simply because some parents said in BK that ISF's academic results are good, and so I would like to check any information available from the school's website.
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-5 09:52
The first cohort of ISF will graduate in 2012.
作者: md23 時間: 12-4-5 10:23
ISF is not an international school.
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-5 10:45
True. ISF is one of a kind - it's not just another international school.
作者: mrshoho 時間: 12-4-5 10:53 標題: 回覆：md23 的帖子
Why?
作者: Chelstan 時間: 12-4-7 01:31
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: CorinneCook 時間: 12-4-7 11:14 標題: 回覆：Is it good at ISF
hi all, I am a new mummy with a baby who is 6mths now. we are now exploring all options for his education path. IB system is the one my husband and myself want him to take.
Hv briefly heard abt ISF and quite interested in it. may know which pre-school does ISF student usually go?
Rightmind is one of the option we are thinking, any comments?
作者: md23 時間: 12-4-7 13:00
mrshoho 發表於 12-4-5 10:53
Why?
作者: mrshoho 時間: 12-4-7 16:54 標題: 回覆：md23 的帖子
I didn't expect a rude reply like this, I was just asking why. And you are correct, I didn't visit their website.
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-9 00:05
回復 CorinneCook 的帖子
Hi CorinneCook
My daughter is in Foundation Year now. She is very happy and I am satisfied with her academic development. We are purely Cantonese speaking family. She can now speak comfortably in English and PTH too.
Their language curriculum in Foundation Year is rigorous. She learned PTH pinyin and English phonics at the same time and mastered both pretty well now. Of course I have to help her at home e.g. read to her & read with her both Chinese and English storybooks. But she does not need extra tutorials.
My daughter's classmates are from all kinds of kindergartens, to name a few : Victoria, Tutortime, St. Catherine, KCS, Woodland, Yew Chung etc. But I would suggest you choose a bilingual school. Learning to recognize Chinese words and write some certainly would help your kid in ISF.
Hope it helps.
作者: Birkin 時間: 12-4-9 00:59
kfy: My child received an offer from ISF for the Foundation Year program. I know they have a pretty strong Chinese/Mandarin curriculum but how about their English? We were all told by the Principal at the parents' meeting that they expect their lower school students to lag behind in English for the initial years as they do 70% in Mandarin and 30% in English up to Grade 4/5 and then gradually catching up in English...
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-9 09:11
Hi Birkin
Congratulations!
Yes, in FY to Grade 3 they only have 30% curriculum in English, including English Language (mainly Phonics in FY), English Math and English Guided Discovery.
For my daughter's case, she has big improvement in English because she was from a local kindergarten with minimal English and she did not learn phonics before. Now she can speak English fluently and starts reading simple books by herself and writing some English sentences. She speaks mostly English (a little bit PTH) during playtime.
I heard about other classmates from international kindergarten. They commented that their kids' English level improved in a slower pace then before.
Hence, in terms of English, ISF should be weaker than international schools but stronger than local schools in general.
I think it is very important to develop the reading habit. The English teacher requested parents to read with kids at home, at least one book a day. Usually I read chapter book (e.g. Magic School Bus) to my daughter and let her read a graded reader to me everyday. Furthermore, the school library provided online resources, we have account to access USA elibrary and my daughter read ebooks (with read-aloud function) almost everyday.
作者: Birkin 時間: 12-4-9 12:29 標題: 回覆：kfy 的帖子
Many thanks, kfy.
What are the school hours and do they have school bus services? I couldn't find such info' on ISF's website. Thanks!
作者: elock 時間: 12-4-9 15:34 標題: 回覆：kfy 的帖子
Hi, your information is in good details, but should that be a concern for working parents regarding the reading homework you mentioned?
It sounds like the school is merely a mirror image of local school with different packaging. Am I right?
Please advise! Thank you.
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-9 23:55
Hi Birkin
The school hour is 8am - 210pm for FY and 8am - 330pm for other grades. There are bus services for most areas including Kowloon. The service is provided by Koon Chung. The school will provide you with the info on the registration date. I drive my daughter to school everyday and the arrangement is quite smooth.
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-10 00:31
Hi elock
Well, it may be hard for some busy parents but I consider that reading with kids is a very good habit for all families. I am a working mum myself though I enjoy high flexibility in my work. My friends with kids in ESF also read with their kids and they have parent workshop on how to read with children. If the parents are too busy or cannot read Chinese, I think hiring tutor may be an alternative.
