King George V School

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Coordinates: 22°19′19″N, 114°10′59″E

King George V School
Motto	Honestas ante Honores (Honesty before Glory)
Contact Information	Phone: +852 2711-3029 Fax: +852 2760-7116
Established	1946
Type	international, secondary, co-educational.
Principal	Ed Wickins (2004)
Location	2 Tin Kwong Rd. Ho Man Tin, Kowloon Hong Kong
District	Kowloon
Enrollment	1700 students
Grades	Year 7 to Year 13
Publication	The Lion (annual yearbook)
Mascot	Lion
Website	[clc.esf.edu.hk]

King George V School (Chinese: 英皇佐治五世學校), often shortened to "KGV" (pronounced as: K-G-Five) is a co-educational international secondary school of the English Schools Foundation, located in the Ho Man Tin area of Hong Kong. The former colony's only secondary school for overseas students, KGV currently serves 1,700 students in the Kowloon peninsula. One of the oldest schools in Hong Kong with a long history and many traditions, the students take GCSEs followed by the International Baccalaureate.^[1] KGV has a unit for children with special needs. The campus is 10.2 acres in size.

Contents 1 History 2 Students and the house system 3 Dress code 4 Senior student council 5 School council 6 School motto and song 7 Facilities 7.1 Buildings 7.2 Other facilities 7.3 Future site development 8 Curriculum 9 Traditions 10 Trivia 11 Notable alumni 12 References 13 External links

[edit] History

KGV is the oldest of all the schools in the English Schools Foundation. It was first opened in 1894 on Nathan Road and originally catered for Europeans living in Kowloon. At that time the school comprised just one small building which was destroyed in a typhoon in 1896. In 1902 Kowloon College was opened in its place. Drawing Europeans from all over Hong Kong, the school would be renamed The Kowloon British School, and then The Central British School before assuming its present name.

By 1930, the number of students in the school had grown to 300. Wooden huts were built at the back of the school to create extra classrooms. The playground was only 7 m². The then-Headmaster, Mr. Nightingale, asked for a new and bigger school site, which was acquired, and the site plan for which was designed by a teacher named Mr. Rowell. Classes began at the new site began on 14 September 1936. The first headmaster of the new school was Reverend Upsdell. The present school is still on the same site. The foundation stone for the new building was laid by Sir William Peel and the building was subsequently named The Peel Block in his honor.

In 1937, the Japanese army invaded China. Lots of European women and children were evacuated from Shanghai to Hong Kong. They needed a place to stay in the summer and the school was used as a refugee camp. When World War II started in 1939, the government started to worry about the safety of the children. In August 1940 the government ordered the evacuation of European women and children, and the school site was occupied by British forces as a hospital. When Hong Kong surrendered in the Battle of Hong Kong, the school site was taken over by the Japanese and used as a hospital for prisoners of war. It is rumored that the clock tower and/or Pavilion was once used as a morgue or torture chamber under the Japanese occupation and that ghosts of tortured victims inhabit the clock tower and room P14. Dead bodies were also said to be buried under the school field. What is known, however, is that when classes at KGV resumed after WWII, the back of the stage still had the Rising Sun flag (of the Japanese military) painted on its back wall.

When the news was received that Japan had surrendered, the General commanding the school left holding his sword high. As soon as he had left, the school raised the British Flag. It is probably the first in Hong Kong. After the end of the war KGV was used as a military hospital and British doctors lived in the school. The following message was inscribed at the Hall's main entrance: "Never in the field of human conflict" - a reference to Winston Churchill's famous speech given to the British Parliament on 20 August 1940. To this day the quote still remains at the Hall's main entrance.

The school re-opened in the summer of 1946 and in 1947 children of all nationalities were able to join the school. Since it was no longer only for British pupils, the school's name was changed on speech day 1948. It is now called King George V School. George V was King when the foundation stone of the Peel Block was laid.

In 1974, the principal Miss A. Smith decided to join the English Schools Foundation, and in 1979, the transfer was complete. KGV is currently the oldest school in the ESF.^{[2] [3]}

[edit] Students and the house system

There are approximately 1,700 students of some 28 different nationalities enrolled in the school. Students are accepted from many feeder primary schools in the English Schools Foundation such as Kowloon Junior School, Beacon Hill School, and Clearwater Bay School.

