Community Report 2018/19
world class education
For nearly 35 years, the International School of Stuttgart e.V. has provided world class education for globally mobile international and internationally minded families. We have supported student learning and we have supported the increasingly diverse needs of those companies and individual families who support the economic vision of Stuttgart. But in 2019, we announced our desire to be a beacon of learning for humanity. We announced that we want to deliver learning for a future filled with opportunity not only for the students in our school, but for learners throughout Baden Württemberg and the world.
our growing numbers of students and even our Director moved into one of the new spaces. We also moved Administrative offices off campus to provide new classrooms on our bridge. But as our Future of Education. Now. vision clearly states, we are not interested in developing the size of our community but the quality of what we do. For example, student collaboration with other schools throughout the European Erasmus program led to the ISS Eco School movement that is rapidly affecting how we think about our programs, facilities and environmentally friendly expectations in how we live and learn.
In a nutshell, ISS is looking to follow Jim Collin’s good to great “hedgehog” principle of taking something we already do well and do it better. At the core of all our coming plans is the belief that personalized learning comes from a place of caring. Our collective commitment as a group of educators is to build on our already caring foundation, to know our kids, have no surprises and to build the mentoring relationships that inspire, challenge and actively support our students and each other to become positive participants in a changing world.
As the Board noted in its vision statement, ISS cannot just make a change, our school needs to make a difference. We want to transform into a beacon of modern education and 2019 was the year we explained how we would realize our vision.
2019 was also the year when we launched our strategic plans to achieve our aspirations in the face of rapid enrollment growth. Temporary classrooms were put in to handle
Timothy Kelley Stefan Zerbe School Director President, Board of Trustees
“Our world will be forever flat if we do not help our young people to re-think about what we have done as adults, they will need all the knowledge, skills and understanding in Science, in Math, in the Arts, in Communication, in Technology, to lead voyages of inquiry and discovery in ships called Hope and Faith and Trust, as our children will seek to change the world, not by running away from it, but by teaching themselves and each other to rethink, reshare, re-distribute and recycle what we already have.” Mr. Paul Morris, Graduation Speaker 2019 2
OUR COM MU N I T Y: O N E S C HO O L TW O C AMP USE S Students
Staff
Greek
3
4
10
Hungarian
4
1
Indian
1
Nationality
Students
Staff
American
200
57
Australian
6
Belgian
2
Bosnian
Nationality
Nationality
Students
Staff
South African
9
2
2
Spanish
12
4
74
4
Sri Lankan
1
Indonesian
2
1
Swedish
8
Brazilian
13
2
Irish
2
8
Syrian
British
19
29
Italian
7
3
Taiwanese
1
1
Japanese
102
3
Turkish
7
11
Korean
38
2
Vietnamese
1
2
Malaysian
2
Mexican
Bulgarian Canadian
19
Chilean Chinese
21
Colombian
1
Croatian
10
2
New Zealander 2
Pakistani
2
1
Polish
10
1
Dutch
4
2
Portuguese
7
1
Egyptian
1
Romanian
3
1
Russian
3
3
Saudi Arabian
7
1
Serbian
62
Singapore
11
Gambian German
204
1
2
6
French
1
1
Danish
Filipino
3
2 2 IN S PIRE . CHALLENGE . S U PPORT. 3
the future of education. now.
For years, our school has built a reputation as one of the leading international schools in Germany. But while we continue to take pride in a variety of successful educational metrics, we recognize that there will always be a desire to provide the highest educational quality possible for each one of our learners. In past years, we had little choice but to cut operational capital to provide for minimal investment for education quality objectives. While we have proudly described ourselves as a “good bargain” we realized that we had reached an operational crossroad where our aspirations are no longer possible with our current income.
