幸運(苦惱)的一群,聖心和聖保祿都收,點揀?

iantsang

Notice a mom received PM offer from spk already (with SHCK offer too), just interested for everyone to share their opinions.

http://forum.edu-kingdom.com/viewthread.php?tid=1703117&page=2#pid26709319


Criteria to be considered (as suggested by parents and myself):
(Last updated 5/3/2009 at 9:41pm)

(1) AM or PM session offered;
(2) Causeway bay vs Central/Western District
(3) English Medium Primary vs Chinese Medium Primary (Both Secondary sections are EMI)
(4) Whole day Primary vs Half day primary (AM is Private and PM is Gov't Aided) (Note 1)
(5) School fees (KG and Primary)
(6) Spaciousness of the kindergarten
(7) Same or different locations with Primary and Secondary sections
(8) Teachers' friendliness and attitudes towards parents and children
(9) 品德培養
(10) Distance from home to kindergarten
(11) School uniform?!
(12) Academic results of secondary section (Note 2)

above all, listen to your own gut feelings about which kindergarten you like more!

Notes (1):
(a) School time for SPCS (Primary section) is from 8:30am to 3:00pm;
(b) School time for SHCSPS is from 7:40am to 12:35pm
(c) School time for SHCS is from 12:40pm to 5:35pm (P1 to P4) and from 8:45pm to 3:20pm (P5 to P6)

Note (2):
SPCS HKCEE result
http://ihouse.hkedcity.net/~sp1400/prospectus.pdf

SHCC HKCEE result
http://www.shcc.edu.hk/info/061107aa.pdf

[ 本帖最後由 iantsang 於 09-3-16 11:08 編輯 ]

iantsang

Yes, congratulations to petralee.

But why is AM session so important to many parents that can be used to decide to go to which kindergarten?  Is this related to sleeping habit?  

I applied PM session for my daughter as first choice for both kindergartens, so luckily it won't happen to be assigned to AM session by doing so.  I guess for those children who used to sleep early and wake up early, going to school in PM session may not be as desired.

原帖由 winchoy16888 於 09-3-4 18:05 發表
聖心和聖保祿都收咱叻恭禧哂‧聖心係咪早上定係聖保祿早上‧我揀返早果間

iantsang

Same wonder as you have.

原帖由 kyliejet 於 09-3-4 18:08 發表
選AM or PM, 重要過選學校本身嗎？

iantsang

Thanks wheellun, but what's the reason behind the choice?

原帖由 wheellun 於 09-3-4 18:15 發表
I will choose st paul..

iantsang

Thanks for the feedback, I think your comment can be served as a good guideline for many parents if they need to send their children to PM session.

Concerning the wake up time, I think a kid 3 years old (who need to sleep probably 12 hours a day) and a 6 years old (who sleeps about 9-10 hours a day) can have a very different time table, and wake up time.  So, the consideration would be very different.

I do agree with you and totally understand the school time will have impacts on the daily schedule of most families.  I just assume as adults, we can be more flexible on our schedule to accommodate our own 3 years old  children.  Just my personal feelings, but I must admit it is hard to deal with work schedule and other siblings schedule.

Afterall, I think this is indeed a valid reason but may vary among families' situations.

原帖由 lafayette 於 09-3-4 18:26 發表
如果小學返全日? 咁早起身會點?

返下午班, 我的家庭就好難編排

中午飯要早食, 我住柴灣
校車12:00前開?
我個囡食得慢, 連著衫等等, 隨時11:00前就要開飯
咁早餐呢? 幾時食好? 幾點起床?

放學返家, 成5-6點, 我個 ...

[ 本帖最後由 iantsang 於 09-3-4 18:48 編輯 ]

iantsang

Hi chu_chu,

Thanks for the blessing!  But that's in fact is the nightmare of both my daughter and I are having!  My daughter sometimes before going to bed or wake up in the middle of the night and talk about how to choose between the two.

I wish chu chu the very best of luck!

