# English schools in Cyprus



## LeeR (Apr 28, 2011)

Am thinking of moving to Cyprus (South) from Egypt. My first concern is schooling, as we have 2 children aged 9 and 5 who are in a private Canadian international school. I am not considering a Greek school. My main concern would be from my children to integrate well into a good school, so I am looking for a school with a high number of expats, and preferably but not necessarily in a town close to Larnaca airport as I will be travelling a lot back to Egypt and that's the only airport possible - any advice would be most welcome.


----------



## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

LeeR said:


> Am thinking of moving to Cyprus (South) from Egypt. My first concern is schooling, as we have 2 children aged 9 and 5 who are in a private Canadian international school. I am not considering a Greek school. My main concern would be from my children to integrate well into a good school, so I am looking for a school with a high number of expats, and preferably but not necessarily in a town close to Larnaca airport as I will be travelling a lot back to Egypt and that's the only airport possible - any advice would be most welcome.


You have three choices all within striking distance of the airport - Pascal English School, the American Academy and Mediterranean Schools Group (known locally as Med High which caters for all ages). The Academy has the best reputation but doesn not have a very high expat population and in my view the reputation is paperthin as it is an exclusive school which rejects many students (and employs ex=pupils to be the next generation of teachers) - Pascal is a sharp business with a reputation for discipline - Med High has the highest population of expats and has a reputation for accepting rejects from the Academy (which is partly true) but in my opinion has the best qualified teachers (mostly UK and US trained). 

There are other options in Nicosia, but there are very few expats in the schools there and the connections to the airport are going to be a limiting factor. Check out the schooling thread for further advice and opinions.


----------



## LeeR (Apr 28, 2011)

Thanks for the very useful info Kimonas! (I was hoping I would get your input as I see that you have a lot of info on the subject!) Now that I have an idea about the available options in Larnaca, should I consider schools in Limassol/ Nicosia too? A 45 minute drive from aiport is not too bad...it's a short ride by Cairo standards! How do these schools in Larnaca compare to the other town's schools? Also how do other aspects of life compare between these towns? So many issue to consider..


----------



## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

LeeR said:


> Thanks for the very useful info Kimonas! (I was hoping I would get your input as I see that you have a lot of info on the subject!) Now that I have an idea about the available options in Larnaca, should I consider schools in Limassol/ Nicosia too? A 45 minute drive from aiport is not too bad...it's a short ride by Cairo standards! How do these schools in Larnaca compare to the other town's schools? Also how do other aspects of life compare between these towns? So many issue to consider..


Limassol might be an option - there are several choices there (Foleys, Heritage) but I'm afraid I have little personal experience of them. I do know the Nicosian Schools - American Academy (not related to the Larnaca School), Falcon, Highgate, GCSChool, The Grammar School and the English School -widely regarded as being the best on the island in terms of prestige and reputation and also the oldest) - all these schools have few expats and in practice lessons tend to degenerate into Greek - most are patronised by the rich list and in my experience of teaching at one of them, the discipline and standards are not particularly high and similar experiences have been shared by teachers at the other schools at seminars I have attended. I get the impression that the Nicosian schools are more like day care centres with many students being booked in for private lessons in the afternoons and evenings.

There's not much for kids to do in Nicosia - and it is oppressively hot in the summer. Most weekends it is virtually abandoned as families that can afford it move to the coast or the mountains. 
Limassol is a more cosmopolitan place with greater potential to entertain the kids (similar to Larnaca) with easy access to beaches, water parks, paintball, nature trails etc.


----------



## LeeR (Apr 28, 2011)

kimonas said:


> Limassol might be an option - there are several choices there (Foleys, Heritage) but I'm afraid I have little personal experience of them. I do know the Nicosian Schools - American Academy (not related to the Larnaca School), Falcon, Highgate, GCSChool, The Grammar School and the English School -widely regarded as being the best on the island in terms of prestige and reputation and also the oldest) - all these schools have few expats and in practice lessons tend to degenerate into Greek - most are patronised by the rich list and in my experience of teaching at one of them, the discipline and standards are not particularly high and similar experiences have been shared by teachers at the other schools at seminars I have attended. I get the impression that the Nicosian schools are more like day care centres with many students being booked in for private lessons in the afternoons and evenings.
> 
> There's not much for kids to do in Nicosia - and it is oppressively hot in the summer. Most weekends it is virtually abandoned as families that can afford it move to the coast or the mountains.
> Limassol is a more cosmopolitan place with greater potential to entertain the kids (similar to Larnaca) with easy access to beaches, water parks, paintball, nature trails etc.


 
I can relate to your description of Nicosian schools (and I guess to your frustation). Cairo has a similar school scene, with rich local parents who spoil their kids and have the upper hand in what and how they learn as well as family owned (and sometimes run) schools. A lot of the same issues. However, there are two or three schools where students are predominantly expats. These tend to be non-profit organisations and of a higher standard, where students have to fit into the system and where expat kids wil not feel isolated. My girls' school is a private business, but run independently by a Canadian team. There are hardly any expats and that suits me fine as I am a dual national English/Egyptian & my wife is Egyptian, so I opted for a decent school that would make my kids fit in rather than one that might offer a better education but put cultural pressures on them. When thinking of moving to Cyprus, again if the choice comes between a superior education or fitting in I would go for fitting in especially with the added language barrier. So, I guess Nicosia looks out. Limassol and Laraca sound much more appealing. Thanks for your help! Still a lot of research to do..


----------

