IGB International School Newsletter, Issue 34, Week 2, April 2015

IGB International School’s Weekly Newsletter - Issue 34, Week 2, April 2015

Enrolment Fee discounts available until 30th April 2015 for new students applying for 2015-2016 Academic Year.

Elementary students enjoying their reading time in the library.

Inside this week’s Newsletter

11th - 19th April 2015 Mid Semester Holidays

Message from Head of School Mrs. Anne Fowles, Head of School

20th April 2015 First day of school after the holiday

News from Elementary School Mrs. Claire McLeod, Elementary School Principal

22nd April 2015 Elementary School Parenting Class, 11.30am - 1.45pm, room opposite clinic Earth Day Assembly, 2.30pm, Theatre

News from Secondary School Mr. Lennox Meldrum, Secondary School Principal Updates from Student Services Mr. Peter Fowles, Head of Student Services Updates from Academic and Support Services Mr. Peter Syme, Director of Academic and Support Services Updates from Admissions Mrs. Bronwyn Thorburn, Admissions Director

Upcoming Events

Igniting Minds

29th April 2015 Secondary School Assembly, 8.00am, Theatre 9th May 2015 Student Led Conferences, 8.00am - 12.00noon

Impacting Lives

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Message from Head of School Mrs. Anne Fowles Head of School Dear IGBIS Parents and Community Members, Thank you for the outpouring of support for the Fournier family and the school during this week. We have really appreciated the thoughtfulness and caring of everyone following the tragic event on Saturday.

One bright point on Thursday this week was a visit by Dr Dick Krajczar, the Executive Director of the East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS). EARCOS was originally set up to support schools assisted by the US State Department Office of Overseas Schools, but now has over 140 member schools in the East Asia region. The main objectives of EARCOS are to; promote intercultural understanding and international friendship through the activities of member schools; broaden the dimensions of

education of all schools involved in the Council; advance the professional growth and welfare of individuals belonging to member schools; facilitate communication and cooperative action between and among all associated schools and to cooperate with other organizations and individuals pursuing the same objectives as this council. I was a member of the EARCOS Board before coming to Malaysia and we hope that IGBIS will be able to apply for membership in the coming years so that we can join in its activities.

We have our Spring break starting today (11th to 19th April), we hope that our students have a good rest. The school office will still be open even though students and teachers are on holiday.

The hours are from 8:30am to 4:30pm.

Have a good holiday!

News from Elementary School Mrs. Claire McLeod Elementary School Principal Dear Parents, This has been a difficult week for all of Elementary following the tragic death of one of our parents. However with support from parents, teachers and our counsellor, students have responded with thoughtful consideration to the three girls who lost their father.

The holidays have arrived at an excellent time, some of our younger students were starting to look tired and in need of a rest and change of routines.

I hope everyone has an enjoyable vacation.

Until next time.

From the Library What Happens in the Library?

Our Library is a shared space for Elementary and Secondary school students. All teachers can book a time to come in with their classes and teach in the library, they can work with the Teacher-Librarian to plan and co-lead lessons with their classes and they bring their classes in to model the value and importance of reading by dedicating some class time to reading in the Library setting. Some students come in to do research for class, while our older students frequently come in to study and work independently.

All Elementary school classes have a 40 minute library lesson once a week. During this time, the Teacher Librarian works on developing research skills with classes, helps students to choose books to read at home and helps students to check books out. The library is open from 7:30am until 4:30pm, Monday to Friday. At lunchtimes, the library is also open and is very popular with both Elementary and Secondary students, and often their teachers too!

Amanda Clark, Teacher Librarian

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Igniting Minds

Impacting Lives

News from Secondary School Mr. Lennox Meldrum Secondary School Principal After writing last week’s article on the importance of community, the past week has demonstrated the wide range of support offered by our community. We have all been grateful for friends, colleagues, and sometimes even strangers who are willing to reach out, to being a rock of support, or just help each day with a smile and a supporting word. Thank you for being such a positive role model for our students.

We have a busy couple of months when we return after the holiday. We start off with a whole school assembly on April 22 at 2.30pm that is focussed on Earth Day. This is being led by the Elementary School Student Council and the Secondary School Global Issues Network group. We hope you can attend if you are available. In addition, our students

are busy working with their teachers to prepare for the Student Led Conferences that will take place on the morning of Saturday, 9th May. Two weeks after this we will have our International Day, followed by a week of examinations for our Grade 11 students.

We then enter June with a whole range of events - Grade 5/6 transition, Grade 10/11 bridging week, Grade 11 Group 4 Project, and our final awards and assembly. Along the way, we have continuing service projects, our fantastic Activities and Sports programme, and our Grade 8 students working towards the final product of their Community Project. For a “new” school, we certainly have a lot going on!

Have a wonderful break and I hope to catch up with you all after the break.

MYP Student Led Conferences, 9th May 2015 On the morning of Saturday, 9th May we will be hosting our first ever IGBIS Student Led Conferences. All students are expected to attend school on that morning and we invite parents, guardians and other family members to join them.

Student Led Conferences (SLCs), as the name suggests, are conferences that are led by the students themselves. The purpose of our Middle Years Programme (MYP) SLCs is for Grades 6 - 10 students to lead a one-hour conference with their family, where students sit together with their family and show how they have demonstrated attributes of the IB Learner Profile throughout this school year.

