My son just stared K1 at an ESF kindergarten. To say the least, it was chaotic. When the kids are dropped off in the mornings, they immediately mix with all other kids in all the K1 classes. That means approximately 90 or so 3 yr olds running around in one big room. Although there are about a dozen teachers/assistants, they are not able to watch the kids effectively. Some are taking attendance, others talking to parents or soothing a particular child. This means that most of the kids are running around unsupervised. on the three days I took my son, I have seen the following: a girl hitting another girl on the head with a metal plane toy, a boy pushing another to grab his toy, a boy throwing a large toy at another's head, kids fighting over toys with fierce aggression. None of this was seen by any teacher or assistant. Only me. This leads me to wonder what is the class structure like when I am not there? My son has already picked up some aggressive behavior in three days and he openly said "the other boy at school did it". How can I trust this system to provide a good or even safe environment? Do any of you ESF parents have any thoughts?
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ESF kindy safe environment for 3 year olds?
- Thread starter lily12211
- Start date
penguinsix
Registered User
It's why I choose Woodlands for kindy. I thought at ESF it was simply 'too many'. In fact I choose an international school (17:1+1 student teach ratio) over ESF primary (30:1+1) for similar reasons. Just felt there were too many kids.
I think the first days of the school year in any class can be a little chaotic, let alone in a class with 30 children. From what I've seen myself parents are also partly to blame, they stick around too long when dropping off, want to talk to the teacher about their child individually at the wrong time (drop off to name one). I think things will smooth out, and if not (or not the extent you're looking for), you contact the staff / principal to share your concerns.
Personally I wouldn't make my decision based on the first days, but over a longer period, plus it really depends what your long term goals are in terms of education. If you plan for ESF Primary, you wouldn't be advisable to lose your priority by going elsewhere. But again, if you're really unhappy in the long run, then you may need to ask yourself what are the alternatives.
My younger ones were in a smaller class room setting for preschool (20 kids) and even then one of them would come home and say they had been bitten or hit by a child without a teacher noticing. Turned out they were doing it to each other?!
We chose ESF Primary as we're paying out of pocket and we're not willing to pay more than we're already paying to have a class of 20 instead of 30 in an international school. That difference is simply not worth it, to us. I was in classes of 28-30 with just one teacher and turned out fine and unless your child has special / individual needs I tend to believe that in the long run the number of students in a class won't determine the outcome for your child that much. Both have advantages and disadvantages. I can see clear advantages in my children being able to manage themselves in a larger class room setting. I am sure there are also issues with it but again, I believe those will even out. It is what it is.
Personally I wouldn't make my decision based on the first days, but over a longer period, plus it really depends what your long term goals are in terms of education. If you plan for ESF Primary, you wouldn't be advisable to lose your priority by going elsewhere. But again, if you're really unhappy in the long run, then you may need to ask yourself what are the alternatives.
My younger ones were in a smaller class room setting for preschool (20 kids) and even then one of them would come home and say they had been bitten or hit by a child without a teacher noticing. Turned out they were doing it to each other?!
We chose ESF Primary as we're paying out of pocket and we're not willing to pay more than we're already paying to have a class of 20 instead of 30 in an international school. That difference is simply not worth it, to us. I was in classes of 28-30 with just one teacher and turned out fine and unless your child has special / individual needs I tend to believe that in the long run the number of students in a class won't determine the outcome for your child that much. Both have advantages and disadvantages. I can see clear advantages in my children being able to manage themselves in a larger class room setting. I am sure there are also issues with it but again, I believe those will even out. It is what it is.
So starting with primary 1 in ESF, there is one teacher per 30 students?
As for my earlier post, I know that first days are always bad and that kids will be kids wherever they go to school, but I wish that ESF kindy had separate classrooms of two teachers for 22 students rather than no separate classrooms where all four K1 classes mix. I think that is my biggest problem. It's the mixing that makes it unmanageable in my view.
As for my earlier post, I know that first days are always bad and that kids will be kids wherever they go to school, but I wish that ESF kindy had separate classrooms of two teachers for 22 students rather than no separate classrooms where all four K1 classes mix. I think that is my biggest problem. It's the mixing that makes it unmanageable in my view.
penguinsix
Registered User
I think ESF Primary is 30:1 plus an assistant, but I'm not sure if they are fulltime or part time. We went with the smaller number as early educators noted our child seemed to best in small group situations and was a bit shy in larger settings.
That said, a good teacher with 30 is better than a bad teacher with 20, or whatever, so don't let just the numbers be your guide.
That said, a good teacher with 30 is better than a bad teacher with 20, or whatever, so don't let just the numbers be your guide.
So starting with primary 1 in ESF, there is one teacher per 30 students?
As for my earlier post, I know that first days are always bad and that kids will be kids wherever they go to school, but I wish that ESF kindy had separate classrooms of two teachers for 22 students rather than no separate classrooms where all four K1 classes mix. I think that is my biggest problem. It's the mixing that makes it unmanageable in my view.
They have 30 kids + 1 teacher + 1 assistant (in Lower School it's always FT, one per class; in US it's a mix of FT and PT across the year level but usually not one per class).
howardcoombs
Registered User
Most schools will not allow visitors. They will normally have open days where parents can come and see the school. Ask them about when their next open day will be.
Can any of you ESF parents tell me what is the structure of ESF Primary classes? I grew up in the US and I only have experience with US elementary schools. In the US, each elementary class consist of about 22 students or so, and they remain together for all lessons. The main lessons are taught by one main teacher (ie: spelling, reading, math, science, and history), while the peripheral lessons are taught by specialists (ie: music, art, physical education). Is it like that with ESF primary classes? Do students within one class stay together for most of the class subjects, or do they mix with other students within the grade?
Thanks for any input!
Thanks for any input!
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