High School Upcoming events (Please click):
Appropriate footwear and clothing
Dennis Harter
dennish@isb.ac.th
Please be aware that flip flop sandals are not allowed as student footwear during the school day. In addition to being unsafe in event of building evacuation, they do not convey the school climate and respectful environment we expect at ISB. This is true on uniform and alternate dress days alike.
Also, while current fashion has brought back short shorts (welcome back to the early ’80s!), these are not acceptable school attire given our multi-cultural school community. Students wearing skirts and shorts that do not extend beyond their hands when arms are hanging down will be made to change clothes and lose alternate dress privileges. Students will likely have to buy a new school uniform at the bookstore.
Grade 9 MAP Testing – Wednesday 24th & Thursday 25th April
Philip Rogers
philr@isb.ac.th
All our Grade 9 students will complete their Spring 2013 MAP (Measure of Academic Progress) tests in Reading and Mathematics during their normal English and Mathematics periods on these days. Feedback from these tests will be provided in May to all Grade 9 parents.
May 2013 IB, AP & Grade 12 ISB Exams
Philip Rogers
philr@isb.ac.th
During this week students taking IB, AP & ISB examinations during May given a short presentation about expectations for the exams. This presentation is attached. Also attached is the schedule of exams, please note that morning (AM) exams start at 7:30am with students arriving by 7:15am and the afternoon (PM) exams starting at 12noon with students arriving at 11:45am.
May 2013 IB, AP & G12 ISB Exam Schedule
Counseling Newsletter
Andrew Weiser
andreww@isb.ac.th
Be sure to expand the Counseling Newsletter this week!! It’s a busy week for information!!!
All: It’s never to early to organize papers, homework, and assessments for the coming Semester Examinations.
Juniors: Junior conferences are in full swing. Have you made an appointment to see your son’s/daughter’s counselor yet?
Research, Research, Research!! Which universities will you apply???
The popular University Labs are Monday’s after school in room 3-203; The next two University Labs will include Japan/Korea on April 22 and Thailand on April 29. Please mark your calendars.
BIG SAT PREP NEWS: ISB is making available the “Prep Me” SAT prep course as a part of grade 11 students’ Naviance account. Just go to your Naviance Home Page and click on the Prep Me link, register, take a diagnostic test and/or enter any previous SAT results, and begin the exercises. There is no charge for the Prep Me service. Start preparing for your May or June SATs!
Seniors: Seniors applying to universities in Japan, Korea, Australia, South Africa etc. with late deadlines, PLEASE be aware of those deadlines. They can vary from university to university!! See your counselor if you have any questions.
WARNING: We have been notified that there have been unscrupulous agents who have been posing as a Northeastern University Enrollment Service to help admitted students in the enrollment process. Northeastern University does not employ, or sanction, any outside agents in Thailand.
As you receive your offers for universities, remember that when you make a deposit for a university, you are committing to that university for a year. You may not deposit at more than one university. You have to make up your mind! Universities that learn accepted students have “double-deposited” will sometimes remove their offer.
The Senior Transition Program dates have been announced: May 23 and June 5. Mark your calendars.
Upcoming University Visits (Consult Naviance for additions or changes)
The George Washington University April 9 10:15
University of Dundee (UK) April 24 10:15
International Christian University (Japan) May 10 10:15
Holland-Belgium Tour – Cathy Curtis
During the week of March 17, I participated in the Holland/Belgium University Tour. The purpose of this tour was to explore universities in Northern Europe that have strong university programs conducted in English and to gain first-hand knowledge of the courses, the curriculum, the cost as well as the university’s view of the IB program and how well our students would be prepared to embark on the curriculum. There were 10 universities visited (listed below). Unfortunately, I was only able to visit the first 8, so my report will on be on those universities.
My overall impressions were extremely positive. Some larger universities are now offering a liberal arts college within the larger research university. These University Colleges are based on the philosophy that students need a broad-based curriculum in the liberal arts and they give students the opportunity to delay deciding on a specific major until the end of the first year of the three-year program. I did notice that most students who graduate from the university college system do go on to graduate school.
