Size of campus a big draw
S'pore PR to move his kids to M'sian branch of English public school Marlborough College. -TNP
Zul Othman
Tue, Jul 31, 2012
The New Paper
When the Malaysian branch of the English public school Marlborough College takes in its first batch of students next month, Mr David Bochsler's two children will be part of the pioneer batch.
The Canadian, 40, will move the kids - aged eight and six - to Marlborough from the Canadian International School Singapore, which they are now attending.
Until recently, they commuted to the campus in Lakeside, Jurong West, from their home in the Johor district of Nusajaya.
Mr Bochsler - a Singapore permanent resident since 2007 - moved to Johor Baru about three years ago because of his business, Exhale Group, which designs luxury homes there.
He says he needed to be closer to the builders and clients, although he commutes to the physical office in Robinson Road every day.
He tells The New Paper on Sunday: "My roots are still in Singapore because that is where I work. But we decided to move our children over to Marlborough because of the facilities and the size of the campus, which is located just 7km from where we are now."
He says he is attracted by the name of the school and the type of education it offers.
Malborough's 36.4ha campus in Iskandar, Malaysia, is the elite English school's first overseas campus.
Targeting children of locals and expatriates in Malaysia, Singapore and elsewhere in the region, its fees range from RM56,000 (S$22,000) a year for the youngest to RM126,000 a year for boarding seniors.
The fees, Mr Bochsler adds, is not much different from the $20,000 a year he pays for each of his children at the Canadian International School.
"The standard of living in Johor is much lower, so I save some money, but Marlborough, I felt, had a lot to offer for my children's education," he explains.
He knows that there are other parents from his children's school who are moving their kids to Marlborough College as well.
Other expatriate parents are considering the move, too.
Some, like Australian marketing consultant James Webbs, are even moving to Johor to be near the school.
He relocated to Johor last year so that his eight-year-old son, who studied at an international school here, could be enrolled in Marlborough College.
"They are very big on student and teacher interaction... plus there will be an added focus on languages, music and sports, which was a pull for us when considering the school," adds the 45-year-old. Marlborough's primary-level programme - which Mr Bochsler's children will attend - will be an English- based preparatory school curriculum.
The curriculum will be supported by a wide range of academic extension and enrichment activities through lectures, debates, poetry readings, conference and concerts aimed at producing a "well-balanced educated person".
While it could not provide exact figures, Mr Robert Pick, the master of Marlborough College Malaysia, tells TNPS in a telephone interview that about half the inaugural batch of 300 students, aged five to 15, will comprise children living across the Causeway.
Most are children of expatriates based in Singapore.
The rest are Singaporeans who will commute to the school, he adds.
"The dominant student population will be children of expatriates from around the world," adds Mr Pick, who was the deputy principal of Marlborough College in Britain.
"At last count, we have students holding 60 different kinds of passports, thus making us a truly international school."
It will eventually enrol up to 1,350 students, he adds.
The parent school began exploring the idea of expansion in 2005.
Singapore, Hong Kong, China, India and Malaysia had previously expressed interest in hosting a branch.
But Mr Pick says that the parent school chose Malaysia because it could provide "a large piece of land and they believed in education and were not in it to make money".
Mr Pick admits that the expensive price tag won't be for everyone.
But the price tag comes with facilities that include equestrian sports, multiple tennis and squash courts, and a lake for canoeing and fishing, among others.
Mr Pick says the long-term plan is to establish a global network of Marlborough schools with the intention that students can exchange between the schools.
He adds: "I am hoping the first student exchange between the two colleges will happen next year... These culture exchanges will be very important for our students because it will enhance the opportunity for the young person to be truly global."
Source:
http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/Edvantage/Story/A1Story20120730-362342.html
thanks anyway
