BRITISH SCHOOL GAZETTE Winter 2015
INTERVIEWS
Teachers and Students
TRIPS
D of E and Kandersteg
SPORTS
Sports Day and News
EVENTS
Leavers’ Ball and Summer Fete
GRADUATION
Photos and Comments
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EDITORIAL This being its third year, the BSG Gazette is proud to bring you yet another edition showcasing the growing BSG community. In this edition, you will find the latest news on school events: from the glitz and the glamour of the leavers’ ball to the bitter sweet moments of the graduation. Looking for some fun and games? Try our games page and have a look at artwork from the talented Rachel Berman. Nagging nostalgia for summer time and a thirst for adventure? Read up on school trips. Interested in finding out more about your fellow students and teachers? Take a peek at our interviews section. The team is made up of dedicated individuals who have worked very hard to produce this edition. Francesca and Gabby are the sub-editors, Lyo and Ishaan are in charge of choosing pictures and Archana and Patrick are tasked with the not-so-easy task of finding advertising. None of this would have been possible without Mrs Prior and Ms Crawford, who have guided us throughout the process. With our very own Facebook page, we aim to keep in touch with all students, both past and present, and increase our readership. Feel free to share your suggestions on how we can continue to make the BSG Gazette bigger and better! As ever, our hope is that you will continue to show your support by reading and sharing the Gazette with family and friends. Now sit back, flip over to the next page and enjoy! Valentine Mberu, Year 13 Editor-in-chief.
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THE HUNT
The light of the dying sun started to fade as the creature approached. The tall grass brushed against its fur as it crept through the thick forestation. Everything was silent. The thing moved so soundlessly it might as well be a mile away. The pressure was so thick in the humid air you could almost touch it. Gradually the creature slowed and stopped. It licked its lips in anticipation, poised to strike. As it watched us with cold, dead, yellow eyes. That was the night it happened. We weren’t there for a walk; in fact, we were trying to hunt the thing. My brother had overheard a lot of rumours about the beast: a trail of animal carcasses… fifteen hunters dead or missing… a lion… a komodo dragon… a hippo… or maybe something else. I didn’t even know why I agreed to go hunting this thing; I think I wanted to scare my little brother or was it the other way around? Either way we set off to find this beast, two teenage boys armed with a small hand gun we stole off the hunters back home. We were trudging through a carpet of long, olive coloured grass. The setting sun gave the field a timeless feel to it as if nothing had changed here for a million years - except perhaps the things that lived here. I continued to stare, until I felt an abrupt tug on my shirt sleeve. I looked down to see my brother, Carter. He was still intent on finding the beast. I personally didn’t believe in the rumour nor did I want to go hunting for a murderous animal, but I knew my brother did. Anyway, if I didn’t accompany him on his little adventure he’d just run off on his own anyway; it wouldn’t be the first time. He always looked up to the hunters, especially our father who used to come home with
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THE HUNT hunting trophies, heads, tusks, coats of fur, and other stuff. They used to be the most popular people in the village until they started disappearing… I sighed in exasperation. I nodded for Carter to wait. I turned back to where we had walked from, the village was a long way away, I’d better make this quick. I turned back to my brother, who had vanished. It took me a second to register his disappearance. I panicked. I looked around frantically, ‘Where are you, Carter?’ Then I saw him skipping through the brush. ‘Carter!’ I yelled. He glanced back for a split-second then proceeded to sprint in the wrong direction. My face distorted with anger then heart-breaking anxiety. I raced after him, faster than I’d ever ran before. I was rushing through the walls of grass. It was getting taller and thicker as I ran. I stopped to look around. There was no sight of home or Carter anywhere. I cursed. ‘Carter!’ I started to scream, then I remembered. This was the wilderness, there were creatures lurking around, and not the friendly kind of animals but the monsters with fangs and claws that would want nothing less than to tear you to shreds. A primal sensation flooded my body, my limbs started to tremble, my heart beat twice its normal rate, and I was suddenly aware of everything around me. I gripped my small pistol gun that hung at the side of my hip. I could run the other way right now, abandon Carter and flee to safety. But I couldn’t. I continued to run in the direction I last saw Carter run off in, despite all my senses screaming to go the other way. I stopped by a small stream of water. It was the only clearing for miles; I was physically and mentally unable to go any longer. I collapsed in defeat. I couldn’t think about where Carter might be right now, that would only make my anxiety worse. It was getting dark out now. The glistening moonlight was bright enough to reveal the dancing shadows in the gloom. Wisps of darkness emerged around the edges of my eyes; I was blacking out. I reached into the stream for a drink of water. I cupped my hands together and scooped water up to drink. I started to relax. I looked around, there was a kind of serenity to this place that I began to notice. The water reflected the bright moon beautifully as it flowed downstream. What if Carter had gone home without me? That would have been the sickest prank he’s played on me. I smiled. I looked down at the stream again, to notice tendrils of red flowing down. It was barely noticeable at first, then it grew and grew until the stream was blood red. I slowly turned my head round to see a creature grinning at me with its bloody fangs and reptilian eyes; it was like nothing I’d ever seen before. It was no animal but a monster. I looked down at what it had killed and to my horror, there, lying dead at its feet was a boy. His guts ripped out, and his expression one of shock and fear; it was my brother Carter. I tried to reach for my handgun but I couldn’t quite move. We had come here hoping to kill the beast, but the hunters had become the hunted… By Lyo Yuson, Year 10
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CHARITY FUNDRAISING On the 16th October, BSG held its first ever Wear it Pink event. This was an opportunity to raise funds and awareness on behalf of Breast Cancer Now, the UK’s largest Breast Cancer Research charity. Students and teachers alike were welcomed to wear pink on this special day and buy the yummy goodies from the bake sale. We raised CHF 580. Thank you to everyone who made this event hugely successful!
Call: +41 – (0)76 483 84 28
Email: contact@zingyfood.ch
We cater for kids B’day parties, social gatherings, business meetings, office lunch and food for take-away.
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KEY STAGE 3 TRIP The residential trip for years 7, 8 and 9 to Kandersteg in May 2015 was an unforgettable experience. The purpose of the trip was to learn about the glaciers and the mountains of Kandersteg. We were first allocated into small groups and assigned tasks. The first task was orienteering. Each group received a map of Kandersteg and had to find 6 points around the town. Then we enjoyed a game of rounders before dinner and turning in for the night, surprised at how quickly the first day had passed! On the 2nd day we went to ‘Luftseilbahn Kandersteg-Allmenalp’, which is a mountain in Kandersteg. We took a cable car to the top of the mountain and found glacial water there. The downhill ride on the luge was thrilling. It was also fascinating to learn about the water purification process. We studied how water is collected, stored, purified and distributed to Kandersteg and the nearby areas. In the evening, we played frisbee at the chalet and later learned to make and sell our own yoghurt! The last day was spent souvenir shopping. Towards the end of our trip, the members of the winning team were awarded prizes based on their performance, enthusiasm and interest. To wrap up our very remarkable and informative trip, we were thrown a surprise disco where we danced till midnight! By Anjana Madhav Year 8
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SUMMER FETE It was that time of year again when everyone goes into school on a Saturday - not because we’re all nerds, but rather for the summer fête. As you enter the building, you’re greeted by decorations hanging from the ceiling and happy students and teachers that are running stalls. In the main hall, the PTA have all the food prepared. As always, the delicious samosas were quickly devoured. In room 101, you do not find your worst nightmare but a bouncy castle which I was, unfortunately, too old to go on. Outside there were games and a henna stall run by Hannah and the ever-popular, splash the teacher! This is the stall I usually help with, as a revenge for all the homework. This year I was behind the scenes in the room with the bouncy castle filling up water balloons, and scaring younger students with fake spiders. As the fête was drawing to a close, I made my way outside to the henna stall. As everyone was leaving, we decided to mess around drawing smiley faces. I wrote sweet and sour chicken on Patrick’s arm in Chinese, and he wrote lettuce in Korean on me. The only problem was that henna lasts for a week or more, and we both had prom in the evening! It was a great way to start the summer holiday- and I recommend you all come to 2016’s fête! By Hayley Townsend Year 13
