20192020

Annual ReportInternational Christian School

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2019-2020 ANN

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Letter from the Board of Trustees ChairLetter from the Interim Head of SchoolsLetter from the Parents Association ChairLetter from the Alumni Association PresidentAlumni Relations Office

Our EmployeesStudent AdmissionsStandardized TestingClass of 2020: University Acceptances

A Note about Online LearningKindergarten Elementary SchoolMiddle SchoolHigh SchoolBible Department Bridges Program (Special Education Needs)Co-curricular Education & Pastoral Care Curriculum & InstructionEnglish Language Arts DepartmentFacilities ManagementFine and Performing Arts DepartmentInformation TechnologyMath DepartmentPhysical Education & Health DepartmentScience & Technology DepartmentSocial Sciences DepartmentStudent ServicesWorld Languages DepartmentFinancial Summary

Special Thanks

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1718202224262728303233343536373839404142

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CONTENTS

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Mrs. Edith ChanBoard of Trustees Chair

May 2020 Board Retreat March 2020 AGM with ICSL Members

In the last annual report, we recounted a decade of God’s abundant grace as we entered the 2020s. While many may remember 2019-20 as a year of Dr. Buckner’s departure and school disruptions from social unrest and COVID-19, I praise the Lord for another year of His wondrous provision and protection.

First, despite the uncertainties, we were able to press on with the Head of Schools search and witness His guiding hand in bringing the Modarellis to ICS. They bring to the School their breadth of experience in Christian education and depth of commitment to Asia and in particular Hong Kong in this time.

Second, with the interim headship of Mr. Van Tassel, we commend the Senior Leadership Team (“SLT”) for the seamless transition. It was sheer joy working with Brian who happened to be my daughter’s high school (“HS”) principal during her ICS years and the good Lord has just prepared us for a time like this. We even managed to make possible the HS graduation come rain or shine (literally!)

Third, we are grateful for the generous support of the parent community and Parents Association (“PA”) leadership amidst the challenges they faced in their work and family from the pandemic. I would like to personally thank Mr Kenneth Leung, PA Chair, for his faithful and collaborative services bridging the parents, Administration and Board in multiple difficult decisions on school arrangements throughout his tenure.

Last but not least, we managed to gather as International Christian Schools Limited (“ICSL”) Members in our Annual General Meeting in masks to recognize the contribution of departing trustees and elect new ones. We welcome Mrs Angela Tran, institutional representative from the Evangelical Free Church of China, and proud ICS parent of two children since kindergarten. We also welcome Mr. Andrew Ngo, former PA Vice-Chair and veteran School Management Committee member, also a proud parent of two boys at ICS.

We continue to be blessed by the Institutional Members’ prayers, guidance and support. The 2020-21 Board had two retreats to reaffirm the values and directions of ICS in preparation for Dr. Modarelli’s arrival. We look forward to working with Brian’s fresh perspectives and approaches in charting a new course for ICS and we thank God for His provision of a strong steady pair of hands at the helm in such extraordinary times. In closing, His promise in Joshua 1:9 brings power and comfort: “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Amen!

LETTER FROM THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES CHAIR

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Dear ICS Community,

This year we have encountered challenges and disruptions unprecedented in ICS history and, indeed, in the lifetimes of most of us, due to both social unrest in Hong Kong and the Coronavirus pandemic. Across the School, students, parents, teachers, and staff have experienced the loss of things we expected and looked forward to (in some cases, things anticipated for years). This might have been the inability to have a face-to-face Reception 2 graduation, the loss of Grade 5 camp, the disruption of Middle School Week Without Walls, or the cancellation of the Junior-Senior Banquet, not to mention the inability to see friends and teachers in the classroom, hallways, and playground for many weeks. It is fitting to grieve our losses.

