Weekly Newsletter_200821

21 August, 2020

News from NLCS Jeju WELCOME TO OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

North London Collegiate School Jeju

Dear Parents, Students, Staff and Friends of NLCS Jeju The first days of the new academic year 2020-21 have seen such excitement from returning students also the many new students across all the school. I am delighted to welcome students returning to Korea from international schools across the world as well as the many new students from the Republic of Korea.

The students have involved themselves in the life of NLCS Jeju immediately and it has been delightful to see the enthusiasm and interest in the CCA programme and upcoming Bryants. The leaders of our Societies are already hard at work on programmes and activities for students and in many cases this is building on planning and work undertaken over the summer.

The new Year 13 students are inspired by the successes of our class of 2020 of whom you will read about below.

Their IB diploma results are outstanding and world beating. The cohort’s average points score of over 39 with 51% gaining 40+ points is something we all celebrate. We wish all of our class of 2020 every success in their chosen universities and we are very proud of them. They are inspirational to all our current students.

Boarding life has started successfully with new boarders joining the Houses and we welcome our Junior Boarders in Darangswi. Last night there was such joy and excitement in the Houses as students met up again and welcomed their new boarders.

The times continue to be challenging and parents will continue to be kept fully up to date of our protocols and sanitisation programmes as well as precautionary measures. We continue to restrict access to the site and when we do allow access to the site additional measures are in place. We will therefore have far more parent conferences and meetings remotely for the foreseeable future. We will keep you fully informed of this.

Once again, we wish you all a wonderful term at NLCS Jeju.

Yours sincerely, Lynne Oldfield Principal

North London Collegiate School Jeju

Induction Days - Welcome to our new students

Students

We were excited to be able to run an adapted version of our usual New Student/New Parent Induction Days on Wednesday, August 19. All parents of new students were invited into the PAC to hear key members of staff talk about the NLCS Jeju ethos and our academic and pastoral hopes and plans for the exciting year ahead.

Importantly, parents were able to meet with House staff and hand over their precious children personally.

We imposed strict safety guidelines and measures such as mandatory masks, temperature checks and updated Travel Surveys. Parents were socially distanced in the PAC and had to forgo the usual tours and visits to the Boarding Houses. But we were delighted to see all those who came and we hope to see you all again soon in school.

An Introduction to Quadra

Catering We have been making exciting changes to our catering over the Summer break. Quadra have taken over the catering for the whole school from Reception to Year 13. As you will know there was a comprehensive process involving students, parents and staff before we chose them. Quadra were already catering for our Junior School and were also involved in our events. They are experts in school catering having been involved in international schools in Seoul for several years.

Quadra GM, Kenny says “ JiMin and I were international school parents for many years in Seoul.

JiMin was chair of the Food Committee and realised how we could do things better with our expertise and experience. We decided to emphasise quality and choice. We want every student to have Asian and Western options. We feel very strongly that there should be a “ joy factor” in the choices.

Ingredients are simple and unprocessed. We are very aware of Korean and Global guidelines on a balanced diet. A child who eats well is a child who is happy and can study to their full potential. “

They ensure that every meal is balnced and filled with nutritious choices. “Our aim is that every child has a wide range of foods before them and can make careful and thoughtful choices from all the major food groups. We believe children should have access to the recommended 5-10 portions of fruits and vegetables so these are always readily available at every meal. “ We will be inviting parents in to sample more of the food once COVID-19 guidelines are relaxed. In the meantime we welcome your constructive comments on feeding our community.

North London Collegiate School Jeju

Teachers

Meet the Teacher - JS Interview The Junior School also has some wonderful new teachers. Students are meeting them for the first time this week. Year 6 Student, Emily Hwang took the opportunity to chat with Mr. Jordan Brown, Class 2 Teacher about why he came to NLCS Jeju and what he hopes to achieve here.

Emily is a very impressive young journalist and she asked Mr Brown some great questions about his teaching career. He revealed that every day is different and that’s why he loves being a teacher. “ You can change children’s lives. My teachers at school pushed and inspired me and I’d love to do the same thing for my students. One day I hope that my students will come back and tell me about the successes that they have made of their lives.”

We’ll bring you more news of our new teachers as the weeks go by.

North London Collegiate School Jeju

Meet our Parent Relations Team

Parent Relations

We are delighted to introduce our Parent Relations Team for 2020-21. We were, of course, very sad to say goodbye to Mr Keith Yi at the end of last term but we know that our new team will be looking after you and be a great point of contact for ideas, thoughts, proposals, social activities and community building. Each of our team is already part of the community and each has one thing in common - a love for the NLCS Jeju community and especially the students. If you would like to talk to someone or you need help with settling in - beyond the normal settling-in queries then please contact them DongEun Lee - Junior School delee@nlcsjeju.kr Mina Chang - Senior School mchang@nlcsjeju.kr Ying Gao - Chinese community ygao@nlcsjeju.kr You should already have your Parent Handbooks but if not we attach the Senior School HERE and Junior School HERE.

