Imprint: February 2017 Issue

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February 2017• Volume 16, Issue 2

Stratford Hall News & Celebrations

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IN THIS ISSUE 3

REFLECTION: OUR SCHOOL AND COMMUNITY

5 LETTER FROM THE BOARD 6

2017 ANNUAL GALA

7

AN UPDATE FROM SHPA

8

JAPAN 2016

10

REFLECTION IN THE MYP

12

THANK YOU FOR SAVING CLARK PARK

13

CLARK PARK DONOR LIST

16

TAIKO DRUMMING

18

SH PREFECTS PROMOTE SEXUAL HEALTH

20

WHAT'S GOING ON AT STRATFORD HALL

22

GLOCAL WEEK

24

EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY

25

IDEA LAB

26

EXPANDING OUR IDEA LAB: PURCHASED SO FAR

28

100 DAYS OF SCHOOL

30

JUMP ROPE FOR HEART

31

FAKE NEWS

35

PYP WINTER CONCERT

36

VANCOUVER ART GALLERY

38

SNOW DAY!

39

GRADE 7 GIRLS BASKETBALL

40 CELEBRATIONS! 43

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GRAD 2017

Dates for the Calendar February 20-22 • MYP Smash Week February 23 & 24 • Parent-Teacher-(Student) Conferences: School Closed Febuary 27-March 3 • Grade 11 Project Week @ Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre March 6-8 • Senior School Drama Production March 16 • Grade 1-3 Musical Theatre Performance March 17-30 • Grade 10-12 Kenya Trip March 18-25 • Grade 7 & 8 Quebec Trip March 19-29 • Grade 9 & 10 Costa Rica March 20-31 • Spring Break: School Closed

February 2017

REFLECTION - SEEING OUR SCHOOL AND YOUR CHILD THROUGH FRESH EYES BY: JASON MCBRIDE, HEAD OF SCHOOL There is a Buddhist concept called, beginner’s mind, in which adherents are meant to see the world around them with an attitude of openness, eagerness and a lack of preconceptions.

Practicing beginner’s mind is one way to counteract our seemingly natural inclination to become accustomed or desensitized to our emotions and our physical environment; both the positives and the negatives. On a fragrant farm or in a rental car where the previous driver was a smoker, acclimation and desensitization are a good thing as they allow us to effectively block out the smell to focus on that which is more important. But what happens when this same process of acclimation blocks out things that are amazing or unique about the world in which we live? What if, for example, we stop seeing the caring actions of others on a daily basis, stop recognizing the warmth of welcome in the mornings or fail to constantly notice our own children’s growth and progress because we don’t stop to consider that our school and our students are not everyone else’s norm? This is where I believe that beginner’s mind, or the Learner Profile characteristics of being reflective, can help us reconnect with the joy around us and (re)recognize just how incredibly lucky we are to be a part of this school community.

Having worked in IB schools for more than 15 years, I am not immune to being desensitized myself. I sometimes forget when I am in the midst of dealing

with a student behaviour issue or focusing on the next steps in a program improvement that although my current day may seem like a 3 out of 10, that the day’s “3” is likely a 7 or 8 at most other schools or jobs. When I read professional articles or books and go through case studies that deal with overcrowded classrooms, unprofessional teachers or student issues involving drugs or weapons, I reflect on how lucky we are to have a community that, for the most part, can spend about 90% of our time focused on teaching, learning, leadership and character development.

When I find myself overly focused

on the remaining 10%, the world seems like a negative place, but with a little reflection on what is good about the 90%, my perspective and outlook shift quite radically for the better.

I have had the good fortune to lead a number of schools where the Learner Profile provides a roadmap for our collective expectations around how we want our students, and wider community, to be. Reflection, perhaps beyond all others, enables us to constantly assess where we are at a certain time so that we can not only focus on where we want to improve, but to also celebrate the successes that

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IMPRINT has brought us to where we are. When I stand at the front doors of the DP in the morning and greet our oldest students, I am constantly reminded about how interesting, capable and “nice” they are; qualities I am sure you will agree do not apply to 16 – 18year-olds everywhere.

But it’s not just our DP students for whom this is true.

I have had countless parents over the years share with me in moments of introspection that when they see their child – whether in Kindergarten, Grade 12 or after graduation – interact with adults, relatives or other children, they notice that they are “different”, more curious, respectful, and - yes - reflective. One of our Stratford Hall parents shared a story with prospective parents at an open house about how his Grade 1 son “blew him away” because after building something, without prompting, he finished and immediately began thinking about how to make it better. He relayed that his nephews or other children that didn’t go to Stratford Hall didn’t seem to do the same. He believed this behaviour was the school’s “fault” … this time in a great way!

Although we are far from perfect – our Strategic Priorities are a road map for future growth and success – I would encourage all of us to stop and reflect on just how lucky we are to be a part of this community. Having worked in schools in other parts of Canada and abroad, I know that what we have here is quite different from other places and my hope is that in taking a moment to reflect on the school, and your child, with a beginner’s mind that you too will be reminded that while there is always room for improvement, what we have here is something quite special.

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February 2017

A MESSAGE FROM THE BOARD BY: BEVERLY GINDER, BOARD CHAIR On behalf of the Board of Governors, I hope that you all enjoyed the Family Day weekend. I trust that you all had a chance enjoy time with family and friends. As we head into the Spring, the Board of Governors would like to welcome new members and say farewell to two long-standing members who are stepping down.

NEW VICE-CHAIR, Board of Governors We are very pleased to announce that at the Society’s Annual General Meeting in November, Susan Christie was appointed as Vice-Chair of the Board of Governors. Susan is the parent of two MYP students and was previously the co-chair of the annual gala. Prior to being appointed to the Board, Susan was a member of the Governance Committee. Susan is also a staunch supporter of the Mission and Vision of Stratford Hall.

We look forward to working very closely with Susan!

NEW MEMBER, Audit and Finance Committee The Board would like to welcome Christian Martin to the Audit and Finance Committee. Christian brings over 30 years of experience within the financial industry to the committee as the former Managing Director at UBS Bank and a certified business coach. Formerly a resident of Montreal, Christian, along with his wife and two daughters, moved to the Vancouver area four years ago. Christian is familiar with the IB Programme as both his daughters attended IB schools. Christian is fluent in four languages, including Spanish. The Board is extremely pleased to have attracted a member of Christian’s calibre and is looking forward to working with him.

RETIREMENT, Board Member We are sad to announce the retirement of Board member, Chris Nicolls. Chris announced his retirement from the Board of Governors in August 2016. Serving the Board for over 10 years as a non-parent Board member, Chris was considered our “Governance Guru”. There are no words that truly express our gratitude to Chris as it is rare for a non-parent to volunteer so much of their time on a Board. Chris had key roles on the Governance Committee and the Audit and Finance Committee. Although his vast experience and knowledge of governance within independent schools will be missed on the Board, we will continue to take advantage of his financial knowledge as Chris has agreed to stay on as a committee member with the Audit and Finance Committee.

RETIREMENT, Board Member Upon his retirement in January 2017, Aiyaz Alibhai had served the Stratford Hall Community on the Board of Governors for almost 15 years, first as a non-parent member, and then as a parent Board member.

During his tenure, he served on a variety of Committees at various times including the Governance Committee and the Head of School Relations Committee. For the past two years Aiyaz was also the Vice Chair. Aiyaz was also a member of the School and Foundation Societies for a number of years. It is incredibly rare to have a Board member serve a community for such a long time and his commitment to the school will always be held in high regard. The Board and Society are both grateful for all of his work!

We hope that you are as excited as the Board for these new changes and the good it will bring our Stratford Hall community. Enjoy your spring break!

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SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO PUT ON A MASQUE TO REVEAL YOUR BEST SELF

JOIN US IN CELEBRATING OUR COMMUNITY, OUR CHILDREN, AND OUR COMMITMENT TO DESIGN THINKING AND INNOVATION D’ORO TABLE

VIOLA TABLE

SINGOLO TICKET

MAESTRO TICKET

10 GUESTS WINE PREMIUM SEATING FIRST TO DINE OTHER PERKS

10 GUESTS WINE

WINE

FOR TEACHERS WINE

$2,750 $1,750 $175

$100

WHAT: GALA 2017 WHERE: THE ITALIAN CULTURAL CENTRE WHEN: SAT. MARCH 11 @ 7PM WHY: TO SUPPORT OUR CHILDREN’S SCHOOL TO MINGLE WITH OTHER PARENTS TO RAISE MONEY FOR THE IDEA LAB

VISIT SHANNUALGALA.COM FOR MORE DETAILS PAGE 6

February 2017

AN UPDATE FROM SHPA

Xīnnián kuàilè! (Happy Chinese New Year!)

