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shuerte
Newbie
Joined: July 08, 2006
Posts: 5
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 Posted:
June 13, 2007 - 08:22 PM |
 
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you should consider the international division of High School Affiliated to Fudan University, which is openend recently in cooperation with teacher's college of Columbia University. I've looked at their curriculum and feel they are making a great effort seeking a balance between the east and west. The high school is itself a huge feeder for world class universities like the ivy+ and oxbridge, so academically there should be no worries. |
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person
Newbie
Joined: June 28, 2007
Posts: 2
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June 28, 2007 - 11:42 AM |
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i go to smic and i don't find it that good..but this is my first year here so... |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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June 28, 2007 - 07:47 PM |
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| 777lf wrote: |
| SSIS is a good option if your childs English is reasonable, and you aren't interested in your child learning Chinese. |
Heh, this is where the Senior Head of SSIS XH Campus comes in. Yes, that's me.  You seem very familiar with the school, and I think I know who your colleague is. Tell him that Michael says hi, and that one day my blog will be back publicly.
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| Their Chinese program isn't very good |
May I know the basis and comparison for saying that our Chinese program is not very good? I'd love to know your sources.
It's compulsory in Singapore for all children to learn another language besides English, normally the one considered "native" to their ethnic group. Now, while Singaporeans aren't well known for Chinese proficiency, the educational system does require us to achieve a near-native level of proficiency in it. Why do I say near-native? Well, while we can hold our own in conversation, we really pale when you put us next to the Chinese and Taiwanese. That I have to agree.
But even then, we're changing. This coming academic year will see us creating another stream besides our existing three (Singapore syllabus Chinese, Basic Chinese Level 1 and 2). We will use the local Chinese syllabus for our final stream of Chinese.
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| and they dont stream classes. |
May I correct it to they didn't stream classes. I'm sure you write based on limited knowledge, so I won't blame you for that statement. Our IEP Coordinator (a newly created post) has indicated the need for a Learning Support and Bridging Class at all levels. We'd stream our weaker pupils there and set an ESL-trained teacher to help out in the class. Unfortunately (fortunately?) we still do not stream the rest of the pupils. We'd prefer a good mix for the pupils with stronger language ability.
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| They have a very limited program that gets kids to a vey basic level of English, and then dumps them into classes with native speakers. |
Are there other schools that has programmes for kids without a basic level of English? Our Intensive English Programme produces kids who struggle, and produces kids who do well later. Just like any educational programme. Would it be a bad idea not to put the children into classes where they can gain an immersion effect and pick up on their learning curve? Two kids that transferred to my class this year (the last year I'm being assigned to teach...sob) improved greatly in their grades and their parents were very happy.
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| SSIS saps kids confidence by giving all kids the same standard tests. |
At the same time it provides challenges to those kids who are motivated by challenges, like two pupils who have just graduated from our IEP class, to be "dumped" into a class with native speakers. Let us not, to quote a Chinese proverb 一枝竹竿打翻一条船 (to flip a boat with a bamboo stick), and see only one angle of the story.
I have one parent who spoke to me recently precisely of this "sapping" effect on her girl. I recommended some good international schools that I felt would perhaps help her adjust better, and she'd be transferring her daughter to Rego the next academic year. My pupils' welfare comes first. I'd answer to management for enrolment later.
You must also realise that the Singaporean curriculum is perhaps one of the most rigorous in the English-speaking world. Think of us as English-speaking Japanese and you'd get what I mean. We do not apologise for that. It's our brand, and the reason why some schools in the States are adopting "Singapore Math" for their texts.
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| It also provides no additional support for kids struggling with English. |
Again I must correct you - it provided no additional support. And you might want to know that we do have teachers who have taken on additional time beyond the lessons to coach weaker pupils. This coming academic year, teachers will be given additional periods to give support to kids needing that.
Unfortunately (I'm being frank and open here, there's no need to hide anything), this normally means the kids may need to have part of their lunch hour taken away, or their Art or Music lessons taken away for the additional coaching. I'm going to implement the system such that parents may indicate if they do not want their kids to be taken away from these lessons, and to have the teacher let it be if this is so.
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| So why accept kids with low English levels? |
Have you ever been a parent of a child who's bright but who simply have very basic level of English due to your country of origin? You'd be very glad that there is an international school willing to provide an Intensive English Programme for your child, and put them in with native speakers after that.
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| SSIS is also very regimented, compared to most other international schools I've heard of in Shanghai. The kids have very limted free time, and go from class to class with no break. It's a very rigid system. |
Your observation is very correct. I dare say, we are very regimented, compared to ALL other international schools in Shanghai. We're popular with Asian parents for that reason, and it's also our marketing niche.
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| SSIS also seems to be struggling with its identity. It doesn't seem to know if it's a "Singaporean school" in Shanghai, or if it really is an international school. |
Same could be said of other international schools with a strong home branding, like Dulwich (UK) or the SAS (US). How many "real" international school (as in international outlook and curriculum) are there around? Perhaps the only one I can think of right now is the Western International School of Shanghai.
