DP Newsletter April 2023

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2023

DP Newsletter April

3 A word from Mr Paul

4 Mr Andy’s Introduction

6 Heads of Grade – Mr Walter, Ms Claire

7 University Counsellors

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Contents

Ramadan Kareem!

Another term draws to an end and the Grade 12s get closer to their final exams. Make sure you take time to recharge your batteries as you make the push towards the finish line. Take time to read through the information given by Mr Brian and his University Counsellor team and follow his advice.

Grade 11 students have mock-exams on the horizon and should also be thinking about where you may be applying to study after school finishes. The application season will come up sooner than you expect!

I wish you all a restful break and trust you will find time to spend Ramadan with friends and family.

Best wishes,

Paul Ede Head of Secondary

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Welcome Students, Parents and Raha Community

FROM MR. ANDREW – DP COORDINATOR

Dear DP Community, Ramadan Kareem!

The end is in sight for Grade 12! It is amazing to think that, after 13 years, in 8 weeks there will be no more school! Although we are so close to the end, it is obviously vitally important not to lose focus. Classes will be held as normal until the 19th April, your teachers will be available the following week, and throughout the exams – please reach out for help!

Please make sure you are aware of your schedule, as arriving on time is your responsibility and late arrivals may not be allowed to enter the examination. Make sure you are aware of the Items not Permitted and Notice to Candidate Posters, attached to this email (also posted outside the DP Lounge and in the Study Hall). I am slightly concerned by how few students have requested Legalization of their Diploma. This is a requirement for many nationalities, especially Emiratis. Here is a link to the form -

https://forms.office.com/r/XgLZd1nXEk

Also slightly concerning is the lack of requirements to have results sent universities. Here is the link to that form

https://forms.office.com/r/S41cNGJ9jj

After the holiday, Spirit week is coming up and I’m sure that all of the Grade 12 students will take part in the events with the humour and good nature they are intended to invoke. Obviously this close to exams it is important to have some down-time, but make sure that boundaries are not needlessly crossed.

Grade 11 have mock exams on the horizon. It is imperative that these are taken seriously as the results will form the basis for most

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teachers’ predicted grades. Universities begin requesting predicted grades in September and October, so this is the first real indication for them of how strong a student you are.

Also well under-way for Grade 11 are the Extended Essays. The Grade 12s will be able to offer advise on how important it is to meet deadlines, to avoid an unnecessary build up assignments and the stress which accompanies such a situation.

Just for fun, I asked ChatGPT to write a couple of paragraphs explaining why using ChatGPT is cheating. Here is what it came up with:

Be honest!

Using ChatGPT to generate an essay can be considered cheating because it involves using an AI language model to generate text that the user did not write themselves. When you use ChatGPT to generate an essay, you are essentially relying on the AI to do the work for you, rather than using your own skills and knowledge to develop and articulate your own thoughts and ideas.

Moreover, submitting an essay generated by ChatGPT as your own work is a violation of academic integrity and can result in serious consequences, such as failing the assignment or even facing disciplinary action from your academic institution.

However, ChatGPT can be a valuable tool for research and brainstorming. By using the model to generate ideas and explore different perspectives on a topic, you can enhance your understanding of the subject matter and develop your own original ideas for your essay. As long as you use ChatGPT as a tool to supplement your own writing, rather than relying on it entirely, you can avoid the ethical and academic pitfalls associated with cheating.

Mr Andy,

atomlinson@ris.ae

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HEADS OF GRADE

Grade 11

Hello Grade 11 students and parents, Another term of your DP is complete, congratulations on making it this far!

I hope you have taken some time to reflect on your most recent report card and any changes to your study habits you needed to make, have been implemented already. Reminders to keep on your radar: for CAS you should have each CAS strand demonstrated at least once. Reflections and evidence should be up to date for each of your experiences. Any completed experiences, you need to have the supervisor review done and you mark it complete. For EE: now that reflection 1 is complete, you will have some new advice from your supervisors to help with your outline which will be due in June.

Our final term in Grade 11 will be full on with preparation for mock exams at the end of May, so please ensure you are taking some time to rest during spring break. I hope you all enjoy the break and see you all in 2 weeks!

Ms Claire

Grade 12

OK, Class of 2023 we are nearing the Finish Line! IAs are submitted, CAS is completed and there is only one more major hurdle, but it is a big one. Final exams. How are you preparing? What your plans? Will you cram day and night? Will you not study at all? Will you lock yourselves in your room and read over all of your notes from the past 2 years? However you study best is for you to decide. What is imperative though, are a few simple must have’s.

1. No matter what, you must eat something.

2. You must take breaks and find brief moments of social interaction, aside from your revision.

3. Rest, rest, rest! Tired minds don’t retain much.

Enjoy your spring breaks seniors, but accomplish a little day-by-day. This will make exam time manageable. There is no glory in cramming.