I do not know how to answer your 2nd question, as I cannot comment much about mirror image of local school.
ISF is offering IB curriculum instead of local curriculum. As such, the students may not memorize a lot of hard knowledge but they are supposed to be "inquirers" and need to have creativity and research ability - hence reading plus good analytical skills are important to survive in IB curriculum.
Say, I was quite impressed when my daughter told me casually (I never ask the question "what did you learn in school?") about the planets in solar system or about characteristics of dinosaurs. She was keen to search on the internet for more information (of course with my help). I was happy because she was interested. I don't expect her to remember those facts forever ... you can look up the information again anytime if you like. I think going to school nowadays the major objective is learning how to learn and how to solve problems.
On the other hand, I do not say that local schools are inferior. The local curriculum also has very good initiatives and lots of teachers are good and with heart. The only issue is resource problem. If all local schools can have more teachers such that each teacher can have more spare time slots for lesson planning, I am sure that the situation will be much better.
作者: Birkin 時間: 12-4-10 00:44
kfy: Many thanks for your sincere and unbiased responses :)
作者: elock 時間: 12-4-12 12:56 標題: 回覆：kfy 的帖子
Thank you kfy for your detailed reply!
You said you were a working mom with flexible schedule, and so you were able to read with your kid. Does that mean fixed schedule parents will find it hard to achieve this?
Reading Chinese books: in Mandarin I supposed, am I right? If parents do not know Mandarin, will it be a problem?
Lastly, in your experience, are teachers really open to questions asked by the students or they may find them offensive and time consuming?
Thank you.
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-12 23:00
本帖最後由 kfy 於 12-4-12 23:05 編輯
Dear elock
Yes, actually I quit my job since my daughter was born and eventually changed to this new position. Sometimes I think that it's a matter of priority. And being a mom is an excellent training for self-discipline ... You have to take care of her even if you are extremely tired. You make her sleep before you dare go to bed ... Bittersweet, right?
Regarding reading to kids, I consider it's irrelevant to which school she is attending. I have a friend from Norway who is teaching in university. You know the kids in Norway do not receive formal education before 7. However, the daddy every night spends at least 2 hours read with his daughter. And he said it's the norm in Norway. That's one of the reasons they got such a high mark in PISA.
作者: elock 時間: 12-4-13 05:07 標題: 回覆：kfy 的帖子
Thank you kfy.
You forgot to reply my question about students asking lots of questions in class! Will these be considered as offensive to the teachers?
Thank you.
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-13 08:20
Hi elock
Good morning! Let me continue.
My daughter is only in Foundation Year. Up to now, I perceive that the school encourages student participation and active learning. The school is quite strict in discipline. Definitely, they train the students to raise their hands before speaking out. However I never heard anyone being discouraged or punished due to asking too much questions.
The teacher plays the major role in classroom management and as a learning facilitator. A good teacher will somehow control the dynamics and guide the students to ask or answer question that will direct to the expected learning outcomes.
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-13 09:56
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: Birkin 時間: 12-4-13 10:03
Spantan: Please share more information on what you have heard from your freinds. We need to decide whether or not to accept ISF's offer very soon. This is very important to us and our child. Many thanks!
作者: Anne1999 時間: 12-4-13 10:19
回復 spantan 的帖子
I handed in the application form of Grade 7 for my girl, , i just heard the positive stuffs from ISF, could you tell us some more, please?
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-13 10:51
Dear Spantan
Thanks for your advice.
As a parent in ISF I certainly hope that my daughter will be happy in school.
Sometimes I talked with other ISF parents of higher grades. Some have elder kids in other IS (e.g. HKIS) while putting the younger one in ISF. Hearing they sharing their rationale of choosing a school let me learn more.
I read your post about choosing school and I feel that you are a very thoughtful parent. While you may not want to share what exactly happened to your friend, maybe you can share with us your view about the weaknesses of ISF.
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-13 11:04
Hi Spantan,
I personally guarantee that in every school you can find both happy and unhappy parents, as you can find the most perfect and problem kids. The problem kids may not reflect very well on their parents but (it may offend but I'm going to say it anyway) the fact is that problem kids are more likely to have problem parents. It is true that some kids are "stuck" as you said. But chances are that they'll get stuck wherever they go unless there are some changes in the fundamental. I happen to know quite a few parents (who have kids at other local and overseas big names) who actually rate ISF higher than others.
