The Week Ahead 4th December 2020

Dear parents

In my final year at university, it was suggested that a career in the law, or training as an accountant, might be suitable paths for me as I made my way in the world. Life as a lawyer may have been bearable (I enjoy arguing, for example, which I assume is what lawyers do most of the time). Accountancy, though, was quite out of the question, given my unconvincing academic record in mathematics. As I approached my finals in the third year, one thing was absolutely clear: I was not prepared to spend my next few years in doing more examinations as I trained for a profession. It may come as a surprise to parents in China, but British schoolchildren are the most examined in the world. Children from as young as six years of age sit public examinations, and they do so over and over again until they finally move on to university at the age of 18 years.

In such an exam-heavy educational climate, some sort of reaction to the endless round of revision and examining is perhaps inevitable. Becoming a teacher meant I could set and mark exams, which I thought would be much more fun than studying for them. I am not sure I was right about that – ask almost any teacher – but the die was cast, and I went down the route of education and have been there ever since. I have seen a lot of exam series come and go over the 30 years I have been in teaching, in my roles as teacher, head of a department, examinations officer and now head of school.

Few things in education stir as strong a set of emotions as examinations as a way of assessing achievement. The decision by the British government to cancel formal examinations in the summer of 2020 and use teacher assessments to grade pupils at A Level and GCSE was met by widespread relief and jubilation. Many teachers and parents doubt that a few hours of exams can adequately assess learning and that such papers limit the nature of the teaching course to include only topics which can be measured under such conditions. Time spent in teaching exam technique and then revising material is time not spent in genuine learning, it is argued. Critics of exams also point at the way they disadvantage pupils who deal badly with pressure, particularly at a time in their lives when robust mental health is as fragile as their self-confidence.

All of these views have merit. Exams are an imperfect, often blunt tool. However, as the summer grades of 2020 showed, they do help to ensure standards and assure quality in terms of the qualifications they test. Public examinations that relied on teacher assessed grades for their results saw a significant increase in top grades. In Britain, for example, the percentage of A*/A grades rose from 26% in 2019 to almost 33% in 2020 – an unprecedented leap. In other countries, the trend for grade inflation was even more marked and has led to complaints that these exams will forever be devalued in the eyes of future employers. There is also evidence of unconscious teacher bias in assessed work and excessive parental pressure on teachers if all assessments are based on coursework or internal exams (feedback from the UK suggests that teachers actively dislike being held responsible for the final grades if a university place is at stake).

Much needed reform, it is clear, is underway. Exam systems across the world are under scrutiny as never before as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. But such reforms take years to enact, and our pupils have important mock examinations in January before the summer exam series starts in May 2021. Revision schedules and practice exam papers for the coming holidays are being prepared. Pupils in years 11-13 need to prioritise their time carefully over the coming months to ensure that they do not underperform.

Whether your child enjoys or dreads exams, they remain a fact of life. The school and its teachers are equipped to support pupils through this preparation, and our track record suggests that our young people should be very confident as they go into the holiday period. Parents also play a central part in helping pupils to thrive by giving them dedicated time and space in which to work over the coming months.

Teachers will send out further exam preparation details before the end of term, but if you do have any questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch with Dragana Popovic, the Head of the Senior School: dragana.popovic@wellingtoncollege.cn.

Best wishes

Julian Jeffrey
MASTER

In-School Meeting
1400hrs-1500hrs, Thursday
10th December

This week’s Meet the Master slot is open to parents of pupils in years 2 to 6. If you would like to attend, please confirm via email with Ms Emma Shi (emma.shi@wellingtoncollege.cn) by Wednesday 9th December.

Online Meeting
0900hrs-1015hrs, Wednesday
9th December

Parent briefings are held on Wednesday mornings usually from 0900hrs -1015hrs. Parents will have the chance to engage with the school in sessions that cover all aspects of your child’s education, from the Early Years to A levels and university admissions.

