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GSIS Gazette – Issue #44

16th April 2021

Principal's Column

Dear Members of the School Community

I am pleased that we were able to resume school on campus for morning lessons after the Easter break. Unfortunately, for reasons known to you, we had to accept a two-week delay in the full resumption of the Primary Department. 

Basically, we followed the approach of the EDB as well as the ZfA and our Hong Kong legal advisors, which states that testing is not mandatory under both Hong Kong and German law. After school staff were included in the priority group for vaccination, we as the school management have communicated that we aim for regular testing of all staff and intend to fully open the school within the EDB guidelines.

We therefore strongly advocated testing within the school, which about 93% of our teachers agreed to.

The voluntary nature of the testing as stipulated by the EDB, the ZfA as well as our Hong Kong legal advisors as a condition of the possibility of full school opening half-day, had opened up an intensive debate on the framework conditions of the testing. This includes topics such as possible consequences for families in view of the quarantine conditions in Hong Kong, testing for parents and students, informing parents about possible risks of a full opening of the school, questions of compliance with hygiene regulations in the school when fully staffed etc.

Naturally, the debate on testing requirements has also caused irritation and resentment among parents. Who would not have wished for a smoother process and an immediate 100 % willingness to test? However, we did not see any benefit to the strategy favoured by some parents of dismissing teachers who could not be convinced immediately. I could see this in some of the emails that were sent to me. The subject matter and the sometimes arduous personal confrontation with the issue imposed a lot of stress. However, in the end we achieved our goal on the basis of intensive discussions without violating the legal requirements.

Although the path of persuasion was a rocky one, it was worth the effort, because in the end a peaceful consensus is better than the loss of trust and confidence. Teachers and parents as well as the school management should be interested in peaceful conflict resolution to ensure that the children continue to have confidence in GSIS, learn with enthusiasm and that the whole community is aligned with the values of the school.

Have a good weekend!

Ulrich Weghoff
Principal
Email


Dear Members of the School Community

I am pleased that we were able to resume school on campus for morning lessons after the Easter break. Unfortunately, for reasons known to you, we had to accept a two-week delay in the full resumption of the Primary Department. 

Basically, we followed the approach of the EDB as well as the ZfA and our Hong Kong legal advisors, which states that testing is not mandatory under both Hong Kong and German law. After school staff were included in the priority group for vaccination, we as the school management have communicated that we aim for regular testing of all staff and intend to fully open the school within the EDB guidelines.

We therefore strongly advocated testing within the school, which about 93% of our teachers agreed to.

The voluntary nature of the testing as stipulated by the EDB, the ZfA as well as our Hong Kong legal advisors as a condition of the possibility of full school opening half-day, had opened up an intensive debate on the framework conditions of the testing. This includes topics such as possible consequences for families in view of the quarantine conditions in Hong Kong, testing for parents and students, informing parents about possible risks of a full opening of the school, questions of compliance with hygiene regulations in the school when fully staffed etc.

Naturally, the debate on testing requirements has also caused irritation and resentment among parents. Who would not have wished for a smoother process and an immediate 100 % willingness to test? However, we did not see any benefit to the strategy favoured by some parents of dismissing teachers who could not be convinced immediately. I could see this in some of the emails that were sent to me. The subject matter and the sometimes arduous personal confrontation with the issue imposed a lot of stress. However, in the end we achieved our goal on the basis of intensive discussions without violating the legal requirements.

Although the path of persuasion was a rocky one, it was worth the effort, because in the end a peaceful consensus is better than the loss of trust and confidence. Teachers and parents as well as the school management should be interested in peaceful conflict resolution to ensure that the children continue to have confidence in GSIS, learn with enthusiasm and that the whole community is aligned with the values of the school.

Have a good weekend!

Ulrich Weghoff
Principal
Email


We are pleased to have students back on campus and we are getting ready for Primary’s full resumption on Monday, 26th April.  Thank you for your patience and support while the school navigates through this time of change and challenges.

Here are a few developments to share with you.

Staff PCR Testing

I am delighted to let you know that we have just completed the second round of staff testing and, once again, all results are negative.  I am sure that this instils a lot of confidence amongst us all and I encourage you to vaccinate or test to safeguard our community.