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DUKE OF EDINBURGH QUALIFYING JOURNEY As I stood up, barely holding my 10-kilogram bag, on the verge of collapsing from fatigue and extreme thirst, I looked up at the “Chapelle de Jacquicourt”. This was a seemingly ancient, but small structure at first sight. Little did I realize the historical and cultural value of this 336-year old chapel, but given the circumstances, this was of minimal importance to me. Along with five other school mates, we shared experiences at an altitude of more than 1600 metres. As I sit at my desk (a week later) I chuckle at how the aforesaid situation juxtaposed with my experience that same evening. Thunderstorms were predicted, and unfortunately, the predictions were right. At about 18:30, I watched as my tent struggled, barely held to the ground by tiny pegs. As if the general level of stress was not elevated enough, our assessor unexpectedly set us a task: to cook the perfect warm meal with pre-determined ingredients (obviously chosen by the aforementioned assessor). To make matters worse, our 3-man team could only rely on 2 small-sized pots, a Swiss army knife, a lighter and a plastic spoon. Perhaps I forgot to mention that all this was to be done in about 30 minutes under a tarp that fit a total of 14 teenagers with high energy levels, unmitigated by fatigue. Anyway, back to the cooking. To this day I still cannot quite shed light on how we managed to produce such a scrumptious meal. Perhaps it was the focus, the determination? Or maybe the fact that this was the only meal we would have for the next 14 hours? All in all however, I cannot think of any better way of spending a weekend than in a 3m x 2m tent that smelled of a mixture of sweat, body odor and wet socks. On a more serious note, I cannot stress the importance of carrying out such trips and expanding one’s horizons. I truly recommend this to anybody, student or otherwise, as it allows one to go through once-in-a-lifetime experiences that leave a deep and lasting impression. Teachers say, “It looks good on your CV,” but I strongly believe there is more to the Duke of Edinburgh than its appeal for applications. My only regret is that I did not take part when I first had the chance. As a 14-year old, I did not see the “fun” of enduring such difficulty, but now that I have completed the Bronze award, it is with great joy that I look forward to completing the Silver and Gold awards. This message goes out to any student who ever has the opportunity to join the Duke of Edinburgh. You should at least try it, because it is one of those experiences that cannot be replicated no matter how many photos you see on Facebook or Instagram. You will also get an opportunity to step out of your life for a brief moment and take time to appreciate all the things you may take for granted. By Glenn Bucagu, Former student
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GRADUATION Aklesia Kiflemariam: The speech by the guest of honour was really inspiring because it showed that hard work does pay off and you always need to be willing to try new things. I will miss everyone at BSG but especially my friends who have always been supportive. Abdullah Zahid: The ceremony wasn’t too long which was good. I loved doing the speech and making fun of everyone I could. Sarah Irwin: The ambassador, Julian Braithwaite, gave a very motivational speech encouraging us to pursue our dreams. All the speeches were great and brought tears to my eyes. Timothy Sauer: BSG is a place where I was able to open up and express myself throughout the years. I have made good friends and I will definitely miss being a part of BSG. Hayley Townsend: Graduation was excellently executed and the music performances were brilliant. Cesar Dyberg: It was a very emotional event as we all knew it was time to say goodbye to the BSG family. However, it was an honour to be gathered with all our beloved teachers and fellow students. Ms Nina Leumann, A2 Form Tutor: BSG’s third graduation ceremony was a solemn occasion to mark the work, the spirit and the talents of this year’s graduating students from Year 11 and Year13. Well done, Mrs Sundaram, for inventing this lovely tradition! Mrs Raji Sundaram, Principal: A proud moment for the graduates, teachers and parents – best wishes to the class of 2015!