Ramadan Mubarak!

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MS. CLAIRE ARMSTRONG clairearmstrong@ris.ae MR WALTER CLARKE wclarke@ris.ae

University Counselling Team

Grade 12:

Senioritis:

Senioritis refers to the attitude and behaviours that seniors display in towards the last term of school before graduation. When university decisions are released and students have their offers, senior students tend to lack motivation, cut classes, get lower grades, lose fucus and procrastinating on assignments. If students become aware of this, then can attempt to avoid this downslide just before exams. University offers are conditional, which means the door has been opened for you, but how you finish determines if you walk through the door and on to campus. Keep your focus on the end-goal.

MR. BRIAN MARSHALL bmarshall@ris.ae

Managing University Offers:

Managing too many offers can become overwhelming and cause you to lose focus on the offers you truly care about. This could result in missed communication and not responding before deadlines. At this point, it’s best to decline offers you are no longer interested in and inform those universities. Keep a few offers in case your exams don’t go as well as you thought. More than five to eight is not necessary.

At some point, universities will ask you for a nonrefundable down payment to keep your offer “alive”. If you miss the deadline for the down payment, the university will rescind their offer. So, there is also a cost to keep all your university offers. Here are two Looms on managing your offers. One is specific for the UK and the other deals with other world countries.

Managing Offers

https://www.loom.com/share/b91cf08771424f5492a2d59279d15c08

Managing UK Offers within UCAS System

https://www.loom.com/share/ff3391f7739642bf8b27200a3d7d7614

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Negotiating University Offers:

You should view each university offer as the beginning of nego tiating deal. What university care about the most is not giving offers but getting students on their campus, which is referred to their “yield”. Admission set target yields each year and are determined to meet their goal. This puts the student holding an offer in an influential position. Asking a university to match a scholarship you received at another university can be a highly successful maneuver by the student/family. Now the university has every right to say “no” to the matching request, and this in no way threatens your offer. But what if they say yes to meet their yield target. $weet victory! Here is a Loom outlining the steps to request a university to match your other offer.

Negotiating Offers

https://www.loom.com/share/5acd545005a34141826cd89163e8fa74

Respectful Relationships with Universities:

As a school, our reputation of our students is enhanced when use proper etiquette in our relationships with universities. If a university gives you an offer and you decide not to attend, please contact that university to let them know. Don’t simply be a consumer and grab what you want and leave everyone else wondering “what happened to this student”. It’s simply embarrassing having universities calling the school wondering why you are not on their campus.

Night School Southern Hemisphere Session April 27th: See schedule below.

Grade 11:

Changes to UK University Applications:

UCAS, the centralized organization for UK applications, are changing the application template for applications this 2023-24 cycle. They are adding sections or questions to the Personal Statement. Before, it was a limited blank space with no format. They are doing the same changes for the reference section by adding questions/structures to the format. These are significant changes which places all of us in a learning position. If the changes are released on time, I will certainly be providing instructions during the Night School UK session this May. Please attend if the UK is a possible destination for you. There will be another Night School UK session next September.

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Student Profile:

You should be continuing to look for ways to b uilt up your student profile this spring and summer for university applications. Some areas to consider:

1. Extra-curricular activities at school or in the community. You are going to be asking universities to join their community and they would like to know “Where would they find you on their campus?” “How would your involvement add to student life?” US universities place a great emphasis in these activities.

2. Oxford and Cambridge created the term “Super -curricular” activities. “What have you done, beyond your classes, to extend your learning on the course you are planning to study?” This could take the form of internships, summer programs, online courses, or independent research projects. UK universities and very selective top universities around the world place great importance on these activities because it shows engagement, self-initiative, and high motivation.

3. Prep for Admission Examinations. First, you must determine which courses/degrees/universities/destinations require admission exams. US universities have been SAT and ACT test optional for two years. Next year, some universities may bring it back. And even if a university is test optional, why not prep, and achieve an excellent score and submit it as part of your student profile. The UK has several admission tests, whether its for medicine, law, Oxford, and Cambridge. If English is not your first language, you may need to write an English Proficiency Test. Completing this test while in grade eleven is a great idea.

4. Practice written response to university essay questions. Often referred to as an electronic interview, this is where university admissions meet you beyond the numbers. I know from experience that excellent written responses lead to offers at top universities.

Attend Night School Sessions: These sessions are designed to absorb the entire university application process for a certain destination in one session. Obtaining this information equips you to built highly successful plans. Your assigned university case manager will support you every step of the way.

Try to attend at least one Night School session for every potential destination during your DP. UK, US and CA sessions are twice a year, while all other sessions are once a year. See Spring Night School Sessions below.

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