The program offerings are extensive, demanding and thorough. Most of these programs do require an IB diploma but the points necessary are certainly doable for our ISB students. Most of the university colleges have about 600 students and class sizes are typically 20 – 25 students. Some programs even offer a semester study abroad.
I also visited universities, though, that specialized in business, or engineering or sciences. Each university had specific courses, which made for an interesting variety and an array of choices for our students considering Holland/Belgium as university destinations.
One of the highlights of the information given was the low cost of the universities – for EU or EEA students, tuition ranged from €1840 – 4000 per year and for non-EU students tuition ranged from €8120 – 12,000 per year. Since the programs are only 3 years, these costs are quite good.
I have listed the universities below with their specific webpages, but I’m also in the midst of writing full briefs on each university and putting them on Naviance. Students (and parents) may look up the college/university in Naviance and see the in depth explanation.
Amsterdam University College – https://www.auc.nl/
Leiden University – https://www.leiden.edu/
Rotterdam University College – https://www.eur.nl/euc/
University College Roosevelt – https://www.ucr.nl/Pages/default.aspx
HZ University of Applied Sciences – https://hz.nl/en/Pages/Homepage.aspx
Vesalius University (in Brussels) – https://www.vesalius.edu/
Maastricht University College – https://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl
Eindhoven University College – https://www.tue.nl/en/
Tilburg University – https://www.tilburguniversity.edu/
University College Utrecht – https://www.uu.nl/university/college/en/Pages/default.aspx?refer=/ucu
EARCOS Teacher’s Conference
Ms McDowell attended the 11th Annual EARCOS Teacher’s Conference in Shanghai last week. The Pre-conference was for High School Counselors and University Admissions Representatives. After an interesting opening session entitled “Insights into the Culture of our Korean Students,” the participants attended sessions focused on Working with Korean Students, Mock Admissions Committee, and How US Universities Condense an Application into An Admit. A School Fair allowed universities to visit with Counselors from 24 international schools. The University Fair provided time for counselors to speak to 24 admissions officers from the US, Korea, the UK, and Switzerland. During the main session, Ms McDowell presented with Mr. Jemison Foster (Bangkok Pattana School) on the topic of University Advising and Handbook Development and also moderated a session with Mr. Steve Smith, the founder of Naviance, (an online counseling program used by High School students to investigate career and university options). The program was rich with very useful sessions that provided information on both social/emotional counseling topics as well as university advising.
HONG KONG UNIVERSITY TOURS
Greetings from HKU! Here is to invite you and your students for our upcoming Campus Tour Activities which is dedicated to Non-JUPAS Prospective Students.
This Campus Tour is a session which aims to give schools, prospective students and parents an overview of HKU Campus, student ambassadors from various faculties will be around and share their life on campus. Non-JUPAS Admission Counsellors will also be there to answer questions regarding application and requirement enquires.
We will be launching several session of this activity from April to June, and here is our schedule:
Campus Tour for Prospective Students on April 5 (Fri), 2013 (Registration starts from March 27 – April 2) https://hkuems1.hku.hk/hkuems/ec_hdetail.aspx?reg=N&UEID=22277
Campus Tour for Prospective Students on May 2 (Thu), 2013 (Registration starts from April 8 – 26) https://hkuems1.hku.hk/hkuems/ec_hdetail.aspx?reg=N&UEID=22085
Campus Tour for Prospective Students on June 6 (Thu), 2013 (Registration starts from May 6 – 31) https://hkuems1.hku.hk/hkuems/ec_hdetail.aspx?reg=N&UEID=22087
Campus Tour for Prospective Students on June 21 (Fri), 2013 (Registration starts from May 27 –June 19) https://hkuems1.hku.hk/hkuems/ec_hdetail.aspx?reg=N&UEID=22087
Registration for various sessions are open in respective links during the period of time stated. We are always welcome to learn more about details of these series of events: https://www.als.hku.hk/admission/intl/admission/admissionHK1
Leadership Training weekend
Kerri Fitzgerald
kerrif@isb.ac.th
Leadership Training weekend April 6- 7th. Every year there are two leadership training retreats run by JUMP. This weekend the Level 2 Retreat will run Sunday and Monday 8 – 3 pm and the students involved will be pivotal in planning and leading the Fall training (September). Students can opt for the Fall training and many are selected as they are aspiring student leaders at ISB
IB ARt SHOW: ONE WEEK only!
