Kiangsu vs. Chekiang Schools: Clearing Up the Confusion

 The Kiangsu and Chekiang Residents Association (HK) operate several schools in Hong Kong:

I find that parents often confuse these schools – primarily the first two –  and want to clarify here.

Kiangsu & Chekiang Primary School with Nursery and Kindergarten Section

The Nursery section takes children who are 2 years old by 31 Aug. Students attend 3hours a day. Students still need to apply and interview for the kindergarten section and places are not guaranteed. The Kindergarten section takes children who are 3 by 31 Dec. They may stay until they are six. Students are interviewed earlier than external candidates but there is no guarantee of progression to the Primary section.  This is a non-profit kindergarten and parents must submit the Pre-Primary Education Voucher when accepting a place, this offsets the majority of the kindergarten fees. The primary school takes children who are six by 31 Dec although there is some flexibility for children born towards the end of the calendar year. Most KCS primary graduates will study in other local secondary schools. It’s not uncommon for students to transfer to the international section at some point.

All three sections are housed in the same buildings in North Point. All sections follow the local curriculum and use Putonghua as the main medium of instruction, with traditional Chinese characters. English is also taught daily. The facilities are basic and the primary school homework can be heavy although students are given study periods during the day to do homework. Their teaching methods are strict and a lot of it is repetition and testing-based, similar to many traditional Chinese schools. Classes are large – at kindergarten, class size is about 42, with 3 teachers.  

Kiangsu & Chekiang Kindergarten and Primary School (International Section)

The kindergarten has K1 and K2 classes. The medium of instruction is English.

Opened in 2002, the primary school has small classes of 24 maximum. The British National Curriculum forms the basis of the curriculum offered, modified for Asia. The vast majority of children are from non-native English speaking homes. Many are from Chinese speaking homes. This is what we call a ‘local international school’ for two main reasons:

The Chinese program at this school is perceived to be strong – this may have a lot to do with the fact that children are from Chinese speaking homes and will often do extra classes. Children are divided into two streams for Chinese – Native and Chinese as a Second Language. The amount of contact time in Chinese is minimal – no more than 15% – yet the intensity is good and, therefore, the standard is better than in many other international schools.

Kiangsu Chekiang College (International Section)

Although, the secondary school is offering IGCSE and the IB Diploma program, it feels like a local school in terms of student composition and facilities.

In 2014, 45 Year 11 students  sat for GCSEs and IGCSEs. IBDP – 9 candidates with an 89% pass rate, achieving an average score of 34.4 (out of a possible 45).

The schools below are run by the The Kiangsu and Chekiang Residents Association (HK), but are not normally part of the confusion. I list them here for the sake of completeness.

Kiangsu – Chekiang College (Shatin)  This is an English medium aided school running the Hong Kong curriculum, leading to the Diploma in Secondary Education (DSE). Founded in 1978, it became a government aided school in 1982.

Kiangsu-Chekiang College (Kwai Chung) This is a Chinese medium aided school running the Hong Kong curriculum, leading to the Diploma in Secondary Education (DSE). Founded in 1982.

Kiangsu – Chekiang College (Braemar Hill)  DSS school using Chinese as the medium of instruction, leading to the Diploma in Secondary Education (DSE). In same location as KCIS.