耀中 vs 法國國際(國際部)

HK-mom

(歡迎中文/英文意見)
Any thoughts on the two schools? We weigh our pros and cons and still in a deadlock. We understand that comparing these two schools is comparing apple and orange, but since our child currently studies at YCIS (3 year old class) and got accepted at FIS Int'l Stream (Reception), it is something to consider (we are a French-Hong Kong family). We are currently only considering these two schools.
We want our child to be fluent in English & Mandarin, while hold basic communicative level in French. Not taking into account costs difference and locations, here's part of the list:
YCIS
- Bilingual teaching (with emphasis in Mandarin in the primary years)
- Through-train school
- Students take both IGCSE & the IB in high school
- Recent average IB exam score is 35 (year 12)
- There is no ranking in the school, to avoid the competitive mentality. Are the parent-teacher meetings sufficient to motivate and help kids achieve desirable results in public exams?
FIS
- English teaching with French and very little Mandarin
- Through-train school
- Students take both IGCSE & the IB in high school
- Recent average IB exam score is 35 (year 12)
- Kids receive minimum Mandarin exposure. Here in HK, can they still achieve a level of fluency in Mandarin (Read and understand the news, write comments about a news topic, for example) via outside, supplementary Mandarin classes, both from FIS (Extracurricular class) and outside help?
I have heard good and not so positive comments about both schools, but they are never compared on the same page. Any constructive thoughts and experience sharing are welcome. Thank you!

Jane1983

放錯位，搬去國際學校果邊，先多d回應。

steamball

of course French international

FennieMan

我會㨂法國國際, 因本身對耀中印象麻麻（純個人意見）

Jane1983

法國國民有priority的話，可以考慮在YC讀完小學去FIS升中。

如果小學就開始在FIS讀，只靠搵tutor學中文，而家裡又吾多講（要遷就法國爸爸溝通），係非常難達到functional的讀寫聽講。

Yanamami

Hmmmmm.......可能係个别例子：我表妺係中法混血，香港出世，同爸妈弟朋友用法文，同我地用广東話，小学中学都一直係法国国際讀，唔記得佢有無另学PTH, 但大学修中文，又係云南(好似係)学過艺術(忘了係diploma还是degree),係上海做过—排野，所以PTH,、英、法、广東話都流利｡不过佢daddy本身都有d語言天份, 都識PTH,、英、俄、印尼同广東話｡
另我自己个細女，虽然学校係普教中，但家中無人PTH掂，同佢温書都用广東話。幼稚園時学拼音，佢又可能有d天份，PTH都好流利下｡考GAPSK前雞精下会話两个月，考到优｡

Jane1983

回覆 Yanamami 的帖子

有語言天份，係無往而不利。可能樓主小朋友都係咁。

HK-mom

Jane1983, Thanks for your feedback. I am new to forums, so I am very glad that it's now in the right place (International School).
To clarify, my daughter got accepted into the International Stream of FIS, and unfortunately, being French does not give her Priority (you only get priority if you have a corporate debenture, or if you are in the French Stream (That itself have two separate stream, French with English emphasis, and Bilingual). In sum, if we don't get in now, it will be next to impossible to get in later.
Yanamami, thanks for your insight and you certainly have very language gifted genes in your family, that's very impressive what the kids did. We speak Cantonese at home, but I can switch to Mandarin with them if needed (I can read, write, speak and listen). I personally speak those, plus English and French. I hope my kids can also be competent in them. My husband can speak French, English and German, but we don't think German is relevant in our expectation for the kids.
At home, I speak Cantonese, my husband speaks French, and together with the helper, we speak English.
I don't think my husband nor myself are language gifted. Learning, language or other subjects, to us, has more to do with the motivation and the teaching methods than mere genetic make up.
I think in addition to the language requirement, we also want to see the academic performances (math, science, social studies, etc) of these two schools, in addition to the languages.  

