West Island School (WIS; ) is a
co-educational
Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...
,
private
Private or privates may refer to:
Music
* " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation''
* Private (band), a Denmark-based band
* "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
,
international
International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations".
International may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011
* ''International'' (New Order album), 2002
* ''International'' (The T ...
secondary school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...
in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
which provides an English-language education to students of all abilities from age eleven to eighteen with a "modern liberal education" based on British-influenced international curricula. The campus is a purpose-built development located at 250 Victoria Road, on the slopes of
Mount Davis on
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...
. Students from Years Seven to Nine study the West Island School Middle Years Diploma; students in Years Ten to Eleven follow either the
IGCSE
The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based examination similar to GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising prior attainm ...
, or the MYP
IB Middle Years Programme
The International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (MYP) is an educational programme for students between the ages of 11 to 16 around the world as part of the International Baccalaureate (IB) continuum. Middle Year Programme is intended to pr ...
; and students in Years Twelve to Thirteen follow the
IB Diploma
The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into ...
curricula. The school is a member of the
English Schools Foundation
The English Schools Foundation (ESF) is an organisation that runs 22 international schools in Hong Kong. It is Hong Kong's largest English-medium organisation of international schools. It was founded in 1967 with the passage of the English Sc ...
, and as such still receives a small but symbolic subvention from the Government that has been frozen since
the 1997 Handover of Hong Kong.
History
West Island School, began when the
English Schools Foundation
The English Schools Foundation (ESF) is an organisation that runs 22 international schools in Hong Kong. It is Hong Kong's largest English-medium organisation of international schools. It was founded in 1967 with the passage of the English Sc ...
recognised a need for a new school on
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...
in the late-1980s; after
Island School
Island School ( Chinese: 港島中學) is a co-educational international school located in Hong Kong. It is the founding school of the English Schools Foundation, and is still a member. The school has been accredited by international organisatio ...
and
South Island School
South Island School is a private international school founded by the English Schools Foundation of Hong Kong, located at 50 Nam Fung Road, Aberdeen, Hong Kong, with about 1,400 students enrolled and 107 teachers. Students come from diverse bac ...
. This was because of the recent residential boom in
Discovery Bay
Discovery Bay (DB) is a resort town on Lantau Island, Hong Kong. It consists of mixed, primarily residential, development, in particular upmarket residential development and private and public recreational facilities, including garden houses, ...
, which then had no secondary school to cater for the growing need of English language secondary school education on the outlying islands. After government approval of a site and funding in November 1990, plans for West Island School began in earnest, with the school operating as an offshoot of Island School at a temporary home; the old military hospital in Borrett Road,
Mid-Levels
Mid-Levels is an affluent residential area on Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It is located between Victoria Peak and Central. Residents are predominantly more affluent Hong Kong locals and expatriate professionals.
The Mid-Levels is further ...
.
West Island's first intake was in September 1991, when eighty-four Year 7 students were enrolled in four classes. In the meantime, work progressed on a purpose-built school in
Pokfulam, designed by award-winning architect
Patrick Lau
Patrick Lau Sau-shing is a Hong Kong architect, legislative councillor, educator and civil servant. He had been a representative on the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (LegCo) as a member for the Architectural, Surveying and Planning Functi ...
, who was responsible for two other
international school
An international school is an institution that promotes education in an international environment or framework. Although there is no uniform definition or criteria, international schools are usually characterized by a multinational student body a ...
s in Hong Kong, the
Lycée Français International Victor Segalen
French International School "Victor Segalen" of Hong Kong (FIS in English, french: Lycée français international Victor-Segalen; LFI; ) is a French international school in Hong Kong. It is the only accredited French school in Hong Kong (lin ...
in Tai Hang and the American
Hong Kong International School
Hong Kong International School (HKIS) is an international private school with campuses in Tai Tam and Repulse Bay, Hong Kong. The school was founded in 1966. Today, HKIS spans from reception one to the twelfth grade. Its Lower and Upper Primar ...
in
Tai Tam
Tai Tam or ''Tytam'' is an area in Southern District on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. Tai Tam means a ''big pool'' in the Chinese language which illustrates a triangular bay, namely Tai Tam Bay between Stanley Peninsula, D'Aguilar Peak ...