Primary Resumption

We have also just received the EDB's approval for our Primary Departments to fully resume at our Peak campus from Monday, 26th April.  We are all looking forward to having all of our Primary students back.

Veracross Re-enrolment

As communicated earlier, it is important to update your child/ren’s information in Veracross and complete the re-enrolment procedure before Friday, 30th April to allow the school to prepare the resources and manpower accordingly for the next academic year.  To date, 70% of our families have completed the re-enrolment process and we ask those who have not already done so, to click on the link below:

Re-Enrolment Portal

Bus tendering

The bus tendering procedure has been completed and once again, we thank the Bus Selection Committee for their time and contributions.  The school is finalising a couple of details in the contract and will be ready to share the chosen bus company for the next academic year shortly.

Students Services Department

In order to strengthen the communication and monitoring of the bus company’s services, we have reorganised roles and responsibilities within our Operations Team to provide a well-rounded ‘Student Services Department’.  The ECA team has taken on additional responsibility since the Covid-19 outbreak and the team will now be responsible for procurement, cafeteria, bus services, ECA/AAs, Discovery Week logistics and uniform shop.  With the combined resources and skill sets within the team, we will be better resourced to provide well-rounded student services.

I wish you and family a great weekend!

Clare Chiu
Managing Director
Email


News from the Board

Community Committee

Bringing the community together- Christmas Bazaar 2021

We hope that you all had a lovely Easter. Whilst Christmas may seem a long way away the Community Committee is looking forward to starting work on the GSIS Christmas Bazaar 2021 next week. The Bazaar is one of the most loved events by the whole community and we need your help to ensure that we do it justice and bring some fun and community spirit to this year’s event. Whether you can only give a few hours or want to be more involved there are plenty of ways in which you can help. If you would like to help or want to find out more please sign up via our online form.

The event can only be a success with the whole community’s support - students, staff, alumni and parents so please do get involved. For any other ideas of events or community building projects please do get in touch at communitycommittee@gsis.edu.hk

Community Committee
Email


Schoolwide News

University Guidance: Upcoming Events (External)

German International Stream

Kindergarten Corner

Dear Parents

The Easter Holidays have come and gone, and all our Kindergarten students are happy to return to school at our Pok Fu Lam Campus.

It is hard to believe that we are already in the last term of the current school year, and besides, we are delighted that all Kindergarten students can attend school every day.

We would like to update you on our upcoming PFL Literature Festival, held from

Monday 19 till Friday 30 of April. You will find all relevant information about the planned activities under “Updates and Announcements” in our Gazette.

Furthermore, we would like to draw your attention to the following events coming up in May.

09 May  - Mother’s Day

Due to COVID-19 restrictions still in place, we regret to inform you that we will not be able to host our traditional Mother’s Day breakfast as announced in the calendar. Undoubtedly, your child and their class teachers will prepare a surprise for our mothers.

13 & 14 May - Parents’ Information Days

Thursday, May 13 from 01:30 pm - 04:30 pm

Friday, May 14 from 08:00 am - 01:00 pm

Please mark this date down in your diary. Parents’ Information Days will be conducted online, and there will be no school for Kindergarten students on Friday, May 14. More detailed information will follow in due course.

We sadly need to bid farewell to Ms Angela Flint, class teacher of KG1B, at the end of this academic year. Ms Flint has been with Kindergarten English Kindergarten Stream for the past 11 years. She will be returning to England to spend time with her family.

Please join us in wishing Ms Flint well in their new endeavours.

She will be very much missed by all at GSIS!

Sophie Burdel
Head of Kindergarten
Email
Eileen Mah
Deputy Head of Kindergarten and Deputy Child Protection Officer Pok Fu Lam Campus
Email

Primary Corner

Dear Parents

Welcome back after the Easter holidays I hope you and your children had a great time looking for all chocolate eggs and bunnies.

We are happy that we can open our campus on Monday 26 April 2021 fully to all children. While we still can't offer any ECAs or AAs we are able to deliver all our lessons. Please note that all children will be taught from 7.35am - 13.15pm. Like this we add some lesson time in K01 and K02 - they will enjoy an extra lesson of teaching until the end of the school year. 

