HKIS, FIS, CDNIS

cari

Need to make final decision on these schools, need to pay tuition now.  Really want to get your comments on which one to choose among these 3.
Please help.  

courtbas

Cari,

What grade?

KathyChing

My daughter is studying in FIS for 2 years and my sister's daughter is studying in HKIS. And some of my friend's child are studying in CDNIS. So what are your most concern to choose a school? Different concern make your decision different. you can pm me to make a discussion.

courtbas

Hi KathyChing,

I sent you an PM.  Please check.

Ruby1219

Hi KathyChing,

I would like to know about the comments on CDNIS. Can you share what you know from your "CDNIS parents" friends ? What are the pros and cons they consider for it ?

Thanks
Ruby

KathyChing 寫道:
My daughter is studying in FIS for 2 years and my sister's daughter is studying in HKIS. And some of my friend's child are studying in CDNIS. So what are your most concern to choose a school? Different concern make your decision different. you can pm me to make a discussion.

YOSASHTO

My son is at HKIS, and I think the school is great.  He was admitted to CIS, HKIS, and ESF.  We selected HKIS over the other two because of its history in Hong Kong, and its affiliation with the Lutheran Church.  I found that they are very good with educating the kids not only in academics, but also in ethics.  Ever since kindergarten (they call Reception 1), they have a school councellor who have discussions with children every other week on current issues like war, crime, how to protect yourself, etc.  I am very pleased with the school.

As for teenage drug and sex problems, I am sure you will find that in all schools.  It is really up to the parents how to lead you child on the right path.

cari

KathyChing

It is nice that you would help me in this as you have experience on these 3 schools from yourself, family and friends.  Both me and husband like FIS a lot, but it seems that HKIS is also a very good school.  
The reason I want my child to go to IS is to learn things happily during her school life.  We also hope that she can achieve good acadamic standing and good personality.  
I like HKIS on their activities and that the children are very sociable.  And like FIS on their good acadamic standing and the multi culture.
I agreed with you that different schools have different good things of their own.
Can you share your view on these schools?

cari

Reception.

courtbas 寫道:
Cari,

What grade?

cari

christf

Do you know which school has a better acadamic result?

christf 寫道:
In my view both HKIS and FIS belong to the 1st tiers.

I am not familiar with FIS but for HKIS it contains Band 1 to Band 3 students (i.e. the secondary school of HKIS has a lot of top students but at the same time with quite a number of spoiled teenagers with drug problems).

cari

YOSASHTO

Are the teachers, students, parents very nice at HKIS?  I know  that the environment is top class there.  How about the academic level at the school?

YOSASHTO 寫道:
My son is at HKIS, and I think the school is great.  He was admitted to CIS, HKIS, and ESF.  We selected HKIS over the other two because of its history in Hong Kong, and its affiliation with the Lutheran Church.  I found that they are very good with educating the kids not only in academics, but also in ethics.  Ever since kindergarten (they call Reception 1), they have a school councellor who have discussions with children every other week on current issues like war, crime, how to protect yourself, etc.  I am very pleased with the school.

As for teenage drug and sex problems, I am sure you will find that in all schools.  It is really up to the parents how to lead you child on the right path.

YOSASHTO

Cari, I cannot speak for all the teachers, but everyone of the teachers my son has had (he just finished Grade 4) are excellent.  They are very caring and can cater individualized learning experiences for the kids.  However, you have to accept that they all have their own teaching styles, and the school does allow for stylistic differences, unlike the more stricter disciplined schools.

One thing I really like about the school is that the kids (up to now, anyway) do not really act like rich kids, even though we know some of them come from very wealthy families.  There is minimal showing off of their possessions.  I attribute this to the way the schools teach the kids ethics, which is very much lacking in most of the IS, as well as the local schools.

Another thing I like is that the nationality mix is very high.  This gives my son a chance to understand other cultures and customs.  Although the majority are Americans, we have friends who are British, Dutch, French, Taiwanese, Thai, Indian, German, ...  The school is also very open to other religions, although it is a Christian school.  They teach the kids about Islam, Hinduism, Buddism, Judaism, etc.