The house system is the basis for all school competitions such as in sports, music, and dance, and often sees fierce competition between the houses. Each student at KGV belongs to a house, named after former members of staff. However, to prevent competition between members of the same family, brothers and sisters are usually placed into the same house.

The houses, and their associated colors, are as follows:

• Crozier (green) - a teacher who fought to defend Hong Kong in WWII.
• Nightingale (yellow) - headmaster who first asked for a new school building, which is now the current school site.
• Rowell (blue) - a teacher who designed part of the current site of the school.
• Upsdell (red) - the first headmaster to serve in the school building located at the current school site. ^[4]

For pastoral purposes, students are allocated year groups ranging from Year 7 to Year 13, depending on their year of birth. These year groups are further split into form groups, named after planets and heavenly bodies: A (Asteroid), E (Earth), G (Ganymede), H (Halley's Comet), J (Jupiter), M (Mars), N (Neptune), P (Pluto), S (Saturn), V (Venus). A form group consists of roughly 30 students, and is allocated a form room, where registration (i.e. attendance) is taken, and any notices such as the Daily Bulletin are read out.

A student's form group originally remained unchanged throughout his or her school career, i.e. a student placed in group 7S would precede to 8S, 9S, and 10S etc. In September 2001, students entering Year 9 had their form groups reshuffled to encourage the students to be more familiar with the rest of the year, but the old system was restored in 2004. Form groups are normally reshuffled again at the beginning of Year 12 to account for leavers after completion of Year 11. Students were formerly picked arbitrarily into form groups, but as of September 2005, senior school students in Year 12 and 13 are placed in house-based form groups. The years are mixed together, known as vertical tutoring, so groups will consist of Year 12 and 13 students. Such groups are named 6N1 (Sixth Form, Nightingale, Group 1) as opposed to previously, where students were placed in groups named 12E, 13M, etc.

[edit] Dress code

Students in KGV have to wear a uniform. In summer, girls in Y7—Y11 wear a blue skirt or blue trousers, a white blouse with the KGV logo, black leather shoes and a pair of plain white socks. Girls in Y12-Y13 wear a khaki skirt or trousers, white blouse, black shoe or sandals and a pair of white socks. Boys in Y7—Y11 wear blue trousers or shorts, a white shirt with the KGV logo, a black leather belt, black leather shoes and a pair of black socks. Boys in Y12-Y13 wear khaki trousers or shorts, a white shirt, a black belt, black shoes and a pair of black socks.

In winter, girls in Y7-Y11 wear a blue skirt, a white long-sleeved blouse, dark blue tights, a yellow tie for Y7-Y8, or a blue tie for Y9-Y11, white socks and black shoes, V-neck pullover or a navy blue blazer. Y12 -Y13 girls wear a khaki skirt or trousers, a white long-sleeved blouse, a blazer or pull-over, dark blue tights, white socks, black shoes and a blue tie. Boys in Y7-Y11 wear blue trousers, a white long- sleeved shirt, a pull-over or blazer, socks and shoes the same as summer uniforms, and yellow tie for Y7 - Y8, blue for Y9-Y11. Y12-Y13 boys wear khaki trousers, a white long-sleeved shirt, a blazer or pull-over, blue tie and shoes and socks as the summer uniforms.^[5]

[edit] Senior student council

The Senior Student Council consists of 14 members, all of them from Year 12. Half of them are elected through direct student voting in the senior school (Years 12 and 13), and half of them are voted from within form groups. The President and Vice President of the Council are then voted in by Year 12 students.

The Senior Student Council listens to the student opinion, through form representatives, assisting the school's development and improvement. In recent SSC elections, issues of concern for KGV students have included congestion in the school's stairways , the lack of means through which students can voice their concerns, and the replacement of malfunctioning computers in the Senior Student Centre Resource Room.

