Primary education at DB

[ELT]

It might be a bit early to worry about primary education when my LO is just 9 months, but I am really curious about the options available for people living in DB.

- Where do you send your kids to school?

- Anyone knows what the school fee is like with the new ESF there?

- Anyone has experience with Wei Lun?

Would appreciate any input. THANKS!

 

[carang]

options:

1) DBIS
2) Wei Lung
3) Lantau International
4) YMCA (Tung Chung)
5) most schools on HK island have a bus that will pick kids up at the ferry in Central
6) new ESF school/hasn't opened yet, don't know if they've decided on what the fees will be yet.


your first decision is if you want local or international education for your child. then you can start comparing schools. i think it is impossible to compare DBIS with Wei Lun as the international school teaching methods and expectations of the students is very different from Wei Lun, a local school.

I will say that there used to be some Wei Lun students in our building and they could barely put a sentence together in English.....and that's even living in DB!

 

[bekyboo44]

Hi,

We also live in DB, and my son is 8.5 mnths and crazy as it sounds I've already started trying to choose a kindergarten and primary school for him!

1). DBIS is probably one of the most popular choices however I have been told already, by other prospective parents, that if my son is not on the waiting list already then there is very little chance of him getting a place now.
Most people seem to put their children on the waiting list when they are born, or are a few weeks old.
Not only that but DBIS requests a $1000 fee to put your child on the waiting list which is non refundable, transferable etc.

2). The new ESF school- this is not going to be one of the traditional ESF schools, but is run by ESF educational services and will follow different curriculum/methods etc. to the other traditional ESF schools. It is also more expensive. The fees are available, www.esf.edu.hk
Not sure how the application proceedure for it works, and not sure if we would be able to put our babies on any waiting list.

I went to an ESF school and have decided that ESF is not my first choice for my son. This is just my opinion but the whole ESF organisation, I believe, has steadily gone down hill over the past couple of years and with it it's schools have changed dramatically.

3). There is of course the international school in Tong Fuk, Lantau but am not sure I would want my son travelling on a bus over there everyday....don't know anything about the school.

4). The other option is to send them to school on the Island.
This is prob what we will do- I am fortunate enough to have family in the management of an international sch on the Island and so that sch is looking like our best option at the moment.

Is INSANE that we have to start planning for our babies schooling now but HK is heading for a real crisis with its international schooling!!!!

 

[ELT]

carang, bekyboo44

Thanks for sharing your experience and information.

We originally planned to send our boy to Wei Lun but of learning that the medium of teaching is Chinese, we are not sure anymore.

Guess a better option would be ESF or one of the better local schools like St Paul's on HK Island.