ISB Communication Single Page View

ISB Community Update: School Safety, May 19th

by Andrew DAVIES
andrewd@isb.ac.th

Dear ISB Community,

I am writing to provide an update of the review process following the tragedy in our 50m pool on 5th April.

• In the week of 18-22 April, a consultant from Clearpath EPM spent four days on campus interviewing administrators, coaches, lifeguards, aquatics and athletics staff, security guards, nurses, and others. CCTV footage was reviewed as well as a variety of policies, procedures, and handbooks.
• A report with a number of specific recommendations related to enhancing safety from Clearpath EPM was received by ISB on 30th April.
• Two Chevron safety experts met with school administrators on 3rd May to conduct a root cause analysis protocol.
• We are now developing an Aquatics Safety Action Plan based on the two reviews.
• A committee of the Board of Trustees will review the Aquatics Safety Action Plan on 27th May.
• Key findings and action steps will be shared with the ISB community at the end of May. We will also arrange a meeting for interested community members to further discuss the key findings action action steps.

Before the review process began, we have taken a number of immediate steps:

Staffing/Safety

• A new position, Head Lifeguard, has been added with primary responsibility to oversee the training, supervision, and management of the lifeguard team.
• The number of lifeguards will increase from 3 to 5, including the Head Lifeguard. This will enable us to rotate the lifeguards around the pools with scheduled breaks and to have two guards on deck at the 50 meter pool.
• The Head Lifeguard (under the direction of the Aquatics Director) will conduct regular training of our lifeguards and other aquatics staff.
• We are separating pool maintenance duties from lifeguarding to avoid any conflict of responsibilities and are also increasing the level of staffing and training in this area.
• A new position, Swimming Pool Operator, has been created to manage the bulk of the cleaning and maintenance responsibilities of the aquatics facilities.
• Two lifeguards have been assigned to duty at the 25m pool while all swim classes/lessons/practices are ongoing.
• The head coach on deck is a Lifeguard Instructor Trainer, and all swim coaches are trained in aquatic rescues/safety, CPR, First Aid and AED.

Facility

• The 50 meter pool has been closed for the remainder of the school year.
• The pool has been drained, with cleaning & maintenance scheduled for the summer taking place earlier than scheduled.
• Fencing and gate improvements scheduled for the summer will also be brought forward.
• Additional signage is being made to reinforce water safety protocols for swimmers and instructors.

Education & Training

• We will be training staff and students about the risks associated with swimming under water and this will be incorporated into our PE Curriculum and swim coaching effective immediately.
• ISB will undertake a vigorous educational campaign to heighten awareness of shallow water blackout.
• ISB will engage specific pool safety experts to come on campus early in the next school year to work with all of our aquatics related staff.

We thank you for your understanding and patience as we complete this important process.

If any ISB community member has any questions or would like to offer suggestions, please contact any of us listed below.

Sincerely,

Dr. Andrew Davies
Head of School

ISB Contact Details

Dr. Andrew Davies

Head of School

andrewd@isb.ac.th

081 851 6277
Usa Somboon

Headmistress

usomboon@isb.ac.th
Philip Bradley

HS Principal

philipb@isb.ac.th
Corry Day

Aquatics Director

corryd@isb.ac.th
Derrick Quinet

Athletic Director

derrickq@isb.ac.th
Rick Nelson

Safety Manager

rickn@isb.ac.th

ISB School Board Meeting – May 24th

by Walairat Wattanaungkoon
walairaw@isb.ac.th

ISB School Board Meeting, May 24, 2016 (Tuesday)

The next School Board regular meeting will be on Tuesday, May 24, 2016 at 6:00 pm in the MPB 3.   All ISA members are welcome to attend.

Please see the  attached agenda.

Board Agenda 24 5 16

 

 

Assessments

by Graeme SCOTT
graemes@isb.ac.th

This year we will not be sending paper copies of MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) and ISA (International Schools Assessment) assessments.  Instead, both assessments will be uploaded to Powerschool and will be available from Monday 23rd May.  To access these assessments, go to powerschool.isb.ac.th and log in with your username and password.  To open the document use the password in red on the screen once you login.  If you experience difficulty with logging in, please contact our Ed Tech department at vinitp@isb.ac.th  or trins@isb.ac.th

Please remember that we use many different types of assessment to measure student progress.  Most assessments of student learning are done by their teacher in a ‘normal’ classroom setting.

