IGB international School - Any feedback?

Brand new and with only 200 kids for all ages. No results record of course and an IB only school. It has been giving out scholarships like confetti it seems.

Some would doubt its commercial viability as IB not popular in Malaysia. Only time will tell if it can survive.

For its fees more established schools are available with good reputations

So Nemodot - is the market saturated now? The location of this school is also possibly an issue?

Hi,

If you are looking for a good international school, why don't you try British International School, Bandar Utama.

Location wise is perfect because there are malls, colleges, Universities, loads of restaurants and local coffee shops as well. There's even a golf club 10 minutes away.

If you are looking for a place to rent nearby, I have a condo. 4 Bed, 4 Bathrooms. High Floor with a good view. It's fully furnished so no hassle for you.

If you are interested, just drop me an email: cshuyee@gmail.com

Do let me know your budget. 

Gravitas so many new schools opening some local analysts believe market will be over saturated.

The main market it is argued is the  budget market with igcse. Pure IB schools are expensive to run and parents mostly wont the certainty of real exam results with igcse.

Hence an expensive school that is ib only is going to have limited appeal. Expats are more likely to think of IB but less expats in kl these days.

They have been offering scholarships to ELC next door for IB diploma like confetti so ELC students tell me. Of course you have to do that as new  and get some ib diploma results to market school to Malaysian parents who usually aim for overseas universities.

Thanks Nemodot,
Didn't realise that only 200 kids in the school! That's half the size of our local primary school. I am more in favour of one of the established schools but my husband said not to rule out new schools completely. His thinking is that the new schools would have a lot to proof and will work hard esp in the first few years to raise their profile.

I had originally thought we would go for the British curriculum but the more I read about IB, the more I am attracted to it ....

Lots to think about. Thanks for your input, Nemodot.

This is taken from the Wikipedia input about IB and acceptability in various counties

In the United Kingdom, UCAS publishes a University entrance tariff table that converts IB and other qualifications into standardised "Tariff points"[64] but this tariff is not binding,[65] so institutions are free to set minimum entry requirements for IB candidates that are not the same as those for A level. Most universities in the UK will have much higher requirements for IB students than A-level students, requiring, for instance, four As and two Bs from an IB student, whereas an A-level student will only need an ABB.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IB_Diploma_Programme

Thanks gravitas, that's very helpful.

Gravitas wrote:

This is taken from the Wikipedia input about IB and acceptability in various counties

In the United Kingdom, UCAS publishes a University entrance tariff table that converts IB and other qualifications into standardised "Tariff points"[64] but this tariff is not binding,[65] so institutions are free to set minimum entry requirements for IB candidates that are not the same as those for A level. Most universities in the UK will have much higher requirements for IB students than A-level students, requiring, for instance, four As and two Bs from an IB student, whereas an A-level student will only need an ABB.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IB_Diploma_Programme

Not true really. The UCAS tariff system is all make believe though and ignored by everyone,

Russell group Unis want 34-38 points typically (39-41 for Oxbridge) and ask AAA /A*AA for good courses. IB students have  a far higher chance of success than A level students even in Medicine. Twice as more likely to be in a top 20 Uni  and twice as likely to be studying medicine per IB research. Also IB students get a lot more 1sts.

Also interestingly PwC and other big companies in UK have moved away from assessing students on academic quals and look at other soft skills. IBDP develops these skills early on and builds a good foundation for students to get the best jobs.

What you do find though is low reputations Unis - eg ex polys - don't understand IB that well. For lower achieving students (<31 Canada, Australia and USA better)

I guess it was inevitable you would be promoting IB Nemodot !!

Given your propensity for exaggeration perhaps you can share some sources that back up your comments?

ClanC wrote:

Thanks Nemodot,
Didn't realise that only 200 kids in the school! That's half the size of our local primary school. I am more in favour of one of the established schools but my husband said not to rule out new schools completely. His thinking is that the new schools would have a lot to proof and will work hard esp in the first few years to raise their profile.

I had originally thought we would go for the British curriculum but the more I read about IB, the more I am attracted to it ....

Lots to think about. Thanks for your input, Nemodot.

Better check for this year that was last year. I hope they succeed - but if I was choosing a school an established one is better. Also IB MYP is a big risk in my opinion. You can only do IBDP after MYP. If you do IGCSE you can do A levels or IBDP. IGCSE content is almost perfect for IBDP despite the claims of some at IB who are hopeless at realising commercial realities and parents demands.

Why do you say IGCSE almost perfect for IBDP? I would have thought that MYP would be a smooth transition ....

Nemodot, which schools would you recommend?

I don't think iGCSE is the perfect preparation for IBDP.

A friend of mine in UK who did GCSE and later IB diploma told me it wasn't a smooth transition for her at all. Another Chinese Msian girl who was on a full scholarship doing 2 years IBDP course from Taylors Subang struggled in her studies too. As we know GCSE/iGCSE is about taking in as much info (usually exam related ones) as you can. There is no research project or essay writing. Whereas, IB is about integration of knowledge, you need to do research project, write essays and learn foreign language. The learnings are so different, one is about depth and another is about breadth (& depth). I just don't think iGCSE will equip students with the right skills to excel in IBDP.