Ian

原帖由 chu__chu 於 09-3-4 18:32 發表
Ian, I thought your daughter is the lucky one you mentioned in your post... I believe your daughter will receive good news real soon.

iantsang

Hi rtam,

Yes, my daughter is capable to express herself very well, but she is not a big B.  She was born in August, but we spent a lot of time communicating with her, in adult's tone.  So, once she started talking, she talks in full sentence and we encourage her to tell us her feelings too.  As a result, I think she is considered more mature and able to express herself quite well.

The main reason is because I worry she was born in second half of the year, so I decided to train her to be more mature to compete with big B, and I think the result is positive.  However, I need to delay some training (e.g. English) so she can be more fluent in Cantonese to handle interview.  I think this is the trade off.  Just tonight, she complained to me that it's my fault not teaching her the alphabets so she couldn't answer questions in Heep Yunn's interview......

My daughter has expressed her interests in SHCK since January 3rd, the date of the interview.  She even insists SHCK is where she would go for kindergarten.  As a result, we actually have to try very hard to ask her to attend the SPK interview since SHCK result was not yet announced.

However, as a father, I do realize the pros and cons of both kindergartens and I certainly know there are benefits of studying in SPK.  I believe we may have discussed about this in front of her from time to time, and it is affecting her decisions.  If we ask her, she will still say she prefers SHCK.  However, she is capable to understand she may need to change under certain circumstances.

Agree with you, we need closure.  Should really get this over with, soon, real soon.

原帖由 rtam 於 09-3-4 21:36 發表
Hi Ian,

Your girl will discuss with you how to choice between SH and SP?  Wow... your girl is really mature.  She is a BIG girl?  Does her tone and manner like an adult always?  Yes, if she is mature ...

iantsang

Thanks and good luck to you too!  Are you also waiting for spk's result?

原帖由 rtam 於 09-3-4 23:22 發表
I see.  She is really amazing.  I hope you will receive good news (= bad news co'z your girl needs to make a tough decision ) real soon.

iantsang

Hi Rary, thank you so much for your sharing of personal experience.  I think the economy and society has changed in such a great deal, many of the old beliefs don't quite work the same way as it used to.

In the old time, I guess the family mixture may be a bit different.  Some mothers will stay home and take care of children full-time, and even if both parents need to work, the working hours are not as long as it is nowadays.  As you mentioned, if both parents come home at 8pm, it will be almost bed time for the kids if they need to go to AM class.

For me, precious time to spend with the children, is very important to the development of the children.  Personally, I think it is more important than anything else, besides good health.  Don't you think?

原帖由 Rary 於 09-3-5 00:57 發表
Just surfed by.

When I applied for my kid, at first I preferred am, but eventually she was assigned to a pm class.  Then I found that there are also advantages for pm class, and that is since both my ...

iantsang

Hi bobo_wong2006,

Thanks for the comment and I think most people will agree with you that both are excellent kindergartens.

The down side is when you get "too lucky", then it becomes very difficult to choose in between, since you can only choose one...... and they are both good, but also very different.  Seriously, no idea which one is eventually better......

原帖由 bobo_wong2006 於 09-3-5 08:34 發表
Dear parents,

Actually, both SH and SPK are excellent schools.  Those parents should be proud of their kids' achievement.  AM or PM won't be much matter so long as the kids can get into the schools,  ...

iantsang

Thanks kyliejet for adding to the list, please don't mind I added some supporting info for other parents to be aware of.

Criteria to be considered (as suggested by parents):

(1) AM or PM session offered;
(2) Causeway bay vs Central/Western District
(3) English Medium Primary vs Chinese Medium Primary (Both Secondary sections are EMI)
(4) Whole day Primary vs Half day primary (AM is Private and PM is Gov't Aided)
(5) School fees (KG and Primary)
(6) Spaciousness of the kindergarten
(7) Same or different locations with Primary and Secondary sections
(8) Teachers' friendliness and attitudes towards parents and children

Any more suggestions?  Please help to build on the list.

原帖由 kyliejet 於 09-3-5 10:15 發表
Criteria to be considered (as suggested by parents):

(1) AM or PM session offered;
(2) Causeway bay vs Central/Western District
(3) English Medium Primary vs Chinese Medium Primary
(4) Whole day Prim ...

iantsang

Thanks mmmng for the compliment and appreciation, but it's very embarrassing though.    I strongly agree with you 品德 and 身教 is very important.  That's also why I think these leave to the parents' commitment and I mean lots of sacrifices......

