| My son is not even a year old and already we have started thinking about his future schooling....and if we were to stay in HK I think Mandarin would be a great language for him to learn. However there are a number of concerns I have with him attending a local school in the future,
a). Neither my husband nor I speak Cantonese or Mandarin so we would be unable to help him with his homework, which would cause problems. Not only that but parent/teacher meetings would be conducted in Cantonese/Mandarin and also any communication with the school and teachers. We would have to rely on someone in the school who spoke decent enough English to translate everything and that's bound to cause frustration etc.
b). Local schools are run very differently from Western schools. In the majority it's all about academic grades and performance, and there is a lot of studying and revising and cramming for exams. I would worry about that dampening my sons creativity and would worry that if he isn't academically inclined- but more inclined towards sports, or music, or drama then this would be neglected.
But every child is different, as is every parent, so you would have to make the best decision for you.  |