Books

What Our English Department are Reading We are delighted to welcome our new teachers in the Senior School English Department. Head of Department, Mr Geoff Hall thought a great way to introduce them was to ask them what they are reading and which quote sums them up! Check them all out HERE - and ask them all for more tips!

In the Junior School our English department read avidly - and not just books they are teaching.Year 5 and 6 English teacher, Ms. Justine Whitney recommends a domestic thriller set in London, UK - Finders Keepers by Sabine Durrant. Accident or Murder? And whodunnit?

Can you work it out? Start the term as you mean to go on - as a reader!

IBDP - Amazing Results for the Class of 2020 Every year is a great year for NLCS Jeju when it comes to results but the Class of 2020 have surpassed all that came before them. These 121 students showed their true colours in a very difficult year. Their hard work, efforts and creativity have all paid off. We achieved a 100% pass rate at IBDP. Three of our students achieved the maximum score of 45. 51% of students scored over 40+ (against a global average of 30). Our average score was 39.2 We’ll be sharing news of their final destinations over the coming weeks - some are juggling multiple offers and scholarships and have a lot to think about!

Our IBDP Coordinator and AVP, Ms. Justine Oliver says “This year’s truly outstanding DP results are a testament to our students’ hard work and resilience. Just as importantly they demonstrate how our Class of 2020 embodies the qualities of the IB Learner Profile. We are exceptionally proud of these knowledgeable, caring and open-minded global citizens.” We can’t wait to see what they do next!

North London Collegiate School Jeju

Medical Review

Societies

We are delighted to welcome back all our societies and all have important messages as they set out their projects and objectives for the year. Students, Joongi Joon Park and Seul (Shine) Lee share their plans for the Medical Review for this academic year. Contact them if this relevant and fascinating society appeals to you! “The Medical Review is an event in which groups of students select a specific medicine-related topic and give short presentations in front of an expert panel of judges and an audience. Last year was the inaugural event - made possible with the help of teachers and the medical-related experts who participated as judges.

This year the Medical Society is hosting the Medical Review once again. The event will be held on November 27, in the PAC. The Medical Society firmly believes this opportunity to be very helpful to students who seek biology or medically related jobs in the future, such as being a doctor, a pharmacist, a biologist, or a biochemist. When presenting in the Medical Review, students can develop their speaking skills for university interviews, which will be highly considered in their university application. Students can also look to further their interests and careers in medical or biomedical fields by doing the research required for this review. Overall, this event provides students with the opportunity to ‘think beyond’ the curriculum.

Students who are willing to do the Medical Review in November 2020 will need to participate in the Medical Review CCA Block 1. During this CCA block, they will be supported with their research and presentation skills. The Medical Society invites students who are currently in years 10, 11 and 12 to take part and gain valuable experience. Year 12 students might consider this event as a potential CAS opportunity, through providing service or a creativity experience or activity. If you are interested either as a participant or as a supporter of the Medical Review, please complete the attached Google form. HERE The current pandemic shows the importance of having medical knowledge. The coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic is the defining global health crisis of our time and the greatest challenge we have faced since World War Two. Medical Review will be the chance for students to explore and understand medicallyrelated issues and come to appreciate the historical as well as the current achievements made through such battles.

Darangswi is open!

JUNIOR BOARDING

We are delighted to let you know that Darangswi House is open to the first Junior boarders. There are 9 students in this cosy House and numbers will be kept very low in order to preserve the caring one-to-one atmosphere. Talk to us if you’d like to know more or schedule a taster session. juniorboarding@nlcsjeju.kr

North London Collegiate School Jeju

Rugby

FUN FACT

Jindo We have many keen budding sports stars amongst our student body - but there has been a distinct lack of competitions for them to show their prowess. Over the Summer that changed when our Middle School Rugby Squad travelled to Jindo on the mainland to compete in the National Championships.The team were subject to stringent precautions and tests to allow this to go ahead. With their parents’ full support they competed against the best and ended up in overall second place - despite injury and other setbacks. We thank Mr. Sebastien Crebier, Rugby Coach, for his efforts and his support. He says “The team were valiant in their efforts and could not have worked harder. Next year we will come back and win!” We look forward to lots for sporting stories over the term.

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