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-13 12:09
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-13 12:17
Can't comment on Christian values or personal judgment. There are people who actually prefer Francis Chan to Charles Freeman.
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-13 12:24
By the way, ISF is an independent school which is set not to associate with any particular religion. This may or may not be everybody's cup of tea but caveat emptor, lest it matters.
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-13 12:25
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-13 13:27 標題: 回覆：spantan 的帖子
School shopping is a keen sport among some parents.
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-13 14:14
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-13 15:01 標題: 回覆：spantan 的帖子
Good for you.
作者: Ving 時間: 12-4-14 00:48
Whether the teaching or academic is good or not might have different opinion.
But one thing for sure is that its' school fee and debenture is quite expensive among other IS especially for a new school without any solid public exam reference. I am not sure is it because the campus has no any subsidy from Government or too many expat teachers or other reasons?
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-17 19:38
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-18 00:10
Dear Spantan
ISF have the first graduating class this year. Hence the first university placement is not yet available. However, the school is rather transparent to the parents that they sent out in early March via circular an update about the university offers the students got.
I remember that the graduating class has around 20+ students and I can see around 60 offers already there. The info says that some universities will announce result in end March or Apr hence there may be more offers later.
Having said that it's a list of offers but not final placement. So both eye-catching and less attractive offers were all listed out.
I read from the list, there is no Cambridge, Oxford, Harvard and Yale ... if that's the reason of your friends "not impressive" comment, I can see your friends should dislike the school. To be honest, if I find my kid having the quality and potential to attend Cambridge or Harvard, I would certainly send her to LPC United World College for IB DP class, if not go overseas earlier.
On the other hand, I find LSE, Kings College, St. Andrews, UBC, SCAD, HKU/CU/HKUST, etc. which, to my own standard, is not unimpressive.
I have my response here because I believe that the graduating students and the school are working very hard and I do not wish they are discouraged by comments based on incomplete information.
作者: poonseelai 時間: 12-4-18 06:59
kfy 發表於 12-4-18 00:10
Dear Spantan
ISF have the first graduating class this year. Hence the first university placement is ...
perhaps some parents have a higher expectation in view of the amount of resources the school has (at least in terms of debenture and school fees)
作者: bobbycheung 時間: 12-4-18 09:00
本帖最後由 bobbycheung 於 12-4-18 09:32 編輯
1. They are just offers. Let's wait and see what the final outcome is.
2. Even then, judging a school by just one year's result is hardly reliable and it's especially so when it is the school's first year result.
3. The success of a school depends on a number of factors eg. the school's resources and facilities, the teachers' qualities, the students' qualities and the parental support etc. I think the last 2 factors play a crucial role in a school's success. Good results attract better students which will in turn lead to even better results. It's like a circle that keeps on feeding itself That's why a long track record is a very valuable asset for a school. But then, it takes time to build up such a record. We probably have to wait for a few years to see if ISF can do it.
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-18 10:11
Yes, and I hope that the graduating class students and parents know that most parents in ISF are supportive and positive to their hard work and achievements. Keep up with the effort and wish them good luck in IB exam.
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-18 10:48
Dear poonseelai and Ving
The capital notes is very expensive maybe because of limited supply and growing demand. Anyway, the majority of new students here (including my daughter) are not holders of capital notes. There are 180 students in G1 which make the school a big school now.
The tuition fee is among the top (I remember should be top 3 or 4 with HKIS, CIS, YC ...). It's due to small class size and high teacher ratio. If you compare with ESF of class size 30 while ISF has class size of 18 in G1, it's nearly double in teaching staff cost. Furthermore, the school has dedicated staff for curriculum head etc.
I heard other ISF parents commenting that after almost 10 years, the primary school is on track and doing well now; while for the secondary school we need to let them go through the similar development stage. I think it's a fair comment. I really have not much understanding about secondary section though from the students I meet everyday in the campus, they are polite and humble from my perception.
作者: poonseelai 時間: 12-4-18 11:46
kfy 發表於 12-4-18 10:48
Dear poonseelai and Ving
The capital notes is very expensive maybe because of limited supply and gr ...
作者: bobbycheung 時間: 12-4-18 12:44
本帖最後由 bobbycheung 於 12-4-18 12:45 編輯
kfy 發表於 12-4-18 10:48
Dear poonseelai and Ving
The capital notes is very expensive maybe because of limited supply and gr ...
