STAMFORD AMERICAN SCHOOL

Impressions & Experience

Stamford American School, Hong Kong opened in September 2017 with one primary goal, to create, “An inspiring world of education”. The school offers a broad and balanced curriculum and focuses deeply on personalized learning. Students have wonderful opportunities to explore an array of specialist programmes and CCAs which provides great exposure to new subjects and allows them to expand their skills and passions in the arts, modern languages and STEMInn(science, technology, engineering, mathematics and innovation). Two years on, this school has grown phenomenally and is a very popular choice for families.

Campus Tour

I visited Stamford American School in January to find out about new developments and changes within the school. Our visit began in the imagination hub, which is a flexible working space that allows for personalized learning, whether this is literacy support, EAL, or small group collaborations. We moved on to the 25m swimming pool, which was surprisingly bright and climate-controlled. Swimming is part of the school’s PE program and also available as an after school activity, which caters to swimmers of all levels. We visited the Stamford arena, which is a spacious 10,000 sq. ft, athletic space that also hosts large scale productions and other performances such as choir and music ensembles throughout the year.

A visit to the music room was a stand-out moment where the students were learning to understand rhythm and how to write music without relying on music sheets. The students were very engaged, and it was evident that the Head of the Arts program, Ms. Batchelder-Schwab came across as a highly experienced educator. Her passion for the subject created a sense of excitement in the room. This was remarkable to see.

Another surprise was this American-based curriculum school has a very large-scale Chinese New Year performance each year, thanks to the eager Mandarin faculty. I got a sneak peek and the elementary students practicing their dance and singing along with enthusiasm to the music; the class was keen to show off their Mandarin skills. The school offers leveled Mandarin in a daily 40-minute lesson or a bilingual option.

Stamford includes standard facilities such as visual arts and a drama room but also offer spaces for private instrument lessons and practices. The STEMinn areas for elementary and secondary have the latest technology for coding, robotics, 3-D printing of projects, etc. The school stands out with a dedicated onsite ICT and STEMinn coordinator. In fact, as part of the Cognita schools group, which operates 77 schools worldwide, the school is very well staffed with two school nurses, two school counselors, one University counselors and three principals-one of which is dedicated solely to Health and Safety. For a school that is medium-sized in terms of capacity, this is impressive.

A challenge on this campus is the lack of outdoor space; the school shared the plans for onsite outdoor play space, which is part of the additional facilities which are currently under construction for completion in 2020. These facilities will also help support the needs of the IB Diploma Programme, which will begin in 2021-2022. In the meantime, there are local parks and other green spaces nearby.

For parents looking for a safe, state-of-the-art, and medium-sized school, Stamford offers the program choices and resources of a large school while keeping a warm community feeling that permeates the halls.

See this school in action for yourself. Tours are scheduled for February 13 and Open House on March 7th.

Register here: https://www.sais.edu.hk/admissions/visit-stamford/school-tour-online-enquiries/

To learn more about Stamford in Hong Kong, visit: https://www.sais.edu.hk