The Week Ahead 25 January 2019

Dear parents As we are on the verge of the school’s New Year holiday, I thought I would take this chance to look forward to the second ‘half’ of the term and pick out a few highlights for our community. There is a great deal to fit into the term before the end of March. 14th - 24th February Wellington College staff visit: our links with Wellington in England are strong and vibrant. Already this year, we have hosted visits from members of the teaching staff, the International Business Director as well as the Bursar and members of the governing body. Our annual Year 6 trip will depart in April. In February, we have a new and exciting opportunity in terms of teacher training. Mr Ogando from the Maths department will visit Wellington over the New Year holiday, teaching in collaboration with a colleague from the host school. Then, from 14th February, Mr Ogando will return and bring with him Mr Edward Jones. Mr Jones is a Cambridge graduate and has been teaching at Wellington for over three years; no doubt, our pupils will benefit from his insight and experience. I very much hope this teacher training opportunity becomes part of the school calendar, as strong links to Wellington provide unrivalled opportunities for our pupils and staff. 20th - 23rd March – West Side Story: excitement is building already among the staff and pupils in anticipation of another musical spectacular. The commitment and perseverance shown by all our young performers is exemplary, and as parents you will know of their sacrifice of time and energy. The benefits children gain from this sort of production, in terms of self-confidence, personal discipline and the development of a teamwork ethos, are lifelong, and little else in the world of school education is as effective in developing resilience in learners. Tickets will be on sale after the holiday. 25th - 26th March - Annual Review: my very sincere thanks to all those parents across the community who have taken the time to complete the Annual Review survey over the past 10 days. At the time of writing, 160 responses have come in, and with the deadline due at 2100hrs on Friday 25th January, there is still time left to complete it. The data from all the responses is made available to you, but equally importantly it forms a part of the data collection process that the Annual Review team has available to indicate trends within the school. As you will be aware, our rating from last year was very positive, and as result we have a lighter touch review in March this year. We will host three reviewers: one to look at the boarding and pastoral impact, another specialist for Early Years and primary education, as well as the lead reviewer, Mr David Byrne. David knows our school well, having led the previous three Annual Review visits, and I fully expect him to provide us with another robust, challenging inspection report to aid further school improvement. Details, as ever, appear on the website, on Tchat, in the term diary or in the Week Ahead. If you experience any difficulties in accessing these forms of communication, please do not hesitate to contact Ms Cissy Zhao (cissy.zhao@wellingtoncollege.cn). She will be able to advise you on the best form of communication to suit your needs. In the meantime, I would like to thank all our parents for their on-going support and engagement with the school. As the Spring Festival, and the consequent Year of the Pig, loom large, I extend my warmest best wishes to all our families for a very happy and prosperous new year. Best wishes Julian Jeffrey MASTER FROM THE HEAD OF SIXTH FORM Senior School Parents' Briefing: Years 10-12 university applications Sixth Form Common Room 1800hrs-1900hrs Monday 28th January There will be an informal Q and A session for parents of pupils in Years 10-12 in the Sixth Form Common Room (MB 241) on Monday 28th January from 1800hrs - 1900hrs. All parents are welcome to attend; we will be answering questions on the university applications processes in different countries. If you have any specific questions you would like to ask, please email me directly and I will ensure they are addressed: jayne.sabio@wellingtoncollege.cn FROM THE DIRECTOR OF MUSIC Lunchtime Recital Black Box Theatre 1325-1355hrs Monday 28th January Our apologies. The recital is postponed to Monday 18th February.