German Swiss International School

German Swiss International School Deutsch-Schweizerische Internationale Schule
Location
11 Guildford Road Hong Kong
Information
Type	Private, international, kindergarten, primary, secondary, vocational, co-educational.
Established	1969
Principal	Dr. Jens-Peter Green
Faculty	Not applicable
Enrollment	approx. 12501
Years	Kindergarten, Klasse 1-13, Years 1-13, Berufsschule
Website	http://www.gsis.edu.hk/

German Swiss International School
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	德國瑞士國際學校
Simplified Chinese	德国瑞士国际学校
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin dé guó ruì shì guó jì xué xiào
German name
German	Deutsch-Schweizerische Internationale Schule

The German Swiss International School was established in 1969 as the first international school for German-speaking expatriate children in Hong Kong, but also serves numerous local Chinese. It is split into two streams, a larger English Stream and a smaller German Stream. Originally the English stream included some expatriate native-English speakers, but these are now few and far between.

The school is built on land provided by the Hong Kong government. It had 73 students in its opening year, but now has more than 1,200 students from over 31 different countries.

Structure

GSIS is composed of four schools - a kindergarten, a primary school, a secondary school and a Business College (German Berufsschule or vocational training school).

The kindergarten, primary and secondary schools are separated into two 'streams', German and English. Prior to the 2006-2007 school year, the English stream was known as the International stream. The German stream follows the German education system, taking the Abitur (German high school exams) in their final year. The English stream students follow the British system, completing GCSE and IGCSE examinations at the end of Year 11, and GCE A-Levels at the end of Year 13. The school is currently in the process of switching to the IB.

Often, there is only one or two classes in the German Stream per year, mainly because the number of German expatriate families in Hong Kong is far lower than the number of Chinese families who choose to send their children to an international school. The English Stream has two classes per year in Primary and three classes per year in Secondary, with more senior Years often having fewer class groups. For example, the largest number of classes Year 13 in the German Stream has ever had is two, whereas Year 7 in the English Stream normally has three.

English Stream

Class divisions are based on academic performance in some subjects. Classes in the English Primary Department are shuffled every two years to achieve academic balance in the classes, break up cliques and for general social engineering.

The English stream officially follows the UK National Curriculum in the Primary Department, although in practice it falls short in several areas, in particular history, science and geography.

History is confined to Ancient history, with Ancient Egypt studied in Year Three, Ancient Rome in Year Four and Ancient Greece in Year Five. There is no history in Year Six and no modern history is taught at all in the English Primary Department.

Science is taught in the English Primary Department through voluntary after-school sessions. There are no textbooks, or homework or tests for science.

Students take their GCSEs/IGCSEs at the end of Year 11, their AS-Levels at the end of Year 12, and their A-Levels at the end of Year 13. The examining boards are Cambridge and Edexcel, depending on what subject is being taken.

German language

German is a compulsory part of the curriculum up until IGCSE level (Year 11).

Starting from Year 6 students are separated into different classes based on levels of achievement in the language. In Year 7 students who studied German in primary school are placed into higher sets, whereas new students are placed into accelerated classes. Divisions occur in Year 8 through to Year 10, and even in Year 11 there may be some movement of students from one set to another, depending on their performance. Students placed into the top three sets in Year 8 usually take the GCSE German examination in Year 9. Other students take the same examination in Year 11, with the rest of their GCSEs.

German exams

Students in the top three sets in Year 11 are required to sit the Das Deutsches Sprachdiplom Stufe I (Level 1) set by the KMK exam board, as well as the AS German exam.

Students who opt to continue to German A-Level also take Das Deutsches Sprachdiplom Stufe II (Level 2). The Sprachdiplom exam is a language certificate that describes the standards of qualified German language skills required for studying in Germany. This level represents the level of German language proficiency required to successfully attend higher education in Germany.

Mathematics

In Year 8, Mathematics classes are separated into three groups: one advanced set and two lower sets. In Year 9, however, the Mathematics classes are separated into four sets: highly advanced, advanced, upper lower and lower. The advanced classes generally take the GCSE Mathematics examination in Year 10.