Our first Fun Friday of the year was held on November 25, 2016. The SHPA organized a cosmic Bowling event at Grandview Lanes. We had a healthy contingent of 46 Junior School students, four Senior School student leaders and six parent helpers. The afternoon went by like a flash of neon light, and the students had an outstanding time.

Thank you to the following parents and staff who accompanied us: Amit Venugopal, Kristen George, Mike Tran, Nenah Ida, Ron Cheung, Steve Naylor and Ms. Yeung. You were all supremely patient and just as energetic as our students!

Thank you to the following senior school student volunteers who displayed amazing leadership skills: Natasha C., Sarah H., Khalid A., and Dante S. Your continued commitment to caring for and demonstrating principled behavior to the youngest members in our community is greatly appreciated and admired.

On December 2nd, 2016, the SHPA and Community Development team hosted the annual SHPA Kidz Craft Fair with a whopping 54 student vendors! The MYP gym was filled with excitement from the bustling shoppers and enthusiastic vendors. In a single hour, our students raised over $3,100 with all proceeds going towards the IDEA lab. Great things happen when our community gathers together to empower our students to take ownership of their school – students and parents alike should feel very proud of this student-driven fundraising accomplishment!

We are already putting in place SHPA initiatives for the end of the school year and beyond. If you are curious about how to get involved in the greater school community, please contact Stratford’s Manager of Advancement, Jennifer Yeung or SHPA President, Angelique Schnerch.

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JAPAN 2016 BY: VANESSA TAM, SENIOR SCHOOL MATH AND SCIENCE TEACHER Over the November Break, twentyfour Grade 8 & 9 students enjoyed an incredible 10-day trip to Japan where they reconnected with the students from Tamagawa University. Their excitement was immediately evident as a quick trip to 7-11 and breakfast at McDonalds on the first day prompted them to proclaim that “Japan is the best!”. The students were very openminded and curious about Japanese culture as they were

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fortunate to experience first-hand what a typical day of a Japanese student was like. Stratford students learned to manage the hustle and bustle of each train commute, experienced eating lunches in bento boxes, and recognized the importance of punctuality.

by visiting numerous temples, participating in a tea ceremony, riding the bullet train, and staying in a traditional Japanese hotel which consisted of sleeping on tatami mats, soaking in an onsen, and eating meals while wearing a yukata.

After two full days at Tamagawa University, students explored the rich culture that Japan offers in Tokyo and Kyoto

There is an abundance of highlights and memories captured on this trip. Here are some of the students’ favourites.

February 2017 Estella P.- Together the Stratford Hall and Tamagawa students created friendships, jokes, and bonded. It was incredibly difficult to say goodbye to the people that let us into their homes and lives and made us feel like family.

Sophia C. - One of the most beautiful sights in Kyoto is Kinkakuji, known in English as the Golden Temple. As the name suggests, the temple is covered in gold, making it a truly unique experience. The temple was built on the edge of a small lake, so that the image of the temple reflects perfectly on the surface of the lake.

Kiran D. - I was so fascinated with the Golden Temple because of the history behind it. For instance, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was the third shogun of the Muromachi period. He liked the area and decided to buy it from the Saionji family in 1397. There was also a 600-year-old tree in the area around the temple. Just think about that. That’s more than three times the age of Canada! That single tree has more history than our whole country does.

Alia B. - During our stay in Kyoto we stayed at a traditional Japanese style hotel called the Oharano Sato Hotel. I found that this hotel gave us a new experience and created a new found sense of community as meals took place in a joined dining room which kept with the traditional Japanese theme of the hotel.

Priya C. - In Arashayama, there were over twenty monkeys in the sanctuary, a few were tiny baby monkeys, but most were grown monkeys. The monkeys were small, furry and had red faces. These monkeys were very playful.

Cyrus K. - This was my second time going to Japan with the school. Although we followed a very similar itinerary, I can still say that the trip was just as fun and intriguing as the first time. We got to reunite with the friends we made at Tamagawa’s IB school, which made fitting in with our homestay families and Japanese classes that much easier.

Audrey K.- I would’ve never thought it was possible to form such a strong connection with people who barely speak the same language as you. In such a short period of time, we made friendships that I hope will last a lifetime and memories I hope I never forget.

Jack W. - We went stand-up paddle boarding in an old Japanese town called Kamakura. We started to paddle until we realized the wind was stronger than usual and we looked back to see how far we had gone and looming over us was the huge snowcapped silhouette of Mount Fuji.

Aysha M. - I was amazed at how diverse the Japanese culture is. My amazement continued as my understanding of the culture expanded over the following week.

Annika C.- There were many opportunities to strengthen old friendships and to make new ones. Having a sense of familiarity in the school really helped me know where the locations of the classes were, and understand the customs of Japan.

Avery A. - I learned how Japanese people stay so much cleaner with less garbage cans and how the people treat each other. The Japanese culture is very kind and the people in Japan are very quiet in public.

Sarah S. - My favourite experience of the trip was going to Tamagawa school with our homestays. I enjoyed spending the day with my homestay and the other Japanese students. It was really cool to experience a school in another country.

Tia H. - I enjoyed absolutely every experience on this Japan trip. However, one of my favourite things that I did was going to Disney Sea. A lot of people might say that it doesn’t really demonstrate the Japanese culture, but it’ll definitely be a day I will remember for the rest of my life because I got to bond with my homestay and the other homestays and strengthen our relationship.

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REFLECTION IN THE MYP BY: SARAH PHILLIPS, MYP COORDINATOR

Reflection is woven throughout the Middle Years Programme. At the very core of the programme, as in DP and PYP, being reflective is one of the 10 Learner Profile attributes that we cultivate in our students. Similarly, developing specific reflection skills is one of the Approaches to Learning skills that is developed across the IB continuum. The ability to reflect in discipline-specific ways is also embedded in many of the MYP subject areas. For example, in English, students are taught to “produce texts that demonstrate insight, imagination and sensitivity while exploring and reflecting critically on new perspectives and ideas arising from personal engagement with the creative process” (Criterion C). In their arts courses, they “create an artistic response that intends to reflect the world around them” (Criterion D) and in the sciences, students regularly reflect on the implications of science (Criterion D).

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Design and PE/OEE courses address reflection in even more detail. In PE/OEE, students develop the ability to “explain and demonstrate strategies that enhance interpersonal skills; develop goals; apply strategies to enhance performance; and analyze and evaluate performance” (Criterion D).

In design (including courses such as, theatre tech, coding, film and creative writing), students learn to “design detailed and relevant testing methods, which generates data to measure the success of the solution; critically evaluate the success of the solution against the design specification; explain how the solution could be improved; and explain the impact of the solution on the client/target audience.”

(Criterion D).

With this variety of reflective skills permeating the whole program, and embedded in subject-specific objectives and assessment criteria, students get regular practice and feedback about the development of this essential skill set. Moreover, because the ability to reflect is explicitly stated among the learning objectives, and therefore included in the assessment framework, it is something that is intentionally taught, rather than something that is implicitly expected.

Another benefit to having reflective skills explicitly taught and assessed is that they are also intentionally scaffolded so that students develop reflective

skills in age-appropriate ways.

For example, when students begin doing research in MYP humanities, they learn to “reflect on the research process and results”. Students build on this skill throughout the program so that they can “evaluate the research process and results” as they continue to mature.

At Stratford Hall, we also set the development of reflective skills in our approach to reporting.

In the MYP, there are a few ways that students take more control in the process of their learning, and in communicating about it with their parents. For example, as students mature, it becomes more appropriate for them to speak directly with their parents and teachers about their progress. Consequently, MYP students are invited to attend parent-teacher conferences.

While it makes the terminology a bit more cumbersome (parentteacher-student conferences), it gives students more agency and responsibility in their school experience. Similarly, students in Grades 6 and 7 complete a detailed self-assessment exercise at the end of each reporting period. This informs the homeroom teacher’s assessment and anecdotal comment. As students transition into the Senior School, they build on this practice by writing their own descriptive comment, which is then edited and finalized by their advisor.

Engaging students in regular reflection, and equipping them with a variety of reflective

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skills and strategies has many benefits. In general, when students reflect, they become more aware of their progress and the habits and strategies that are most effective for them.

When students develop subjectspecific reflective skills in a range of contexts, they develop a broader concept of what reflection is. Students also gain a varied skill set for reflecting in different situations, allowing them to take control of their progress in multiple dimensions of their lives.

Students make the most progress when there is a partnership between their family and school. There are a few significant ways that families can support the development of reflective skills.

Most importantly, families must acknowledge the central role of honesty and vulnerability in reflection. Parents and teachers are constantly asking students to learn new things while being evaluated throughout the process. For adults, this would be like taking on new responsibilities at work while having constant performance reviews - a stressful situation indeed! Families can help to alleviate some of that stress by promoting a growth mindset. If students are afraid to make mistakes, they are less willing to tackle challenging goals (some of which are set for them in the MYP rubrics).