Also, you are right about the famous schools really have no special tricks, their best shot is to select the children and parents who share the same philosophy and expectations like they do, and most of the time it relies on the teachers and parents to work together.  There are no magic.  It's only because they are famous, so they have more parents and children to choose from, and can be very selective.

Thanks to the active feedbacks from bobo_wong2006 and kyliejet.  I have been long waiting to put up such discussion since I think this will become a very interesting one.  The main purpose is to help those parents who may not have a preference already and help to list out some reference criteria for them to consider.  Even for those of us who already have a preference, there may be something that we have missed and can take this opportunity to consider based on more information.

I hope this help and hopefully there are more valuable inputs from parents which can be used to bring up our children!

Ian

[ 本帖最後由 iantsang 於 09-3-5 13:09 編輯 ]

iantsang

Hi mansumbb,

I thought our daughters will be schoolmates in SHCK?  Are you also waiting for results from SPK?

Thanks very much for your inputs but my considerations and preferences may be slightly different with yours so that affect my choice.

In fact I never treat my daughter as a small B, with the exception of the interview with Pui Ching since their age range is Sep 2005 to Aug 2006, and my daughter suddenly become a very small b.  So, I never have the headache as many small b parents have on whether to apply again next year.

In our case, we happen to prefer primary school using local dialet (Cantonese) as medium of instruction so our preference goes to SHCK and SHCSPS.  It's a long story to tell on the rationale behind so I am not going to bore you with it.

Ian

原帖由 mansumbb 於 09-3-5 11:49 發表
Hi iantsang,

If I were you, I will go.  Reasons behind are:
- even your girl is not a big one born at beginning of the year, she seems quite mature based on your description so far.
- if you won't go ...

iantsang

Hi rtam,

Thanks for the good wish but the fact was we had a little accident on our way to the SPK interview that morning, so that was a sub-par performance for all of us.  Could be good or bad, and that's the reason why I think we need to apply to more kindergartens just in case any unexpected can happen!  A note to parents of 2007 babies!

Have you notice my daughter is wearing the SHCK uniform already?  The consensus in our family, is we like SHCK the most.  But there are factors in SPK which are also worth considering so I had the moments of doubt.  But I am fine now and just like to take this opportunity to help myself to explore any factors which I may have missed.  And also,hope to help other parents to make a choice that fits their family more.

Good luck to you and your family!
(and yes, I am aware the SPCS girls are talented and pretty, since I know many of them in secondary school)  

Ian

原帖由 rtam 於 09-3-5 13:15 發表
Hi Ian,

Since your daughter is very mature, I have a strong feeling that she will get a place from SP.
I also feel that even you prefer SH, there is a voice inside you.. calling you to go to SP; oth ...

iantsang

Hi zitaeric, I agree with you that "学業成績真係冇得比較,亦無謂比較..."  Both schools have very good academic results and these things will vary year by year, why bother?

I have heard from other parents who also prefer SPK because of their uniform!  Yes, I agree the whole set looks very smart indeed.  However, my daughter loves the pink tie of SHCK very much, and red hair dressings are what she is using.  So, I guess we are neutral.  Let me add this factor to the list, for fun or serious, be the judge of your own!  

原帖由 zitaeric 於 09-3-5 18:41 發表
起香港區兩間学校都非常好,学業成績真係冇得比較,亦無謂比較...

我細個個時,兩間学校都讀過,如果再問我,作為'"学生"自身來說,我会揀SP(好個人的),因為SP成套校服都好靚...SH,件夏季校服白色,又簿,對女仔吾好,而且d ...

[ 本帖最後由 iantsang 於 09-3-5 21:32 編輯 ]

iantsang

Hi rtam,

Consider you have such bad experience, you are already a very good mother to go back to the school again for your daughter.

Well, my assumption is the sister was probably there with a duty so she wouldn't want to be disturbed.  Some people use languages that are more direct and forward so I agree with the other mom that you should just let it go.  Don't let it bother you.  You are doing very good already!

