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The English Schools Foundation (ESF) is an organisation that runs 22
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 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 ...
. It is Hong Kong's largest English-medium organisation of international schools. It was founded in 1967 with the passage of the English Schools Foundation Ordinance, under which it is mandated to provide "without regard to race or religion, a modern liberal education through the medium of the English language". The foundation receives an ongoing subsidy from the
Hong Kong Government The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government, refers to the Executive (government), executive authorities of Hong Kong Special administrative regions of China, ...
, which is being phased out. It is also funded through tuition fees. In the 2021-22 academic year, these fees stood at
HK$ The Hong Kong dollar (, sign: HK$; code: HKD) is the official currency of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is subdivided into 100 cents or 1000 mils. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is the monetary authority of Hong Kong and ...
115,800 per annum for primary school students and HK$133,800 per annum for Years 7–11 secondary school students (HK$140,700 for Years 12 and 13). Although all of the ESF schools are comprehensive and non-selective, students in the foundation have generally done well academically, with 90% of their graduates going to different universities around the world. The schools have progressively improved their facilities, especially in ICT with the help of donations from Parent Teacher Associations. The current chief executive of the English Schools Foundation is Belinda Greer.


History

ESF was founded in 1967, when Beacon Hill School and Island School started accepting students. In 1975, Bradbury School opened as Causeway Bay School on Eastern Hospital Road. In 1977, South Island School started as a nucleus of additional classes to Island School. The school moved to its present site at Nam Fung Road in 1983. Following extensive government review, it was determined that English-language grant-aided schools were no longer viable. These schools were subsequently handed over to ESF. Glenealy School, Kennedy School, Kowloon Junior School, Peak School and Quarry Bay School became ESF schools in 1979, followed by King George V School in 1981. In 1982, Sha Tin College, with about 50 students and six teaching staff, opened on the premises of KGV School, where it was known as Sha Tin Annexe. The school was renamed Sha Tin College in 1983, and moved to its current location in 1985. In 1988, Sha Tin Junior School opened next to Sha Tin College. After the end of the subventions in 2016, tuition prices at ESF schools were to increase. This meant that international families with lower incomes would have increasingly difficult periods finding affordable English medium education. The
Hong Kong National Security Law The Hong Kong national security law, officially the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a piece of national security legislation concerning Hong Kong. It ...
was enacted on 1 July 2020. Belinda Greer, the chief executive officer of the ESF, stated that currently it is not required to adopt the
Education Bureau The Education Bureau (EDB) is responsible for formulating and implementing education policies in Hong Kong. The bureau is headed by the Secretary for Education and oversees agencies including University Grants Committee and Student Fina ...
education guidelines under the NSL, and that ESF schools would be following their current practices.


Schools

Schools that are part of ESF include:


Admissions

ESF schools are non-selective. However, students must demonstrate sufficient English language skills so that they can benefit from the foundation's English-medium learning environment. Applicants are placed on a waiting list, and will be invited to an interview or assessment when vacancies become available. They will be required to complete age-appropriate assessments to determine if they can engage with an English medium curriculum. Starting from August 2022, ESF has become an all-through educational system. This means that children who join K1 from August 2020 will be guaranteed a place at an ESF primary school, then a secondary school up until Year 13, if they can benefit from a mainstream, English-medium education. Each September, children in K1, Year 1 and Year 7 go through a central application procedure in the year before admission. Applications are made online, on the online admission system. The applications are then sorted by priority category, and then each school makes an interview list based on the parent's preferences, availability and Education Bureau requirements. For other applications received throughout the year, they are processed and also placed on the school's waiting list. Children in kindergarten are assessed based on a play visit in December of each year. The play visit allows the school to observe the children, talk with the parents, and determine if the school is appropriate for the child. For applications to primary and secondary school, students will be invited for an interview and assessment when new places become available. If the student is successful, a place will be offered subject to availability. Applications to Year 12 for the IB Diploma programme have special requirements: the student must have either achieved or been predicted 5 grade C's or above, completed the IB Middle Years programme, or completed an equivalent national qualification. Other students will be considered on a case-by-case basis. With the exception of Discovery College and Renaissance College, all ESF primary and secondary schools only accept students that are in the school's zone. However, ESF kindergartens are not zoned. ESF has provisions for students that have special educational needs. After SEN students go through the application procedure and are accepted, a moderation team will observe the student, and make recommendations on whether to apply for a learning support place, or a place at the Jockey Club Sarah Roe School.


