Kunming International Academy, exclusively (though some claim otherwise) for foreign passport holders, offering K12 education in US curriculum.

(and apparently linked to some Christian association, hence the claim for expected propaganda)

I think it's shame for kids to grow up in China and not learn the language properly. And that's exactly what will happen if you send them to international schools.

going to local schools hasnt stopped locals from not learning the language proper

Kunming dialect is no better or worse than any other language. The local people I know speak both Kunminghua and putonghua perfectly. But I guess your comment wasn't meant to be taken seriously.

I think that a child growing up in China is better positioned to learn the Chinese language than any adult coming here to learn it. And that's regardless of how English-only school they attend.

This is especially true in smaller cities like Kunming, where living in a company-sponsored expat bubble is not common, if even possible.

Also many foreign children in China have at least one parent who is a native Chinese speaker, and often local. They start learning Chinese in diapers.

They will probably learn to speak but they're unlikely to learn to read and write if they don't attend a Chinese school. If you send your kids to an international school they are likely to miss out on becoming genuinely bilingual which will be a great asset when it comes to their university studies and working life. But hey it's up to you.

@cloud,

Bad assumption on the ability to read and write if they do not attend a school.

I agree with @cloud. Speaking is the first thing you learn. Reading and writing takes a lot more effort to graps and memorize. Many students of all languages can speak but they can't read or write effectively. I would have my kids study Chinese here until they are teens and then consider them studying abroad to cement both languages. Chances are since learning Chinese is much harder than English, if they were to live abroad with little Chinese they will start using English and skip Chinese.

I've always felt that it would be a great thing to be really, really bilingual, and this is the best chance the kids will ever get.