DP Newsletter June

DP NEWSLETTER

June 2020

Dear Grade 11 Students and Parents, I trust you are all keeping safe and well. I’m sure you will agree that this has been a very strange year, to say the least.

What surprises me is the speed the days and weeks seem to move. Although there is only a month left of Grade 11, there is still a huge amount going on at Raha.

Those of you who were able to enjoy the Grade 12 Graduation will hopefully have an understanding of the emotions the Class of 2020 are going through. We hope that will be the one and only virtual graduation, but it definitely did justice to the hard-working students. I’d like to thank Ms Christine and her team for putting together a truly memorable show.

For the Class of 2021, there are still many deadlines to hit before the summer break. I’m noticing how many requests are being made for extensions; teachers are very much wanting to support you all during these unprecedented times and trying to accommodate as many requests as possible, but a word of warning: do not take for granted that an extension will be granted in Grade 12. The IB regulations state that a N grade should be awarded for students who miss internal deadlines. Grade 12 is incredibly busy and once you miss one deadline, there will be another the following week adding to your pressure, therefore teachers will not be as accommodating as they have been this year.

Group 4 Project – 7th June. A reminder that this is compulsory for all students.

EE Draft – 18th June.

Andrew Tomlinson, DP Coordinator atomlinson@ris.ae Ms Nicola Hewitt, Assistant to the DP Coordinator, DPC-assistant@ris.ae

1

HEADS OF GRADE Grade 11 Dear Parents and Students, The light at the end of the e-learning/Year 11 tunnel grows brighter (Summer break). As such, I urge all parents to encourage their child/children for one last focused push towards the rapidly approaching Year 11 finish line. Mocks are set for a 20th of September start date (until the 1st October). I urge all students to seek extra support where provided by their subject teachers leading up to these important examinations (during free periods, class-time and before school 8am – 9:30am). Additionally, please encourage your child to complete a Mock study schedule (with me or another staff member if they need help) if they have not already organised one. All Year 11 staff have offered additional help outside of the classroom throughout the year, it is now (more than ever), imperative to take advantage of this.

The close of the first DP year is always challenging, subject specific examinations are heavily set on the calendar; this is to provide one last opportunity for the students to bolster their Year 11 report card grades. Your children/s support and encouragement at home will be needed more than ever over the coming months. Please know, we as staff and stakeholders are here to help, do not hesitate to keep in contact with subject teachers if you have any concerns or queries.

Having a balanced Summer is also vital, please make sure this time is not completely absorbed in the books. We all need socializing more than ever and some much needed rest, relaxation and vitamin D! If you have any questions leading up to the Mocks or want to discuss any concerns, please do not hesitate to contact your subject teachers, Andy or myself.

Thank you for your continued support!

Warm regards, James Jones Head of Grade 11 jjones@ris.ae

2

UNIVERSITY APPLICATIONS Grade 11: •

•

• • •

If planning on applying to US universities, take a look at the SAT and ACT chart for dates. Plenty of opportunity to secure a seat for the exam. If you want to write it twice then spread the two test dates as far apart as possible. If only applying to the US, then the SAT and ACT are equally valued by US universities. If you are applying to the US and other Asian countries, then the SAT is the better choice. There are also test optional US universities, including UCs and NYUAD. If considering applying to UK medicine, you should inform your assigned university counsellor sooner rather than later. We currently have three Raha students that completed their first year of medicine in the UK. This year we have three more students with medicine offers in the UK, awaiting their final marks in July. Most medicine courses require you to have 6 6 6 in HLs, with one being Biology HL, and another Chemistry HL. The third HL can be in any subject.

Take advantage of re- watching the Loom university sessions that are being pushed out through tutorials.

Predicted Grades and University Application forms will be delivered Sunday June 7th.

Please complete the BridgeU Key Assessments when you have time. It provides personal data about yourself, which can be folded into constructing a university plan. If having difficulty with using the Key assessments or BridgeU, switch your browser to Safari.

Night School will resume upon our return to the school year. UK, US, and CA are first on the schedule. These sessions will absolutely be delivered whether in-person or online. It’s the fastest way to learn about the application processes and receive training in building high powered applications. The expectation of DP students and families is to attend one Night School session for each possible country/region destination during your DP. So if you have already attended a session that’s great, but if you haven’t, then track the soon to be released Night School sessions for 2020-21. Information and understanding leads to the best decisions.