When students are afraid to acknowledge their mistakes, they are less able to identify opportunities for improvement. Conversely, if mistakes are understood as central to the learning process, students are safe to reflect openly and honestly, allowing them to make purposeful changes to accelerate their progress.

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THANK YOU FOR SAVING CLARK PARK BY: JENNIFER YEUNG, MANAGER OF ADVANCEMENT On Tuesday, November 1st, 2016, our amazing Stratford Hall students, parents, staff and faculty helped the school give back to our East Van Community by raising over $350,000 to #SaveClarkPark. Our one day give saw 100% participation from our students, faculty and Board who showed their IB spirit and the importance of reaching inward to reach out. Our students from K-12 held lemonade and samosa stands, participated in bake sales, wrote stories, sold oranges, told friends and families, organized a candy-buyback program, collected bottles, donated the change in their piggy banks, and made posters and videos— all to show their belief and love for our Clark Park playground. The strength

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of our community and Stratford Hall’s ability to mobilize and support our students certainly showed on the first sunny Tuesday in November.

Thank you to the Board — for reaching 100% participation first — and to our incredible staff Thank you to the Board — for reaching 100% participation first — and to our incredible staff for their enthusiasm and constant smiles every Tuesday in October as they donned their orange t-shirts. A special thank you to the Dhanda and BurseyEndo, and Tsogas families for their exceptioanl support, as well as Nathan Slee for building us our website; and Tina Heywood and her team of volunteers who collected, sorted and dropped off

hundreds of bottles each week – Thank you!

To the countless parent volunteers and class reps who helped hand out items and encouraged their children to think of ways they could support this initiative, you make our community strong and our hearts full. To our students who participated in making #SaveClarkPark a success, we applaud all of you and say:Thank You! We can’t wait until the newly re-imagined East Clark Park is opened in the fall of 2017!!

February 2017

THANK YOU FOR SAVING CLARK PARK Below is a list of all the families who have supported #SaveClarkPark by directly donating to the fund. Should there be any discrepancies or misspellings, please let Jennifer Yeung know as this list will serve as the donor list for the 2016-2017 Report to the Community. THANK YOU for supporting our students!

Salim and Shaina Adatia Tolu Adegboye Manuj and Mandeep Aggarwal Jameel and Sharifa Ahamed Almoallim Family Kai Alderson and Tobi Davidge Zara Alibhai and Family Willud Ali and Sarah-Jane Anand Dr. Alissa N. Antle Robert and Elizabeth-Anne Armstrong Bali Athwal Craig and Eva Atkinson Alan and Gloria Au Tim Au and Kelly Tsai Manjinder and Saranjit Bains MB Karim and Karima Bhimani The Bhura Family Guido and Cindy Biemold Oliver Aldridge and Rita Biermann Bob Birdi and Mahnia Madan Dan and Diane Blue Daniel and Rosa Bosa Mark Brady and Naina Sloan Noam & Elan Bregerf Scott Bell and Natasha Broemling Christopher Buchner and Todd Bell The Budhwani Family David Bursey Paul and Carole Burtwistle David and Carolyn Cameron Carmichael-Walker Family Charlie and Flora Chan Owen and Kristen Chan Keith and Emily Chan Peter and De-Ann Chan Raymond Chan Stephen and Elaine Chan William and Emaly Chan Fred Chang

Geoffrey Chong and Waylin Cheng Ron and Daisy Cheung David and Carol Chiang Toby Chu and Kelly Chiu Huy and Miranda Chiu Alex Phung and Rachel Choi-Phung Larry and Patricia Chong Denny and Leila Chow Susan Christie David and Valerie Christie Anthony Chu and Anita Hui Christopher Chum and Glenda Hendson David and Katharina Coleman Stefan Buitelaar and Joely Collins Jeffrey and Ada Conatser Roger Cross and Josie Jacob Cross Steven and Shelina Cross Anonymous Nechhia DeKryger Thomas Westlake Jimmy and Melinda Der Dhar and Harv Dhanda Neeta Dhanda Meera Dhanda Karim and Ashifa Dhanji Anh Tuan Do and Liz Tran Greg and Karen Dosen James and Michelle Douglas Jane Edgar Olivia Eng Harvey Zhang and Jane Fan Frank and Barbara Faugno Michelle J. Liu Glenn Friesen and Yanlin Liao Christopher and Julie Frketich Patrick Fung Mathew George and Gracen Chungath Sukhjeevan and Amandeep Gill Jag and Sonny Gill

Navi Gill Dave Sangha and Beverly Ginder Satwant Ginder Timothy and Baljinder Girn Robert and Maureen Goldblatt Jeff and Nancy Gravistin Rajbir and Mini Grewal Kevin and Tricia Grzybowski David and Jennifer Gunasekera Rajveer Atwal and Meena HansAtwal Kevin Leung and Emi Hashimoto Tia and Josh Haughian Matthew and Alexandra Haussmann Philip and Tina Heywood Yoshiaki and Nenah Hiraoka Anthony and Jennifer Ho Dave Howard and Shalini Verghese Winnie, Ming & Ansel Hsu Susie Jagpal Sam and Farah Jamal Sophia and Keira Jamal Nazira Jamani Ming, Marie Louie, Andrew and Caleb Jang Mateo and Nico Ramji Jetha The Jhalli Family Nevada Mohammed and Calle Johnson Phil and Peggi Jones Byron and Josephine Jung The Kai Family Perry Saran and Rupi Kaila Mandeep Kalan Neha Senghera Kalan Simmie Kalan Mandeep Dhaliwal and Koml Kandola Sewa and Dusteen Kang

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IMPRINT Jamila and Tamiz Kanji Rouzanna Karapetian Yasmin Kassam Robert and Jill Kates Graham and Jennifer Kedgley Tony and Rebecca Keung Ravinder and Manbir Khera Tess Rawa-Knighton Aleksandar and Ivana Kragl Jennifer Kramer Tim and Janice Kwok Mike and Wendy Kyer Shawn Winstanley and Karen Lai Sunny Leung and Lai Ha Lam Lisa Lam Kelvin Chu and Pauline Lam Alex Lau and Anna Kaye Dr. Jason Lau and Shae Hui Victor Pang and Angelee Lee Harry and Elaine Lee Julian and Cynthia Lee Harold and Maegen Leishman Jeremy and Cindy Leung Anonymous Tom Syer and Tamara Little Lawrence and Lisa Liu Lei Zhang and Mei Long Sophia Low Simon Wong and Wendy Louie Raymond Weind and Lauren Lowe Kester Lo Samantha MacKinnon The Madhany Family Aria Magnusson's Family Gary Mah Fayaz & Salima Manji Samir Manji Michael Wulff and Shannon Mann Echo Mar John and Lee Marinelli Derek and Nadine May David McLaren Mark Mehrer and Ye Chu Jeff Gravistin and Nancy Mitenko Nevada and Calle Mohammed Barry and Laura Moriarty Qing Qiu Muyu and Lavinia Wen Brian and Yvonne Nann PAGE 14

Greg Stanford and Ghita Ohm John and Sharon Ong The Ottahal Family Magnus and Renee Pau David Perry and Ritu Mahil Dino and Neda Pessione Jagdeep and Jaskanwal Phandal Steven Pii and Sandra Lee Anonymous Glen Powell and Dawne Bringeland-Powell Victoria Prevot Prosser Webber Family Riki Puri and Arthi Mathur The Quennec Family James Wang and Jennifer Qiu The Finney/Ramsay Family Ravi and Manpreet Rawan Jackie Reid Dave and Julia Robbins Ian CavĂŠn and Judy Rochette Craig and Charlene Rodrigues Kirk and Michelle Romero Michael and Sarah Rowley Jessica Rudd Claudia Ruitenberg and Ann Chinnery Franco Addante and Neda Sabbaghian Akash and Raj Sablok Cameron McLellan and Rikia Saddy Baldev and Nav Sanghera Lahkbir Saond Rupi Kaila & Perry Saran ASI Accounting Services Inc. Isaiah and Esme Yang Doyle Bauman and Alyssa Schottland-Bauman Rob and Bimmie Senghera The Shahi Family Lesley Shannon The Shieh-Harvey Family Evan Shotropa and Lori James Istvan Sinka and Katalin Ildiko Torok Sinka Ed & Shawna Siqueira The Kwan Family