But the story of this year is not exclusively about loss. How we choose to respond to challenges is critical. Challenges and risks can harm individuals and fracture communities when we spiral into self-pity, self-protection, or hopelessness. Yet challenges and risks are also opportunities for growth and change in individuals and communities. I am proud of how the ICS community has responded. We have seen flexibility, creativity, and tenacity among teachers, administrators, staff, students, and parents. We have listened to one another and supported one another. We have found new ways to connect. We have “gone the extra mile” for one another, drawn closer to God as our source of strength, wisdom, and love.

We have chosen courage, hope, and unity. Perhaps many of us have had our identities refined as we have acknowledged our fragility, finiteness, and lack of control, and rooted ourselves more deeply in God’s reality, sovereignty, grace, and love.

As we look ahead to 2020-2021, we long for “normalcy” to return. However, I think we would be wiser to remain flexible. Cycles of face-to-face and home-based learning may continue. We should continue to plan with hope. At the same time, we should identify the essential purposes of any activity or program and find creative ways to attain the same purposes through multiple pathways that are less susceptible to disruption.

The mission of ICS is one that values the holistic development of students in God’s kingdom. Growth during all circumstances is something we embrace and value as a school, therefore nothing external can deflect us from this purpose. Let us continue to learn and grow together!

LETTER FROM THE INTERIM HEAD OF SCHOOLS

Mr. Brian Van TasselInterim Head of Schools 2019 - 2020

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The Parent Association (PA) dedicates itself to serving ICS parents. The PA facilitates communication between parents and the School through meetings with the Executive Committee and Principals to discuss various issues. Even though the PA was faced with the challenge of COVID-19, the PA still strived to serve the School in different ways. In Semester 1, the PA continued to host a buddy program for new families, giving each a Christian parenting book, organized Principals, and Parent Coffee Chats. Others include organizing uniform swaps at the start of the year, teacher appreciation gifts, and sponsoring meals and campus festive decorations. The PA also hosted principal transition events to allow parents to have a proper farewell with Dr. Buckner and Mrs. Whenuaroa and meet the incoming Head of School, Dr. Modarelli. This year, the PA brought back the long-awaited Thanksgiving Worship Night, where the community shared a turkey

meal and praised God together. The PA organized a Generosity Family Day Camp to talk about biblical money management, a local gospel movie night and facilitated gospel sharing by distributing Christmas gospel gift tags. For the first time, Chinese New Year gospel Lai See packets were produced to share the love of Christ. While the COVID-19 pandemic was rampant from February onwards, the PA worked closely with the School to provide parent feedback regarding online learning and campus reopening protocols. The PA gathered the community to connect through prayers online during those months and throughout the summer. The PA was also involved in the tendering process for a catering contract, the School Bus Committee, and gave feedback regarding the new car drop-off policy. The PA had set aside a budget to support various other school activities financially, but the budget has not been used due to event cancellations in the

LETTER FROM THE PARENTS ASSOCIATION CHAIR

Mr. Kenneth Leung, Parents Association Chair (right) speaks to parents

Mr. Kenneth LeungParents Association Chair

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The ICS Alumni Association (ICSAA) continued to stay involved with the ICS community and built relationships among alumni, focusing on alumni with families in Hong Kong. ICSAA organized an Open Gym event at ICS and a Thanksgiving gathering, both of which were well-received by our alumni. As with past years, a lunch gathering was arranged for lawyers and law students in Hong Kong.

Due to COVID-19, ICSAA could not physically meet and congratulate the seniors on their graduation, but seniors were still welcomed into the alumni family through virtual means. It has been an unpredictable year for the association, but there will be continued efforts to connect and support the alumni. Nathan Wong (Class of 2002)The ICSAA President

LETTER FROM THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT

ICS Alumni Association Annual General Meeting

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Beginning with six graduates in the Class of 1994, the ICS alumni community is now over 1,200 individuals and counting. The school hired its first Alumni Officer in 2008, and the work of the Alumni Relations Office (ARO) and under the Communication & Publication Office, continues to this day. Twelve alumni were on staff during the 2019-20 school year.

