Ad Astra 2019-2020

ad astra The Alice Smith School

2019 - 2020

Capturing the

life and vibrancy

at the Alice Smith School #AHistoryofInnovation

MESSAGE From the Head of School

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CAMPUS SNAPSHOTS Play, Play, Play 3 Year 1 Adventures to the Zoo 4 Year 2 Rockets and Astronaut Visit 5 Talking Trash in Year 3 6 Year 4 Production: Glint of Gold 7 Year 5 Trip to Paradise Valley 8 Year 6 Cooking Challenge 9 AIMS Maths Challenge 10 A Splendid Production 11 A Shakespeare Double Bill 12 Celebration of Music Concert 13 Advanced FOBISIA Music Festival 2019 14 International Week 15 Humanities Week 16 Futurescope 17 Model United Nations 18 Wider Learning Days 19 Sports Round-Up 20 SPOTLIGHT Learning Continues Despite Challenges Awarding Scholarships to Top Students Foundation Charity Dinner 2020 Absolute Magic - Ross Welford Visiting Author Closing the Gender Gap in STEM International School Award Initiative Taking Sustainable Action Continued Professional Development COBIS, SEASCN, Librarian Workshop Our Inspiring Students

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KLASS Blogs Thinking of Applying to Cambridge

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Our Amazing KLASS Alumnus The Green Knight, Baida Jane Hercus

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ad astra is published annually for the Alice Smith community including alumni, staff, government, business associates and friends. The views expressed by contributors are not necessarily endorsed by the School.

All rights reserved. Copyright 2019 - 2020 by the Alice Smith School. If you wish to be in touch, please email marketing@alice-smith.edu.my.

Message from the Head of School As I near the end of my tenth year with KLASS, I never would have thought to be leading the school during such extraordinary and exceptional circumstances as the Covid-19 pandemic.

During school closure, the teaching staff have been working tirelessly to deliver a high quality learning experience for students of all ages, providing a comprehensive programme under extraordinary circumstances. In the hands of our creative, adaptive and dedicated teachers, a wide range of strategies, online tools and resources are being used to continue to guide, support, enrich and challenge our students. It is wonderful to see how the staff and the children have adapted so quickly and responded so positively to this change. I feel very privileged to work with such amazing people who are unwavering in their commitment to our school community.

Alice Smith School has weathered many very challenging times throughout its 74 year history and I am sure it will do the same this time. The determination to do the right thing, to work hard and give our best and to help and support others is part of our heritage.

The combined efforts of the community

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continue to shape and sustain our school as we continue to build links locally, regional and globally and offer support through a wide range of educational, charitable and learning service activities.

The Alice Smith School Foundation continues to grow in its purpose and potential, thanks to the generosity of donors who have helped and supported us.

Message from the Head of School

It is during exceptional times like these that being a part of our very special Alice Smith School community really shines through, our achievements being testament to the spirit, ambition and determination that is such an enduring feature of the Alice Smith story.

Congratulations to our Year 13 graduates of 2020 on their achievements and university offers and a fond farewell to staff and families moving on this summer. Please stay connected with us through our KLASSics alumni network.

My personal thanks to Dr Howling and Mr Verity who return to the UK this summer, after six and fours years respectively as Campus Principals. Our school has benefited enormously from their presence and I will miss them tremendously. I hope that Alice Smith remains close to their hearts, as I am certain the exceptional contributions during their time co-leading our community will never be forgotten.

The enriching learning environment, high academic standards, the tremendous depth, richness and diversity of school life and the dedication and spirit that we associate with Alice Smith is evident in this edition of Ad Astra.

I hope you enjoy it.

Sic Itur Ad Astra

Roger Schultz Head of School

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Campus Snapshots Play, Play, Play Teamwork, concentration and engagement, our Foundation children never cease to amaze when they express themselves artistically.

Our play-based environment is how children learn to solve problems and to feel good about their ability to learn. Play is not a break from learning - it’s the way young children learn.

Children always have a huge selection of playthings in their classrooms that can be used in a variety of ways; blocks, paper and crayons, balls, playdough, even dolls and toy animals for role play, acting out real life situations and rehearse prior learning!

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Campus Snapshots

Year 1 Adventures to the Zoo Year 1 went on an exciting trip to the zoo. They had a fantastic morning learning about the different types of animals from pandas to monkeys, to tigers and giraffes, as well as some enormous crocodiles. The children also very sensibly hurried past the bees but on closer investigation they learned all about the unique Malaysian stingless honey bee. They were a delight to spend time with, asking thoughtful questions and always ready to take on a new challenge.

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Campus Snapshots

Year 2 Rockets!

Year 2 have been learning about space and celebrating the landing of the first man on the moon in 1969. Titled ‘To Infinity and Beyond!’ their goal was to create a campaign as a class to send to NASA explaining why KLASS children should be the next astronauts to venture into space!

The children spent time researching about NASA and finding out about the solar system.

They made their own fact files about life on a Space Station and even played in their own purpose built space station.

They were treated to a special visit from Dato’ Dr. Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, the first Malaysian astronaut, who talked about what it was like to be in space and were also delighted to be invited to an ‘Awe and Wonder Rocket Day’ at the Secondary Campus!

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Campus Snapshots

Talking Trash in Year 3 Year 3 students have been ‘Talking Trash’ after they were faced with a mountain of trash in their classroom carpet space. The children enjoyed asking various questions about the trash and were amazed by the range of items that people had decided to throw away.

They organised the trash into groupings of their choice using prior knowledge of materials and discussed new vocabularies such as solid waste, liquid waste, hazardous waste, organic waste and recyclable waste.

Here’s what some students had to say:

Dinda, 3I “The classroom looked kind of weird because there were banana skins on the floor! We picked everything up and organised them into different kinds of waste. I collected all of the organic waste and it really wasn’t nice to touch!”