Nathan Slee and Merel Veldhuis Don and Shawna Soo Alan and May Soon Todd Raine and Sarah Jane Swartz Thomas and Gavriella Szigeti Whitman Lee and Maggie Tam Victor Tam and Helen Hodgson Tam Tam Vindy Teja Summer and David Telio Ivor and Ivy Ting Marchesa Chan Kevin and May Tong Mike and Liz Tran Vance Tsai and Caitlin Springate Stathis and Vivian Tsogas Andrew and Valerie Tsui Jagdeep and Bandna Ubhi Patricia Vanstone Vadim Gorzhiy and Svetlana Velikoredchanina Amit Venugopal and Liliana Posada Jayin and Dilan Verma Mehboob Virani Bruce Voyce and Leanne Barden Timothy Walker and Baljinder Girn Anonymous Gang Lu and Vivian Wang Chris and Darlene Webber Richard and Kathryn Webster James Wilkie and Kelly Tremblay Peter and Elizabeth Wilkins Nicholas and Kylie Williams Kenneth Hui and Anne Wong Douglas Wong and Tracy Kwan Simon and Janice Wong Final Choice Holdings Inc Jeffrey and Charmain Wong Judson and Maggie Wong Shawn and Mariko Wowk James Smeaton and Kelly Wu Dennis Xi and Tina He Wei Xu and Hong Ji Sofia Xu Craig Yamashiro and Lisa Mah

February 2017

Rui Yang and Haixia Lu Nico Yao Edward Chau and Susan Yau Will Wong and Angie Yee Anthony and Winnie Yen Edward and Eugenie Yeung The Yeung Family Jennifer Yeung Faith, Grace & Hallie Young Guido Biemold and Cindy Yu The Tang Family Wayne and Wendy Zhang Yujun Zhu and Helen Wu Diane Srivastava and Tania Zulkoskey Shamsh and Karima Kassam Karim and Rehana Kassam Gabi and Mateo Walsh Front and Company Ruth Real Estate BMO Bugaloo Academy Limited Scott Trebilcock and Anna Lim Teresa Gilles Karim and Farzana Kherani Ruth and David Group Charles Flavelle Metro Printers Steve and Katherine Naylor Omicron

Yujie Chen and Cris Horng Alex Lee and Camilla Qiu West Bank The McCarthy Family Jason McBride and Samantha Gayfer-McBride Leagh Wong Cathy Kwan Curtis Peever Front and Company Cedric and Felice Ho Judy Bai Greta Bartsch Candice Birch Lisa Blachut Stephanie Bosello Emily Browning Rick Campanella Liza Capdecoume Lindsay Causey Mike Cosford Catherine Daniel Melissa Falabella Feda Ghaleb Christine Giesbrecht Lupe Gomez Boyd Grealy Kelsey Hayre Sylvana Herrera Stefania Iacchelli

Tatjana Jensen Gareth Jones Dave Knight Akriti Kochher Paulina Lam Olivia Law Amanda Lempriere Dan Lin Gill Louie Spencer Mackoff Michael McGuire Tristan Henderson The Morozov Family Bobby Nishi Dion Norman Kyle Nystad Meg Penafiel Sarah Phillips Dragana Radmanovic Sarah Ridell Dave Ritchie Andrea Ryan Sarah Sakaki Sukh Sandhu Caitlin Shepard Mr. Skipper Sylvia Star Carmen Stephen -Patel Vanessa Tam Rory, Layla, and Casey Turnpenny-Sills Mike Twaites Cristina Uroni Aliya Virani Naomi White Brett Williams Bev Williams Best

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TAIKO DRUMMING BY: BOYD GREALY, MUSIC TEACHER Before I became a teacher at Stratford Hall, I was a professional musician. One group I worked with was a taiko drumming group called, Uzume Taiko. We worked together to build this group over the course of 15 years. As a result of the demands of teaching, I am unable to play with Uzame Taiko as often. That said, I occasionally play some gigs with them when I have time; usually in the summer months.

a concert at the Vancouver Playhouse.

Uzume Taiko has played pretty much everywhere. I’ve been fortunate enough to see every nook and cranny of BC and much of the world. Once I became a teacher, I would continuously wish that Uzame Taiko would play locally in Vancouver so Stratford Hall students could watch, and even participate in the show. Well folks, my wish has come true; Uzame Taiko will be performing

The one stipulation before students started training was that they needed to be committed to the rehearsal schedule. Uzume Taiko’s performance expectation is more difficult and precise than performance expectations in the music classroom — expectations these students can learn from. I’m very glad these particular students made a commitment to this

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This performance is a great opportunity for Stratford Taiko drumming students to perform on a large stage in front of a big crowd. The Vancouver Playhouse is a great theatre in downtown Vancouver, where some of our students are being risk-takers and challenging themselves to perform.

concert: Adam G., Claudia C., Alina D., Kiran D., Kurtis L., Cyrus K., Arnima S., and Grace O. Commitment is tough at this age as students have busy lives and I’m thankful that this group has stuck with it.

These students dedicated two lunch hours a week to rehearsals as they are working hard to learn material for two Uzume Taiko compositions. To add to this schedule, they now have full troupe rehearsals on weekends.

Not only will they experience the rehearsal process with Uzume Taiko, they will also meet and perform with other collaborators that Uzume is working with, such as professional dancer/ choreographer Chenxin Wei, founder of the Moving Dragon Dance Company and a regular teacher/choreographer at The Lorita Leung Dance Company In the show, Lorita Leung Dance

February 2017 Company will perform two pieces choreographed by Chenxin set to Uzume Taiko’s live music. He has asked if our students would be interested in taking part in one of the dance pieces. The music is a Taiko piece about the first native explorers navigating the oceans in human powered vessels, such as canoes and kayaks. Chenxin will choreograph dancers using water sleeves (you’ll have to be there to see them) and Stratford students will stylistically row in silhouette across the stage. Understandably, some of the students are currently on the fence about this, but you have to step out of your comfort zone at some point. I’m sure they will hear this question, are you being a risk-taker?

It would be wonderful to have the Stratford Hall community show support for the effort and commitment made by these students. If you would like to attend the show, it is on Friday, March 17th, 2017 at The Vancouver Playhouse starting at 8PM. You can purchase tickets by using the link below. I look forward to sharing the stage with these young Stratford Hall performers! https://ticketstonight.ticketforce. com/eventperformances. asp?evt=3362

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SH PREFECTS TAKE STEPS TO PROMOTE SEXUAL HEALTH BY: STRATFORD HALL PREFECTS

This year’s prefects have been keen on making sure that the students at Stratford Hall feel safe and comfortable, both within our school community as well as outside the walls of the school.

One way in which we felt we could help achieve that was by having free condoms available for senior school students. The supplying of condoms is a very common measure taken by high schools to help promote safe sexual practices and to reduce the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections and pregnancy. We felt it was time that Stratford Hall came on board with this measure. A detailed proposal was crafted by some of the prefects to address possible concerns and suggest solutions.

After a lengthy process, further

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research and rewrites, we are proud to say that our proposal has been approved by Stratford Hall’s Senior Leadership Team. Below are some of the statistics and logistics behind our proposal.

Why should Stratford Hall have condoms available for its students? ● Many students are sexually active. According to Statistics Canada, in 2005 (the last census year), 43% of teens aged 15 to 19 reported that they had had sexual intercourse at least once. Some students will be sexually active, regardless of what the school does, so it is imperative that we normalize safe sex and provide easy access to condoms.

● Condoms are important to individual and societal wellbeing. High school students are at a particularly high risk for STIs, according to Advocates for Youth.

“Each year, an estimated 3 million adolescents are infected with STIs, accounting for 25 percent of the estimated 12 million new STIs cases occurring annually in the United States” ● Free condoms reduce instances of pregnancy. According to John Santelli’s research: “Among adolescents aged 15 to 17 years, 77% of the decline in pregnancy risk was attributable to improved contraceptive use. The decline in US adolescent pregnancy rates appears to be following the patterns observed in other

February 2017 developed countries, where improved contraceptive use has been the primary determinant of declining rates.” ● Free condoms are not a radical or new idea, and are widely supported by most public health and mental health experts. According to Advocates for Youth: “An increase in reported sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV/ AIDS, among adolescents has prompted many communities to take action to protect their youth. One proven method is to provide comprehensive sexuality education along with school based programs that make condoms available to sexually active youth. Numerous national health organizations have adopted policies in support of school condom availability as a component of comprehensive sexuality education.” ● Buying condoms can be awkward and expensive. A 10 pack of condoms costs around $10 to $15. That’s a lot of money for students with little to no income.

For many students, it’s simply easier not to buy condoms and risk it. We should ensure that all students can access condoms without judgment or cost.

How will the condoms be provided and how much will it cost?

A bowl with condoms will be placed in Ms. Jansen’s office (SH Counselor). This will achieve ready availability while preventing any tampering. Condoms will be sourced from Sex Sense, which will provide the school an unlimited supply, free of charge.

Although important, the implementation of supplying condoms at Stratford Hall can raise concerns for some. Here are the concerns the prefects have identified, as well as their answers/solutions: Will providing condoms encourage sex?

The answer to this question is no.

1-800-SEXSENSE was very clear in saying that distributing condoms does not encourage sex, it simply normalizes doing it safely. Having access to condoms will not make students decide to have sex, but it will make it easier for them to discreetly and affordably reduce their risk of pregnancy or STIs. Will sexually active students even use the school provided condoms?

