We fast approach the end of another school year. Due to an unanticipated week-long closure in March, April and May have been even busier than usual. Muchas gracias to all for your flexibility and support, and a Bulls Pride Shout Out to the faculty and staff for managing so much in short order! In spite of complications, rescheduling, and density of activity, I love this time of year. We celebrate our children. We celebrate our colleagues. We launch the next generation of young adults into their lives, to college and beyond.
We also say goodbye, to families returning abroad, to students transferring to other schools, to colleagues moving on professionally and personally. Schools are immensely personal organizations. We invest our hope and love and passion into our children, into our colleagues and families. Once we have been a part of each other's lives, we are fundamentally changed. In our house we have a rule, that the first day of your visit you are a guest, and the second day family. So to all of you heading on to other places and opportunities, I bid you, my extended family, a fond farewell, and remind you to come back and visit as often as you can. We would love to see you again!
As this is my last Headlines of the year, I take this opportunity to recount where we've been as a school, and where we are heading. We continue our progress towards the IB Primary Years Program (OECC-grade 5). The Program of Inquiry (full curriculum, OECC and Elementary) is nearing completion. We will fully align the POI horizontally and vertically to our Skills and Concepts Map and to IB Middle Years Program Level 1(grade 6) progress indicators in the coming year. We are revamping our reporting/report card procedure for the school year 2015-2016. We will conduct a dry-run of the IB PYP 5th grade exhibition in the coming year. Elementary Spanish will have new textbooks in the coming year. Additional time for Spanish instruction has been added to the weekly schedule - 38 more classroom hours in the school year 2015-2016. I will be particularly involved with grades 4 and 5 in the coming year as we bring on the new elementary science laboratory. We will receive our authorization visit for PYP in either late fall or early spring of the coming year, and I expect authorization in the PYP by summer 2016, at which time we will officially become an IB school.
In the Middle Years Program (grades 6-10), numerous units are in progress and assessment practices are coming on-line. We are committed to greater pedagogical consistency across grade-levels and subject areas. Further assessment training is planned for May and August. A faculty assessment committee is working on implementation. We have also officially filed for candidacy in the IB Diploma Program (grades 11-12).
Managebac software is coming on-line in support of IB. This software will replace EdLine and Gradequick, and will be the primary parent-student-teacher portal. It is fully imbedded with IB PYP/MYP/DP procedures and practices. Our teachers are already uploading their pre-existing PYP/MYP units into Managebac, and are creating new units in the software. In the near future, we will publish our full school curriculum on-line. As with any new software, there are bound to be some glitches on the front end of implementation. Please be patient with us as we adapt to the new system.
School-wide policies on Assessment, World Languages, Inclusion, and Academic Honesty have been drafted and are under revision. The four policies are required by the International Baccalaureate Organization. These policies are intended to create a consistent statement of pedagogical values, and a clear guide to our classroom practices and procedures.
In addition to normal summer projects and maintenance, we will remodel our administrative reception and business areas to improve your experience. The elementary extension is scheduled for completion in early September, although the contractor informs me that they are currently a little ahead of schedule. The new science lab will be complete by August, and will serve as a temporary art space until the new art room opens. Music will remain in its temporary space until the extension is complete.
2014-2015 has been a year of challenge and change. We have made considerable progress, and we have plenty of room for growth.
¡Nos vemos en el campus!
James