Nexus International School

[gok]

HI All,

I would really appreciate any feedback on Nexus International School. I know it has changed management recently and most of the teachers were replaced for this academic year. I also understand that in the past it has had a checkered history.

However, if anyone has any current feedback on the school I would be interested. We are moving to Singapore soon and want a small school environment for our children. Most of the established ones have long waiting lists so we keep coming back to Nexus. However its hard to find feeback on it.

Any help would be appreciated!

Many thanks

[Veronica VanE]

Dear Gok,
I am really pleased to have this opportunity to respond to your query. I sort of reviewed the school in April 2012 when we visited but this is a good chance to update everyone.

I too had difficulty researching Nexus because they seemed to change the name/ownership quite a lot! In April 2012, before we moved to SG, I visited with my children and we visited a couple of the established schools and Nexus. In fact we were offered places at all 3 schools but our children gave a resounding “yesâ€Â

[Veronica VanE]

PS - Gok you might like to read the thread at http://forum.singaporeexpats.com/sutra6 ... tml#630904
which I started (like you) when I was trying to find out more....
Thx to you I have updated it!
ATB

[erussell]

Hi Gok,

I moved my son to Nexus last August after bad experiences with the teachers and management at the Canadian School. He has never been so happy to go to school each day and he has made real progress. We have been very happy with Nexus and would highly recommend it.

The checkered history is related to the campus and not Nexus. Other schools have used it whilst waiting for a new campus to be built. I don't know why they would want to move on as it is a fantastic facility with large playing fields and outdoor spaces. Like you, we wanted a small school feel and Nexus has that.

I strongly suggest you go and have a look.

[gok]

Hi

Thanks to you both very much for taking the time to answer my post. It has taken a lot off my mind to know that it's a school that current parents/kids would recommend.

My daughter will be 5 this summer so I really want a nurturing and caring environment for her.

Thanks again

Gill

[AF]

Hi erusell

I am interested on your comment abt the canadian school, last week I visited several schools in Songapore and I liked the new campus of the canadian and Stamford American school, your kids were on the new or old campus , which type of problemsdid you have if u can be more specific pls.
does anyone has experience in Stamford American?

thks

[xanthe13]

Hi
I would be really interested to hear how you got on Gok? Have you started your child at Nexus?
We visited last week with a view to starting in August and really liked the campus, facilities and the area our child's class would be in (also turning 5 in November).
Our reservation is the fear of the unknown. Struggling to get any feedback on it from expats we know out there, online etc.
Also the class sizes. We felt the campus was a bit ghost like in places. I worry there is not a critical mass of children for our daughter - odd as this may sound we don't want her to be in a class of 10. We want her to have the opportunity to meet lots of people and have a wide selection of friends.
Would be really interested in ANY feedback from anyone please!!
Thanks

[Veronica VanE]

Hi Xanthe13
I am more familiar with Secondary School but it may be the school appeared "ghostlike" because we have exams at the moment. Usually the place is buzzing with activity. If you would like to get a flavour of the school they have just posted some really helpful clips on YouTube - http://m.youtube.com/#/user/NISSingapor ... feature%3D

Or search "nexus exploration"

Hope that is helpful
Veronica VanE

[dmaescott]

Hi xanthe13

My children have attended Nexus for the past three years and absolutely love it. I believe the smaller class sizes benefit the children with more 1-1 interaction with their teachers. When I have gone into the school during break times you see the entire Primary school and Kindergarten interacting together (Nursery to Year 6). All the children know each other and I like it when I see the older children communicating with the younger one's and you see the delight in a 4 year old's eye when a 10 year old says 'Hi'.

The school is based on a large campus so there is a lot of space, but as the student population increases then more space will be utilised. I can only go on my experience there but I've always felt welcomed when entering the campus.

Hope that helps!

[seznewton]

Hi there,

Looking to move to Singapore in October 2013. Just went over to Singapore to look at schools. Flying visit to Avondale, Stamford American, AIS, ISS, Dover and then at last minute someone mentioned Nexus. Unfortunatley despite making appt to see the schools, Stamford, ISS did not mention already on summer break till I arrived for the appointment. Hard to judge the atmosphere of an empty school. Nexus was also on break with the kindergarten classes being completely empty of furniture and art work as well.

My daugther will be turning five this October, and will be starting a UK based prep school in Cayman in September before we move. I was hoping to find a school with a smaller inviting enviroment with UK curriculum and Aug to June school year, but looks like that is not going to happen.

Does anyone have their child in Nexus Kindergarten(4-5 year old), or planning on sending their child to Nexus. Would love to know your thoughts on the school..class size, teacher Ms Bhavani Nair (I apologise if I've spelt it wrong), enviroment etc. The admin staff I met there seemed lovely, but unfortunately unable to get the vibe without the kids and teachers present.

Thanks,

[Hannieroo]

I love it. My eldest is 15 and thriving, fabulous report. He is happy, the teachers are great and the atmosphere is lovely. They know how to get the best out of a teen. The class sizes are very small, sometimes only 7 in a class.