.
In September 1994, the new purpose-built building opened. This consisted of a ten-storey building consisting of three blocks: housing classrooms, laboratories, an auditorium and a 25-metre indoor pool, linked together by open-air walkways and air-conditioned faculty-corridors.
Over the years, renovations further increased the usability of the building, although by 2001 the school was getting rather crowded with over 1,000 students enrolled; paving the way for the creation of a fourth block. This new addition opened for use in September 2003.
Curriculum
The school offers secondary education from Years 7 to 13, for pupils aged 10–19. West Island School students follow the
International General Certificate of Secondary Education
The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based examination similar to GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising prior attainm ...
program in Years 10-11 and pursue the
IB Diploma
The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into ...
and
BTEC Extended Diploma
The BTEC (Business and Technology Education Council) Level 3 diploma is a Further Education qualification and vocational qualification taken in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The qualification is organised and awarded by Pearson within the ...
in Years 12–13.
The schools also offers
AS-Level courses for Year 10 students pursuing in the study of
critical thinking
Critical thinking is the analysis of available facts, evidence, observations, and arguments to form a judgement. The subject is complex; several different definitions exist, which generally include the rational, skeptical, and unbiased analysis ...
and
entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...
.
The grades achieved by West Island students in IGCSE and IB examinations place them generously above similar schools across the world. In 2011, around 60% of IGCSE passes were at A* or A.
West Island also offers extracurricular activities run by both staff and students. Furthermore, students also have the opportunity to compete with other teams from other international schools as well as local schools from across Hong Kong and the region.
West Island School also participates in sports, with the school's track, swimming, field hockey, volleyball, martial arts, and netball teams placing well in
HKSSF
The Hong Kong Schools Sports Federation (HKSSF, ) is a non-profit schools sports organisation based in Hong Kong. Formed in 1 September 1997, it is the sports governing body of different major school sports events, organising local secondary and ...
rankings. West Island School's football team has participated in 4 HKSSF finals in the last 5 years, and won three gold medals. In 2011, the school won the
BOCHK Bauhinia Bowl, as the highest ranked co-educational school in Hong Kong.
"List of Champion Schools 2010–2011"
page 8. HK Island & Kowloon Secondary Schools Regional Committee, Hong Kong Schools Sports Federation. Retrieved 2017-06-07.
School Council
WIS is a member school of the English Schools Foundation
The English Schools Foundation (ESF) is an organisation that runs 22 international schools in Hong Kong. It is Hong Kong's largest English-medium organisation of international schools. It was founded in 1967 with the passage of the English Sc ...
. WIS is governed by the "School Council" composed of teachers, parents, and management staff.
See also
*English Schools Foundation
The English Schools Foundation (ESF) is an organisation that runs 22 international schools in Hong Kong. It is Hong Kong's largest English-medium organisation of international schools. It was founded in 1967 with the passage of the English Sc ...
*Island School
Island School ( Chinese: 港島中學) is a co-educational international school located in Hong Kong. It is the founding school of the English Schools Foundation, and is still a member. The school has been accredited by international organisatio ...
*South Island School
South Island School is a private international school founded by the English Schools Foundation of Hong Kong, located at 50 Nam Fung Road, Aberdeen, Hong Kong, with about 1,400 students enrolled and 107 teachers. Students come from diverse bac ...
References
{{Coord, 22, 16, 21, N, 114, 07, 32, E, type:edu, display=title
Secondary schools in Hong Kong
English Schools Foundation schools
Educational institutions established in 1991
Sandy Bay, Hong Kong
International Baccalaureate schools in Hong Kong
1991 establishments in Hong Kong