That is why, in the spring of 2019, the school launched its ambitious vision for the school’s future and called it The Future of Education. Now. A product of nearly two years of collective reflection, our community has recognized that school 4
“We that th
expectations are changing as the world changes too. As such, we came to understand that if we really want a quality school, we cannot afford the status quo on either campus. As we developed our educational vision, the Board of Trustees and school leadership paid careful attention to prudent and strategically focused investments that would allow us to realize our objectives and vision in alignment with careful growth and attention to annual costing. During the school year 2018/19, the ISS Board of Trustees, the School Director and various committees continued to work with everyone in our community that had helped us identify lasting educational values, to research and compare best practice schools in addition to analyzing economic and educational trends here in our local region. Then in February 2019, the Education Ministry announced a long-term solution concerning our school subsidies. Whilst the subsidy support (5.4% of our operational budget) likely will not be realized until 2020, ISS can now rely on dependable financial support from Baden-Württemberg for our service to the globally mobile citizens and international companies of Stuttgart. Therefore, with strong financial metrics and conservative enrollment projections as a prudent foundation, the Board utilized all of the community feedback to develop a vision and its implementation plan, including necessary revenue development plans, to deliver The Future of Education. Now. As the Board noted in its vision statement, ISS cannot just make a change, our school needs to make a difference. We want to transform into a beacon of modern education.
don’t know (how schools will change), but I like the school is thinking about it.” DLF Student Council Comment 2018
IN S PIRE . CHALLENGE . S U PPORT. 5
teachers share their learning & best practice In addition to providing wider community professional development such as acclaimed Dr. Michael Thompson’s workshops for parents including The Pressured Child and Best Friends, Worst Enemies school leaders and program coordinators learned a great deal from another world renowned expert, Dr. Fran Prolman who continued our leadership training program for key leaders at the International School of Stuttgart e.V. This same focus on leadership was supported by sending six teachers to the ECIS Mid-Level Leadership certificate training program. There were also numerous opportunities for teachers to share their learning and best practice through our restructured meeting times concerning curriculum review and strategic priorities. Teachers participated in online certification programs such as Teach Now and have been working to train all teachers in English as an Additional Language through the TESCM program. The school hosted a conference on Crisis Management, an IB Diploma Math Cluster Workshop, a Theory of Knowledge (ToK) Workshop and sent teachers on training in Internal Assessment and Language Subject training. We also sent teachers on DP Computer Science training, MYP Mathematics training and nine other workshops for a variety of MYP subjects. Language Acquisition educators also appreciated our workshop with Ms. Eithne Gallagher an expert on interlingual studies. This particular workshop was geared towards providing help with our Language Policy.
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es Lunch and Learn: Sharing best practice and Resources where a growing group of teachers gathered to discuss teaching and resources together in our Design classroom. One prestigious recognition of teaching excellence in 2018 was when Head of the Physical Education Department, Mr. Daniel Mendes Pereira and long-time school choreographer/educator Mr. Adrian Turner had the honor of presenting their Dance Unit at the IB World Conference in Vienna. It was quite an honor to be selected to offer this workshop at the conference celebrating 50 years of International Baccalaureate education as the competition to present was very high. Another successful initiative was Ms. Lenny Dutton’s
In all, the International School of Stuttgart e.V. spent nearly 75,000 Euros on individual subject training for teachers in MYP and the DP in addition to the above investments in teacher professional development. Lastly, over 20 of our teachers presented at the AGIS conference. We also had leaders present Creating a Solution Focused Environment; Upskilling Teachers and Students at the ECIS conference.
