Education/Schools in Ibiza

[grego]

Just an open offer this really, rather than any specific information at the moment. I will try and update/give a full overview later.

However, having had the experience and endured the rollercoaster of getting my kids into a school over here recently, this is an open offer to any other parents looking for advice/guidance/help with getting kids into school in Ibiza.

the process, requirements, languages, where, costs, key dates, etc, etc.

PM me or put your questions in here and i'll try my best to answer them.

[weloveliam@space]

Good idea. I'm going to need this info soon (ish), well probably in the next 2 - 3 years

[grego]

you should fine it easier than most liam.

having a financial history in spain, NIE, kid growing up in spain from birth, etc.

but there are still problems/pitfalls and the process can be painful.

finding a school in the location you want and that you can get into is the biggest issue.

[blackswan555]

Similar offer, We put our 14 yr old in Morna when we arrived, I would have preferred Spanish school, but to learn Spanish and do exam`s in Spanish, I though was too much in 2 yrs,

Any questions, please feel free to fire away !

Have a good one
Tim

[HDR]

Hi there grego and blackswan, we are contemplating a move to Ibiza in 2010, pretty tentative at the moment.

I have 3 boys, one will already be at university (one down at last ), the other, who will be 13 in 2010, may be at boarding school, but also might decide to come with us to Ibiza. The last will be 5 in March 2010. They are bilingual French / English heading for International Baccalaureate final exams. We speak English at home as my husband's French is average !

I have a few options for the 13 year old if he decides to come with us, he could go to the French school up to age 16 and then we would have to see from there. Or he could go to Morna and finish his education there. I do feel it would be a bit too much to send him to the local schools at his age...??

For the 5 year old, he could also go to the French school, which I am quite keen on as it means he could consolidate his French while learning Spanish too. He could also go to the local schools which is probably the best bet for him socially, but does mean he will lose the French over time, unless I school him in it (not usually a successful option !!)

What are your experiences with local schools, with Morna, etc ? Do you have any recommendations, advice, etc, at this stage ?

I am trying to get a feel for things which might will influence our decision overall. No doubt I will be pestering you for lots of details in the future if we do decide to pack up.

Thanks for your help.

[blackswan555]

I do not know much about the French school, I have heard it is supposed to be good, I have had a child at Morna, I would not recommend it if you want your child to have an education,
Have a good one
Tim

edited to add, This is in the Ibiza sun this week may be another option ?

ENGLISH EDUCATION
We are a group of parents who are striving to provide our childen with a quality creative English education. We are looking for other families dissatisfied with what the island currently has to offer to join us. For more information call 648 803 029.

[HDR]

I had heard rumours that it was very average, but good to hear it from someone who really knows. That solves that then, thanks very much... Would definitely be a shame to undo the past 9 years of hard work at a decent place

[grego]

hello mrs HDR

i'll second what has been said about morna, altho i am aware that in the last couple of years it has been taken over by different mgt and is nothing like how it was previously. when did your kid finish there blackswan? that said, it is at best only on the right road to being a good school.

the french school is excellent. it is one of the most established on the island and one of the most popular private and foreign schools. i think you can expect to pay about 600 euro a month for 2 kids to go there. i think this is the best option by far for your 13 year old.

as for the local schools, i can only go on the experience of my kids and everyone else i come across. so i can't recommend them enough, the schools are lovely, just perfect. even if money was no object i could speak fluent french, i wouldn't move them to the french school. as for your 5 year old's french. he will be learning in catalan, spanish will become 2nd nature to him, so by the time he learns french it will be a easy as pie.

my own kids speak in catalan to our friend's kids (french) and they understand each other perfectly. moreover, i didn't want to get stuck with the ex-pat (english and french just as bad as each other) thing by going to morna or french school. the local school is just exactly everything we wanted for what was going to be a sea change for our kids.

the only other piece of advice i would give is that many schools are over subscribed, so when the time comes, don't bank on there being places at, for example, sant josep school, if that's the area you decide to live in.

[grego]

edited to add, This is in the Ibiza sun this week may be another option ?

ENGLISH EDUCATION
We are a group of parents who are striving to provide our childen with a quality creative English education. We are looking for other families dissatisfied with what the island currently has to offer to join us. For more information call 648 803 029.

to which i'd reply, what's wrong with all the state schools!!!??