[edit] School council

KGV School Council is responsible for the government of the life and work of the school. The Council has a number of responsibilities including monitoring, reviewing and evaluating the School Development Plan; the appointment and promotion of staff; approving the school budget; ensuring the condition and state of repair of the school premises and also acts as a link between ESF management, the school and the community as a whole.^[6]

Position	Name
Chairman	Mr. Mike Dowie Contact
Principal	Mr. Ed Wickins
ESF Representative	Mr. Chris Durbin
Community Members	Mr. Michael Guilford Mr. Robert McRobbie Mr. Donald Yap
PTSA Chairperson	Mrs. Lena Chan
PTSA Representatives	Mrs. Jane Gilman Mr. Naresh Khiatani
Staff Representative	Mr. Steve Atack Mrs. Sue Leatham Ms. Kirrily Foley

[edit] School motto and song

The school motto and song is Honestas Ante Honores "Honesty Before Glory" in Latin. It is sung at school events such as the Junior School Celebration and Speech Day.

[edit] Facilities

[edit] Buildings

This is the list of buildings on the KGV campus as of 2006. The letter in brackets following the name of the building is the prefix of most classrooms in that block.

• Peel Block (P)

Completed: 1937

This block is named after Sir William Peel, the Governor of Hong Kong from 1930-1935. His name can be found on the foundation stone on the north-east side of the building. This is the first block built on the present school site. It is protected under Hong Kong law due to its age.

A two-story building, this block houses the Hall, fourteen general-purpose classrooms on the ground floor, four on the first floor), seven senior science labs, the Junior Library (Reading Centre), a computer room, two multimedia suites, the staff room and offices, and a lecture theatre. Most of which have huge doors with a handle placed quite low because this block was used as a hospital. The clock tower sits prominently on the front side of the building. There are also two paved 'quads' for playing various sports on.

Since KGV was used as a hospital and a dungeon by the Japanese in World War II, there were many rumors about this block. Many have said that P14 (the computer room) is haunted and was a torture chamber, while others say at night footsteps can be heard on the Peel Block's roof.

The Hall, located in the centre of this block, has hardwood flooring in the centre and marble flooring on the side walkways and up halfway along the wall. At the front of the hall is the stage, and to the rear, there is a second balcony level. The hall is outfitted with advanced sound and lighting equipment, and used for events ranging from weekly Assembly to Speech Day (an award ceremony for Year 9s and above) to music and dance competitions.

• Pavilion Block (X)

This block occupies the south-west corner of the school field. Prior to the reconstruction of the field, two classrooms (X1 and X2) were housed in this block, and storage shed and maintenance shed occupied the ground floor. The classrooms have now been converted into changing rooms. In addition, many students and teachers believe the Pavilion was used as a torture chamber during World War II when the Japanese occupied the school.

• New Block (N)

Completed: 1964

This building, situated on the south side of the campus, is three storeys tall and houses most of the technology rooms. There are two design technology rooms and two textiles technology rooms on the ground floor; two graphics technology rooms and two food technology rooms on the first floor; six junior science labs and a store room; two general-purpose classrooms; and the school's Sick Room.

• Annex Block (AN)

Completed: 1982

The Annex Block houses four classrooms on the ground floor, on the second floor. These classrooms are mainly used for teaching Chinese; there is a Languages Store room, which has a little door at the back that goes to the first floor of the New Block.

• Activities Centre

Formerly comprised of two squash courts, the Activities Centre houses two Drama Studios and Drama Department Office, boys' and girls' P.E. changing rooms, and a boys' drama changing room which is connected to DS2, while the girl's drama changing room is connected to DS1.

• Link Block (L)

Completed: 1984

This five-storey building literally links the New Block, the Peel Block and the Activities Centre, with covered walkways on connecting floors. This building houses two Design and Technology rooms, a D&T office and store room, as well as a drama studio and girls' drama changing room all on the ground floor; two middle-school pastoral offices, three computer labs, and the School Library on the first floor; fourteen general-purpose classrooms on the second, third and fourth floors; three music rooms on the fourth floor; three art rooms on the fifth floor.

• Jockey Club Sarah Roe Centre (JCSRC)

Completed: 1986

The Jockey Club Sarah Roe Centre was built with funds donated from the then Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club and named after Mrs. Sarah Roe, an occupational therapist, who was a founder of the Child Development Centre at the Matilda Hospital. It originally contained the Jockey Club Sarah Roe School in the Garden Rooms on the ground floor (until it moved to new accommodation underneath the Senior Student Centre in 1996; see below), its support offices and a professional development and resources centre for ESF staff on the floors above.