Mighty

I remember Pearl Report the other day was talking about FIS.  I only watched it half way through so not sure the details but something like FIS has difficulty in finding a proper campus.  Will that affect your decision?  I totally agree with Jane that with only private tutoring on Mandarin, it is quite difficult to achieve to a functional level (i mean in general).  You talked about motivation yourself....well I dont see any motivation for children to use Mandarin in Hong Kong.  We adults keep on emphasizing the importance of Mandarin, only because we know China is getting more and more powerful but that does not make any sense to our children at all...at least for the time being.  You said you want your child to be fluent in Eng and Man...I would say YC might be a better bet.  I also think to be able to communicate (spoken Mandarin) in Mandarin is not a big challenge, but writing and reading it is totally a different story.
Again our opinions are just looking at things from a general point of view, your child might be very different or gifted in some areas...so you know the best

HK-mom

回覆 Mighty 的帖子

dear mighty,
thank you so much for your insight, especially on out of school tutoring and motivation to learn mandarin here in hong kong. they are very valid points for consideration indeed.

i just learnt that YC primary offers english as the medium of instruction for all subjects except chinese language. for its kindergarten, YC has two teachers in the classroom, one speaks english, the other cantonese, with a flowing mandarin teacher who comes to the classroom twice weekly. i will need to dig deeper on the details and time spent on chinese. currently, fis offers mandarin class at school, for up to 3 hours a week.

for the campus issue on fis, it does not affect the international stream, for it has a small population of students. the french stream, on the other hand, will be affected, because this stream require no entry exam for admission, as long as the child has a french passport, he or she must be accepted. there is an exam for the french bilingual stream, but if you fail that, you still into the other french with english emphasis stream.

himmamme

Yanamami 發表於 15-4-18 09:06
Hmmmmm.......可能係个别例子：我表妺係中法混血，香港出世，同爸妈弟朋友用法文，同我地用广東話，小学中 ...

你表妹簡直是奇蹟!!可否分享多些小學中學階段如何提高中文水平？FIS唔多中文。係補習？有咩方法？Thanks

Yanamami

himmamme 發表於 15-4-19 06:31
你表妹簡直是奇蹟!!可否分享多些小學中學階段如何提高中文水平？FIS唔多中文。係補習？有咩方法？Thanks ...

我唔知佢中文讀寫程度得唔得，得都可能係讀U時修中文｡但广東話从小听講都無问題，PTH亦可能係讀U時加係大陸時操好｡中、小学時我相中文程度如—般国際学校学生—样禁麻麻｡

Yanamami

HK-mom 發表於 15-4-18 13:12
Jane1983, Thanks for your feedback. I am new to forums, so I am very glad that it's now in the right ...

如果你要而家轉用PTH同囡溝通，佢会唔会覚得怪怪地，不竟广東話係你最初佢溝通既語言。我有个同学專登俾个女讀YC,就係要学多d中文。佢話daddy係英国人，唔洗担心个女既英文，但以幼稚園同初小係康樂園果边间国際学校讀，阿女既中文拉牛上树，亦唔鈡意讀中文，教到佢好痛苦｡去到YC突然个女好有兴趣讀中文，事关佢变左班中成績最好果個，幾个月中文進步多过先幾年既总和｡達成佢俾个女讀YC既目的｡再者，女大左都会番UK讀｡