If you are talking about the really expensive school debentures, perhaps Kellet School will come first as its most expensive ones cost HK$10M each. Anyway, please keep us informed of the first batch of students' university destination. I hope they will do well even though my kids don't study there.
作者: DoubleEE 時間: 12-4-18 13:16
Kfy, many thanks for your helpful information and comment on isf, my little one received the offer for foundation year 2012/13. We believe we have chosen the best school for our little one! Sometimes some people may find some " reasons" to attack isf, we need to do more research on the school and filter out the false info.
作者: Anne1999 時間: 12-4-18 16:45
My girl is going to have Grade 7 stage 1 - Chinese & English written test on May 7,anyone has an ideas they will ask?
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-18 19:51
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-18 20:11
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-18 20:50
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: Ving 時間: 12-4-19 00:20
Actually, Hong Kong parents are very realistic. With the high school fee in ISF, the parents definitely not only look for a big/comfortable campus for their children but also good academic record for university admission.
The other DNA for Hong Kong parents is "comparison". With other good IS schools in Hong Kong like CDIS, GSIS etc, parents will definitely ask the questions what's best if my children study in ISF. But unfortunately, the current situation for ISF is that it is "a conceptually good" school but without solid concrete public exam results for proof of concept. So, it may still take time to wait and see.
PS. I have no intention to attack any school, just share what's personlly observed and just ignore if you think that's nonsense.
作者: bobbycheung 時間: 12-4-19 00:46
spantan 發表於 12-4-18 20:50
//Even then, judging a school by just one year's result is hardly reliable and it's especially so w ...
Yes, ISF is expensive. But so are the other international schools which are not that much cheaper either. ESF is a special case as it gets government subsidy.
I can imagine why a smart kid from a rich family would like to go ISF. Perhaps the parents want the kid to learn better Chinese, perhaps the kid is happy there, perhaps they don't mind about the lack of track record because they think LSE, King's College, St Andrew etc. are more than good enough....... In fact, you could pose this same question to the parents who send their kids to Harrow HK and indeed to parents of all new schools.
I don't know how long it will take to develop a well-proven education system with build up good track records. But that's not what I am getting at. What I really want to see is a few years' results which will hopefully give us a better idea as to which universities ISF students are likely to go.
By the way, you said "there are also many other local schools or local IS that can produce students to Oxbridge and Ivy League." Can you give me the names and figures of these schools eg the number or percentage of students going to Oxbridge and Ivy League each year? I am really interested to know. You told us that in your view, LSE and Kings College are only marginally acceptable but even then it would still depend on the degree programs the students are doing. Hence, I can only assume that only Oxbridge, Ivy League and the like will meet your expectation. May I then ask you 3 questions:-
1. If ISF is not good enough, which school(s) have you got in mind that will give kids a better chance of going to Oxbridge, Ivy League and the like?
2. What is the chance of getting into such school(s)?
3. What is the percentage of students in such school(s) going to Oxbridge, Ivy League and the like each year?
My advice to your friend is that if he is not happy with ISF, his kid should leave assuming he could find a better place elsewhere. But then I always remind myself that schools and teachers are not magicians. They can't turn every single student into a star pupil. To a large extent, it depends on the student's own abilities as well as the effort he puts in.
作者: Birkin 時間: 12-4-19 00:57 標題: 回覆：bobbycheung 的帖子
"... schools and teachers are not magicians. They can't turn every single student into a star pupil. To a large extent, it depends on the student's own abilities as well as the effort he puts in".
Well said, bobbycheung :)
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-19 01:51
本帖最後由 kfy 於 12-4-19 02:00 編輯
Dear Spantan
Thanks for your comment. Your judgement is sensible.
Well, as I am also working in education related field. I always think that there is no perfect school for all kids or families but only the most suitable one. Same as there is no perfect teaching method or lesson plan for all teachers but only the one that fit the teacher's character, philosophy and style.
If the parents or the students find that the school cannot meet their expectation, it's most sensible to look for a more suitable one. Similar to students may switch from Maryknoll to DGS, this is really a matter of choice.
For my own choice, I send my daughter to ISF NOT because I want her to go to Oxbridge (I have friends who send kids to international schools also do not have such aim...). I never believe that if I send her to local school she will only attend HKU or if I am willing to pay the extra money for private school she will attend Oxbridge. There are simply far too many factors.