In terms of academics, they frequently rank amongst the top schools in open competitions.  Every year (I think starting from Grade 1), all kids participate in a Stanford Test which is used across the US, and by May, you will receive an individualized result of how your child ranks amongst the US kids and other HKIS kids.  My son has done really well all these years, and I noticed that the HKIS ranking is always at par with, if not better than, the best schools in the US.  If you want more info about this test I can do some digging and give you the website.

You can tell from my reply that I feel that every cent of the tuition is worthwhile.  But of course, each family has their own rationale for selecting their child's school.

cari 寫道:
YOSASHTO

Are the teachers, students, parents very nice at HKIS?  I know  that the environment is top class there.  How about the academic level at the school?


[quote]
YOSASHTO 寫道:
My son is at HKIS, and I think the school is great.  He was admitted to CIS, HKIS, and ESF.  We selected HKIS over the other two because of its history in Hong Kong, and its affiliation with the Lutheran Church.  I found that they are very good with educating the kids not only in academics, but also in ethics.  Ever since kindergarten (they call Reception 1), they have a school councellor who have discussions with children every other week on current issues like war, crime, how to protect yourself, etc.  I am very pleased with the school.

As for teenage drug and sex problems, I am sure you will find that in all schools.  It is really up to the parents how to lead you child on the right path.

[/quote]

courtbas

cari,

I think I would choose HKIS too.  To the least, I think HKIS has a better mandarin program, if that's important to you.  

But can you still back out of those 2 schools in such a late stage?  I would think you would already have paid the deposit and purchased the debenture.

cari 寫道:
Reception.

[quote]
courtbas 寫道:
Cari,

What grade?

[/quote]

YOSASHTO

Actually, CDNIS has a harder mandarin program than HKIS.  As I understand it, there are far more local Hong Kong kids at CDNIS than HKIS, and their parents push the school to have harder Chinese materials.  Whereas the local Chinese population at HKIS (by percentage) is much lower than CDNIS, and there is no real push to make the lessons hard.  But I am quite satisfied with the level at which my son is at.  I would say, at Grade 4 HKIS, he is probaly comparable to Grade 2 local school.  I was told next year (Grade 5), the Chinese classes will get very hard.

courtbas 寫道:
cari,

I think I would choose HKIS too.  To the least, I think HKIS has a better mandarin program, if that's important to you.  

But can you still back out of those 2 schools in such a late stage?  I would think you would already have paid the deposit and purchased the debenture.

[quote]
cari 寫道:
Reception.

[quote]
courtbas 寫道:
Cari,

What grade?

[/quote][/quote]

KathyChing

Hi cari,

I am quite agree with yosashto. Although my daughter is studying in FIS, but I really love HKIS a lot. If you want your child have a happy school life, plus good academic standing and multi culture, or anything you want, HKIS can give you. No matter your child is smart or not, the school will give you a lot of support.

But for my point of view, achieve good academic standing and good personality, family support and guarding is still the most important, no matter in which school.

KathyChing

HI courtbas,

Please check pm and I find that what I want to commend on HKIS is same as Yosashto.

courtbas

Thanks KathyChing.  I've sent you a PM.  PLease check.

cari

Hi, Kathy

Glad that both you and yosashto like HKIS a lot.
Can you give some comments on FIS since you have the first hand information on this school for your daughter?

KathyChing 寫道:
Hi cari,

I am quite agree with yosashto. Although my daughter is studying in FIS, but I really love HKIS a lot. If you want your child have a happy school life, plus good academic standing and multi culture, or anything you want, HKIS can give you. No matter your child is smart or not, the school will give you a lot of support.

But for my point of view, achieve good academic standing and good personality, family support and guarding is still the most important, no matter in which school.

tingtingting

People relate HKIS to drugs because HKIS openly deals with the problem whilst other IS pretend that the problem does not exist.

My colleague at QMH (a clinical psychiatrist) whose job is to deal with drugs abuse among teenagers told me that HKIS is certainly not on the top of the list when it come to drugs abuse among IS students.  The IS that has the worst record is indeed that so called elite IS up the peak.

P.S. I am not a HKIS parent.