The Voice Issue 9

The Voice

of Tanglin Trust School Vol 09 10/2011 MICA (P) 150/06/2011

Feature: Our World Alumni: Life After Tanglin The Last Word: Learning

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Welcome

Welcome to this latest edition of Tanglin Trust School’s The Voice. I realise that some parents who may have children in one or two parts of the school may not be aware of the full range of events and activities across the age groups. Herein lies a selection of the activities that took place across the school last term and I hope that you will gather from them a better flavour of what we do to help our community learn and grow.

We feature in this edition some of our Arts, Sports and Outreach projects involving students, staff and parents. In these headline areas there have been significant developments for this new year. The Arts has a new leader in Rob Le Grice who is ideally placed to work with the team in order to develop even further the excellent work produced last year. Interest and participation in the Arts is increasing with every successful performance or exhibition. Exciting developments within Music will provide an opportunity to further develop an appreciation of and participation in a wide range of genres, building upon excellent programmes throughout all three schools.

A love of music is a wonderful gift to afford a child enriching his or her present and future life enormously. Our new Director of Sport, Colin Morris, brings a wealth of experience and oceans of enthusiasm with him from a very successful leadership position in the UK. The range of sporting opportunities during and after school is significant with something for everyone (including the most recent addition of trampolining).

The swimming programme has been completely overhauled led by our new Director of Aquatics, Rebecca Richards to make the best use of our resources.

Rebecca brings great experience of

Contents

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Staff News Running a Marathon Family Affairs

06 09

Feature

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Our World

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Our World

Alumni Life After Tanglin

Ladakh 2011

12 14 16 18

Infant School Our Commitment to the 3Rs

Junior School The Student Voice

Senior School Unpacking The Learner Profile

Sixth Form A Closer Look at IB and A Level

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working at a high level in America and has ambitions for swimmers at all levels.

to Ladakh after their final papers. The full story can be found within.

Children learn far more at school than subject matter. What’s important is how they can use and apply this knowledge and in doing this how happy and successful they will be in life. Their ability to apply what they have learned, seize opportunities and roll with the punches that life inevitably brings along will be critical. In essence, a key role for schools is that of character building. Against the backdrop of ‘Our World’, Tanglin students are developing their character assets as described in our Mission, Aims and Values and detailed in our Learner Profile. Read on to see some examples of how we are aiming to actively encourage enthusiasm, participation and integrity referred to in our Mission Statement.

The Tanglin Alumni is undergoing a period of growth and development and we are rapidly reconnecting with large numbers of ex-Tanglinites across the world of all ages. The Tanglin Alumni is a legacy we have been leaving for eighty-six years and developments in technology provide ways of finding and communicating with them possible.

Occasionally, they walk through our door, as did Tara Bird this term, who attended Tanglin between 1994-1998 and is now training to represent England for the 800m in next year’s UK Olympics. Read the path of another one of our Alumni, Kirsty Smith on page 9.

Life after Tanglin can be rather daunting for graduates who will not only be leaving home for the first time, but will also be changing countries. The challenge of A Level or the International Baccalaureate often leaves graduates longing for a period of rest and recuperation. It was a delightful surprise therefore to be approached towards the end of last year by students in the last throes of preparing for examinations to independently return

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Enjoy this stroll through another vibrant and challenging term at Tanglin Trust School.

Peter Derby-Crook, CEO

Showcase Art • Drama • Music

Sport Sporting Firsts at Tanglin Introducing Colin Morris

PTA A Message from the New PTA President

Student Services

A Day in the Life

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Creative Writing

32 35

Book Reviews

The Last Word

by John Ridley

Editor: Katherine Massey Design & Layout: Jennifer Anderson Contributors: Students, Staff + PTA Photography: Jennifer Anderson + other contributors Printer: Oz Print Services

All students’ yeargroups referenced in this issue are accurate at time of print.

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Tanglin Trust School Singapore has a long tradition of providing British-based learning with an international perspective. At Tanglin we strive to make every individual feel valued, happy and successful.

Responsibility, enthusiasm and participation are actively encouraged and integrity is prized. Working together in a safe, caring yet stimulating environment, we set high expectations whilst offering strong support, resulting in a community of lifelong learners who can contribute with confidence to our world.

‘The Voice’ herein refers to ‘The Voice of Tanglin Trust School’

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The Tanglin Mission Statement

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Staff News Running a Marathon by Giles Jacobson, Assistant Head of Maths & ICT (Senior) Like many people, I thought that running a marathon would be the greatest physical challenge I could achieve in my life. However, having done it, I still want more!

Finishing a marathon is not just completing 42.195km in a few hours, it is the culmination of months of training, at times involving several hours a couple of days a week, alongside your every day demands. The whole experience changes the way you approach life, it helps you appreciate the capacity of the human mind (and body) and helps put life into perspective.

In December 2008, Tanglin student Lucas Spencer left not only my form (Y7.7), but Singapore too. Seventeen months later he passed away from skin cancer, shortly after his thirteenth birthday. This tragedy was a first for me as a teacher of over a

decade; I just didn’t understand why.

Chris Spencer (Lucas’ Dad) subsequently set up The Lucas Foundation for Children (LucasFC) and having read the different initiatives supporting the charity, I knew I wanted to contribute in some way. The Singapore Sundowner Marathon 2011 would be exactly one week after the anniversary of Lucas’ death, 28 May. If I was really going to run the marathon, it would be this one, and I would try and do it for Lucas.

At the start of 2011, I had only ever run 9.6km - seven years earlier when training the cross country runners at my school in Sri Lanka! In January, managing to run 8km on a Saturday morning was a major achievement. In February, 15km was the long run per week. By March, I had topped 20km per run and in April I was laughing at how difficult I found 8km only 3 months earlier! I learnt that ‘endurance’ actually means how long you can keep your mind focused and that the culmination of five months would give me the greatest feeling of my life in those few

minutes either side of the finishing line.

If you, as a member of the Tanglin community, have ever said “I could never do that” about long distance running but deep down inside you really wish you could, then the CCA ‘Running with the soul in mind’ is for you. Please contact craig.davis@tts.edu.sg if you are interested! All members of the Tanglin community are welcome.

Thank you to those of you who have donated to LucasFC in some way and watch out for the Year 7 Lucas Spencer memorial football tournament coming up in March 2012.

The Rubicons by Grace Burton and Hanna Homayounfar, Y8.5 You might have heard of a stream in northeastern Italy called The Rubicon, which marked the ancient boundary between Italy and Cisalpine Gaul, when its crossing in 49BC by Julius Caesar began a historic civil war. You could have even heard of the word ‘Rubicon’ in the context of ‘a point of no return’ but what probably comes to mind at Tanglin when coming across this word is a band, ‘The Rubicons’, made up by Mr (Mike) Roberts, Mr Coates, Mr Coughlan, Mr Meadows and Mr Scott!

rhythm guitarist, Mr Roberts sings and plays guitar, as does Mr Meadows, Mr Scott plays the drums and Mr Coates is the bass player.

The band was started in 2007 by Mr Coughlan, who having played in bands in previous schools, decided it was time to start one at Tanglin. Each member of the band brings a different musical instrument or skill. Mr Coughlan is the

When asked why they like to perform, Mr Meadows immediately answered, “For attention!” The rest of the group agreed that it was a fun way of relieving stress, a social hobby giving them a purpose to play, a good way of learning new songs

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Rehearsing in a Chinatown studio when they have time, The Rubicons have performed at numerous bars, during Alexandra Charity week, and at school assemblies. A particularly memorable performance was when they played a tribute for Mr Woods at his leaving assembly.

and genres, and ultimately that it is more fun to play in a group rather than alone.

The teachers also agreed that they don’t like to be known as a ‘staff band’ and that it is a case of ‘band first and teachers second!’ We think they rock either way!

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Family Affairs

by Grace Burton and Hanna Homayounfar, Y8.5 Unlike most of us who relax during our holidays, Miss Nali, a Teaching Assistant in the Junior School, who has recently celebrated her 30 years Long Service Award, has used her holiday time to help at orphanages in India. For the last five years Miss Nali’s family and friends (who call themselves Family Affairs) have organised a 10-day ‘camp’ for approximately 100-120 orphans and slum children. Each year they visit a different city in India which so far include Mumbai, Chennai, Bengali and Kerala.

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The camp takes place in the middle of May when the children have their summer holidays and are not at school. ‘Family Affairs’ teach the children a variety of arts and crafts, including painting t-shirts, pots and making bead necklaces. They also watch movies with the children and take them on outings such as to amusement and water parks.

During the rest of the year, Family Affairs raise money to donate to the orphanages. They pay for their own flights and accommodation, so all the money raised is given to the orphanages. Miss Nali would like to thank all her friends and supporters, including many who work at Tanglin, for their donations.

As a thank you to Family Affairs, the children in the orphanage in Chennai presented them with a beautiful 120-page, hand written book. Miss Nali commented about the trips; “When I see the children happy it makes me happy and I get great satisfaction.”

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Feature Our World 06

by John Ridley, Director of Learning and Katherine Massey, Head of Communications Our World is an overarching term that is being used at Tanglin to bring together the school’s focus on local, regional and global perspectives in the curriculum; environmental awareness; cultural visits and overseas trips; charity fundraising and service projects; and personal development of students.

It builds on Tanglin’s mission statement, in particular, focusing on the closing phrase: ‘… resulting in a community of lifelong learners who can contribute with confidence to Our World. It also uses the language of the Learner Profile as a framework to identify and measure the skills and attributes necessary to achieve this goal.