Raha Class of 2020 University Offers Statistics Size of Cohort = 102 Top 50 Ranked World Universities = 82 offers Top 100 Ranked World Universities = 128 offers Top 10 UK Universities = 33 offers Top 15 UK Universities = 45 offers 3 Medicine Offers (2 St. Andrews, 1 Surrey) Top 5 CA Universities = 44 offers Top 10 CA Universities = 70 offers Top 20 US Universities = 9 offers Top 40 US Universities = 29 offers Top 7 NE Universities = 22 offers Total Medicine (4 countries) = 8 offers NYUAD (4% acceptance rate) = 7 offers

3

Grade 12: Should I take a Gap Year?

Deciding to stop your education should not be taken lightly.

Academic students are like athletes, they need to continue to train and develop their abilities for top performances. Sitting on the sidelines for whatever reason, causes the athlete and the academic student to decrease their abilities to perform at the highest level, Of course, hopefully they can train up to their previous fitness level, but the layoff does make the startup much more challenging.

I’ve always talked about strategy in making decision to get the best your university plan. Most universities in the world are currently planning to start with online courses. You experienced online lectures and assignments for two months, so you are informed about this experience as a student. Is an online academic startup enough to stop your university education for a year? This is my question, which only you can answer.

Here are a few more questions to ponder?

Will more self-isolating by a gap year turn out to be beneficial, or will the requirement to wear PPE and social distancing remain the same for more than a year?

If your decision is to take a gap year, you can ask a university that accepted you for a deferral, which if they say yes, you can hold your seat until the next year. If they say no, then the only way to obtain the seat is to re-apply. Same student with the same university does not guarantee another acceptance by re-applying.

The application pool will be different, as well as possible changes in admission staff. Is it a good strategy to turn away from a top university offer?

Is it financially beneficial to take a gap year? Will the cost of university go up or down after your gap year?

If you do take a gap year, how will you spend your time? Do you have a plan? Does it look like a lot of down time? Will you do any new learning? Will your motivation to work hard academically be negatively impacted by this gap year?

The decision is yours to make. “Education is not a preparation for life, but it is life!� (Dewy). As your university counsellor, I recommend to continue your life which means continue your education.

I will be online when your final marks are released, as well as, most of July.

Brian Marshall bmarshall@ris.ae

4

2020 International SAT and SAT Subject Tests Administration Dates CollegeBoard has added an additional fall testing date to help international registrations. Please see the chart below for test dates currently available and registration deadlines.

Test Date August 29, 2020 September 26, 2020 October 3, 2020 *November 7, 2020 (SAT Subject Tests Only) December 5, 2020

Deadline to Register July 31, 2020 August 26, 2020 September 4, 2020 n/a November 5, 2020

For more information on Coronavirus updates pertaining to SAT, please refer to this link https://pages.collegeboard.org/sat-covid-19-updates 2020 International ACT Administration Dates Test Date Deadline to Register July 17-18, 2020 June 26, 2020 September 11-12, 2020 August 21, 2020 October 9-10, 2020 September 18, 2020 December 11-12, 2020 November 20, 2020 For further information, please refer to this link https://blog.prepscholar.com/act-international-test-dates Grade 11 KTS Assessments Three KTS assessments have been assigned through BridgeU for students to complete. They are the Learning Styles, Multiple Intelligences and Personality Type assessments. It is recommended you take them in this order, relax and enjoy the process. There are no right answers. Completing these assessments should provide you with further information on your own learning preferences as well as help narrow your career exploration. If you have trouble logging into the KTS website, it could be a browser issue. Please try clearing your cache and use either Google Chrome or Safari.

Carmen Barrack cbarrack@ris.ae

5

CAS

CORE SUBJECTS

Carlos Noguera, CAS Coordinator cnoguera@ris.ae

G12

You have done it! Congratulations to the class of 2020 for completing all the graduation

requirements despite the adverse circumstances.

It was great to work with all of you over the last two years and see your CAS portfolios develop into completion. My wish is that you continue the good work you have started here and take it wherever you may go. Never forget the value of contributing to your communities and acting with care and compassion towards others. Also, to embrace your creative side in the kitchen, in the studio, on stage or wherever you get a chance to. Lastly, respect the temple that your body is. You have to be good to it so that you may live long, happy and healthy. After all that is the main goal of CAS. All the best to you guys!

6

G11 it’s been great to see how much you have accomplished during this difficult and unusual school year. What has been even more impressive is to see how so many of you managed to rise above the adverse circumstances to make meaningful progress towards CAS. It is important to keep in mind that by the end of next April, students must have completed the nine (9) recommended experiences and at least one CAS project.

