Baku-Oxford School Winter Newsletter 2017-18

Happy new year to the BOS community and best wishes for 2018!

Many of you will have already heard that BOS has now been formally accredited by The Council of International Schools (COIS) and shortly expect full accreditation with The New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). Full accreditation can only be achieved in schools that can show they are continually improving, committed to international education and demonstrate best practice in all areas of school life both academic and operational. We will be the only school in Azerbaijan to achieve this dual accreditation.

While this is great news for the school currently, it also locks us in to a continuous accreditation cycle that means we have to get better and make improvements year on year and have a new accreditation every 5 years. Only the best schools around the world are accredited and we are now part of this prestigious group. Congratulations must go out to the staff and school community for their continuous support in achieving this goal!

Here is an excerpt from the accreditation letter:

‘In reaching their decision, CIS took into account the Visiting Team’s commendations which were based on evidence of excellent and effective alignment with the standards for CIS accreditation. In granting the award of accreditation, CIS felt that the commendations – or strengths of the school – far outweighed any areas in which the school was deficient. Of particular note is the school’s positive approach to accreditation as a tool for continuous self-improvement and the completion of a thoughtful self-study. This was evident in all sections. Highlights of the school’s strengths include a strong language provision for all students, a clear commitment to interculturalism and global citizenship, and attention to issues of child protection, health and safety. Both the Head of School and Advisory Board are to be commended for their efforts in achieving so much over the past few years while working toward accreditation, which has been particularly challenging given the economic climate in Azerbaijan. These strengths should be celebrated by the school community.’

And a further excerpt from the concluding comments:

A focus on student learning has resulted in numerous curricular and pedagogical initiatives across the divisions of the school. The VT believe the self-study process has facilitated changes that have been initiated by the school. Data have begun to be collected, analysed and used to look at teaching and learning across all grades. Student well-being is taken seriously. Faculty and staff have had professional development opportunities to

become well-informed. Activities have reinforced healthy habits. Systems and staff are in place to keep students healthy and safe

The VT’s commendations and recommendations will come as no surprise to the school. Major commendations come largely from the positive changes that have occurred in the school in a relatively short period of time. Recommendations come directly from written reports and discussions with the school’s leadership, faculty and staff members, parents and students. At BOS, they know where they want to go, appear to be unified in reaching for the same goals, and are working cooperatively together to get there. The VT’s report will serve to validate what the school already knows about itself. The VT is confident that the enthusiasm and dedication that were demonstrated to the peer visitors during the visit will contribute to the school’s continuous improvement.

More information will be shared with the school community over time once we have fully digested the whole report and see how this fits into our how school development plan. However, the report is only full of praise for BOS and what it has achieved in the last few years.

TWITTER AND FACEBOOK

To improve our online presence and to display examples of student learning, we often like to take photographs and videos of the children at our school to celebrate a variety of activities. All photographs and images are used to support the children’s learning, display their achievements or show the exciting things that occur within the children’s time at school. We may use these images or videos in school but they may also be used in the following ways:

∙ In our school prospectus or in other printed publications that we produce

∙ On our website

∙ On the school’s Twitter or Facebook page

Most parents are more than happy to have their children’s image used in these circumstances. However, if you DO NOT want your child’s image used on the school’s Twitter page, website or in printed publications then please contact the divisional offices to opt out of these uses of your child’s image.

The links to our pages will be sent shortly.

DATES FOR YOUR CALENDAR

Please be aware of the following upcoming dates:

February 2nd: 1st semester Reports go out

February 5th: Start of 2nd semester and parent-teacher meetings

Once again happy New Year!

Thank you for your continued support.

Alexander Simester

Head of School

Early Years Foundation Stage

Happy New Year! A warm welcome back after the Winter break.

Our Early Years students were very busy in the lead up to the holiday. During our second IEYC units of the year, Nursery and Foundation 1 learned all about different types of animals around the world while Foundation 2 learned about materials in the world around us and the importance of recycling for our planet.

Our new units are now underway, they incorporate all the different subject areas under one exciting theme:

Nursery: ‘Dinosaur Detectives’

Foundation 1: ‘Weather Wonders’

Foundation 2: ‘Once Upon a Time’

2017 was rounded off with our New Year Performance, for which the children worked really hard to learn their songs and dances. It was lovely to see them on stage in their fabulous costumes. Thank you to all those teachers and assistants involved and thank you parents and family for coming to support them. The children were excited to see Santa and Snow White afterwards but not as excited as when they saw your faces in the audience!