Tanglin aims for its students to become global citizens and as such have an awareness of our community on a local, regional and global level. Ensuring students achieve this perspective has implications on the curriculum as Tanglin’s links with Singapore and Asia are increasingly woven into subject areas and key topics across the school. This academic year, the Junior School has replaced ‘the Tudors’ with a topic on China further reinforcing this view; and in

Tanglin’s Learner Profile Balanced Caring Risk-takers Resilient Inquirers Thinkers Knowledgeable Communicators Principled Open-minded Reflective all three schools, students will begin to see the global perspective increasingly running through subjects.

Tanglin also provides opportunities for students to experience the wider community through cultural visits and overseas trips. Tanglin’s ‘outdoor education’ programme is extensive and varied across all three schools and includes local visits such as Kent Ridge Park and Images of Singapore, Sentosa for Infant students, residentials in Malacca and Sarawak for the Junior School and more challenging, longer trips for senior students to destinations such as Malaysia, India, Cambodia and Thailand.

The trips are designed to develop the ‘whole’ person, help bring a subject to life and provide an opportunity for students to reflect on Our World.

students. The Genesis School supports students individually in a way that may not be possible in mainstream school environments and particular attention is paid to developing social as well as academic skills. Year 10 and above students also get involved in ‘Beyond Social Services’, an initiative which supports local school children in an HDB estate in Tiong Bahru (more on this initiative is featured on page 8).

All students at Tanglin are encouraged to take an active role in supporting charitable organisations and causes in Singapore and globally, through Ch@t (Charities @ Tanglin). Ch@t helps raise awareness of issues on a local, regional and global level and enables students to see beyond their normal sphere of experience here in Singapore. It encourages students to learn more about the world they live in, make a positive contribution and exercise responsible citizenship.

Some of these initiatives and relationships are long-standing, such as ongoing projects with i-India, Blue Skies Orphanage in Thailand and Lamdon School in Ladakh, whilst others respond to a specific event or crisis in our local,

The service strand of CAS (Creativity Action Service) provides further opportunities for senior students to engage with the local community. For example, through CAS Tanglin has established a relationship with Genesis School for Special Education in Singapore giving a group of Tanglin students the opportunity to work with Genesis

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regional or global community, such as the immense support that the Tanglin community gave to aid efforts in Japan following the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami in March.

As the Our World ethos gathers momentum, further updates will continue to unfold in the pages of our communications. Tanglin looks forward to embedding the philosophy into the curriculum and life at school, as well as within our wider community; also to using it as an on-going reminder of our shared educational values and aspirational modes of behaviour.

Did you know?

The school also actively encourages teachers to support and engage with projects beyond school. The last issue of The Voice, included a feature on ‘Caring for Cambodia’ (CFC) and in particular the teacher training efforts that over 25 teachers from across the Tanglin community are involved in. The CFC project is ongoing with continuous support and commitment to the development of teacher training in the area. Earlier in this issue on page 5, there is also an article, written by two Year 8 students, about ‘Family Affairs’ an initiative led by ‘Miss Nali’, a Teaching Assistant in the Infant School who spends her holidays, with a group of family and friends, helping at orphanages in India.

It is exciting to hear back from our Alumni who are also taking the Our World principles into their future careers and the article by Kirsty Smith on page 9 about her work in Kenya is a lovely example of this.

Our World is still a relatively new term to the school but it has led to the language of the Learner Profile being adopted across the school. This common language is designed to raise the students’ awareness of the skills and attributes required to ‘contribute with confidence to our world’ and will encourage the students’ personal development as they progress through the school. Katie Bentley (Y13.5) ‘unpacks’ the Learner Profile further on page 16.

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On Friday, 14 October, Tanglin celebrated its first ever ‘Our World Day’ which had the theme TEAM (Together Everyone Achieves More). Students from across the school came together to work in mixed aged groups on a range of Arts and Crafts, Music, PE and topic related activities designed to help embed their understanding of Tanglin’s Learner Profile.

It was a fantastic day, promoting the community cohesion and collaborative team spirit at Tanglin and providing an opportunity for students to learn more about the cultural diversity found within our community.

• As a whole school, Ch@t recorded 139 Events/ Activities for 2010/11, supporting over 53 non-profit, charitable organisations and raising a grand total of $387,916.22!

• In 2010 Tanglin recycled 14,284 kg of paper!

Infant School Eco Tips

Last term, the Infant School celebrated ‘World Environment Week’ – you can read more about this on page 12. During the week, children from across the Infant School were asked to come up with tips to help us protect our environment. The following are a consolidated list of their fantastic suggestions: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Switch off lights when they are not needed to save electricity.

Always recycle paper and that includes magazines and newspapers.

To lessen air pollution, walk or cycle instead of travelling by car.

Grow your own garden of fruit and vegetables.

Always make sure that your air con is set at 24C and keep outside doors closed to stop the cool air escaping.

Don’t open the fridge or freezer door for too long when taking out food.

Share a car ride to school or come by bus.

Re-use your plastic bags when you go to the supermarket.

Turn off the tap whilst brushing your teeth or washing your hands.

Have a shower instead of a bath.

Be a friend to the forest, save trees by recycling paper.

Save water, don’t fill the bath up too high.

As a family, plant a tree or a plant on a special date each year.

Turn the power off your game stations when they are not being used.

Put paper in the recycling bins so that it can be made in to new things.

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NYAA Update by the Senior School CAS Team

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We have endeavoured to ensure that students have the opportunity to engage with the community as part of the school’s Our World focus. A good example is the service strand of the National Youth Achievement Award (NYAA) programme for Years 10 and above, which offers many opportunities for the students to interact with both local and global communities.

Our students have been involved in a host of service activities in the local community, and the interaction with Beyond Social Services is a good example of how a NYAA service project works.

Every Thursday, a group of about 15 students make their way into the heart of an HDB estate in Tiong Bahru and support local school children that range in age from 5 to 15.

“To me participating at Beyond Social Services is rewarding because it really puts you out of your comfort zone. By being a ‘big sister’ to one individual child each week, and giving them all the attention and help that they need not only helps that child’s confidence, but it also boosts mine by knowing that I’m giving something back to those less fortunate than myself. Helping at BBS every week makes me realise how lucky I am, and makes me really grateful for what I have.”

Zoe Sykes, Y11.7

To begin with they largely helped students with homework, but over time they have developed their ideas. They have focused on developing learning experiences targeted at specific children through the use of art, drama and dance. The Beyond Social Services students in return have shared their expertise in activities such as dragon dancing. At the end of last term the students took steps to invite the children to use the facilities at Tanglin. Cup-cake decorating confirmed that it is not just Tanglin students who have a sweet tooth!

NYAA students also have the chance to develop their Our World experiences internationally. This year expeditions will take place in Australia, Malaysia and Thailand. Each expedition is always preceded by an extensive training programme in Singapore. This focuses on the skills that enable students to develop not only a sense of adventure and independence, but also a real sense of the fragility of the environments that they travel to and how they can interact meaningfully with the local people that they meet.

Some Y11 NYAA students are literally taking their experiences of Our World to the extreme, when they trek to Everest Base Camp in October!

“BSS has been extremely rewarding, being able to develop a close bond with children from difficult backgrounds. Knowing these children don’t receive the full attention they deserve, I am very grateful to be able to spend my time helping them with work, playing games, or even engaging in general conversation, something children should never miss out on.” Sarah Lindsey, Y11.6

“BSS was an amazing experience and opportunity. Not only did it help me gain service hours for my NYAA but it allowed me to connect and interact with people that I would otherwise not have had the chance to. I enjoyed helping the children and it was good to feel that somehow I contributed to them.” Julia Clark, Y11.5

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Alumni

Life After Tanglin

by Kirsty Smith, Tanglin Alumni (2001 - 2006)

However, earlier this year I decided to return home to Kenya. Whilst at university I completed my dissertation there in the Tana Delta and in that time identified numerous challenges and potential worth exploring. I was fortunate enough to find a job as Community Project Manager with The Delta Dunes Lodge within the Lower Tana Delta Conservation Trust.

The Lower Tana Delta is a vast wetland characterised by high species richness and a variety of eco-regions. It is a very isolated area of the country and for a long time has been on the periphery of any kind of government interest.

Unfortunately it is now attracting very much the wrong kind.

The Delta has been home for centuries to two main indigenous tribes - the Pokomo who are traditionally farmers and the Orma who are semi-nomadic pastoralists; as well as some refugee tribes such as the Goshi from Somalia. In the short time I’ve been here, I’ve found myself having to increasingly concentrate on the issues of Land Grabbing by international

corporations and international governments seeking to plant thousands of hectares of biofuel crops, which would destroy this unique wetland, rather than on the income-generating projects this area so desperately requires.

In spite of this, there are some positive projects in the pipeline! We have plans to start a mobile library which has been successful in other remote areas of Kenya. Not only will it lift morale, it will bring another facet of education to both adults and children through the aid of story books and helpful references on farming, mechanics and health. The presence of a female as well as male operator will hopefully lead to girls finishing school by inspiring them with a significant role model.

There are various women’s groups who are manufacturing new and exciting products to sell at the Lodge and hopefully in the nearby city of Malindi; as well as Mulikani, an eco-lodge run by the local community. We have also started a tree planting educational programme in all the schools (we’ve already planted 100 at 10 schools but combined with this new programme we hope to achieve a new level).

Many projects can be seen (and donations pledged) on the community’s soon-to-be-ready webpage. Funds are in desperate need, especially as the struggles the Trust are having with their demarcation mean that funds are low for the essential everyday needs.

Since writing this article two schools have written to me asking for assistance with their teacher’s salary and basic educational material such as text books and staff room furniture.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Tanglin for 3 laptops they donated to the Trust. I gave one to an ardent local conservationist who for the past 15 years has battled for the protection and conservation of the delta and its local communities and another I am using to aid 2 teachers coming from Italy to teach

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After finishing my degree at The University of Edinburgh in 2010, (Geography BSc), I spent some time exploring potential career opportunities in Singapore, centring mainly on environmental consulting.

in some schools within the Trust which will then be used for the mobile library.