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| I've also heard its very authoritarian in managment style, and it doesn't use the talents of it's teachers to improve the place, which is also a worry. |
Authoritarian? Trust me on this - no. Democratic? Most definitely not. Consultative? Definitely. We do hear the voices of our teachers before we make our decision. Unfortunately, we make decisions many times that are unpopular with teachers. And we do not back down over that.
May I understand what you mean by "doesn't use the talents of its teachers to improve the place"? I'm really wondering if we're hearing from the views only of certain parties right now, or if it's a balanced view.
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| Again, it depends on your child and what you want from the school. If you are Singaporean, its probably a great choice. If you aren't, I'm not sure I'd recommend it. |
I agree very whole-heartedly that it's really what the parents want from the school. We're not popular with western parents for the same reasons why we're popular with Asian parents. Nothing to do with being Singaporean (which is only 25% of our cohort anyway).
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| From my contact with various schools and teachers in Shanghai, amongst the lower fee schools in Shanghai, I think SMIC, SHSID and Xiehe are really good choices. These schools aren't perfect by any means, but they seem to have a few strong points that would make them worth a look. As terrible as this sounds (why should money be messed upp with schools?), these schools are also pretty reasonable "value for money". |
I know of SMIC and SHSID (they are good schools) but I do not know much about Xiehe. What do you know about this school? |
_________________
Michael Chan www.senseimichael.com |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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June 28, 2007 - 07:54 PM |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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June 28, 2007 - 07:57 PM |
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| 777lf wrote: |
| I think its common for high turnover. If the school is loosing teachers after a year though, then perhaps the school has some issues. |
Yup, good observation. We must realise that many teachers do not call this place home. Teachers like MS from SMIC <wink> and I would call this place home, and tend to stay on. And when this place is not your home, you tend to move on, for whatever reasons. |
_________________
Michael Chan www.senseimichael.com |
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msittig
Rocker
Joined: Oct 06, 2004
Posts: 733
Location: Zhangjiang High-Tech Park
Status: Offline
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June 29, 2007 - 12:54 AM |
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Nah, I think you have to give a school about 4 or 5 years to attract a core of semi-permanent faculty and staff. Besides there's something about Shanghai that doesn't keep people here for very long, at least the more normal, middle-class people...
If I can make a request, I'd like to hear more about the international division of High School Affiliated to Fudan University. Anybody got the inside scoop? |
_________________
Hi Charlotte! |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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June 29, 2007 - 06:05 PM |
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I'm think both Micah and I would be very interested to know one thing - how many local schools with international divisions are there? |
_________________
Michael Chan www.senseimichael.com |
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inflair
Seeker
Joined: June 16, 2007
Posts: 69
Status: Offline
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June 29, 2007 - 06:33 PM |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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June 29, 2007 - 07:19 PM |
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msittig
Rocker
Joined: Oct 06, 2004
Posts: 733
Location: Zhangjiang High-Tech Park
Status: Offline
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July 03, 2007 - 12:10 AM |
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msittig
Rocker
Joined: Oct 06, 2004
Posts: 733
Location: Zhangjiang High-Tech Park
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
July 03, 2007 - 12:58 AM |
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Never mind, Golden Apple and Gezhi are not in a gray area. They are local schools that, under old rules, were permitted to enroll foreigners and whose administrators therefore enthusiastically turned to recruit overseas students as (I assume) a money-making strategy. Their literature may claim academic excellence and "bilingual education" but I wouldn't expect find those graduating any significant number of students whose goal is to attend college abroad.
But then again I don't know much about them from first-hand experience. I'd be interested to find out, though. |
_________________
Hi Charlotte! |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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July 04, 2007 - 08:32 PM |
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| msittig wrote: |
Shanghai Jin Cai High School Int'l Division (in Hongkou) |
I've been to that school before. It's in Pudong, not Hongkou.
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| The start of 2007 marked the beginning lf a new era in Shanghai’s expatriates’ children educational route. Starting on January 1, children of expats working in Shanghai will be allowed to enroll in their neighborhood public schools. |
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| I'm going to try to find that law in Chinese... |
I heard about it from my Chinese friends too. In any case, some of my Singaporean friends did enrol their children in local schools before this law came up. Perhaps it was in a private school (民办学校). |
_________________
Michael Chan www.senseimichael.com |
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msittig
Rocker
Joined: Oct 06, 2004
Posts: 733
Location: Zhangjiang High-Tech Park
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
July 04, 2007 - 08:37 PM |
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Oh, you're right about Jin Cai. I fixed it in the post above. |
_________________
Hi Charlotte! |
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luxeducation
Newbie
Joined: Aug 17, 2007
Posts: 6
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Aug 17, 2007 - 01:43 PM |
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| Post subject: FDFZ Intl Division, SAT Class and College Guidance |
A school not on a lot of expat's radar is FDFZ's new International Division. It's run by a longtime Sidwell Friends teacher and has hired mostly ivy league graduates and other dedicated teachers. My wife (Yale and Harvard graduate) will be teaching there this fall and heading up the college guidance for the students.