Grades 6 - 10 students are building an MYP Portfolio to share with their family. They are selecting examples of work from across the different subject areas that demonstrate growth in learning. Students are collecting a variety of work samples including digital files, physical, performance and tactile examples. They are also selecting an example of something they have learnt this year that they will teach to their families during SLCs. In addition to the individual aspects of the Student Led Conferences, there will also be opportunities for families to see other things that have been accomplished at school this year including exhibitions, demonstrations and displays from both PYP and MYP. Our Grade 8 students are currently involved in their MYP Community Project. The Community Project is a self-directed service project and the students are focusing their attention on ways to further develop our sense of community at IGBIS. The Grade 8 students engage with their Community Project over a number of months and are working on projects such as organising community-building events, exploring how our student cafeteria can be enhanced and proposing a design for a school mascot. The Grade 8 students will be showcasing their Community Projects during Student Led Conferences so please take some time to visit and see what they have been doing.

By the end of the SLCs families should have a clear understanding about what MYP students have been learning this year, and how their own child has grown as a learner. Families should also gain a deeper understanding about how students are learning and being assessed in the IB Middle Years Programme. Grade 11 DP students will also be involved in activities at school on this day but their programme will be slightly different.

Please mark Saturday morning, 9 May, in your diary. All students are expected to attend school on that morning and we hope to see all parents and guardians here to share in the Student Led Conferences. Conferences will be scheduled throughout the morning between 8:30am and 12:45pm. Please allow 1.5 - 2 hours so you can take full advantage of the SLC experience. More details, including how SLCs are being scheduled, will follow after the April holiday.

Phil Clark, Middle Years Programme Coordinator

Igniting Minds

Impacting Lives

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News from the DP Coordinator The Grade 11 Final Exams will take place from 25th to 29th May, 2015, and are worth 50% of the Semester 2 grade. The exam schedule was sent to the students last week, as well as information regarding exam behaviour and rules. Its important that the Grade 11 students start preparing for these exams during the April holiday, and review course content from material they studied this year in Grade 11. The Grade 11 Final Exam week should be a good experience for our Diploma Programme students, and is part of the preparation to help them be successful when they sit for the real IBDP exams in May, 2016. Please note that there will not be regularly scheduled classes for Grade 11s during the 25th to 29th May exam week, and that Grade 11 students do not need to come to school when they don’t have an exam. If they want to come to study at IGBIS on days when they don’t have an exam, we encourage them to do so.

programme choices we can arrange a meeting in May or June to have a discussion regarding this issue. In June the Grade 10 students will participate in “Bridging Week” where they will spend 3 days taking Grade 11 classes, in order to familiarise them with their new teachers and routine for next year. If students wish to make changes to their course choices, they will need to have a form completed and signed by their parents, as well as the College Counsellor. Course changes can be made after Bridging Week, and during the first three weeks of Grade 11.

The Grade 10 to 11 transition process has gone well and the Grade 10 students have spoken to the College Counsellor and their course and programme choices have been made. This upcoming May, I will send home letters for parents regarding the course choices. If there are any concerns with the course and

If there are any questions regarding the IBDP at IGBIS, please email me at matthew.marshall@igbis.edu.my.

Upcoming Academic Deadlines for the Grade 11 students are: * 2nd June - English A Language & Literature SL Draft Written Task 1, English A Language & Literature HL Draft Written Task 2 * 8th to 10th June - Group 4 Science Project * 16th June - English A Language & Literature SL Final Written Task 1, English A Language & Literature HL Final Written Task 2

Mr. Matthew Marshall, Diploma Programme Coordinator

Goods and Services Tax (GST) and Its Impact on Education Expenses As the reality of GST dawns after taking effect on 1st April 2015, I have been receiving queries from parents regarding the GST impact on the tuition and other fees in relating to educational services provided by IGBIS. While GST (also known as Value Added Tax) is not a new tax system in most other countries, many of us in Malaysia have had minimal or no exposure until these two weeks and so we are all learning as we go along.

In response to the queries I received, first and foremost, IGBIS is a registered private education institution in Malaysia and recognised by the Ministry of Education (MoE) under the Education Act 1996. Educational services under the purview of the MoE are GST-exempt. The good news is the tuition, enrolment and some fees for the supply of education course of study are GST-exempt, however school operational costs will rise as a result of GST.

• • •

Assessment and examination fees Student administrative services such as registration, printing of academic transcripts, issuing or replacement of student cards, late fee payments, administration of the library, etc Excursion and field trips related to the course of study or part of curriculum requirements, EXCEPT FOR food and accommodation supplied on those trips

What supplies at IGBIS are not GST-exempt?

• Supplies provided by third parties, eg. Musical instrument, computers, sporting equipment • After school activities offered directly by third parties • Food and accommodation supplied for excursion as describe above • Uniform, stationery and other non-academic related supplies The school will not impose GST on the taxable supplies immediately but there might be some adjustment to the prices of school taxable supplies in the event the cost is higher to procure those supplies. The school may need to register and start to impose the GST charges on the taxable supplies at a future date.

What other supplies at IGBIS are GST-exempt?

• Food and drinks supplied by the canteen operators • Curriculum related or course materials

Ms. Gigi Lim, Business Manager

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Impacting Lives

Igniting Minds