The Tanglin community has also donated 20 footballs as well as nets and other equipment for a Trust Awareness football tournament to be held in December!

Our objectives and projects as well as HIV and education awareness will all be part of this football event which, due to the standard of living and every day ordeals these communties face, is such an uplifting event in their life - and which they LOVE to play even if it is barefoot and with a ball reduced to nothing! It will also be an amazing opportunity to look for more recruits to train as gamescouts which the Trust so desperately needs.

Although to some degree my personal conviction has led me to where I am today, it is without a doubt my time at Tanglin in those most formative years and the guidance I received from my teachers, especially in Geography, that have taught me to be observant and reflective, and to query the world around me. Tanglin taught me to be independent and hands on, all qualities which I carried with me to university and which I’m sure helped steer me towards this career choice over the prospect of many others. I could not have known then that those qualities they so ardently encouraged would lead me here, but I owe them a lot.

To live life with few regrets... I wouldn’t change this for the world!

For more information, to donate or to volunteer, please contact kirsty@deltadunes.co.ke.

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Our World Ladakh 2011 10

by Chris Cooper, Alumni (2007-2011)

This May myself and Danielle Guy had the pleasure of leading a group of graduating Year 13 students on a two week service trip to the remote Himalayan region of Ladakh.

Tanglin has a long-lasting relationship with Lamdon School, one of the leading schools in the area, and following the devastating Indus Valley floods of 2010 has raised well over S$40,000 for the affected school. I felt that the best way to show commitment to the friendship between our schools, aside from purely financial support, was to volunteer to personally aid the reconstruction and recovery efforts on the ground.

Thankfully, fourteen other students and two external adults agreed to this ‘crackpot’ scheme of mine.

Due to Tanglin having a dedicated charity fund to support Our World projects, we were able to secure a significant amount of school funding for the trip.

Around half of the trip was funded in this manner. I believe that this money was put to fantastic use and enabled us to undertake a considerable amount of work in the Ladakh area. This trip was the first time the Our World fund has been

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used for a student-led trip and we hope that it shall set a precedent for future year groups undertaking similar charity driven expeditions following the completion of their exams.

The trip supported the ideals of the CAS programme. CAS stands for Creativity Action Service and is encouraged at Tanglin to widen personal horizons. It also encourages students to undertake new activities in challenging environments and provide service for those who need it most. Although all of the participating students had completed their CAS programmes, they still chose to dedicate their free time to the cause.

At Lamdon we started the ‘deconstruction’ (not demolition…) of the original school buildings in order to free up materials for the construction of a new science block, and create space for an outdoor amphitheatre. In addition to this, the group painted around 200 feet of fencing green to protect poplar groves on the school premises. These poplars will, over the next 10-12 years, mature to provide the school with a sustainable source of income as a local building material in constant demand.

everyone get stuck in; from Roarke kicking down walls and Issy forcibly removing stubborn nails from where they had been lodged for the past 40 years with nothing but a pair of pliers and sheer determination, to Ciaran painting all the awkwardly high parts of the fences (thanks to his lofty height… handy!) We also had the fulfilling task of levelling out land and digging irrigation trenches in the poplar grove at Lamdon Model School in the village of Shey, which was also badly hit by the floods last year.

In addition to reconfiguring two classrooms into three rather large piles of bricks, a sizeable potential-bonfire amount of wood, a small mound of nails and a small hillock of dust, we were able to fit periods of downtime into the trip.

Shopping and eating were high on the list of things to do in addition to our days out to monasteries and for treks; the trip was fulfilling in every possible sense.

Given the opportunity, I think this group would go back again, and I hope to see future year groups follow in the path we have set. Whether to Ladakh, or to other locations around Asia which Tanglin has developed close ties with, I hope this is just the start.

Despite the unfamiliar nature of these challenges, it was fantastic to see

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I have nothing but admiration for the group of students that went to Ladakh. Rachel now has memories that will last a lifetime.

A wonderful learning experience for all the students involved. It is great that Tanglin has been able to contribute to the Ladakh community.

Jayne Guy

Helen Guy

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Parents’ thoughts

No qualms about them going away - if you can’t do this type of trip once you are 18 and have finished school, when can you? Very impressed at what you all organised, prepared for, and achieved!

Jenny and David Dally

We had confidence in Bill Kite and the headmaster of Lamdon School that the group would have access to advice and assistance. For Ciaran, Ladakh was an enriching experience - it was a good opportunity for him to contribute time and effort to the Lamdon community – all of our expectations were fulfilled.

Fidelma and Peter Downs

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Infant School

Our Commitment to the 3 R’s 12

by Angela Dawson, Assistant Head Teacher, Infant School Not so long ago, if a school was known for its commitment to the teaching of the three R’s, we all knew that they were referring to the basic skills of reading, writing and arithmetic. However, if today you were to ask any student at Tanglin for their interpretation they would, without much hesitation, give the response “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle”.

In the Infant School we are committed to the development of a sustainable environment and we continually promote this practice with our children. Our ‘Green Team’ of 62 eco-monitors across four year groups, easily recognisable in their bright green tabards, have responsibility for carrying out daily

recycling duties within their classrooms.

At regular intervals, and with Ms Craigie’s guidance, Deputy Head Teacher, Infant School, they carry out eco spot checks, such as checking if air con controls around school are set at the optimal temperature of 24C. They also distribute recycled note pads to school and central administrative staff to ensure that their eco-friendly message is kept uppermost in our minds.

During the course of the year we also take part in related events and activities, such as World Environment Day (WED), when we come together as a school community to profile the biggest and most widely celebrated day for positive environmental action.

This year’s theme ‘Forests: Nature at Your Service’ supports the United Nations International Year of Forests and aims to reinforce the important message that the

quality of the life we live is linked directly to the health of forests and forest ecosystems. Forests, the green lungs of the earth, cover one third of the earth’s land mass and perform vital functions which are essential to the survival of people everywhere – all 7 billion of us!

Living as we do, up close and personal to the flora and fauna of forests in Singapore, as well as in the heart of a region surrounded by some of the world’s magnificent rain forests, the Infant Our World team were keen to embrace the theme.

Each year group, guided by their Our World team member, carefully planned and co-ordinated a week of creative activities. These events not only aimed to promote WED but during our ‘Friends of the Forest Day’ they helped raise money for the World Wildlife Fund in order to increase and strengthen the protection of forests around the world.

‘Friends of the Forest’ Day

On Friday, 27 May, children from across the school came to school dressed in varying shades of green or brown in support of World Environment Week and the 2011 International Year of Forests. During the course of the morning our youngest followed by our oldest children had the opportunity to come together to form their very own

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‘Tree of Life’ using their bodies to form the trunk, branches and leaves. The images which were captured will be displayed around the school and will serve as a visible reminder of the forests that we are trying to protect and the role that we can all play in making a difference to the world we live in now and in the future.

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Highlights from World Environment Week, 23 – 27 May Nursery by Jane Andrews, Class Teacher A magnificent recycled rainforest hiding an array of creatures from big monkeys to teeny-weeny bugs was the result of everyone working together in the Nursery unit.

Using only recycled materials made it extra fun because we all had to use our imagination to think of different ways to use each piece. Recycled boxes, real leaves and recycled green card leaves were used to create a magical tree house. Colourful creatures were created from recycled magazines and all the children enjoyed learning about the many animals which call the rainforest home.

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The children also had the opportunity to recycle an old white t-shirt by creating images of the rainforest on the front as a reminder to all of us to look after the world in which we live.

Reception by Tess McCabe, Class Teacher Inspired by the story of ‘Michael Recycle’ and ‘Litterbug Doug’, the children in Reception were keen to be environmental superheroes and follow the 3 R’s to look after our planet. Using the work of the artist Andy Goldsworthy as a stimulus, the children showcased their creative talents using a selection of stones, twigs, flowers, pine cones and other resources found naturally in the environment – the results were stunning!

A highlight of the week was our ‘Trashion Parade’ where the children took to the ‘catwalk’ to show off a wide range of fashion accessories made from ‘junk’ materials to compliment their recycled costumes.

In both Nursery and Reception the children were introduced to the many animals around the world which are becoming endangered. Our young children were also entertained by the author Shamini Flint who read them the story of ‘Panda packs her bags’ and talked to them about the importance of protecting the bamboo forests.

Year 1 by Tushi Hore, Class Teacher The children in Y1 are all very aware of the importance of doing whatever they can to protect our environment and regularly recycle paper and plastic, bringing in materials from home to reuse at our junk modelling areas.

The importance of tree conservation was the focus for our Year 1 children and they were keen to discover how they could make their own paper from used paper and plastic bottles! The process was great fun and the children were fascinated by the outcome. Classes were then able to use their ‘new’ paper to make notebooks and bookmarks. The children in Year 1 now have a much greater understanding of the impact of cutting down trees on animal habitats and the ways in which we can all be more ‘forest friendly’ in the future.

Year 2 by Karen Ormerod, Class Teacher Through focused discussions in classes and in our year group assemblies the children in Y2 were able to take a closer look at the impact of deforestation on the many creatures that live in the forests of neighbouring countries. The children were encouraged to reflect on our use of paper in school and how by changing our actions we could make a difference to the lives of some of the animals we love.

In Y2 we also ran a competition to come up with imaginative ideas for reusing plastic bottles. We had over 50 creative entries and our five winners were presented with a plant, certificate and gift from the Singapore branch of World Wildlife Fund. On this occasion Miss Dawson also had the opportunity to present a cheque to WWF for S$1,239 raised from our ‘Friends of the Forest’ non-uniform day.

