Find the Right School for You and Your Kids at BISE 2017

Whether you’re newly arrived, looking to change schools or have a child coming up to school age, you can find out all about the choices available at the Beijing International Schools Expo. Over forty schools will be represented, and there will be talks and discussions, so that you can compare curricula, facilities, activities and of course fees. Perhaps most importantly when making this critical decision, you can get a feel for the attitude and ethos of different schools before making a shortlist. The event takes place on the weekend of February 18-19, at Crowne Plaze Beijing. For more information, and to sign up, visit our website, beijing-kids.com.

Airpocalypse Now… or Then?

The end of 2016 brought unwelcome attention to our city, as news media from across the globe reported on the worst smog for several years. Striking images, like the shiny silver bullet train turned mud brown simply from driving through pollution, were circulated all round the world. Ironically this came after a year in which the average AQI had fallen by 8 percent. And China leads the world in developing renewable energy, currently investing twice as much as the US. So we can at least hope for a brighter future, where clear skies in Beijing don’t make headlines as they did last month…

New Faces at bjk

The new year brings new faces to the beijingkids team. Andy Peñafuerte III is our new Deputy Managing Director. He previously worked at CGTN (formerly CCTV News), and GMA News in the Philippines. He enjoys travel and food. Pauline van Hasselt, our Shunyi Correspondent, is originally Dutch, but has lived in Belgium, Paraguay, Texas, and London, and has lived in Beijing since June 2016 with her husband and 3 year old daughter.

Goodbye to Old Friends

2016 saw the sad passing of many stars, from David Bowie to Carrie Fisher. And Beijing lost a few stars from its firmament too, with the closure of several much-loved establishments. Counting Sheep will no longer be offering high quality imported baby goods at either location. Marks and Spencer at The Place is living on borrowed time, leaving homesick Brits searching for a new source of crumpets and jam. And most traumatic of all, veteran indoor play center, Fundazzle, grubby and loved like an old security blanket, finally closed its doors in January.

The 2017 Beijing International School Expo (BISE) has brought a host of opportunities for parents who are looking for the best education for their children. As many moms and dads sifted through the information for more than 60 schools and kindergartens, as well as over 20 after-school institutions, others gathered to listen to different lectures about various educational issues and strategies.

One of the most important but underestimated issues about a child’s educational growth is about the dynamic nature and relationship of parent-teacher communications.

To provide insight into the topic, beijingkids convened a panel of six distinguished academic professionals:

– Mr. Yew Yi, Principal of Primary School at Beijing Huijia Private School;
– Mr. Brad Nitschneider, Elementary Program Coordinator and sixth grade homeroom teacher at Hyde Academy, Beijing;
– Ms. Lara Ronalds, Curriculum Coordinator for Innova Academy;
– Mr. Daniel Smith, Primary Assistant Head and Year 5 teacher at British School of Beijing, Shunyi (BSB, Shunyi);
– Ms. Evelyn Lucero, K-12 Curriculum Coordinator at Beijing International Bilingual Academy; and
– Ms. Meghan Dickie, Grade 5 teacher at the Canadian International School of Beijing (CISB).

Vanessa Jencks, managing editor of beijingkids, moderated the event. The six educators first weighed in on the importance of parent-teacher conferences or meetings and their effect on parenting and teaching strategies. Yew Yi explained that these meetings should be built upon the foundation of trust and respect from both sides, while Nitschneider added that mutual trust would be developed through consistency.

Speaking of consistency, Jencks asked the panelists about the issues surrounding regular communication. Smith pointed out that parents and teachers should have cultural understanding since there is a difference between educational and communication strategies employed by teachers of various nationalities, as well as perception of parents from different countries.

Yew Yi added that WeChat is taking over the communication space between parents and teachers more than any other medium. He said it is important that schools put up policies and regulations so as not to intrude into individual privacy as well as to have a direct and action-directed approach to children’s academic issues.

The topic on the use of WeChat went on to parents’ “secret groups” where they discuss gossips and grievances toward schools. Nitschneider compared gossip to children’s misbehavior. He explained that educators and administrators should handle parents’ grievances through three points: clarity (i.e. clearly getting on the issue),  compassion (or approach it as any other parent will do), and action (based on school policies and parents’ feedback).

Jencks pointed out that there’s a difference between a teacher’s perspective and a parent’s perspective regarding solving grievances or issues. Ronalds discussed that in China, language barriers and inexact translations on mediated communications play a big role in either a lack of understanding or getting the wrong messages across to both parents and teachers. She suggested that both sides should examine issues from a different perspective.

Dickie, on the other hand, said that receiving feedback from a number of parents from different cultures can be taxing but is important when creating strategies and solving issues. Nitschneider said that translated messages are still different from direct communication. He also said that aside from the perspectives of teachers and parents, it is also important to try and see things from a school administrators’ perspective and, ultimately, from the child’s point of view.

“Is it all right if parents direct grievances to school administrators,” Jencks asked the panelists. Yew Yi said parents have the right to do so, but administrators should bring them to the right person — the teachers — to deal with the matter.

On opportunities for conflict resolution, Nitschneider gave two points: fact-finding and fault-finding. He said emotions will also be involved when resolving conflicts (in terms of fault-finding) and it will always be difficult to get facts (not necessarily as objective as hard or scientific facts), but he challenged parents, teachers, and administrators to think about what they need and what do they want. Lucero said all sides should work together as “one team and one family” to find solutions and not just complain.