Aydin, 3H “There was a massive dump of trash.

We organised it into materials. It made me think about how much was going into the landfills. I went home and talked to my family about it and said we need to recycle more”.

Matilda, 3T “It filled up our whole carpet so we couldn’t sit anywhere! I was imagining it being bigger and in the middle of the ocean. It made me feel worried and sad!”

Benji, 3S “I enjoyed sorting through the trash and found some weird things like an old swimsuit and some underpants.

I liked sorting the materials into categories like hazardous, recyclable and organic waste.”

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Campus Snapshots

Year 4 Production: Glint of Gold Year 4 took their audience back 3,000 years to the time of the Ancient Egyptians. Set in Tutankhamun’s tomb, they told the story of how archaeologist, Howard Carter and his sponsor, Lord Carnarvon made their incredible discovery after years of searching.

The bewitching tale of Tutankhamun was uncovered throughout the course of the show and the children also revealed some of the secrets of Ancient Egypt.

The children were fantastic performers. They all danced, sang and delivered their lines with incredible confidence and skill. In order to prepare for their time on stage, they created a supportive environment to enable them to perform with such confidence and to give and receive useful feedback They were also lucky enough to have some excellent performance tips from our talented drama students at EP and to have guidance from dance teacher, Clare Lawrence.

“It was amazing and we all enjoyed ourselves,” Carina from 4I said after the show.

“We loved the dancing and singing. It was fun doing such unusual dances,” said Deena from 4S. “I loved the bits that made me laugh such as when one of the hieroglyphs told Hatshepsut that he thought she was just a bearded woman!” Nuha, also from 4S, added.

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Campus Snapshots Year 5 Trip to Paradise Valley In Term 1, our Year 5 students enjoyed an exciting, action-packed trip to Paradise Valley. Not only did they push themselves out of their comfort zones, they took risks and learnt the importance of having a go. Some of the activities the students tried included the flying fox, climbing wall, canoeing, team games, orienteering and abseiling.

Here’s what some students had to say:

“Paradise Valley has made me be brave and come out of my comfort zone. This trip has also made me socialise more. Paradise Valley has been a wonderful experience for me.”

- Kenisha “It was fun, exciting and scary on the flying fox. Abseiling was one of my favourite things to do because you had to do it on your own. Rock climbing was fun because you had to beat your time and it was competitive.”

- Mika “I really loved abseiling as everyone was cheering and supporting each other, we were working well as a community.”

- Pranaya

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Campus Snapshots

Year 6 Cooking Challenge The doors opened once more to the renowned ‘Bon Appetit’ restaurant, made famous by Alice Smith’s Year 6 chefs. Our Year 6 Challenge participants practised for weeks to master a range of delicious recipes to tantalise the taste buds of those dining at the five star establishment.

The students offered a wide range of dishes, from beef lasagna to mushroom bruschetta followed by creamy banoffee pie. They displayed a wealth of cooking skills, which impressed all the Year 6 staff.

Our invited chef, Mr Asse Drouet, was on hand to support the more intricate cooking skills required.

Working as a team, the students not only cooked but also set up the tables, and decorated the restaurant with a fresh and elegant theme. Well done, Year 6!

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Campus Snapshots AIMS Maths Challenge A story in numbers: 144, 36, 18, 9th, 8:00, 2 and 3.

144 students in 36 teams from 18 schools all over Malaysia arrived on Thursday, 9th January at 8:00 for two jam packed days full of Maths with three teams from Alice Smith School participating.

The Association of International Malaysian Schools (AIMS) has been established for several years, but this was the largest primary maths competition held to date.

Children were challenged in a variety of activities involving maths trails, thought-provoking questions, logic rounds and much, much more.

Every child performed admirably and should be proud of themselves. When working individually, they showed incredible resilience and determination to solve very complex problems. They were equally impressive whilst in their teams - listening to each other, sharing strengths and ideas, and working in excellent collaboration. Well done team!

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Campus Snapshots A Splendid Production!

We were delighted to welcome Kerry Frampton, Artistic Director of Splendid Productions, the award-winning UK theatre company, back to deliver a theatre-making residency to our Key Stage 4 and 5 Drama students.

Splendid Productions is the UK’s foremost education theatre company. Led by Artistic Director, Kerry Frampton, they tour sell-out shows across the UK and internationally. Their work has recently been added to the new GCSE and A Level specifications, such is their reputation in the UK. Shared Kerry, “The lovely thing about my job is that I get to meet people - there are people I met 15 years ago who have their own companies now, or chose to go to drama school because we were like “You got this! You can do this!”

One of the participants from the workshop Rhianne shared her experience, “The workshop taught all of us many things about the style of Brecht, and Splendid Productions, which will prove to be beneficial in terms of GCSE and A Level Drama. The experience also encouraged confidence, and teamwork, which are important life skills. There were also many things that Kerry said that will definitely be remembered, and can be applied to many things in life.”

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Campus Snapshots A Shakespeare Double Bill; two tales of revenge, magic and power…

On an isolated island Prospero waits, robbed of his position, power and wealth, he plots revenge for his brother’s betrayal. He bends nature to his will to regain what was taken.

Returning home from battle, the victorious Macbeth meets three witches on the heath. Driven by their disturbing prophecies, he sets out on the path to murder.

This year’s Drama production was a Shakespeare Double Bill of The Tempest, performed by our younger students in Years 7 to 9 and Macbeth by our older students in Years 10 to 13.

Across twelve weeks of rehearsals, over 70 students came together to challenge themselves to explore the complex language of the text, master their performance and technical skills and develop strong bonds within their company.

As always, all the fantastic things about Alice Smith productions were present: responsibility, leadership, collaboration and of course a great deal of fun!

