Secondary Newsletter on Friday, 3rd Feb 2017
Week 23 Moving Forward
Within the past week we have had a number of our seniors finish their CAS requirements for their IB Diplomas, our year 1 DP students have started choosing topics for their Extended Essays, our year 10 students are in the final stages of their Personal Projects and all of our foundational MYP levels are continuing to work through summative assessments. I have had a number of students and parents come to speak with me this week about the use of ManageBac and their ability to check their assessments and plan better for their next opportunity to show their learning. It is fantastic to see so many of our students reaching goals and looking for ways to use the systems we have in place in order to improve. Please speak to your students about their achievements and progress!
Some Kind of Weather!
We are certainly not being short changed of a rainy season so far this year! Thank you for your flexibility as we determine the safety of our after school programs and the impact of the weather. We will continue to do our best to provide information in the most timely manner possible, while holding out as long as we can in order to provide these wonderful experiences for our students. I would also like to ask for a little patience with drop off and pick up in the morning as the rain always seems to really pick up at both of those times! Please come a bit earlier and plan for a little longer time than usual with the weather the way that it is. Thank you again for your help and flexibility.
ISA Testing
This semester BIS will be conducting our ISA testing for this academic year. The ISA Test is:
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Chosen because it is in line with BIS’s mission, vision, and student aims
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The ISA is not based on any one curriculum but tests core skills in mathematical literacy, reading, writing (narrative and expository.)
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An assessment with a broad cultural base (ie. no dollar or pounds)
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A combination of multiple-choice and open-ended questions and prompts. The open-ended questions require students to generate meaning, explain their reasoning, find evidence and justify their opinions.
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based on the internationally endorsed reading, mathematical literacy and scientific literacy frameworks of the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA).
We will be conducting this test on the 15th-17th of February and the test will be administered to grades 7, 9, & 10. We will also be doing a practice test for the online science test on the 9th of February.
Below is a link to some informational slides about this test, how we use it and how scores can be interpreted to better inform our teaching. Please take a few moments to go through this information. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me.
https://docs.google.com/
BIS News and Information
This coming Monday, February 6th, at 8am in the MPR the Board of Directors will be presenting an information session to our school community. This presentation will speak about the strategic decisions of the school as we look to a growing future here at BIS. If you are able to attend please come to hear how BIS is planning for the future.
BIS Class Photos
On the 20th of February BIS will be having it’s class photos for the 2016-17 school year. More information regarding purchase plans will be forth coming from the photographer.
BSSA and Transportation procedure
We are in full swing with this term’s BSSA-basketball. In order to ensure the safety of our students BIS will be busing all BSSA participants for away games. All students will go on the bus together with their team and coach. The coach will be taking attendance as kids get on the bus at BIS and as they get off at their destination. If a parent would like to take their child home after watching the contest they must inform the coach. Students will not be allowed to get into any vehicle other than their parents or their parents designee. A form will be coming home with your child where you will be able to state whether or not your student will return back to BIS on the bus or will be picked up at the away game destination. Please help us ensure the safety of our students by keeping the school informed of your child’s travel arrangements.
Thank you for your continued interest and support of BIS and our students.
Kind Regards,
Justin Walsh
secondaryschoolprincipal@
Secondary School Principal