The class teachers will hand out the new timetable to your child next week or on Monday, 26. April 2021. In the timetable you will find out what material or PE equipment your child needs on what day.

Most of our German Primary teachers successfully finished the vaccination programme and therefore help to keep our campus and your children safe.

From now until summer break we will also have some school events for the students but also the parents. We will keep you informed about the single events beforehand. Of course we will make sure that we will follow the Covid-19 measurement during all planned events.

  • Book week
  • Sports Day
  • Parent´ Information event for future DVOR, K01 and K03 students
  • Competence tests in 3rd grade
  • Swimming lessons for K02 - K04
  • possible Day Camps for K03 and K04
  • Reading competition - Lesekönig

This and maybe more will take place until summer and we are looking forward to celebrating all these special moments with our students and you.

Priska Erni
Head of German Primary
Email
Inga Riedel-Narayan
Deputy Head of German Primary
Email

Departmental News and Announcements

GSIS Pok Fu Lam – Literature Festival 2021

Secondary Corner

Departmental News and Announcements

No updates / announcements this week.

English International Stream

From Head of Stream

Spirit Week & Social Distancing

Dear Parents

It is just great to have (almost) all the students back in school. We are looking forward to full resumption from 26th April when all the primary students can return.

Spirit Week

Our Year 13 students are currently finishing off their Spirit Week as today is their last day of formal school before they begin their IB Diploma examinations. Early this morning I saw a very large inflatable shark and a series of Star Wars characters roaming the stairways and corridors . . . we wish all these students every success in their finals.

Remaining Vigilant

Whilst more and more of us are completing the double vaccine, it is imperative that our whole community observes safe practice over the next few weeks to avoid importing any cases to school. We do not want to be closed down as this would have a major impact on our students taking public examinations, so let us all urge caution and care in order to protect ourselves and our wider community.

Safeguarding

We will be launching new Safeguarding posters throughout the school over the next two weeks. Staff trained in safeguarding & disclosure will be discussing with children how to share concerns about others. Parents are also encouraged to make disclosures if they are concerned about another child in our school community. Please contact any of the Child Protection Officers if you wish to share a concern:

CPO Simon Misso-Veness smisso-veness@gsis.edu.hk
ESD Susan Hood & Tanya Schindler shood@gsis.edu.hk
tschindler@gsis.edu.hk
EPD Kim Cunningham & Paige Marquard kcunningham@gsis.edu.hk
pmarquard@gsis.edu.hk
EKG Eileen Mah emah@gsis.edu.hk

Online Safety

I recently shared some advice to support with parents of students in Year 5, 6, 7 & 8 regarding online safety and use of social media with the intent of highlighting strategies through which to protect students in the digital world. If there is a demand from other year groups, please let me know and I can make the information available. Students will continue to receive lessons in digital citizenship as part of Information Literacy (EPD) and the Personal & Social Education (ESD) programmes. We are planning some focused panel discussions for parents on this matter in late May, further details to follow.

Online Summer Programme

I would like to let families know that the HKUST Online Summer Enrichment Program for Gifted Learners is now open and accepting applications for the following courses in July and August:

  • Astronomy
  • Chemistry
  • Computer Science
  • Design Thinking
  • Engineering
  • Humanities & Arts
  • Life Science
  • Mathematics
  • Physics

Primary and secondary students will have the chance to explore the area they are interested in under the guidance of professional instructors and have a taste of the learning and teaching style of a university. Please follow this link for further information (Deadline: 6th May).

Have a great week ahead

Simon Misso-Veness
Deputy Principal / Head of English International Stream
Email


Kindergarten Corner

Dear Parents

The Easter Holidays have come and gone, and all our Kindergarten students are happy to return to school at our Pok Fu Lam Campus.

It is hard to believe that we are already in the last term of the current school year, and besides, we are delighted that all Kindergarten students can attend school every day.

We would like to update you on our upcoming PFL Literature Festival, held from

Monday 19 till Friday 30 of April. You will find all relevant information about the planned activities under “Updates and Announcements” in our Gazette.

Furthermore, we would like to draw your attention to the following events coming up in May.