Students across multiple year groups collaborated and formed friendships in a professional working environment. On top of that they followed so many before them, breathing new life into words written over 400 years ago and putting their own unique Alice Smith spin on them!

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Campus Snapshots Celebration of Music Concert and Les Misérables In March we were looking forward to two great music events by our secondary school students. At the beginning of the month, we were treated to some incredible musical performances at the Celebration of Music, with diverse genres and instruments.

Performing music from a range of composers including Mozart, Debussy, Chopin and Scriabin to Billie Eilish and Celine Dion; our students entertained and delighted the audience. Congratulations to all students and staff for making it such a brilliant event.

Our second event at the end of the month should have been a wonderful performance of ‘Les Misérables in Concert’. A completely student-led production from start to finish with our talented students having done everything from holding auditions to running the rehearsals and everything else in between including recording it part by part at home despite the MCO challenges. If you’ve missed it, here is the video link.

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Campus Snapshots Advanced FOBISIA Music Festival 2019 “Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.” - Plato the Athenian Philosopher Ever since the prehistoric era, music has always been a part of people’s lives and to this day, music lives alongside us. What has made it so resilient to time throughout the years? There is an abundance of social functions for music: it expresses emotions, induces pleasure, promotes social stability and expresses what words cannot express which is what makes it still so prominent in modern culture.

This became apparent when Genesis Gan (Year 12) travelled all the way to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam to take part in the Advanced FOBISIA Music Festival 2019.

She shared, “Over the course of a few days, what felt like a painfully long and awkward flight at the beginning became an exciting and lively bus ride where everyone soulfully sang along to a plethora of different songs as one voice by the end of the trip.

The pieces played included the famous “Mambo” from Westside Story, the exciting “Overture - Abduction”

by Mozart, the resonating “Ave Maria” sung by the choir, the “Japanese Tune” which is a medley of iconic Japanese tunes throughout time and the most challenging piece of all the “Polotsvian Dances”

by Borodin.

Through rigorous rehearsals, day after day, we bonded with each other as well as others from all around the globe and by the concert finale, we all felt the same sense of achievement and pride in the music that we created together.”

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Campus Snapshots International Week International Week is an annual event where we celebrate the diversity of our school and explore the variety of cultures amongst students and staff.

The main objective of this week-long event is to allow both students and staff to embrace their cultural identity and get an insight into the different traditions and cultures of the Alice Smith community. This year each day of the week was given a different theme based on the continents of the world.

Monday’s theme was Europe with a ‘Guess the European countries’ game and a scavenger hunt.

On Tuesday, we celebrated the culture of Asia, with the Spicy Food challenge, K-pop workshop and henna booths. We revelled in America through the organisation of a ‘Family Feud’ competition and a Salsa workshop on Wednesday. Thursday’s theme on Africa saw staff and students having a go at the ‘necklace and bracelet making’ workshop and ‘tribal drum’ workshop.

On the final day, an assembly was held in the morning where our KLASSComm team put together a video showcasing the amazing activities throughout the week followed by a Fashion Show.

The grand finale was of course the International Food Fair, with an array of different types of unique cuisine from 29 countries all over the world to try; creating a wonderful atmosphere in the main hall.

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Campus Snapshots Humanities Week The inaugural Humanities Week led by the Humanities Department saw the Humanities Prefects organising a range of activities that proved a great success.

Each day of the week represented a Humanities subject. From History Day on Monday to Psychology Day on Friday, students from all year groups were able to participate in engaging activities at break and lunchtime.

The activities enhanced students’ knowledge and awareness of the humanities subjects. Events such as “A Line Through Time”, where students were asked to arrange events on a timeline and “The Psychology Carnival”, where students participated in a carousel of activities related to Psychology, proved particularly popular. The week also included screening of the movie “Hitler’s Circle of Evil”, a country and capitals activity called “Mr/Ms Worldwide” and a production line activity making lanterns for Chinese New Year.

Overall, the Humanities Week was an enriching experience, with students truly reflecting our Alice Smith values. The events encouraged our students to be independent learners, good communicators and problem solvers.

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Campus Snapshots

Futurescope Our annual Futurescope event comprises a range of interesting and engaging ten minute ‘TED’ style talks by students from Year 9 through to Sixth Form, covering a wide array of topics and issues which they are passionate about.

The aim was to encourage students to take a wider view beyond the curriculum of the different subjects they study. Once again, the presentations were fantastic with topics such as Hard Work vs Talent, The Effects of Body Shaming, The Power of Education, Artificial Intelligence, and The Sinking of the RMS Titanic. Congratulations and well done to all participating students!

You can watch their presentations on the KLASS TV YouTube channel.

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Campus Snapshots

Model United Nations Our Model United Nations ECA students did a fantastic job in hosting the much anticipated KLASSMUN 2019 conference in November and participated in the BSKLMUN conference in December.

KLASSMUN, attended by four other international schools in Kuala Lumpur, was a hugely successful event with many first time delegates emerging as eloquent speakers and growing as individuals. Despite it being the first conference experience for a large number of them, they managed to excel in their committees with debates ranging from Militarism in the Arctic to the Iran Nuclear Deal.

At the beginner-friendly BSKLMUN “Into Our Own Hands� conference, it was great to see delegates of all levels debating and collaborating; with Alice Smith delegates achieving a multitude of awards and honourable mentions.

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Campus Snapshots

Wider Learning Days Our Secondary Campus holds Wider Learning Days (WLDs) three times a year and on these days, the timetable is collapsed and students participate in learning beyond the syllabus. This often takes the form of working in teams, learning about our place in the world or applying skills in an unusual aspect of life.

Many of our Wider Learning Day activities have a pastoral drive to them, developing in students team-building skills, presentation skills, exploring multilingualism and other life skills, along with careers information, and in some year groups, a curriculum focus.

