Patana News Volume 18 Issue 13

Patana

NEWS

TigerSharks Light Up the Pool at SwimFest P. 2 Bangkok Patana is an IB World School, accredited by CIS and NEASC

Letter from the Head of School Greetings Everyone, I recently got back from the FOBISIA Heads and Senior Leaders Conference held at the Tanglin Trust School in Singapore. It’s an opportunity for the 52 FOBISIA Heads and large numbers of FOBISIA senior leaders to connect and network on best practice ideas and sharing school visions.

I always take the opportunity to conduct a full tour of the school that is hosting and I arranged tours at Bangkok Patana last year when we were hosting this large event. What surprised me at Tanglin was their very small land plot and I was so thankful that we have so much space and modern learning environments for our students.

I was sent the hyperlink below last week and thought I would share it with you as it is a very powerful story regarding a Head Boy giving his farewell speech at a secondary school in New Zealand, only weeks after he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and only had a few weeks to live. In true New Zealand tradition he was sent off with a very emotional Haka. https://www.tes.com/news/school -news/breaking-news/head-boygives-extraordinary-end-term-speech -despite-just-weeks-liveA big thank you to Njah and her fabulous PTG team for overseeing such a successful International Day last week. Services Manager Genevieve Ahl and Building and Grounds Manager Khun Prawit also did an amazing job preparing all of our facilities ready for such a busy couple of days. A big thank you to all of our parent community who gave up valuable time being involved in this year’s International Day. Bangkok Patana School hosted our fourth University Fair on Thursday 12th November at the Conference Centre which involved over 100 universities worldwide. We also invited

prospective students from other schools in Bangkok to attend the fair, which was absolutely packed with eager students and parents. Our first University Fair started with 30 universities presenting, so we have come a long way in a very short space of time. Many thanks to our Head of Careers and University Counselling, Mr. Andrew Haughton and his dynamic team for organising this very worthwhile event.

Congratulations to Trinity Jantarach in 4P who won the first prize

among 80 young pianists from the same category at the Churairat Piano Competition 2015 (Category A, under 10 years old). Trinity was asked to perform two piano pieces at a recent Key Stage 2 assembly, which I got to see and she played her pieces beautifully.

I recently came across Bill Gates’ speech to secondary school students about “the eleven rules you will not learn in school.” While it is very business focused and a little “tongue in cheek”, I did enjoy the raw truth about many of the tips particularly Rule 5 and 6!

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a

year right out of high school. You won't be a vice president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault; so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you "FIND YOURSELF".

Do that on your own time.

Rule 10: Television and video games are NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

Have an enjoyable weekend.

Matt Mills Head of School

By Richard Thorp, Head Swim Coach Last weekend over 150 TigerShark swimmers from Year 4 to Year 13 were at ISB for their annual November SwimFest event. Nineteen teams from Bangkok and Phuket competed with nearly 1,000 swimmers in events ranging from 25m to 200m IM (Individual Medley) events on all four strokes.

On Saturday morning the junior swimmers made an excellent start with many heat winners and plenty of personal best times as well.

Once all the relays were completed the team had already established a small lead in both the male and female team event.

When the 11 year and older swimmers took over in the afternoon, the standard was just as impressive and the Girls’ 11 years, Boys’ 12 years, Girls’ 13-14 years and 15 and Over and Boys’ 15 and Over made a big impression in many events. By Saturday night, Bangkok Patana had established a 200+ point lead in the overall team event.

Sunday morning saw all the age groups swimming with both individual and relay events to complete. Some close races ensued and the TigerSharks continued to

win heats and the A Relay teams finished in the top three spots in all their events. Personal best times continued to tumble and by the end of the meet, 13 new school records had been broken across all age groups!

With all team points added, Bangkok Patana had taken the overall team trophy by nearly 400 points from ISB, the second year in a row the TigerSharks have won the trophy. This was a super set of results from all the team and coaching staff and all the swimmers can be proud to see the result of their training so far this year. Next stop is the Feeding Frenzy, in three weeks time.

10 year Girls - Chloe Burkill, 11-12 year Girls - Jasmina Barron, 15 and Over Boys - Anselm Xavier Niamh Flannery (11-12 year Girls), Prin Chantarangkul (9-10 year Boys)

Ton Kiangsiri (15 and Over Boys), Ella Rylichova (13-14 year Girls), Toby Godsell (8 and Under Boys) Millie Ribeiro – 15 and Over 100 Back Ton Kiangsiri – 15 and Over and Open 100m Breaststroke Anselm Xavier – 15 and Over and Open 100m Freestyle, 200 IM Prin Chantarangkul – 9-10 years 50m and 100m Freestyle 13-14 year Boys’ 200m Free Relay, 9-10 year Boys’ 200 IM Relay 15 and Over Girls’ 200 IM Relay, 11-12 year Girls’ 200 IM Relay

By Mike Brooks, MUN Advisor From Thursday 12th November until Saturday 14th November, a delegation of Bangkok Patana students had the rare privilege of attending a Model United Nations (MUN) Conference in the United Nations Building in Bangkok. As can be expected in such a prestigious venue, the facilities were state of the art. Issues such as the question of the use of unmanned mobile machines in conflict situations, the question of the protection and preservation of cultural and religious sites in conflict areas, the question of increasing the economic, social and political inclusion of women and the question of the political representation of minority populations were debated.