On another note, I've been noticing some complaints about various school's college guidance program. I just wanted to point out that my wife and I (also Yale graduate) have started an intensive SAT class (average 300 point improvement) and personalized college guidance and application help. |
_________________
www.luxeducation.com Intensive SAT classes and College Guidance |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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Aug 17, 2007 - 07:47 PM |
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luxeducation
Newbie
Joined: Aug 17, 2007
Posts: 6
Status: Offline
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Aug 18, 2007 - 03:27 PM |
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Sorry, it's Fudan Fuzhong, or the High School Affiliated with Fudan University. So it's the international division of Fudan Fuzhong. |
_________________
www.luxeducation.com Intensive SAT classes and College Guidance |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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Aug 18, 2007 - 03:32 PM |
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And it's only a high school, right? No elementary education? |
_________________
Michael Chan www.senseimichael.com |
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luxeducation
Newbie
Joined: Aug 17, 2007
Posts: 6
Status: Offline
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Aug 18, 2007 - 03:44 PM |
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It's high school and middle school, no elementary. |
_________________
www.luxeducation.com Intensive SAT classes and College Guidance |
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lawfamily
Lurker
Joined: Aug 16, 2007
Posts: 26
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Aug 21, 2007 - 01:29 PM |
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| Post subject: school survey |
| ShanghaiButterfly wrote: |
| Schools...what to do...what a nightmare...l have a first grader. 4th grader and a 11th grader and l am about to move Melbourne , Australia...In the next 8weeks...what are the best options? I don't know where to begin and what to look at for the varying ages? Would greatly appreciate any comments from those who have done this all before....Cheers Amanda |
Amanda if you are reading this post can you let me know how you got on? We are moving from Perth Jan 08 and I am wondering how the difference in school year, curriculum etc affected your children. Also where they ended up going and your impressions. I will have a 4th grader and 10th grader (Aust system). My direct is akml@bigpond.net.au. Thanks |
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yyfamily
Ranter
Joined: Apr 25, 2005
Posts: 578
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Aug 24, 2007 - 11:54 AM |
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How is Dulwich? Can parents of Dulwich students share their experience, please? |
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ps2032
Newbie
Joined: Sep 27, 2007
Posts: 1
Status: Offline
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Sep 27, 2007 - 01:14 PM |
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Fudan International School may start their elementary school division next year. |
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RachaelLau
Barker
Joined: June 23, 2006
Posts: 145
Status: Offline
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Sep 30, 2007 - 11:32 AM |
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Michael, thanks. you safe me a lot of effort writing to 777If.
777If. I suggest you make the chance to visit SSIS once. Its really not as bad as you thought. I did relief teaching for them last year. One thing I am very proud of is that Singapore teacher are a very responsible group. Its true that we do emphasize on academic performance. Not as relax as other international school. But we also have our fair share of fun and creativity. Dance, drama and pastoral care are a part of our curriculum. And its true that we stream our Chinese class into 4 different level so that students can learn better.
You have just given me a tight slap on the effort I have put in so far. 
But I also thanks you for giving us your true feedback. |
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StMichael
Ranter
Joined: Feb 19, 2005
Posts: 575
Location: Qibao, Shanghai
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Sep 30, 2007 - 08:13 PM |
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Wow...thanks for the support Rachael. We are still anxiously waiting for the day when you will also be a parent of one of our pupils!  |
_________________
Michael Chan www.senseimichael.com |
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jkahv
Seeker
Joined: Sep 05, 2007
Posts: 40
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Oct 01, 2007 - 08:42 AM |
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| Post subject: Yew Chung International School? |
I've read all the posts in this thread and found a few that mentioned YCIS but could anyone share personal experience or observation with YC-Pudong?
My husband works in Shanghai without an expat package so the inexpensive SMIC Private School sounds very attractive but its location is too far out. YC is closer to our future apartment and they seem to put relatively more effort on teaching students the Chinese language, which I like.
We're from the US and my children have been attending (and enjoying) the local public school.
I know that YCIS is based in HK and HK is influenced by the UK. Is YCIS very different from other American-Curriculum based international schools?
Thank you! |
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icyfrosty
Seeker
Joined: Nov 25, 2006
Posts: 72
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Oct 06, 2007 - 10:55 PM |
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| yyfamily wrote: |
| How is Dulwich? Can parents of Dulwich students share their experience, please? |
My kid has been in Dulwich for 2 years, and overall, I'm happy with the school. They have a great curriculum. Perhaps my only complain about the school is that I somehow never feel welcomed when I'm in the campus - so basically I don't go there unless I absolutely have to. |
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