Cara2006

如果重點 set 在中文，YC 一定強好多，YC 99% 是華人，當中以普通話為母語和以廣東話為母語的都有。
但 YC 的英水平偏低，只是 second language，和一般本地學校差唔多，同名校如 DGS GHS 比，名校水平一定較好。
我唔單單指 "講"，而係 "寫" 都係。
其他方面如 math science  等亦較弱。
我見 YC 到 year 4 - 5 就有好多人轉校，親戚個仔，在 YC 本來讀得好好，year 5 𨍭了去 ESF ，先知個小朋友多方面落後，在 YC 做開 "高班馬"，去到 ESF 要做 "低班馬"，但 ESF 其實也不是特別強的學校 ，比起 GSIS HKIS 等已經唔算特別高水平，但由 YC 去 ESF 都唔適應。
不過，YC 真係好多生意人子弟，佢地唔太在乎仔女水平，最重要開心，反正佢地冇話要仔女入名大學做專業人士，總之開開心心讀落去，美國三線大學畢業就夠，反屋企大把生意等佢打理。
我親戚本身是專業人士，佢地冇一個大企業比個小朋友將來打理，是想小朋友打好基礎，將來可以去好少少的大學。佢地覺得 YC 個圈子唔適合佢地。
我知，好多人話 YC 有人去名牌大學，但唉，講來講去都係個三幾個咯。

annie40

小女曾經上過FIS.依然有不少FIS朋友，只能寫出所見。

FIS在year7前的術科強項是：
English, (是同齡孩子中的高水平）
Science(教學非常認真，有系統，內容比其他學校深，但教得很好）
French(孩子一般能說生活語，少部份十分流利。）

當中由kinder讀到year 13 的很少，如果是頭讀到尾的，成績絶對足夠去任何歐美名牌大學。

我們很想給孩子最好的，但最好的東西是太多，最終只能排列優先次序，做好我們認為最最最重要的素質，其他的有就有，無就無，隨緣好了。

其中要十分關注是兩所學校的文化，學生，族群，差異大。在那兒上學，已基本決定了孩子和父母的生活圈了。這點要認真考慮，才決定甚麼生活才是最合適家庭和孩子。

annie40

其實很想提醒家長，全部香港的IS小學部的教和學是差不同，並無高低之分，老師來去是那班人，孩子的最終素質決定於家教，而非學教。

happyhealthymin

原帖由 Cara2006 於 15-04-19 發表
如果重點 set 在中文，YC 一定強好多，YC 99% 是華人，當中以普通話為母語和以廣東話為母語的都有。
但 YC  ...

個別情況吧? YC英文可能係弱, 但其他科都比唔上ESF? 我也聽講有在YC讀得好好,中學考咗去CIS.

Jackieson

回覆 HK-mom 的帖子

以你地家庭背景，應該FIS比較適合。

FIS用簡體字教中文，有華人及西人老師(教PTH)都有，聽同講都好好，但寫同睇真係另一回事。

FIS的校舍細&舊，設施都比下去，但學校即極擴建，在中學部將會興建新冀，設施將會改善。

相信你都做咗唔少資料搜集，IGCSE及升大學方面在FIS學校網站可以揾到，你提到學術，以下可以參考:
http://www.fis.edu.hk/documents/IGCSE-2012.pdf
http://www.fis.edu.hk/documents/IGCSE-2013.pdf

除了以上，正如Annie講，仲有其他方面要考慮。FIS校風文化比較開放自由，少香港人讀，英語語景唔需要擔心，學生之間全英語溝通。

torunpoland

回覆 himmamme 的帖子

你的問題，等Yanamami表妹答你之前，我都可以分享一下。老套一句，勤看勤寫勤背。由於時間不夠，看與背的部分，集中優質文章詩詞，寫就給孩子一個理由去寫，日記信件......甚麼都可以，因為有入有出才算健康。

Cara2006

happyhealthymin 發表於 15-4-19 16:51
個別情況吧? YC英文可能係弱, 但其他科都比唔上ESF? 我也聽講有在YC讀得好好,中學考咗去CIS.

係呀，真係好多人考到其他學校就走。
YC 又唔係話冇叻學生，但學生太兩極，成績好的學生可以 IB 40+分，但少，難成氣候，因此較難留住尖子，學習氣氛唔好；考到 CIS 梗係走啦；我識一個，係寧願轉去 ISF 咁新的學校。
其實，很多人當去 YC 係騎牛揾馬，有得一定走就走。
當然，都有人唔走，但各有前因啦。