A CAS experience must:

Means that more progress needs to be made at this stage.

You are on track (have at least 3-4 experiences completed OR with reflections and evidence and reflections uploaded Well over the expected minimum 3-4 experiences completed at this stage.

All students must be involved in at least one CAS project (the symbol looks like a cube on ManageBac. Students tick that box to indicate that particular activity is a CAS project).

Although only one is required, it is recommended that students engage in more than one CAS project over the duration of their CAS programme.

The following must be in place in order for the experience to count as a CAS project: • Meets the CAS stages • Is collaborative (between students or members of the wider community) • Is a minimum of 1 month in duration from planning to completion Sample ideas of CAS projects: • Creativity: A student group works with a teacher to plan, design and creates a mural in a classroom.

• Activity: Students organize and participate in a sports team including training sessions and matches against other teams.

• Service: Students set up and conduct tutoring for people in need (Centre for excellence).

• Creativity and activity: Students choreograph a routine for their marching band.

• Service and activity: Students plan and participate in the planting and maintenance of a garden with members of the local community.

• Service and creativity: Students identify that children at a local school need backpacks and subsequently design and make the backpacks out of recycled materials.

• Creativity, activity, and service: Students rehearse and perform a dance production for any community.

• • • •

fit within one or more of the CAS strands be based on a personal interest, skill, talent or opportunity for growth provide opportunities to develop the attributes of the IB learner profile not be used or included in the student’s Diploma course requirements

How can parents help?

Parents can help by checking in with their child about which status flag they are currently on. If your child needs to make more progress, I recommend finishing the activities that have been started first. This means uploading the reflections and evidence required for completion.

Is your child struggling to find opportunities?

Remind them that any meaningful activity that meets at least one of the CAS strands (Creativity, Activity, Service) and at least one of the Learning Outcomes counts as CAS. So, for example, learning how to cook a variety of dishes can count as Creativity. Following a workout plan can count towards Activity. Social distancing does not mean social isolation; ask them to think about a cause or a global issue that is relevant to them and research ways to get involved online

7

Extended Essay Ms Muge Okur – mokur@ris.ae Congratulations to the Class of 2020!

Looking ahead, congratulations to the Class of 2021 for being almost done with the first year of their DP experience, and many of them for being almost done with their draft extended essays. At this point in time, all students should have completed and entered the first two reflections and ready to submit a draft version on their extended essays. Although the draft extended essay does not get submitted or graded, it is the one chance for the students to get detailed feedback from their supervisors. The supervisors will be providing detailed feedback on the draft extended essays only once, therefore this is a critical step in the process. The June 18 deadline is to ensure the students receive their feedback before the summer break.

If any student feels the need for more time to produce his or her best work, they can submit later (but not later than the first week of September). A later submission will most likely mean receiving the feedback at the end of summer break, but students can check with their supervisors on this matter.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of the G11 students for their amazing work and dedication this year, on their coursework and the extended essay. I wish everyone a healthy, safe and happy summer!

And to celebrate some good news NASA and SpaceX launched astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley to the International Space Station on May 30, to dock on May 31st. Pretty big stuff happening on (and above) Earth right now, other than the pandemic!

8

Theory of Knowledge Ms Aoife Abushaqra– aabushaqra@ris.ae The main aim of TOK is to help students formulate answers to the question “how do you know?” in a variety of contexts, and to recognize the value of that question. This approach enables students to develop an enduring fascination with the richness of knowledge. By asking the question 'how do you know?' our students are consistently encouraged to question their own understanding of reality, and to think of knowledge not as a series of facts, but as a collection of individual and shared understandings.

All year we have been building up to their first official TOK assessment, the presentation, which is worth 33% of their final TOK grade. The grade they receive, out of 10, is subject to moderation by the IB. Every TOK student is required to produce a 10-minute oral presentation and a written planning document. Students present individually, or in groups of two or three.

In this presentation students are expected to identify and explore a knowledge question raised by a real-life situation of their choice. This real-life situation may arise from personal experience or from a wider global scope. I wish every student success in their presentation and commend them for their efforts so far. Students have spent most of the past month refining their TKPPD (planning form) and preparing to present live via Microsoft Teams.

In September, students will begin to explore Indigenous Knowledge Systems as their next Area of Knowledge. We would warmly welcome any parents or members of the community who would be willing and interested to come speak to our students and share first-hand knowledge of Indigenous culture. Please email aabushaqra@ris.ae if you are interested.

9