Over the years, the building has been used for different purposes including housing the offices of ESF Educational Services Ltd, Sally's Place (ESF's Self-Access Language Learning Centre), the ESF Professional Library and KGV using the Garden Rooms as classrooms. Currently, KGV uses the Garden Rooms for teaching purposes whilst the first floor houses KGV's Junior School Office. The remaining office space houses the ESF Education Development Center's satellite office, its conference facilities and the ESF Professional Video Library.

• Sarah Roe School (JCSRS) / Senior Student Centre (E)

Completed: 1996

The Hong Kong Jockey Club Sarah Roe School is housed on the KGV site, and occupies the first two storeys of this building. This facility educates students with special needs across the English Schools Foundation, and is the only such unit in the entire foundation.

KGV occupies the remaining floors, designated by the letter E. The third floor of the building houses the Senior Student Centre (SSC) which is a common lounge/study area reserved exclusively for senior students. There are five classrooms in the Senior Student Centre used by students from all years, as well as a lecture theatre and a computer room. Offices for senior school pastoral staff are also housed there.

In 2001, a vertical extension to the building was completed. The fourth floor of this building provides ten more classrooms as well as a computer lab. There is also a second staff break room there. This floor is technically not part of the Senior Student Centre, but is often mistakenly referred to by junior students as the "SSC" floor anyway.

Finally, the roof of the building has a tennis court. Tennis courts used to be on the ground floor before this building was erected.

• "B"-block (B)

Completed: 1999

These six ground-floor classrooms were meant as "temporary" classrooms, but as KGV grew, these classrooms became necessary and thus a permanent fixture. Modern Languages are taught predominantly in these six rooms which occupy the "piazza" area between the Peel, New, and Link blocks.

[edit] Other facilities

• Field

As of 2003, KGV's artificially turfed field has become the ESF's multipurpose sports facility. It has markings for various sports such as football (soccer), and also has a track running the perimeter of the field.

Prior to the astroturfing, there was opposition to the use of artificial turf. However, huge amounts of money were spent on maintaining the natural grass on the field's base of hard clay, and so was uneconomic and impractical: Inevitably, after a month or two of use the field would become a large dust bowl and students would often get injured playing on the field. Over HK$16 million was spent on the conversion, which started late in 2002.

• Swimming pool

KGV has an outdoor, 25 metre swimming pool with six lanes, normally in operation from April (usually after Easter break) to November.

• Canteen block

The Canteen block is located next to the swimming pool, houses the canteen (Café Concepts), the weights room, the PTSA shop, as well as offices for the PTSA (Parent Teachers Student Association).

[edit] Future site development

There are plans to amalgamate the KGV and KJS (Kowloon Junior School) Perth Street campus to allow KGV to grow further. This would involve the replacement of the canteen block and swimming pool with state-of-the-art facilities including a performance hall, indoor swimming pool, and gym facilities.

[edit] Curriculum

Main article: Education in Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, the education system is similar to that of the United Kingdom. This is because Hong Kong was colonised by the British from 1841 to 1997. When the British introduced the comprehensive school system in the 1960s in the UK, children in Hong Kong were transformed from the old education system of entering a 'first' school (4 years) followed by a 'secondary-middle' school (4 years), then a 'secondary-high' school (3 + 2 years) to the 'new' education system of primary school (6 years) followed by secondary school (5 + 2 years). The trend of late has been to replace 'first' schools with primary schools and accordingly, 'secondary-middle' and 'secondary-high' schools with fully-fledged secondary schools. KGV divided the year groups into key stages in line with the British schooling system.

• Key Stage 3

The Key Stage 3 curriculum is designed for Years 7 to 9. All subjects (Art, Drama, English, History, ICT, Mathematics, Modern Foreign Languages, Music, Physical Education, Religious Studies, Science, and Technology) are compulsory, and students are able to choose two languages to study from a list of five.

• Key Stage 4

Key Stage 4 is the next stage of the curriculum. At the end of this key stage pupils take GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) examinations in their chosen subjects.

All subjects are compulsory, but there is a choice to suit the aptitude and interest of students. This choice is structured in a way that is balanced and it ensures students can build on their strengths whilst keeping their options open in the future.