Ronalds said that while teachers and parents are supposed to work as a team, all the solutions are always directed to parents. She explained that parents can judge how to use these solutions for the benefit of their children. Smith added that communication is two-way, and that teachers are always keen to hear from parents to help children grow.

This weekend will be the seventh Beijing International Schools Expo – as we may have already mentioned… We’ll be there, along with over 60 schools and kindergartens, as well as all the information you need to make sure that you make the right educational choices for your child. It’s the perfect event for anyone interested in the international school scene in Beijing.

It’s not too late to pre-register! You can, of course, just drop by the day of without registering, but you’ll miss out on all the free stuff and discounts. Either way, there’s no charge for entry. Here’s a round up of what will be offered (and a reminder of how to get to the event):

Every major international school in Beijing will be represented, so you can save on the shoe leather when deciding where to send your kids:

2017 BISE: Take a Peek at the Schools Already Confirmed

There are fascinating panel discussions and expert speakers. Kids can also apply for scholarships to help with the costs of starting at a new school, and see their work published in beijingkids:

Jumpstart your Child’s Education with our Starter’s Scholarships

Of course, it wouldn’t be a bjk event if there weren’t kids activities as well. There’s squash, Lego building, painting, crafts, and even model horses to play with!

Let the Children Play! Fun at 2017 BISE

And when you’ve finished at the Expo, there’s fun and food at Chaoyang U-Town, and one of Beijing’s cutest parks just down the road.

Make It a Family Day Out at 2017 Beijing International School Expo

U-Town Shopping Mall is at 2 Sanfeng Beili, Chaoyangmenwai Dajie,Chaoyang District (朝阳区朝外大街三丰北里2号). The nearest subway station is Chaoyangmen, on lines 2 and 6.

Worried about air quality? We are too, as are most sensible people in Beijing. For this reason we’ve sought to guarantee that the air quality of the Beijing International School Expo BISE) will be pristine thanks to the good people at Blueair, one of the leading manufacturers of air filtration machines on the market.

Blueair provides cutting-edge filtration technology from Sweden suitable for home, office or classroom, for rooms from 14sqm to 110sqm.

These purifiers allow you to literally breathe easy

All areas of the BISE will feature high-tech machines from Blueair assuring that even if the weekend turns out “beyond index”, the air indoors will be crystal clean.

That makes the BISE a great place to visit. Not only will the fair feature personnel from over 60 Beijing international schools, it will also feature supervised play areas for little ones, a series of informative lectures, and a scholarship area where your child’s work could earn him or her up to RMB 5,000 for school.

Make a day of it – come learn what Beijing’s best international schools have to offer, as well as have some fun. We’ll also be giving out a basket of discounts good for kid-friendly shops and attractions at the next-door U-Town Mall in Chaoyangmen for those that pre-register, which you can do by clicking here.

We hope to see you there!

Photos: Courtesy of Blueair

Not satisfied with your child’s current schooling situation? Thinking about making a change and finding a better fit? Regardless of the reasons, if you’re on the lookout for various schooling options, then consider Feb 18-19’s Beijing International School Expo (BISE) as an absolute must-attend event.

Organized by us, beijingkids, and our sister publication, JingKids, the 2017 BISE gives parents the opportunity to personally meet representatives from over 50 international schools and have candid conversations with school officials that know best.

The following is a partial list of schools (both Beijing-based and overseas), extracurricular program providers, and children’s activity area sponsors that have already committed:

For 6 years, beijingkids has helped parents by putting together the largest school expo – in conjunction with the printed School Choice Guide to comprehensively address educational concerns for prospective and resident families. Next year is no different, on February 18-19, 2017 from 10am-4pm at the Crowne Plaza Beijing Chaoyang U-Town, beijingkids and JingKids will be hosting the 7th Beijing International School Expo (BISE).

The 2017 BISE will feature first-rate international and bilingual schools, including: Beijing-based schools, overseas K-12 institutions, and high-quality extracurricular programs. Furthermore, three separate children’s activity areas, for different age groups, will be included on the expo’s grounds that will attract over 5,000 visitors (2,500 families).

The 2017 BISE is the largest, one-of-its-kind, catered to helping parents, both expat and Chinese families, in understanding the ever evolving education scene through a series of talks and having in depth Q & A sessions with school representatives.

As the editorial teams work on the guides, the rest of the teams are carefully evaluating the credentials of all potential vendors to ensure the quality for our attendees.

The BISE is suited for the following types of families residing in Beijing:
* Chinese families seeking an international education for their children
* Foreign nationals
* Multi-cultural households
* Chinese foreign passport holders
* Families from Hong Kong, Macau, or Taiwan

Check out this video of our event last year! 

The first, English-only BISE in 2011, formerly known as the School Choice Fair, was joined by the Chinese brand JingKids following their publication of the School Choice Guide in 2013. Since then the BISE has been tailored to accommodate the growing numbers of affluent Chinese families looking for available educational options from local to international school and after school programs.

In 2015, we brought families this.

Children’s Activity Area
The children’s activity area includes enough entertainment to keep the little ones occupied, so that parents can focus on talking with school representatives. The sections will be run by educational institutions but geared towards younger children under the age of 10.

FREE
One of the best parts of the expo is that it’s free to come. Avoid the queues and get express check in when you register through this portal.

We’ll see you there!