The ARO posted monthly digital updates on alumni stories, events, and activities. A list of alumni recommended churches (fellowships/churches across the USA, Canada, Australia, Europe, and Asia) was compiled and shared with all alumni.

From the Class of 2017, all graduating classes received an ICS alumni card and mug as a school gift. Where possible, the ARO assists with alumni events or activities. Seven alumni attended a gathering in New York City in November 2019, and nine from the Class of 2009 celebrated their 10-year class reunion in December 2019 in Hong Kong.

The ARO publicized and provided partial financial support for both events. Several members attended the Show Choir concert, ‘SHINE,’ in January 2020, and the ARO sponsored light refreshments. Financial support was given towards the ICS Alumni Association activities, such as a Thanksgiving Family event and AGM.

ICS has welcomed alumni to visit and use various facilities at the Shek Mun campus for some years. Over 140 alumni from the Classes of 1996 to 2019 visited the Shek Mun campus, though school closed for several months because of COVID-19. Many came for a faculty-organized weekly basketball session for staff, parents, and alumni.

The ARO sent congratulatory flowers for alumni weddings and condolence flowers on behalf of the school in past months.

ALUMNI RELATIONS OFFICE

ICS Alumni Association Annual General Meeting

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2019-2020 ANN

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UNITED STATES

17%

14%

11%

6%

4%

4%

CANADA

HONG KONG

OTHER COUNTRIES

UNITED KINGDOM

AUSTRALIA

CHINA

OUR EMPLOYEES

ADMINISTRATORS FACULTY MEMBERS

8 142 35.5NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

NATIONALITIES OF FACULTY MEMBERS

STAFF MEMBERS

44%

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KINDERGARTEN ELEMENTARY MIDDLE SCHOOL HIGH SCHOOL

137 425 275 335

STUDENT ADMISSIONS

ENROLLMENT BY CAMPUS (1218 STUDENTS)

NATIONALITIES OF STUDENTS

CANADA - 176

UNITED KINGDOM - 49

HKSAR - 750 AUSTRALIA - 41KOREA - 15SINGAPORE - 12MALAYSIA - 8PHILIPPINES - 4JAPAN - 4OTHER ASIAN - 4

UNITED STATES - 148

GERMANY - 2OTHER EUROPEAN - 5

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STANDARDIZED TESTING

SAT AVERAGE SCORES (105 EXAMS)

ACT AVERAGE SCORES (10 EXAMS)

AP TEST SCORES (% OF SCORES WITH 3 AND ABOVE)

A few notes:

• All the College Board SAT and SAT Subject Tests and the ACT Tests were cancelled in the Spring due to the global

COVID-19 pandemic.

• The PSAT held on October 16, 2019 conflicted with sports tournaments held outside of Hong Kong, therefrore a

group of approximately 40 students were unable to participate in the PSAT this year.

• The AP exams were held in a new online format held in the middle of the night at 12 a.m., 2 a.m., and 4 a.m. This

was certainly not the ideal time and environment for testing, however, it was College Board’s solution to continue

with the AP Test Administration without sacrificing security and integrity of the exam. The College Board did

realize the impact of the exam upon overseas testing but felt that in the short time to design and develop this

onine format, they could not offer the exam at different times but remain in U.S. time zone only.

