A time to reflect, and a time to look forward
There is no doubt that May is always a busy time in an International School. This is the month that our senior students sit for their public examinations, in our case the IB Diploma external assessments that take place during a three and a half week period at the start of the month, as well as the bulk of the Cambridge IGCSE examinations, a few of which trickle on into June. It is the culmination for these 100 or so students of two years worth of studying in a range of subjects, and the assessments help them to celebrate what they have learned along the way.
The graduating students in Year 13 have two events that are notable in the calendar for them to reflect on their school career. One is organised alongside their peers in the French Stream, a ball/prom which takes place on the weekend just after the end of the IB Diploma final examination. A number of staff kindly volunteer to chaperone and it is a chance for some great cross-stream collaboration amongst both students and staff.
The other is a celebratory event that was introduced by Mr Clayton in his time at FIS, and allows for the families of the graduating students to thank the teachers involved in the education of their child(ren) in a formal and less formal setting. This involves a formal ceremony in school where the graduating students are presented with a certificate to honour their time spent at FIS, followed by a parent sponsored event where students, parents and teachers get together over dinner. I have really come to cherish this end of year event, as it allows us to look back on the families’ time at FIS whilst also acknowledging and talking excitedly about the next chapter in the life of the graduating student.
All three of my children graduated from FIS over the past 7 years, and I always welcomed the chance to thank the teachers for all that they had done for them over the years. At these events it has been wonderful to catch up with parents who have been stalwarts and great advocates for the school, having multiple children spending their school career with us through from reception to IB. In particular there were three families for whom this year has seen the last of their three or more children graduate from FIS; The Chan family, the Denham family and the Korner family. We thank all our families, of course, for entrusting their children in our care.
Over the next few weeks I hope to look forward to the next school year by including some details about the 10 new staff that will be joining our division in August 2024, either due to growth or replacing departing colleagues.