Sebastian Walter Young, 13D performed admirably as President of the International Court of Justice where, in a superbly argued case, Pirawat Punyagupta, 11L and Labeeb Hussain, 12J emerged victorious as advocates for the tiny Marshall Islands. They were pitted against the mighty USA

looking at obligations regarding negotiations relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race.

In the Disarmament and International Security Committee (DISEC) Joshua Murphy, 10T was an able representative of Slovenia. The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) was the setting for Saloni Kothari, 12S to demonstrate her abilities in diplomacy as the Delegate for Australia while Jonathan Broadbent, 12J did a sterling job as Delegate for Kenya.

Fierce debate was held in the Human Rights Committee and Dillon Rajakarier, 10G and Suyash Kothari, 10G were always in the

thick of the action, representing Australia and Lebanon respectively. The Special Political and Decolonization Committee (DISEC) discussed the very relevant questions of drug trafficking, minority populations and the threat of terrorism to national sovereignty.

Here, Mark Comer, 11M showcased excellent debating skills as the Delegate of Kenya, while Nafis Mahboob, 11L made telling interventions as the Delegate of Slovenia.

None of this would have been possible without the hard work of the chaperones so a special thank you goes out to Caroline Ferguson, Gabriel Henao, Eva King and Deepa Patel.

Upcoming University Visit University/College

Location

Date / Time

University of the Arts London

Mentor Office,16th Fl., Regent House, Rajdamri Rd.

26th Nov, 10.00am

By Paul Wadsworth, Coach Last Sunday, ten Bangkok Patana golfers competed in the Shrewsbury Invitational Golf Tournament at the beautiful Lotus Valley Golf Resort. On a very hot day, our players acquitted themselves well in the final tournament before SEASAC at the end of the month, with many players playing to their handicaps. Team

captain Doln was a couple of shots outside the medal placings in the Boys’ Under 15 Division, with Jerry scoring a commendable 81 in the A Division from the championship tees. A good day out was had by all we wish the team well as they head off to SEASAC in Malaysia next week.

By Genevieve Ahl, Services Manager Parents/drivers using the Drop Off Zone at the front of school are reminded that cars cannot be left unattended at any time in this area. If you wish to park and walk into school please use the car park across the road at the Sports Complex. Please be aware of inconvenience caused to other drivers when cars are blocked and unable to get out due to unattended cars. Your cooperation in regard to this matter will be much appreciated to ensure this area flows smoothly.

The Drop Off Zone or the Car Park is the safest place to drop your child off for school. Please do not drop students at the front of True Coffee or at the U-turn at Soi 39 as this not only causes traffic congestion, but it can be a dangerous place for your child/ren to exit the vehicle.

By Genevieve Ahl, Services Manager

Block 2 ECAs continue on Monday for Secondary students returning from their Residential Visits. Please ensure that ECA commitments are up to date and accurate for your child. Any changes must be communicated to Transport.

Seatbelts MUST be worn by all students using the school Transport service. Please remind your child about the importance of wearing a seatbelt and ensuring that it remains on for the whole journey. Please help to report any students who do not

wear or take off their seatbelt during the bus journey to the Transport Department or your child can report directly to their class teacher/ tutor. Thank you for helping to keep all bus users safe.

Year 12 and 13 students can make changes to their own Transport without parental consent but please note all changes must be made prior to 11.00am.

Changes after this time or requests at the car park may be denied. Please plan ahead to avoid disappointment and inconvenience to Transport staff and other bus users. Your cooperation is appreciated.

THE ROAR Produced by the Athletics Council

Upcoming Events Monday 23rd November: JV Touch and Rugby (Home) U15 Girls’ and Boys’ Badminton (Home) U13 Girls’ and Boys’ Badminton (Home)

Wednesday 25th November: VARSITY Boys’ Basketball (Home) JV Girls’ Basketball (Home) JV Boys’ Basketball (AWAY) JV Girls’ Touch (Home)

Meet the Athletics Council Started in 2011, the Athletics Council is a student-led council that aims to proactively promote school spirit through organising sporting events. We believe that sports, whether competitive or recreational, are great opportunities for students to interact and unite as a community, without over-looking the importance of having fun.

Some of the things we are proud to have achieved as a council include The Roar (a weekly newsletter aimed to report results, upcoming matches, and celebrate our "Athlete Of The Week"), hosting fun lunch time activities to encourage students to engage in sporting events as a team (such as year-group dodgeball tournaments, teacher vs. students competitions and intramural sports activities). Designing Rugby the annual Varsity U15 Boys - 2nd Varsity shirts to honour student athletes, hosting lunches and assisting wholeTouch school sporting events U15 Girls - Champiincluding the annual Sports Awards Dinner. The counons cil consists of 14 members ranging from years 11 to 13 including our president, Kate Wattanavekin and asFootball sisting teachers Mr Balo and Bebbington.