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GRADUATION
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PAST STUDENT Throughout my life I have lived in a few countries: Australia, the United States and Switzerland. They all are different in their own ways. In Switzerland, they speak French and in the other countries they speak a language I can actually understand. Midway through year 10 at BSG I moved to Australia. Moving schools and countries can be tough, especially if you’ve never done so before. You have to make new friends, get used to a new school and learn a new culture. The best thing you could possibly do is be open to change and just be friendly with everyone. Inevitably you’ll find people you connect with and can be friends with. After a year and half in Australia, it was time to move on, so I moved back to the United States, for my final two years of high school. I returned to my old school and saw my old friends, 6 years later. It was strange seeing how they had changed and how they were the same. It was like being a new student again, but still not the same. Now I’m in the process of applying for colleges, once again changing schools and meeting new people. However, this time it will be different, because everyone is new at college and is looking for friends and people to talk to. If you’re looking to move schools, countries or cities I have compiled a few pieces of advice for you. 1.
Don’t be annoying: simple but true. People don’t like annoying people.
2. Don’t compare where you are now to where you were negatively. I see this all the time, some dude from Europe comes to America and talks about how much better Europe is. Believe it or not, people in America like the place they’re from and don’t like when people talk about it negatively. Also it gets annoying if that’s the only thing you talk about. Don’t do this. 3. Do be polite and friendly. Not everyone is going to be friends with you or is going to be someone you like. However, remaining friendly can make your life infinitely easier. 4. Do be willing to try new things. You’re in a new place, there are so many new things to experience, but if you refuse to try them then what’s the point of going to a new place? 5. Finally do keep in contact with your old friends and family. It will be hard to find the time to talk to everyone you’ve left behind but small gestures like messaging from time to time or sending pictures or calling goes a long way towards remaining friends. By Renat Abazov, Year 13
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NEW STUDENTS JOEL DE TROY - YEAR 12 So first question, where are you from? I am German by blood, but I consider myself Jamaican, culturally, because of my beliefs. So why Jamaican, did you live there or do you visit the country often? Well I lived in St Martin (Caribbean) during my childhood years, but then moved to Jamaica during my teenage years, until I started living in Switzerland, last year. Jamaica is basically where I have lived the longest. What are your favourite hobbies? Longboarding, which I started a few years ago, and love to do every day, after having stopped football. What would you consider to be the main difference between your old school and BSG? BSG is friendlier and I also find it more enjoyable, because there are so many more students to talk to than in my old school. What surprised you most about BSG? The wide diversity of cultures and nationalities in the school, which I was not used to experiencing.
CARMEN PRIOTTO - YEAR 12 The first question is, where are you from? Well I am both Argentinian and American, by blood. So then, where did you live? I actually ended up living in France, where I went to a local school. What hobbies have you taken up over the years? I love listening to music, which sparked my interest in playing guitar and I also read a lot. What would you consider to be the main difference between your old school and BSG? Well in my old school everybody spoke French, and there were thousands of students. What surprised you most about BSG? How friendly everyone is and how all year groups interact with one another, which didn’t happen much in my old school.
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LEAVERS’ BALL
Abdullah Zahid: Leavers’ ball was a shock. It was really good and that was unexpected. I loved the decorations and really appreciated all the effort put into it. This year’s classes were the best. ‘It’s the people that make the party.’ Liam Deehan: It was good because it was clear a lot of effort went into it in terms of decoration and planning. It was nice to see everyone get some kind of prize. Cesar Dyberg: It was quite special from many perspectives. We had everything from a cool DJ to the pizza and the popcorn. I thank everyone who made the event possible! Sarah Irwin: It was absolutely fantastic! The school was completely transformed and everyone danced until their legs would no longer let them! Hayley Townsend: The prom was amazing. I really enjoyed it and I’m already looking forward to the next one! Mr Daniel Lille, Chaperon: The awards were given with humour and taken with grace. A fitting end to some remarkable, and some entertaining student careers with a final night with all the students behaving like princes and princesses – I can’t wait for next year’s!
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LEAVERS’ BALL
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GAMES ZONE SPOT 5 DIFFERENCES!
ANSWERS
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SUDOKU
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WORD UNSCRAMBLER
GAMES ZONE
1. A Hindu festival with lights, held in the period October to November.
lvadii 2. The annual Christian festival celebrating Christ’s birth, held on 25 December in the Western Church.
tchimasrs 3. The Punjabi festival that commemorates the passing of the winter solstice.
hiorl 4. A holiday honouring the Maccabees victory over King Antiochus, who forbade Jews to practice their religion.