IN S PIRE . CHALLENGE . S U PPORT. 7
LOW ER S CHO O L S Our younger students on both campuses continue to learn and be involved in creative numeracy projects and we have expanded our exposure to science for all elementary aged students. Math continues to be a point of emphasis and some select samples of STEAM examples are as follows: • A visit to Ms. Sian Ogwen-Jones’ laboratory in the Upper School to participate in two biology classes • Experiments observing human cells and onion cells • Building and testing paper chairs • Completing the German Keltendorf project: Students make a Celtic village in class using typical material. Participating in observational experiments that investigate the interactions between living things and their environments. • Building and examining wind turbines Our school also created the Lunchtime Makers Club to provide the students with a STEAM maker experience through a variety of collaborative challenges. Lower School students also completed the two-year Europlay project working through a design cycle to plan, design and arrive at an action plan for building a playground. 2019 was also the inaugural year for our exciting Lower School STEAM DAY in Degerloch, based on the same practice at our Sindelfingen Campus. ISS younger students also participated in the prestigious MathQuest Competition. 8
steam initiatives
Grade 7 students completed the first Lego League Tournament (FLL) with the guiding theme of Space Travel. Students were required to build and program their robots to solve a range of missions, including launching a rocket into space and undertaking a spacewalk. Several students from the International School of Stuttgart e.V. were chosen to represent the school at a local competition where they excelled and paved the way for students for the following year. In 2020, the school will have 40 students competing!
UPP ER SCH O O L S
MIT E X C HANGE & D E VE LO PMENT
STEAM has also continued to expand under the leadership of our newest Design teacher. We also completed the application and received acceptance for the Digitale Schule certification. Other highlights included:
For the first three weeks of the year, the Science Department hosts a visiting undergraduate student from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology - one of the most prestigious third level universities of science in the world). The visit is part of an international exchange program involving Stuttgart University and MIT. At the initiative of our STEAM coordinator, Mr. Matthew Knight (Sindelfingen Campus), this is the second year we have had a visiting student at the International School of Stuttgart e.V. as part of this exchange. The student observes science classes from Grades 6-12 and supports students in, for example, their planning of biochemistry experiments (Grade 11 Biology). We also aim to use the student to inspire our senior students, especially female students to study a STEM subject at university.
• • • •
First Lego League Tournament (FLL) First Tech Challenge (FTC) Land Rover’s 4x4 In Schools Candidacy 3D printing and laser cutting course at HobbyHimmel. Laser cutting and 3-D printing offsite • MADD: May 27th saw a variety of artists (dancers, musicians, portrait painters, circus artists etc) come to work with our students. Each student experienced four different workshops highlighting our emphasis on creativity and innovation.
IN S PIRE . CHALLENGE . S U PPORT. 9
erasmus+ & europlay We recognize the socio-economic inequalities that many students and schools face in Europe. That is why one of our key mission objectives is to address these challenges by providing meaningful learning opportunities for students and by promoting inclusive learning in schools.
The Europlay project enabled students from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds to become leaders in their school’s playground design. These students were involved in all stages of the design process and traveled internationally to collaborate with our partnering schools in Italy, Germany, Poland, and England. Promotion of learning that includes all students, regardless of their abilities, was another priority for the Europlay project. We supported this goal by providing opportunities for students to collaborate and direct their learning in a safe environment. We also hope that upon completion of the Europlay project, schools would have implementable playground designs; and that through these designs, they would be able to create playgrounds that promote learning within the context of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics.
On the Sindelfingen Campus we highly value and support the languages of our students. We follow our own inter-lingual language learning philosophy and are very interested in the philosophies of other schools and institutions. The Erasmus+ Programme supported our Sindelfingen Campus to compare and contrast different approaches and facilitated the creation of close working relationships with our partner schools in Estonia, Spain and the Netherlands. Our project enabled three student exchanges, each time six to eight students from each school visited a partner school to investigate local traditions based on the season of the year: the feast of St Jordi in Spain (Catalonia region), the Dutch take on St Maarten in Amsterdam, and our own international festival here when we hosted the final celebration in Sindelfingen in the summer of 2018. Teachers also received the opportunity to travel to partner schools to learn about their approaches to linguistically-inclusive team-based teaching.
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pepperdine University, Maastricht University, Amsterdam University of Applied Science, University of Bath, University of Essex, Hult University, Kings College London, Utrecht University, Leiden University College, Swansea University, University of Auckland, Oxford Brookes University, Erasmus University Rotterdam, University of Bath, University of Virginia, Willem de Kooning Academy
future leaders The graduating class of 2019 have gone on to study a wide range of subjects including: Life Sciences, Law, Computer Science/Engineering, Economics, International Business, Aerospace Engineering, Liberal Arts & Sciences, Hospitality Management, Business Administration, Media & Communications, English & Creative Writing, Duales Studium, International Management with German, Medicine, International Relations, Architecture, Human Geography, Chemistry, and Art & Design.