MATH

675EVIDENCE BASED

READING & WRITING

656

ENGLISH

30MATH

31SCIENCE

30READING

29TOTAL

30

TOTAL

1321

# OF EXAMS TOTAL SCORES OF 3, 4 & 5

BIOLOGY

CHEMISTRY

COMPUTER SCIENCE A

26

17

8

96%

100%

88%

CALCULUS AB

CHINESE

ENGLISH LANGUAGE & COMPOSITION

19

57

17

100%

100%

82%

PSAT AVERAGE SCORES

GRADE 9 (83 Exams)

MATH READING & WRITING TOTAL

GRADE 10 (73 Exams)

GRADE 11 (62 Exams)

540

587

632

559

608

634

1099

1195

1265

CALCULUS BC

COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT & POLITICS

ENGLISH LITERATURE & COMPOSITION

13

3

11

100%

100%

73%

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CLASS OF 2020: UNIVERSITY ACCEPTANCES

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA CANADA

UNITED KINGDOM

HONG KONG

SWITZERLAND

AUSTRALIA

Amherst CollegeAzusa Pacific UniversityBiola University (3) Boston University (2)California Baptist UniversityCornell UniversityOberlin CollegeOlivet Nazarene UniversitySanta Monica Community CollegeThe New School, Parsons School of DesignUC Irvine (2)UCLA (2)UC San DiegoUniversity of ChicagoUniversity of Michigan, Ann ArborUniversity of Washington (3)Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Carleton UniversityQueen’s University (2)Simon Fraser University (3)University of British Columbia (3)University of Toronto ScarboroughUniversity of WaterlooWestern University

Chinese University of Hong Kong (2)Hong Kong Polytechnic University (2)Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (5)University of Hong Kong (2) Yew Chung College of Early Childhood Education

Ecole hôtelière de LausanneLes Roches

University of MonashUniversity of New South WalesUniversity of Technology Sydney InsearchUniversity of Queensland

Camberwell College of Arts (UAL)City And Guilds of London Art SchoolDurham UniversityKing’s College LondonLondon School of Economics (2)Manchester School of ArchitectureNewcastle UniversityQueen Mary University of London (Barts)University College LondonUniversity of BirminghamUniversity of EdinburghUniversity of ExeterUniversity of NottinghamUniversity of Oxford (3)University of RoehamptonUniversity of Southampton

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A NOTE ABOUT ONLINE LEARNING

During the Chinese New Year break in late January, the announcement was made that face-to-face learning would be suspended in February, after the holiday. ICS immediately began preparing to launch online learning. By May 20, when classes started to resume in phases, ICS principals, teachers, students, and families had become very used to online learning, having had 15-16 weeks of practice. But in February, we were facing an entirely new paradigm of learning. The School developed models of learning; researched platforms such as Zoom and Google Meet, and technologies to allow for screen-casting; drafted policies; and figured out how to safely give secondary students access to their lockers to retrieve textbooks. A cycle ensued of implementation, monitoring, surveying parents, teachers, and students, and making adjustments.

A considerable amount of professional learning took place among teachers. Online learning was not merely taking existing learning plans and filming a teacher presenting them because “lecture” is not the best form of teaching in any situation. Instead, teachers had to devise new ways to deliver units online through a combination of synchronous and asynchronous means. So, this was a period of intense work by ICS teachers. At the same time, parents of younger children also bore a heavy burden as they assisted their children at home to engage with the materials posted by teachers. The idea of home/school partnership in learning was on full display.

As schools worldwide faced suspension of face-to-face learning several weeks later than in Hong Kong, ICS was honored to be invited by ACSI (Association of Christian Schools, International), one of our Accrediting agencies share our experiences. Our write-up was distributed to hundreds of Christian schools around the world. Finally, we began to see articles in English language educational journals addressing online learning. It was gratifying to see that the approach we had been taking was essentially in line with what was now being advocated.

In hindsight, we may see these 3-4 months as a single unit, but the journey through these months was one of heartbreaking ups and downs as we anticipated and hoped for class resumption dates only to have online learning suspended. Each time this happened, we had to re-adjust our expectations and plans. We had to look at our calendars once again to determine which events to delay, simplify, or cancel. For many events, time was spent devising back-up plans, only to end in event cancellation. Likewise, the medical situation in Hong Kong went through ups and downs, and we went through corresponding cycles of more and less anxiety.