Yes, most likely. Quoted from Advocates for Youth: “Comparison of public high schools in New York City and Chicago found positive effects of condom availability programs. With the same sexual activity among senior high students in both cities sexually active students in New York, where there is a condom availability program, were more likely to report using a condom at last intercourse than were those in Chicago, where condoms are not available in school.”

Finally, we would like to emphasize that the school is implementing this initiative to help students feel safe and comfortable and to promote safe sex. Students will not be forced to take condoms, and the school providing condoms will not make students more likely to have sex. It will simply provide them with a safe and responsible way to do so.

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WHAT'S BEEN GOING ON AT STRATFORD HALL

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February 2017

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MYP GLOCAL WEEK BY: THE GLOCAL CONNECTIONS CLASS discussions throughout the day. This year’s class of 11 Global Connections students chose to tackle the colossal and ambitious topic of Globalization and Consumerism. The class felt this was an important topic to discuss due to its enduring impact.

“I liked how we could experience multiple aspects of globalization and consumerism in one day.”

- Connor, Grade 10 At Stratford Hall, knowledge is gained and distributed throughout the different buildings in unique forms: from presentations at assembly to paintings posted on the walls. This not only fosters an informative and knowledgedriven community, but also allows students to express their understanding in creative forms around the school.

In the MYP, an immense form of both sharing and gaining knowledge happens annually during one week in November organized mostly by the Global Connections class called Glocal Week. This year's Global Connections class decided to address a meaningful and relatable issue of global significance through making local impacts and awareness.

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Glocal Week allows students in Grades 6 through 10 to collaborate and intermingle; creating a tighter knit community that includes the perspectives of different age groups. Glocal week is a week arranged by the Global Connections class who choose a pressing global issue, and then help educate other students on the matter. Students then are encouraged to take that information and come up with solutions.

Global Connections is a design elective for students in Grades 9 and 10 at Stratford Hall. It provides students with an opportunity to take initiative and contribute a very unique element to this special experience. Glocal Week follows the same schedule each year with a daily activity related to the main issue, except on the last day, which is organized by the global connections students.

Students in Grades 6 to 10 participate in workshops, engage in activities, and reflections/

Globalization and Consumerism covers topics such as: loss of culture, Westernized culture, consumer knowledge and consumption, consumer corruption, fashion industries and other industries that involve the multi-connectedness of global communities. As a class passionate about taking action and making a change, we felt this topic would suit anyone who desires to create change.

Our class thought this topic was important due to the long term impact loss of diversity and corruption has had thus far.

To begin the week, an introductory assembly was held to give Grade 6 to 10 students a glimpse of what the week entailed as well as the workshops that take place on the last day. This assembly also allowed students to get an insight on what the week's issue will be. In addition, it helps students to get a balanced and more knowledgeable view on the options available to them on the workshop day. Based on their personal interests, students select the workshops that appeal to them. Following assembly, students watched a documentary called Screenagers, which is about a mom trying to understand the importance of digital devices and social media

February 2017 in her two teenage children’s lives. This allowed students to get a parent’s perspective on our growing technological culture.

The following day, an in-class discussion on the video Story of Stuff took place. Students engaged in an analysis with a tightly bonded and age-based group. The final day was fully dedicated to the Global Connections class, who organized the day. We started off the day with workshops led by both teachers and students, and ended the day with the action piece.

“I will try to buy locally produced products that are not from mass produced third world countries.”

- Priya, Grade 8 To get well-rounded knowledge of Globalization and Consumerism, the Global Connections class decided to make subcategories such as: Radicalism and Extremism Stereotypes Influenced

by Media, Voluntourism, Developed vs Developing Countries, Corporate Personhood and the Hidden Face of the Fashion Industry. The Radicalism and Extremism workshops focused on the influence of media and the stereotypes that shape our perception of the topic; sometimes clouding our judgment. The Voluntourism group discussed the impact of Voluntourism on places all over the world. This connected to the Developed and Developing Countries group who discussed the growth rate of each country and how to help it. The Corporate Personhood group conversed about how powerful companies can control and influence what we buy. Finally, the Fashion Industry discussed the hidden side of the

industry, which creates a “fake face” all over the world. These workshops allowed students to gain a deeper understanding about Globalization and Consumerism.

Each group took one of the subcategories they found fascinating, and created a workshop that participants would visit. Each of the workshops' design followed the design cycle, which forces students to investigate, plan, do, and reflect.

This cycle encouraged students to pursue the large project of designing an educational workshop. The activities in the workshops ranged from games to kahoots to presentations, and even discussions allowing stimulation of knowledge and understanding throughout the groups.

To include a more experienced and adult perspective on the topic, three teacher workshops were constructed allowing students to get a different perspective on the issue.

Three teacher workshops were organized this year: Re-purpose, Battle of the Phones and the International Trading Game.

These workshops fit beautifully under the vast umbrella of Globalization and Consumerism and encompassed three different subcategories on their own.

Re-purpose allowed students to use old materials and make something new out of them.

Some made a bandage while others made re-usable tote bags.

Battle of the Phones, similarly, allowed students to think of the multiple purposes of their phones. Students battled over which phone was better. The International Trading Game provided each group with resources allowing them to govern and plan their resources

to help their country or state develop.

Our group of 11 ambitious students weren’t done just yet. In addition to planning the workshops, we decided to add two new unique reflection pieces to our week: the Action Piece, where students summarize all their learning from the week in a product decided by the Global Connections class, and puzzle pieces. Our class decided on puzzle pieces because we believed that, although our subcategories were so widespread and the connection seemed inevitable, everything fell under the umbrella of Globalization and Consumerism.

We also felt that puzzle pieces were symbols for connecting everything together. The puzzle pieces were decorated by what students learned from Glocal week based on a list of prompts we had given them such as, “Now, that I have learned…

I will take action by…” These puzzle pieces were then hung all over the MYP building in the classrooms allowing students to see the outcome of the week. The final contribution our class decided on was the ‘Board of the Week.’ The board is where students could add their opinions each day; where there would be a new question or prompt based on the activity. This allowed us to get an overview and for students to critically analyze what they learned, while also providing anonymous feedback. We were able to use this feedback to make each day better. The board was created based on the beliefs of understanding different perspectives and to celebrate the positive outcomes.

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WHERE WE ARE IN TIME AND PLACE WITH OUR EDTECH JOURNEY AT STRATFORD HALL BY: DION NORMAN, DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY & E-LEARNING school is Certified as a Common Sense Education School. In addition, I have been collaborating with Ms. Ryan, Ms. Louie and Ms. Penafiel, to plan for the expansion of the IDEA Lab, which includes a focus around Design Thinking, Constructionism, Project Based Learning and Computational Thinking. It will be exciting to see this space grow and to provide our students with new opportunities to develop those key skills needed to be successful in the 21st century.

One thing I stress when talking about Educational Technology, is the need to put the EDucation first and the TECHnology second.

Too often, schools purchase new devices without having a clear vision of how they will be used or without providing teachers with the skills they need to effectively use these tools to actually make a difference with teaching and learning. As a result, a lot of these tools get under-utilized or get used at very mechanical levels.

This often results in increased costs over time, low levels of use and huge levels of technostress for teachers and students. In an EdTech manual I co-authored with two former colleagues, called Don’t just do IT, we focused on the need for schools to focus on the foundations for success rather than just technology itself. (https://itunes.apple. com/ca/book/dont-just-do-it!/ id1035197717?mt=13)

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These foundations are based on the ISTE Essential Conditions (http://www.iste.org/standards/ tools-resources/essentialconditions).

Prior to arriving at Stratford Hall, I surveyed staff to see where we needed to focus on in order to become a leading future focused school. I then used the results of the survey to help guide me in planting the seeds for innovation over my first few months. This included a focus on the teaching and learning workflow, promoting digital citizenship across the school, developing standards and a Scope and Sequence around 21st century skills (using the ISTE standards, IB Approaches to Learning and BC Core Competencies). We have been quite successful in getting these in place and will continue to develop these over the coming months.

We already have 10 teachers who are certified as Common Sense Education Educators and the

In December, our community participated in the Hour of Code, giving students the chance to express computational thinking through coding. The IDEA Lab is always buzzing with students creating and designing and we now have some students using Lego Mindstorms to prepare for participation in First Lego League (FLL) and other similar events.

Our Grade 3 students have also created their own student-led club where they learn to code together.

Students throughout the school are creating wonderful things using technology and are shifting more towards becoming creators and not just consumers.

We are still early in our journey to see all of the wonderful things that Educational Technology can do to support innovative teaching and learning. However, it is exciting to see the path that we are on as a school and the foundations that we are putting in place to help Stratford Hall become a leading school that promotes 21st Century Learning, Digital Literacy and Digital Citizenship.