MAP and ISA are two popular and well-researched external assessments but they are broad in nature (as they are designed not for specific schools, but for huge numbers of students across the globe), they only assess some elements of what students learn here.  They are also administered in different conditions to those the students normally learn in. They represent one point of data in a much bigger discussion about student learning and progress.  Only students in grades 3-8 take the MAP assessment and those in grades 3, 5, 7 and 10 take the ISA assessment.

 

Thank you from the Japanese and Ecuador community

by Miyuki Jessee
miyukij@isb.ac.th

Thank you from the Japanese and Ecuador community
We’d like to thank the ISB community for all your support given to the relief effort to  help Japan and Ecuador recovering from recent earthquake disasters.  Many ISB  friends donated foods and drinks to help out the bake sale even though they’re not  from the affected areas, and lots of parents helped out the sales for a long time in the  heat.  It was very touching and we felt grateful to be around such a caring and  supportive community.  In the end, we raised 69,400 Baht in total from the bake sale.   The proceed was donated to Red Cross in Japan through the Japanese embassy and to  the organization called The Water Bearers for Ecuador.  Thank you ISB!

Gabriela Jiménez and Miyuki Jessee

 

Donations for Second Chance Bangkok

by Eleanor Haynes
eleanorh@isb.ac.th

Donations for Second Chance Bangkok

Second Chance Bangkok is a local initiative, fair trade organization in the Klong Toey Slum that seeks reuse household items and create employment opportunities for people who have experienced barriers to employment.  They also finance projects that support families in these slums.

Grade 3 students are organizing a donation drive to support Second Change Bangkok and the Klong Toey community. Please donate items including: clothes, baby items,  toys, bikes, skateboards and kitchen items.

There is a collection box in the Elementary School, grade 3 quad.

The last day for collection is May 25th.

 

Parent Transition Meeting – May 25th

by Jennifer Melton
jenniferm@isb.ac.th

Dear ES, MS, and HS parents,

Are you moving at the end of this school year? The ISB Counseling Department invites you to attend a Parent Transition Meeting on Wednesday, May 25 from 8:00-9:30 in the Elementary School MPR. In order to support both you and your student, we’ll talk about the various aspects of transitions, things to consider, how to leave Bangkok well and arrive well at your new destination. We look forward to supporting you in this process.

ISB Counselors

 

Panther Tennis Parent Forum Announcement

Bob Connor
bobc@isb.ac.th

There will be a Parent Forum meeting on next Thursday, May 26 at 6:30pm in the MS Skybox room on the third floor at school. All interested parents are invited to attend, to hear about the current Panther Tennis program, and to ask questions/offer feedback-suggestions. We also hope to re-establish the Panther Tennis Committee, a group of parents willing to serve/support the program. Please contact Bob Connor, Community Activities Coordinator, if you have any questions. (bobc@isb.ac.th; Cell: 081-935-8017)

 

Come along and enjoy “Ta-dah” our annual After School Dance Performances

by Helen Weir
afterschooldance@gmail.com

Come along and enjoy “Ta-dah” our annual ASD Performances

ES Performances       – Friday 27^th May 3pm

                                         – Saturday 28^th May 2pm

MS/HS Performances – Friday 27th May 6.30pm

                                          – Saturday 28^th May 10am

Tickets go on sale from Monday 23rd of May priced at Adults Baht 200 and Students Baht 100.

Tickets will be available

Monday 23^rd May

12.45 – 14.45 Outside in front of Admission Office

Tuesday 24^th May to Wednesday 25^th May

7.00 –   8.00 Outside in front of Admission Office

12.45 – 14.45 Outside in front of Admission Office

Thursday 26^th May to Friday 27^th May

7.00 –   8.00 Outside in front of Admission Office

10.00 – 12.00 in MS/HS Cafeteria

And before all Performances in front of Chevron Theatre.

For further information please contact Helen Weir afterschooldance@gmail.com .

 

 

 

Kick-start your summer with a burst of DANCE!

by Jaleea Price
jaleeap@isb.ac.th

Join the 1-week Summer Dance Intensive at ISB from June 13 – 17! We’re bringing downtown Bangkok studio dance teachers to you! Classes available in Jazz, Contemporary, Choreography, K-Pop, and Hip Hop styles.

Open levels for HS/MS, ES (Grades 3-5) and now also Adult Classes!

eNewsletter Guidelines

by Tony Arnold
anthonya@isb.ac.th