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Dear all,
This week has been one of finals and firsts for the Secondary Campus.
This afternoon saw the clock run down on the final IB examination of the May 2022 session - my congratulations to our Year 13 students. It has been an intense 3 weeks, a fitting culmination of a rich and challenging programme of study, made even more demanding by the context of these last two years.
There were many times when we did not know whether we would be able to hold the examinations or indeed gather in celebration at their completion. So, it is even more special that we can look forward to celebrating this milestone together- students, parents, families and teachers - at our Annual Graduation Ceremony at the Park Hyatt tomorrow.
Upon graduation, our Year 13 students become one of our BIS alumni, our global family of former students who stay connected to each other and us all here in Ho Chi Minh City. I am delighted to share in this week’s update news of the success of one of our Alumni, Jeremie, who represented Vietnam at the recent South East Asia Games. Well done Jeremie!
Our BIS Mission Statement says that as a community we aim to develop the skills and characteristics to create a more peaceful and sustainable world. We engage in this collective endeavour mindful of the words of Hans Rosling who writes in his seminal work, Factfulness - ‘In order to change the world we must first understand it’.
In this spirit of positive change and deepening understanding, this week saw a first for the Secondary Campus as we held our inaugural Identity Allance Week, organised and delivered by our students.
I am so proud that our BIS students are so passionate about making the world a better place, passionate advocates who seek to put their values into action. All change of course begins with our own community so it has been wonderful that our students have led the community conversation in assemblies and activities to increase awareness and dialogue. You can find out more below.
Another first was secured by our team of BIS students from Year 7 and 8 who won the first round of the FOBISIA Race4Good competition, which challenges students to tackle real life problems faced by vulnerable communities, with the winning idea being put into action to improve lives. Read in this week’s update what the judges said of their amazing work. Well done Team.
Lastly, I would like to invite you to our series of Parent Workshops this term, starting with next week’s Juilliard Music Workshop. Music is at the heart of the BIS HCMC experience for all students. You can find out more about your child’s learning experience at BIS and learn directly from our guest, Erin Wight, of the world renowned Juilliard Music School in New York. I hope you can join us for this practical and engaging session next Thursday on the Secondary Campus.
With my best wishes to you all for the weekend ahead,
Sean O’Neill
Head of Secondary
After 96 hours of examinations over the last 4 weeks, our Year 13s students today completed their IBDP journey. A journey which marks the close of their school careers, and the beginning of their next chapters in universities around the world. A huge congratulations to each of them on reaching this milestone, and our thanks to all of those who have worked so hard to support them over the last two years.
Our BIS student values, written by students, for students, state that everyone in the BIS community will be respectful of others regardless of age, gender, race, religion or sexuality. We are committed to equality and inclusion and in our diverse community, children and young people learn about valuing and respecting themselves and others. This week the Secondary Campus took part in Identity Alliance Week where we learnt about and celebrated aspects of student identity such as sexuality and gender and how we can build an even more inclusive community.
The Identity Alliance club led assemblies to raise awareness about the diversity and strength that lies in the LGBTQ+ community and how we can all become allies. Whilst social ideas will be different for different members of our school community, we can all be open minded and show integrity and care for all members of our communities. This makes us not only allies, but members of a world that is moving towards peace and respect for all.
A huge well done to all for a highly successful week,
Ms Bee Smith, Head of Year 9
We are so proud to hear of the success of all our former BIS students who go on to shine in so many walks of life. It has been wonderful to hear of the amazing success of BIS Alumnus, Jeremie Luong from the class of 2018 representing Vietnam at the recent South East Asia Games.
Jeremie a veteran of so many BIS Swimming events in his 6 years at the school claimed an amazing medal haul of 4 medals in his 4 events (1 gold in 4x100 free men, 1 silver in 100 free, 1 silver in 4x100IM, 1 bronze in 50 free)
Congratulations Jeremie from all of us here at BIS, we are very proud of your achievements.
Our BIS team of Year 7 and 8 students have been putting their values and innovation into action through the FOBISIA Race4Good Competition. The Race4Good Global Youth League is a student leadership programme unlike any other, bringing together schools from around the world to take part in a series of groundbreaking races aimed at uplifting communities in need.
In Round 1 BIS students have been competing head to head with students from across Asia to tackle real life problems faced by vulnerable communities- with the winning ideas being put into action to improve lives. Here is an update from Race4Good founder Linda Cruse:
Congratulations to the students from the British International School (BIS), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, who have won Round 1 of the FOBISIA Foundation Race4Good® 2022.
In a live online event, five school teams presented their ideas to a panel of judges. Their challenge? To develop and present an initiative that could profitably uplift the Simons family – real people living in challenged circumstances in La Colline in Haiti.
With school teams from Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, China and Thailand competing, the standard was exceptionally high.
In the end, the local community decided it was the idea from the BIS students from Ho Chi Minh City, that was the most workable and sustainable.
Their idea? Soap. As the student team explained, “According to hrw.org, over two-thirds of the people of Haiti have limited or no sanitation, so they are vulnerable to disease. This is how we came up with the idea of the Simons family making and selling soap bars.”
