School search in a new country: Things to consider

Clearmove Solution
School search in a new country: Things to consider

A long-term international assignment is a great career opportunity for you and a wonderful chance for your family to experience a different culture and broaden the horizons. But with the excitement of moving comes the downside of the process: deciding how best to arrange the life of your family.

 

Finding a new school for your children is one of the toughest tasks, not to mention how responsible is this choice, that will influence your kids’ future life. As so many details depend on individuality, it is impossible to write a universal guide on choosing a school. Each kid is different and each country’s school system is different too. However, some basic ideas might be useful when choosing a school overseas for your child.

 

What to consider

 

 1. Local Schools vs Private or International Schools

 

If you are from an English speaking country the biggest decision you will face when choosing education for your children abroad is whether to go the full immersion route and put your children in local schools, where teaching is completely in another language, or whether to take the bilingual approach, where some part of the day is taught in another language and some time in English. Or the third option, but it’s quite rare, where everything is taught in English.

 

Local School: pros and cons

 

+ Good for long-term study and young learners

+  A full immersion into a new environment

+ Better feeling of a new home

+ More social opportunities and a fast adaptation process.

+ It’s cheap or even free in some countries

– Can cause a feeling of being an outsider

– Language barrier during the first period

– May be not of a good quality

 

International school: pros and cons

 

+ Continuing with the curriculum of kids’ home country

+ Reduced Reverse Culture Shock

+ Opportunity for socializing with other ex-pats’’ children who are going through a similar experience.

– Not being exposed to the new country’s culture

– The cost

 

Home education is another option to choose from. For some families, this might be a perfect option because it allows us to tailor the focus of each subject or the whole program. While it can be less stressful for your child to get this type of education, it won’t help their socialization and immersion to the new culture, so this option is considered by parents who are on a short term assignment rather than long term ones.

 

   2. Curriculum 

 

It will definitely be a good shout to choose a school that will provide a curriculum that ties in with the education system in your home country. This will ensure that your kids will return home without missing anything important and with the reduced symptoms of Reverse Culture Shock. Nevertheless, for the permanent movers or assignees for multiple years, a local school may be the best option to be able to settle into the new country. Kids are often resilient and adjust, but a drastic change in curriculum or language can be extremely challenging.

 

   3. Entry requirements 

 

Certainly, every parent wants to ensure that their children’s education is not going to be adversely affected during a parent’s work assignment. Doing some research on entry tests, proximity and paperwork will certainly help put your mind at ease as you go through the rest of the process of moving.

 

Tutoring makes sense

 

It doesn’t matter what kind of educational institution you choose for your kids, private tutors will definitely be a good idea. Especially if you’re moving to a country that speaks a different language, for both you and your children private language tutoring will be useful to learn faster. You can also then better learn how to navigate the potentially rocky terrain of new school culture.

 

Grades are secondary

 

Grading systems can be different in another country and it can be frustrating for children to adapt to other evaluating styles. Give them some freedom and do not force them to do the impossible if they are already stressed. The language barrier, different curriculum, and the generally unsettling experience might mean that their grades will suffer, but don’t worry about it yet, as there’s plenty of time to catch up.


HR’s problem and Clearmove’s solution

 

Choosing a new school for an employee’s child was never an easy task for the HR department. There are so many things to consider that the process can stretch up to weeks or even months. No one wants to rush such decisions but at the same time, HR professionals simply can’t afford to spend this much time on these kinds of tasks. As a result, misunderstandings and conflicts are inevitable and can lead to serious concerns about the international assignment in general.

To avoid these consequences it is always better to delegate these sorts of tasks to someone professional, and HR software for relocation is the best solution for this situation.

At Clearmove we can help alleviate the pressure by providing access to one of our local partners with knowledge of local schools, their curriculums, and entry requirements. Our professionals will be able to provide needed guidance and information and put it into the context of a real-life application in a new host location. When it comes to the final decision, they can support the assignee through the admission process, ensuring a smooth transition.

 

It is never easy to move with children and find schools for them, especially as assignees often have other concerns to attend to with the new assignment. But with Clearmove you can be sure that everything will be taken care of and each assignee will be better equipped to make important decisions.

 

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