This afternoon, the Secondary School had a Town Hall meeting. This is an opportunity for all of our students to get together to celebrate what is important to us.

In this afternoon’s meeting, students were recognised by their peers for how they use the ISY Learner Attributes of Compassion, Collaboration, Communication, Creativity, Courage, Critical Thinking and Reflection to make a positive difference to our school and those around them.

Students also reflected upon and shared their service learning achievements this year. This was a celebration of the ISY Learner Attributes in action.

Two other events this week showcased our students’ ISY Learner Attributes. Our Grade 9 and 10 artists’ creativity was on show in their Art Exhibition. Community Soccer returned to ISY thanks to the initiative and organizational skills of our Community Sports student service learning group. This very popular activity sees students playing against each other, their teachers, and our staff.

Creativity, activity, service (CAS) is one of the three essential elements that every student must complete as part of the IB Diploma Programme (DP).

• Creativity – arts, and other experiences that involve creative thinking.
• Activity – physical exertion contributing to a healthy lifestyle, complementing academic work elsewhere in the DP.
• Service – an unpaid and voluntary exchange that has a learning benefit for the student. The rights, dignity and autonomy of all those involved are respected.

CAS enables students to enhance their personal and interpersonal development by learning through experience. It provides opportunities for self-determination and collaboration with others, fostering a sense of accomplishment and enjoyment from their work. At ISY, creativity, activity, and service is nurtured at all levels of our school. This week was a good example of that.

Our Seniors are now well into their IB Diploma final exams. We are all behind them 100%! Next week, Grades 9, and 10 and 11 will exams of their own. See below for a schedule and an explanation as to why we do exams in these earlier grades.

I hope to see you at this evening’s Parent Association Social Event (see below for details). Thank you again to our Parent Association for all they do for us.

Myanmar Breakfast Expo

Come and enjoy a traditional meal on our Covered Court. All parents are welcome!  Every week on a Monday, Wednesday, and Friday between 7:30am – 10:30am until May 31. The price is only 3,000 kyats per serving. Breakfast is also available until 10:30am for students! 

• Monday – Mohingar 

• Wednesday – Wai Wai Shan Noodles 

• Friday – Coconut Noodle soup  

Why not enjoy a variety of refreshing coffees, smoothies and soft drinks available from Gusto and Nourish at ISY. Come along and enjoy a social breakfast with our community!

Activities & Athletics

Here is a link to Mr. O’Sullivan’s Athletics and Activities Blog for up-to-date information regarding Activities and Athletics at ISY.

High School (Grade 9-11) Final Exam Schedule

Click here for the exam schedule.

Grade 9 and 10 exams will run from Wednesday, May 8 until Friday, May 10. Grade 9 and 10 students will be at school normal hours on Wednesday and Thursday. Grade 9 and 10 students who do not sit the Computer Science exam on Friday, May 10 afternoon are dismissed after their morning exam which finishes at 11am.

Grade 11 exams will run from Wednesday, May 8 until Tuesday, May 14. Grade 11 students are required to be on campus only when having to take an exam. They must sign in and out at the office when they arrive and leave. If they have afternoon and morning exams, Grade 11 students are required to stay on campus.

Why do we do exams?

Exams are one of many types of assessment that we use at ISY to develop a fair and accurate understanding of student academic achievement levels. 

For an assessment to be effective in helping us develop a fair and accurate understanding of what each student understands, we must be clear in our purpose for the assessment. Here are four reasons why students in Grades 9, 10, and 11 sit Final Exams at ISY:

Experience: Our Grade 12 students are about to sit their final IB Diploma exams. It is important that students feel confident and capable of showing what they know in an exam. To feel confident and capable in an exam, it is important for our students, with the support of their teachers, to experience exam conditions (no talking, sitting in rows, time limits, being supervised by a proctor, etc). With the support of their teachers, students will learn that they are able to show what they know in exam conditions. After the exams, teachers will help students reflect on their exam experience to develop more confidence and capability for next time.

Technique: Like sport or playing a musical instrument, good exam technique is very important for students to be able to show what they are capable of. Students also feel more confident going into an exam if they know they have good techniques to study for and sit exams. Our teachers have studied and will share with students the following proven study techniques summarized in this Strengthening the Student Toolbox article.

• Practice testing: self-testing or taking practice tests on material to be tested in the exam.
• Distributed practice: making a schedule of study that spreads out different subjects or study activities over time.
• Interleaved practice: making a schedule of study that mixes different kinds of problems or questions in one study session.
• Self-explanation: explaining to yourself (or another person) how to use what you know to answer a question or solve a problem.

Here is a simple explanation of these proven study techniques.

Learning techniques like these will help students develop a study timetable that works for them. Teachers will also tell students what type of questions they can expect on the exams and share techniques that will help answer them.

Review: Exams provide an opportunity to review previously taught skills and knowledge that teachers have identified as important to consolidate for students to build on next year. Teachers will tell students what will be tested and how it will be tested.

Data: To develop a fair and accurate assessment of a student’s academic achievement level, teachers use data from different assessments throughout the year. As students learn to sit exams, it is important for students to understand that a Final Exam is just one assessment that teachers gather data from to understand what their academic achievement level is. The grade on the final report card comes from assessment data gathered throughout the year, including the Final Exam. A disappointing exam result at the end of the year does not cancel out what the student has proven they are capable of in earlier assessments.

A High School Final Exam is not an ‘all or nothing’ assessment.

ISY PARENT ASSOCIATION SOCIAL EVENT

Please help us plan by reserving your tickets here.

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