Nkaakhuh 5. A symbol of the seven basic values of African American family life that are unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith.
Anzakwa 6. This holiday is celebrated as the day the three wise men first saw baby Jesus and brought him gifts.
ehter isnkg ady Answers: 1.Divali 2.Christmas3.Lohri 4.Hanukkah5.Kwanzaa6.The Epiphany OR Three Kings Day
OR
Hte Peipyhan
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SPORTS NEWS
This year, BSG welcomes a new title, “the BSG Dragons” to our reign among the international school sports competitions. At the beginning of the year, there was a new addition to the P.E. department: King Ball. Being a favourite of many students, it has been successful as students took part in a fearless quest to get all the team’s players (Kings) standing onto their bench. Our netball team has been revitalised by the increased female population at BSG. Expectations are set for this fresh crop of goal attackers and wing defenders to bring home as many wins as they can. Basketball at BSG rose beyond expectations. After tremendous effort was put into their weekly training sessions, the core group of young men, recruited by Mr. Palmeira, managed to achieve 3rd place at a basketball tournament, setting our hopes high for the BSG basketball team this year. Meanwhile other competitive sports groups such as the football team and badminton club welcome new as well as previous members back for another year to give it their all. As they train rigorously week after week, preparing to battle it out against our fierce competitors in the other international schools, we will maintain an optimistic spirit and look forward to our sports teams’ performances this year. GO DRAGONS! By Gabrielle St. Hilaire, Year 12
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SPORTS DAY The sweet smell of competition permeated the air as the secondary years, 7 to 11, and the A- Level students, years 12 and 13, took part in the BSG Sports Day events on June 22nd, 2015. In an attempt to gain points for the houses, introduced this year - Eiger, Matterhorn, Mönch and Jungfrau - the students of BSG battled it out at rounders, field hockey, netball, dodgeball and several other games. The physical education duo, Mr. Dawson and Mr. Palmeira, welcomed everyone to the annual BSG Sports Day and established the general rules necessary to succeed at the events. Soon the starting whistle was blown. Let the games begin! After each round of the sports events, which ended with the loud blow of Mr. Dawson’s whistle, we rushed to quench our thirsts, wiping our sweaty brows, ready to take on the next set of events. While some felt that dodgeball and netball were the most challenging of the games, it did not prevent a single BSG student from working hard in every task in the pursuit of Sports Day victory. Eventually, the games came to an end with the last blow of Mr. Dawson’s whistle. With careful calibration of the total points scored by each house, the results concluded that the Jungfrau house was the 2015 BSG Sports Day winners. Matterhorn scored second place, followed by Mönch in third and Eiger in fourth. Also, the sports department took the liberty of distributing various sports awards to exceptionally dedicated, talented and hardworking athletes in each sport. Awards were won for netball, basketball, football, badminton and sports person of the year. In the end everyone was left pondering, “Who would be next year’s BSG Sports Day champions?”
By Gabrielle St. Hilaire Year 12
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INTERVIEW Raji Sundaram
Sean Wiseman
Whats the most unusual job you’ve ever had?
I have to think... I would say teaching very young kids for a short stint in the late 90s. Teaching very young children taught me what I didn’t like doing!
When I was a lot younger, I was hired to do route setting when I was about 11-12 years old.
When you were a teenager, what career did you hope for? If not teaching (I bet it wasn’t), how did you end up teaching and are you happy with the way things turned out?
Yes, I’m very happy with how things have turned out.
When I moved into instructing in the outdoors [mountaineering and climbing], the work was very temporary and I needed something more financially viable. Since I already knew that I really enjoyed working with young people and educating them, I thought teaching was a bit of an obvious choice because I always appreciated some of my teachers who had the ability to communicate on a personal level rather than simply academic. I developed those skills through wanting to make friends with everyone I could.
No, teaching wasn’t what I thought of. I wanted to be in the administrative service, which didn’t happen but I’m still doing something I enjoy.