The local team will now implement this brilliant idea, in the hope it will provide an income for the Simons family, and a much better quality of life in the years to come.
“We must take a moment to appreciate what we have seen this morning,” said Linda Cruse, Founder of the Race4Good®.
“Students aged between 10 and 14, using their education, research skills and ingenuity to devise a plan that will literally change lives.
Warmest congratulations and heartfelt thanks to everyone involved.” Linda
In Spanish lessons this term, Year 7 students have been learning the Mexican song La Bamba, combining the oral and cultural elements of learning Spanish. We were accompanied by a special guest on the piano, Néstor García Joa, a Cuban musician.
La Bamba is a traditional folk song originating from Veracruz, Mexico. It is well known around the world for its simple lyrics, cheerful melody and contagious rhythm.
It’s been a great experience and we can’t wait to learn new songs.
[[\media\Y7 Spanish .mp4]]Did you know that singing improves your pronunciation, builds your confidence and raises your energy?
¡Vamos a cantar! (Let´s sing!)
Fiorella Balbuena , Spanish Teacher
This week the Psychology department was delighted to welcome Vivi Gregorich, a PhD student from Columbia University, NY. Vivi gave IB students at BIS a webinar in her specialism, ‘Behavioural Economics’. During the webinar, Vivi explained the psychology of how humans make economic decisions and when economic actors may act irrationally. Vivi was joined by one of our students at BIS, Nini Pham, who co-presented her own research into behavioural economics. A big thank you to all who joined and led our webinar!
Mr Edward Cascarino, Head of Psychology
Music is a fundamental feature of BIS school life and we are delighted to invite parents to learn more. On Thursday 26th May in the Secondary Auditorium, Erin Wight will be leading a Secondary Parents workshop giving an overview of the Juilliard collaboration for Music.
Erin is the BIS/Juilliard Music Curriculum specialist. She will take this opportunity to explain the Juilliard resources and the Juilliard approach to Music education. There will be an opportunity to experience a music lesson (no musical skills necessary). There will also be performances from our Key Stage 3 students demonstrating their progress in our innovative Band/Choral/Strings programme.
The session will start at 8.30am and will last about one hour- all parents are welcome.
Please register by completing the online form here
We hope you can join us.
Event Details
Ian Alexander, Director of Music
We would like to invite all families that will leave BIS at the end of this academic year to our ‘Moving On’ Workshop.
Please can we ask you to complete this short Google Form to let us know if you will attend.
We are a group of Year 12 IBDP students who have chosen to support the Thien Phuoc Foster Home, for our CAS project with a focus on the provision of resources and raising awareness for children with Epilepsy, Cerebral Palsy and Down Syndrome.
On a recent visit to the home, we were welcomed by the children who wore the most heart-warming and precious smiles, willing to share their unconditional love and joy with us. Though the hundreds of hugs we received were hard to let go of, perhaps the hardest thing for us to acknowledge was the stigma surrounding children with “disabilities”. Fortunately, Thien Phuoc provides the care, rehabilitation, and education the children deserve, however, as a non-government organisation they rely on the kindness and support of others. Based on our first-hand observations and discussions with the centre, we have found that the children are in need of resources we can provide.
So, what will we do?
Our wish list is designed to enable different forms of donations; funds, toy donations and new & unopened packages are welcomed.. The wish list, provided by Thien Phuoc’s administrators, is as follows:
- Baby Shampoo
- Nappies/Diapers
- Baby Shower Gel
- Hand Sanitiser
- Children's Chewable Multivitamins
- Children’s Old Toys
We have set up an area for toy up-cycling and other donations in the undercroft. Although our priority is to collect the listed packages as well as funds for Thien Phuoc, we are grateful for any form of support. All proceeds go straight to Thien Phuoc Foster Home & the provision of their supplies.
We are very grateful to our school for providing us with the opportunity to meet the children of Thien Phuoc and are equally grateful for the help we know we will receive in the upcoming weeks.
On behalf of the Thien Phuoc Foster Home, thank you in advance.
For any inquiries please contact:
Khoa Tran: ktran6@bisvietnam.com
Rosie Battersby: rbattersby@bisvietnam.com
Bella Johnston: bjohnston@bisvietnam.com
This week we continued our program of virtual university visits with a webinar from the Australian National University (QS Global ranking 27) A recording of this event can be viewed here. In addition, by following these links our recent visits from the University of Edinburgh (QS 16) and Nanyang Technological Universities (QS 12) can also be viewed.
In the remaining 6 weeks of term, we are thrilled to be hosting 5 more of the world’s top universities. Sign up details below.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Sean O’Neill
Head Teacher, Secondary Campus
We are incredibly proud of our Year 11 class of 2024, for their impressive IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) results. This incredible cohort of 155 students, our largest IGCSE class in the history of the school, have significantly surpassed UK and international averages and were awarded 97% of all grades at A*-C. An incredible 62% of all grades awarded were at A*-A.
A whole world of possibilities awaits our graduating class of 2023. With 385 university offers so far, and many more still to come from Korea, Australia and Singapore, their remarkable IBDP achievements have opened pathways to some of the best universities and specialist institutions across the globe.