Eventually, the Education Bureau invited International and Private Independent Schools like ICS to submit class resumption plans. A new stage of re-thinking what face-to-face learning would look like under strict health guidelines ensued, and we were grateful that our well-conceived plan was approved, and we were able to begin resuming classes in phases by May 20.

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ChapelIn Kindergarten, the focus is on helping students develop skills, relate to the world around them, and learn about God’s love. Chapel’s emphasis for 2019-2020 asks questions about God, such as “Does God need sleep?” or “Is God Invisible?”. Students helped lead worship songs, and approximately 50 parents joined Chapel each week.

CurriculumThe curriculum is based on themes related to everyday life. Reception 1 (R1) learned about community helpers, animals, and transportation. Reception 2 (R2) learned about stores, restaurants, and supermarkets, which included a supermarket visit to buy food; the students learned to care for others by donating their purchase to a food bank.

Kindergarten faculty have reviewed the curriculum and the standards and benchmarks to ensure alignment and reviewing how learning progress is reported to parents. Seesaw, an online portfolio app, was introduced so that faculty could share the learning progress of each student with their parents through photographs and videos. Additional features enhanced communication with parents and supported learning at home during the school closure.

Chinese LanguageKindergarten welcomed a full-time Chinese Language teacher. In addition to regular instruction, the teacher participated in activity time, snack time, playtimes, and read stories during library time. This increased exposure to Chinese has improved students’ readiness for the Pre-Grade 1 Chinese Language program. Chinese Bible stories were added to the Reception 2 library packs that the children take home each week.

Special EventsThe Reception 2 students shared the Christmas message with parents through song during the R2 Christmas program. The students were able to celebrate their time in Kindergarten through a virtual Farewell Celebration.

The Kindergarten parent volunteer program was well supported and provided additional support in the classrooms. Parent educational evenings such as Learning Through Play were well received and enjoyed by parents. Parent-Teacher Conferences were held in November and were well attended, and end of year conferences were held virtually.

KINDERGARTEN

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KG students make faces with yarn and buttons

KG students learn about different professions KG students making cupcakes

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ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

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New Faces in 2019-2020 In 2019-2020, ICS Elementary welcomed five Elementary faculty. These included three Homeroom teachers, one Art teacher, one Literacy Coordinator. Each faculty member was assigned a content navigator and buddy to help them transition to the ICS culture and learning system. In April, Mrs. Suanne Forrester joined ICS as the Kindergarten and Lower Elementary Principal, replacing Mrs. Karen Whenuaroa, who returned home to New Zealand in January.

Elementary School ChapelThe Elementary School chapel theme for the year was “In His Steps.” Students heard from staff and faculty and each other, enjoying various perspectives about and ways that they can follow Jesus’ attitudes, commands, and example. Chapel was discontinued for part of the school closure but resumed online in April.

COVID-19 Campus Closure and Online LearningDuring the extended physical school closure from February 3 to May 20, teachers could leverage the school’s online tools to engage students in curricular learning. Teachers reviewed learning standards, identified priorities, and utilized technology and best instructional practices to engage students during a challenging time. We realized the importance of school as a predictable norm in a time of uncertainty. The Elementary School focused on three important principles to meet our student’s learning and wellbeing needs: “Presence” - interaction with the teacher, each other, and the curriculum), “Predictability” - scheduling, creating routines for and organizing learning in with patterns and flow that students can easily follow, and “Pacing” - introducing new skills and concepts and working toward mastery in a student-centered fashion. Our students were able to return to school in May for a few weeks of face to face connection. Time was given to process and reflect on the events of our thirteen weeks of off-campus learning, emphasizing safety, well-being, and wrapping up the academic year.

Professional LearningFor continuing studies in Christian Education, teachers read and collaboratively explored the book “Truth Weaving: Biblical integration for God’s Glory and their abundant living” by D.P. Johnson.

