We are thrilled to welcome everyone back to school in 2021! We have 95% of all students on campus in the Secondary and it is lovely to see our community live and in person...and all wearing masks of course.
News in the MYP
After much work on the part of the faculty during the two-year process of being an MYP candidate school, we have been approved for our verification visit by the International Baccalaureate. The verification team will visit our campus virtually on the 25th and 26th of March. The visit is really one of the most exciting pieces of the authorization process as it gives our faculty, parents, and students, a time to meet with the visiting team members and share with them about ISD.
In preparation for the visit, we will have a parent meeting Thursday, February 25th at 6:00pm to talk about the process. We would love to have any parents who are interested in being a part of the process attend the meeting to learn more. We will send out details regarding this meeting as we get closer to the date.
IB Diploma Program News and Updates
There will be a parent information meeting on Wednesday, January 13th at 6:00pm via Zoom. Here are the link and password: Zoom link with password 7BXR3g.
This is a meeting to outline the pathway to Graduation for our Class of 2021. Entitled ‘The Final Lap’ it puts a positive emphasis on our students finishing well and setting themselves up for the best possible chances of success both as they reach the end of their ISD careers as well as moving on to ‘pastures new’. It will also be an opportunity for parents to ask questions.
There is a lot happening at ISD with all things Diploma related at the moment, the main details for each Grade level are outlined below.
Grade 12
TOK essays are the next major assessment pieces for DP2 students to complete. The work has started in earnest in the classrooms and will be completed in February before being uploaded and sent off to the IBO. In most cases, IBO Extended Essays are already completed and ready to send. One or two students have been granted valid extensions for various reasons and are working hard to complete these important papers.
January 15th was the date the IBO portal for electronic coursework opened. Over the coming weeks, your children will be involved in uploading and verifying a number of pieces of work between now and April, dependent upon the subjects they are studying. The first of these assignments to be electronically sent to the IBO are the extended essay and theory of knowledge essay. Students have already been issued secure login details in order to access the site.
It is also important for you to know that the login details are the ones that students will use on July 6th to access their final IB Diploma results. Please encourage them to keep the details safe and also make an electronic copy.
As you may already know the mock exams are fast approaching. We will carry these out during the Week Without Walls 22nd February- 25th February. The schedule is currently being constructed and will be shared in the notes next week. The mock exams represent an excellent opportunity for students to complete high stakes assessment and receive feedback in good time for the final revision period before the official IBO examinations in May.
Grade 11
Grade 11 are now fully engaged in the IB Diploma Program and are in the midst of being formally introduced to the Extended Essay work. Sessions have been organized by Mr. Cartlidge to help students begin to formalize their subject area, topic, and research question. In addition, all Grade 11 students will complete their first formal CAS interview in February. Three of these interviews will take place during the course of the IB Diploma course and the first one will provide an opportunity for students to reflect on what they have already learned from CAS as well as to plan what comes next. We have insisted that all students should have at least reflections completed across up to 3-5 different experiences by spring break. Students who have not managed to plan their time will be the first to be given guidance and support through the advisory processes.
Grade 10
Students ended the month of December by completing their option choices for IB Diploma courses for the next academic year. The intention is for us to construct the schedule as soon as possible so that all Grade 10 students leave in June with their Grade 11 schedule in hand. If you already know that your family will not be in Dakar next year, please communicate this information to us as soon as you know to facilitate our communication with other schools as required. As always we encourage you to call into school at any time with questions and or concerns related to the IB Diploma Program and all things academic here at ISD.