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Schools in Hamburg that teach in English
Cheaper alternatives to the International School
Hi everyone.A friend of mine has an Indian IT specialist coming to Hamburg to work, initially for 6-9 months.His two boys are 7 and 9 and need an English school for that time.Anyone know of one that is not too expensive, ie cheaper than the International School here.Thanks for any tips.
Yeah, the International School is such a gouge, eh? I don't know offhand of any primary schools with any more instruction in English than others. In Gymnasium - that starts with Grade 5 - there are two or three which have an English-language emphasis, but not all instruction in English.
There are three primary schools which have an "immersive English" program from grade one: Rudolf Ross in the city (near music hall) a school in Bergedorf and one in Wandsbek. No time to look up the names now, will do if OP knows which area of town is being looked at.
Maybe you've thought of this already, but why not stick them in a normal German school.
It would be tough to start with but they would pick up the lingo fairly quickly and it's free.
It would be tough to start with but they would pick up the lingo fairly quickly and it's free.
thanks everybody for info so far.More infos are still welcome!
I am new to Hamburg and have heard that children can't attend German schools unless they speak German. Does anyone know if this is true? I have an English speaking 4yo and hope that she will be able to go to a kindergarten and learn German there, but still I am concerned about this.
QUOTE (purple-hoggy @ May 4 2008, 9:35 pm) 
I am new to Hamburg and have heard that children can't attend German schools unless they speak German. Does anyone know if this is true? ...
Not true ... Germany has a compulsory education system (Schulpflicht)
My eldest was 4 when we first came here. We put him in the local kindergarten and, although he struggled to begin with, he was speaking perfect accent free German after 9 months.
Wish I could
Wish I could
Kids have to take a test before entering school. If German language is a problem then there will be free classes that the parents may also attend.
Thanks everyone, that's one less thing to worry about. Now I just have to find a kindergarten . ...
couldn't resist answering to this topic. my advice: FIND an english-language school for the boys! this cost should be included in the employment package, or i would say NO DEAL! the parents might not know what they're risking. if there is no way around it, then look into another option for German language instruction BESIDES the state schools!
just snapshot out of my experience as a parent: my 16 year-old son came here with me at age 11 and was utterly traumatized by the German school system. schools in the cities are full of poorly understood and totally underserved students of immigrant backgrounds, and the schools outside the cities are inexperienced with cultural diversity and therefore don't know how to cope with it. in both cases, teachers are not trained, not equipped and not encouraged (as institutional policy) to deal with culturally-based conflicts among groups of kids of various ethnic backgrounds. coming from the States, the biggest cultural shock for me moving here was this disparity in multi-cultural integration in schools, the pitiful lack of resources and understanding and the zero access i had to teachers and other school faculty to try to straighten out problems. The horrifyingly REAL dysfunctionality of the german school's support system (state schools, that is) for immigrants is a very sad situation indeed. FREE education is nice, but think of the needs of the KIDS in question. these two are not 4 year olds. Age makes a BIG difference. True, German lessons are provided for free in schools and will be mandatory. where does that leave them with their other subjects?
Also, your friend's boys, ages 7 and 9, are going to be here less than a year. they will NOT learn enough German in that time to keep up their school standing! they could LOSE an entire YEAR! My son, a bright, social kid who was always motivated to learn, lost TWO years!! now, he's back in the States working hard to try to recoup the loss and is 1000x happier. This is not to say that the same would happen to your friend's kids, just an informed opinion from someone who learned the hard way. take it or leave it.
by the way, my husband works with some of the many Frankfurt kids with migrant backgrounds who must suffer the schools' lack of resources--there are charity organizations that fund intensive language training programs for certain cases. Look into the stiftung polytechnische gesellschaft for more info on intensive German language possibilities for kids at risk of falling behind. Again, only if there is no other way... best of luck!
just snapshot out of my experience as a parent: my 16 year-old son came here with me at age 11 and was utterly traumatized by the German school system. schools in the cities are full of poorly understood and totally underserved students of immigrant backgrounds, and the schools outside the cities are inexperienced with cultural diversity and therefore don't know how to cope with it. in both cases, teachers are not trained, not equipped and not encouraged (as institutional policy) to deal with culturally-based conflicts among groups of kids of various ethnic backgrounds. coming from the States, the biggest cultural shock for me moving here was this disparity in multi-cultural integration in schools, the pitiful lack of resources and understanding and the zero access i had to teachers and other school faculty to try to straighten out problems. The horrifyingly REAL dysfunctionality of the german school's support system (state schools, that is) for immigrants is a very sad situation indeed. FREE education is nice, but think of the needs of the KIDS in question. these two are not 4 year olds. Age makes a BIG difference. True, German lessons are provided for free in schools and will be mandatory. where does that leave them with their other subjects?
Also, your friend's boys, ages 7 and 9, are going to be here less than a year. they will NOT learn enough German in that time to keep up their school standing! they could LOSE an entire YEAR! My son, a bright, social kid who was always motivated to learn, lost TWO years!! now, he's back in the States working hard to try to recoup the loss and is 1000x happier. This is not to say that the same would happen to your friend's kids, just an informed opinion from someone who learned the hard way. take it or leave it.
by the way, my husband works with some of the many Frankfurt kids with migrant backgrounds who must suffer the schools' lack of resources--there are charity organizations that fund intensive language training programs for certain cases. Look into the stiftung polytechnische gesellschaft for more info on intensive German language possibilities for kids at risk of falling behind. Again, only if there is no other way... best of luck!
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