High School News – 30th October
By David Monk
Staff In-service Training
While you are all aware that the school was closed on Monday 21 and Tuesday 22 March immediately following the October vacation, I am not sure that all of you will be aware why. During these two days all of the teachers from the three campuses of ISZL had the opportunity to work with two presenters, Ron Ritchhart and Mark Church, from Harvard University Graduate School of Education.
During the two days of in-service training the teachers were given the opportunity to benefit from the research from Harvard University, which focuses on understanding, supporting, and helping to develop the kinds of thoughtful learning environments that support powerful learning for both students and teachers, and that creates a culture of thinking within a school community.
If you would like to find out more about the research of Ron Ritchhart, you can do so at the following web address: http://www.pz.gse.harvard.edu/cultures_of_thinking.php
During these two days the teachers also had the opportunity to meet with Dr. Jason Ohler, who was exploring the theme of ‘digital citizenship’ and the school’s role in helping to develop this. You can find out information regarding his work at the following website: http://www.jasonohler.com/index.cfm
These are two very important themes for the school, and the opportunities for sharing of practices and ideas is something that is essential to continual teacher growth and professional development.
Parent Questions from Back to School Evening
At the Back to School Evening a number of Homeroom Tutors were presented with some questions with a common theme, and so we have attempted to pull these together and address these below:
How do we know if school is concerned about our child?
If the school was concerned about your child they would contact you directly.
A class teacher, the Form tutor, a Grade Level Leader or an Assistant Principal could possibly contact a parent in relation to a student.
If a teacher has an academic, social or emotional concern about a student they could contact the parents directly or they might discuss the issue with the Grade Level Leader who would then contact the parents.
If one of the Assistant Principals contacts you in relation to your child the issue is generally or a more serious nature.
How can I support him both academically and to be more safe?
All students need a place to work out and a peaceful space to be in at home. A clear desk, a clutter-free work space, a peaceful room are needed in order for a student to successfully complete homework assignments.
Students will need to access the VLE at home so they will need access to a computer at home. It is a good idea to talk to your child about keeping themselves safe while they are on social media sites.
Still need to find out about the VLE.
A growing trend in education, particularly secondary and post-secondary education, is students being allowed to bring their own technology device(s) (BYOD) to school. This includes, not just large-screened smartphones, but also laptops, tablet devices like iPads and so called Ultrabooks, which fit in between laptops and tablets. There are some very good reasons for this.
Technology, as we know, plays a very significant and growing role in our daily lives. Preparing students to be successful in their lives necessarily involves helping them to be able to use technology in supporting and extending their learning. The modern work place and certainly post secondary education demand that those entering these areas are already comfortable and competent in using technology purposefully.
A pertinent modern reality, particularly in schools like ISZL, is that our students, your children, have access to considerable and very up-to-date personal technology at home. As technology merges learning spaces at school, home and everywhere in between, ISZL believes that we have a responsibility to ensure that students are able to use their own technology effectively and safely. Key to that is their ability to bring it to and use it at school.We have therefore extended the previous practice of allowing our grade 11 and 12 students to bring and use their own technology at school to all high school students, i.e. inclusive of grades 9 to 12 students.
This doesn’t mean that students are expected to bring a laptop or other device to school. Rather, we are saying that if students have existing technology that they wish to bring to school and their teacher permits its use in the classroom, then students are free to do so. Students will be able to connect to our wireless network and access a growing collection of online resources shared via the ISZL VLE and our ISZL Google Apps for Education environment.
Using their own familiar device means that difficulties of transferring documents from one device to another are removed and students are being taught to use tools and techniques using their own devices. As students are accessing the ISZL network, expectations regarding appropriate use still remain and will continue to be enforced. It is also important to point out, that students bringing their own equipment to school do so at their own risk. ISZL will not be responsible if a personal device is damaged or goes missing. Such a BYOD practice does not mean that ISZL will cease to provide technology for students at school. On the contrary, we will continue to provide specialist up-to-date equipment and software for all students to use but we will also not shirk our responsibility to teach students to effectively use technology that they already have.
If and when there are any academic concerns?
If you have any academic concerns about your child you should take them directly to the teacher concerned. We will do all we can to help resolve any academic difficulties any student may have.
What is the Difference between AP and IB?
Here is an outline of the timeline for Grade 10 students in terms of the choices they have to make in relation to AP or IB.
Here is a document that broadly underlines the differences between the IB and AP qualifications offered by the school.
IB Diploma Programme
Advanced Placement Exams
Six subjects studied over two years: English or other native language, 2nd language, a Humanities subject, Maths, a Science, and one more.
Mostly one-year courses with the exception of Calculus, Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Studio Art, which requires two years of study.