WHEN STUDENTS GET CREATIVE: A FOCUS ON OUR IDEA LAB

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EXPANDING OUR IDEA LAB We have purchased the following tools and equipment for the IDEA Lab from last year's generous gala donations.

STORY TELLING BUNDLE • 2x iMac Editing Station -loaded with Finalcut and Logic Pro • MEVO Camera + Stand • 2x iPad Pro + Apple Care Plus • Just Stand Document Camera and iPad Tripod • Green Screens • Green Screen Kit • Lapel Mics • Matel VR viewers • Virtual Reality Glasses *On hold until the IDEA Lab is complete: • Padcaster Studio Kit • Padcaster Cage • Canadian Studio Continuous 2-head Umbrella lighting • Cowboy Studio Photography photo reversible pop out background panel

WOODWORKING • Carving knives • Hand tools (saws, hammers, wrenches, x-acto knives etc.)

• Small Power tools (drill/ driver, jig saw, rotary tool etc.)

• Vice • Clamps *On hold until the IDEA Lab is complete ($7360 in GIC).

• Shop Vacuum • Table/band saw • Laser cutter • Stand • Lathe • Materials

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February 2017

FOOD SCIENCES/ TEXTILES/ LEATHER WORKING • Babylock Serger Air Threader (Imagine) • Babylock Sewing Machine (Rachel) • Needles • Felting materials • Notions • Fabric Scissors • Rotary Cutter • Leather working tools (hole punch, stamps, rivets etc.)

• Leather *On hold until the IDEA Lab is complete ($18,908 in GIC).

• Stove/Oven • Fridge • Exhaust Fan • Cooking and sewing supplies

COMPUTER SCIENCE/ ROBOTICS/ ENGINEERING • WeDo packs with elearning package and rechargable batteries • Dash and dot classroom pack • Makey Makey Kits • Little Bits Pro Library • Lilypad accelerometer • lilypad light sensor • Lilypad temp sensor • Lilypad battery holder • Lilypad twinkle • Lilypad powersupply • Lilypad main board • Lilypad mini boards • Lilypad LEDs • Stainless steel conducive thread TR-1003, 3ply • Bobbin, 76ft stainless condctive thread- 2ply • Tool, Barepaint conductive [en 10(ml) • Soldering iron • Solder • 10mm copper tape 100ft roll • LEDs • Aligator clips • Buzzer with terminals • Motor with terminals • LEGO mindstorm with extra motors • Digital Multimeter • MakeDo Sets

IMAGINATION • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Snug Play Specimen set- Insects Butterfly Rattan Sorting Trays Square Sum Building Set Word Building Set Wood tinkering and sorting box Whirlpool marble rail Tree blocks Clear colours set magnatiles Fairy tale story inventor Portable light table Sensory table with lid Dress up costumes - 2 sets Stethoscope Pet vet center Portable phone Workshop tool case Play pretend families Keva puppets figurines Triominos Creative paper with natural mini beasts Multicultural paper Motor letters lower and upper case Investigating insects from different angles Fairy tale story Inventor natural cards

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CELEBRATING 100 DAYS OF SCHOOL!

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February 2017

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JUMP ROPE FOR HEART BY: BOBBY NISHI, JUNIOR SCHOOL ATHLETICS COORDINATOR The annual Jump Rope for Heart event took place on Wednesday, December 14th, 2016. The event truly was a great success as there was a lot of energy and enthusiasm from all of the students. In total, Stratford Hall raised $4,450 for the Heart and Stroke Foundation; the final house point totals for the event were:

ideas into our routine so no one would get mad or upset that they didn’t contribute to our routine and also our station.

What worked really well on the day of the event was that I felt that our routine was really good and everyone knew it really well.

It made it a lot easier to teach when everyone knew the routine really well. Another Galiano Valdez Quadra Martinez thing that worked really well was that 500 425 425 400 everyone knew where This was also the first Junior they were going to stand when School event where our Grade 6 each group came into the gym. students were given the chance It worked well because it made to display their leadership skills— things go a lot quicker when and they did not disappoint. everyone knew where to stand.

These students showed that they were organized, worked well Something that could have made as a group, and were effective things go a bit smoother is if we communicators. Some of their had a backup plan. One of the routines were the best that I have groups didn’t have any advanced seen since adopting the skipping skippers, so the people who routine format. were supposed to be running the advanced group didn’t have Here are a couple of reflections anything to do. from our Grade 6 students: Grace Y- What worked really well Simon G- My group worked during the event was only loosely together and put everyone's following our plan, and adapting PAGE 30

different parts of it to fit the group that we were teaching. For the Kindergarten’s we didn’t do as much skipping, and instead had them running over ropes, and following us around. With the Grade 4s we made the routine include more skipping compared to the Kindergarten’s.

Asking each individual person if they knew what they were going to do while we were presenting worked well too, because then we knew that everyone was prepared for the presenting part of the event.

February 2017

FAKE NEWS BY: KIRSTEN MOROZOV, MYP & DP TEACHER-LIBRARIAN AND LEARNING SPECIALIST Have you heard of the scientific research group attempting to have dihydrogen monoxide, an incredibly dangerous substance found all around us, banned? Visit this webpage dhmo.org/facts. html to learn more and find out how you too can get it banned our children are counting on us to protect their health.

Those of you not steeped in chemical references on a daily basis might not immediately figure out what dihydrogen monoxide is, but I urge you to do some research on this topic, beyond what is contained in this website. You might immediately assume something is not quite right based on the unprofessional, 1990’s appearance of the website. However, if you look at the copyright at the bottom of the main page, it does say it was last updated in 2017. This group doesn’t have much cash and does has powerful adversaries with which to contend. Maybe they don’t have the time and resources to use a different platform for their site?

I show this page, and similar sites (some of which actually do look extremely professional), to students in the lower MYP. A lot of them fall for the information shared on such sites, which is not surprising given that it can take years of practice to detect fakeries. In students’ earlier years, we curate resources more. As students get older, we hand over more and more responsibility to them (with training, of course) to think critically about information they find both online and offline.

Fake websites are but one

element of resource evaluation.

Students have to contend with fake news shared via social media too, as well as hoaxes, half-truths, cherry-picked data without context, a heavy dose of posttruth, and all sorts of other types of problematic information.

The term “fake news” has become ubiquitous in the wake of the recent U.S. elections, so much so that I fear many are starting to tune it out when they hear or read about it. This is problematic. Stanford University recently shared a study showing that many students in the middle years of grade school through to the university level have difficulty accurately evaluating online information. At Stratford Hall, however, it is our goal to produce students more capable of this than those in the Stanford study.

Stratford Hall teacher-librarians (Señora Peñafiel and I are innately enthusiastic information nerds) and other teachers embrace the concepts of media and information literacy, as well as elements of digital citizenship, to challenge and teach students to think critically about their sources, both online and in print.

In another article in this Imprint edition, MYP Coordinator, Sarah Phillips, discusses reflection in the MYP and specifically references the IB requirement that students develop the ability to reflect on the research process and results. Being able to evaluate the sources used in research is a component of various MYP and DP rubrics, but is also a key skill for life beyond grade school.

Using the blanket term “fake news” is not especially helpful in teaching students to question sources, not only because it’s overused, but also because it’s an incorrect term to describe much of the bad or inappropriate information out there. Recently, columnist Tabitha Southey wrote a somewhat acerbic column in The Globe and Mail delineating fake news from other forms of misleading information. These other forms of poor information are often more subtle than out-and-out fake news and therefore a more sophisticated ability to recognize these distinctions is necessary.

For instance, there is poorly researched and reported news, which Southey refers to as “bad journalism” rather than fake news. Unfortunately, in an era of extreme competition between news outlets, news is often pumped out from even respectable organizations before proper research can be conducted in order to be the first to share it or to gain the most clicks. In reference to poor fact-checking by the Washington Post, Evgeny Morozov (of no connection to me), author of The New Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom, writes in the UK’s The Guardian, “... an economy ruled by online advertising has produced its own theory: truth is whatever produces most eyeballs”.

Both academic researchers and the press might also only skim an article and cherry pick information from it, or ignore potential flaws in the research, PAGE 31

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looking back over the outcome of old studies for reaffirmation of a fact, without reviewing the merits of the original study itself.

However, cherry picking or the manipulation of data is not always just a matter of academic sloppiness, but can also be a distinct sign of bias, which differs from approaching a topic from differing perspectives. The difference can be difficult to determine; therefore, students need regular practice and exposure to this. An example of perspective might be conducting research on education through the disciplinary lens of economics instead of sociology or psychology.

Bias, however, consists of taking usually contentious issues and twisting, omitting, or fabricating data to support an agenda.

