IGBIS Newsletter | Issue 197

Message from the Head of School

Dear IGBIS Parents and Community Members,

Welcome back to a new school year at IGB International School.

We are starting the year by congratulating the Class of 2019 and all of the IGBIS teachers for our fourth year of outstanding IB Diploma Results. 24 points are required to pass the IB Diploma and all of the IGBIS students achieved 27 points or more. What is even more impressive is that 8 students (35% of the cohort) achieved 40 points or above. The top score of 43 was achieved by just 1% of the IB Diploma graduates world-wide.

Drilling down into the points for each subject, we have some very proud teachers and departments in the school. Given that a perfect score is 7, the following subject areas had exceptional outcomes well above the world average. In some cases, all, or nearly all students scored 7 points. The subjects with average scores of 6 or above are:

Apart from these outstanding scores, 5 students from the  Class of 2019 were offered a combined total of nearly USD 1 million in scholarship offers for North American Colleges and Universities. While Nur Shahidah binti Muhammad Nur Azmi was one of thirty-one students selected from across Malaysia to receive a Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) study loan awarded by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

More information about university acceptances will be shared as this information comes to hand, but we are especially happy for Jenny Kim who was offered a place at three of the top universities in Korea: Seoul National, Korea University and Yonsei University.

The Student Reception and Orientation Day on Saturday had the hallways and theatre buzzing as people reconnected with each other and just enjoyed being back at IGBIS again. Over 70 new students have joined the school and our returning students (especially the student ambassadors) have done a great job of helping them to feel at home.

A reminder of a few upcoming events: 

• Thursday, August 16: Welcome Coffee for New and Returning Parents
• Tuesday, August 20: Back to School Night
• Wednesday, September 13: Malaysia Day Assembly

Looking forward to another wonderful year ahead.

Mrs Anne Fowles | Head of School

News from the Elementary School

Welcome to IGBIS for the 2019/20 academic year, the teaching staff have been back for some time preparing for your children’s arrival and we have had a few new staff join us. It has been a wonderfully positive time building community amongst each other and we are looking forward to developing this through the year with you as we build our learning community.

During these first two weeks of the school year, it is all about routines and procedures, and these are starting to take shape. Here are a few reminders that could help with our routines at the moment:

The Morning Routine

1. School drop off starts at 7.30am, which is when staff start their duty supervision around the school. It is essential that students do not arrive before this time.
2. Students in EY and KG should be taken to their classrooms from 7.30am onwards.
3. Students in Grade 1 should go directly to the level 1 playground.
4. Students in Grade 2 can go directly to the level 1 playground or to the field.
5. Students in Grade 3 – Grade 5 should go directly to the field.

In case of rain students going to the field (Gr2 – Gr5) should continue on up to the sports hall. Grade 1 can still play under cover in the Level 1 playground.

Uniform

Students are expected to wear school uniform with white socks and black shoes/trainers. 

Seesaw (eportfolio) and class sites

The Seesaw platform gives and insight into what is happening in the classroom and shows student growth over the course of the year. How to use this application will be explained to you on Back to School night and these will go live after the back to school night on 20th August.

We look forward to seeing you at our first social event of the year. The Welcome Back Coffee for parents 16th August at 8.00am – 9.30am: ES drama room (where ES assemblies are usually held).

Dates for your diaries

• 12th August: Holiday no school. 
• 16th August: Welcome back coffee for parents. 
• 20th August: Back to School Night.

Simon Millward | Elementary School Principal

News from the Secondary School

Dear parents/guardians,

We are off to a flying start in the secondary school, welcoming many new MYP students, our Grade 6 students who have joined us from Elementary, and several new Grade 11 students who have joined us for the IB Diploma. As a result, the halls and cafeteria are full of students moving about and getting to know each other!

This week several students and staff presented at our first assembly about upcoming international trips this year, as well as opportunities for clubs, activities, service or sports teams in which students can get involved. As sign-ups begin on Friday, I encourage families to discuss over the weekend how students will be leading or taking part this year. 