With the teachers currently writing the end of semester reports, it is noticeable how some students are frequently absent and/or late for school. This has a profound effect on student learning and achievement. Please make sure to provide a medical note if your child is absent for more than two days as we keep a record in each student’s file. A reminder that school begins at 8:45 so that the children can settle in before lessons begin and children entering the classroom after this disrupt the learning of the whole class.

Finally, I would like to welcome our new Teaching Assistants: Ms Nigar (Elephants), Ms Sabina (Starfish) and Ms Sabina (Giraffes). It is a pleasure to work with such enthusiastic and warm people who work so well with the children.

We wish you all good health and happiness in 2018.

Clare Ranns

Head of Early Years Foundation Stage

 Dear Families,As winter truly arrives, it is the time in the academic year where students tend to make the most rapid progress in their learning. Class routines have been established, children are comfortable with new teachers and peers and energy levels remain high. With the weather being cooler and days shorter, families spend more time indoors as the outdoor beauty of Baku is less accessible. I would recommend to all families that this is the ideal period for children to be learning home in order to consolidate their class based studies. One of the most powerful things that parents can do to support their children’s academic progress is to read with them every evening and to take an interest in what is being covered in school. Children can be reluctant to talk about their school day, especially immediately after arriving back home, but all enjoy praise and encouragement. Try to take time to talk to children about their home learning; in Humanities, for example, children often have a choice of which activities to complete and appreciate guidance in making their selections. Talking through and giving advice demonstrates to your child that learning is important and it keeps you up to date on what they are doing in class.At Baku-Oxford, we are interested in creating lifelong learners therefore developing children’s study habits and skills is essential. Modelling for your child positive characteristics, such as planning ahead, working to deadlines, keeping to time limits and maintaining a tidy study environment are relevant even to Primary students. Naturally, young children need assistance with preparing their belongings and organising their time, but a gradual move as they progress into upper Primary towards independence, such as asking your child to pack their own school bag, use their school diary to prioritise tasks and to be in charge of their own dress and appearance, is essential preparation for Middle School. Above all, being a good role model and guide, such as being punctual, maintaining a healthy diet and setting appropriate times for sleep, will not only ensure that your child is ready to learn but will also nurture the personal qualities that they will need in later life in order to be the best that they can be.Thank you for your continued support and Happy New Year.Graham Tait Head of Primary SchoolTrip to Carpet Museum – Grade 2
 

Secondary School News

Welcome to 2018!
 

MFL Week

It has become a tradition to celebrate MFL week as one of the ways of promoting internationalism and interculturalism at BOS. Various activities were held throughout the week; a poetry night, prose competitions and olympiads helped students explore the culture and values of different countries and nationalities. The week ended with a concert programme held at the assembly time on Friday. Songs and performances in Spanish, French, Russian and German drew enthusiastic applause from the audience. A presentation made by a group of students who attended the Winter Camp in Georgia created great interest among students and encouraged them to participate in future projects organized by The Goethe Institute.      

Banana Production 

A group of grade seven students volunteered to hold a performance for their primary fellows on the eve of New Year. Banana production that was founded by Arina Khayeva, Ayla Aliyeva, Nubar Jabrailli and Nazrin Mammadova prepared an exciting journey for the students giving information about interesting places to visit around the world and how to become an experienced traveler. The winners of the lottery and competition held at the end of the show got presents and a bunch of bananas.

Movie night

The last month of the year brought joy and festive spirit to BOS. To celebrate the end of year the Student Council sponsored a movie night for Secondary school students featuring Home Alone. Held on December 20-21 the event was a big success.

The Voice 

Friday, December 22 was a special day. It was not just the last day of school but it was the first time The Voice was going to be held at BOS. All the participants of the contest were very excited as they got a chance to show their talent to their classmates and teachers. The audience enjoyed solo, duet and group performances and encouraged their peers with rounds of applause. The Jury's task was difficult to choose a winner as all of the interpretations were impressive and enjoyable. A duet between Kamilla Mammadova and Madina Guliyeva from grade 7 had the most votes and won first place.

Enrichment  

In the second half of the I semester Enrichment Programme has covered the topic of women’s rights from different aspects, such as: Women’s little known contributions to the world, women in WW I and WW II, Suffragists and Suffragettes, Gender inequality, Women’s rights around the world. The International day of the girl vs international day of women, Feminism.