JVMs Girls - Champi- We alons for future improveways welcome any suggestions JV Boys - 6th place ments, and last but not least…

GO TIGERS!

Thursday 26th November: U15 Girls’ and Boys’ Badminton U13 Girls’ and Boys’ Badminton (AWAY) U15 Girls’ Football (AWAY) U15 Boys’ Football (Home) U13 Girls’ Football (AWAY) U13 Boys’ Football (Home)

Friday 27th November: SEASAC Cross Country (Away) SEASAC Golf (AWAY) ISB Invitational Varsity Girls’ and Boys’ Basketball (AWAY) U18 Boys Tennis (AWAY)

Athletics Council Members Top Row: Beccy Waite, Jasmine Chewter, Emily Mitchell-Storey, Marie Guest, Password Thepkanjana and Alexandre Lacrosse Bottom Row: Satu Penttila, Eshana Pussegoda, Nina Chatuchinda, Kate Wattanavekin and Millie Ribeiro (Missing: Ellen Hagelauer)

www.facebook.com/bpssports

Sport

Team

Opposition

Venue Details

Sunday 22nd November 2015 Football Boys' U15B Saturday 28th November 2015 Badminton Boys' U15A Badminton Girls' U15A Badminton Boys' U13A Badminton Girls' U13A Basketball Boys' Varsity Basketball Girls' Varsity Cross Country Varsity XC Golf Varsity Golf Sunday 29th November 2015 Tennis Boys' U18A Tennis Girls' U18A

EIS Invitational

Away

RIS Invitation RIS Invitation RIS Invitation RIS Invitation ISB Invitation ISB Invitation SEASAC SEASAC

Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Away

Invitational Tennis Singles Invitational Tennis Singles

Home Home

Good luck to our teams who are competing in SEASAC Tournaments next weekend!

The Golf team will compete in Kuala Lumpur.

The Cross Country team will compete in Hong Kong.

Application Closing Date: 22 November 2015 The British Embassy in Bangkok is one of a world-wide network of 230 Posts, representing British political, economic and consular interests overseas. We are recruiting a Community Liaison Officer (CLO) to join our dynamic team.

The main purpose of the job is to promote staff welfare at the British Embassy, both in the office and among wider Embassy community, in order to help make the British Embassy in Bangkok a more welcoming and respectful post. The jobholder will work closely with the Corporate Services Section which includes existing Human Resources staff who manage most of the HR processes such as staff induction.

Main duties · To foster a positive and cooperative wider Embassy and British community: Representing the wider Embassy staff, family and community interests on the Embassy’s Leadership Committee; developing greater sense of connection within the Embassy community by producing short regular news bulletins and being involved in organizing Embassy Team Thailand and cross embassy events; acting as senior Embassy lead for the relationship with the wider British community and taking forward your own initiatives to promote staff welfare and morale. · To assist UK based staff and their dependents (partners/spouses/families) settle into Bangkok: Facilitating a positive arrival, support during posting and enable a smooth departure from the post; acting as confidential listener and source of referral for UK Based staff and their dependents who are experiencing difficulties; assisting officers/spouses from neighbouring Posts visiting Bangkok for medical and confinements; gathering/updating information on spouse/partner’s employment, schools, healthcare, recreational and social facilities; developing and updating welcome packs, reports and checklist; liaising with Diplomatic Services Family Association and providing information for London that relates to UK based staff/dependent welfare and act as Crisis Welfare Manager for all staff being a point of contact for families during crisis.

Essential Skills and Experience · Experience of living and working abroad in a foreign country and the issues that arise. · Proven record of taking responsibility and using initiative, and of excellent self-management, organisational and planning skills. · Excellent written and spoken English · Cultural sensitivity and awareness · Strong interpersonal and communication skills · Ability to demonstrate the following competences: Changing & Improving, Leading & Communicating, Collaborating & Partnering, Managing a Quality Service, Delivering at Pace and Demonstrating Resilience.

Desirable Skills and Experience: * Expatriate Management * Knowledge of Bangkok and Thailand * A good understanding of how staff work effectively within larger organisations * Fluency in Thai language * Good IT skills To Apply: Please send your CV and the completed application form, which can be downloaded from our website at, https:// www.gov.uk/government/world/organisations/british-embassy-bangkok/about/recruitment by 22 November 2015, to thailand.recruitment@fco.gov.uk. Please include your name and job reference CLO in the email subject heading. Incomplete applications will not be taken into consideration.

Interview: Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to attend an interview. Interviews are expected to take place mid December 2015.

Start Date: The successful candidate should be able to commence work early January 2016.

The British Embassy is an equal opportunities employer and aims to reflect the diversity of British and Thai society. We welcome applications from suitably qualified individuals, regardless of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability or age. All applications are treated on me

The weekly canteen menu is available here.

Please check the calendar on the Parents’ Gateway, Student pages and Staff Centre for up-to-date information on school events.

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