Kontak

VOL. 71 April 28, 2022

Head of School Corner

Dear Community Members,

I am so very proud of our students, our faculty and our parents, of our perseverance and adaptability, as we have, step by step, worked to regain measures of normalcy in our lives, in our homes, in our classrooms and in overall school operation. After School Activities have grown in participation week on week, our first assembly (Thank You Year 5) was a UOI and Kartini Day Celebration. Parents have been engaging on campus as we plan for our end of year activities and celebrations. New students and their families have once again been visiting campus as a part of the admissions process. Foodservice has resumed in the canteen and has seen a doubling of orders over the past few weeks. AND our year 12 students have a week of activity and celebration as they have ended classes for the year.

This move for normalization extends to activities and event planning for the coming academic year. We have engaged in conversations with representatives from the World Scholar's Cup about Jakarta event hosting as well as the availability of international competitions within the region, and of course, the Yale University hosted "Tournament of Champions". We are also tentatively planning to hold our first Week Without Walls event since the covid pandemic began. This week-long event, would be scheduled for September 10th - 17th, (pandemic conditions dependent), aiming to provide our secondary students with an opportunity to build community amongst their year group as well as an opportunity to pursue the service component of their curriculum. Please see the Counsellor's Corner for more details.

These are all signs of change and increased normalization of activity here at GJS and is very, very exciting to see happening!

Update:

Yesterday we received further guidance from the 4 Ministries. As of May 9, 2022, ONLY those students with documented medical conditions which prevent their on-campus attendance are permitted to continue with online learning. Without a doctor’s letter confirming such a condition, the expectation is that ALL students will be back on campus when we resume teaching and learning on May 9th, 2022. Online learning will not be provided for daily absences due to illnesses (tummy ache, toothache, common cold, etc.). These absences must be reported to divisional administrative assistants. Students must follow up with their teachers and/or check ManageBac for missed lesson material. Documentation of student attendance will shift back to pre-pandemic procedures, i.e., students with permission to be on campus must be ON CAMPUS to be considered present. Online learning will be reserved ONLY for those students with a documented medical statement/exemption that explains a medical condition which prevents their on-campus attendance.

Please refer to my April 28th Update message sent via Managebac for further details.

Community Surveys - April 2022:

Earlier this month we launched our second annual comprehensive school-wide survey. The four targeted surveys, collecting critical data from students, faculty, staff, and parents, will provide us with insight into our stakeholder-identified areas of success and challenge. We developed all of the survey tools to align with our WASC accreditation and IB authorization criterion, thus allowing us to gather feedback on:

A. Our organization for student learning.

B. Our curriculum, instruction, and assessment practices.

C. Our support for student personal and academic growth, and finally

D. Our school culture and environment.

The surveys are a critical piece to support our ongoing school improvement efforts, ensuring that we remain focused on increasing student achievement.

We have had a robust response to date based on the high number of completed and submitted surveys we have received so far. We appreciate how our community members have taken this survey seriously. Please note that the survey collector will close at the end of the school day on May 9th, 2022. Those completing and submitting the survey will receive a thank you message, while those who have not will receive a reminder message. Once the data has been collected, collated, and revised, a detailed report of findings will be prepared for our WASC and IB focus groups, and then shared with community members, as we start the 2022-2023 school year.

Important End of Year Dates:

In addition to the events and holidays identified on our academic calendar, several celebrations, recognitions, and special events will be held as we bring the 2021-2022 school year to a close by June 10. Please mark your calendars with the special dates below, then please check the Primary School Principal and Secondary School Principal messages for additional division-specific celebration dates and times. Stay tuned to Managebac and the gjs_society Instagram account for details on the when, where, and how of events detailed below.

June 3: Teacher and Staff Appreciation Night @ 6:30 pm
June 6: Global Jaya Awards Assemblly
June 7: Year 12 Graduation @ 10:00 am in the GJS Theatre
June 8 Year 6 Graduation @ 1:00 pm in the GJS Theatre
June 10: Final Day for Students with dismissal @ 10:40 am
June 10: Report cards will be available to students/families via Managebac