Why go to ISF? I want to let her have a free and happy learning environment, plus good enough Chinese and not too bad English. Furthermore, it's close to my home.
Just wish to share you my personal story. I was always a "distinction" student since primary and got academic scholarship and award up to my Master degree. My reflections are (1) So what? (2) Happiness probably can come from wisdom but not from intelligence/academic achievement/career achievement (3) Passion, curiosity and self-discipline are the major factors for success in any aspect.
Maybe because of my personal background, I do not have too high expectation on any school. And I am not worried much about my daughter's academic development. I know whether she is "on track". Instead, I would focus my effort to help her develop passion, curiosity and self-discipline.
I believe ISF will never be a perfect school. I cannot ask for problem free but try to learn with my daughter how to tackle any problem. If one day there is a better one more suitable to my daughter, I may switch too. Changing school is not problematic at all if there are reasons.
PS1. The university offer list sent to parents did not include the degree program details hence I cannot comment about it.
PS2. There is no public exam result available because they are just taking the 1st IBDP exam this year. I wish them good luck and all the bests. NOT because it's important to school reputation BUT because it's important to the students themselves.
PS3. I am an ISF parent and I am not rich.
作者: Birkin 時間: 12-4-19 11:00
I echo kfy's comments. I did very well academically myself and for Spantan's information, I went to Oxford to read law. I don’t have any expectations for my kids to go to any particular universities and I certainly wouldn’t tell them that LSE, King’s College and St. Andrew’s, etc. are “only marginally acceptable” universities. There is a whole lot more in life than exam results. Doing well academically only means just that. It certainly doesn't mean that they are better people or superior to others and most certainly doesn't entitle them to look down on other people/schools that do not do as well academically.
Good/famous schools attract good students but they cannot create good students. No schools or parents can do that.
P.S. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge went to St. Andrew’s. If it is good enough for the future King and Queen of England, who is to say that it is not good enough for commoners like us? :D
作者: bobbycheung 時間: 12-4-19 12:20
Birkin 發表於 12-4-19 11:00
I echo kfy's comments. I did very well academically myself and for Spantan's information, I went to ...
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-19 12:53
本帖最後由 tingtingting 於 12-4-19 13:01 編輯
I had a look of LPCUWC's, CIS's and DBS's latest results just now. Of the 160 LPCUWC students who chose to continue their studies in the UK, 5 went to Oxbridge. That's a strong 3.125%. Using the same percentage, ISF will have to wait 2 more years to have a graduating class big enough to produce one single student who will go to Oxbridge, assuming that the ISF students are to be as good as the LPCUWC's ones. As for CIS, 1 out of 31 of the CIS's UK-goers went to Oxford (http://www.cis.edu.hk/cisnews.asp?lang=e&;detailpage=1&docid=104). The rest went to some marginally acceptable or unacceptable universities. DBS's first IB cohort has yet secured their first offer from Oxbridge (http://www.dbs.edu.hk/). Seriously, if parents are aiming at more than marginally acceptable universities, send your kids to the likes of Choate Rosemary, Phillip Academy Andover, Carnegie Vanguard, Westminster, Wycombe Abbey, Tonbridge, Sevenoaks, etc. Don't waste time in Hong Kong.
There are good universities and good programmes other than Oxbridge/Ivy League and business/medicine/law. The world is a much bigger and interesting place than some parents tend to think it is. One ISF's student has secured an unconditional offer from California College of Art. Some parents who only know Oxbridge/Ivy League and have no idea what CCoA stands for may roll their eyes when their hear CCoA. They may think it is just another offer from a lousy college in the States. If only they could know better. CCoA is one of the very top design colleges and extremely difficult to get in (by comparison, Yale and Harvard are easy). This is the first unconditional offer to a HK student since quite some years ago. And, what's wrong with Edinburgh University? Its literature, history and veterinary studies programmes are among the best. One ISF student is one her way to secure a scholarship to study Latin and Greek in France. Aren't these more interesting and exciting than business and law?
作者: spantan 時間: 12-4-19 13:09
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-19 13:16
spantan 發表於 12-4-19 13:09
回復 tingtingting 的帖子
I am sorry that you have used a very wrong analysis which are totally misl ...
