Dragon Tales Issue 6

Dragon

Tales

The Vientiane International School Monthly Magazine

Reflections on Peace pages 2 and 4

“

September/October 2011 | Issue 6

ouncil C t n e d u t S la p.13 a G y t i r a Ch

Swim Tri als page 9

Boat Racing

I was also enthralled by the visitors' description of life in U Penn or Brown not offered in the rather generic university websites! page 9

”

Grade 10-12 think about the future.

Grades 1 and 5 collaborate

Cross Programme Action Students make a commitment to Peace

MYP Community and Service Grade 7 and 8 students take action

Student Council Celebrating the Charity Gala Success

An Adventure into the Unknown The Terry Family enjoy their Fun Fair prize

Director’s Notes page 1

Primary News page 2

Secondary News page 5

Sports News page 9

VIS MISSION STATEMENT ທາ້ ທາຊ, ຋ ົນບ ັນ຋ານໃຈ ແລະ ກະກຽມ ນ ັກຮຽນເຂົ້າສຉ ີ ຋ ິ ຌ ົວຈິງ ູ່ ວ Áskorun hrífur nemendur og undirbýr þá fyrir lífið framundan.

Stawianie wyzwań, inspirowanie i przygotowywanie uczniow do życia

Paghahamon, Pagpupukaw, at Paghahanda sa mga Mag-aaral para sa Buhay

ความท้าทาย แรงบันดาลใจ และการเตรี ยมพร้อม สาหรับผูใ้ ฝ่ รู ้ที่ใคร่ คน้ คว้าในวิถีแห่งชีวติ uitdagend, inspirerend, en voorbereidend tot een levenlang leren Mencabar, Menginspirasi dan Menyediakan Pembelajaran Sepanjang Hayat चन ु ौती को सामना गनन उत्प्रेररत गदै (रेरणा दददै ) जीवन जजउने कऱाससक्ने

सिक्षाथॉऱाइ तयार पानेI Utmanande, inspirerande och förbereder lärande för livet Utfordrende, inspirerende og en forberedelse til resten av livet Herausforderung, Inspriration und Vorbereitung fuer ein lebenslanges Lernen 的使命是为学者们 提供一个具有挑战性，激励性及终身学习的 优异环境 Can’t see your language?

Please send in your translations to rachaelp@vislao.com

Director’s Notes

Page 1

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Primary News

Page 2

by Mr Jon Davidson “If we are to move from a culture of war to a culture of peace then we will have to unite around the most fundamental issue that humanity faces – the protection of each other and our environment. 21 September is the starting point. Individuals can make a difference.

By working together there will be Peace One Day.” Jeremy Gilley - Founder, Peace One Day I would like to thank everyone who helped make Peace One Day at Vientiane International School such a tremendous success. We were very proud to take part in this inspirational initiative. Please follow the link below to see again examples of the great fun we had and snapshots of some of the engaging and creative activities that took place.

Two years later the first ever Peace One Day took place. All over the world there was one day when no one was to fire a shot in anger. Although it seemed like an impossible dream, over the following three years this one precious window of peace meant that 4.5 million Afghan children could be vaccinated against polio. On that day Afghanistan government forces, the International Security Assistance Force and the Taliban stopped fighting.

We were lucky enough to talk directly to the founder of this initiative. A group of our students representing all sections of our school talked to Jeremy via Skype on Wednesday 28th September. He was impressed with the way in which they expressed their great ideas and original thoughts. Thank you to all the students who took part and Ms. Elaine for setting up this unique experience. (See page 3 for the full story) The countdown to next year has already begun with the Global Truce 2012 being planned. If you would like to add your voice to the millions of people urging the international community to cease fire on September 21st, please follow this link.

Photo Gallery As we enjoy looking back at this year we should take time to remember how it started. The whole concept of a day without war was down to a man called Jeremy Gilley, an actor and filmmaker.

Jeremy witnessed the tragedy that war brought into the lives of people around the world and decided he would do something about it. In 1999 he created a non-profit organization and lobbied the United Nations to bring about a global day of peace.

http://action.peaceoneday.org/pledge-for-peace

IBPYP

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By Ms Emily Goodrum, Grade 1 Teacher

At the end of Buddhist Lent, many Lao people celebrate Boun Awk Phansa.