I enjoy my work on a day-to-day basis as it’s got huge levels of variety, which is what I really crave. I couldn’t do a job that would require me to do exactly the same thing every single day. That’s why I love teaching! Who do you admire (politically/ ethically/ for ideas/ qualities, whatever) and why?
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That’s a broad question! Politically I would say Obama, because of his determination despite not coming from a political background. He has done so well and I admire him for the qualities he’s shown to get to where he is. Ethically I would say Abdul Kalam, for a lot of reasons…
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During my PCGE course, I had mentors that I thought were really good so I tend to look to them for advice on my work. My father is also very well respected in his field of special educational needs so I go to him when I’m having problems with particular students or feel that I could do a bit more for them. Politically… I like Jeremy Corbyn, the new Labour leader, but I don’t know if I will in the long term. He seems quite genuine; my issue with politicians is that it’s really hard nowadays to tell what their agenda is.
Raji Sundaram
Sean Wiseman
What advice would you give to your 16year-old self?
Don’t have a short-term view of the future, which is what most teenagers do they can’t see beyond the next week, the next month. I was like that too and everything takes on these big proportions, which it shouldn’t. Things will pan out over time.
Good question… grasp the opportunities that arise. I always tend to do so but there were a couple of opportunities that arose that I didn’t take hold of. You tend to regret the chances you don’t take in the long run.
What is your worst habit/ personality trait?
Well there are several (laughs). I’m a stickler for many things; I like order so I drive people a little bit nuts with my necessity for order and neatness. At home I’m not very patient…
Probably ironically, self-confidence in what I’m doing. I find it really difficult to be completely happy with what it is I do and I think that is a trait that is shared by a lot of teachers. Within teacher training and the first years of teaching you are taught to be extremely reflective. Since I was reflective already, the fact that it is compounded means that I am overly reflective rather than just accepting that there are going to be things that do work and don’t work depending on the lesson or the day. I find myself critiquing what I’m doing probably a little bit too much.
What is somthing you’re proud of? You can’t say your kids.
I think I’m proud of some of the students that we’ve come across over the past 10-11 years. I’m really proud of what they’ve achieved and what they’ve gone on to do. The things we’ve done, as a team to make that happen, make me very proud.
AHA DAMN! That’s the first thing that popped into my head! (Archie: Aww) I’m proud of the fact that in a few cases throughout the years it has been made very obvious to me that I have raised enthusiasm specifically within the sciences for focused study and potentially for those students going to work in science. Also, students that came to me and weren’t particularly interested in it but became interested in it through the lessons and activities they were doing or whatever, when that’s made obvious I feel very proud of exposing them to that knowledge.
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INTERVIEW Raji Sundaram
Sean Wiseman
Finish the sentence: “If I had the talent, I would like to be…”
If I had the talent, I would like to be a musician. I like music but I don’t sing, I mean I can sing but not very well… but that’s something I would really like.
An expert in the field of physics, specifically astronomy and phenomena that happen in space that we don’t fully understand. It would take me a LOT of time to learn those skills and to learn those theories. I do read on it but I’m just never going to reach the depth of understanding that will be required to formulate papers (laughs).
What are some of your guilty pleasures?
Afternoon naps (laughs) or just lazing with a book.
I play computer games quite a bit but the main reason for that is because I came over here so it’s a way of connecting with friends in the UK that I couldn’t really socialise with otherwise. Sometimes I just put my headset on, not actually to play the game but just chat with [friends] for hours on end.
Do you have any regrets?
No, I wouldn’t say so… I find them a waste of time.
No, I’m very happy with my situation. I’m very happy with the fact that I’ve started a family, with the career I’ve chosen and where I am, so no, not especially. In the future, I hope to move back into Switzerland just because it’s a bit of a safe haven and I’d like that level of security for my kids. But I’m very happy with who it is that’s around me in my life and what it is I’m doing with my time.
Interview by Archana Madhav, Year 13
CAN YOU HELP WITH THE NEXT ISSUE? If you have an idea for something to feature in the next issue, any comments about this issue or would like to join the team who put the Gazette together, please contact a member of the editorial team. We are always happy to have additional help, comments and ideas.