Third language subject

Students in the English Stream also choose a third language, either French or Chinese (Mandarin), apart from the compulsory languages English and German. From Year 2, when English Stream students must take German lessons, they are immediately split into 2-3 different groups depending on performance. The same goes for Chinese and French, but unlike Chinese, which starts in Year 4, French starts in Year 7 for students who choose to pursue it.

Compulsory GCSE subjects

There are several compulsory GCSE subjects. These are English Language, English Literature, German and Mathematics. Students are also required to take at least one science course and one humanities course, choosing from Physics, Chemistry and Biology; and Geography, History and Economics respectively. There are no compulsory AS- or A-Level subjects, only that a minimum of three A-Levels are taken.

German Stream

The German Stream follows the German Curriculum; students who continue to K13 are obliged to sit the Abitur exams.

Public Examinations

Students are entered for the GCSE/IGCSE examinations in Year 11 for core subjects and additional subjects. Core subjects include English Language, English Literature, German and Mathematics. The additional subjects include languages, arts, humanities, and sciences. The languages include French and Chinese (Mandarin). The sciences are Physics, Chemistry and Biology, and the humanities are Economics, History and Geography. Additionally, Art, Music, Drama and Physical Education are available as well. The same subjects are available at AS-Level however, at A-Level English Language and Economics are no longer offered.

As the students progress into their Year 12, students choose at least three A-Level subjects. Each A-Level qualification consists of six modules, the first three of which make up an AS-Level qualification. Each A-Level is out of a total of six hundred points, but each module and exam within a module may carry different weightings. The format of the A-Level also differs, depending on the subject.

Students have achieved phenomenal A-Level and GCSE grades internationally, and many students also independently take the SAT I and II, for applications to universities in the United States.

Facilities

The "Mothers' Committee" raise money through various events, such as the annual Christmas Bazaar, to fund the building of new facilities, such as:

• The school's solar-heated 25 metre swimming pool (to be demolished shortly as part of the Peak campus renovation)
• Two libraries, one in the Middle Building and one in the Upper building
• Projector, "ActivBoard" (interactive whiteboard), computer, DVD/VCR player, cassette recorder and iPod player in most classrooms; most classrooms are also fitted with a "Visualiz"

All students and staff have bar-coded identification cards, allowing easy borrowing of textbooks and library books throughout the year. These cards can also be used as a smart card to pay for cafeteria food, currently managed by catering company Sodexho.

Location

The schools's original, and still its main, campus is located on The Peak, bordering a country park. Across the road from the school is a small shopping complex which also houses the school's cafe "The Lounge". GSIS is about to embark on a major renovation of the Peak campus.

Starting from the beginning of the 2010-2011 academic year both German and English Kindergartens will relocate to a new site in Pok Fu Lam, which will also house the two lower years of the German and English Primary departments on a temporary basis for the duration of the renovation work on The Peak.

A third location, in Wan Chai, has been secured as a "decanting" facility for the four older years of Primary students (both English and German streams) while the renovation is under way (expected to be 2012-2016).

The temporary arrangements for the renovation were finalised after many months of very public disagreement between the school Board, which favoured a decanting site in Ma On Shan in the New Territories, and many parents concerned about the lengthly commute and the inevitable accompanying disruption. This reached a head when an Extraordinary General Meeting voted to reject the Board's proposals, following which the Board announced its intention to proceed with them anyway. Only the identification (by a parent, not the school administration) of an alternative site in Wan Chai avoided further conflict.

Subject to financing, the school may then undertake a further phase of renovation including the possibility of re-instating the swimming pool, but this would not take place until after 2016.

The Business College is based in Sai Ying Pun.

Dress Code and School Rules

Like most schools in Germany (but unlike most in Hong Kong), students at GSIS do not wear uniforms except during Physical Education classes. However, there is a dress code.

School hours are similar to those in Germany, with classes starting at 7:40 am - significantly earlier than other Hong Kong schools. School ends at 12:30 pm for primary school, as in Germany, at 1:15 pm for lower secondary students, and 3:20 pm for upper secondary students.

External links

• German Swiss International School's Website