At dawn on this day, donations and offerings are made and in the evening, candlelight processions are held at the temples. Buddhists then take part in Loi ka thong. This involves sending small boats made of banana leaves, decorated with candles and flowers down the river.

Ka Tong: Grade 1 enjoyed making these small boats with their Grade 5 buddies, before the break. The boats or Ka Tong are a symbol of respect to the Buddha and are an offering of thanks to the mother of rivers, for providing water to our lives.

Some people believe that by sending the lighted boats down the river that they will float the bad luck of the past year away and enable the good luck to flow in.

IBPYP In Action

Page 4

By Alison Francis, IBPYP Coordinator A very exciting learning engagement occurred for a group of our students representing Grade 5, Grade 10 and IBDP on Wednesday 28 September. These students participated in a live Skype interview with Jeremy Gilley (the founder of international Peace One Day). Below is an excerpt explaining the purpose of these Skype interviews.

The goal of Jeremy’s Skype talks is to have face-to-face conversations with as many young people as possible in schools across all 192 member-states of the UN in order to advance learning in the areas of peace, non-violence and intercultural cooperation. In these 30minute classes, Jeremy answers questions and encourages young people to take an active role in marking Peace Day and in particular the Global Truce on Peace Day 2012.

This is an opportunity for our students to participate in decision making and take a more active role in initiating and directing as we prepare for 2012. It will also allow them to actively demonstrate responsibility for and commitment to making a difference in the world.

Taking action is an essential element in all three of the IB Programmes. It is important that as adult learners we model taking action for our students. We encourage all members of the VIS community to take action by signing the Global Truce pledge now.

CLICK HERE

“I hope the kids enjoyed the chat. I thought there were some excellent questions, you obviously have some very switched on students.” Jeremy Gilley

Sign The Global Truce Pledge

CLICK HERE

WATCH Jeremy Gilley talks about Peace One Day

Secondary News

Page 5

by Ms Kim Green

Communication builds Connections Form: What structures do we have in place to ensure that good communication occurs that leads to strong connections between parents and VIS and lifelong learning?

Since the beginning of the school year it has been a focus of the secondary team to ensure that there are strong communication links between home and school. There have been a wide variety of opportunities offered for us all to take advantage of.

Some of the highlights have been:            

IBDP Assessment Results Parent Forum IBMYP Information Sessions for parents IBDP Information Session for parents College Information Night for Grade 9 – 11 students Active Parenting Sessions SALSA Information Sessions Exploring options available after Secondary School T r a n s it i on in g an d C ros s in g Cultures workshop Creativity, Action and Service (IBDP) and Community and Service (IBMYP) Information session IBMYP Personal Project Information Session Three Way Conferences Make A Wish Morning with the Principal (Grade 6)

In addition to the face-to face opportunities we also communicate through:   

Weekly Principal’s messages in The Dragon’s Flame Notes to Parents via Email Teacher communication with parents

Responsibility: What is our responsibility to communicate (parents and school)?

We all have a responsibility for communicating.

Parents have a responsibility to communicate with the school and teachers have a responsibility to communicate with parents. The important point is that communication is only effective and true connections are only made if communication is two way between home and school. How many of the opportunities to find out about what is happening at VIS do you take? Over the course of the year we will continue offering many different forums and platforms for communication.

We kn ow th at differen t forms of communication suit people differently, however we do challenge you to take advantage of the face -to-face opportunities as we know these are the most valuable.

Connections: How have our students connected with new contexts for learning?

We are fortunate to have hosted a number of university visits.

Admissions representatives from Brown University, PENN University and NYU Abu Dhabi have taken time to meet with and talk to our learners.

These opportunities are invaluable as it gives our students an opportunity to gain an insight into life post-secondary.

Responsibility: How have our teachers taken responsibility to contribute and communicate within their professional community?

Professional learning is an integral way that we continue to improve the quality of the curriculum at VIS. During the last few months the following learning opportunities occurred for members of our secondary team.