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Junior School The Student Voice 14

by Junior Students “In the Junior School we are very proud of the many groups of children who take on additional roles of responsibility; working together for the good of the school. Each role requires its own unique skill set and the children who take on these responsibilities show immeasurable enthusiasm, resilience and positively impact others on a daily basis. Members of the Green Team, Student Council, Junior Listeners and Computer managers have written a section to show how the Junior students have impacted change and had their ideas actioned.”

Rachael Cregg, Assistant Head Teacher, Junior School New Junior Hats

by Student Council members Lloyd Stephens, Y6.6 and Zoe Wang, Y6.2 The wide brimmed, floppy hats were brought in to protect us better from the sun. They are great for trips and sitting outside. However, the Tanglin students were worried because they always fell off during active play or sport. We talked to Miss Cregg and decided to give the children two options, the wide brimmed hat or a baseball cap to be worn with sunscreen.

Then came the fun part - the hats were designed to be cooler, suitable for use in the pool, washable and, the best bit was they have our House colour flash across the peak! Every single student voted for their favourite style cap. The results were added, and the winning hat (by a long shot!) was the blue cap with house flash.

They are now being sold in the school shop and the children love them. We think it’s a good idea to have both styles available and are really excited about wearing them this term!

Computer Safety by Computer Manager, Matthew Haycock, Alumni 2008-2011 My fellow computer managers and I have been working on… Zip It, Block It and Flag It! This is an Internet Safety campaign which has been launched in the UK giving parents and children ideas on how to stay safe whilst on the computer. Zip It, Block It, Flag It is a simple and easy way to remember what we should all do to stay safe.

My team and I have done several assemblies to Years 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 where we presented the safety code to the Infant and Junior students, encouraging them to be safe inside and outside of school.

We also have pictures of these logos on our login computer screens to remind us each time we use the computer.

I have really enjoyed having the opportunity to teach younger students, as well as my own year, how to be safe on the computer.

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Being Healthy

by Student Council members Annie Pickup, Y6.1, Holly Brown, Y6.7 and Megan Pearson, Y6.4 We have been thinking about how to be a healthier school this year. We surveyed children in the Junior School and whilst they are doing pretty well, they are not as healthy as you may think! Being healthy is important (but it’s ok to have something a little unhealthy every now and again.) Some of the morning snacks

are particularly unhealthy and may not be helping children to focus and learn.

Last year, Year 3 saw a presentation by the Year 5 & 6 student council and the Year 5’s did a humorous drama about eating healthily. The Year 6 team made an educational PowerPoint which they shared in assembly.

We have already made some great steps: • Lunch tickets now have a colour coded system to help us choose more healthily.

• • • • •

After school food has been changed with more healthy options.

All the children have a delicious fruit snack.

Fruit was served at Sports Day - thank you Mr Johnstone, Food Executive and Mr Rawlings, Head of PE, Infant and Junior School!

Year groups have been educated about eating more healthy options.

The council have had a meeting with Mr Johnstone to discuss our ideas.

Junior Listeners

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by Sebastian Gough, Y6.7 and Max Whitehead, Y6.6 Junior Listeners help children with many issues at school such as finding friends, learning new games and chatting through worries. We hope that we make a happier environment for all. At first we found lots of problems to work on but we hope that now our playground is happier. We have also helped ourselves in the process and all the Listeners have enjoyed and learnt a lot.

Max and I couldn’t resist the opportunity to help students in need. It is such an honour to put on the Junior Listener badge and hat - all we have to say is thank you Tanglin Trust School.

Junior School Sensory Eco-Garden by Rachel Cregg, Assistant Head Teacher, Junior School Last term, the Junior School students began thinking about Our World in earnest, pondering questions such as: What does it mean to be a member of our community?

How can we care for each other more thoroughly? How will we consider our wider community in our actions?

The Green Team (led by Head of Science, Linda Robinson) put their heads together to design, source and create the beginnings of a Sensory Eco-Garden. This area will be integral in helping the children develop a greater understanding of the environment and also our cultural surroundings. With the help of several Teaching Assistants, the children have also been learning about local flora, its uses within cooking and medicine and the requirements for growth.

The following are some of the Junior School students’ ideas behind the Sensory EcoGarden and how it can be used at playtimes and as an educational tool: We can make Tanglin more eco-friendly. Eva, Y6 People can enjoy nature and have a relaxing time. Also it’s a big step to GOING GREEN! Elle, Y6 We need to have more plants and trees to get more oxygen. Shana, Y4 We can learn to look after and maintain our greenery. Tara, Y6 Touch - Leaves vary between plants; from rough to smooth, furry to spiky. It would be lovely to have a range of these in the garden. Children can feel and think about why the plants need to have these particular qualities.

Taste - We aim to grow different herbs and spices for the cooking CCA to use.

See - The bright colours and eyecatching flowers will make great subjects for drawings and paintings. The plants will be used to support the biology aspect of our Science curriculum.

Hear - Children can sit in the garden and listen to all the sounds of nature around them, hopefully above all the other noises from school.

Smell - There will be carefully selected flowers that give off a heady fragrance.

Thank you to Miss Robinson and her Green Team for all of their efforts and ideas!

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Senior School

Unpacking the Learner Profile 16

by Katie Bentley, Y13.5 Last year Tanglin launched the ‘Learner Profile’, a list of ten attributes that our students, teachers and parents should strive to adopt in as many aspects of their school life as possible.

The following ten attributes - risk-taker, resilient inquirer, knowledgeable, thinker, communicator, open-minded, balanced, reflective, principled and caring – are good qualities in themselves; they also demonstrate how we can become both good learners and better people. They have been identified to help inspire each student to succeed in their education as well as to mould them for the world after school.

So what do these attributes mean to the student community at Tanglin? When I asked Daniel Rumsey, Y11.4, if he understood what the leaner attributes are, he replied, “Yes I do and I have already seen a lot of them active in my year alone; for example in our Lead Boy and Lead Girl and all the dedicated students helping out around the school with the new duty system.”

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Daniel added that, “being ‘balanced’ is important to me as I try to be the negotiator when it comes to disputes in my group of friends, so I see both sides of the story and try to help whilst not being one sided. ‘Caring’ is also important as it shows you are sociable and think before you speak and I believe being ‘principled’ means that you stay focused on the task at hand and you stick to your ideal - you stick to what you think is right.”

Diya Vasudevan, Y11.2, gave me some examples of behaviour that reflected the Learner Profile attributes: “I once took part in a mini amazing race in my school in Taiwan. We could only use public transport and eat all the foods given on a list we had. In Taipei, Taiwan, hardly anybody speaks English, the metro directions were all in Chinese, and the foods on the list would usually be stuff your mother tells you not to mention at the dining table! However I am a ‘risktaker’, I was willing to run around the city (with a sprained ankle) and try all these weird foods and communicate with a minimum understanding of mandarin because I knew it would be something that would change me forever.”

When defining the attribute of ‘resilient inquirer’ Diya added, “People rarely question society due to fear of exclusion, but I think it is those who ask questions and are resilient that will push open and widen society’s boundaries and acceptance of others.” She then went on to explain what she thinks of the ‘reflective’ attribute: “People tend to judge and criticise others, but we rarely reflect on ourselves and our own goals. I think being reflective of oneself is the key to success; it gives us a sense of direction and purpose.”

To get a better understanding of the Senior School students’ view of the Learner Profile, I asked a third student how he has acted upon the attributes.

Dominique Schell, Y11.6, said “I’ve decided to take more risks in some subjects, and I think it has helped me a lot and it will also be important for my future career.”

How are the learner profile attributes relevant and why are they important to Tanglin was my last question to the students that I interviewed. Daniel’s perspective was that, “All of the attributes

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17 are relevant to Tanglin, as here we have a great variety of people who each have their own unique personality. The attributes affect the way we work, how we behave around friends and how we act as a human being. They are important because they make us who we are; for example, a risk taker will try to push things and say ‘why don’t we try this?’ whilst a resilient inquirer digs deep for the truth, they push things and try to understand them that little bit more.”

Tanglin offers many opportunities for these attributes to be explored, for example, through the CAS (Creativity Action Service) programme which provides opportunities for students to take risks and be open-minded and caring. It also enables students to reflect on their work and actions and consider how we can gain knowledge as well as a variety of other skills. In an activity such as lifesaving, a student will take risks and can then take what they have learnt back to the classroom. For example, a student who might usually be quiet and shy may then take a risk, drawing on what they have learned from their CAS activity, to pluck up the confidence to speak up in class and push him or herself to share their views.

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After asking other students to consider the ‘qualities for learning’ that Tanglin has identified, I took the opportunity to reflect on what I have personally learned from the profiles and from the students that I have interviewed. I believe the Learner Profile can be really successful at underpinning the values and ethos that we should aspire to at Tanglin. I also think that it is important the school continues to reinforce these values. Already, Tanglin has started placing eye-catching photos around the campus reflecting the attributes and reinforcing these qualities to students. Diya, Daniel and Dominique’s insightful responses are just a few examples of how Tanglin has got its students really thinking about the Learner Profile attributes and how they can act or continue to act upon them.

At the start of the new term, Tanglin hosted a whole school assembly in which the Learner Profile was introduced, explained and elaborated on. This assembly exposed the tight knit community we have here at Tanglin and illustrated that the attributes are already present in many areas of school life.

Thanks to the framework of the Tanglin Learner Profile, I believe this will only get stronger.

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A Closer Look at IB and A Levels Sixth form, A Levels, International Baccalaureate (IB): A two year journey that prepares you for Higher Education, one full of challenges, expectations, disappointments and success. On the more positive note a road that leads to independence, responsibility and credibility – what most teenagers strive for.

