Primary schools

[enfyshaf1973]

Hi all , we are thinking of relocating from Turkey to North Cyprus we have a 10yr old son and would like views on primary schools in the area, we would also be looking to rent a property close to schools
Thank you

[iancrumpy]

Hi all , we are thinking of relocating from Turkey to North Cyprus we have a 10yr old son and would like views on primary schools in the area, we would also be looking to rent a property close to schools
Thank you

Hi enfyshaf1973,

I'm presuming your son can not communicate in Turkish ... so he would struggle at least initially in one of the government schools. However, if you'd like him to learn Turkish (and you could home-school him with other subjects for a year or two) then maybe government schools is the best option for you ... and of course you'd save a few quid. However, most foreigners opt to send their chidren to "international" private schools here.

Most of the international community lives within about 10 miles of Kyrenia (or "Girne" in Turkish) and there are three private schools in that area with international children in their primary sections :
Necat British College - http://www.necatbritishcollege.com/
English School of Kyrenia - http://www.englishschoolkyrenia.org/Site/Home.aspx -
Girne American International Prep School - http://gau-americancollege.k12.tr/ - by the way, "American" is something of a misnomer - their education is more British-orientated than American
I would rather not comment on the education received at these three schools, suffice to say that parents seem generally impressed with, at least, the primary sections in all three.
As for their locations, the English School of Kyrenia is about a mile out from the centre of Girne and the other two are several miles out to the west ... where most of the British community reside.

The school for your son rather limits your choice of location to Girne and its surrounding area. That said, I live on the Nicosia(Lefkoşa) side of the mountain and from here there are children that travel to at least one of the schools listed above.

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[iancrumpy]

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On the Turkish side of Nicosia there are private schools that would certainly accept your son, however, as in the case of government schools, your son would struggle with Turkish instruction. There are some international schools in the south that really are *international*. A number of my wife's relatives send their children to the American Academy which is relatively close to the crossing point ... and they are very happy with the education their children are receiving both in the primary and the secondary there. The school's link is http://www.aacademynicosia.ac.cy/

There is also a small international community living on the eastern side of the island around Boğaz. As with other private schools, Eastern Mediterranean Doğa College (a little to the south in Gazimağusa) would be happy to take him, but as with the schools in Nicosia, he would struggle at least at first with the Turkish atmosphere in the school.

So, your best bet is to live in or around Girne and send him to one of the three schools mentioned above ... ie. NBC, ESK or GA. I advise you to do a search on this forum to find out more about parents' opinions on the primary sections at these three schools.

[iancrumpy]

relocating from Turkey

If you're coming from Turkey though ... and your son speaks at least enough Turkish not to feel uncomfortable in Turkish-speaking environments, then maybe you should send him to a government school ... and save yourself some money
Moreover, you could then live pretty much wherever you want in North Cyprus ...

[enfyshaf1973]

Yes my son can understand a bit of Turkish to get by we have been in Turkey 2 yrs and he's in a government school from day 1,he private lessons at home through the summer holidays to boost him further.
I just wanted to know of good and nice villages that has government schools

[iancrumpy]

Yes my son can understand a bit of Turkish to get by we have been in Turkey 2 yrs and he's in a government school from day 1,he private lessons at home through the summer holidays to boost him further.
I just wanted to know of good and nice villages that has government schools

Then the only real restriction on where you rent is to be close to where you work.

Re : Village schools - You might want to bear in mind that in some of the villages, it's common for students to attend even primary in neighbouring villages. This is the case in my father-in-law's not-so-small village of Şirinevler, where the primary children attend school in another village about 2km away ... and the secondary go to one in a town about 5km away. However, transport is provided by the local authorities.

[butterfly]

Catalkoy Primary is excellent, many expats have put their young ones through.