Yangon, Myanmar Report of what it's like to live there - 06/19/14
Personal Experiences from Yangon, Myanmar
School Name:
International School of Yangon
Background Information:
1. Are you the parent of a child(ren) attending this school? A teacher at the school? Or both?
Parent.
2. What grade or grades do/did your children attend at the school? During what year(s) did they attend the school?
8th - 12 grade.
3. During what years were you affiliated with this school?
2013 - 2014.
4. What was your reason for living in the city where the school is located (e.g., government, military, corporate, NGO, retired)?
U.S. Government
5. Are other schools available to expatriates in this city? Why did you choose this particular school?
Lack of research. New schools are available in Yangon - it's worth taking the time to do the research - do not just fall into the ISY trap.
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?
U.S. Embassy affiliated students are said to have a guaranteed acceptance at ISY based the U.S. taxpayer support provided to the school by the Department of State and U.S. Embassy Rangoon (Yangon). School officials never want to admit to this policy and the admission process can seem uncertain at times to embassy families.
2. How would you rate the school's support and welcome/integration of new students and their families, and why?
Many parents have noted that American students have been negatively targeted by teachers and faculty members. It's known that certain ISY teachers frequently belittle/humiliate some American children in front of the class and allow other students to do the same. Such discrimination is not done against any Burmese students with family connections to the Myanmar government/military. This concern has been raised many times but there is little ISY management oversight on this issue. ISY operates in a third world country free of oversight and governance over their day to day operations.
Administration & School Procedures:
1. Describe the general climate of the grade level that you teach or your child attends:
The education climate is similar in many ways to a traditional Burmese style education where some teachers and faculty members sternly lecture and openly criticize students. ISY is not a school where encouragement and positive reinforcement is practiced.
2. For the following attributes, down to the next blank box, grade your experience at the school on a scale of A (excellent) to F (unacceptable/terrible) and provide comments:<br><br>Overall fair and equitable treatment of all students and families:
The overall grade to ISY to U.S. Embassy/American families is a solid D. ISY is focused on one priority - building and maintaining good academic statistics. The main focus is not on the welfare of the students and certainly not the families. ISY administrators have been known to tell many people that the ISY "may not be the right fit for everyone." This is due to the fact that ISY is primarily focused on finding wealthy local families/students who will stay for longer periods of time (outside of of the standard embassy 2-3 year assignments) and contribute both financially and add to ISY's international academic standings. At times, ISY officials will note that the school is associated with the U.S. Embassy.
However in truth, ISY only plays the U.S. Embassy card when it suits their needs for visa assistance or other potential issues they may have with the Myanmar government. The political climate in Myanmar is still uncertain and ISY needs to use the U.S. Embassy as their backstop since they have no other holding in the country. The fact is that ISY is a non-profit private organization that receives annual financial assistance from the Department of State. The Department of State provides similar support to hundreds of international schools around the world. As U.S. interests expand in Myanmar, hopefully more attention will be made on finding other schools and academic programs for embassy/American families.
3. How is the overall communication between teachers and parents, and the administration and parents? How is communication facilitated?
Poor. ISY makes it very clear that they do not want interaction from parents. It can be a challenge sometimes just getting a teacher or ISY administration official to even answer an email. Many parents have offered to sit in and help out in classes which has never been warmly accepted by teachers or ISY administration. ISY operates similar to a traditional Burmese school in which communication is simply not done or even expected. On the surface, ISY looks like a true international school but a person will soon find out that appearances can be deceiving.
4. Services for gifted students who need academic challenge and students with learning difficulties:
None.
5. Availability and variety of after-school activities for various ages:
Limited.
6. Maintenance of appropriately high standards for all students:
As noted above, the focus is too much on building and maintaining good school statistics. ISY officials provide dazzling presentations loaded with positive bar graphs and glowing statistics. What the statistics will never tell a person is whether or not your child will be treated fairly and with respect inside the classroom.
7. Homework assigned (quality, quantity):
Homework assignments can be excessively heavy at times especially at higher grade levels.