Academics

Its schools have traditionally provided a curriculum based on the British curriculum, but the organisation has transitioned to a more international curriculum from the
International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly known as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB Dip ...
, starting with changing the Year 12 and 13 programme from the British GCE A-Levels to the
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme 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 ...
. As at 2021-22, 21 ESF schools are authorised as International Baccalaureate World Schools, including five kindergartens, nine primary schools, five secondary schools and the two all-through schools.


Early years

All five of ESF's kindergartens follow the IB Primary Years Programme, designed for students aged between 3 and 5. The curriculum encourages children to learn through inquiry and hands-on experiences. It is focused on early literacy and numeracy, as well as Mandarin Chinese which is integrated into the curriculum. At Abacus kindergarten, there is a choice between an English stream and a bilingual, English and Mandarin stream.


Primary education

ESF primary schools follow the IB Primary Years Programme, and cater to students from Year 1 to Year 6. The PYP centres on the development of the whole child and provides for children's academic, social, physical, emotional and cultural needs. Students learn the PYP's six transdisciplinary themes, and develop and understanding of concepts, which allows them to make connections both within the subject, and to other subjects. Students are taught using an inquiry-based approach, and are encouraged to be curious and to interact to issues locally and globally. In addition, all students are taught Chinese and the four skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing. They also learn about Chinese culture, and their history and society.


Secondary education

The curriculum of ESF secondary schools is based on the IB Middle Years Programme between Year 7 to 9. At Years 10 to 11, students follow a curriculum designed by the school, that leads to IGCSE and GCSE qualifications, with the exception of Discovery College and Renaissance college which follow the MYP. At Years 12 and 13, students can either take the IB Diploma programme, or an applied learning pathway such as BTEC or the IB Career-related programme. Students study a range of subjects such as English, mathematics, science, the humanities, creative and performing arts, design technology and an additional language at an appropriate level.


Examination results

The ESF has received one of its best mean
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 ...
scores amongst its 969 students graduating in the class of 2021 in its history, at a 38.9 out of a possible 45. Sixty-four of these students received a perfect score of 45, which fewer than 0.01% of IB Diploma students receive. In May 2021, 1,000 students completed the IGCSE/
GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...
programme. For exams using the A*-G system, 40% of students obtained A* and 96% obtained A*-C, and for exams using the 9-1 system, 50% of students obtained a grade 9 or 8, and 97% obtained grades from 9 to 4. This was the fifteenth consecutive year that more than half of students attained either an A or an A* grade. For Discovery College and Renaissance College which take the IB Middle Years programme, in 2020, the mean grade per subject was 5.7 points, higher than the worldwide average of 4.6 points. The mean number of total points per student was 52.2 points out of a maximum possible score of 63 points.


Higher education destinations

Between 2014 and 2018, the most popular university destinations were the UK (42%), Hong Kong (22%), the USA (15%), Canada (10%) and Australia (6%). The top five university destinations were the
University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the fi ...
(386),
CUHK The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public research university in Ma Liu Shui, Hong Kong, formally established in 1963 by a charter granted by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. It is the territory's second-oldest university an ...
(222), the
University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...
(199),
HKUST The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) is a public research university in Clear Water Bay Peninsula, New Territories, Hong Kong. Founded in 1991 by the British Hong Kong Government, it was the territory's third institution ...
(194), and the
University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
(158).


Student demographics

The ethnic groups of the foundations' students include local
residents of Hong Kong The Hong Kong Basic Law classifies residents of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region () as either permanent residents or non-permanent residents. Hong Kong residents have rights under the Basic Law including freedom of speech, freedom of ...
, Europeans and other nearby regional countries. the students came from over 60 countries; the ESF schools, except kindergartens, are required to have at least 70% of their students hold foreign passports. , ESF had a total of 17,700 students, of whom 70% had parents who were permanent residents of Hong Kong. The total number of students in 2013 was 13,000 and the same percentage had permanent resident parents. Printed as "A very expensive lesson."


Governance

The ESF Board of Governors manages ESF's affairs and maintains its educational standards. Its main responsibilities include working with the Chief Executive Officer to establish the foundation's strategic direction, review the overall curriculum strategy for all schools, and ensure the efficient use of resources. Every ESF school has a school council. The school councils' main responsibilities are to work with the principal to establish the strategic direction for the school; to approve the school's curriculum that aligns with the curriculum strategy approved by the Board of Governors; and to approve the allocation of the school’s annual budget. ESF was established by government ordinance in 1967. There were no amendments to the ordinance until 2008, when an amendment to the ESF Ordinance was passed by LegCo in March 2018. In response to shortcomings in governance that were highlighted by LegCo in January 2005, the ESF carried out an extensive consultation process to produce an amended ordinance, which provide for a number of changes to the governance and management of ESF. Some of these are in response to the shortcomings identified by the Public Accounts Committee. The most substantial changes were to the structure and composition of ESF's governing body and committees, including the creation of a new Board of Governors to replace the Foundation.