Wider Learning Days give our students the opportunity, not only to develop an interest in the wider environment and community, but also make learning more engaging; building the foundation for lifelong learning.

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Campus Snapshots

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Campus Snapshots Sports Round-Up Our sports teams at both campuses had made impressive and successful starts to the 2019-20 season before the cancellation of many events hit early in Term 2.

Students participated in numerous sports tournaments and local matches giving them opportunities to compete against other schools in Malaysia and around South East Asia.

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From football tournaments to participating in athletics, swimming, basketball, netball, touch rugby, rugby, climbing, frisbee and cross country, to name a few, participation in all sports were at an all time high with some very positive results made possible due to the fantastic coaches, supportive parents and enthusiasm and commitment of all students.

In addition, the first KLASS Lions Gymnastics Club was set-up in Term 1 at the Primary Campus and our Year 9 girls experienced synchronised swimming as part of the new aquatics unit of work this year; our sports department has certainly grown from strength to strength.

Despite a busy schedule, our brilliant team of Junior sports leaders at the Secondary Campus also welcomed 40 students from the Myanmar Education Center for the annual football coaching afternoon.

Our group of JSLA students did a wonderful job in creating a structured session balanced out with a huge amount of laughs and positivity. The MEC students left the session with amazing memories, improved football skills and a stomach full of treats. Well done to our JSLA students for continuing to demonstrate fantastic KLASS values and attributes.

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Spotlight

Learning Continues Despite Challenges Learning through digital media is nothing new at Alice Smith, just as in many modern schools, our teachers and students regularly interact using email, collaborative documents and a host of educational apps forming a rich, varied and innovative academic experience. However, moving to an entirely remote programme is a challenge if not carefully managed.

When the Movement Control Order (MCO) was introduced on the 17th March, our physical campuses were forced to close and our teachers found amazing ways to ensure the continuity of learning for each one of our students.

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Spotlight

Using tools like Google Suite, Classroom and Meet amongst others, the results were inspirational.

Year 9 and 11 parent

Year 9 and 11 parent

‘I would like to say how well the distancelearning is working for my children. Many of their lessons are ‘Google Meets’ so they are able to connect not only with their teachers but also their classmates which is having not only a positive impact on their learning but also their mental well-being. The current situation we find ourselves in globally is new, strange and at times scary but I fully believe that my children could not be educated or cared for any better anywhere else.’

Year 7 and 11 parent

‘I think it is fantastic. The school has done an amazing job at keeping these kids stimulated and providing structure for the day. My kids are also finding it quite fun - long may it last!

I have heard nothing but good things from parents and it’s certainly a big step up from what anyone else is doing.’

Year 10 and 12 parent

‘This online lesson thing is genius...kids loving it, I’m loving it! I thought it was going to be a nightmare but it’s not, they’re just doing a normal school day - you’ve got it so right I must say!’

‘My kids are having very focussed and meaningful face to face interactions and offline study. When I came back yesterday, my daughter said, ‘this has been such a productive day, I love it.’

Feedback from our students:

‘I feel like the google meet calls have been very enjoyable when the teacher interacts with us because it feels like a normal lesson with the same workload.’

‘In the lessons we are given a task, then the teacher is on standby on the Google Meet, it’s very helpful and feels just like a normal lesson.’

The Google Meets have been really fun and helped me with my learning.’

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Spotlight Awarding Scholarships to Top Students Eight outstanding students were recently awarded the prestigious Alice Smith School scholarships to pursue their A Level studies.

The presentation ceremony was held at the Secondary Campus, with Marama Schnitker and Campbell Tupling, Chair and Vice-Chair of the Council of Governors awarding the students.

Scholar James Matthews George who has great passion for the Sciences shared, “Having the opportunity to be an A Level student focusing purely on subjects like Biology and Chemistry presents me with the chance of fully dedicating myself for the subjects I love. Alice Smith has fantastic facilities and great teachers and I’m able to embrace my passion with likeminded people and express freely my love for Science.”

Said Ilangko, Pavithran’s father, “This opportunity will be fantastic exposure for my son in acquiring knowledge, skills and good values. I hope he will do well, and with the help and support from the school, will be able to obtain another scholarship at degree level.”

“Choosing the right school isn’t supposed to be easy but what Alice Smith provides as a school and a community is more than ideal for me to make a decision to where I want my A Level education to be spent. What attracts me are the vast array of subjects that are offered. I have great interest in the field of psychology and definitely have it in mind for A Levels. The school’s extra-curricular and sports facilities are another major factor. As a keen sailor and rugby player, I look forward to having better facilities and support to develop skills in a rugby team.

Alice Smith would also give me the exposure to try new sports and activities that I would not have been able to partake in before,” shared scholar Adri Whittingham.

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Spotlight

Alice Smith scholars will not only receive financial assistance to pursue their studies, but also be fully supported by the Higher Education provision for university application and beyond which is a core part of our Sixth Form package.

The school looks at a student’s academic ability, professional objectives, extracurricular interests and personality traits to help guide them to the right university.

To date, the full and partial scholarships have benefited close to 50 Malaysian students from various backgrounds.

As a not-for-profit educational foundation, we are pleased that our resources are benefitting deserving Malaysian students. This award also provides the opportunity for scholars to learn in a truly caring, diverse and dynamic community.

The scholarships commenced in January 2020 and will run until July 2021. Congratulations to all our Scholars!

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Spotlight Foundation Charity Dinner 2020 Hosted by our students at the Secondary Campus, the Foundation Charity Dinner has been repeatedly praised as being one of the key events in our school calendar. Held at the Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur, the remarkable evening this year saw the highest guest attendance recorded as well as the highest amount raised over the years!