作者: HKTHK 時間: 12-4-19 13:38
本帖最後由 HKTHK 於 12-6-21 00:24 編輯
In the interest of full disclosure, let me state a couple of facts first before I respond:
- I am a parent and my kids are at ISF. You can say that I come with a certain bias but I am not necessarily wedded to the school. You will have to judge for yourself but you have been forewarned- [the other facts deleted since spantan is gone and no need to respond directly to him]
In my opinion, ISF is a work in progress. It is expensive like any other comparable international schools in town. It is new and won’t have a good college placement record for years. It is also not for every parents as it is more laid back than local schools. As a school, I do believe it is heading in the right direction.
Have read this forum from time to time but this is my first time posting. While I treasure some of the posts here, I find Spantan’s response here odd and at times downright irresponsible. Many of his comments strike me as snide attacks colored by personal biases and naivete. Here are my thoughts:
You may know your friend very well but hearsay is hearsay. You are obviously entitled to your opinion but form them on facts and not what you heard from your friend. Attacking a school based on hearsay is downright irresponsible.
Comparing your personal standards for colleges to placement for a whole school is comparing apples to oranges. Even Andover, arguably the best private school in the US, only places 26% of its students to Ivy Leagues (http://www.andover.edu/About/New ... 0Matriculation.aspx). Expecting a whole school to place at your standard is unrealistic if not laughable.
“In general, for such rich parents, if they want to find university placement for their kids, I don't think there is any difficulties and therefore the around 60 offers you mentioned means nothing important.“ Are you implying that rich parents can just buy their way into good universities? Undoubtedly there is some truth to that at the billionaire level but for all parents at ISF? Seriously?
On a more happy note, there are good reasons why I sent my kids to ISF and they are almost the same as kfy. Every kid will know how to read, write and do math when they grow up. But it is happiness, passion and curiosity to learn that makes them a complete person. Out of my personal friends who sent their kids to ISF, over 80% of them went to an Ivy League themselves. It will be great if our kids will have the chance to go to an Ivy League but that is not why we sent them to ISF, how we will judge the quality of the education or assess our children. Life is about much more than sending your kids to a good college. Stereotypical type A HK parent really need to take a chill pill and relax.
作者: funnymommy 時間: 12-4-19 13:50
I find it astonishing that King's and LSE are seen by spantan as 'marginally acceptable'. If we are just talking about undergraduate studies, is Oxbridge really so much better then the rest of the Russell Group? I would think that the outcome of three years at university depends hugely on the individual, and the specific course and more importantly, how much an individual makes of the opportunities open to them at university. No doubt Oxford is a great university. However, are Oxbridge graduates (or for that matter, Harvard, Yale and Princeton) that different from graduates of other universities? Perhaps initially when one is job-hunting there is a slight advantage - but does that mean that Oxford is great and Kings/LSE is marginally acceptable ? No way. I feel sorry for any child whose parents give them the impression that only Oxbridge is good enough. That child will have a very misleading and narrow impression of the world.
作者: bobbycheung 時間: 12-4-19 14:39
本帖最後由 bobbycheung 於 12-4-19 14:46 編輯
Let me help spantan out (by talking rubbish, as usual).
1. Seeing something as "marginally acceptable" doesn't necessarily mean it is a bad thing. My wife always say I am "marginally acceptable" even though I think I am great.
2. spantan thinks LSE and King's are "marginally acceptable" perhaps it is because her kid is really capable. On second thought, it is better than me seeing the 2 universities as "marginally accessible" as my kids will clearly have great difficulty to get in.
作者: simpleway 時間: 12-4-19 15:08
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: simpleway 時間: 12-4-19 15:13
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: bobbycheung 時間: 12-4-19 15:19
本帖最後由 bobbycheung 於 12-4-19 15:22 編輯
simpleway 發表於 12-4-19 15:08
Once upon a time, there was a man whose son was very talented but flawed with .... issues. Fully ...
Are you sure he is our dear old friend? If it's him, I must congratulate him for his latest "incarnation" is quite successful until you blow his cover. I must commend him especially on his change of sex.
作者: simpleway 時間: 12-4-19 15:27
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: funnymommy 時間: 12-4-19 15:31
There will always be parents who judge the value of a school by solely the university placements of its graduating class. If thats the criteria, then no doubt the winning formula for a school is to only take in the most academically able students, push their students to undertake selective activities (i.e. only those that the admissions team of an university cares about) and push the students academically without regards to other values like lifelong learning or contribution to society. In order to inflate its grades, a school could weed out the bottom 20% and 'buy' in talent with scholarships. But is that what makes a 'good school?' I would think that a good school is one which gives more valued added to its students, whether academically, morally, ethnically and one which provides guidance, encouragement and discpline. I am learning from this forum that university placement is the SOLE end goal for some parents, but am also very happy to find many like-minded parents for whom univeristy placement is one of many relevant concerns.