Groups in support of and not support of fossil fuels, for instance, might do this in their promotional literature and the information they circulate via social media. Such manipulation can be done through a variety of means, such as the use of emotionally charged language or by presenting statistical data in such a way to obscure

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the real meaning or results of the information. How to Lie with Statistics by Darrell Huff is an excellent book for the layperson on understanding the manipulation of statistics we are constantly bombarded with in news articles and elsewhere.

Although this book was originally written in 1954, and I regularly caution people about using dated information, many of the basic explanations and examples here are still valid to this day. Please see my links page to find the book free online.

Unfortunately, even sources usually considered of high quality sometimes fall prey to either lapses in judgement or vetting, or the lure of additional money. A particularly disturbing example of this, as reported by the Canadian Press and other news outlets in 2009, was a partnership between Elsevier, a well-respected journal publisher, and an arm of the pharmaceutical company Merck, to produce several publications and pass them off to doctors as peer-reviewed medical journals.

These were not, however, peer-

reviewed and were more like advertisements in that they only shared studies that cast a favourable light on medications sold by Merck. As students move into the higher grades at Stratford Hall, they are required to use peer-reviewed materials for some of their assignments to prepare them for the rigours of university-level research.

That said, even peer-reviewed research can sometimes become of a victim of questionable ethics or honest mistakes — this is another instance of where the crosschecking of information becomes very important. It is why teachers insist that students provide multiple sources of evidence for research projects and papers. I would argue that even if our students do not intend on being academics for the long term, it would benefit them to continue with this level of rigour if they e.g. research health issues online, as the general public is increasingly in the habit of doing.

Ms. Southey also wags a finger at the public, pointing out that news or opinions you don’t want to hear or that you disagree with is not “fake news” either. This movement to avoid ideas one does not like is leading many people to, often without realizing it, engage with the world almost solely within social media bubbles.

For example, on Facebook people tend to friend those with similar worldviews. During the latest US elections, I watched people unfriend those with an opposing choice of candidates.

On social media platforms such as Twitter, people often follow people and hashtags that feed their confirmation bias. As a result, instances of politicians, corporations, and media taking advantage of individuals’ tendency toward confirmation bias by employing post-truth

February 2017 abound. Note that “post-truth”, Oxford Dictionary’s 2016 word of the year, means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief”. It’s so very easy to get caught up in these appeals as we are all susceptible to it to some degree or another.

I recently shared a CBC podcast discussing social media bubbles with some Theory of Knowledge students, and then led them in a discussion. Students recognized the need to balance not condoning opinions antithetical to their beliefs with the need to be as knowledgeable as possible about different views in order to best defend their perspectives, and provide counterarguments with greater depth and nuance. I call it the “know thine enemy” school of thought. Social media bubbles are a form of filter bubble, most commonly exemplified by the algorithms employed by some search engines, most famously Google. Facebook, albeit not a search engine, functions similarly to provide content it thinks you want, which may be different than that of another person, thereby increasingly cutting you off from other perspectives.

The issue with filter bubbles and the selective following of news and people is not the only problem that comes with social media. Plenty of truly fake news is accessed via social media.

There is a proliferation of fake news websites out there, for: satirical purposes (some more obviously satire than others); hoaxes which initially might be spread as a benign prank, but which rarely stay that way; hoaxes which are intentionally malicious from the start; or intentional misinformation for e.g. political

purposes or material gain.

Social media readily spreads this misinformation like wildfire. I often spot fake news, or partially fake news where facts are twisted out of context, on Facebook.

If I have a moment when I’m suspicious about something posted there, I will research the item on websites,and then usually privately message the person who posted the item before the outrage that tends to accompany these things goes too far.

A couple of examples I have seen of this sort of insidious material being circulated on Facebook (and I’ve seen lots) are: • A post going around accusing women who have had caesarean sections as not being true mothers - it was such a crazy statement and was upsetting many people so very much that I had to look into it. It turns out it was originally posted by what appears to be a fake extremist religious cult.

• A link to an article claiming that Ugg boots’ skins sheep alive for its products, which was – again – and to some quite obviously false.

Members of an international cabal of teacher-librarians which whom I associate shared a video (available on my links page) decrying the dangers of not factchecking viral social media posts by using the example of a post going around on some Facebook feeds accusing Sweden of banning Christmas lights on street poles to avoid angering Muslim refugees.

The real story is that the Swedish Transport Authority actually did ban lights, but for the far more mundane issues of structural safety and energy access. The ignorant reactions of those who believed the warped version of the story is rather frightening.

Then there is the problem of hoax social movement activity on social media. Although these often viral shares of actions to support a movement can sometimes create awareness about an issue, it can also serve to remove support for it when people find out they have been fooled, create skepticism for real action, and cheat people out of money that does not end up with the intended recipient.

Perhaps too cynically, science historian Alice Dredger contends that: People tweet, blog, post messages on walls, and sign online petitions, somehow thinking that noise is change. Meanwhile the people in power just wait it out, knowing that the attention deficit caused

by Internet overload will mean the mob will move on to the next house tomorrow, sure as the sun comes up in the morning.

And the economic collapse of investigative press caused by that noisy Internet means that no one on the outside will follow through to sort it out, to tell us what is real and what is illusory.

And so, although as individuals we may not have the time or economic muscle to provide the level of investigation that is necessary, we can certainly encourage those around us to take much of what they read or watch with a grain of salt.

I know I’ve made the Internet sound like a scary place in many ways, yet it is an amazing tool if we just know how to use it effectively. Not only is there good information available if we know where to look, but there are tools that aid in determining the quality and origins of what can be found there. There are groups dedicated to exposing hoaxes and false information. There are also tools such as TinEye, which

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IMPRINT can allow a user to find the original source for photos which are often doctored in a visualdigital version of the childhood game “telephone�, but which usually ends in less-than-hilarious results. Then there is the Wayback Machine, which is an Internet archive that can show you what a webpage looked like at a date in the past. This allows a user to determine if information claimed to be taken from a webpage is accurate to that snapshot in time, as such pages are subject to change. It also reveals attempts by problematic associations to hide their past misdeeds by deleting the evidence off of their websites.

Ideally, as teachers and parents, we encourage students to use good-quality sources, but to think critically even about these.

These include books marketed by respected publishers (watch out for self-published books, although there are some great ones out there). Stratford Hall also provides students with some databases with vetted materials, including identified peer-reviewed articles, as well as other quality online resources.

But even the best materials have their, as the IB refers to them, limitations. Therefore, we also work to teach students to recognize and acknowledge

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both the values and limitations of sources, often within the body of an assignment itself. Limitations may not even necessarily be about the credibility of evidence presented, but could simply be that an item of information is not specialized enough for that particular topic and assignment, or only presents one side of a story. This understanding would then lead a student to find additional resources to round out the evidence necessary to support his or her argument.

Resource evaluation takes significant amounts of practice to master, and even the most hardboiled detective can be

duped. But, teachers and parents, through teaching and modeling cautious responses and effective investigation, can equip our students with lifelong skills to navigate the morass of questionable information spewed at us out of the firehose of information with which they are faced.

Readers can find links to the studies and resources I discuss in this Google document: tinyurl. com/ImprintFakeNews.

PYP WINTER CONCERT

February 2017

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A VISIT TO THE VANCOUVER ART GALLERY

BY CHRISTINE GIESBRECHT, VISUAL ARTS AND TOK TEACHER One December day last semester, the Grade 8 and 9 art students went to the Vancouver Art Gallery for a tour and workshop exploring the exhibition, We Come to Witness: Sonny Assu in Dialogue with Emily Carr. The show presented a dialogue between the works of the iconic West Coat modernist, Emily Carr and the contemporary First Nations artist, Sonny Assu.

Assu uses digitally manipulated versions of traditional First Nations symbols, such as ovoids and ovoids, as graffiti tags placed over parts of Emily Carr's paintings in order to challenge her outsider portrayal of First Nations culture. One of the most interesting aspects of the exhibition was that although Assu was first critical of Carr's interpretation of the First Nations as a dying race, and his inserted

symbols covered over her signature as he learned more about her respect for the First Nations culture, he changed his works to use ovoids to circle and highlight her signature. Hearing the stories behind Assu’s comical titles such as "What a Great Spot

for a Walmart or Haida-bucks" causes us to appreciate the thought that goes into his work.

Another particularly poignant installation piece explored the idea of bullying using found objects. Two typical school desks from different eras were altered by adding copper, a metal with great significance in First Nations culture. A bar of soap placed on the top of one desk recreated an act of bullying experienced by Assu's Grandmother when she was finally allowed to enter the regular school system. Assu also experienced racial slurs directed his way at school when he discovered the secretive way in which bullies operated - by writing racial slurs on the underside of a typical 1980’s opening desk.

During the second hour of our visit, students completed a workshop during which they drew from the Assu-altered Carr paintings in the gallery and then digitally manipulated a partner's

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work on i-Pads. By doing so, they explored the idea of mashing up digital media with drawn work, while also experiencing what it is like to have someone else alter their own images.