[blackswan555]

The state schools are very good , my child now go`s to one, not quite what you would see in an English school sometimes, But I see it like a lot of places here , the people seem to want to be there and enjoy their work, not just waiting for the Friday wage packet

I would say it depends on what you are looking at for their future, If it is you hope they go to a UK university, I would say either UK or international school would be best, If you can afford to pay for the rest of their lives, Morna
Spanish university, State would probably be better, Some teach in Catalan, Extra tuition is always an option,

have a good one
Tim

ps Morna over 9 grand a year now, Although I hear a cash offer may help

[weloveliam@space]

Seeing as a decent (spanish) school will probably determine where we settle. Are there semi private schools on the island ? We have them around here, they are generally of superior education, but without breaking the bank. The one in our town is Catholic and run by nuns, it has a fantastic reputation.

I presume like here, you can only choose a school depending on where you are Empadronised ?

[grego]

Seeing as a decent (spanish) school will probably determine where we settle. Are there semi private schools on the island ? We have them around here, they are generally of superior education, but without breaking the bank. The one in our town is Catholic and run by nuns, it has a fantastic reputation.

I presume like here, you can only choose a school depending on where you are Empadronised ?

yes there are concertado schools (3 or 4 at most), which generally teach in spanish not catalan, although most on the island are good, the only difference is that they teach in spanish......hardly worth the fee for that alone.

so in summary, you have 4 or 5 concertados, the french school, morna and then at least one state school in each village - obviously with more in the bigger the population of the area.

empadronamiento helps on the points scoring system when you apply to get in but like i said earlier, it is meaningless if there simply aren't any places in the schools. for example, sant josep, santa gertrudis, jesus, etc,

generally, i think there is very little difference between the primary education here, if anything the state schools are best because the learning process is not hampered by the targets, structure, etc, etc you find in british schools (and morna) and like blackswan says, the teachers are truly dedicated people who involve themselves in the child's life more than just going through text books.

there are different options once again for secundaria.

[grego]

Seeing as a decent (spanish) school will probably determine where we settle. Are there semi private schools on the island ? We have them around here, they are generally of superior education, but without breaking the bank. The one in our town is Catholic and run by nuns, it has a fantastic reputation.

I presume like here, you can only choose a school depending on where you are Empadronised ?

oh and when you say spanish, do you include the state schools?

[HDR]

Grego, thanks for all the really useful info, very helpful.

I am with you on the local school thing, I think it is always best to try and integrate locally if possible, which it would be for the 5 year old.

But as quite alot of the local schools are full, what are the implications then, if we live in Sant Josep, for example ? Would he be placed in the nearest available school ? I guess that also impacts on the whole "integrating with the locals" thing and means shuttling to and fro, or are there school bus systems ?

Another detail which you may know - does the French school place a strong emphasis on Spanish with an aim to achieving bilingual abilities ? Only ask as some of the English schools here aim to do that with French and/or German.

Thanks again for taking the time to help, you seem like a pretty busy man !

[grego]

Grego, thanks for all the really useful info, very helpful.

I am with you on the local school thing, I think it is always best to try and integrate locally if possible, which it would be for the 5 year old.

But as quite alot of the local schools are full, what are the implications then, if we live in Sant Josep, for example ? Would he be placed in the nearest available school ? I guess that also impacts on the whole "integrating with the locals" thing and means shuttling to and fro, or are there school bus systems ?

Another detail which you may know - does the French school place a strong emphasis on Spanish with an aim to achieving bilingual abilities ? Only ask as some of the English schools here aim to do that with French and/or German.

Thanks again for taking the time to help, you seem like a pretty busy man !

no problem for my advice, make the most of it though, as through our business we are always getting lots of enquiries about school/education, so i might start charging soon!! no really, after our difficult roller coaster of an experience, i'm happy to help anyone if it makes the process easier or a little less daunting.

to answer your question, in our case it meant we moved to an area where we knew the kids would get in (sant jordi) and we couldn't be happier! we'd decided pretty early on that one of our prerequisites was that the kids could walk to school. so on that basis, you have 2 choices, find out where there is availability and move near there or if there is an area you specifically want to live, then just assess what likely options are available. for example, jesus school is popular but i'm sure there are places in puig d'en valls, not too far away. so you could still live where you want and only have a short car ride/free bus to the school.

as for bilingualism at the french school, i think its safe to say that if they were starting from a young age, then they would grow up to be bilingual. its not quite the same as in state schools (where altho the teaching is in catalan, everyone in the playground, and often in the class too, speaks spanish) but spanish will be like a lingua france for kids throughout the school.

http://www.college-francais-ibiza.ne..._pratiques.htm (you'll see here that they teach catalan and spanish from 'élementaire', which i guess is like primary and then english too from secondary)

as an aside, the schools do run buses from all over the island but i'm not sure of exact routes. once you've narrowed down the areas/schools you're interested in, you could investigate from there.

happy to help, any more questions, fire away here or PM me if you prefer.

bizz

[blackswan555]

looks like the natives are getting restless as well :-) taken from http://www.ipamic.org/html/home_en.htm

Next year´s fees
As the school aleady has asked for the deposit for next year, we are in contact with the management about the to be expected fees of 2009 / 2010.
We have also forwarded the following questions:

• Which business asks for a deposit or prepayment until the final price is not fixed?
• Which serious managed business has no 2 years business plan which includes prices?
• When will the fees be published?
• What´s about the expected "product" of next year?
  