8. Administration-parent communication:
In May 2014 parents were notified of a major reconstruction project planned at the school which requires many students to be relocated to another location. This construction effort will disrupt school activities for the next several years. School officials conveniently made this announcement after tuition payments were already made for the next year. School officials never take any responsibility and quickly diverted blame to board members or in this case, even falsely implied that the U.S. Embassy was behind the decision.
9. Teacher-student communication:
Positive reinforcement is not promoted at ISY. Many teachers are free to say whatever negative comments they want to students since they have little to no oversight by ISY management.
10. Does your child receive any special-needs assistance or instruction at this school? If yes, what types? Who provides services and where:
There are no special needs programs.
11. Do you believe the special-needs assistance is appropriate and fills your needs? Explain:
No.
12. Does the gifted and talented program meet the needs of students? Please explain:
No.
13. Does the school offer a wide variety of elective or non-core classes such as art, music, and drama?
Some classes.
14. Are there academic requirements such as trips or other activities that cost money in addition to school fees?
Beware of the "Week without Walls" field trip inside Myanmar. Some families have complained of being hit up afterwards for trip costs for this mandatory school trip. Many students and teachers return home sick with food poisoning and other illnesses.
15. Does the school provide appropriate assistance to new students?
The ISY motto seems to be either the student fits in or they don't, there is no in-between with no help or encouragement.
16. Please describe any problem areas or challenges in social interaction at the school:
The school is primarily focused is on its wealthy local students - the word "international" is only a business catch phrase. Our family has attended several other international schools around the world with ISY being the oddest inward focused school we have ever experienced.
Academics & Resources:
1. What personal or academic counseling resources are available at this school? Is there a dedicated college counselor at the school? Is he/she familiar with universities worldwide?
If the student doesn't fit into the acceptable "ISY mold," there is no counseling.
2. Does the school have a library? How large is it? How updated are the books? Can students borrow books to read at home?
Good.
3. How are information technology resources at the school. Are they up-to-date? Is there a computer lab?
Good.
4. Describe the physical education resources at the school. Is there a gym? A swimming pool? Are there playing fields or tennis courts available?
Extremely limited.
5. What is the approximate teacher-to-student ratio in the grades that your child attended?
There seems to be enough teachers. Some ISY teachers are very qualified and concerned about the welfare of the students but they seem to be the minority.
6. Are Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses available in upper grades? If this is an IB school, is the full diploma required of all students?
IB courses only.
7. Is the amount and type of homework generally appropriate for the age and grade of the students?
Yes but somewhat excessive at times.
8. What fine arts electives are available (music, drama, visual arts)?
ISY offers some of these electives.
9. Are the teachers at the school required to speak English as a first language--or at least fluently?
Yes
10. What services are available for gifted/advanced students at the school? Please describe your experience with these services, if applicable.
No.
11. What extra-curricular activities (including sports) are available at this school? Have your children participated in these activities? What activities do you feel are missing at the school?
No. This has been a noted complaint with many families.
Social & Emotional Well-Being:
1. Do expatriate students socialize with local students at the school? Are both groups successfully integrated into the school culture?
Yes. One issue that is never discussed openly is the availability of drugs and alcohol. There is no age limit for drinking in Myanmar. Many of the ISY senior grade level students are known to frequent nightclubs and bars in Yangon. Many of the wealthy students have 'tutors' in which they are able to free up their night-time schedules to attend such clubs. Marijuana and other narcotics are easily obtainable in Yangon.
2. Are there are any problems with exclusionary behavior, cliques, or bullying at this school? Please describe any problems your children may have experienced in this area.
There are well established social cliques in the school especially with the students who have been there long-term. Students (especially teenagers) coming in for just a couple years will be faced with not fitting in to the Asian/Burmese style social network.
Overall Impressions:
1. What is the greatest strength of this school?
For now, ISY holds the market on international/American style schools in Myanmar until other up and coming schools can gain better traction.
2. Greatest challenge?
ISY needs a complete overhaul in its management team and education priorities. Another challenge with the school is the pay discrepancy among the teachers and faculty members. Locally hired teachers are paid a minimum salary compared to their internationally hired colleagues and the exorbitant salaries paid to senior ISY officials.
3. Would you choose this school again? Why?
Never.