Also I just wonder what spantan thinks Oxford or Cambridge will do for a student that LSE/King's wont do (other then the name and 'bragging rights'). I guess one could say the tutorial system and the network/connections.
On a more positive note, could HKTHK and other ISF parents give me some comments on ISF? We will apply next year for my son, who is currently 3 1/2 and is Eurasian. He speaks limited Mandarin. I am an IS graduate and have limited Chinese reading skill (almost no writing ability). Will this be a big problem? Whilst I value mandarin, I don't want to put my child in a place where he will always struggle and lag behind others. He is a confident and well adjusted child (now) and I worry that he will become self-conscious and withdrawn if we reverse his main school language from English to Mandarin. On the other hand, I am not able to speak Mandarin to him at home and so I depend on the school to provide this. How heavy is the workload for the primary years in ISF? Do you think ISF has the right balance between inquiry learning vs rote learning, academic vs play etc?
作者: bobbycheung 時間: 12-4-19 15:35
Well, at least we know he is well. That's a consolation of some sort.
作者: tingtingting 時間: 12-4-19 15:46
bobbycheung 發表於 12-4-19 15:35
Well, at least we know he is well. That's a consolation of some sort.
作者: HKTHK 時間: 12-4-19 15:46
simpleway/bobbycheung, can you share a bit more detail about him? Or did I just wasted 20 mins for naught?
funnymommy> in my kids classes, there are several Eurasians and also some families who doesn't understand Chinese at all. It is obviously more hard work for them and I think some of them use tutors. The kids are adjusting though and while not the best in Chinese (those would be the native Mandarin speakers), they all acquire fluency. English is pretty widely used as well. All of them converse in either English or Mandarin and which language is being used depends on who they are speaking with. Having said this, my understanding is that in the recent round of interviews, there was a test on mandarin. You will have to ask parents who have gone through that though. My kids are still in the lower grade and I think it is a good balance between inquiry learning and rote learning. Rough to break it down to % but for example, there was a project day a month or two ago whereby students spend several weeks working on their own projects which they then share with other students and visitors on an open day. Let me know if you have more questions.
作者: poonseelai 時間: 12-4-19 16:07
Hey relax, Spantan did not "judge the value of a school by solely the university placements of its graduating class" He just mentioned his friends said the placements are not "impressive" (he did not say the placements are not good). He did have a very very high expectation, and everyone can have his/her own view, right?
作者: funnymommy 時間: 12-4-19 16:08
Ditto to HKTHK. I dont usually post much on EK but even I, who has nothing to do with ISF, felt I have to say something in response to spantan.
HKTHK - does the school place a lot of emphasis on exams or tests? I acknowledge that sometimes I want contradictory things. I want my child's school life to be stress free, and I want to minimise rote learning. On the other hand, I want him to have a working knowledge of Mandarin (he doesnt have to be good enough to study Chinese literature, just be able to survive in China and I want him to be at a sufficient level sothat if he ever wants to, he could go for a year to Beijing after university to achieve fluency). Does the school have a lot of exams? What amount of homework could we expect per day? Any tips for getting in ISF? We are doing what we can to help my son develop his mandarin, including private lessons 4 times a week. He is getting better, but of course he isnt a native speaker. He is able to have simple conversations in Mandarin but the gap between his english and mandarin is too big so he always returns to English (after all, its pretty boring having the same limited conversations in Mandarin if he is asking pretty sophisticated questions in English).
作者: simpleway 時間: 12-4-19 16:30
提示: 作者被禁止或刪除 內容自動屏蔽
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-20 00:26
Dear funnymommy
Do not need to worry too much about Mandarin speaking or listening. Your son will pick up very soon. He does not need to be a very fluent speaker during interview.
If possible, try to develop Chinese book reading habit with him now. Buy books from 小樹苗 with mandarin pinyin or even 基礎漢字 500. Read (or ask your son's tutor to read) a small storybook or just several pages everyday.