  • Which teachers will stay?
  • Is there already any expected change?
  • Is it secure that all subjects will be covered by a sufficient qualified teaching staff?
  
  

We also asked for a publication of all teacher´s qulifications.

hopefully also spelling (qulifications) may be addressed

[rewdan]

We are seriously considering moving full time to Ibiza in the autumn. Could anyone recommend schools in the Santa Eulalia area for our two kids. I already have a house in the hills outside of the town on the way to cala llonga and for over 10 years have paid local taxes and have an nie and bank account, will this help in getting my kids a place?

They are 6 and 3 years old next september when we are thinking of making the move, none of us speak more than a little spanish but want to learn, would this be a problem with the school or do they help get the kids up and running with the lingo?

Should I approach the schools and put my name down now for next september enrolment. We were thinking of Morna but after reading the posts here I would rather go 'state', plus I would also like to become more Spanish and less expat.

All advice would be great.

[grego]

the local schools in sta eularia are fine as far as i know.

the background you've got will help you skip a few stages of the process in terms of everything. however, you will still need to, or it is advised to, get an NIE for your kids, then get them empadronado, this things will count as points to your application.

6 and 3 is fine, they'll get given additional, free, after-school support with catalan and/or any areas they are struggling.

the process is that you need to apply in person at your first choice school around april/may. but it's advisable to go to the education office on via punica in ibiza town and they can give you an idea about availability of places in schools. as there are a few in sta eularia, it should be fine. if you were aiming for a village school (like sant josep for example), then it's much harder to find a spot.

when you apply, you put 2nd and 3rd choices in. the truth is that you're likely to be towards the bottom of the list (siblings, low income families, etc get higher points) but there will be a space for them. defo worth going to the education office as they can tell you which school has places for the 6 year old and you can aim for that one.

in case you didn't know. kids start school here in the year they are 3 (kind of like nursery equivalent in UK) and there is 3 years of this. then in the september of the year they are 6, the formal Year 1 begins. so your 6 year old is quite likely to have a head start academically, which should mean they can concentrate on the language.

also, the year you go in depends on the calendar year, not academic. in other words, the oldest kids in each year are born at start of Jan and not start of Sep. not sure what difference this makes to your kids.

about morna, it's really not right for young english speaking kids to go there. as most of the younger kids there now are spanish, so much time is spent on language basics, that english native speakers won't get anywhere near the standard they would in a state school.

in other words, the school my kids are in, when they started they were the only ones who couldn't speak spanish and catalan. so they had no choice but to catch up and achieve the standard level of the class. at morna, as so many have the language barrier, it's slightly different.

at the state schools they teach in catalan. my kids have been in school 2 years and are now both fluent in spanish and catalan. homework can be a bit of a challenge sometimes (for me i mean!) but it's really no different than if it were in spanish. i think it's great they are getting to learn catalan fluently and it's really no extra burden for them. when they come to it, learning french will be a doddle.

good luck with everything.

[blackswan555]

Something you may want to think about for the future, Are your kid`s going to stay here long term or go on to university ? The French school I do not know, although I have freind`s with children there that say it is very good, But the Spanish schools here lack in equipment & facilities compared to even a small UK comp, especially in Science and Tech, Spanish school until secondary age then boarding school seems to be the best there,

Have a good one
Tim

[rewdan]

Thanks Grego, can I get the kids or myself for that matter on the empadronado whilst I am still resident in the UK? I have owned my house in Ibiza for 10 years bur never taken residency as it has only been used for holidays so far, same for their mum as she isn't on the deeds for the house, I owned it before I met her.


Thanks as well Tim, I am unsure as to how long we will stay in Ibiza if we make it at all. Things are pretty poor for me work wise in the UK at the moment and if they continue the same then we will move to the sun for a better lifestyle! Then I guess our length of stay will be dependent on how much we get on with the lifestyle full time. If all went well and we stayed, I would be more than happy if they went to a Spanish university. On a recent trip to Granada I met a load of English students having a great time there!
I have no interest in the french school or boarding school really, it would be about spending more time with the kids!
Thanks once again.

