News from the English Department
HS students have been engaging with new themes through poetry and short stories and relating this to real life experiences such as dealing with confinement during the time of Covid-19. They are also being encouraged such as the use of Google Jamboard to express their descriptive writing skills through new IT skills
In the IBDP the focus has been on global issues, the seven concepts of the course and an introduction to the Learner Profile. A variety of media was explored and links made to transnational issues demonstrating how the ideas explored in both language and literature texts remain relevant today. William Blake was a poet writing in the 18C and yet his poetry conveys issues such as poverty, child labour
to enhance their learning experience. Grade 9 have been using Jamboard to help them write descriptively using the 'hourglass structure method' where they were required to highlight the parts of the image they wanted to describe. After engaging in a number of interactive activities that introduced and explained the 'hourglass structure', students then returned to their original photo and revised the parts of the image they should describe. This turned out to be a useful collaborative activity to prepare students for extended descriptive writing
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worked tirelessly during Distance Learning last Spring, the current Grade 10 cohort are not behind in our two-year IGCSE Program. It is reassuring that students, teachers, and administration have become more resilient as a result of our current circumstances.
person, there were no significant issues since our protocol from the first day of school was for teachers to upload all tasks or activities for a full week at the start of every Monday; providing the opportunity for self-directed learning for those at home. Because our Grade 9 teachers worked so tirelessly during Distance Learning last Spring, the current Grade 10 cohort are not behind in our two-year IGCSE Program. While what we are experiencing is in no way normal, it is reassuring that students, teachers, and administration have become more resilient as a result of our current circumstances.
As we are now halfway through the first Term of this unique academic year that we all will never forget; I take comfort in knowing we are consistently prepared for uncertainty. It has become our survival mechanism as a school community.
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