For FY student, the expected homework per school day is 40minutes inclusive of read along and a little bit of writing (journal / book reports etc.). I found that 40 minutes should be more than sufficient.
http://www.isf.edu.hk/en/academics/assessment/
作者: Anne1999 時間: 12-4-20 15:09
回復 kfy 的帖子
Dear kfy,
thank you for your precious comments on ISF, actually I have the same ideas on learning & teaching the kids as you. My girl is going to have the stage 1- chinese and English written test on May 7 at ISF, If she is OK, she will move to Stage 2 & 3. It sounds so tough! But I always put the positive energy to my girls: Do the Best! Actually my girl is studying at local school in P.6, and wants to fransfer her to ISF rather than pursueing the studies at local secondary school. As I hate the on=going changing HK cirriculum, and also I think kids need to explore more other things than just only studying and studying.
We visited the school on the open day and both are impressed by the students and teachers. We were introduced by two G7 girls about the school stuffs. It's coincident that the 2 girls also transferred from LS to ISF for 2 years. They explained that they are really enjoying the school life in ISF, can afford more time to read and explore other things, not only studying as before. I think that is life.
I hope my girl wil get through the three stages.
Anne
作者: Anne1999 時間: 12-4-20 15:12
回復 Anne1999 的帖子
Hi Kfy,
Do you know anything about KCIS ?
作者: Smileocc 時間: 12-4-20 16:47 標題: 回覆：kfy 的帖子
I totally agree that a holistic education is more beneficial to a child.
Btw, I am a bit confused here and apologize for my ignorance - since the IB results are not yet released, how come the children can get offers from universities ? Are the offers conditional and are offered based on the students performance at school?
作者: kfy 時間: 12-4-20 18:17
Dear Smileocc
Yes some of the offers are unconditional and some are conditional. I am not too sure about the process as my daughter is still so young ...
作者: Smileocc 時間: 12-4-21 11:37 標題: 回覆：kfy 的帖子
Dear kfy
Thanks for your info...
作者: sonicgina 時間: 12-9-25 16:32
回復 cecilau 的帖子
Good!
作者: sonicgina 時間: 12-9-25 16:35
Smileocc 發表於 12-4-3 18:27
I had a school tour a few months ago. All the school ambassadors spoke native/fluent English and man ...
作者: sonicgina 時間: 12-9-25 16:40
tingtingting 發表於 12-4-5 10:45
True. ISF is one of a kind - it's not just another international school.
作者: sonicgina 時間: 12-9-25 16:44
CorinneCook 發表於 12-4-7 11:14
hi all, I am a new mummy with a baby who is 6mths now. we are now exploring all options for his educ ...
作者: sonicgina 時間: 12-10-19 14:44
回復 Birkin 的帖子
I think Harrow is better. So finally which school you pick?
作者: sonicgina 時間: 12-10-19 20:22
回復 CorinneCook 的帖子
I think Rightmind is one of the good option for kindergarten. Cause they have 15 students in ISF this year.
作者: sonicgina 時間: 12-10-19 20:24
Rightmind students Primary School Admission Results for 2011-2012
http://www.rmkg.org/pdf/2011-2012school.pdf
作者: 金瑪姬 時間: 12-12-27 00:36 標題: 回覆：Is it good at ISF
阿仔話如果從小讀起就好好!插班就5贊成，因為語文会5夠用喎!佢話低年班除学術外，其他体艺刀好得!
仔今年12年班，忙到呕，真係呕过1次
我好满意学校，讚!
作者: liyinfai 時間: 12-12-27 15:35
金瑪姬 發表於 12-12-27 00:36
阿仔話如果從小讀起就好好!插班就5贊成，因為語文会5夠用喎!佢話低年班除学術外，其他体艺刀好得!
仔今年12 ...
作者: 金瑪姬 時間: 12-12-27 22:54 標題: 回覆：liyinfai 的帖子
冇得担心!11年开始好忙，停左日文，但因為CAS，反而仲要学新野添
主要係考試前，趕交功課辛苦
媽媽努力啊!
作者: Julianlele 時間: 12-12-28 07:55 標題: 回覆：Is it good at ISF
Pu
作者: BoBoCute 時間: 13-1-14 23:16
回復 poonseelai 的帖子
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/news/art/20121028/18050893
Click on the chart and you can find IB result in 2012 for 16 schools.
| 歡迎光臨 教育王國 (/) |
Powered by Discuz! X1.5 |