DR ANDREW DAVIES

Head of School

Although the continuing pandemic impacted many facets of school life, there are many reasons to be cheerful about the 2021-22 school year. Through significant preparation with respect to safety, International School Bangkok (ISB) was the first day school in Thailand to reopen, and we were able to welcome students back to campus in late September, enjoying a pretty much uninterrupted run until the end of the school year.

With much appreciation, many activities resumed, and we were able to participate in sports with schools in Bangkok. Performances with live audiences also returned, and we were treated to “High School Musical,” “10 Ways to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse,” as well as a host of high-quality musical performances. This year was also the first time in three years that we were able to be on campus until the very end of the school year and, importantly, could hold an inperson graduation for our seniors.

Aside from COVID-19 management, we were able to make several school improvements this year related to student learning. Our Strategic Learning Plan included work on enhancing our abilities with respect to pedagogy, collaboration & teacher efficacy, innovative practices, and using data to improve learning. As we do every year, we also improved the school’s capacity in the areas of curriculum, technology, meeting the needs of diverse learners, DEIJ, our Learner Attributes, and student well-being.

Despite the different learning approaches, we are confident our students made good learning gains this year. We began the year with the International Baccalaureate (IB) results from the May 2021 examination session, and these were very encouraging - with a 100% pass rate for the second year running and an average IB Diploma score of 36.5 with three students scoring a perfect score of 45 and 30 students scoring over 40 points. MAP and ISA results this year were also strong relative to comparable schools, and our graduates have again gained admission into universities and colleges of their choice around the world.

In terms of facility enhancements, the Elementary Makerspace has enhanced the opportunities for our students to demonstrate problem-solving skills, collaboration, design thinking, and creativity. Our new elementary school playgrounds have been enthusiastically welcomed by students, along with the expansion and renovation of the ES cafeteria. For the summer of 2022, our major facilities project will see the first phase of a comprehensive redevelopment of the athletics area, including gyms, fitness rooms, and offices.

I would like to recognize ISB’s Crisis Management Team and the Leadership Team for all of their hard work in ensuring the ISB campus was as safe as possible for this school year. I am also extremely grateful for the dedication and creativity shown by our faculty as they taught in unusual conditions, both virtually and in person. Our students have shown remarkable adaptability and commitment throughout this school year, and our parents have supported the school through all of these difficult months. As they always do, our support staff stepped up magnificently to keep the school running well in challenging times and ensure the strongest safety and hygiene standards. Finally, I would like to recognize the work of the Board of Trustees - a group of 15 current and former parent volunteers who contribute many hours each month to make the best decisions for our students and community.

We are very grateful to our whole community for their continued support, and we look forward to returning to as normal a situation as possible in the not too distant future.

Sincerely,

Dr. Andrew Davies Head of School