All students taking the GCSE course have to study the core subjects of English, Mathematics, Science (split into Biology, Chemistry and Physics), ICT, PE and PSE (Personal and Social Education). Students may choose to take a further course in ICT, CIDA (Certificate in Digital Applications), which is equivalent to two GCSEs. In addition, they must choose four further subjects.

• AS Level

Students in year 12 are allowed to select four AS Level courses to study. However, some students find it difficult to cope with four courses, and select three instead. General National Vocational Qualification (GNVQ) courses are designed for students who have difficulty in studying.

Students are required to achieve a certain grade in their GCSE examinations in order to take on their desired AS Level subject. Each AS subject has a slightly different requirement. AS Level subjects are studied in greater depth, requiring large amounts of self-study and independence

• A2 Level

A2 Level (GCE Advanced Level) is the curriculum designed for Year 13.

• IB Diploma

Starting in September 2007, KGV will be replacing the traditionally British A Level with the International Baccalaureate, offering the Diploma Programme. The current Year 11, class of 2009 will be the first year to do the IBD.^[7]

All students have to study a core of Extended Essay, Theory of Knowledge and Creativity, Action, Service.^[8]

[edit] Traditions

KGV, being such an old school, has many traditions in place. The list below is by no means exhaustive.

• Assembly

Formerly held Monday and Friday mornings, they are now held Wednesday afternoons. Assemblies are where announcements are made to the whole school, performances are given, and, in general, is a common bond that holds the school's students together. However, due to the growth in student numbers since 2003, assembly can no longer be held with all students under one roof as was the case then. Currently, assemblies are live broadcast to other venues. These are Drama Studio 1, 2 and 3.

• Year 13 pantomime

The Pantomime, otherwise called the "panto", is performed by Year 13 students on the final day of the fall term, near to Christmas. Generally making fun of the school or its teachers, this event is invariably a great comedy show for all students.

• Christmas carol concert

A concert given by the KGV Orchestra and Choir, open to the general public. White Christmas has been a staple of KGV Christmas Final Assembly for as long as anyone could remember. Originally at KGV sung by W. McMahon, a teacher, no Christmas Carol Concert or Christmas Final Assembly is complete without the singing of this song. After Mr. McMahon's retirement in 2001, White Christmas is now sung by a senior student.

• KGViva

Known as the KGV Karnival prior 2007 or Spring Fair prior 2003, this event is held every year in March or April where KGV is set up to be like a bazaar. Students set up games stalls, merchants set up small shops, and there are performances by student groups as well as the Orchestras (Junior Orchestra and Senior Orchestra) and the Jazz Band.

• KGV survivor

An elimination game is held on the school field or Hall where a $10 entrance fee is charged, and a series of questions is asked. Proceeds from this game go to the school charity. This is always held at the last day of every school year.

• Year 13 final assembly

A final assembly on Year 13's final day before exam leave in the summer. Usually, a performance is given by Year 13 students, and final goodbyes are said. There is a recital of Rudyard Kipling's poem If— by the Head Boy, and Phenomenal Woman by Maya Angelou by the Head Girl. At the end, a band of teachers play Summer Holiday by Cliff Richard while the rest of staff (on stage) and school sing along. Prior to 2002, students would spend the night at the school as well; this tradition was scrapped due to safety concerns.

[edit] Trivia

• In 2006, KGV was the first school in all of Asia to ever perform the Les Misérables School Edition.

[edit] Notable alumni

• Michael Hutchence – deceased lead singer of Australian band, INXS .
• Martin Booth – deceased author of novel Industry of Souls
• Dermot Reeve – England cricketer, known as an unorthodox all-rounder. Career ended due to drug addiction.
• Kemal Bokhary – Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, Hong Kong

[edit] References

1. ^ School Information
2. ^ THE HISTORY OF KGV
3. ^ Timeline of KGV
4. ^ History of houses in KGV
5. ^ School Uniform
6. ^ School council
7. ^ IB Diploma school
8. ^ Secondary Curriculum

[edit] External links

• King George V School
• King George V School Alumni Association
• King George V School Alumni Registry
• KGV Hong Kong Handover Reunion 2007
• English Schools Foundation