[rewdan]

Now we are getting really serious about this....
Can any one tell me the school calender for state schools in Santa Eularia for 2011, I would like to arrange to have a look with my family but don't want to arrive on a school holiday.
Any contact details for the education office would also be great.
thanks

[mason2011]

hi all, wow there is loads of information here! I'm moving over after christmas and will be going to look at schools (they will be going to a public school) around october but would like to know if you already have kids in school, how did they settle in? Are the lesson's similar to england? For some reason i keep thinking the teachers are going to be really strict, i don.t know why so how have you found the teachers? And how are the other parents is their a mix of nationalities in most schools so maybe some english speakers who could help? I speak quite good spanish and still learning and will start having some lessons in catalan when i arrive but it would still be nice to have a few english speaking friends. I'd really appreciate any replies, thankyou

[rewdan]

hi all, wow there is loads of information here! I'm moving over after christmas and will be going to look at schools (they will be going to a public school) around october but would like to know if you already have kids in school, how did they settle in? Are the lesson's similar to england? For some reason i keep thinking the teachers are going to be really strict, i don.t know why so how have you found the teachers? And how are the other parents is their a mix of nationalities in most schools so maybe some english speakers who could help? I speak quite good spanish and still learning and will start having some lessons in catalan when i arrive but it would still be nice to have a few english speaking friends. I'd really appreciate any replies, thankyou

Hi Mason, if its Santa E you are thinking of then I can fill in a few bits. We have been thinking about moving to the island for the last 6 months or so and are still undecided. Our plan was always to move around Jan 2011 due to my work commitments in the UK. We are still undecided but will be on holiday on the Island in about a weeks time until the begining of September so I think we will decide then.

Anyway, first you need to register on the Padron (local council head count). For this you need to own a property or rent one long term. This entitles you to schooling for your kids.
There are 3 schools in Santa E. all are mixed. I took my family over to see them in March, they all have different rules with regard to viewing.
The first school issued us with a teacher who gave us a tour whilst the school was open.
The second asked us to come back when the school was shut.
The third had a day in May when it opened its doors to all.
Having done the tour of the first we didn't bother with the rest.

The school seemed very relaxed and the children happy. We were concerned about the language barrier but were assured that they would be bilingual in no time! My kids are 6 and 2 so still sponge like!
Also, the system is such that if your children aren't keeping up with the rest of the class they will remain in the same year for a second time. We were assured that the language barrier was taken into account so I guess if your kids are clever they will move up a year anyway.
I think the teachers are pretty laid back, it is Ibiza after all! Word on the street is that they love their work and the kids enjoy going. We were also told that if we needed to take our kids out for a holiday then it was not usually a problem, something you would never hear in the Uk.
From what I could tell, the school we visited had different nationalities of kids (and teachers) but were predominantly Spanish.

What you need to do when you make the move is go to the education office in Ibiza town, there is a very nice lady there (name escapes me) but she is fluent in English. Her mum is English. Anyway, due to the time of year your kids will be placed in a school with a vacancy as close to where you live as possible. Your kids can be moved to another school of your choice if a place becomes available and you prefer that school. (you may want both your kids at the same school).
If you phone the education office the lady will fill you in on everything over the phone. If you do so please post her name on here so I get it right next time.

Anyway, thanks for keeping my old post alive! Good luck with the move and keep us informed. You never know, might bump into you in January at the school gate!

[mason2011]

Hi rewden, thanks for your reply it was really helpful and i shall defo be following up on your advice! Once the summer holidays start we shall be going over for the summer to look at apartments etc and different towns. Do you know santa eularia well? I heard it is a really nice family friendly place to live all year long? Have you looked at other towns? We have family in san antoni so we have there as an optio but i also love ibiza town!! So we have alot of work with regards to what school has places and apartments etc? Do you think you you and your family will be making the move this year? Well thanks again for your reply and hopefully hear back from you soon!

[rewdan]

I know Santa E quite well, I have a house in the country side about a mile outside the town, owned it for 12 years but only ever used it for holidays. Oddly, since Ryanair have made it easy to get there in the winter I have started going over every 6 weeks or so for long weekends. I like the winter but it gets pretty cold, nice and quiet though.
Santa E is definitely a family friendly town, also like Ibiza town, it is all year round. I have only visited San An a few times in winter, it seems a bit of a ghost town but I am sure there are things going on. You would probably know better than me what it's like in winter.
I am not sure if we will make the move, I hope so but it's all a bit of a maybe at the moment.
Not sure what I would do for work either, I am a builder in the UK but one of the reasons for moving is to give that up. Also, I think building work is pretty scare in Ibiza at the moment. I don't want to run a bar either but my missus would insist I do something, just to get me out of the house for a few days each week. Any suggestions are welcome.
For us though, if we don't do it now we never will. Our kids are the right age (6&2), any older and the harder it will get. Also, work in the UK is rubbish. There is no better time for us than now really. It would be a shame not to do it.