Local Overseas Schools? … By CPO, from the far side of the planet!

One of the choices international expat families choose for their children is local schools. These schools usually come in 2 or 3 different flavours – pure local schools, local schools that cater to foreign expatriate families and variations of the above in the private school sector but are not international schools with a foreign curriculum.

Advantages

The advantages to such local schools is many fold, but namely they boil down to flexibility, culture, languages and saving money.

Flexibility

So why do you say flexibility? The reasons are perhaps obvious and not so obvious. First of all is location, location, location. When it comes to local schools they are everywhere and usually in close proximity to your home. Near our home are a zillion kindergartens, Primary Schools, Middle Schools and High Schools. So if you add local schools to your mix of choices, your options multiply exceedingly. Depending on where you live there will usually be a large range of school options near to your doorstep.

What About The Cultural Bubble World?

What is the ‘expat bubble’? Hmmm I see it all the time. Excited families moving overseas on a work adventure to experience the new culture? But do they really? Often it boils down to expat families, living in popular expat housing/apartment compounds, meeting with other expat families, going to expat popular bars and restaurants, going to expat churches, going to expat international schools etc etc etc …  I think you get the picture. Many expat families see the host culture through a cordoned off environment like living in an aquarium … or a bubble, and the kids have lives like that too.

What if you could choose a local school, where your children can mix with local kids, making friends with local families through school, experiencing local school life … getting a more authentic taste of … well … being a local! – wouldn’t that be great?!

Not only that but the local school choice naturally caters to more ops for outreach and building relationships with folks. The international community is limited and transitory by nature since folks are always coming and going making long term friendships more difficult.

Languages – Can Little Sussie Become a Polyglot?

I have lots of friends who move around the world seeing that is the nature of the international expat community job scene. Recently one of my friends got a job in a university in Basel, Switzerland. They enrolled their child in the nearby kindergarten. In Switzerland the languages usually covered are English, German and French … sometimes Italian in the south. Another friend in Korea does the same at a local Korean primary and middle school. Thus their children have become fluent in Korean with their second language choices being English and much more popular now Chinese seeing the countries are neighbours and closely economically linked. Likewise I have had friends do similar deals in Africa, South America, Europe and around Asia picking up the local languages such as Japanese, Chinese, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish … speaking fluently like a native speaker.

Can You Save Money?

This is the good thing about local overseas schools, they are cheaper by far then international schools. International schools while they have their perks cost sometimes as much as a Harvard education – at least around my neck of the woods. Local private schools are usually far cheaper and public local schools are basically free in many places except for uniform fees, lunch fees and sometimes transport.

This can be important based on your salary, pay child education package or for the early retirement gang fans who live overseas. I particularly like the early retirement bloggers such as Go Curry Cracker.

Disadvantages

There are some disadvantages to such local schools, but namely they boil down to culture, languages and gaining access.

Can Culture Be A Double Edged Sword?

Only you know your child best, their needs and their ability to adapt to new and different situations.  Like a stranger in a strange land your child may or may not be able to make the jump to their new setting. If they are a gregarious type that feeds on adventure, then they will probably like it a lot. However, if they are more a sensitive introverted type, it may be worth a try, but they may have issues overcoming the cultural hurdles. Many parents think though it is worth the try and that rewards outweigh the difficulties.

Languages? What are the Issues?

Languages can be a definite  bonus. Who wouldn’t want their child to be a polyglot or at least bilingual? However, your child may have other ideas. Choosing a local school has to be a whole family decision and a family discussion has to be part of the decision process. If your child has a knack for learning language, does well in school, has no special needs, and is younger etc, then all these factors bode well for their success. Part of the mix also is their motivation level for learning  languages – motivations for learning a new language are closely linked to success levels in second language acquisition. If there be any doubt then homeschooling or international schools could be your next choice. I have written a post on homeschooling and the international school option blog is still pending.

Another point to note are future education plans for your child’s university and whether that is an important part of the picture. This becomes more pertinent with high school students and how much of the target language they have already acquired … and the like.

Gaining Access

Local overseas schools have their charm and are great for outreach options, but every country and city is different. Most European local schools like in Germany, France or Switzerland are easy enough to get into. However, in larger cities there may be stiff competition for access or admission – especially in places like Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Japan or Korea etc … Check with your company HR, the local expatriate community, online expat magazines and forums and the like or perhaps your embassy. These are good sources of info on the local school scene and admissions processes including if your child as an expat is eligible to be a student there.

Our Choice and Why?

We looked at the pros and cons and chose the local school option.  Our daughter’s school is close by, we have made lots of local friends through our daughter’s classmates’ families which is great for outreach and developing connections. She has a great school, with great teachers, and great friends … and it is FREE 🙂 except for uniform and lunch fees. Our daughter loves it, she is bilingual and I really like the cultural experiences perks. It has been a win – win for our family, daughter and school where she is a bit of star for her uniqueness.

Going Local? 🙂

So what do you think? Are overseas local schools a viable option choice for you?