Posted by
Mighty
17 yrs ago
We received an offer from the school for P-1. Any comments (good or bad) on the school are highly appreciated, especially from parents of the same school. Many thanks.
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Congratulations! My friend is on the waiting list for Primary 2, and 4.... she's number 141.
I know 6 students (piano) of mine who are trying to get into this school, but still waiting.
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We actually turned down a space at the school for my daughter for a few reasons. I spoke with a number of parents, who are friends of mine, who had students there. They reported that the class sizes are huge and there are few assistants. If your child fits into the Shatin ESF mold than it should be fine. But, if you have a child who doesn't fit in, they will struggle. I chose to keep my daughter at a school that doesn't seem to have a great reputation, but the class sizes are small, the work can be tailor made if the child excels in areas or is behind in areas and the teachers develop very close relationships with the students (and they are great). She has been there since k-2 and is now going into Grade 4 (US) and is very happy. So, it was a hard decision, but I am glad that we chose to stay where we are. My son went into Shatin College and had a very difficult time there due to their lack of knowledge children with ADD/ADHD. I tried to work very closely with the school, with little luck and finally withdrew my son.
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Thank you for your comments, namaste. In fact we chose ESF shatin is not because of reputation. My daughter does not speak or write Chinese so ESF is one of the best choices for us. I do have concern about the number of children in one class as my daughter is more used to small group education. But cant think of anywhere that provides small sized classes for non chinese speaking children. School fees are one of our considerations too. Do you mind telling me where your daughter is going now? I know Norweigian School provides small sized classes but the disadvantage is it only has primary education.
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ltxhk
17 yrs ago
Every ESF school is a bit different and has some freedom for their own style, but the quality of education is very good at all of them. Class size is bigger than some of the private schools, but this seems to be less of a concern in the past 2 years. As far as I know, all ESF P1 and P2 have one teacher and one full-time paid teaching assistant..... and so the kids have a lot more professional support in the early years. They still have parent helpers, but this is on top of the paid teacher and assistant.
ESF Shatin is very difficult to enter for secondary if you do not attend the primary. There are just so many applicants. There are only 2 ESF secondary on kowloon/ nt and they are both oversubscribed. Of course things could change within 6 years, but it is something to consider when deciding on the primary.
The Japanese International School (taipo?) also has an English section (private), and I believe their class size is a bit less.
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Itxhk, tks for your input. I think the ideal number of children in a class is max. 25. Unfortunately nothing is perfect. As you suggested, if they have a professional teaching assistant (so roughly the ratio of teacher / student is 1:15), that is fine with me. Japanese International School is good but we just cannot afford the fees. So do you have kids in ESF Shatin? Any comments on its organization, moral of the school and teachers etc? Many thanks.
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ltxhk
17 yrs ago
My kids ar at ESF but not at Shatin College. We do have some friends in Taipo, SK/CWB who send their kids to Shatin. Overall they are quite happy with both the primary and secondary, and all have commented on how difficult it is is xfer in from another primary later on unless you have a sibling. I believe the ESF organization of schools is quite similar regardless of which one you attend. Sorry I can't be more helpful.
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Mighty - my daughter goes to Norwegian in Tai Po and my son entered Shatin College when he was in year 8 and went straight in without waiting. I heard that in the primary classes at Shatin Jr, there are 30 students per class and 1 assistant per three classes. Friends of mine have sent their daughter first to Norwegian, then to JIS and then onto Shatin jr (b/c her brothers were there). They were much happier with JIS than Shatin jr. and have considered sending her back to NIS (Norwegian). Next year, NIS will be moving it's 3-6 Grades to another campus in Tai Po. The original campus will be kept for primary 1-2 and the kindergartens. They don't have an open day, but you can always go in and have a tour.
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Namaste, in fact I have been to Norweigian school before. First of all, their fees are higher than ESF and secondly I did not have a very good impression on them. Dont get me wrong. Definitely it is a good school but just not my style. JIS is good, of course, but again their fees are way out of our budget. But tks for your reply.
TC NG, thank you for your comments too. Yes I remember you have children in ESF as well (but probably on HK side?). After several days of thinking (^-^), we decided to accept SJ's offer and our daughter wl be starting P1 this August. It wl be a big day for her!! No school is perfect but I am sure all ESF schools provide great education. Both my husband and I are getting very excited for the start of the school....
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Hi TC, thank you for your valuable advice. Yes I would love to be the helper too... wl adjust my work time so that I can be there at least once a week. Oh... I just cant wait....
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Mighty - I'm curious to know when you visited the Norwegian School b/c they hired a new principal last year who has done a fabulous job in hiring teachers and running the school. Would you mind sharing with me when you visited and what impression it left on you. You can pm me if you don"t want to post here. Thank you and congrats to your little one and your family on her entry to SJ.
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Namaste, sorry if I had worried you. Our visit was long before that. Think it was abt. 3 years ago before we left Hong Kong. If they have a new principal, then I am sure everything has improved. I should not hv commented on that school as I have no actual experience with it at all. Our visit was only 30 mins. or so. I liked the campus, because of its family feel and I always wanted my child to be educated in a christian environment. My bad impression was about the teachers and admin. staff there, as they all seemed a bit lost when we visited and didnt pay much attention to what we said about our child. Tks for your congratulation and I m sure you made a good choice.
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Hi Mighty - I wasn't worried, but was curious about your impression b/c the staff and parents are really trying hard to improve the school, and have. So, I was fishing for any ideas to improve it! Thank for your response.
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