Students matriculated at the following universities in the Autumn of 2019: Warwick University, London School of Economics, Radboud University, University of Michigan, University of Glasgow, University of Amsterdam, American University of Rome, Tilburg University,
In addition to the above, ISS has had an impressive college list in recent years, with graduates going on to study at leading colleges and universities worldwide, including: Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Georgia Institute of Technology, LSE, College of William and Mary, Tufts University, University of Virginia, University of Warwick, University, St. Gallen University, Stuttgart University, Kings College London, Technical University of Munich, University of Science and Technology and Karlsruher Institut fĂźr Technologie (KIT).
IB D IP L O M A Y E A R S P R O GR A M M E
100%
passing rate (world average of 80%)
44% 35
awarded a bilingual IB Diploma
average points (world average of 30)
AVE R A GE SCO R E R E SU LTS 2019 WORLD
ISS English Language & Literature
5.5
10%
5.0
German Language & Literature
5.6
5.6%
5.3
Language Acquisition
ISS hosted its annual Future Directions College Fair which attracted 41 universities from around the world including Germany, Canada, the USA, the Netherlands, the UK, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and Japan. Over 250 students and parents from ISS and neighbouring schools attended, and feedback from exhibitors and attendees was overwhelmingly positive. Presenters were impressed with the overall organisation, the quality of the questions asked and the welcoming atmosphere of the school.
6.2 5.3
17% Individuals & Societies
5.7
18.7%
4.8
Experimental Sciences 25.5%
5.4 4.3
Mathematics 9.5%
4.6 4.2
Arts 18%
5.2 4.4 I N S P I R E . C H A L L E N G E . S U P P O R T . 11
fortytwo points
사십이 ISS Class of 2019 saw 41 students register for the first official IB MYP eAssessment examination session. The first official IB MYP certificates were issued based on June 2019 exam session results and these specific points of accomplishment: • Average points obtained by ISS students who received the certificate was 42 points compared to the world average of 36 points. • Average grade obtained by ISS students who received the certificate was 5.25 compared to the world average of 4.56. • 40% of those who received the certificate also gained bilingual certification, a 12
designation awarded to those students who receive a grade 3 or higher enrolled in MYP Language and Literature course studies. • The highest number of points obtained was 52 out of a possible 56 points. • Reports indicate that our students continue to perform better than their worldwide counterparts, in both core components of the MYP, Personal Project (PP) (a precursor to the Extended Essay in the Diploma Programme) and the Interdisciplinary Learning on-screen assessment. This was the first year at the International School of Stuttgart e.V. that our Grade 10 students had the opportunity to take part in the eAssessments (on-screen examinations and ePortfolios). The examinations offer meaningful and relevant ways for students to engage with the assessments through media and interactive functions. The MYP eAssessments are designed to assess students beyond the rote memorization of content with 75% of the examination focused on inquiry, communication and critical thinking skills. In addition to classroom learning and for teaching of concepts, content and Approaches to Learning (AtL) skills, the school invested heavily in preparing both teachers and the students through extensive support for MYP faculty. Professional development opportunities and a full range of specimen examinations were made available in order to allow students to familiarize themselves with both the academic and technical aspects of each of examination.
"We are very fortunate to have the support of our amazing alumni to inspire our current students by sharing stories of their college life, academics, and future career plans.� ISS’ College & Career Counsellor, Mr. David Tobin
alumni
The International School of Stuttgart e.V. welcomed back four recent alumni to speak to current students and parents about their university experiences. The alums shared academic advice and personal stories about their experiences to date and explained how the school prepared them for success in higher education. The panel consisted of M. Kemmer, University of Bath, BSc Chemistry & Management, L. Wodtke, University of Portsmouth, BA Journalism, E. Massler, University of Warsaw, MD Medicine and Shraddha Mandi, Kings College London, BA/BSc PPE.
