Chinese International School

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Location
Chinese International School
1 Hau Yuen Path Braemar Hill, North Point, Hong Kong
Information
School district	Eastern District, Hong Kong
Head teacher	Dr. Theodore S. Faunce
Enrollment	1,410
Type	Reception-Year 13 (ages 4-18), private, international, co-educational
Established	1983
Homepage	http://www.cis.edu.hk

The Chinese International School (漢基國際學校, pinyin: Hànjī Gúojì Xúexìao) is a private Reception-Year 13 school in Hong Kong. It is characterised by its Bilingual programme taught in English and Chinese (Mandarin). Students come from diverse backgrounds, with 30 nationalities represented. At the Secondary level, students pursue the International Baccalaureate Middle Years and Diploma programmes. The campus is located in the residential neighborhood of Braemar Hill in North Point, adjacent to spectacular country park green areas.

1 History

[edit] History

The school was founded in the early 1980s, and had its first intake of 75 students in Years 1 to 3 in September 1983. Its first location was at 7 Eastern Hospital Road in Causeway Bay.

In 1986 and 1989, the school expanded to additional sites at 10 Borrett Road and 26 Kennedy Road. In 1991, the entire student body of about 800 students moved to the current campus on Braemar Hill.^[1].

[edit] Administration

The school is overseen by a Board of Governors of approximately fifteen members chaired by Geoffrey Mansfield. Dr. Theodore S. Faunce joined the school as Headmaster at the start of the 2006-07 school year.

[edit] Facilities

The school's campus is comprised of 7 "blocks" connected by open-air walkways. Facilities include specialized labs and studios for the sciences (8), information and design technology (12) and the arts (9), as well as a 200-seat auditorium, four gymnasiums, a 25-meter indoor swimming pool, fitness room and outdoor climbing wall. It also has football courts, tennis courts, basketball courts, volleyball courts available for student's leisure after school.

The school also has at least 30 rooms where state-of-the-art computers are available for students to work on a wide range of subjects. Students and teachers are able to save files on network drives and access them at home via a "NetStorage" service. Students, parents and teachers can share important information and documents at a module named "myCIS".

[edit] Curriculum

Students are organized into separate Primary and Secondary "schools" but derive an overarching unity in a single mission embodied in shared values and a shared campus, a similar day and a linked curriculum. The Primary school is made up of about 600 students aged 4 to 12 in Reception to Year 6, while the Secondary school is made up of about 800 students aged 11 to 18 in Years 7 to 13.

A defining characteristic of the school is the fact that all students pursue a single program taught in both Chinese (Mandarin) and English (at the Secondary level, students also have the option to study French or Spanish) - that is, there are no separate language streams. In Reception to Year 2, equal time is devoted to the two languages. In Years 3 to 6, the ratio shifts to 65% English and to 35% Chinese. In the Secondary school, the required Chinese-language component continues throughout the program, although the main language of instruction is English.

[edit] Primary School

CIS has adopted an innovative approach to the teaching of the Primary curriculum in English and Chinese. This approach involves a variety of collaborative teacher-partnerships, which ensure that students receive close teacher attention while also experiencing the two languages in use in a balanced and integrated way. Every homeroom is headed by a pair of teachers with native-language abilities in English and Mandarin, and at every year level teachers of the multiple languages collaborate to plan and teach outcomes from the school's inquiry-based integrated program.

Subjects are taught but through age-appropriate units of study that fit into overarching categories, such as "Understanding Our World" and "Understanding Ourselves".

The Primary curriculum is designed to encourage early development of personal responsibility, mutual respect, and freedom of expression.

[edit] Secondary School

In the Secondary school, the International Baccalaureate Organization's "Middle Years" (IBMYP) and "Diploma" (IBDP) programs have been adopted as the framework for the CIS curriculum because of their convergence with the mission which places a strong emphasis on critical thinking and inter-cultural understanding, as well as because of the internationally recognized qualifications those programs confer.

All students in Years 7-11 pursue the Middle Years Program (IBMYP) and all students in Years 12-13 pursue the Diploma Program (IBDP). At the end of Year 13, students sit internationally administered exams. To complete the MYP, students are assessed internally based on their work throughout Years 10 and 11, including the hallmark "Personal Project" - a year-long undertaking involving research, reflection and writing about an area of interest selected by the student.

CIS was one of the first schools in Hong Kong to offer the IBDP, having done so since 1992, and in 2005, was the first school in Hong Kong to offer the MYP. It has achieved exceptional results, with both top marks obtained by individual students as well as consistently strong average point scores achieved by large cohorts of students.

Those who do not satisfy the IB requirements are given a certificate for exams completed. An IB diploma guarantees, but is not necessary for, graduation.