Manila, Philippines Report of what it's like to live there - 11/13/14
Personal Experiences from Manila, Philippines
School Name:
ISM
Background Information:
1. Are you the parent of a child(ren) attending this school? A teacher at the school? Or both?
Parent.
2. What was your reason for living in the city where the school is located (e.g., government, military, corporate, NGO, retired)?
Government.
3. Are other schools available to expatriates in this city? Why did you choose this particular school?
Most of the mission attends this school. We got a late assignment (May) ISM admissions requires an extreme amount of information--it's like applying for college. Being a private school, they are not required to accept kids and can change their minds at any time during the application process. In our situation the admissions director strung us along, needing one more thing and then one more thing. We arrived in August, my boys were in the middle of their assessment tests, one had finished, and she comes up to me and says "We don't have the resources for your kids, we're full." None of my boys have been diagnosed with any disabilities. ISM also has a strict age/grade policy. They wanted to hold back my third grader a year because he didn't fit into their stringent age bracket.
At least Brent (school) didn't string me along...they told me up front that they were full and we could apply for the following year. I ended up homeschooling for a year.
I am not the only one who has had difficulties with ISM admissions. I've heard many stories from other parents at Brent where my kids are now. I will write a separate report for Brent.
Admissions & Welcome:
1. Are the admissions and placement procedures clearly stated to prospective families, either on the school website or through other means of communication?
Nothing transparent at all about it.
Overall Impressions:
1. Would you choose this school again? Why?
All in all, I'm glad my kids didn't get into ISM.