I N S P I R E . C H A L L E N G E . S U P P O R T . 13
友情
voices & volunteers 14
The International School of Stuttgart e.V. has continued to attract leading consultants and educational specialists to our school and also continued our outreach to parents and local leaders to help inspire our students with tales of the real world outside our campus. One highlight was the Middle School Job Fair at the Sindelfingen Campus with 25 parents and other experts joining us from our local community. In small groups, the Grade 6 – 10 students listened to presentations and questioned experts from the fields of architecture, international development, art and graphic design, urban planning, the Navy, die Polizei, Design engineering … and more. Other Community initiatives and parental visits include: • Partnerships with Böblingen Sport Verein and Sindelfingen Schule für Musik, Theater und Tanz. • Sindelfingen Town Award: The town of Sindelfingen honored two ex-Sindelfingen Campus / current Grade 11 ISS students, for their service to school. David Kurz received an award for his academic excellence in the IB MYP Personal Project. Philipp Kölle received his award for his outstanding work in the leadership of the Middle Years Student Council and his active participation in the ISS Vision and Values development through Driving Learning Forward. • Bodo Uebber: The Future of the Car Industry
• Bradlie Martz-Sigala: A volunteer for the Climate Reality Project visited Diploma Program Geography classes to discuss the climate crisis and ways students can take an active role to combat it. • Mr. Hans-Juergen Wagner: Managing Director of Advantest Europe, GmbH spoke to students and parents about the changing nature of the electronics industry. • Sports Day Healthy Snack table supporting Rotaract KidsCamp • SchlauShow in Breuningerland - (Bürgerstiftung) teaching the Oberbürgermeister to drum! • Finalizing the cooperation between our Sportverein (SV-ISS) and two local sport clubs SV-Hoffeld (Football) and PKF TUS Titans (Basketball). The cooperation with SV Hoffeld & PKF TUS Titans helps our students integrate better into the local community by giving them the chance to play in a mixed team with local children and experience the German tradition of a "Vereinsgemeinschaft" which includes events like eating at the SV-Hoffeld’s restaurant, participating in several sport camps, summer celebrations and participation in various activities. • Hector Akademie electronics classes, initiated by our Board of Trustee member, Mrs. Laura McMillan • Positive Discipline expert, Ms. Joy Marchese • Two Ludwigsburg Pedagogical Hochschule Intershops (each month) • Take a Child to Work Day where our eighth graders visited workplaces of our expert parents (LBBW bank, finances, real estate management, art gallery, software development, sustainability) • Experts in the classroom, staff and parents: Ms. Heike Kayser, Mr. David Taylor, Ms. Consuelo Palencia, Ms. Timea Gates, Ms. Rebecca Jones-Buerk, Mr. Wesley Godley, Ms. Ilksen Graf, Ms. Britt Christensen, Ms. Zaineb Manager, Ms. Claire James, Ms. Monika Poboq, Ms. Sally Albarran and Ms. Lucy Raeder • A Primary & Secondary Sources Workshop with Grades 5 & 6 was held by Ms. Ilja Widmann (Sindelfingen Museum Curator). • Ms. Eva Schaber, Leiterin Haus der Familie, Sindelfingen - partnership with Summer Camp • Ms. Sandra Richter - new Director of the Deutsche Literatur Archiv and Ms. Heike Gfrereis, Director of Literatur Museum Marbach • Primary School parent volunteers - reading with individual children and supporting the librarian • Mr. Roland Smith, author of Peak, Skyped interview with Grade 7 students • Ms. Petra Wenski-Hänisch worked with the Early Years students on an art project as part of Kids@Kita. The students made a large tree mural and then paintings depicting the four seasons.