This show was an excellent opportunity for us to explore the contemporary art of First Nations people. Our Grade 6 and 7 students have also participated in this meaningful tour and workshop over the winter months. We are grateful that students experienced this exhibit because it displays First Nations art as edgy and relevant, widening our perspective by seeing traditional symbols used in a fresh way. The show opened an essential discussion, examining issues around both the depiction of First Nations culture and the ugliness of racial bullying.

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SNOW DAY!

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February 2017

GO SABRES GO!

BY BOBBY NISHI, JUNIOR SCHOOL ATHLETICS COORDINATOR The Grade 7 girls started the regular season off slowly with a 0 and 3 start with losses to Southpointe Academy (1514), Collingwood (23-16), and Mulgrave (39-26). Since the winter break, the team has seemed to get back on their feet with a victory over Southridge (39-26). The winning streak continued into the Collingwood Cav Classic Tournament with a decisive victory against St. John’s School (18-5) and a semi-final

victory over Southpointe (18-8).

The winning streak unfortunately came to an end in the finals where they lost to a very tough York House Tigers team 20-12.

Since the beginning of the basketball season, the team has really come together and started to believe in themselves, and in their teammates. Some reasons for the team’s continued success over the past few games has been the willingness to set picks for their teammates, patience

with the ball, understanding the offensive system and sideline plays, and playing help defense. I look forward to seeing the team continue to grow over the next few years.

GO SABRES!

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CELEBRATIONS! ARTS, ATHLETICS, ACADEMICS, & OTHER FUN STUFF On Thursday, November 24th, 2016, all the MYP students participated in our annual Glocal Day. It was a great opportunity for all MYP students, from both the Senior School and Junior School, to connect with each other and discuss issues of global and local significance.

In addition to connecting their learning to real-world issues, it was great seeing students making connections across grades and divisions.

Stratford Hall would like to recognize Grade 12 students on the completion of their Extended Essay. The Extended Essay is an approximately 4000word research paper in an IB DP subject and topic of the students’ choosing. It is written over the course of the year, taking about 40 hours. It is a major accomplishment and cumulating project of the IB Diploma.

Thank you to all PYP parents who contributed to our TPA Luncheon.

The lunch would not have been possible without you.

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Congratulations to DP students, Trenton and Margaret, who finished 3rd out of 96 competitors at the Oxford Cup, a debate competition, in Winnipeg. The duo qualifies for the main event which will take place at Oxford University in England in the Spring. Good luck!

Congratulations to the Senior soccer team on finishing 9th at the BC Boys Single A Provincial championships! They are the first Stratford Hall senior team to qualify for provincial championships. The team loses only three graduating players, which means they will have strong group of returning students next season.

Congratulations to Grade 12 student, Harrison L. who presented at TedxSFU while also entertaining the crowd with his phenomenal yoyo skills.

Stratford Hall has been profiled in the IB World Magazine in an article titled, “Teachers who listen to us and our children, are key to successful learning”. It highlights some of the many ways Stratford Hall is fostering inclusivity in the DP. Click here to read the article.

Stratford Hall would like to thank all parents who have donated their time and efforts thus far.

We would especially like to acknowledge our crossing guards who volunteer their time each morning, rain or shine. We could not do any of this without our wonderful volunteers. Thank you Stratford Hall community.

Congratulations to Grade 3 student, Liyana A., who participated in The BC Open Karate Championship. Liyana earned a silver medal in the 8 and 9 year-old girls division!

Congratulations to the following students who competed in the DSABC Provincial competition: Anisha, Diya, Ilyas, Alykhan, Satakshi, and Desi. Well done!

Congratulations to our Grade 7 Girls Basketball team in placing 2nd in the Collingwood Cav Classic Basketball Tournament. They followed up the tournament with a victory over WPGA, 29-18, and have won four of their last five games!

February 2017 Congratulations to Grade 9 student, Evan W., who achieved the highest score of all the Stratford Hall students who competed in the Canadian Intermediate Math Competition. Kurtis L., Nathan L., and Ryan Z. also participated in the grueling two-hour contest.

Congratulations to the Sabresharks who represented Stratford Hall at the BC School Sports Provincial Championships.

Over 100 Stratford Students from Grades 3-11 participated in the Caribou Math Contest. Grade 9 student, Nathan L., placed 27th out of over 1000 students world-wide in the Grade 9-10 contest. While Thomas W. scored in the top 50 contestants world-wide in the Grade 5 and 6 contest!

Once again, our SHPA Kidz Craft Fair was a huge success! We were able to raise $3135 towards SHAF. Thank you to all of those who participated in and supported this year’s event.

KG parents, Raheem & Farzana Kherani, organized a field trip for the K classes to visit the Ismaili Jamatkhana & Centre in Burnaby this month. We would like to thank them for their support and help with creating an engaging experience for the students!

Grade 9 student, Kurtis L. earned a “Performance with Honours” certificate in the Canadian Open Math Challenge, a country-wide competition for students in Grades 9-12. Ryan Z., Evan W. and Nathan L. also participated and each of them placed Thank you to everyone who above the 30th percentile, which supported this year’s Care Package is quite impressive, given that Initiative. As a school, we donated they are among the youngest 175 substantially packed care competitors! packages to the New Fountain Shelter. This is an outstanding number!

This year, the Stratford Hall Kindie classes partnered with the ISS of BC (Immigrant Service Society) on Victoria Drive for the Coat and blanket drive.

We are excited to share that we collected 69 coats and 9 blankets to go towards those settling in Canada for the very first time! Thank you for making a huge difference for those seeking a new life in a safe country.

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IMPRINT For her Community Service Project, Grade 3 student, Sophia J. is doing a book drive, collecting children’s books for the South Vancouver Neighbourhood House, where programs are offered for families, in particular children and seniors living in the community.

Click here to view the flyer.

Margaret O. was named as a Loran Scholar, one of only 32 students from across the country out of a group of 84 finalists and 4,438 applicants!

The award is a $100k scholarship for four years at a Canadian University and is awarded to Grade 12’s who best exemplify character, service and leadership; attributes that any IB school aims to build in its students. We had two semi-finalists (Sarah H.C was the other) this year which is absolutely incredible and rare for any school.

Congratulations Margaret on a well deserved award.

Grade 9 student, Kurtis L. earned a “Performance with Honours” certificate in the Canadian Open Math Challenge, a country-wide competition for students in Grades 9-12. Ryan Z., Evan W. and Nathan L. also participated and each of them placed above the 30th percentile, which is quite impressive, given that they are among the youngest competitors!

Thank you to all PYP parents who contributed to our TPA Luncheon.

The lunch would not have been possible without our lovely parents! Here’s a little thank you from our staff.

Thank you to everyone who supported Project Kipevu by purchasing poinsettias. A special thanks to parents, Steve & Elaine Chan for organizing it. The total amount raised was $1,555.55! We are looking forward to using this money to buy paint, furniture and school supplies for the students of Kipevu.

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Congratulations to Grade 12 student, Trenton S., whose Canada West Debate team finished in first place at the Pan-American Debating Championships in Buenos Aires, beating out Canada Central in the final!

We are delighted to announce the launch of a new parent-funded DP Award at Stratford Hall called the Canadian Spirit Award. Please click here for more details.

Kallie George ended her authorin-residence sessions in the PYP. Grade 3 students participated in a six-week creative writing workshop. To celebrate, the PYP library monitors treated Kallie to a library tea party. The Grade 3s’ books will soon be published and added to the PYP library and will also be sent home.

Congratulations to Grade 6 student, Daphne M., who finished in first place in the 50m backstroke and 50m breaststroke, and second place in the 100m IM at the ISEA Swim Championships!

Congratulations to Ryan Y. in 5L for placing 2nd in the B1 solo category at the Global Dance Challenge for her performance as Little Red Riding Hood. On top of this, she was awarded the Future Talent Junior Award! We are so proud of you Ryan!

As part of Sara B.’s Bat Mitzvah training, she has decided to plan and organize a community service project. She will be cleaning up her favourite Vancouver Beach Kitsilano Beach. This will be Sara’s fourth beach clean up. The clean up will take place on Sunday, April 23rd, 2017 from 10AM - 12PM. Tongs, garbage bags, and gloves will be provided. Click here for more details.

In January, all Grade 8 students took the Caribou Math Contest.

Kaden L. came in 1st at Stratford Hall, 1st in Vancouver, thereby ranking in the top 2% among the 7104 contestants.

On February 15, 2017, Kaden L. again came in 1st at Stratford Hall, 2nd in Vancouver, placed within the top 2% among 6492 contestants. Well done, Kaden!

February 2017

GRAD 2017

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3000 Commercial Drive, Vancouver, B.C. Canada V5N 4E2 Tel. (604) 436-0608 Fax. (604) 436-0616

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