Kerri Fitzgerald
kerrif@isb.ac.th
This week in the CCT foyer there is an amazing display of student artistic creativity and endeavour. Senior IB students present the culmination of two years’ work. Make a point this week of making the walk across to the CC building to view these fine works. You will NOT be disappointed.
Student Council Election Week
Sam Laornual
samrithl@isb.ac.th
Spring Elections for the 2013-14 HS Student Council begins straight after Songkran Holiday with an Election assembly on April 30th. All students interested in applying for the student government please stop by Mr. Laornual’s classroom, room 111, before the end of week Friday April 12 to pick up a petition form. The list of available positions will be posted up in front of room 111. Be proud to represent your student body and run for a position on the HS Student Council.
Summer Community Service Opportunities
Chris Tananone
ctananon@isb.ac.th
Is your son or daughter staying in Thailand for part of the summer? Consider having them spend some time teaching English to Thai students, assisting in a day care center, taking part in a development project, working with handicapped children, or taking part in a Community Service “camp”. Click on Summer Service to see possibilities. Some of the activities will be organized by ISB; for others, students will need to make their own arrangements. For further information, contact Mrs. Tananone in the Community Service Office (ctananon@isb.ac.th; 02-963-5800 ext. 1178)
Summer School
James Fitzgerald
jamesf@isb.ac.th
We are excited to announce this year’s Summer School. Program. The First Session of Summer School will run from June 10 through July 5. The Second Session will run from July 8 through July 26. The Full Session will run from June 10 through July 26. For information concerning the courses being offered and tuition please refer to the Summer School Page found on The International School Bangkok’s website: www.isb.ac.th
The Summer School Office is located at the top of the Zig-Zag. Our phone number is 02-963-5812; our fax is 02- 960-4110. Our email is sumdir13@isb.ac.th, and the Summer School’s website is www.isb.ac.th/Summer_School.
Cafeteria News…Did You Know…?
Michelle Ihrig
cafeteria@isb.ac.th
…That you can place orders for cakes and cupcakes for all occasions, to either be delivered to the classroom or picked up for takeaway! Flavors range from banana mocha to chocolate chip to vanilla to carrot, or whatever your heart desires, filled with blueberry, strawberry or chocolate. Name the decoration to go on top along with the colors, and ‘Voila’, you have your celebration! On that note, just about anything we serve in the cafeteria can be ordered for take away. Other popular items being our Home Roast Turkeys and fabulous Honey Hams, perfect for entertaining or simply enjoying yourself by freezing in portions and using to make your favorite sandwiches. Looking for a treat on the weekends to serve the 20 friends your kids have coming over? Whole loaf brownies and any specialty breads we make are also available. Simply send an email to Michelle at cafeteria@isb.ac.th at least 3 working days in advance to place your order, or to find out more. Enjoy.
eNewsletter Guidelines
Tony Arnold
anthonya@isb.ac.th
ISB eNewsletters provide a valuable avenue for communication within the ISB parent community. For your convenience we have provided you with our eNewsletter guidelines below.
Submitting an announcement for publication
ISB accepts announcements from ISB families for potential publication in our eNewsletters. The announcements are generally intended to highlight events that occur at ISB and/or highlight information about ISB.
What to include in the announcement
• A title for your announcement
• An email contact for further information
Where to submit your announcement
4publish@isb.ac.th is for announcements of interest to the entire ISB community.
tinaratr@isb.ac.th is for Elementary School (ES) announcements of interest to ES families.
maurilib@isb.ac.th is for Middle School (MS) announcements of interest to MS families.
vijitl@isb.ac.th is for High School (HS) announcements of interest to HS families.
Your announcement will be submitted to the appropriate Principal and/or to our Marketing Director for review. ISB reserves the right to determine which announcements will and will not be published, and to edit announcements that are approved for publication.
Frequency of eNewsletter mailings
The ISB eNewsletter that is for the entire community is sent out on Thursdays. Announcements for potential publication in this newsletter must be received by noon on Thursdays.
The ES, MS, and HS eNewsletters are sent out on Fridays. Announcements for potential publication in these newsletters must be received by noon on Fridays.