• Dance Workshop in Grades 3/4 with professional dancer, Mr. Pascal Sangl • Ms. Jones-Radgowski (parent of two children in school) presented her newly published book and talked about the writing process. In addition to supporting the spirit of communication and transparency, our Degerloch Parent Advisory Council also worked hard with school leadership to finalize a school parental survey that was in alignment with a variety of accreditation expectations and our own strategic objectives. In the meantime, the Parent Council in Sindelfingen contributed important strategic initiatives to our Future of Education. Now. and both the Parent Teacher Group and the Degerloch Parent Teacher Association successfully developed and produced a wide variety of community events with new and inspirational parental leaders. The tireless efforts of the Booster Club to support ISS’s sports program raised over 7,000 Euros for the purchase of sports equipment, uniforms and catering at tournaments. I N S P I R E . C H A L L E N G E . S U P P O R T . 15
DEGER LO CH L O WE R S C H O OL In the 2018/19 school year, the Degerloch Lower School focused on supporting math and design initiatives in addition to inspiring and supporting our Sindelfingen Lower School as they move into the IB Primary Years Programme. The division also revised the daily schedule to limit transition time for more learning, in addition to the following strategic actions and priorities: • Embedding of Morning Math lessons in addition to the regular Math teaching and learning. • Preparations for key changes to the Lower School for 2019/20, including: • German learning for all. • New timetable creation for EAL and German. • Further emphasis upon collaboration and teamwork, especially in the areas of planning for Literacy. • Introduction to the new revised Primary Years Program with emphasis on Student Agency. • Roll out of new Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM)/Digital Learnings for every Grade level, with the new position of Digital Learning Coach. • Completion of Erasmus EuroPlay project, with final action plan for reshaping and design of a part of the Early Years Playground for 2019/20. 16
campus highlights • Hosting of Erasmus EuroPlay project Coordinators from the UK, Poland and Italy, with the Board meeting to affirm the strategic direction that ISS is taking. • Fountas and Pinnell reading assessment further embedded in cycle of diagnostic assessments including Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) in Grades 3-5 as well as the rescheduling of the ACER International Standardized Assessment to February to avoid assessment overload. • More robust follow-up and intervention for supporting children through Individual Educational Goal plans (IEG) and Individual Educational Plans (IEP) for targeted teaching and learning. • Development of Early Years Playground to include rotational outdoor play foundational Science and Mathematics activities including music, mud kitchen, growth of plants and flowers. • Partnership with the Gemueseackerdemie for the creation of ‘Home Grown’ fruit and vegetables for the Early Years children in the new school year. • Further development of teacher leadership with Subject Coordinators leading staff meetings in their expertise including Math, English as an Additional Language (EAL), Literacy and Information Technology (IT).
DEGER LOCH U P P E R S C H O O L In addition to students thriving in our holistic and academic programming, this year was additionally busy preparing for unprecedented growth that we started realizing in the beginning of 2019. In 2018/19 we continued training for key educational leaders and invested significantly in preparing curricula, programs and, of course, hiring a large number of new and highly qualified teachers to address our enrollment growth. Other key curricular objectives include: • Completing the curricula reviews for Maths, Science and Humanities. • Successfully implementing the MYP eAssessments. • Implementation of the Grade 10 new IB Maths and continued programming to inform and plan for the new IBDP maths courses.
• Development of new courses including a process that surveyed staff and students about the possibility of offering new courses in the Diploma Programme. • The development of a new coding course in conjunction with CISCO for implementation in 2019/20. • Reviewed, selected and implemented a new library database EBSCO. • Continued the implementation of EAL training for all teachers in the Upper School TESMC. • Continued development of the MYP CORE/ Advisory program through the introduction of four themes across the school year with the advisory unit concepts being mapped out with sequenced activities and resources for Homeroom teachers/advisors. • Development of a project based approach using Approaches to Learning (ATL)s and Service as Action that creates continuity for both students and advisors.
