DCIS Newsletter June 2018

Secondary School June
Highlights from Mrs. Hyland
Mrs. Hyland looks back at a successful year at DCIS
The end of year is always a mixture of
emotions; joy at the completion of the last
piece of homework for the year, excitement
at new things to come, anxiety whilst waiting
for all important exam results and sad
farewells to those relocating and moving on.
This year is no different as the students have
worked incredibly hard and should be proud
of all their achievements.
This final term has showed the pace never
slows down at DCIS! We have had a number
of key residential trips this term. We had
twenty intrepid explorers make the long
journey to Switzerland where they trekked
in the Alps, climbed glaciers and sampled
tasty local cheeses and chocolate. We had
five of our brightest sparks visit the World
Scholar’s Cup regional finals in Kuala
Lumpur and compete against hundreds of
other students in debates and quizzes. We
are extremely proud to share that three of
our students, Amelia, Thanh-Lan and Suhani
have qualified for the global round at Yale
University in the USA next year. We also had
a small group of budding environmentalists
travel to Brunei as part of our FOBISIA
membership, and IB students complete
biology and ESS fieldwork on Tioman island.
Year 7 have had a great first year in the
Secondary School. They have shown
themselves to be mature, hardworking
and caring, and have coped with the new
demands being placed on them well. Year 8
have cemented their place in the Secondary
School and have provided much support for
school life, with many students from Year 8
taking part in the DCIS MUN and organising
a fun flash mob for an assembly in secret.
Year 9 has been all about choices this year,
with students selecting their iGCSE options
for the next two years. Year 10 have made a
great start to their iGCSE courses and have
worked hard this year to keep themselves
organised and on target. Year 11 finished this
year with their external iGCSE examinations
in May and June. We are very proud of the
maturity they showed during the lead up
to their exams and during the study period
which they had. We had a lovely opportunity
to see them all again at the Year 11 social
event at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel
just last week, and 70% of the cohort are
staying on at DCIS to enter the IB Diploma
4
programme. Our Year 12 students have had
an exceptionally full year on the IB Diploma
programme and have just completed their
Year 12 mock exams. We are so proud of this
first cohort of students and our plans are
underway already for their graduation next
year.
Other big events this term have included our
annual Swimming Gala which saw students
competing in traditional gala style races and
a water polo competition. The students had
a great day cheering each other on in their
houses! Thank you to the PE Department
for their flawless organisation of this event.
Whilst the swimming galas were in full swing
we were also hosting our inaugural DCIS
MUN (Model United Nations) Competition.
This was led by two Year 12 students as
part of their CAS requirements and was
a great opportunity for younger students
to take part in high level thinking debates
which involved prior research and a good
understanding of their country stance on the
debate topic of the day: refugees.
We are very excited to see the work begin
on the library renovations which will give
secondary students a dedicated library
and study space. There will also be access
to technology in the new library for KS3
students to use to aid homework and
study. Our new BYOD policy for KS4 begins
in August 2018 and we are looking forward
to the enhancements to learning that can
be had from greater access to technology
in the classrooms. All staff will be attending
training on the use of different learning
technologies by our new Head of Secondary,
Mr. Craig Bull, when he arrives in August.
As the year draws to a close I would like to
thank all of the secondary staff for their
incredible hard work and dedication this year.
Our staff go beyond their responsibilities day
in and day out to provide wonderful learning
opportunities, and give up their holidays
and weekends to accompany children on
trips or attend training for their professional
development. I would also like to thank all of
our secondary parents for their unwavering
support for their children’s learning and all
our DCIS community events and activities.
Last but certainly not least, I would like to
thank our students for their relentless desire
to learn, their positive attitude and their
ability to put a smile on our faces every day.
One final note that may excite our girls – due
to a successful uniform campaign led by the
Student Council, we are introducing ‘skorts’
as a uniform option for KS3 and KS4 girls
from August 2018. They will be available to
purchase from Lim’s from August 16th.
Best wishes for the summer ahead and
best of luck to our students and families
relocating,
Carla Hyland
Acting Head of Secondary