Plovdiv : British Classic school

Do you mean the English Language School in Plovdiv ?

I mean this one

http://www.classicschool.org/

I believe it is called the British Classic school - however I might be wrong.

Hi! I notice you didn’t receive an answer! It s a pity, because I am interested in this, because moving to Plovdiv in December I would like to know more about that. I want to send my daughter to that school

that's different. Better as for the British International School in Plovdiv to avoid misunderstanding.

Hi @luccar Im going to see this school this friday! It sounds really good.

Hi!
Our daughter is now three months there. And yours?
We noticed that however the  school is named:British.’’’, Bulgarian is the most important language....
Regards

What are the fees?

What is the quality like?

Happy for the kids to get taught in Bulgarian, but worried as they don't speak a word of it yet, so English would be beneficial to start with.

Our son will be there from September on, are you happy with the school?

eshek wrote:

I mean this one

http://www.classicschool.org/

I believe it is called the British Classic school - however I might be wrong.

Alarm bells, late ones as I've only just seen this link, but quite loud chimes.

Apart from the site using stock images (cheap site build or scammers faking a site), at least one of their teacher's photos appears to be 'inaccurate', that or someone else is using the picture for whatever reason.

Their staff are here
https://www.classicschool.org/en/staff

Gwyn Jones - g.jones@classicschool.org
IT, Mathematics, IB - computer science is here

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gwynj?trk=o … full-click

Same picture, same name, different job.

Not to say that site is fake, but enough to say it's worth checking out, and (if it's real) enough to question why such a business would design such a lousy site - if that's a bit crap, what are their other standards like?

At Fred, I don't understand what are you trying to say with this information? A teacher can be teaching freelance. I do not have my real living address on LinkedIn either. The information you are providing is either checked nor helpful. Sorry.

Speak to the teacher and comment afterwards.

Regarding their webpage, My 1st impression was actually very positive but again it's a question of taste of course.

If you have any useful information about the school please feel free to provide it, so it can be helpful for all parents.

Suzeto wrote:

At Fred, I don't understand what are you trying to say with this information? A teacher can be teaching freelance. .

The site is poor, uses stock images, and one teacher also shows up as working in a different job in another country.
The site might very well be fine and the teacher innocent of anything save someone using his photo without permission, but it's enough to raise a red flag high enough to check with the school using contacts gained from a source other than that site.

Hi Suzeto,
My son is hopefully starting there too in September, could you private message me? I would like to meet contacts/friends in the local area.

My ears were burning! :-) (See later comment in thread re: scammers and mystery teachers.)

The name is British International School Classic, or BIS Classic for short.

It is a private school with primary and secondary age pupils.

Not all classes are taught in English, but many are. In fact, I'd guess most were taught in Bulgarian. However, there is a big emphasis on English speaking, and the goal is to get students up to CEFR B2 level as soon as possible (but certainly before leaving). Plus, of course, a second foreign language (Chinese, German, Spanish, French). As you'd expect, there are classes to help expats learn Bulgarian.

As a quick estimate, I'd say 85% of students are Bulgarian, and 15% are from expat families.

The Principal is Miss Reni (Reni LLieva). She's always happy to discuss with parents of potential students.
https://www.classicschool.org/en/staff

Curriculum is Bulgarian standard, plus some IGCSEs. The school was recently approved as an International Baccalaureate school, and is now offering the IB Diploma, a well-recognized international qualification.

Fees are very reasonable by Bulgarian standards, and quite surprising by international standards!

There are many students - as you'd expect in a private school - from wealthy Bulgarian families. So perhaps the worst I can say is that a few are a little self-entitled, but that happens in many private schools. However, in general, very nice students with good level of English, and helpful and supportive staff.

I am a real person, but I do have a bit of a "portfolio" career, as I'm a former software engineer & software entrepreneur and I still work (when I can) with early-stage tech ventures. However (as per my Linkedin profile) I have been teaching and tutoring for almost 20 years (albeit as my second career).

I have been in Plovdiv since 2018, and I started teaching at BIS Classic in 2019. My subjects (but I don't teach all at BIS Classic) are Mathematics, Business Studies, IT/ICT (without software engineering), and Computer Science (with software engineering). I have a master's degree in Computer Science, and an MBA from a top-ranked business school. I started (but, sadly, didn't finish) my PhD in Management Research at the University of Oxford. I also have my PGCE in Secondary Mathematics, and the IB teaching certificate for Computer Science. There are many other excellent, well-qualified teachers on the staff, including those with an expat background who have returned to Bulgaria.

So... I'm legit... the school's legit... the students are legit. :-)

And I'll tell Ms. Reni that we need to do better on the website! :-)

Oh, and quite a few of the top year (16/17 years) are actually CEFR C1 in English, which is pretty great! (CEFR = Common European Framework of Reference which ranges from A1 to C2 which is native or near-native level of fluency.)

Also, I must clarify that as only a part-time member of staff, and a very recent one, I'm definitely not an expert! Much better to talk directly to Miss Reni (Principal) or Miss Galina (IB Director). They can tell you everything!

Incidentally, I know two people who do 1:1 tutoring in Bulgarian. They are both native Bulgarian speakers, but also speak perfect English after years abroad.

Any expats who have children starting BIS Classic (or other Bulgarian schools) might want to consider some additional Bulgarian tuition to get them up to speed as quickly as possible. I won't post their info here, but if anyone's interested you can message me directly and I'll put you in touch.