Secondary schools kk city

Chah

Hi, newish to living in kilkenny, have kids in primary but am looking for advice on secondary. I had understood cbs and Kieran's to be on a par but someone recently was telling me Kieran's was a far better school. opinions welcome....

For girls are presentation and loreto similar enough?

Thanks

road_high

Chah wrote: »

Hi, newish to living in kilkenny, have kids in primary but am looking for advice on secondary. I had understood cbs and Kieran's to be on a par but someone recently was telling me Kieran's was a far better school. opinions welcome....

For girls are presentation and loreto similar enough?

Thanks

Loreto and Pres are both excellent schools. I know lots of girls who were "average" in school, were transformed in both with great leaving certs.
Neither the CBS nor Kieran's are as good. Not sure nowadays which is better.

catbear

Johns College is an option too.

citykat

Chah wrote: »

Hi, newish to living in kilkenny, have kids in primary but am looking for advice on secondary. I had understood cbs and Kieran's to be on a par but someone recently was telling me Kieran's was a far better school. opinions welcome....

For girls are presentation and loreto similar enough?

Thanks

If you have no connection to either school you may find it difficult to get into either. Both operate enrolment policies. Think Kierans may score slightly higher in the rankings but there's little difference between them.

Regarding the girls schools Loreto is very popular and doesn't have an enrolment policy. Still hard to get into though. Pres less so. Don't know how they compare academically.

Kieran's. CBS, Loreto. Presentation Kilkenny - all good schools. Choosing between them is down to location, where the friends are going etc. For boys St Kieran's is probably more into hurling and has better sports facilities but CBS isn't too far behind.
We are lucky in KK with the standard of education, - both primary and secondary. If you can afford the fees John's College is an excellent school too.
If you need to enrol in the next couple of years you need to get at it immediately though - especially as you don't have previous association with the school. If you fail to get a place in town both Ballyhale and Callan have good secondary schools with transport from KK every day.

citykat

inthehat wrote: »

Kieran's. CBS, Loreto. Presentation Kilkenny - all good schools. Choosing between them is down to location, where the friends are going etc. For boys St Kieran's is probably more into hurling and has better sports facilities but CBS isn't too far behind.
We are lucky in KK with the standard of education, - both primary and secondary. If you can afford the fees John's College is an excellent school too.
If you need to enrol in the next couple of years you need to get at it immediately though - especially as you don't have previous association with the school. If you fail to get a place in town both Ballyhale and Callan have good secondary schools with transport from KK every day.

Johns College has dropped the mandatory fees. You can though now pay said fees for extras like sports after school.

up for anything

Where on earth is John's College? In twenty years here I've never heard of it. Are you referring to Kilkenny College?

OP, Grennan College in Thomastown has a good rep. Small school with the personal touch. My boys are in Kieran's. All people can give you is their personal experience which is down to personalities and ability. I know people with children in every school and no two children/parents have the same experience. One can find it brilliant and another can find it abysmal.

up for anything

up for anything wrote: »

Where on earth is John's College? In twenty years here I've never heard of it. Are you referring to Kilkenny College?

Yea - John's College is Kilkenny College. It used to be situated in the lovely building in John St where the County Council offices are now so we used to call it John's College. But you're right, - no-one calls it that anymore.

Chah

Thanks for feedback everyone.. Seems a bit mad that kids from the city would be going out of town for school and vice versa (presumably?)

stratowide

Chah wrote: »

Thanks for feedback everyone.. Seems a bit mad that kids from the city would be going out of town for school and vice versa (presumably?)

When I was in SKC many years ago there was a substantial number of students from outside the county let alone outside the city.Most were boarders though.
I would have no hesitation to send any of my kids to any of the schools in kilkenny city or county.
Proximity to the school would be a big factor though.

road_high

Chah wrote: »

Thanks for feedback everyone.. Seems a bit mad that kids from the city would be going out of town for school and vice versa (presumably?)

Happens all the time...I used know a few girls that got the train to Leo's in Carlow everyday from Kilkenny...!

sanjose1

Cant say we are lucky at all with the options in Kilkenny when theres no non denominational options for secondary schools, disgraceful in this day and age

citykat

sanjose1 wrote: »

Cant say we are lucky at all with the options in Kilkenny when theres no non denominational options for secondary schools, disgraceful in this day and age

Is the Tech denominated?

road_high

citykat wrote: »

Is the Tech denominated?

Was only going to say. I'd have assumed the ETB schools are non religious. But in fairness, the one in KK has a terrible name and reputation since when I was at school.

hi5

One of the best secondary schools in the country is in Kilkenny, its non denominational and no waiting lists as far as I know.

http://osrai.ie/

sanjose1

Many of the ETBs are still under the patronage of the Catholic church, would be interesting to know what their religious education consists of exactly

catbear

hi5 wrote: »

One of the best secondary schools in the country is in Kilkenny, its non denominational and no waiting lists as far as I know.

http://osrai.ie/

probably well worth a punt, they're certainly growing in popularity around the country.
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/education/why-is-it-so-hard-to-get-a-place-in-a-gaelscoil-1.2984851

So, what’s behind the surge in popularity of the Gaelscoil?And why is it so difficult to secure a place?
Numbers attending these schools are on the rise, with waiting lists and oversubscription the case across many schools.
The benefits of bilingual education are well-documented, and are not lost on parents, many of whom are increasingly choosing this option for their children.
Bilinguals have been shown to be more flexible in their thinking and more adept at thinking about how they use language to make themselves understood.

granturismo

sanjose1 wrote: »

Many of the ETBs are still under the patronage of the Catholic church, would be interesting to know what their religious education consists of exactly

Very simple, there is a syllabus for Religion as a subject for both junior and senior cert.

sanjose1

Ok, what does the syllabus contain ? Does it promote pluralism among all religious beliefs or is it more a faith formation, can the student opt out altogether.

granturismo

sanjose1 wrote: »

Ok, what does the syllabus contain ? .

https://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&sqi=2&ved=0ahUKEwi8v6Og3bfSAhUpBcAKHR0aA4wQFggZMAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.curriculumonline.ie%2Fgetmedia%2Fc0c1f394-79c8-4455-bea5-c9e014a9945d%2FJCSEC22_religion_syllabus.pdf&usg=AFQjCNE0wJlLC5U6GGR1NcySIwPgcLcyVA&sig2=w-pdSXb5Dy7SMGbOnua4tw&bvm=bv.148441817,d.ZGg

It is not denominational cathecism

sanjose1 wrote: »

, can the student opt out altogether.

Depends on the school, most schools have it as a core subject for Junior Cert along with Irish, Emglish, Maths, Science, Geography, History, Science, CSPE. Its optional for senior cert.

catbear

sanjose1 wrote: »

Ok, what does the syllabus contain ? Does it promote pluralism among all religious beliefs or is it more a faith formation, can the student opt out altogether.

From what my nieces and nephews tell me about religion class the modern syllabus is about education rather than the indoctrination I experienced decades ago.

These days I'd be more concerned about basic numeracy and literacy standards slipping.