Ian

原帖由 rtam 於 09-3-5 23:39 發表
Hi tokkibb,

I am happy to meet a SPK alumni here.  我有個心結,望你可幫我打開...it's about SPCS.  Long long time ago when I was a S5 graduate, one day I went into SPCS to ask for a form (I couldn't re ...

iantsang

Hi rtam, hope you don't mind if I said a little bit too much, but this is being said whole-heartedly.  Please don't be too protective to your children if you love and care about them.  I know this is hard to do, but this is good for them to face more difficulties and even failures in their young age, and allow the parents to be there for them, and to support them through those processes, then both themselves and the family bond can grow!

I wish you all the best!  And please forgive me for saying too much.

Ian
  

原帖由 rtam 於 09-3-6 14:14 發表
Hi no.32 & Ian,
非常感激你們的安慰。或許是我太保護女兒，怕她會受到類似的傷害 (當時我年紀小，向來乖乖，加上只有我一人面對，所以很是害怕) ，但我一直估計這只是個別事件，我很尊敬這校及喜歡她所教養的學生，所以的確要衝破 ...

iantsang

I am very much hesitated to put on this post but I am in the position to provide my own personal comments as a parent, on how we evaluate a school which is considered "suitable" for our children.

First, I must express my appreciation to the daughter of 澄心媽媽 for providing us such detail personal comments of SPCS.  Congratulations for being a student at SPCS and I sincerely believe it is as excellent a school as you have described.

However, hope you don't mind but I would like to provide some support information for other parents to consider.

A direct comparison between a public/ government aided & a direct subsidized secondary school, basing on academic or English standard would be an unfair one.  I am sure SPCS is a secondary school with a long history of high quality academic & English standard, and I am pretty sure no ones should deny it.

However, the issue here is that a DSS school administrates their own admission and the school itself has the right to choose EVERY SINGLE students to be admitted.  Moreover, a DSS school would have much more freedom on their own curriculum and teaching style, while public/ government aided schools would be controlled by Education Bureau.

For the case of public/ government aided schools, they are only allowed to pick 30% of their overall admission.  The remaining 70%, will be coming from their connected primary school (which are using CMI), and other students from Band 1 or even Band 2.

One point I must stress is the change of 5 bands to 3 bands, was intended to mix together better students with different level of academic standards.  As a result, this is a common issue with ANY public/ government aided schools to have admitted students which would be in lower academic standard than they used to encountered.  It is because students who used to be in Band 3 & 4, may be part of the current Band 2 nowadays.

So, please be fair and considerate to teachers of public/ government subsidized schools.  For them to still manage 98.5% passing rate (according to your suggestion) in BPS, is a much much more difficult task than having 100% in SPCS.  The key is the differences in quality of students being admitted.  Thanks to their efforts and caring that have been given to the students to make them contribute to the society, and academic result is not the only consideration.  Of course, the teachers in SPCS should also be honored with their efforts to keep a 100% passing rate, since it is also a very difficult task.

So, which school is better?  As I mentioned in other threads before, there are really no need to compare for the purpose of which is better.  It is because there will never be an absolute winner, and never should since all schools are different in various dimensions.  As parents, we need to know what is best (most suitable) for our own children only.

So as the purpose of this thread, is to provide criteria to be considered during the comparison, but not to make a subjective suggestion of which one is necessarily better.  All children are different, and the world would be too simple otherwise.

Ian

[ 本帖最後由 iantsang 於 09-3-15 20:54 編輯 ]

iantsang

Dear all parents,

You may refer to the following links for these kindergarten's secondary section's HKCEE results:

SPCS HKCEE * HKAL results
http://ihouse.hkedcity.net/~sp1400/prospectus.pdf
(Thanks to Ms.ChanChan for the help to find this)

SHCC HKCEE & HKAL results
http://www.shcc.edu.hk/info/061107aa.pdf

Both have very good passing rate but SPCS's result is better in overall.

For your information, I constantly update any new info to my first page so all the criteria will be updated there.  Please check it out.

Ian

[ 本帖最後由 iantsang 於 09-3-16 11:13 編輯 ]

iantsang

Great news for us!  Not accepted by SPK, wait-listed only.

So, can settle with Sacred Heart!

Good luck to you all!