As a practical approach to this project, the Enrichment programme organized a trip to Baku Olympic Stadium to meet the women Football players of the Azerbaijan National team. Enrichment students got to experience themselves that any dream can be achieved – all you need is a strong will and belief in yourself.

After the educational trip students were to sum up every subtopic of the main theme “Women’s Rights” and work on reflection projects, which they were to present in the BOS theatre in front of the Secondary school and their teachers. Moreover, the Azerbaijan Women’s Football National team was also invited to this event, as it was very important for us to show them our appreciation and lessons learnt from this global project.

By covering this kind of global issue around the world, Enrichment Programme has tried to engage the younger generation in fighting against any kind of gender discrimination. Children must be alert to these kinds of matters from adolescence: to know where they stand at, will help them with their future crucial choices.

Shirvanshah Field Trip 

As a part of curriculum related field trips, grade 7 students visited Shirvanshah Palace Museum. After studying the history of Shirvanshah state in Azerbaijan history classes, they got a chance to explore the palace that is situated in Ichari Shahar and learn more about the history of the Shirvanshah dynasty.

News from the Community Service Club 

Recently, we invited two guest speakers from the National Oncology Centre to raise awareness among students, and provide thorough information about breast cancer. First and foremost, one of our guest speakers, mammalogist Nigar Mehdiyeva, gave a lecture to present how and why breast cancer develops and prevails among women. She gave details on how mammary gland cancer is caused and how it can be prevented. Moreover, she distributed handouts with instructions for how to perform a breast self-exam. Our second speaker, another mammalogist Vafa Aliyeva, showed a presentation about all the stages through which a woman passes during this illness and which treatments are done. In addition, she provided students of eleventh grade with the statistics of the breast cancer situation in Azerbaijan. Students were involved in the discussion and asked a lot of questions all of which were clearly answered and explained. Currently, community service is working on a presentation and is planning to invite students’ mothers and grandmothers to present it in order to raise awareness. Also in spring, community service is looking forward to visiting regions and spread the information to a wider range of the population.

On December 15th Community Service Club went to needy families in Mashtaga and Ramani districts .These families are in need of support and care, they do not have sustainable resources, such as food or heating. There are children who do not go to schools in order to get a basic education. Community Service Club collected clothes and toys for children and cooked national dishes for them. Our group acknowledged the importance of our trip: we helped and spread kindness. Overall, this experience has added value to our lives.

Milli MUN 

We are proud to announce our successful participation in second MilliMUN. BOS MUN Club members successfully participated at MilliMUN. MilliMun is National MUN Conference funded by the Ministry of Youth and Sport (December 18-21, 2017). The conference also involves University students. It is a great pleasure and honor to stress that among those who were awarded at MilliMUN are our students. Alina Farmanova - “BEST DELEGATION”, Emil Revin – “Honorable mention”, Leyla Magsud - “Honorable mention”. Our students continue BOS’ MUN traditions and represent our school in a high level at the local and international conferences!

Science Olympiad Team

Our students competed the Science Olympiad held at 21st Century School on January 13, 2018. We are so proud to announce that our team got 14 medals. Here are the names of the winners:

Grade 5 – Naghizadeh Ayan and Carlos de Guzman -3rd place 

Grade 6 – Nazrin Aliyeva – 3rd place,

Sevil Nagashil -2nd place, 

Rustamzade Ayla -1st place,

Shiraliyeva Maryam – 1st place, 

Nurgul Jahangirli -1st place

Grade 7 -Khayeva Arina -3rd place,

Ayla Aliyeva -2nd place,

Gasanova Maryam -1st place

Grade 8 students- Melis Chiragzade – 3rd place,

Tkachev Nikita -2nd place,

Grade 9 students – Ayla Farzali -1st place,

Kamala Karimli -1st place 

Congratulations to our Science Department! Thank you for all the effort and time you have spent to help our students to be successful.

Jamila Chiragzade

Head of Secondary School

Living Learning Community is created for A-level Biology students with the aim to help them to take their first steps towards pursuing a career in the medical field and expose students to a variety of experiences in acute health care. The project was initiated and driven by Gunay Hajiyeva, Head of Science Department at BOS. Students were provided with an opportunity to shadow in health fields such as: emergency medicine, pediatrics, orthopedics, internal medicine, public health, nursing and/or physician assistant. The project was very helpful in order to gain insight into daily activities and responsibilities of doctors and physicians.