IBMYP Language A English; Duncan Handley and Karla Andrews IBDP Language and Literature – English and Lao; Geoff Piggott and Bounlerth Yitachay IBMYP Physical Education; Mark RadleyWalters and Philip Graham IBMYP Coordinators; Jon Smedes In addition to this, Todd Richer facilitated a Continuum workshop for the IB in India Kim Green attended the IB Heads World Conference and presented a session that questioned to what extent leaders in IB World Schools are responsible for modeling the IB pedagogy.

Communication of our learners Authentic Service It has been a privilege to watch our students become more engaged in authentic service within our local community. These experiences enable our learners to discover themselves through a combination of compassion and action.

They empower our learners to take action, in the knowledge that they are making a positive difference to the lives of others within the school community through school service and the local and global communities.

The secondary student council’s annual VIS Charity Gala highlighted the maturity and ability of our students as they put together a great night of entertainment and dancing. Many students volunteered their time to support the P&F with Halloween, have already volunteered to provide support at the WIG Bazaar and contribute time to the upcoming MRISA event. It has been exciting to see the Grade 7 and 8 service actions along with the many student initiated actions which are underway as part of the Community and Service and CAS opportunities in the IMYP and IBDP. Enjoy reading more about these in this edition of Dragon Tales.

IBMYP Community & Service

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By Ms. Claire Butler-Walker Community & Service is a component of the MYP where students participate in action activities and in service activities. These activities are outside of students’ taught subjects. Here is a snapshot of recent Community and Service activities.

If you have any ideas of how students can provide a service to the community, please email me claireb@ourvis.com.

C 7 de

a r G

Grade 7C collected daily necessities to give to patients at Mahosot Hospital who would be helped by the visiting Interplast team. The students did a great job and collected 3 boxes full of daily necessities to help out. Thanks to the community for donating to this great service activity.

Watch the Report from 7C

Grade 8 Human ities As part of their MYP 3 Grade 8 Humanities course, students created their own news broadcast to communicate about global issues that linked into our concept of ‘communities respond to challenges’. The students worked in groups to present their information.

Watch the Report from Grade 8

IBDP In Action

Page 7

By Todd Richer, IBDP Coordinator VIS has a curriculum that is international. A key component of this is to develop a curriculum framework which encourages students to critically read the world. A starting point for critically reading the world is understanding our personal cultural identities. In order for students to understand their cultural identity it is essential that they study in their mother tongue.

As far as possible, every student in the IB Diploma Programme should study a literature course in their first, best language (their ‘Language A1’ as it is known in the IB Diploma). At VIS, we have a taught class for English A1, but we also have many students for whom English is their second language. It is not possible for us to offer fully taught classes in many different languages each year, so many of our students in 11th and 12th grades are following what is called the School-Supported Self-Taught Language A1 course. In this course, students study 11 works of literature, 6 originally written in the language in which they are studying, and 5 originally written in other languages and translated. These 5 works make up the ‘World Literature’ part of the course, and are an important contribution to developing international-mindedness.

Students study with an English A1 teacher and also receive support from tutors in the language they are studying.

In Grade 11, students are taking A1 courses in:

Lao Thai Indonesian Malay German French

In Grade 12, students are taking A1 courses in:

Lao Thai Korean and Chinese.

Counselor’s News

Page 8

Brown University http://www.brown.edu/

By Nikki Hutchison (Counselor) VIS is making an impression on Universities and Colleges around the world! In the past month we've had visits from two Ivy League schools in the United States - Brown and UPenn. NYU - Abu Dhabi also came to share information about programs and opportunities.

The month of November will bring a visit from a Malaysian university. Grades 10-12 are encouraged to attend the informational sessions to get an idea of what programs, courses, and scholarships are available.

University of Pennsylvannia http://www.upenn.edu/

Since Brown and U Penn were two colleges that i have been interested in, it was really great to meet them in person and talk with them one on one :) Victoria, Grade 12

New York University of Abu Dhabi http://nyuad.nyu.edu/

U Penn and Brown visits were particularly valuable as I could get an insight into the experiences and elements these universities wish to find in the applicants. I was also enthralled by the visitors' description of life in U Pennor Brown not offered in the rather generic university websites!

Sooyun, Grade 12

I found it very interesting to hear a bit more about these universities, applications and university life. It was the first time for me to hear of Liberal Arts Colleges and I find that they are an option that I will consider. I was especially interested by Brown university.

