go back to the local decent schools

jojomum

Has anyone thought of going back to the local decent schools? cos after years of observations and interactions with the internation schools, i found that the standard is deteriotating though.  tuition fee rate keeps raising for no reason, too many students and they don't really care of the teaching quality. students are not that smart and more competitive that i thought it should have been under their training. i only see the parents live themselves into poverty and simplicity for tuition fee and yet can't afford their children for their extracurriculars like instrumental classes and etc..  i encountered several parents, they switched their minds back to the local decent schools and practically all commented that training and teaching are even better and more organised. none of them regrets. and i think the most cruical point is the money they save up in the  school tuition fee and now use for cultivating their childrens' hobbies in a more extendsive way and with higher qualified teachers.

alexlui

Would you mind naming the schools you have mentioned? Are you talking about ESF's schools?  Have you heard any thing bad about SJS?

What are those local decent schools?  I am not challenging you, I just want to learn more from you.

Regards.

WYmom

It really depends on which school you are talking about.  Each school, local or international has different qualities, pros and cons.  It is usually more difficult for IS students switching back to local schools due to their lower Chinese proficiency, and also more difficult for them to adapt to lots of homeworks, dictations, tests, assessment tests, exams etc., which will gradually kill the kids' interest in study.

Darth

jojomum,

I would like to know more too. If you do not mind please let me know in more details what you found in the school.

I would also like to know which local schools have taken in the children.

Thanks.

Amosmother

jojomum,

I'm interested in knowing more, too.  It's really useful for moms like me who are weighing pros and cons of international and local schools before a decision could be made.

jojomum

alexlui 寫道:
Would you mind naming the schools you have mentioned? Are you talking about ESF's schools?  Have you heard any thing bad about SJS?

What are those local decent schools?  I am not challenging you, I just want to learn more from you.

Regards.

May be we can put in this way, if one can share my idea, one will be able to find a list of tradition or even newly established local schools, of course, besides those DB, DBS etc, have their education goal, method and organisation very firmly established and deep root embedded already but charging much several times cheaper than International schools. I believe that myths gonna break and future belongs to those who can have the vision before it becomes obvious..we parents have to do more research before launching a 13 years committment.. wish we parents all good luck..

WYmom

jojomum 寫道:
  
May be we can put in this way, if one can share my idea, one will be able to find a list of tradition or even newly established local schools, of course, besides those DB, DBS etc, have their education goal, method and organisation very firmly established and deep root embedded already but charging much several times cheaper than International schools. I believe that myths gonna break and future belongs to those who can have the vision before it becomes obvious..we parents have to do more research before launching a 13 years committment.. wish we parents all good luck..

jojomum,

Are you referring "local decent schools" to new DSS or private schools like PLK CKY, GT, Victoria, Pui Kiu, etc.?  These schools run very different cirriculum vs those traditional decent schools like St. Mary, Maryknoll, La Salle ...

Can you share a bit more your friend's experience of switching back to local schools?

JJsMama

Yeah.  Can you please elaborate on which local & international schools?  And at what level did the switch take place?   I'd imagine the cirriculum would be hugely different to allow for the transition...

Thanks.

jojomum 寫道:
Has anyone thought of going back to the local decent schools? cos after years of observations and interactions with the internation schools, i found that the standard is deteriotating though.  tuition fee rate keeps raising for no reason, too many students and they don't really care of the teaching quality. students are not that smart and more competitive that i thought it should have been under their training. i only see the parents live themselves into poverty and simplicity for tuition fee and yet can't afford their children for their extracurriculars like instrumental classes and etc..  i encountered several parents, they switched their minds back to the local decent schools and practically all commented that training and teaching are even better and more organised. none of them regrets. and i think the most cruical point is the money they save up in the  school tuition fee and now use for cultivating their childrens' hobbies in a more extendsive way and with higher qualified teachers.

amazing9870

Hi, jojomum:

May I know why you sent your kid to Int'l School at the beginning?  What's your expectation to the school?  Is your kid also happy for this transition?

Thanks for sharing.

Amazing9870

ALAL

I am just a passer-by.
My son is in a private local school p1.
Last year, I have visited more than 15 local subsidised school, to see if I can save my money for private school. The answer is negative. The curriculum of local school is so unfriendly to children. The only one with a friendly curriculum has bad administration, according to my impression.
If your kid is highly attentive, with very good memory, like writing, and with proper kindergarten training to prepare for local P1, there is no harm to send them to local school, even the very famous one. But for active kids, they have to endure the unfriendly curriculum, together with the endless extra-curricular activities.
This year for local school p1 mothers reported that the curriculum is more difficult compared to last year ( one of my friend is mother of a p1 and p2 kid).
My son's cousin study in ESF. He is active, but smart and outspoken, the type very suitable to study in international school. His mother let him join cheaper activities organised by government. He is happy and confident. I see no harm he is not learning instrument or joining expensive activities. The only disadvantage is perhaps that none has spare time to play with him, because his relative and neighbour are all in local schools.

I am very satisfied with the private school now my son is studying. But tuiton fee is higher than ESF,  before ESF fee increase.
There is no free lunch.