My 5 year old just completed KG with Mrs Bhavana. I always turn up to happy children. He is right on target or slightly beyond what we would expect at this age and the atmosphere is a fun, happy and warm one. Mrs B and her assistant Miss Eloisa are extremely good at what they do and combine nurturing with an encouragement of self confidence. The communication is very open and there is always time for a quick check in, I've never known a school to have teachers so available and welcoming to parents. We get regular emails and a newsletter and the sheer breadth of what they do surprises me. There's always something that catches their imagination going on.
Our class had 15 which is a nice number, I believe that the year below (your year) is slightly smaller. But they wouldn't do a larger class than about 16, is my impression. Unlike other schools we've had there is a lot of specialists for the little ones. They are taught art, music, mandarin and pe/swimming by subject teachers, again, my boy is nothing but excited by this. Every day he has something he's jumping out of bed for. The library has a proper librarian and their trips there involve being read to before choosing a book to take home. In the last 10 weeks my little one was involved in a swimming gala, a special assembly showcasing their topic, a concert/ play and a trip to the zoo.

Also for me, it has been the easiest school to integrate in. There is no clique thing going on. All of the parents are very welcoming and there is a fair bit organized for them and families if you fancy signing up.

Sorry, very poorly written. Typing on my phone. Hope it helps.

[Hannieroo]

Also, the less pleasant aspects of school such as children falling out and discipline are dealt with very well. Mrs B communicates very well with parents so you know exactly what happened and deals with whatever, immediately, with a sense of humour. The discipline is very positive and works very well with this age group. We have had schools where a child that age would be stuck with sad faces on the wall for a week after the misdemeanour which I don't think is healthy. Sort it, move on. But i think on the whole discipline is needed very rarely because Mrs B is on it and would be heading off poor choices before they happened. She has a lot of positive energy and looks just as happy and fresh at the end of the day as she does at the start. I like that, you need your child to spend their day with somebody who is enjoying spending their day with your child.

There is a nurse on duty at all times and the odd scraped knee and bumped head goes there. Again, full communication with the parents.

[seznewton]

Thanks for all the info re Nexus. Really helpful and comforting you have had a very positive experience. Just a couple of other questions - do you know the ethnic mix of the class for KG this year, next year and boy to girl ratio, do you use the school bus system and would you be happy to have your five year old on it, and can you suggest popular condos where Nexus families may live in that area. I will be working at KK hospital, and though its further from work, I preference is to be closer to the school to limit the travel distance on the bus. My husband will be working at Raffles place, so I think the green line will work for us both. Any recommendations for our two year old son for preschool in the area too would be greatly recommended.
Thanks

[Hannieroo]

I think boy/girl is currently even. The racial mix I could not really comment on, throughout the school no single race appears to be under or over represented. But also just because the malaysian looking child has a malaysian looking mother doesn't mean dad isn't white and mum isn't australian. Or that the indian child isn't actually brazilian or turkish. A lot of the children have parents of different races or nationalities. If you like I can check but I must admit it's not something I've thought about before. It's not an issue, no particular culture is dominant or ignored. The teaching materials also reflect that. We're white British and my 5 year old has never lived overseas until now and it's just been fine.

I would use the bus , the children are escorted to and off it and it's all very safe and well organised with a lady chaperone on each bus (who the children all greet very happily) but living very close does not mean less time on the bus, we are a 10 minute drive from the school and our pick up would 6.45 am. It's down to routes, so i drive them myself. Your best bet is a condo nearby. If you go past the school there are a number of them, all different budgets. Given a different lifestyle I would be going for Pine Wood ( I think that's what it's called) that is right next door to the school or Ridgewood, just over the road. That one has really nice facilities, shops, dr etc. I believe you can walk to Dover MRT from there and the bus to Holland Village is frequent and it's only 5 minutes. I know nothing about pre-schools at that end although I have heard good things via friends of friends about White Lodge. There's a montessori just up to the left of Ulu Pandan. Near Sunset? From what I can gather a lot of the younger children spend the day with helpers if both parents work and they do all seem very happy with that.

[seznewton]

Thanks for getting back so promptly. The school sounds ideal for Alex, she's quite excited about our upcoming "adventure" to Singapore and the chance to learn Mandarin. When I went there, although I only spoke with the admin staff, everyone was friendly, positive and motivated, and I liked the mix of subjects in the timetable, it seemed more well balanced with PE/Music and Art sessions being twice a week, compared to other schools I'd looked at which were only once a week. Mandarin is everyday right?
At the moment she attends Montessori here, which has a nice mix of local and expatriate children, which is really important I think. I didn't realise the bus pick up times could be so varied, and so early despite living close. You are right, I think we need to look perhaps within walking distance of the school if we are not going to have a car or use a local bus route. Anyway, its midnight and all three children have just woken so had better go. Hey, thanks for your info. Much appreciated.