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Sixth Form A Levels by Katie Bentley, Y13.5 So how do A Levels prepare you for Higher Education?

Compared to GCSEs, A Levels differ in the sense of a denser workload thus preparing you not only for university but for working life, where dealing with stress and deadlines is essential. Regardless of whether you go onto further education or not, A Levels prepare you for the challenges of adult life as they teach you how to gain self discipline and maturity.

Aspects such as managing workload enable you to get a better understanding of working efficiently whilst being able to work independently is crucial to being successful. Working with different groups of people and developing team working skills are also useful attributes for any future career.

When I asked an A Level student here at Tanglin if they felt they were being prepared for University, they replied:

at GCSE, so the focus and motivation along with the work produced becomes stronger. A further positive aspect of A Levels is the level of responsibility for your own education that increases as you start to mature and realise where you want to go in life. This is partly thanks to the higher level of trust given by the teachers, although this in itself can also be quite challenging at the start of the A Level course as students have to adjust to not being spoon fed and have to learn to rely on themselves and their own organisation skills.

Putting a social life to one side is also challenging for most of us! All your friends are going out but you have an assignment due in two days; what do you do? You persevere and stay focused on your work, after all once A Levels are over, there is a long summer ahead to have fun! However, I know from personal experience that it can sometimes be difficult to keep on top of work as it continues to pile up and this is something that A Level students have to learn to manage.

Despite the fact that there are fewer courses to take than there were with GCSEs, there seems to be a lot more work and getting used to the new learning techniques and methods is also a hurdle that needs to be overcome.

As the year goes on, a routine starts to develop and you eventually learn to keep up and stay relaxed – which is important when it comes to those dreaded exams.

All in all, the experience of A Levels starts you off on your journey beyond school. It teaches you how to deal with stress and how to work hard to get what you want.

It teaches you to be independent and organised and despite the lack of social life, it teaches you good social and team skills, which will be helpful when applying for that long awaited interview. It really is worth it!

“Yes, I feel more organised and I have to work more independently which means I depend less on my teachers and other people to help me. I also find the Extended Project Qualification especially helpful because it’s like a mini dissertation.”

The Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) is as an extra qualification which requires the student to independently research a subject of their choice and then write an essay and perform a presentation on it. Many decide to choose a subject that they wish to take up in university, by doing so this gives the university additional insight as the student has the opportunity to show off certain qualities such as initiative and independence as well as a commitment to what they want to study.

Students typically take subjects that they have an interest in at A Level and there are fewer subjects than there were

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Most IB students will go through mixed emotions throughout their two year course recognising it as ‘a labour of love’. Most IB students would agree that it is a challenging course and almost everyone would concur that it restricts the social life of a seventeen-year-old. However, it would be almost impossible to find an IB student at Tanglin who doesn’t think that they have gained enormously from taking the diploma. So whilst the IB diploma is no walk in the park, and at certain points throughout the course it may seem more like a climb up the Swiss Alps, it is irrefutable that each and every IB student comes out of the course with not only a diploma but also a mountain load of experiences and global perspectives.

So what is all the fuss about?

To complete the diploma, students have to take six different subjects. At Tanglin every IB student is required to take maths, English literature, a second language, a science, a humanities subject and finally an elective, which can be filled by an arts, humanities or science subject. This allows IB students the opportunity to maintain a holistic education and ensures that all key subjects are studied to keep career doors open.

To complete the diploma, a student also has to choose at least three of their subjects at higher level which cover additional material in more depth.

Instead of the traditional use of alphabets in the grading system, IB subjects are

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evaluated out of a possible seven points. The maximum number of points that can be garnered from the diploma is forty five. How then, do six subjects of a maximum of seven points each add up to forty five points? They don’t, at least not by themselves. To gain the remaining three points in the diploma, a student has to fulfill two essential core elements of the IB: Theory of Knowledge (TOK) and the Extended Essay.

TOK takes on an unconventional way of learning, where students explore aspects of knowledge such as analysing the credibility of certain information or questioning our understanding of senses and perception. The Extended Essay, put simply, is a long essay which every student needs to write. It is an independent project with only limited guidance from a supervising teacher. Both TOK and the Extended Essay are rigorously assessed and together they form the last possible three points.

So six subjects, three at a higher level and three at standard, as well as TOK and the Extended Essay - what more could anyone expect of a regular seventeen/eighteenyear old? CAS, it appears, would be the answer. Creativity, Action and Service are the final requirements of the diploma.

This means that the student has to commit to activities which develop creative skills (e.g. singing), partake in physical activities (e.g. rugby) and give back to society (e.g. charity work).

This all amounts to a challenge and like the four A Level route, students find they have a limited amount of non contact time, however it leads to one of the most rewarding learning experiences anyone could go through. It might be tough and you may end up pulling allnighters to get those Internal Assessments due in, but in the end you truly do come out a better person.

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IB by Dexter Seow, Y13.3

For some, the greatest step may be in academics and for others it may be finding new passions through the opportunities of CAS. Yet for most of us, the greatest learning experience that the IB imparts is one of independence and responsibility, hardship and adversity, perseverance and resolve. It is only after taking the IB, that one can one truly understand what is really meant by the phrase ‘a labour of love’ and when all is said and done, come to truly appreciate what this experience offers.

Authors: Dexter Seow and Katie Bentley

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Showcase: Art • Drama • Music

Infant & Junior Art 20

by Deirdre Dunstan, Head of Infant & Junior Art

The creative curriculum has taken hold of the Infant and Junior Schools, stimulating and ensuring opportunities for cross curricular learning. All art projects are designed to complement the current study units in Humanities, Science or English. Children thrive when they are able to explore ideas and make choices about what they will do, thus developing a confident knowledge of materials and their properties. In both schools, the children learn how to access and select their own materials, using them independently and in directed ways.

Talking, sharing and reflecting is also such an important aspect of art learning. From Nursery upwards, a dialogue about what a child thinks about his or her art work is established and encouraged.

Drawing underpins everything throughout the year, and is the starting point for most projects. Developing an understanding of similarities and differences in the work of artists from different times and cultures is key. Last year, the children looked at the work of a range of illustrators, non western cultures and craftspeople. These studies provoked and excited the children and ultimately inspired ideas. The immediate world around us, the rainforest, organic elements, bugs and beasts were recurring themes across the year groups providing a rich source of visual prompts and delightful responses.

Top Row (left to right): Nursery - Dinosaur collage, Reception - Blue eyed lion painting, Y1 - Henri Matisse African pattern/drawing/collage Middle Row (left to right): Y2, Jeannie Baker - Underwater collage with watercolour, Y3 - Vincent van Gogh sunflower line drawings, Y4 - Ceramic Fish Bottom Row (left to right): Y5 - Greek figure drawing, Y6 - Rainforest weaving

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Showcase: Art • Drama • Music

Senior Art

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by Jasmine Heber-Percy, Y8.5

Last year’s GCSE and A Level art exhibition had the title ‘The Unbroken Line’. The name, as explained by Mr Le Grice, Head of Arts Faculty, Senior School, came about after looking for a common theme that ran through all the artwork exhibited. Every piece had the connection of the use of line; whether it was a line made from bamboo, wire or general gestural lines. Mr Le Grice also commented that the strength of the work came from the personal nature of the subject matter the students had chosen and there was certainly much variety reflected throughout the work displayed.

Two artists-in-residence, Hannelore David and Dominic Fonde, who can be seen working on their own art and interacting with students on the 5th Floor of the Sixth Form Centre, were invited to the exhibition and to award First Place prizes to the most talented GCSE and A Level students. For GCSE, joint First Place was awarded to Victoria Ter Kuile, Y12.8, and George Bullock, Alumni 20082011. Tori was recognised for her beautiful drawing technique and her work’s realistic nature while George’s modern theme, the local culture reflected within his work and his exciting use of materials were celebrated. For A Level, First Place was given to Tabitha Millar, Y13.10, recognising the journey she took, which involved so many risks along the way, and the difference between where she started and her hugely original, end result.

Everyone who came to the exhibition, of all ages, from Reception upwards, had a chance to vote for their favourite piece of work. With only two votes separating them, joint First Place was awarded to Jessica Gibbs, Alumni 2006-2011 and Emma Cooper, Y12.7.

The exhibition was inspiring, well done to everyone!

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Showcase: Art • Drama • Music

Drama 22

Backstage CCA, by Chris Silburn, Assistant Head of Drama When watching any theatrical production, what you see on stage is only ever half the story. As well as the actors and director, a production’s success depends upon the hard work and commitment of an often unseen team of technicians, designers, and stage managers.

For the past year, all the technical elements of Senior School productions have been fully supported by students undertaking the Backstage CCA. As an essential part of the CCA students take responsibility and ownership for the technical elements of a production. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream the show was called, run and stage managed by the students (this was no mean feat given that there were over 120 lighting cues alone).

Last year’s production of Discontented Winter placed even greater technical demands on our crew as we took them out of the gallery and on to the stage to mix a live soundtrack, provide real time filming and control other aspects of the performance all in the audience’s view. This required a great deal of professionalism and the team rose to the challenge admirably.

Increasingly students are also contributing to the creative process of designing a production. For A Year and a Day, the Art department and a class of Year 7’s designed and built the visually stunning set. This project was supported by CCA students who also put their creative input in to costume, props, sound and lighting design, often sourcing the materials and samples themselves.

At Tanglin students have access to a wide range of professional equipment and are given the opportunity to work alongside our team of experienced theatre technicians who offer insights into industry standard practices. Through their involvement with the CCA and running productions they are given a real taste of working within a highly skilled and exciting industry.