Johanna, Grade 10

Sports Page

SWIM TRIALS

By Sarah Hess This semester, the VIS Swim Team has the wonderful opportunity to use the Australian Embassy Pool for training once a week. In September, nearly 40 brave students came to 'try-out' for the swimming team. After some difficult deliberation a team of 27 students was selected to train every Tuesday evening. The goal of the team is to perfect stroke technique, increase speed and fitness and learn what it means to be a part of a competitive team. The team is aiming to take part in regional and local competitive events. We are very grateful for the opportunity to have a team and I would like to commend every student who tried out and thank every supportive family member who was cheering on the side. The positive atmosphere at the poolside is something I hope will contribute to the growth of swimming at VIS.

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CIS/WASC News

By Greg Smith, Director

Vientiane International School hosted a team of nine international educators for the first week of October as part of the Re-Accreditation process for CIS/WASC. The Visiting Team came from schools as far flung and the US and Australia as well as closer to home including Cambodia, V iet nam and Thailand.

The members of the team are all trained in the process of assessing the elements of the school's self study, and spent the week exploring every aspect of school life at VIS.

Accreditation by CIS (The Council of International Schools) and WASC (The Western Association of Schools and Colleges) is an mportant part of the guarantee of international standards offered by VIS. To meet the standards outlined by the accreditation agencies, the school has undertaken a rigorous self study and prepared a mass of evidence, all of which was reviewed by the Visiting Team prior to arrival at the school. Once the Visiting Team is on site, the members interview teachers, staff, students and parents and watch lessons in every class.

They examine the offices, technology, canteen, playing fields and car park as they verify the self study and prepare a report on the school. This report contains commendations and recommendations for the school and provides the basis for the accreditation decision taken by the agencies.

The report on the school is sent to the Board of CIS and of WASC where the claims are again checked and a decision is taken on the standard of the school and the capacity of the school to deliver what is expected of an international school.

The agency can then give the school an accreditation for a period of years. VIS can expect the decision of the agencies on our continuing accreditation before our semester break in December.

The school continues to hold Accredited status until the end of this academic year, and additionally, holds authorization from another international standards agency in the International Baccalaureate. These agencies provide a framework for the school to continue to develop and deliver high quality programmes and services to our community.

Click the image above to read the review

Peace One Day

VIS PEACE ONE DAY NEWS STORY

Page 11

This video created by Grade 11 students has captured what they felt was significant on Peace One Day. Joe Sirisackda with help from Tony Yoon and Clara Lachet

Student Council News

Page 12

VIS CHARITY GALA

By Oda Karlsen (Grade 11) The VIS Annual Charity Gala was held on Saturday 1 October at the White Elephant Concert Hall, a venue kindly donated by an ex-student of the school, Jack‌ The Charity Gala was organized by the secondary student council and welcomed members from all communities who enjoyed a fun-packed evening of live music, entertainment, an auction and great food.

All the funds raised will go towards the student council community projects. The Gala is just one of the many initiatives through which the student council raise money for specific community projects. Last year the council celebrated the completion of the building of a school library for Ban Saphanthong Tai Primary School, with whom VIS has joined together in partnership with as sister schools.

The student council therefore hope to continue to support this joint venture by providing further resources to the school.

Also at this event a new initiative was launched with the aim to provide materials and resources to Ban Saphanthong Tai School. Two students have designed a gift donation scheme just in time for Christmas, whereby it is possible to donate gifts on behalf of your friends and family. They in turn receive an original gift card thanking them and detailing where the donation will be used. Click on the image (right) for more details.

Read all about it

Watch the Lao News Coverage

Board News

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is a group of nine volunteers who work to ensure the future of the school. Parents are elected for a two year term at the Annual General Meeting held each September. In addition, there is one non-voting Trustee appointed by the US Embassy as the school receives annual financial support from the US State Department.

The Board meets each month throughout the year to complete their responsibilities as Trustees. The Board is responsible for: 1. Hiring and supervising the Director of the school 2. Ensuring good financial governance 3. Setting strategic direction for the school 4. Setting policy for the school The minutes of Board Meetings are posted on the school website. They can be found under the Community Login section. You can also find a copy of Board Policy and Financial reports in this section.