In this briefing, Dr Yang Yang, the Deputy Head of the College, will introduce the learning journey at Wellington to help parents understand better about the contents and features of the curriculum from the Early Years to A Levels.

Sora – online reading app

I am pleased to introduce a new reading service providing digital books. Sora is a free online reading app for pupils of all year groups and their parents.

Sora is designed by OverDrive Education, which serves more than 50,000 libraries and 30,000 K-12 schools in 78 countries worldwide. It aims to transform the reading experience and is recognised as one of the best innovations of 2019 by Time magazine. Sora is an extension of the school library as it is an app with 24/7 access to e-books and audiobooks. It meets the needs of pupils of different reading types – challenged, second language learners and gifted readers can all benefit from this service.

How does it work?

• Download the Sora app from the APP store or visit the website ‘soraapp.com’

• sign up with your school email credentials

• Search for ‘Wellington Family of Schools’, then click ‘Wellington College International Tianjin’

Whether a child’s interest lies in classics for required reading, or the latest popular juvenile or young adult fiction, they can find it all in Sora! I will send out more information through emails and T-chat later next week. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. (lisa.wang@wellingtoncollege.cn)

Nest Briefing: Language and literacy for young children
Online
1400hrs-1500hrs, Wednesday
09th December

This parent briefing will explain how we plan and deliver our curriculum to support the development of language in Mandarin and English for all year groups in the Nest. It will also give an account of how we will be moving to a ‘core book’ approach, linked to themes supporting a holistic provision in communication, language and literacy.

Nest Christmas Show
Theatre
1000hrs-1100hrs, Friday
11th December

The children have been working very hard to learn new songs for the Nest Christmas Show. We look forward to having two adults in the theatre for every child. We know you will enjoy the show and have fun celebrating this fantastic winter festival with us.

EPQ online parent briefing
Online
1700hrs-1730hrs, Wednesday
09th December

On Wednesday 9th December from 1700hrs-1730hrs, there will be an online parent briefing for the parents of the current year 12 EPQ pupils.

Pupils will receive a meeting invitation via Teams, and parents should use their child’s Teams account to access the meeting.

Please note that this meeting will be held in English with Chinese translation. If you speak a language other than English or Chinese, then please ensure that your child is there to translate for you.

If you have any questions about the meeting or are unable to attend, then please contact Ms Chapman at louise.chapman@wellingtoncollege.cn.

Readers of the week

The English department is delighted to announce that this week’s reader of the week is:

Oscar in year 9, who was nominated by Ms Chapman for his continued efforts in reading challenging Shakespearean texts out loud in class and engaging with the complexities of the language.

A huge well done to Oscar – what an outstanding achievement!

2020-21 House Film Competition
Monday
7th December

On Monday 7th December, the much-anticipated House film premieres in the 2020-21 House Film Competition will be screened for pupils in the Senior School. The themes, chosen earlier in the term by the Student Council, are Trust, Tolerance and Transformation. Three distinguished judges (Mr Ali, Mrs Bennett and Mrs Fiona Yang) will consider how inclusive, inspired and independent each film is and at the end of the assembly they will announce the winners. Last year, the Stanley was victorious. Who will it be this year?

Heartsaver ® First Aid CPR AED course

The AHA First Aid course is open to Wellington parents and pupils (aged over 13 years old and accompanied by one parent) and also for adults in the wider community.

Our third AHA First Aid training course was held on 28th November. All the attendees were able to complete the course successfully and obtain an official rescuer certificate from the AHA. Parents and students have learned practical and valuable first aid skills to save their own life, and the lives others, in the future.

We will have one more session on 12th December this term. Please contact Eelco van Kuilenburg for registration.

Language: Chinese or English
Course time: 2020-12-12
Incl.: Course material, an Official AHA course certificate, drinks/fruit and lunch
Costs and Sign Up: Please contact Eelco van Kuilenburg 186-2291-2362 or scan the QR code below