Our Sixth Formers were brilliant from start to finish, whether they were serving, presenting, performing, or working behind the scenes.

Contributing their part, our Year 6 students have once again excelled themselves by creating five stunning collaborative paintings of iconic Star Wars characters. The paintings were based on the work of American photorealistic artist, Chuck Close, who uses a ‘pixellated’ style to make the image appear abstract when viewed close-up. In a similar way, our students were given squares to complete which they divided into smaller squares and then painted and added 3D paint so each ‘pixel’ became a mini painting in its own right.

Their outstanding efforts together with the support of our community helped raise a staggering RM 94,000 very close to our aspirational target of RM 100,000.

The school and the Foundation are focused on creating a sustainable future for our children, the environment and the community. Funds raised are used through service work to renovate underfunded schools, for community development and resource acquisition, as well as a range of wildlife and environmental conservation projects.

Giving will make a difference in the community work we undertake to help others. Thank you to the support from staff, students, and parents who worked tirelessly for months in preparation, and not forgetting our alumni, sponsors and partners for making all this possible!

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Spotlight

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Spotlight Absolute Magic Ross Welford Visiting Author We had the pleasure of hosting award winning author Ross Welford at both our campuses and he was F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S! Ross worked as a business journalist before becoming a freelance writer and television producer, working on shows such as The Big Breakfast, This Morning and Bridezillas. Ross’ debut novel, Time Travelling with a Hamster was shortlisted for nearly every major literary award including the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, The Costa Book Award and The Blue Peter Book Award. You can find The Dog Who Saved the World, What Not to do if You Turn Invisible and The 1000 Year Old Boy, along with the Time Travelling Hamster, in our Key Stage 2 library.

Not only did he delight us with his amazing piano skills and magic tricks, Ross worked with students and staff across both campuses, encouraging a love of writing and enriching their understanding of literature. He entertained them whilst discussing how he became a writer and how he engaged with books as a child. He conveyed his love of reading and how this has inspired him.

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Spotlight

Louise from Year 7 said, “Mr Welford told us how he got ideas to write his books and then we all wrote stories ourselves. A few students whose stories were well-written got special postcards from the author himself! While two classes got to do the workshop first, the others recorded videos of themselves speaking about their favorite books and made posters on book genres like fantasy, comedy, action and adventure, and many others. Later, each class brought their books to Mr Welford so he could sign them. When school was over, we were all sad that Mr Welford had left, but we were also happy because we got to meet him in person.”

Soyka Krupa, our Teacher Librarian at the Primary Campus commented, “What I really liked about Ross, when I watched him with the students, was his easy going and personalised interactions with them, have a look inside the signed books - a dedication and drawing for each book signed! Absolute Magic!

At Alice Smith we actively encourage reading for pleasure and our author visits are a fantastic way for our students to be inspired to both read and write.

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Spotlight Closing the Gender Gap in STEM Education The contribution made by women in scientific discovery and advancement has been significant but the lack of recognition means that our young women often have difficulty in identifying aspirational role models in STEAM (Science, Tech, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) disciplines.

It’s a telling point though that most of our most recognised scientists are men and the achievements of many highly influential women scientists has been ‘air-brushed’ from history.

Only 53 women have received the Nobel Prize or Prize in Economic Sciences (out of almost 500 awarded). On occasion women have appeared to be overlooked when the award has been made to male colleagues working on the same project, such as in the case of Lise Meitner and Rosalind Franklin and only in 2014 did Maryam Mirzakhani become the first woman to be awarded The Fields Medal, one of the most prestigious prizes in mathematics.

“STEAM is more than just the traditional science, technology, engineering, arts and maths subjects on their own - they’re opportunities where subjects combine to form interesting new subjects such as bio-engineering and biotechnology,” explains John Durant, MIT Adjunct professor.

At Alice Smith, we continually strive to promote all things related to STEM. 46% of schools offering A Level physics around the world did not send a single girl to study A-Level Physics last year. However, we are incredibly fortunate to have a significant number of our students studying one or more STEM subjects at A Level. Indeed, the number of students from Alice Smith going on to study STEM related courses for higher education is continually increasing.

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Spotlight So how do we encourage our young women to take STEAM subjects and what are the career opportunities for them?

Recently, we were delighted to welcome a panel of distinguished women from the University of Dundee to discuss this important topic.

The panel session was part of a wider day of STEAM related activities where our students had the opportunity to participate in workshops with the team from the University of Dundee in a range of subjects including Life Science, Art & Design, Computing Science, Architecture and Engineering, as well as a host of cross curricular opportunities bringing diverse subjects such as science and drama together.

In addition, 11 students from across Year 12 were selected to attend the annual STEAM event at Taylor’s University Lakeside Campus. They were provided with rare opportunities and sights, taking part in a broad range of unusual, gripping activities based on an extension of STEM. Some chose the medical path, while others favoured the engineering, mathematical and art side.

“Nothing is worse than missing an opportunity that could have changed your life. And that is exactly what the 2020 annual STEAM event did. It provided an opportunity that changed our lives, inspiring us, unveiling countless more opportunities to come,” shared Amulya Regulagedda, Year 12 Bridging the gender gap in STEM is vital to achieving the sustainable development goals and for creating infrastructure, services and solutions that work for all people and we will continue to grow, nurture and shape our students within the world of STEM.

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Spotlight International School Award Initiative In November 2019, we were delighted to hear that our Learn2Master programme was shortlisted for an International School Award in the ‘Digital Technology in Learning Initiative’ category.

There were a remarkable number of very high-quality entries from outstanding international schools around the world, yet we are the only international school in Malaysia to be shortlisted in this category.

Our Learn2Master initiative is a unique programme developed by the Modern Foreign Languages team to effectively teach their lessons.

