School policies and accreditation sources checked:
A polished school tour proves one thing: the school can run a polished school tour. Your job is to spot the ordinary Tuesday hiding behind it. How do adults speak to students? What does learning actually look like? Where does support stop? Can your family survive both the commute and the invoice without becoming noticeably haunted?
Do five minutes of homework before the tour
Verify the exact legal school name, campus and programme. A brand is not accreditation, however elegant its crest. Accreditation belongs to a named institution; IB authorisation belongs to specific programmes, not automatically to every age group at every campus. Search the IB World School directory ↗ and the accreditor’s own directory, then compare the results with the school’s claim.
Send admissions five questions before visiting: Is my child eligible? Is there likely space in the year group? Which curriculum or authorised programme applies at that level? What is the complete current fee sheet? Which campus will we visit? Written answers keep the tour focused—and prevent an hour-long excursion to the wrong campus.
The first ten minutes: become politely nosy
Look past the staged welcome. How are visitors checked in? Are students supervised as they move between spaces? Do staff greet children by name? Is the campus clean without feeling eerily silent? Notice heat, noise, shade, stairs and distances between buildings. A beautiful facility can still turn an ordinary wet Tuesday into a small expedition for a young child.
Ask to see learning while it is happening. A lab, theatre and library prove that rooms exist—excellent news for the building inspector. They do not show how often students use them, what teachers ask of students or whether the work on the wall represents a broad class rather than a carefully selected showcase.
The tour scorecard: score evidence, not sparkle
- Learning · 30% — classroom practice, curriculum depth, senior subjects and student work.
- Support · 25% — EAL, learning support, counselling, medical response and safeguarding.
- Commute · 20% — exact campus, real travel time, bus duration and late-bus provision.
- Culture · 15% — staff–student tone, belonging, behaviour and parent communication.
- Full cost · 10% — tuition plus every required or likely extra.
Ask what the curriculum means this year
“We offer IB” is a beginning, not an answer. Which authorised programmes? At which year levels? For older students, which subjects are actually running this year, and what happens when too few students choose one? How are new students placed? How much homework is normal? What evidence of progress reaches parents? Keep asking until the nouns acquire useful verbs.
Do the same with support. Who provides English-language learning and learning support? How often? At what additional cost, if any? What happens when the school cannot meet a need? For safeguarding, find the named reporting route and published policy. A policy shows the stated process; the tour should reveal whether people can explain it without searching the ceiling for inspiration.
Inspect the deeply unglamorous ordinary day
Lunch, devices, homework, activities and parent communication shape far more hours than the annual production. Ask to see the cafeteria during service if possible. Are devices supplied or required? Which platforms must parents use? How do late activities affect transport? What happens when a child misses the regular bus? These questions lack brochure glamour and possess actual weekday value.
Culture is hard to score, so record observations rather than vibes. “Students looked happy” is weak. “Three older students held doors for younger classes without being prompted” is evidence. “A teacher redirected a student quietly and the class kept moving” is evidence. Label it as one visit, not a universal truth or a future documentary.
Test the commute when it is least charming
The right time to test a school journey is the inconvenient one: weekday morning at drop-off, then the return around dismissal. Use the exact campus entrance, not a hopeful pin in the general district. Ask for current bus pickup points and the maximum scheduled ride. If activities matter, ask whether a late bus exists and where it stops.
A school that scores slightly lower but gives the family two hours back every day may be the better school for that family. Two hours is dinner, homework and a conversation—not a minor rounding error. Put the campus into the area finder and score housing against both school and work.
Price the whole year, not the headline
Build a line for tuition, application and registration fees, deposit or capital levy, bus, lunch, uniform, device, trips, exams and activities. Ask which are mandatory, which are estimates and which are refundable. Get withdrawal dates and refund terms in writing. Comparing tuition alone is like pricing a flight while politely ignoring every fee after seat selection.
Vague accreditation language; admission guaranteed through an intermediary; or payment requested to a personal account. Pause and verify with the school directly.
Now make the scorecard yours
The weights above are a starting point. A child who needs specialised support may make support 40%. A family splitting time with Hong Kong may make commute 35%. Add deal-breakers separately, because a weighted average can hide a single unacceptable condition.
Score immediately after each tour, before the next school rearranges your memory of the previous one. Add three lines: what the school showed, what it said it would send, and what you still need to verify. Then compare evidence, not adjectives.
Do the official homework
Programme authorisations, policies, bus routes, fees and subject offerings change. Check the named institution and current year; the confident parent beside you is not an accrediting body.