• Fully designed and implemented set of meaningful Interdisciplinary Units that allow students with an unusual and real-life experience, reward teachers with an opportunity to collaborate but also with an unexpected engagement and responses. Upper School leadership empowered and guided the implementation of the Academic Council‘s initiative Communicating Learning - a three-year project focused on re-defining how we document, monitor, and communicate learning. A clear indicator of the success and validation of the above mentioned distributed leadership is the fact that our Academic Council was invited to present on the design process used throughout this initiative at the International Baccalaureate (IB) Global Conference in Abu Dhabi in November 2019.
I N S P I R E . C H A L L E N G E . S U P P O R T . 17
SINDELFINGEN CAMPUS It has been a busy and successful year in Sindelfingen. Much of our time was utilized in curricular initiatives that continue to allow for greater collaboration between our two campuses. The first of these initiatives involved our preparation for and implementation of the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) Year Five ePortfolios in May and our preparation for the MYP re-evaluation visit in November 2019. Perhaps even more significantly, we thoroughly researched, discussed and implemented a decision-making process that resulted in our decision to apply for candidate status for the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP). Other key initiatives include: • First round of Curriculum Review and Strategic Project Group Leadership, three out of the four projects were led by Sindelfingen Campus faculty. • Implementing Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) Enrichment and Personal Inquiry programs and promoted the development of students’ design-cycle skills. Students focused on reflection, planning, re-evaluation, research, and connections to industry, the community, and the wider world in general. • Further development of the Parents as Partners 18
project, with Take a Student to Work Day, work interviews and Job Fair. • Learning beyond the classroom: Development of the shared campus vision and learning in our local community. Collaborative partnership with the Stadt Museum and 400 Outstanding Women Exhibition and Middle Years traveled to the Swiss Science Museum. • Implementing coding units taught throughout the grade levels through BeeBot, Scratch and Hour of Code. • Promoting intercultural understanding through Assemblies, speakers, professional development, through exploring the UNDP sustainable
• • • • •
development goals with Middle Years students, and continued development of MUNISS participation Grades 6 through 10. The MYP re-evaluation visit in November 2019. Sindelfingen Green Team participation in ISS Eco School student committee. STEAM MakerSpaces: Making Stuff books collections, the Tinker Lab, the Balloon Car Challenge as well as the Clay Corner. Utilizing a donation of 5000 Euros for home and family language books to extend the provision in the Primary School Library. Middle Years’ Service Learning Project: Book Club and Genre Project.
international café Members of the International School of Stuttgart e.V. community continued to support refugees from the two refugee homes in Degerloch in the 2018/19 school year, some of them on a personal basis and many through the International Café. This initiative was started by ISS in 2016 to welcome and get to know the refugees that have arrived in Degerloch in the last years. International Café takes place approximately once a month on a Sunday afternoon and up to 70 refugees from many different countries and age groups visit our school each time.
Activities in 2018/19 included our sixth graders sharing their Caine’s arcade cardboard box games with the refugee children from Helene-Pfleiderer Strasse, a fantastic opportunity to celebrate Celtic culture with adults and children from the Waldau refugee home on St. Patrick’s Day with a Ceílí and demonstrations of both Soft and Hard Shoe Dancing by members of the Stuttgart based Halpin School of Irish Dance and a “Schnitzeljagd” or scavenger hunt in the summer led by Upper School students. We also celebrated the relocation of a couple of families from the refugee homes to their own apartments. The feedback we receive from the people in charge of the refugee homes is that the families, and in particular the children, look forward to coming to the International Café and it is an activity we will be continuing.