The Ramayana by Tanvi Nibhanupudi, Alumni 2006-2011 and Luc Goh, Alumni 2010-2011 Year 5 put on a spectacular, heart stopping production of The Ramayana last term. The storyline was adapted by Ms Madge and was then put into action by Ms Jenner, an outstanding drama teacher. It was highly organised and well thought out. It had a dash of romance, a pinch of tragedy, a cup of magic and a streak of adventure. It was about a young prince, banished from his domain with his loyal brother and adoring wife. His wife is captured by the malicious demon King of Lanka (now known as Sri Lanka), Ravana as Rama rejected the sister of Ravana’s proposal of marriage. What will happen next...?

We all enjoyed the experience of putting on a production which was performed on a professional stage. The props were outstanding and it was simple yet effective, which is the key to success. As the Junior School’s first taste of theatre, we think that it went very well and we hope the Junior School will do a drama production again.

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Showcase: Art • Drama • Music Infant Music Highlights by Caroline Francis, Head of Infant Music

Senior Music Highlights

by Ben Hur, Head of Music (2009-2011)

Reception Concert Reception children displayed wonderful singing and percussion, groovy dance moves, impressive narrating and some really magical moments at their concert, ‘Giraffes Can’t Dance’, wowing their proud parents. A sad giraffe meets other animals who all seem to have their own moves; Hip Hop Hippos, Line Dancing Leopards, Twisting Tarantulas and Groovy Gorillas. A happy ending though, as she eventually finds her own groove!

Senior Musicians Concert 2011 The Senior Musicians Concert featured impressive up-and-coming performers from Key Stage 3 as well as two very talented Y10 performers. The ‘mystery’ performers, a couple of staff musicians, slightly older than the rest, performed a violin and cello duet for the young musicians!

Infant Strings and Ukuleles More children have been inspired to learn violin and Infant String Ensemble membership has risen further. This follows a successful and busy schedule throughout last year, performing at St George’s Festival of Music, PTA Book and Craft Fair, whole-school assemblies, St Joseph’s hospice visits, ‘Busking for Japan Earthquake Appeal’ and last term’s PTA Family Fun Day. Congratulations to all the performers.

Lunchtime Choir and Recorder Ensemble These two new lunch time ensembles sprung up last term and proved extremely popular with full intake. It is heartwarming to see the level of keen interest in musical activities shown by Tanglin Infants.

Junior Music Highlights by Fiona Knight Lucas, Head of Junior Music Y4 Concert Y4 students demonstrated fabulous singing, stylish dancing and super instrumental skills in their concert Under the Sea. As well as a wonderful display of musical talent including recorders, violins, guitars and drums, the children recited delightful poems that they had written themselves on a variety of water themed topics such as sharks and water conservation. With a mixture of well known classics such as Yellow Submarine, Surfin’ USA as well as a mash of Rhianna and Singin’ in the Rain, the children delighted parents with their talent and enthusiasm.

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Music

Class Brass Programme To encourage student uptake of brass instruments, the Senior Music department invited all Y7 students, showing an interest in brass playing, to a series of weekly group lessons last term, involving various different brass instruments. These lessons were led by Tanglin’s brass tutors, Mr Wickman and Mr Chua.

As part of the programme, Tanglin also invited one of the great Brass Bands in the world, the Desford Colliery Band, to visit the school and give two concerts for Junior students. A number of the Y7 brass students went on to perform brilliantly at the final whole school assembly.

Junior Ensembles Concert With two new ensembles introduced to the Junior Music CCA programme last year, the numbers of children participating in ensembles concerts rose significantly. The students in the eleven ensembles, which ranged from gamelan and orchestra to advanced recorders and rock band, impressed everyone with their fabulous playing and singing. A highlight of the evening was a visit from guest performer Cherylene Liew Taylor who supported the Chamber Choir in a performance of Vivaldi’s Laudamus Te. Lunchtime Recitals The lunchtime recitals continued to be popular events, with students enjoying a lunchtime spent listening to their friends perform. It is wonderful to see the range and variety of talent and the enthusiastic support and encouragement the children offer.

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Sport Sporting Firsts at Tanglin 24

by Jennifer Anderson, Communications Executive

Sports Leaders Sports Leadership plays a significant part in both the Physical Education (PE) and CCA programmes at Tanglin.

Students involved in Sports Leadership courses learn valuable life skills, including communication, organisation, fair play, planning and leadership.

In Y10, Tanglin offers the official ‘Sports Leaders UK’ Level One course, a year long course that students opt to complete within scheduled PE hours. As part of their course, the Y10 students last year provided invaluable support in the planning and running of a number of sports events including the U13 FOBISSEA Games, SEASAC Basketball, Junior Sports Days, House Days and swimming galas.

Lower down the school, Y6 students were given the opportunity to complete a year long ‘Young Leaders Award’ as part of their CCA programme. The students learnt valuable leadership and planning skills earlier on in the year and were then able to put these into practice by running ‘House Night’ for Y3 and Y4 students and leading other activities such as dodgeball, football, obstacle courses and t-ball.

Introducing First Ever Leagues U8 Football Last term, Tanglin’s U8s took part in the very first ACSIS Football League for Y3 students, training hard and competing in friendly tournaments against other international schools in Singapore.

Tanglin was pleased to host a number of these tournaments at which our three teams thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

The students have tremendous potential for the future and Tanglin looks forward to further U8 Football success this year.

U14 Badminton Badminton at Tanglin has grown in popularity in recent years and the standard of the school’s competitive play has shown significant improvement. Full credit should be given to last year’s U14 badminton players whose commitment was excellent over the course of the season. In particular, congratulations must go to the boys U14 squad who beat some extremely tough opposition to take home Silver, losing narrowly (3-2) to the Global Indian School, Queenstown.

The future of SEASAC Badminton looks extremely bright.

U10 Basketball It was fantastic to see our Y4 and Y5 boys and girls competing in a series of friendly basketball tournaments last year in the first ever U10 basketball season for Tanglin. Congratulations must go to Tanglin’s very talented girls team who beat the Overseas Family School (OFS) in a tough play off for Bronze position.

U12 Tennis Last season, our U12 boys tennis players trained as a competitive squad, another first for Tanglin. Throughout the season, players travelled to Jurong to train at the country club courts and to develop their technique. Unfortunately, the end of season tournament was rained off after the first match but was re-arranged to early this school year, where the ‘A’ finished a fantastic 3rd position and the ‘B’ team in 5th.

Junior School Sports Days Traditionally Sports Days signal the culmination of the school year with a fun filled day of sport and competition. Tanglin is no exception, with the Junior School sports days taking place in the penultimate week of last term.

The children practiced hard in their sports afternoons throughout the term to learn the events and improve their techniques. On the day, the students took part in a series of competitive events to score points for their Houses; they were split into groups named after the Olympic motto, Fortius, Altius and Citius. The students demonstrated their ability in high jump, long jump, three spring jump and ball throwing as well as various running races including the 75m, 600m and relay, and attempted to break personal bests as well as school records. A total of nine school records were broken in the Junior School; well done to the record breakers.

The overall winning house was Beruang, so congratulations must go to Dr Harry Hope and his bears!

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Introducing Colin Morris as new Director of Sport and Activities Tanglin is delighted to welcome the New Director of Sport and Activities, Colin Morris. Colin moved to Singapore at the beginning of August and joins us from Hamble Community Sports College, UK, where he was Director of Sports for 3 years.

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When asked about his new role, Colin commented: “The Sports College network, which I was lucky enough to be part off, has given me a wealth of experience, which I hope to bring to Tanglin and enhance what is already a school with an incredible sporting pedigree.

With Tanglin’s superb competitive structure and extensive CoCurricular Activities (CCA) programme, this is the perfect start to my first overseas teaching position. I have a wonderful opportunity to maintain and build on Tanglin’s local, national and international sporting reputation and to ensure that the quality of what is delivered in all areas of sport is second to none!”

We hope that Colin has settled in well and we wish him and the players the best of luck for the new season.

Sports Awards In the Junior School, children are rewarded with ‘star badges’ for representing Tanglin in competitive events and Sports Awards for excellence in a particular sport. Last year, over 250 children in the Junior School represented Tanglin in a variety of sports. A special mention goes to Charlie Pallister, Y5.3 and Katie Mullan, Y6.4, who represented the school in 6 and 7 sports respectively; the highest sporting representation in the Junior School.

The ‘Sports Awards’ are presented to children who have shown high levels of ability, commitment, and participation and have also been good role models in a particular sport. Congratulations to all of the children who received these prestigious awards last term:

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SWIMMING

JACOB BOE

Alumni 2007-2011

SWIMMING

KAMIN CLARKE

Y7.4

FOOTBALL

MAX SWAN

Alumni 2009-2011

FOOTBALL

LIZZY DUFFY

Alumni 2005-2011

RUGBY (contact)

TOM CLARK

Y7.5

RUGBY (touch)

NATALIE SHEERS

Y7.1

NETBALL

HOLLY BURRIDGE

Y6.5

TENNIS

HOE KWAN FUNG

Y7.3

ATHLETICS

JACOB PRESTON

Y7.5

ATHLETICS

MACKENZIE MAUGHAN

Y7.4

BASKETBALL

SEAN KENNEDY

Y7.1

BASKETBALL

SABRINA GARCIA-SALAS

Y7.5

GYMNASTICS

DANNY WU-MURPHY

Y7.1

GYMNASTICS

ANNA HOOKHAM

Y7.7

CRICKET

GEORGE WILLIAMS

Y7.7

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10/21/11 9:38 AM

PTA A message from the new PTA President Having spent the past two years with the PTA as Secretary, I am now looking forward to the year ahead as President. On behalf of the Committee I would like to thank Frances for her hard work over the last two years and am happy to say Frances has remained on the Committee. You will notice some new faces on the Committee this year and I would like to extend a warm welcome to Roseann Anderson, Caroline Bittar, Lee Keenan, Kerry Maxwell and Justin Regan. I am extremely lucky to have the support and help of such a wonderful team and thank them in advance for their commitment.

