Best Schools - ISC report notes increase in Chinese private international schools

A new report from British research firm ISC Research, has highlighted the growth of “an international style of education” in China, and the steep rise in Chinese children joining immigrant communities in the new schools

ISC, which focuses on providing objective intelligence for the global international school market, pointed out a large increase of international schools opening in the past five years – 228 new institutions bringing the total to 857. Another 48 are set to open in the coming years, the report announced.

The ownership of the new schools has also hiked the number of Chinese-owned private schools offering an international education to 563.

The enrolment rates discovered by ISC Research as similarly impressive, and explain the rapid school building that took place.

A 64% increase in the five years to 2018 mean the latest figures revealed 245,500 students enrolled in international private K-12 education in China.

Private education expenditure has risen among Chinese families, “a result of a growth in [China-wide] prosperity”, the report noted. It is unclear how this may be affected by a recent economic levelling-off, and the ongoing ‘trade war’ with the US, though some have speculated it is already affecting higher education.

“There is sufficient demand by enough wealthy Chinese parents in China for an international style of education for their children, that the market is expected to expand at pace, regardless of economic influence,” Gaskell added.

“The… market is still in its infancy but this [growth] is a very positive sign, indicative of the success of schools to integrate international and local curricula, and to ensure their practices comply with changes in legislation.”

Other growth factors identified in the research include Beijing’s amended “two-child” policy, as well as an increased awareness among Chinese parents of the benefits of international education, and the recent moves to make it easier for foreign investors to run schools in China.

Despite the growth in Chinese-owned international schools, ISC noted growth to this point has been mainly supported by foreign school brands, mainly from the UK, with a minority coming from the US. This model appeals to parents who “value the educational heritage, reputation, brand prestige, and opportunities” afforded by names such as Dulwich College or Harrow Beijing.

Boys should have started their A-level revision during the Easter holidays or they risk losing their university place to a more 'diligent' girl, Harrow's former head warns

Barnaby Lenon said all pupils should spend seven hours a day revising during the spring break to ensure they reached their potential in the summer exams.

And he said that while many girls may do this without prompting, boys are on average more 'naturally lazy' and 'not particularly used to hard work'.

Mr Lenon, dean of education at the University of Buckingham, said while it was right to safeguard children's mental health, encouraging them not to revise could have the opposite effect.

'We all understand that there's more to life than exams, but I think to say to a child that GCSE or A-level grades don't matter is a lie,' he said.

'For many people they do matter a great deal. How good is it for your mental health when you open your GCSE results and find that you've failed maths?'

He said that getting a large chunk of revision done in the Easter holidays actually helped to take the pressure off in the summer.

Mr Lenon added: 'The problem with boys is not that they're suffering from such tremendous stress that they shouldn't embark on revision.

'The problem is often that they're lazy and they have to be goaded into doing some work. And the ones that do work benefit from it. They can be confident that every hour spent revising will pay dividends.'