When IBDP was new, many were skeptical about its worldwide recognition, but now it has become a gold standard to top universities in the world. Meanwhile A-level is losing its glory due to grade inflation and is undergoing rounds of reforms by UK Education department...sigh.  Similarly, MYP might be facing an uphill challenge as IBDP was in the beginning, but it may become a key rival to iGCSE in future.

According to IB website, MYP encourages students to make practical connections between their studies and the real world. It is inline with IBDP learning philosophy. It makes more sense that MYP is the natural predecessor of IBDP, don't you think?

MYP is actually vapour!

In the old days the top. Schools that teach properly and got high igcse/gcse results as well produce quality myp students.

However with the mass expansion of IB quality dropped. Lots of middle eastern and chinese schools opened up and couldn't get good results so went for myp. They can be really awful there is no real quality control.

IB wont admit this but they have started to introduce.online exams. These are the future as more interactive and thoughtful. Exams than old pen and paper. So one day myp may evolve into something outstanding.

But at the moment an MYP certificate (and many schools don't issue these) means nothing. Igcse is bad. But a kid with 7 A*"s at least we know can pass an exam  and IB diploma has lots of exams.

With MYP you are stuck. You can only do IBDP or the Aussie or Canadian courses. Most of the elite schools taught in that basis that a student went onto myp.

At the age of 15 or 16 students I think need a focus. Not all meet this challenge of course and suits academic kids more. Igcse gives a focus.

Like myp it can be taught well or badly (by rote) and a student with an A* can be either really well equipped for future study or clueless.

Of course myp is in British terms ks3 and 4. Igcse is ks4. Good international schools teach ks3 without emphasis on testing. And myp is just a framework that easily adapts to good ks3 programmes (not that awful checkpoint)

Overall myp means nothing in terms of what a student learnt. Igcse tells something. Something better than nothing!

Thank you Nemodot for your reply. That's very interesting and I can now see why many schools do IGCSE and then IB.

In your opinion, is there any good IB schools in Malaysia?

I grew up in a Malaysian school doing the kebangsaan syllabus .... It was all rote/memory work and very competitive ....  I really hated it. I only started to enjoy learning at uni. My kids in the Scottish system is polar opposites. School is so much fun and competition is almost discouraged. The standards I feel isn't quite up to scratch. I wonder if international schools in Malaysia manage to achieve a happy medium with the fun teaching methods of the West and displine/drive of the East.....

IB is currently seeking formal recognition of MYP from UK Ofqual regulation body. Have a look at this (https://ibanswers.ibo.org/app/answers/d … /related/1)  I don't know much about other nations, but in UK there are already some state schools implemented MYP. More organisations are asking for GCSE to be scrapped (http://www.independent.co.uk/student/ne … 30705.html) . So if the MYP Ofqual plan succeeds, certainly more schools will embrace it and the "MYP to A-level" route will likely become a common route too.

This is taken from Anglo European School, a top performing state school in UK. - aesessex.co.uk/curriculum/myp-faqs

Does the MYP steer pupils towards the IB Diploma or IBCC? What if my child wants to do A Levels?

The MYP was originally developed with the Diploma Programme in mind and so provides excellent preparation for the Diploma. Locally, it could become possible for young people to have a full IB education from age 5 to age 18. However, the MYP also stands alone. We believe it helps pupils become stronger learners, with a broader understanding of their subjects. Therefore the MYP is also a good starting point for A Level and other post-16 courses.

Well. I have 3 kids, one in the secondary British School, another two in the elementary IGBIS. I have experience with AAS in Moscow (5 years), American School of Bangkok (1,5 years) and now we are here in KL for almost a year. My husband, I and both of my younger kids are absolutely thrilled with this school. The other one is seriously considering to transfer (we even agree to loose the enrollment fee in BISKL should he make a decision). This is a very good school with more than 300 students (as of now), excellent brand new facilities, super qualified teachers and the most friendly almost family atmosphere. Because the number of students is still not to the full capacity, the size of the classes is small - the fact which I really happy about. On September 12th the school is having an 'Open Day' - openday.igbis.edu.my. It is a good opportunity to come and see it for yourself. Good luck!

Thanks for your reply. Unfortunately, we can't make the open day as we live in Scotland. It does look like a good school with amazing facilities.

What are the class sizes like? Do you know the break down of numbers in the elementary, middle years and IB?

ofqual won't like myp and if apposed will effectivly set some conditions. as I said myp actually means very little. Like I have a pink unicorn. it really matters which school did it.

the old argument over exams at 16 is as old as the hills. USA don't and UK does. Malaysia followed UK with spm and stpm. so Malaysians   want that reality check. I can see the argument for getting rid of exams at 16 as based on old idea that university was for the top 10% only.

but MYP is not a solution. it could evolve into one. of course the website is like most full of ideals. putting those into practice is very hard.

lots of cheating goes on in some schools. friends have left some in disgust. teachers doing personal projects etc. you get kids with an 8 or a 7 or an A or 75% grade from IB myp schools In maths that can be very good or can't add up. there are no standards that are applied properly. there are not even standards in what a grade is with so many variations.

that is the issue with MYP. a kid can show me a letter from school that could say he is a pink unicorn. and is as useful as the maths grade.

ib are trying to align myp and ibdp but any rationale ibdp teacher will tell you it looks like the ibdp exam committees never got the memo as they set up the syllabus based on cie igcse!