3 courses taken at SL and 3 and HL (higher level)
All courses are at a 1st year university level
Coursework element of between 25% and 50%
100% External Examination
2 – 3 examinations per subject
1 exam per subject
Mixed range of assessments including some assessed verbal presentations
Multiple-choice questions plus longer responses
Each subject has a total points score of 7
Each subject has a total points score of 5
Suits well-rounded students who flourish with a high degree of structure
Suits students who flourish in independent study
Suits students who enjoy independent enquiry.
Suits students who can retain and process lots of information easily.
Limited number of subjects available over two years. (6)
More flexibility of subject choices over two years. (11 possible)
Remarks possible
Retakes possible in November.
No Remarks possible
Repeats possible the following year.
Students write an additional 4,000 word essay
Additional Theory of Knowledge Course
TOK and EE may gain an extra 3 points (Total score = 45 points)
Creativity, Action and Service (CAS) component (approx. 150 hours over two years – 8 learning outcomes)
Service component to meet graduation requirements (30 hours over two years.)
University Recognition and Entrance
The IB is a highly valued high school programme. It is widely recognized throughout the world for its academic rigour and serves as an excellent preparation for tertiary education. In the US many colleges give a high level of credit towards entrance requirements, and in the UK, it is given an equivalency recognition by UCAS for the calculation of tariff points
University Recognition and Entrance
The APs are highly valued high school / college level courses. They are widely recognized throughout the world for their academic rigour and serve as an excellent preparation for tertiary education. In the US many colleges give a high level of credit towards entrance requirements, and in the UK, they are given an equivalency recognition by UCAS for the calculation of tariff points
For more information: http://www.ibo.org/ibna/documents/ibandap.pdf
For more information
www.collegeboard.org
How best do I support my child at school?
Children need lots of support through their years in the High School. It can be a stressful time for students and they will need help. You will need to be sensitive to support your child. Help them when they ask for help, support them in the choices they make at school be that academic or pastoral; they may decide that they want to join a particular sports team or yearbook for instance which you know will be a strain to them but will also enrich their lives. Always encourage them to be involved as this will help them to be happy, to make friends and feel a part of the school community.
How can I better understand the US university system?
Elisabeth Marksteiner is the Senior College Counsellor at the school and she gives a presentation in May about the differences between university systems around the world. The presentation does focus on the US and the UK but it also includes information on applying to other countries like the Netherlands, Canada, and Australia. If you have questions on different university systems then do contact Elisabeth for help.
How can I know early on if something with homework tasks etc. is not going well?
The quickest and simplest way to do this is to look on your child’s Schoology page and look at the assignment calendar. This will list what homework has been set and when the work is due. Teachers will contact you directly if they have specific problems with your child.
Any homework help, maybe from older students?
We do have some older students who mentor younger students and this is a scheme we are looking to develop further.
How do I know what the expectations are from the side of the teachers?
Teachers always like to see students who give the best of themselves in everything that they do, who complete the work that is asked of them, and who are respectful of all people in the school.
Students should be prompt to class, punctual in handing in assignments, come to class with the right equipment for that class, be focused in class.
Parent Advisory Council
I would like to take this opportunity to introduce the Grade 9, 10, 11 and 12 liaisons of the High School Parent Advisory Council (PAC).
The High School PAC is currently made up of 13 parents of students from Grade 9 to 12, who meet once a month with the High School leadership team, which includes Mr David Monk (Head of the High School Campus), Ms Rachel Keys (Assistant Principal: Academic) and Mr Martin Peel (Assistant Principal: Pastoral).
The meeting schedule for the group is as follows:
4 November 2013
2 December 2013
3 February 2014
3 March 2014
7 April 2014
5 May 2014
2 June 2014
During the course of the academic year the PAC will discuss topics related to proposed developments or changes within the High School upon which the administration would like to seek feedback from parents. The meetings will also provide a forum to address questions and concerns from the parent community regarding High School policies, procedures and programmes.
Within the group there are Grade Level Liaisons for each of the four High School grade levels. As the liaison for a Grade Level it will be their responsibility to bring issues that are relevant to the parents and students of this age group and to communicate these directly with me in order to set the agenda for each meeting. If you have any items for discussion that you would like to have placed upon the agenda please don’t hesitate to contact your Grade Level representative at the following email address:
Jane Beardsley
Grade 9
beardies2587@yahoo.co.uk
Dawn Lang
Grade 9
dlang2904@aol.com
Herma ten Doesschate
Grade 10 & 12
all4tendoesschate@hotmail.com
Svenja Williamson
Grade 10
svenja.williamson@gmail.com
Debra Sammy
Grade 11
dysammy@googlemail.com
Absence from School
I would like to take this opportunity to remind you that absence due to illness, or the unavoidable late arrival or early departure of any High School student, should to be confirmed by a parent or guardian on the day of the occurrence by telephone or email before 9:00 a.m. This also applies to dental and medical appointments during school hours.
In the event of an absence that is known in advance i.e. due to unavoidable family or religious commitments, permission for absence should be sought in writing or by email, from the Head of High School – Mr David Monk.