Our Head of MFL, Stefan Rodic, describes the programme: “Learn2Master is based on the Swedish concept of LAGOM (balance). We promote a balanced dialogue between student and teacher that centres on two specifics; the ‘Learning Point’ (LP: what is being explored as a class), and ‘Mastering Point’ (MP: identified by each individual student from what has already been explored in class, but not fully understood). In this, we concentrate on learning, balancing progression with sustainability and learning pace. By taking a single piece of work and concentrating on two specifics, our students can focus upon their bespoke learning pathway, strategically removing the feeling of being overwhelmed. In recognising the LP and MP, students attempt goals that are identified, achievable and realistic. The ensuing dialogue removes the concept of traditional teacher feedback, and promotes an online conversation via Seesaw (an online learning platform and app), where learners are encouraged to summarise the commentary given by the teacher in relation to the LP and MP, enabling meaningful reflection.”

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Spotlight

Taking Sustainable Action The Alice Smith School Foundation launched its Be Remarkable Sustainability campaign with an Eco-Community Day in Term 1.

The day marked the start of Alice Smith’s journey of environmental stewardship. The event was launched by YAM Tengku Zatashah Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, Board Member of the Alice Smith School Foundation.

As part of the Foundation’s community engagement, an inter-school community project in collaboration with SMK Seri Kembangan, a local secondary government school arranged through partnership with PINTAR Foundation was launched. Representing the launch was SMK Seri Kembangan Headmistress Tee Poh Wah and PINTAR Foundation’s board of trustee representative, Sabri Abdul Rahman.

The day included a Green Generation Talk presented by a panel of eco-champions - Advocate of #sayno2plastic and #zerofoodwaste campaign YAM Tengku Zatashah, Deputy British High Commissioner David Thomas, Free Tree Society President Baida Hercus, Kloth Cares Najah Onn, Biji-biji Initiative and Me.reka Rashvin Pal Singh; in addition to various family fun activities, exhibitions and workshops.

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Spotlight

There was also the opportunity for guests to contribute towards the Foundation’s Green Thumb Project focusing on three sustainability efforts: Give Life, Clean Energy and Learn Sustainability.

In support of the school’s environmental initiatives, beautiful fabric recycling bins designed by students have been placed at each school campus to create awareness and encourage fabric recycling in the community.

YAM Tengku Zatatshah hopes for more schools to get on board. “I hope to see the environmental efforts grow amongst schools. It can start small, with just one person to initiate by stopping their single-use plastics habit to a school clean-up as a class project.

The idea will then keep on growing from class to a school project.”

Tengku Zatashah’s future hope is there will be more junior eco-warriors.

Together we can make a difference to save our Earth!

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Spotlight

Continued Professional Development Investing in our teacher’s continued professional development (CPD) provides them with the opportunity to grow as professionals.

Sharing knowledge and learning together as a community is a thriving aspect of the Alice Smith School culture that also extends more widely regionally and internationally.

We encourage personal growth and build staff capacity by nurturing a culture of professional learning. Our staff learn from each other in a variety of different ways, in a supportive environment where trust, collaboration and inquiry feature strongly.

This includes learning for leadership and recently we hosted participants from schools in Malaysia and in the region for the Council of British International Schools (COBIS) Aspiring Heads programme, held in our Professional Learning Centre at the Secondary Campus.

The course runs over a period of eight to ten months, combining face-to-face sessions with a choice of in-school projects and optional school placements.

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Spotlight We also hosted the Librarian Knowledge Sharing Workshop, an excellent 3-day programme with attendees from all over the region meeting together to discuss how best to support student learning in the various schools around the region.

Continuing with Alice Smith being the hub of outstanding practice, we also hosted another 3-day conference, the Southeast Asia Counsellor Network for the first time. The conference is an opportunity for participants to engage in a diverse range of workshops and share practice and experiences with colleagues from across the region. The conference topics include Curing Anxiety, Ethics and Cross-cultural Concerns, Working with Families in an International School Setting. Guest specialist speakers were invited to lead and share professional practice.

Our professional growth programme has certainly grown, breathing new life into our approach to ‘lifelong learning’ and valuing the importance of quality staff development.

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Our Inspiring Students

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Our Inspiring Students “If we want to create the leaders of tomorrow, there is no better time to develop our students as leaders than today”

~ George Couros

Learner, educator, and Innovative Teaching, Learning, and Leadership Consultant who believes in inspiring the young to follow their passions while letting them inspire us to do the same

In this issue, we interviewed several of our Sports Captains. Through their display of good leadership skills and love for the sport, our captains are great role models to inspire, motivate and raise team morale during competitions.

These amazing students share their hobbies, career interests and what it means to them to be a sports captain and an ambassador representing the school.

FOOTBALL CAPTAINS Giacomo Ricotta and Ellie Sill Both Giacomo and Ellie not only share the same favourite subject and sport which is PE and football, they also both hope to study Sports Science at university and become nutritionists.

Having pride to take on responsibilities as captains, they put in their best efforts in leading their teammates by example.

TENNIS CAPTAINS Sophia Williams, Henry Haswell and Liya Ow Yeang With different tastes and interests, tennis has certainly brought Sophia, Henry and Liya together.

After university, Henry wishes to pursue a career in law or a political profession having the love for Mathematics, English and Biology.

Sophia’s love for Biology would of course be related to her favourite subject and also in researching genetic diseases.

In addition to Mathematics and Biology, Liya loves Computer Science and Art. Undecided on her career path, Liya will patiently wait and see what the future holds for her.

This compatible triplet believes in inspiring others to play their best game through the display of good leadership skills and love for the sport while working on the strengths and weaknesses of the team.

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Our Inspiring Students ATHLETICS CAPTAIN Lily Williams Although Lily’s favourite subject is Geography, she looks forward to reading Criminology at university and finding a career in Criminal Justice. Other than running, Lily also enjoys touch rugby.