Government subsidy debate

Unlike most other international schools in Hong Kong, schools run by the ESF receive an ongoing subsidy (called a 'subvention') from the Hong Kong Government. The reason for this is historical and lies in the foundation's statutory basis. Before the Handover of 1997, it was generally accepted that this subsidy was fair and that the foundation had a reason to be subsidised. There has been controversy regarding subsidies to the foundation. The fiscal deficit suffered by the Hong Kong Government following the
Asian Financial Crisis The Asian financial crisis was a period of financial crisis that gripped much of East Asia and Southeast Asia beginning in July 1997 and raised fears of a worldwide economic meltdown due to financial contagion. However, the recovery in 1998–1 ...
forced the government to cut costs. There were also allegations that the foundation has misused funds on entertainment and over-extravagant recruitment procedures. A report criticising the ESF's use of funds was published by the
Hong Kong Government The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government, refers to the Executive (government), executive authorities of Hong Kong Special administrative regions of China, ...
in November 2002, resulting in a continuing debate about whether the subsidy should be cut or even suspended. The subvention was cut for several years in line with a general reduction in government expenditure and then frozen. The ESF has recently addressed concerns about governance by putting forward a new
Ordinance Ordinance may refer to: Law * Ordinance (Belgium), a law adopted by the Brussels Parliament or the Common Community Commission * Ordinance (India), a temporary law promulgated by the President of India on recommendation of the Union Cabinet * ...
that will change the way the organisation operates. The foundation imposed a refundable capital levy of HK$25,000 per student in 2011. The changes culminate in the phasing out of government's annual subsidy (worth HK$283 million) with effect from 2016, tapering to zero in 2028–29.Lau, Kenneth (6 June 2014)
"ESF to launch non-refundable levy"
''The Standard''
After a comprehensive internal review of financing needs, the foundation decided to introduce one-off non-refundable levy starting in the 2015/16 school year. The will be set at HK$38,000 for first-year students for, with lesser amount for those joining higher age groups – HK$3,800 will be charged for Year 13 entrants. The ESF expects to raise an extra HK$50 million every year through the levy, for the replacement of schools. In 2014 government subvention comprised 17.7% of ESF's operating income. Tuition fees made up 74% while the balance was generated through interest income, renting out property, and other minor sources of income.


Controversies

The ESF was involved in the controversial 2015 Hong Kong heavy metal in drinking water incidents. Amid the scandal in September 2015, ESF tested the water in its schools, collecting over 300 samples. Four of the ESF schools were found to have a high amount of
lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
in their water supplies. The news was announced through the ESF newsletter. It stated that one sample found in each of
King George V School (Hong Kong) King George V School (KGV, pronounced "K-G-Five") is a coeducational international secondary independent school of the English Schools Foundation (ESF), located in Ho Man Tin, Hong Kong. The school has more than 1,900 students and is one of the o ...
,
Sha Tin College Sha Tin College (STC) is a co-educational international secondary school in Hong Kong and a member of the English Schools Foundation. Established in 1982 as the Shatin Annexe based in the campus of KGV School in Kowloon Tong, the school ...
,
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 ...
and
West Island School West Island School (WIS; ) is a co-educational, private, international secondary school in Hong Kong which provides an English-language education to students of all abilities from age eleven to eighteen with a "modern liberal education" based on ...
was found to have a higher amount of lead than the government's guidelines, and that all the other schools had water that passed the inspection. The newsletter did not specify where the source of the water containing high lead were in those schools. The individual schools have halted the use of those water sources pending an investigation.


See also

*
List of English Schools Foundation schools The English Schools Foundation (ESF) manages 22 schools in Hong Kong: five secondary schools, nine primary schools, two "all through" schools, five kindergartens and one school for children with special needs. Kindergartens *Abacus International ...
*
EMI schools EMI schools in Hong Kong are secondary schools that use English as a medium of instruction. there are currently around 100 EMI schools, accounting for around 30% of the total local secondary schools. Larry Chuen-ho Chow and Yiu-Kwan Fan sta ...
*
Education in Hong Kong Education in Hong Kong used to be largely modelled on that of the United Kingdom, particularly the English system. Since 2012, the overhaul of secondary school diploma has introduced changes to the number of school years as well as the two-t ...


References


External links

* {{Esfschool Educational organisations based in Hong Kong Educational institutions established in 1967 1967 establishments in Hong Kong