BSG EDITORIAL TEAM BRITISH SCHOOL GAZETTE
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THE ‘SPEAK UP!’ CLUB The ‘Speak Up!’ club at the British School of Geneva is a fantastic experience and has helped me improve my speaking through different fun activities. The club meets every Thursday, after school. Our teacher is amazing and helps us to learn through interesting activities. In groups we debate, act, role play and have presentations amongst ourselves. The students have signed a class contract, promising to listen and respect our teacher and each other. We have also promised to learn and speak at appropriate times about appropriate topics. Our teacher has also signed the contract which in my opinion is fair and fun. She has promised to make learning fun, listen to us, treat us with respect, and be impartial. I feel that I am learning a lot after joining the ‘Speak Up!’ club. I feel more confident to speak in front of others. It is exciting to express our opinions and share ideas with other about various topics. By Aaron Chakkalackal Year 7
NEW AFTER-SCHOOL COURSE AT BSG OPEN TO ENGLISH-SPEAKING KIDS FROM ALL SCHOOLS For English speakers aged 4-6 years • Wednesdays from 5pm to 6pm
English + Fun = Early reading and writing skills through games, crafts, stories and songs. For more information or to enroll, contact us at: +41 76 370 48 36 | info@key-english-school.ch www.key-english-school.ch
DRESS UP DAY
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SWISS EDUCATION GROUP REVOLUTIONISES HOSPITALITY EDUCATION BY TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES
Staying true to the excellence of the Swiss hospitality tradition, the Swiss Education Group (SEG) is a world-class hospitality education network, held in high esteem by the tourism and hospitality industry. Clearly focused on the future and aware of the challenges that upcoming young professionals will face in a world where technology is reshaping the design and organisation of work, SEG has made it a priority to innovate and adapt to the market trends. With the goal of fostering the development of skills required in the hospitality industry today and the future, SEG is committed to offering the best educational experience through an innovative approach that sets new educational standards. Recently SEG embarked on an ambitious programme providing its entire student and teacher body upgraded infrastructure, high tech equipment and knowledge while further rejuvenating dedicated learning and teaching content. This Educational Revolution is taking place throughout all five Swiss Education Group schools. The purpose of this initiative is to ensure that students and faculty accelerate their education experiences with direct applications to the hospitality industry while remaining at the forefront of cutting-edge teaching and learning technology. One student, one iPad
Lecturers merge industry experience
The Swiss Education Group was the first hotel school worldwide to offer a 1-1 tablet education. By the end of 2014, it had equipped its entire student body with advanced iPads with dedicated educational content that revealed a revolution in the field of hospitality education. The project aims to transform the educational experience for students, bringing the latest technological advances to the classroom and aligning education with the realities of the industry today. Although the core of a hospitality education will remain unchanged, introducing the tablets supports and enhances teaching practices and makes for a far more personalised, interactive and rewarding learning environment. All iPads are pre-installed with a set of applications for managing and manipulating documents, multimedia and educational content-based applications. Other applications can be added according to each individual’s needs and content will be generated in each area of learning through using the technology.
SEG’s lecturers share a firm commitment to excellence and a passion for hospitality education as they have worked in the hospitality industry around the world bringing their knowledge to the classroom and enriching the learning experience with a practical perspective. Continuing education programmes have been implemented with hotel groups and the University of Derby enabling faculty to experience new industry practices. This allows students to receive information on what is happening in the markets today with an insight of what may happen tomorrow and which measures and planning should be implemented in future projects. The Learning & Training pillar of the SEG Educational Revolution has inspired a huge rush of energy moving into the classrooms, demonstrating a clear pedagogic shift from traditional lecturing to student-centred learning. Across SEG schools, students are no longer viewed as consumers of knowledge but rather active producers of information that are engaged, supported and equipped for their future.
Contact us for further information or to organize a visit of the campuses. Your career begins now! drobertson@swisseducation.com | +41 21 965 40 11
SWISS EDUCATION GROUP Montreux | Switzerland | T +41 21 965 40 20 info@swisseducation.com | www.swisseducation.com
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