This week I also sent home via email, information on our upcoming secondary camps – from the 3rd – 6th September. Next Friday afternoon (August 16th) we will be having meetings for parents to talk more about the camps this year, the activities students will be involved in, safety precautions are taken, and so on. I encourage all parents to come and attend.

We have several upcoming events as well for parents:

• August 16th: Welcome Back Coffee @ 8 am.
• August 16th: Camps presentations @ 1:30pm (Grades 6/7 & 8/9) and @ 2:15pm (Grades 10/11)
• August 20th: MYP Certificate Information Session (For Grade 10 parents) @ 5pm
• August 20th: Back to School Night in the Secondary School @ 5:30 pm
• August 28th: Assessment in the MYP Parent Workshop @ 8:15 am (for Grade 6 parents and new parents)

Sincerely yours,

Michael Arcidiacono | Secondary School Principal

Admissions Department Update

Please remember to submit to the Admissions Department any updates/changes to your personal contact details along with any new medical conditions or treatment for your child.

As well as that we require copies of your latest passport and visa – your cooperation in this regard is appreciated.

If any families are living in the vicinity of KLCC and have been interested in taking school transport, please let us know as we are keen to establish a bus service to that area.

If your children in Secondary School would like to catch the school shuttle bus to the MRT station at Sungai Buloh, please collect a transport form from the Facilities Manager, Mr Philip.

Phoenix Makan

On Saturday, 3 August 2019, following Orientation & Reception for our new and returning students, we also welcomed back to school our Friends of the Phoenix (FOTP) members, to our first annual FOTP social, the Phoenix Makan. Anyone who has ever been a part of the IGBIS community is a FOTP, so that meant that alumni, former students, their parents, and former staff members were all invited to attend. (To find out more about FOTP and how to register, please visit our school website. Registered FOTP members are given access to a searchable database, so log in and find out where fellow FOTP members are in the world!)

Some of our newest FOTP members joined the Phoenix Makan, as did a few former teachers and their families. The Theatre Foyer buzzed with Malaysian instrumental music, good conversation, and delicious hawker-style meals put on by our in-house catering company Cezars Kitchen. The round foyer tables were dressed in typical batik fabric, but the decoration highlight was definitely the three food stalls that were designed, prototyped and built by last year’s Grade 10 Design Tech students. The colourfully painted stalls looked amazing and very fitting to the occasion, especially under the hanging strings of welcome banners made by the Elementary students in preparation for this day. 

The Phoenix Makan was made by our IGBIS family for our IGBIS community that continues to grow as the school enters its 6th year of operation. For those with plans to be in London in January, please save the date for the next FOTP event, the London Annual Dinner, on 17 January 2020 at St Giles London, where FOTP members will be joined by our Head of School Mrs Anne Fowles. 

College Counselling News

Good morning to all families, and welcome back.  I hope that you had a restful summer filled with family time.  Over the summer we were celebrating results from our current graduates (our highest average score ever) and also the placements for universities.  We will have students around the world once again to include schools in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands and Australia.  

The one common thread, other than academic excellence, that allowed these students to make informed choices and attain elite placements was their dedicated research.  Please take advantage as a family of the opportunities below.  

Looking forward to another great year,

Bill Mitchell | College Counsellor

IGBIS Events

Practice SAT (PSAT/NMSQT) October 2019

The PSAT/NMSQT is tightly aligned with the redesigned SAT and provides educators and students with the chance to check in on student progress. The exams will support all students with a clear focus on the skills and knowledge that matter most for college and career success. Scores from the PSAT/NMSQT are used by several organisations to identify candidates for their awards or recognition programs if they plan to complete higher education in the USA. Students who take the SAT or the PSAT/NMSQT can opt into Student Search Services, making their names and information available to scholarship programs as well as colleges. 

It will cost each student 110 MYR to sit the test on Wednesday, October 16th, 2019

We strongly encourage students in Grade 9,10 and 11 to use this as an opportunity to prepare for future applications to the United States.  