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by Tracy Betteridge, PTA President

The Committee always welcomes ‘extra hands’, so if you feel you have the time and would like to be involved in any events, please either call, drop by the office or e-mail the PTA. We would love to see you!

Talking of events, look out for our planned events and be sure to save the dates in your diary. The perfect diary to keep you up-to-date during the school year is the PTA Academic Diary. If you haven’t purchased your copy and would like one, these are on sale in the school shop. Thanks go to Frances Beretta and Ally Kiggell for their hard work co-ordinating the diary over the school holiday.

Our Quiz Night is extremely popular and if you missed the first Quiz on 7 October, be sure to look out for the next one on Friday, 13 April! Come along and test your knowledge.

The first Junior discos of the year took place in September and great fun was had by all. Thank you to Suzy Grant for organising these events and to the parents who kindly volunteered to help.

To get everyone into the festive spirit, the Christmas Book and Gift Fair will take place on 25 and 26 November. This is a great opportunity to get ahead with your Christmas shopping and taste your first mince pie! The Committee looks forward to an enjoyable couple of days and we hope you can join us.

Looking ahead to next term, our Grandparents Tea on Tuesday, 10 January is a fabulous event. Don’t be fooled by the name, this is not restricted to Grandparents! If you have family members visiting over Christmas, please do bring them along.

So as you can see, a busy time ahead and lots of opportunities to get involved. I hope you’ve enjoyed your first few weeks of the school year and a warm Tanglin welcome to all our new students and families.

Tracy Betteridge PTA President

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A Day in the Life of Student Services 28

by Saskia Lawrence, Y9.3 and Megan Newland, Alumni 2010-2011

Student Services is made up by the Careers, Nursing, Counselling and PSHCE team, a group of staff who work incredibly hard to support students (and sometimes parents too) in so many areas of school life.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Student Services team for all their hard work and to recognise what ‘a day in the life of’ each team entails.

Although PSHCE is a part of Student Services, it is not included in this article as it will have its very own focus in a subsequent issue of The Voice… so watch this space to find out more!

Nursing The nursing team arrives at 7.30am.

The start of their working day is usually relatively quiet, although things start to get a lot busier once the students arrive.

On any morning, there will always be a flourish of students visiting the Health Centres with various maladies and, where appropriate, the nurses will try their best to get them all back to lessons as soon as possible. The Health Centres are manned until 7.30pm every night to provide cover for CCA’s and sporting events that the school holds on campus.

Aside from the medical support provided at school, another key area for the nursing department is Health Education.

Every year group, from Nursery right through to 6th form, will benefit from the valuable input of the nursing team, as part of the PSHCE curriculum. The members of the nursing team are familiar to all students throughout Tanglin and are always received warmly in class or assemblies.

The nursing team is also heavily involved in residential trips, sports trips and events. Although accidents and illnesses on school trips are rare, there is always a nurse present and fully prepared, and through their experience they add enormous value to the trips generally.

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From left to right: Claire Holmes (School Counsellor), Sarah Le Grice (Lead School Nurse), Isobel Barclay (Head of Careers) and Kendra Frazier (School Counsellor).

“If they got hurt the teacher would take them down and the nurse would fix what happened.”

Infant Student (Y1)

“Since starting my A Levels I have struggled to conclude on what subjects I would like to do at university, or even on the universities I might consider. The Careers Centre has helped me decide on all of this as well as revealing options to me which I didn’t know existed.”

Craig Patullo, Y13.8

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29 Careers Education

Counselling

A typical day in the life of the Head of Careers, Mrs Barclay, varies depending on the time of year. In term 1 she helps with the 6th Form university applications.

She will usually meet with several students (and sometimes parents) in one-on-one guidance sessions to help the students identify what course they want to study and at which university.

She also provides further support to students helping them with their university applications for the UK, USA and other countries, and loaning books from her diverse collection in the Careers Library.

The counselling team have a very early start every morning. On arrival at school, they check their emails and reply to anything urgent and then their day really begins. The team works with students from all three schools, and sometimes parents as well, and their days are typically packed full of appointments and meetings, often after school too.

Mrs Barclay also organises the Year 11 Work Experience Day in November and manages the Careers Module in the PSHCE curriculum for Years 7 to 13. This includes careers aptitude and psychometric testing, the Real Game, interview practice and lots of other careers and university focused activities.

In term 2 she focuses on organising the Careers Fair and University events and visits. The Careers fair involves over 80 entrepreneurs and business experts who come in and talk to Tanglin students about the world of work.

Mrs Barclay is very busy all year round with different things. Her job is incredibly diverse and she absolutely loves it!

The counsellors use a wide variety of mediums to communicate with students; this could involve making scenes in the sand or making a movie, art is also often used to help or sometimes it will simply be a case of listening and helping a student talk through their problems.

Every session is tailored to the individual.

In addition to meeting with students in the counselling rooms, the team are involved in a range of group activities in all three schools. The counsellors sometimes join in special ‘circle time’ meetings in Infant School classrooms; they are occasionally involved in workshops or assemblies in the Junior School relating to topics such as bullying or racism; and they also participate in Senior School events such as the Alcohol Panel, the Communications Workshop and training of ‘big buddies’ through the Mentor Programme. They are also very busy

attending regular Pastoral Team Meetings in all three schools to keep up to date with current issues and concerns.

As if this wasn’t enough, the counselling team also hold parenting workshops, run sessions for leavers and new students and are available for crisis response!

After moving to Singapore and finding the change quite unsettling for my children, I met with a school counsellor to assist me in finding a way to help the children cope better with this transition. I cannot say enough about the truly supportive and caring attitude of the counsellor.

The few sessions we had were insightful and extremely helpful with strategies to use with the children. The fact that she continued to follow up, through email, with reading suggestions was so thoughtful of her. I highly recommend the counsellors for children and parents that feel they need a little help adjusting.

Anonymous parent.

A big thank you to Student Services for their invaluable support.

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Creative Writing My Family

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“Andy, come up,” my teacher invited. Our projects were to be presented today. My project was about my family. So I stood up and inserted my USB drive into the computer. I double clicked on the PowerPoint presentation.

“My family,” I narrated as the title came up onto the screen “By Andy Roberts. There was some muttering in the audience. “How imaginative” and “very original” were some of the sarcastic remarks.

“This is my dad, also known as Fatherus domesticus,” I said as a picture of my father appeared on the screen. “He is the leader of our clan. He loves historia and is known as the ‘Mathemagician’ by his tribe for his profound adoration of the number. In his youth he was known to be a servant of the rock Metallica. He loves watching the footballus on weekends.

Although domesticated, he spends weekdays at the ‘officius’, his second habitat.”

When a picture of my mother came on to the screen, I announced, “Meet Mothera domesticana bookwurma or my mum. Although very cheerful, she is enslaved by two dark beings: the Museumus and the Kitchenus. She spends many hours attempting to complete the jobs set by her two masters. The Museumus is especially demanding by making her write papers that require hours on the computerus and regular visits to its lair. In the deep dark cave of the Kitchenus mum pops popcornus and bakes an odd assortment of muffinni. In her spare time she loves to read scrolls and she stores a large collection.”

Then my older brother popped up. “This is my brother, or Brotherus pesticus magnificus.

He is known for his aggravating behaviour, so there is an ongoing battle between him, my sister and I. His arsenal of pranks includes using the dark arts of persuasion, hogging the computerus and repetitive chanting of our names to plague us with noise. Pesticus magnificus loves different scripts and is currently using the internetus and scrolls from Mothera’s collection to learn Persianus and Arabicus.”

A picture of my sister slid onto the screen. “Finally this is Sistera magnifica bookwurmus.

My sister. She has her own colony of beings living in her cupboard known as Softii toyii.

Don’t try to converse with them as they only talk to her. She is known to love Garfieldus and Snoopius comica and regularly cuts them out of the newspapyrus. In her down time she can be seen with her nose in a scroll from Motheras’ librarius. She has some unusual collections such as small stickera found on fruitus from the marketplace.” I said.

“My family is known as Subspecies Robertus. Although we are native to Australius, we can also be seen in Singapura and we have even been spotted as far north as Hollandia.

That concludes my presentation,” I ended. There was some light applause, but less than I expected.

Then my teacher said “That was a very good presentation Andy but this was supposed to be a biology project.”

“That’s what I did!” I replied.

Alex Williams, Y9.6, Grand Prize Winner of the Scholastic Writers’ Award 2010

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10/21/11 9:38 AM

A twisted tree A family tree A spagetti spooky hairy tree A smooth tree A rustling tree A elagant spooky ginormous tree A bumpy tree A canopy tree A swirling karm twisted tree

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My Tree Poem

Alexis Garman, Y2.2 The Tunnel The sheer length of it sent shivers down my spine. Its shadow loomed over me casting me into the darkness. The damp, frozen floor was dull, as if no one had touched it in the last thousand years. The tunnel; I nervously cast my eyes into its sullen depths wondering if there were any signs of life. There weren’t. Curiousness and anticipation overtook me. I began slowly shuffling forward as I let the cold darkness welcome me. I began visualising my surroundings. Large trees overhung above me, making a makeshift ceiling. Leaves fluttered down, as a morning breeze swept through creating echoes everywhere. The dank, mulish air tingled the hairs on my arm, as if apprehending me. Something bad was coming... … Then I heard it: A faint grunt off in the distance. I heard it bounding toward me.

