# Moving our 5 girls from UK to SG education system



## Cambridgemumof5 (May 8, 2013)

Husband is currently going through the the usual interview process for an investment bank that moved their headquarters to SG last year. Actually he's been head hunted to front their IT operations over there.
No idea what the package entails (although it will need to be more than his current one; approx 175000 GBP) although I guess we'll find out soon enough, if he progresses.
I'm at the 'trying to laugh it off stage' cos it's probably not going to amount to anything, but still slightly worried it might. Main worry is that not only do we have 5 kids to find schools for, my eldest is almost halfway through her GCSEs.
Some of you may think it stupid to be concerned at such an early stage, but when our youngest is 5, and with Asia becoming the banking hub, the opportunity may present itself again.
Looking at the methods (a ton of cash!) needed to secure a place at the head of the queue for some of the top international schools (what companies in their right minds, pays these fees lol?), I'm wondering how to make it OK for my very academic 15 year old. My 13 year old would probably also need to do the British system, unless SG schools teach in English? Younger 3 would be OK at local schools I guess, but I've read you can't get in very easily.
Do I need to home school them (gulp)? Like I wouldn't have enough to do, settling into a new country!
Thanks for reading.


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## Stratum (Apr 12, 2013)

Hi You shouldn't worry about teaching in school
English is the usual language used in lessons 
unless for their own language class such as Mandarin for Chinese 

There is couple of international schools around
I could help to find out more for you if u could email me more details 
at [email protected]


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## ann d (Jun 19, 2012)

Hi
In singapore most of the government schools the medium of speaking language is English. In fact most singaporean kids excel in english. Of coz some have their own accent called singlish but in all lessons in clsssrooms are taught in perfect English . The education system in singapore is pretty recongize..

My advice is if u want to integrate your kids into the singapore society n not just put them through private or international schools, what u can do is put them to Independent Government schools. These schools have bigger funding n better programs. 

Good luck!


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## anneteoh (Mar 20, 2010)

Hi Cambridgemumof5
I was teaching in London and did several stints in Sg; my last post as at RGS ( Raffles Girls' School).
I think you would find that money wise and education wise, it's definitely more of an advantage to be in Sg. Teachers get 3 bonuses a year and those in the private/public sectors, two bonuses a year. In one year, my Dec bonus was 3.5 months plus. You should also get a 25% gratuity at the end of your service.
For all that, the expectations are high and the work is all about pushing boundaries and thinking out of boxes, incurring longer hours too; but there're also many treats.
Sg has a solidly well established education system. The MOE ( Ministry of Education) and runs the Neighbourhood schools ( similar to comprehensives); there're also church, local and international private schools . It used to be either free schooling or marginal fees for foreign children at the neighbourhood schools; but from 2012, I believe , there are nominal charges for foreign children and PRs; perhaps of about $200 a term, (about 95 pounds) which is not much considering the value you get for your children at these schools. Sg schools put a great deal into their CCAS ( EXTRA CURRICULAR-ACTIVITIES) and
their students often excel and win internationally acclaimed prizes be it music, dance, Science, Maths, debate, air and sea cadets, sport or parachuting. The range is vast and supported by high professional coaches. The academic scene is equally strong and there's also emphasis on character moulding with civics and ethics. School hours are long - for some, the days stretch from 7.00 a.m. to 2 - 6 p.m.
One takes one's child to school and leaves them to learn and develop there. The school does everything for them.
There are some outstanding MOE schools - The Nanyang Girsl, Anglo-Chinese Boys, Raffles Girls'/Boys schools and' Raffles Institution (many more) and the more expensive International Schools. Obviously, the neighbourhood schools cost least but they're comparatively excellent. The national average score for Maths and Science is 98 % - 100% and for English, it's at least 87%. There're also mother tongue languages - Mandarin, Malay, Indian languages and European languages in all Neighbourhood schools.
Sg is highly competitive and everything is a striving at cutting edge developments - you can't find a better place for your children's education. For me, the Neighbourhood schools are as good as any other; but of course, there're variations in terms of achievements at the highest ends. In all schools however, the underpinning idea is to educate for thinkers, leaders and pioneers. You'll be surprised how much your children will learn in Sg schools. I believe many children get extra home tuition even when that's not necessary - you need to weigh up your own children's needs as they go along. 
All I can say is that the teaching is of a very good standard and discipline is usually good though you might find the odd noisy student/class nowadays; but you can support the school by complaining to the head teacher or MOE. 
You'll be surprised how different it all is out there - you won't have to cook at all if you don't want to; you'll be able to have maids, drivers and you know your children are safe wherever they go in Sg. BTW, they do the O level rather than GCSE for the 15 - 17 year old secondary final year. 
Enjoy and hope you'll like it. Your very academic 15 yr old should do extremely well In schools such as RGS, Nanyang Girls or the top international schools - Google for information. BTW, most students in the top 35% of all schools get 8 - 12 distinctions at O level and higher still at A level.


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## Galluslass (Mar 27, 2013)

The younger children would find it easier if starting off young in the local system. Think your older children might struggle. Singapore does a have a good education system but some of my friends who went down the local route ended up pulling their kids out after a few years and putting them in international schools. Some kids will do well and some will struggle more due to the bigger class sizes etc.

Are school fees not included on your package.


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