09 May  - Mother’s Day

Due to COVID-19 restrictions still in place, we regret to inform you that we will not be able to host our traditional Mother’s Day breakfast as announced in the calendar. Undoubtedly, your child and their class teachers will prepare a surprise for our mothers.

13 & 14 May - Parents’ Information Days

Thursday, May 13 from 01:30 pm - 04:30 pm

Friday, May 14 from 08:00 am - 01:00 pm

Please mark this date down in your diary. Parents’ Information Days will be conducted online, and there will be no school for Kindergarten students on Friday, May 14. More detailed information will follow in due course.

We sadly need to bid farewell to Ms Angela Flint, class teacher of KG1B, at the end of this academic year. Ms Flint has been with Kindergarten English Kindergarten Stream for the past 11 years. She will be returning to England to spend time with her family.

Please join us in wishing Ms Flint well in their new endeavours.

She will be very much missed by all at GSIS!

Sophie Burdel
Head of Kindergarten
Email
Eileen Mah
Deputy Head of Kindergarten and Deputy Child Protection Officer Pok Fu Lam Campus
Email

Primary Corner

Dear Parents

Welcome back! We hope that you and your children enjoyed your holidays and the chance to get out and enjoy Hong Kong before the weather becomes too warm. We are excited to have more students in the building and are anxiously awaiting 26 April when all of our students are back full-time. While we still can’t offer ECAs/AA we are able to deliver all of our lessons. Please note that at the Peak all Primary children will be in school from 7:35am - 1:15pm. 

We are working on our spring events and celebrations under the current regulations and will update you as soon as we have further information about Book Week, Sports Day, and possible Day Camps. 

Have a wonderful weekend. 

Kim Cunningham
Head of English Primary
Email
Donna Morley

Email

Departmental News and Announcements

GSIS Pok Fu Lam – Literature Festival 2021

Secondary Corner

The Week Past

The on-campus classes have gone well and I would like to thank the students and parents for their forbearance and patience in dealing with the restrictions that are necessarily in place.

The Week(s) to come

For Y07-9 classes continue on-campus every day from lesson 1 to lesson 7. Next week sees a rotation of the timetable, so that lessons 9 & 10 take place in lessons 1 & 2 and vice-versa. There are a few exceptions (e.g. Y07 on a Monday; all Years on a Friday) and these, together with weekly timetables, will be sent via email to students.

The Y10 & Y12 Exams continue next week. As results are relayed to students over subsequent weeks, it is important to bear in mind that the exams are diagnostic, not summative. Of course, we hope that all students perform well, and most (in general) do, but the real purpose of these exams is to prepare students for the real public exams later in the course. With this in mind, please do not put too much emphasis on the results for the exams; it is the process and the learning that matters as well as the gaps and targets that students must address in the coming months.

For Y11 & Y13, Study Leave begins, leading to the public exams for the IGCSE and IBDP, which begin in the week of 26 April. Please ensure that your children prepare properly, revising in a structured manner, and not overdoing things. Teachers will be usually available for consultation by students during normal lesson times, but please email first to check.

During study leave, please encourage your children to observe suitable social distancing and to avoid large gatherings. Aside from anything else, we do not want to jeopardize the exams.

Ken Stevenson
Head of English Secondary
Email


Departmental News and Announcements

No updates / announcements this week.

Book Reviews

Departmental News and Announcements

After Tomorrow by Gillian Cross

Alumni

Upcoming Events 2021

Careers Workshop

Thursday 20 May 2021
12:00 - 15:20 HKT
TBC
More Info »

Class of 1996 & Class of 2001 Alumni Reunion

Thursday 17 Jun 2021
18:00 - 21:00 HKT
German Swiss International School
More Info »

Community Networking Breakfast

Friday 17 Sep 2021
08:00 - 11:00 HKT
LRC, Mid Levels
More Info »

Annual Alumni Reception

Wednesday 24 Nov 2021
18:00 - 22:00 HKT
Watermark, Central
More Info »

Community Committee's Christmas Bazaar

Saturday 27 Nov 2021
German Swiss International School
More Info »

GSIS Rocks

Saturday 11 Dec 2021
18:00 - 20:00 HKT
TBC
More Info »

THIS WEEK IN IMAGES

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