CherylMum

Re: go back to the local decent schools

[ 本帖最後由 CherylMum 於 09-11-16 09:53 編輯 ]

jojomum

We, as parents, once gave birth to our children, we are about to sacrifice without limit, we want to give the best to them. my husband and i  share the same concept that we are taking our kids  as our assets, it is such an huge investment that we are injecting into them to  get my kids into the IT schoolds, it is as if we committed to a 13 yr consecutive brook mortage. we have an expectation that kids could receive much better training and become smarter and thus become more competitive in future.  i ve haunting in the IT schools for years, interacting and observing the IT kids, i am lucky that i can manipulate fluently four langages, italian, french, english and chinese inclusive. and thus i have a relatively sharper sensitivity to linquistic proficiency.  I discovered the english proficiency, which every parent look upon and clinch on, is amazingly dropping down.
listen to the kids, everyone speaks and writes fluently in english, but whether they can speak correctly, appropriately, and write rhetorically is a concern. i know how to work out a language, it takes really consecutive consicous mental processing, is not merely by immersing oneself into the environment and thus hoping it would be done automatically. that  is evidently not enough.  not every british and american can speak and write well. then i started to scruntize and made an analysis on the IT kids to the good local schools' kids concertated on several aspects including logical thinking, reasoning, linquistic ability to diversity (one's ability to manipulate other languages), athletic standard, artistic ability, persistance and endurance to learning, take into mind that i delibrately excluded the academic acheivement already at that point. no much difference to those locals, but for some aspects, like artistic ability, persistance and endurance to learning, locals lead much ahead the way. i concluded that under that track, after investing double or triple than the others for our assets, but eventually they are not  going to be more competitive in future.  and yet, i were not born a queen, i can't guarantee their royal lives. kids ought to live upon their competitiveness. personally, i ought to confess that i was very frustrated.

amazing9870 寫道:
Hi, jojomum:

May I know why you sent your kid to Int'l School at the beginning?  What's your expectation to the school?  Is your kid also happy for this transition?

Thanks for sharing.

Amazing9870

jojomum

it happened, i got some friends who decided to switched back. at yr 2, 4 and 8. when i asked for opinions, they all replied it 's thoroughly feasible. the yr 8. had to do a repeat in f. 1, while not many difficulities for yr. 2 and 4 though in adapting. it took 3 to 6 months for the yr. 2 and 4 and took 6 m to 1 yr for the yr 8 one.
it's been really exhausting and terrifying to switch, finding a good school, i did a lot of research and visiting to a huge no. of schools.  i underwent confidence crisis, insonmias, worries, very frightened that we might have a wrong move, huge pressure. i observed my kids closely everyday when they started to switch. but i was very glad the teachers are very understanding and very helpful.  don't assume that good decent locals are not as good as IT for english. they are good and are able to finish to whole volume of "Nadia". Children adapt much faster than what we adults can understand, and i started to grin and had a sense of relief six months after their switches. i don't spend much less than we were in IT, but we could enroll them into more activites and with higher qualified tutors.  but sorry i won't disclose any schools' names.. we are happy about the switches.  

WYmom

jojomum,

It all depends which type of local decent schools you are talking about.  Is it traditional or international school alike? Top elite schools, DSS or private?  How your kids (and your friends') have improved after switching back to local schools?  Can you pls share?

I did the opposite, switch from local to international.  After switching to IS, I feel that my kids learn to be more self-motivated, have higher interest in study, and become more creative and happier going to school.  It is not just better English, but more the better interactive teaching approach in "decent" IS which counts.  No matter local or international schools, there are always good or bad ones, qualities of which vary greatly.  Most important thing is if the kids learn better and are happier with the new school life.

CherylMum

Re: go back to the local decent schools

[ 本帖最後由 CherylMum 於 09-11-17 15:48 編輯 ]

amazing9870

CherylMum 寫道:

I just want my kids to be interested, and be motivated to learn.  I have seen many many local school students who are drowned by homework/tests/exams....which I don't think is good to the students.

To me, leading a happy life is more important than being competitive.

Totally agree with Cherylmum.  That's also the reason why I sent my kids to IS.

jojomum

not really.. the local ones, they are not like those locals in our generation, with turgid and rigid formation anymore.  they are very creative and innovative now. like making ginger and milk in the lessons to explore the scientific factors, temperature, concentration, quantity, speed control, which leads to the variation of the quality of the outcome, role play to train the logical thinking, seniors look after juniors to cultivate responsibilty and more sensible thinking and a lot more.. but start from yr. 7 onwards, the students in ITs, they are drowned by homework/ tests/ exams. and also if only we can be rich enough to build a green house to guarantee their royal lives throughout their lives. or esle one day, they are down to earth, and discover that is not working well, others are much behind. even worse.  how happy can it be. i meet quite alot rich people start in local schools at the very beginning and train up their children really hard.. don't have bias, i just try to share  another alternative to attain the same and frankly higher level with cheaper investment.

WYmom

jojomum,

Which local secondary schools can allow students not to be drowned by homework/test/exams?  As we know, all secondary students, local or international, have to take either HKCEE, or ICGSE, GCE, IB ... there must be some exams for certification ultimately.  So can you give some specific examples of schools for reference?

warrrren

Dear jojomum,

I am really glad to hear that local schools are getting better. Excellent.

I am not worried about my girl's "competitiveness", and I do not see her as an investment item.  She has been an eye-opener to me, a source of constant surprises and joy, and I learn something new from and through her everyday.

I understand that you don't want to disclose the name of your girl's present school.  It's fine.  But, would you mind telling us which international school she girl went to?  It is kind of difficult to have any useful discussions if we do not put things in their proper context.  There are good and bad local schools, as there are good and bad international schools.  I am very much interested in finding out what is behind your observations (about the students' English proficiency, learning habits etc.), which contrast sharply with that of mine.

Regards,
warrrren