We asked Lily what it means to her to be one of our Athletics Sports Captains this year.

“I think that it is a very important leadership role and with it you can make a huge difference to the sport within the school. I hope that this year I can make a difference to athletics and increase participation in Alice Smith and that this will continue in years to come.”

BASKETBALL CAPTAIN James Chong James enjoys playing music and spending time with family, while at school, he particularly likes to keep himself challenged with subjects such as Maths, Music and Computing.

James hopes to venture in the Business / entrepreneurship world in future.

As a sports captain, James hopes to be able to lead his fellow schoolmates in playing basketball to their best abilities and for them to have fun whilst doing so.

U19 GIRLS BADMINTON CAPTAIN Amulya Regulagedda As a Biology, Chemistry and History enthusiast, Amulya hopes to further her studies in medicine. She feels it is an honour and a privilege to be chosen as the U19 Girls Badminton Captain and promises to help and support the badminton squad, leading them to victory! Being a sports captain not only develops her team-building skills, it allows her to develop personal skills such as communication.

SOFTBALL CAPTAIN Bradley Lewis Having played cricket for 13 years, it was easy for Brad to fall in love with softball. When he was chosen as the Softball Captain - a dream position he was always working towards Brad feels that it isn’t just about leading a team in matches.

This responsibility is also about representing and developing the sport to one that is more widely appreciated.

Brad really enjoys computer science and maths, though he also thoroughly enjoys studying Economics as a humanitarian subject as it provides a nice balance to his other STEM focussed A Levels. Brad wishes to pursue a career in computer science.

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Our Inspiring Students NETBALL CAPTAIN Jil Heinimann Did you know that Jil is also an avid horse rider? Although horse riding is an individual sport, she is also a good team leader as she believes gathering ideas from all teammates will help make the netball team even better. Her adventurous side reflects in her ambition to have a career in Sports Science or Marine Biology.

CROSS COUNTRY CAPTAIN Aamir Shafeek Aamir believes that challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them is very fulfilling. This reflects in his love for physics and maths which require critical problem solving skills. To unwind, Aamir enjoys running at Lake Gardens, batting or playing the guitar to learn new songs. He particularly loves long distance running, as the feeling of accomplishment he gets after each session is fulfilling.

Being a sports captain has enabled him to lead the team forward in training and competitions and subsequently help them reach their goals.

RUGBY CAPTAIN Andrew Thiagarajah Being passionate in rugby and geography, our Sports Captain, Andrew Thiagarajah also dreams big. One of his main goals is to become a successful entrepreneur alongside being a professional rugby player or geographer. Although he’s committed to rugby and prioritises it above all sports, he still enjoys playing cricket and football with his friends.

TOUCH RUGBY CAPTAIN Kylie Compton Working hard to draw her experience of playing at international level during the Open Touch Rugby World Cup to guide and encourage the younger and less experienced players, Kylie, an aspiring chiropractor hopes that one day they will also share the same passion for the sport as she does.

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KLASS Blogs Thinking of applying to Cambridge?

We were very fortunate to welcome Claire Canning, the Deputy Student Recruitment Manager (International) from the University of Cambridge to talk to our students and parents about applying to, and studying at, this prestigious institution.

The University of Cambridge is one of the world’s leading universities, providing a challenging, flexible and individual learning experience. If you have the ability, the commitment and the motivation to study there, you can expect to gain a lot in return. The University is globally respected for the quality of its teaching and research, and it’s graduates are highly sought after by employers.

The university offers more than 65 subjects within 30 undergraduate courses, some of which aren’t offered at other institutions such as ‘Land Economy’ and ‘Human, Social and Political Sciences’. Most of the courses cover the subject area broadly to start with before allowing you to choose from a range of specialisms.

Cambridge is unusual in that it is a ‘collegiate’ university, which means it comprises University faculties and departments in different academic subjects, and a number of Colleges. There are 29 undergraduate colleges. Each college is like a mini campus and acts as a base for its students providing academic and pastoral care. It has accommodation, dining and recreation facilities but it isn’t an academic department. You can study the same program in different colleges, and the University coordinates and manages the course contents across all colleges.

Most universities are only able to offer accommodation to first year students but at Cambridge students are guaranteed a place on campus for three years, which is provided by your College.

Storage is also available over summer and vacation periods, so you won’t have to bring your big items home for the vacation and you don’t need to pay in the holidays if you aren’t staying.

There is a strong Careers office, and Cambridge students and alumni have lifetime access to the Career Service. Cambridge graduates are highly sought after by employers. You can also reach out to the Alumni network to find a mentor or get internship opportunities.

What attributes is the university looking for in future students?

They want to see evidence of your academic ability and potential demonstrated through: • Enthusiasm for your chosen subject • Knowledge of your chosen subject • Intellectual interest and initiative • You’re a good ‘fit’ for the course you have applied for • You have vocational commitment (where appropriate) What is not relevant: • Particular background • Type of school you attend • Irrelevant extra curricular activities Entry requirements are high. A-Levels students will usually need to achieve A*AA for Humanities or Arts courses and A*A*A for Maths, Science and Economics courses.

Not only must you be good academically in a subject, but you also need to show a deep interest in that subject.

The university will look at each application individually, assessing your personal statements to see your interests in the course and referring to the reference letters to see your strengths in school.

If you’re applying for more applied courses (Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Architecture, etc), they also want to see some vocational or work experiences to see that you are interested in the career pathway.

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KLASS Blogs How do I apply?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Choose your course.

If you’re thinking of applying for the Medicine course, please remember that they have a quota of 21 international students - it is EXTREMELY competitive. There are no quotas for other courses at Cambridge and you should also consider new and different options that you might not have seen before.