If you are interested, please email me at bill.mitchell@igbis.edu.my 

Once you have registered interest, further details will be shared on timing and preparations for the test.

Upcoming University Visits

Parents and students are encouraged to attend!!

• Wednesday, September 11th @ 10 am (Secondary Library)
  University of Toronto – Canada
  Join Ms Meiyen Lee, the Recruitment Officer from the University of Toronto to find out more about this top 20 school, and the highly international city of Toronto. As this will be class time, students will need to get permission from teachers to visit, with an email sent to Mr Mitchell.Parents, we hope to see you in the Secondary Library for this opportunity. 
  
• Thursday, September 19th @ 12:30-2 pm (DP Lounge, 6th Floor)
  Council of International Schools, South-East Asia College Fair
  Details to be shared regarding the USA-based universities visiting us when they have confirmed. 
   
• Monday, October 21st @ 12:50 pm (Secondary Library, 6th Floor)
  University Visit: Royal College of Surgeons (RCSI) – Ireland
  Claire O’Connor 
  Student Recruitment Specialist
  RCSI Admissions and Student Recruitment 
  
• Monday, December 9th @ 12:50 pm (Secondary Library, 6th Floor)
  University Visit: Nagoya University, Japan
  Mr Freddy Mason
  Assistant Director of Marketing and Admissions

Follow the Secondary Calendar or see the College Counselling Events calendar for future visits and events.  College Counselling Events

Upcoming University Visits

PVO News

Welcome to the 2019-2010 academic year! 

All parents of students attending IGBIS are automatically members of the Parent Volunteer Organisation (PVO). The PVO is a great way to get involved in the school community. No formal introduction is needed and there is no cost to join. 

The aims of the PVO are to:

• foster communication and cooperation between IGBIS, students and parents;
• build a sense of community for the benefit of the school, the students and the wider community by organising specific events;
• serve as an umbrella organisation for parent support activities, working in close cooperation with the appropriate members of the school administration, faculty and staff; and
• welcome new parents to IGBIS and to build awareness of activities and opportunities for their involvement.

All PVO members are expected to:

• act in the best interest of IGB International School, including its facilities, properties, fellow parents, students and staff members.
• make relevant and positive contributions to the meetings they attend.
• use communication methods responsibly and involving school-related items only.
• respect staff and student privacy while carrying out PVO activities.

Class Reps

Parent Class Representatives (Class Reps) are PVO members who have volunteered their time to be the link from home to school, under the direction of the division principals. There is at least one Class Rep per grade level, assigned at the beginning of each academic year. Their main role is to work alongside classroom teachers to communicate information from the school to fellow parents. In addition, the Class Rep may also choose to organize social gatherings amongst their grade level, especially to welcome new families and to bid farewell to the departing ones. This year’s Class Reps have not been assigned yet – sign-ups and more information will be available and shared at the Welcome Back Coffee on Friday, 16 August 2019. 

PVO Special Event Committee Members

Special events are announced during PVO meetings and parents are invited to join as Special Event Committee Members to assist in the organization of the event. This year, the committees will be PVO Social, Holiday Bazaar, Staff Appreciation Lunch, Fundraising and Inclusion Committees. More information regarding each committee and sign-ups can be found on the PVO website (or via the PVO icon on the Splash Page). 

Welcome Back Parents Coffee

All parents and caregivers are warmly invited to attend IGB International School’s Welcome Back Coffee on Friday, 16 August 2019 in the Level 3 ES Drama Room. This will be a wonderful opportunity to talk with some of our key staff members, mingle with returning friends, and meet new parents. Also during this coffee morning, parents who are interested in participating in this year’s PVO events and committees, including being involved as a parent class representative (Class Rep), will be able to sign up and express their interest. 

Event: Welcome Back Parents Coffee
Date:   Friday, 16 August 2019
Time:   8:00 am – 9:30 am
Venue: Level 3 ES Drama Room

Please click here to register and win prizes on the day of the event!

RSVP by Tuesday, 13 August 2019

Flyer