I N S P I R E . C H A L L E N G E . S U P P O R T . 19
muniss
The twelfth annual Model United Nations at the International School of Stuttgart (MUNISS) conference saw 450 participants from 25 different schools gathered on the Degerloch Campus. Participants came from all over Europe, including Albania, Greece, Spain, Sweden and Turkey, and some schools even travelled all the way from the United States. Model United Nations (MUN) is an educational simulation and academic activity in which students can learn about diplomacy, international relations, and the United Nations. At every MUN conference there is a general theme, and in 2018/19 the MUNISS theme was Combatting Inequalities. The theme helped guide the Executive Team in their decision making regarding the committee topics that the delegates discussed during the three day conference. The weekend was a great success, full of fruitful debate, delicious food, and happy directors. Old friends were reunited, and new friendships were formed. MUNISS 2019 inspired participants to share MUN with their peers, teachers, and families, to help and encourage the growth of Model United Nations within the school. 20
performing arts
The performing arts highlight at the Degerloch Campus was undoubtedly the Upper School Musical production of A Chorus Line. The professional polish of the dancers, in particular the elegance of their ballet moves and the tight choreography of each dance number, and it was impressive how the students mastered the difficult vocal score with key shifts and changes in tempos. The Spring production of Alice@Wonderland saw a large and eclectic cast who made this evergreen fable come alive in mesmeric form. In Sindelfingen, 26 students (and five teachers) many of whom were first time actors, produced the play HOODIE that featured 17 vignettes from middle school life such as troubles with the cool cheerleader, worrying what to wear for school, confused about changes to young voices and bodies, and troubles with parents.
I N S P I R E . C H A L L E N G E . S U P P O R T . 21
sports The Track & Field team finished the 2018/19 tournament of the season with one second and two third place trophies, 17 medals and two GISST records. The International School of Stuttgart e.V.’s teams collected nine trophies overall in the GISST competitions. Basketball U14 Girls: Gold Basketball U14 Boys: Silver Basketball Varsity Girls: Bronze Basketball Varsity Boys: Silver Track & Field Varsity Girls: Silver Track & Field Varsity Boys: Bronze Track & Field U14 Girls: Bronze Tennis Varsity Girls: Bronze Tennis Varsity Boys: Bronze 22
Given last minute transformational changes between the Council of International Schools (CIS) and the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC), the school’s primary accrediting organizations, the School Director organized a specific task force to look at how the school will move forward with our various authorization and accreditation processes in alignment with our vision, mission and philosophies and the more recent context of our strategic vision entitled The Future of Education. Now. In the end, the school chose to focus our transformational goals with the rigorous and widely recognized ACE accreditation protocol of NEASC. The school also felt it was important for us to further align our newly-defined values with the Board of
Trustees' strategic goals and our long-established mission and implementation of IB programming. Essentially, we want to strengthen these aspirational practices through the school’s desire to make the accreditation/evaluation process something that supports the ‘why’ of our goals such as looking for learning (ACE) with the ‘what’ and ‘how’ we do what we do (IB). While all of this was happening, upon request of the School Director, the Degerloch Parent Advisory Council (PAC) reviewed and revised the yearly parent survey for implementation in 2019. The new survey was to be based on recognized guidelines from external international school accreditation organizations, and commonly agreed internal values that stemmed from previous ISS surveys.
The purpose of the parent survey was to gauge parents’ understanding of ISS as an organization, students’ education at ISS, and their personal perception of the service ISS is providing to international families. After revision and review, the PAC recommended two surveys, a summative and simple survey that was implemented in the re-enrollment process the spring of 2019. The larger, more strategic version was to be implemented in the winter of 2019/20 but will be delayed as the entire community will be taking the full ACE survey in May of 2020. School leadership will commence reviewing staff and student surveys in 2020 to align them to our accreditation and strategic expectations.
accreditation I N S P I R E . C H A L L E N G E . S U P P O R T . 23
Our mission is to inspire, challenge and actively support our students and each other to become positive participants in a changing world. We believe in the importance of: Innovation: Emphasizing creative problem-solving and confident adaptation to change. Respect: Fostering empathy and integrity to nurture a caring responsibility within a diverse cultural community. International School of Stuttgart e.V. Sigmaringer Str. 257 70597 Stuttgart Germany Tel +49 (0)711 76 96 000 iss@issev.de www.issev.de
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Engagement: Challenging and inspiring understanding through active curiosity and individual involvement in learning. Relevance: Accessing and discerning real life connections between intellectual experience and the changing world. The ISS experience inspires its learners to develop a sense of pride and commitment to making a difference. A transparent and reflective partnership between students, teachers and family is fundamental to our mission.