Choose a College or make an open application.

Choosing which college to apply for may be daunting, but make sure you consider location, accommodation, age and appearance (some are older than others), size (300 new students vs 50 new students) and facilities. It will be your home for at least 3 years!

Check admission assessment arrangements.

Some courses will have additional requirements or tests.

Make your application through UCAS. Applications need to be made early. This is usually in September (for people interviewing in Malaysia) and October (for people interviewing in Cambridge). Remember you can’t apply to both Oxford and Cambridge in the same year!

Complete the Cambridge Online Preliminary Application (COPA) and Supplementary Application Questionnaire (SAQ).

These additional documents allow the university to collect useful information that isn’t part of your UCAS application, and to make arrangements for overseas interviews. You can also make an additional personal statement to support your application. For instance if you’re applying to a course unique to Cambridge and would like to explain the reasons behind your decision.

Submit written work and / or take admission assessment.

This will be determined by the course you are applying to.

Attend your interview.

The final phase of the application is the interview. This is a good opportunity for applicants to show their skills and interests in the course and University/college. Interviews are academic-based and last for around 20-45 minutes. If you have applied in time most courses will hold interviews in Malaysia, though for certain smaller or specific courses, such as Architecture or History of Art you may need to be interviewed in Cambridge itself.

Receive your decision. This happens in January. Cambridge receives between 5 and 6 applications for each available space so if you are unsuccessful, it’s not that you weren’t good enough it’s that they don’t have enough spaces to offer to every single outstanding applicant, so don’t feel discouraged!

We are delighted that four students from Alice Smith have been offered places to study at the University of Cambridge this Sept in subjects including History and Politics, Engineering and English. Remember you can only be successful if you apply!

For more news and stories, sign up for our monthly KLASS blogs here.

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Our Amazing KLASS Alumnus

Meet The Green Knight Baida Jane Hercus Alumna 1983 - 1988

“We need to protect our carbon sinks, restore degraded carbon sinks, and fund the switch to renewable energy and other effective means of reducing emissions.�

The efforts by Baida Jane Hercus, the environmental crusader and Free Tree Society have made it possible for more people to become everyday eco-warriors, one seedling at a time!

Baida is the President of Free Tree Society, a sustainable urban charity providing free seedlings to the public with the long term goal of increasing the suburban greenscape.

Baida was in The Alice Smith School from 1983 to 1988. Read on more for her story.

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Our Amazing KLASS Alumnus Back then the girls wore the gingham all the way through primary, a sore point for me as a tomboy.

It didn’t stop me from tearing across the field every break and lunch to play run across. After leaving primary school I don’t think I wore another dress until I turned 16!

A favourite memory is of the old art room. It was a large, open aired space that smelled of clay and paint. The backdrop was a huge saga tree. I remember having to take bark rubbings and try to draw it.

Two other fond memories are of the furry iron-on letters on our PE kits and the painted jungle mural at the Year 1 dismissal area.

Fast forward a few decades and I enrolled my firstborn there. Gone was the art room, and in its place was a teacher’s lounge! Now, that too has been replaced by the new dining hall and Jubilee Centre. There have been so many changes (no more iron-on transfers and jungle mural either).

My three children have grown up at the school, my eldest completing her Year 13 recently.

Although I can remember what the school was like, the developments do make you feel proud that the school is keeping relevant and is readily and actively improving.

Likewise, as the world looks towards being greener and more resilient in the face of its many challenges, we too need to change and adapt from ‘business as usual.’ We only get one chance to save the earth as we know it. “There is no Plan B as there is no Planet B”, is one of my favourite quotes from Ban Ki Moon.

I truly believe that you need to fall in love with the natural world to want to save it! Half of the world’s population live in cities, 70% in Malaysia. It’s hard for urbanites in high rise buildings to garden and enjoy the outdoors. Free Tree Society was created to encourage people to be green from home. We start by offering a free plant or two, some basic gardening skills, and allow nature to do the rest. The response and support to our programmes have been fantastic since it started in 2013.

Tell us more about the society’s community outreach, partnerships and impact.

Free Tree Society Kuala Lumpur (FTS) spreads the environmental stewardship message through giving away trees for free to green our Earth. Since 2013, we have given away over 36,600 plants to homeowners, schools, marginalised groups, community gardens and wildlife habitats to proliferate planting, to encourage biodiversity and to promote a love of nature.

FTS operates through 3 programme sites, our Bangsar Nursery, Taman Tugu Nursery and an outreach programme called FTS On-the-Go.

Any great suggestions on sustainable activities which we can get involved with.

There are 4 key areas of environmental concern: the climate crisis, biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse, overconsumption and waste, and water scarcity. Of the 4 areas the climate crisis brought about by rising emissions is the most crucial.

We can each play a role in reducing greenhouse emissions at home every day. Divest of fossil fuels and switch to renewable energy by installing solar. The good news is that switching to solar not only saves the planet but it’s also affordable and makes economic sense. We can also stop non-essential air travel, reduce meat intake, and compost organic waste at home. There are many NGOs besides Free Tree Society that teach composting. Growing homegrown organic edibles is the best reward for learning composting skills!

Protecting Our Planet Begins With You! This article is adapted from KLASSics Chronicle - Sustainability issue.

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Primary Campus

Secondary Campus

www.alice-smith.edu.my A member of

A History of

Innovation.

May 2019-2020

No. 2 Jalan Bellamy No. 3 Jalan Equine, Taman Equine 50460 Kuala Lumpur 43300 Seri Kembangan Malaysia Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia Tel +603 2148 3674 Tel +603 9543 3688 Fax +603 2148 3418 Fax +603 9543 3788 Email klass@alice-smith.edu.my Email klass2@alice-smith.edu.my