The parents who are our Trustees for 2011-2012 are (from left to right) Seng Thammavong Seng joined the Board for the first time this year. He has a local business and his daughter, Tina, is in grade 9.

Bobby Allen Bobby was re-elected this year and continues as Board Chair. Bobby has been a long term resident of Vientiane and is currently working in a large Hydro project. He is the longest serving member of the Board and his two daughters, Tina and Kelly are in the primary school.

David Boyes David was re-elected this year and is the father of three daughters, Hannah, Georgia and Ava. He is Chair of the Development Committee which is managing the building projects for our new wing and swimming pool.

Marissa Braun Marissa is in her second year as a Trustee and has taken over as Treasurer this year, so is

AGM Minutes Click the PDF

Chair of the Finance Committee. Her daughter, Alanis, is in grade 5.

Pam Devolder Pam is the US Embassy representative and joined the Board this year. Her daughter, Isabelle, is in grade 1. Pam is the Public Affairs Officer at the US Embassy.

Kay Buddharaksa Kay was elected to the Board this year and is also in her first year as a member of the VIS community. Kay has three children in secondary grades at VIS. Kay's background in marketing and communication will be a great addition to the Board.

Frazer Henderson Frazer's background as an editor led him to be selected as the Board Secretary. He was elected to the Board this year and has three children at VIS, Josephine, Rhiannon and Bethan.

Lucy O'Connor Lucy is the Vice Chair of the Board and is in her second year serving as a Trustee. She is the Chair of the Policy Committee and is leading the project to develop the long term Languages Strategy.

Lucy has two sons at VIS, Eun and Fergus.

Dinesh Sellamuttu Dinesh was elected to the Board this year. He is the father of Akash, in Prep and brings his business knowledge to the Board.

To read the annual report click on the image right

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Parents and Friends News

Konglor Caves “Thanks Exotissimo Travel”

By The Terry Family

As the lucky winner of the major VIS Fun Fair Raffle in March this year our family of four were fortunate enough to take a 3 day/2 night trip to the Konglor Caves courtesy of Exotissimo Travel.

Alexia Jolliot, our consultant, took care of all the details, and provided a professional and friendly service. The trip started with a late pick up (at our request) by their driver and minivan followed by a 5 hour pleasant and scenic drive out to our accommodation, just a few kilometers from the cave.

We arrived in the early evening. The accommodation was very basic but had all the necessities such as a flushing toilet, hot water etc. The beds were comfier than what I expected and had mozzie nets and there were fans in all rooms. The restaurant was typically ‘upmarket local’ but again, quite basic. The staff were very pleasant and took extra care to make sure we were well looked after and the service was always with a smile.

The next morning, we headed out to the cave..

Our timing was bad…..and good……bad because it was the same weekend that that area had record rain and extreme flooding, but good because the river was up and although we couldn’t swim and picnic as we had hoped, we had a spectacular trip through the 8km long cave. We chugged along in a powered long boat, in the pitch black, our only light our head torches, through incredible waterfalls streaming through the ceiling of the cave. What an experience! It was definitely well worth the visit. I hear that in the dry season, you will have a different experience, but still an amazing one!

The next day, as it was still raining, we decided to head back to Vientiane early. Just a few kilometers from our accommodation we came to an abrupt stop as

the road was flooded as far as we could see.

Our desire to get home probably overtook common sense (as we were still 5 hours from Vientiane) and as the water was too high for our minivan to drive through, we said goodbye to our driver and most of our belongings, and we jumped on an Iron buffalo to see how far we could get. We found the road again about one km later and while I was left negotiating our next leg of the journey, my husband, Andrew, took the iron buffalo back to the minivan to get the rest of our belongings.

Much to my surprise and delight, not long after, I spotted our van rounding the corner being towed through the flood waters by the iron buffalo with Andrew and Max aboard and waving to us. It was cheers all around!! It seems our driver was not going to lose sight of his clients! We were very grateful, as my negotiating wasn’t going too well and it had looked like a long day ahead!

All, in all, our trip to the Konglor Caves was wet, fun and adventurous. I would recommended it to anyone (with good mobility as getting and out of the boats can be a bit tricky) and our family would like to thank Exotissimo Travel for the opportunity! www.exotissimo.com

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