A colossal beast, covered in shaggy fur, running as fast as a cheetah; and straight towards me. My body was screaming at me. I bounded for the exit. Looking over my shoulder for the beast, I turned and ran. The tunnel rapidly closed around me. The exit slammed shut. I began to see cracks jutting out the path. I sprinted as fast as I could, my feet bounding on the hard tiles. The voices shouted at me “Run, Run!” I steamed ahead feeling the wind across my face. But my luck was not to last. I tripped and landed hard on my shoulder. I stood up wincing as pain streaked up my arm. I could hear galloping feet on tiles as the beast rushed towards me. I stumbled the last steps out of the tunnel and fell into the shrouded darkness…

Image given as stimulus

Arran Brunning, Y7.3

My Tree Poem A silent tree A secretive tree A antiont, spooky, enormous tree A calm tree A shady tree A fluffy, towering, peaceful tree A rough tree A comftable tree A misreble, creepy, muddy tree Alex Younge, Y2.2

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Book Reviews Senior School Library Book Reviews

Top 5 most popular books

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan Blood Ties by Sophie McKenzie My Sister Jodie by Jacqueline Wilson Life on the Refrigerator Door: a novel in notes Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson When I Was Joe by Keren David

This book is about a 15 year boy named Ty who witnesses a murder and is then blackmailed into not telling the police; however, after a bombing of Ty’s living area the police become aware of his situation. Ty and his mother, Nicki, are then relocated under a protection programme. Both receive new identities, Ty becomes cool, popular Joe and Nicki become Michelle. As the book develops, Joe befriends Claire, an outsider who has a dark secret which could potentially threaten her life.

I really enjoyed this book as it kept me entertained and there was always something happening. From page one, I was attached to the characters and had to know what was going to happen to them! I would recommend this book to anyone, boy or girl, who enjoys action but doesn’t mind a little romance. If you are easily disturbed I would not recommend that you read this book.

Olivia Stevens, Y10.1

Prisoner of the Inquisition by Theresa Breslin

I learnt so much about Spain during the Holy Inquisition from reading this book. Up until then, the only thing I knew about religious stake burning tactics were the witch trials in England. This book has broadened my knowledge and made me aware of many historical events.

Zarita is the only daughter of a powerful magistrate in Las Conchas and is much loved by her parents. Saulo is the son of a family reduced by circumstances to begging.

Things are going relatively well for both of them, until their paths are suddenly brought together, ruining both their lives. Saulo is sent off as a slave to sea, and vows revenge on Zarita’s family. Zarita faces the challenges of a new life with her stepmother. And amidst all these troubles, the Holy Inquisition is brewing its evil plans…

I really loved reading this book and I can see why it was in the short-list for the Carnegie Book Award. It’s educational, exciting and touching all at the same time! Therefore, I recommend it for ages 13+. It’s a great book to read.

Kristine Cho, Y9.4

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Junior School Library Book Reviews

Top 5 most popular books

Year 3 - Duck, Rabbit by Amy Krouse Rosenthal Year 4 - King Ottokar’s Scepter (Tintin) by Herge Year 5 - The Diary of Amos Lee by Adeline Foo Year 6 - Word Nerd by Susin Nielsen Non Fiction - Guinness World Records 2009 Patrick by Quentin Blake

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Patrick buys a violin and everywhere he goes, he plays the violin and magical things happen like fish flying, cows getting stars and dancing and trees growing cakes! It can even make people better and fatter! Read this book and find out what else it does…

My favourite part of the book was when the magic happened because it made me laugh a lot! I recommend this book for people who believe in magic and love music.

Ankit Kapoor, Y4.2

Angelo by Quentin Blake

This book is about a young boy called Angelo. Angelo is Italian. Angelo and his family travel around and go to different town squares where Angelo does acrobatics like headstands and best of all the rope dance. Angelo makes me feel happy.

I found this book very exciting because it was like the tension was building up a lot.

Angelo was good because the rope dance was very exciting. This is a book that all Quentin Blake fans should read.

Morgan Oruche, Y4.2

Infant School Library Book Reviews

Top 5 most popular books

Standing small: a celebration of 30 years of the Lego minifigure by Nevin Martell Watch out for Jabba the Hutt! by Simon Beecroft Have fun in the kitchen! by Annabel Karmel Do not open this book! by Michaela Muntean Princess: the essential guide by Naia Bray-Moffatt My favourite author is Jeannie Baker. I like all her picture books and stories because she uses collage to illustrate her books. My favourite Jeannie Baker book is called ‘Window’. I like this book because it has many pretty pictures inside. Y2 have been learning about Jeannie Baker in class so I have seen many of her books.

Seren Price, Alumni (2010-2011) My favourite set of books are the Harry Potter series. My mum reads them to me if I have spare time. My favourite book in the series is called ‘Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets’. I have also seen the movies which I love. The author of Harry Potter is J K Rowling and she is from England like me!

Rhyen Patel, Y3.5

I like the Rainbow Magic series of books by Daisy Meadows. My favourite book I have read from this series is called ‘The Snow Cap Fairy’. I like reading many different types of books about fairies. So far I have read 19 books from the Rainbow Magic series and I would like to read more. The most recent book I have read is called ‘Stella the Star Fairy’.

Mia Wong, Y3.3

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10/21/11 9:38 AM

Parent Book Reviews from the Professional Development Centre Library

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The Parenting Collection of books is split between all school libraries and is rotated each term to offer variety to library visitors. If you are interested in borrowing these or any of our other parenting resources, or becoming a Tanglin Library member please contact any of the library staff.

The Reading Bug by Paul Jennings I wish I’d read this book 10 years ago when my children were little!

Whilst searching through the very informative Parenting Collection, I came across ‘The Reading Bug’, which boasted a ‘Brilliant booklist for parents and children’. As I flicked through the pages, I realised this book was a great inspirational and practical guide to help parents encourage their children to learn to love books.

This book cuts through the jargon and controversy and shows how every parent can infect their child with the reading bug. It explains how to encourage the reluctant reader, lists great books for babies through to Y10 and shows how to help your child along the road to becoming a lifelong reader.

A must for all parents who’ve ever worried about their children’s reading!

Karen Millar, Parent Learning Support Assistant and mother

Growing Great Boys by Ian Grant I don’t have any brothers, only a sister and so when I found out I was having a boy I was concerned that I wouldn’t know what to do with him! This book explains to parents what boys need to experience a healthy and well rounded upbringing.

What I particularly liked was the way that each chapter is summarised in bullet points at the end which allows you to dip in and out as well as read some chapters in detail.

I picked up a number of tips and felt myself being reassured as I recognised that lots of his points we already follow.

Lisa, mother of Louis and Bertie

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10/21/11 9:38 AM

The Last Word Learning

by John Ridley, Director of Learning

These are exciting times for Tanglin but as I reflect on my personal journey with the school over the last 13 years, I realise that this is the norm.

I first joined the school as Head of Science in the Seniors. I arrived a term before the main Senior School building was finished. The Senior School at that time consisted of Years 7, 8 and 9, with fewer students in total than we currently have in Year 7 alone. Two of us were teaching Science and were using a single, small laboratory that had been converted from a Junior School staff room. Most of the Senior School lessons were in pre-fabricated classrooms that were sited where the ‘Old Sixth Form Centre’ now stands.

In January 1999 we all moved into the fabulous new building. Shortly after that, the decision was made to extend the age range all the way to 18, rather than 16 and the growth of the Senior School accelerated.

Perhaps because my own children have been through Tanglin, I have always been interested in the progression through the school, both in terms of the academic progress and personal development. In 2004 I took on the role of Assistant Director of Studies, which was a ‘whole school’ position looking particularly at ways to track academic progress across the whole school, as well as timetabling issues resulting from growing demand on our shared spaces.

Three years ago I moved back to the Senior School as the Assistant Head Teacher responsible for Curriculum and Assessment. The Senior School was maturing and the larger student numbers allowed us to offer a greater

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Our newly appointed Director of Learning reflects on his time at Tanglin so far and looks to the future in his new role. range of subjects at GCSE and A Level as well as to add the International Baccalaureate Diploma as an alternative to the A Level pathway in the Sixth Form.

Growth will always bring challenges but it also brings opportunities and I am extremely proud to have been associated with the development of the Senior School when I see the opportunities enjoyed by our current students.

I am delighted to have returned to a position with a ‘whole school’ focus this year, in the new Director of Learning post.

I was asked recently if Tanglin’s curriculum was ‘too British’ since we are constrained by the English National Curriculum. Far from it. We use the National Curriculum as a framework for teaching and learning up to age 16 but it is not constraining.

We are very aware of our location in Asia and the importance of preparing our students to be ‘global citizens’ and as a result we are continually looking at what we offer to ensure the curriculum is balanced, relevant and challenging. The reference to ‘Our World’ in Tanglin’s new mission statement has served as a challenge to curriculum leaders across the school to look for new ways to relate the subjects we teach to Singapore, Asia and the World.

all three schools to ensure that transition between the phases remains smooth, that lessons learned in one part of the school are shared with others and that all students are challenged appropriately as they progress through the key stages.

I feel enormously privileged to be part of the Tanglin community. Tanglin manages to combine the tradition and rigour of a British education with the energy and forward thinking of modern Singapore.

No school is better placed to meet the challenges ahead.

The adoption of the Learner Profile across the school has provided us with a common vocabulary with which to talk about the personal development of students as they progress through the school, with an emphasis on the attributes that will prepare them for life in the 21st Century.

Meanwhile, the Technology Working Group, with representatives from all three schools, is actively investigating the latest portable devices and how they might be used to transform learning in the future.

Not being attached to the Infant, Junior or Senior Schools gives me a unique perspective from which to support all this development. I will be spending time in

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95 Portsdown Road, Singapore 139299 www.tts.edu.sg Tel: 6778 0771 Fax: 6777 5862 Email: communications@tts.edu.sg

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