CurriculumThe Reading/Writing Workshop developed by the Columbia Teachers College continues to be implemented across the Elementary School. This year with the leadership of our Literacy Specialist, teachers at each grade were able to develop new reading and writing units.

The Chinese Language department continues to align the program to the World Language Standards, developing appropriate learning targets and meaningful project-based assignments and assessments. Chinese Language Teachers also engaged in Oral Interview Proficiency (OPI) Training to increase proficiency in oral language assessment and classroom learning feedback.

Co-Curricular ActivitiesA variety of activities continued to be offered for our after school program. Due to the suspension of on-campus learning and activities, only two terms were run. The second term was cut short and was unable to resume when students returned in May. There were a total of 20 activities, with 447 sign-ups.

Communication with ParentsOur annual Parent-Teacher Conferences in October and Student-Led Conferences in March were well attended, providing opportunities for both teachers and students themselves to share their learning. This has been further supported by Seesaw’s use, an online portfolio that parents can access easily.

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The Biblical theme for 2019-2020 of “Made To,” taken from Ephesians 2:10, gave multiple opportunities to encourage the Middle School (MS) community to reflect that, as God’s image-bearers, we are created to remember Him and are called to view our lives as a work in progress. God develops and uses our gifts and abilities to deepen our relationship with Him while learning to serve those around us.

With almost half of the school year is spent doing school through online learning, all teachers have experienced many challenges this year. Middle School teachers have worked hard to rise to these challenges and remain focused on delivering “Instruction for Life” to equip students to serve and transform their communities.

Middle School math classes began using the newly installed interactive screens this year. The increased use of this technology has helped make the courses of high interest to Middle School students and support our teachers to save lessons for later resumption, share out what was taught to absent students, and use interactive online resources.

Humanities classes continue to combine in-depth work in social studies with quality instruction in English reading, writing, speaking, and listening. A new curriculum framework that will refine and enhance social studies skills was approved. This alongside the English Language Arts (ELA) components continue to provide ICS students with the ability to read and write to a high standard, listen and speak fluently, and view and present knowledgeably.

Middle School Science and Technology has continued to update and adapt. The continued integration of the “Next Generation Science Standards” (NGSS) has developed and built units of work around a science-based phenomenon that encourages both minds and hands-on learning from students as they work together to solve a problem or understand a situation. Middle School STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) gives students further opportunities to develop 21st-century learning skills.

All Grade 6 and Grade 7 students participate in both band and an instrumental ensemble (either strings or band), with a significant portion of the Grade 8 students playing their instruments. A few Middle School students auditioned for and were accepted into the Association for Music in International Schools (AMIS) Honor Bands in Shanghai. Due to COVID-19, the festival did not occur.

The Middle School PE team worked hard throughout this year to share ideas and implement new teaching approaches such as the Sport Education model and the Game Sense approach providing quality learning experiences for students.

World Languages teachers received valuable training in “Oral Proficiency Interviewing” to further teach and assess students’ oral skills. Across the school, online “leveled readers” are now being used to help students improve by providing the materials that match their reading readiness levels. Interest in Spanish programs is growing, with an increasing number of students starting Spanish in Grade 7.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

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Maintaining the “Commitment to Christ” in Middle School life is central to the school’s ethos. Increased focus in the Middle School Bible curriculum has given students quality learning experiences that do not focus on simply doing spiritual tasks but focus on the fact that the Bible is a book about God’s relationship with his people. Helping students understand that what they learn about God in our classes has lifelong implications remains a vital component of Middle School Bible classes.

We were able to partner with the Hong Kong branch of “Young Life” to offer Grade 6 students a chance to attend after school spiritual enrichment sessions, a number of students took advantage of this opportunity. A majority of Grade 7 and Grade 8 Middle School students again chose to be part of a “Roots Group” to further support their spiritual growth in a small group setting. Unfortunately, we were not able to further these opportunities through Middle School camp this school year.

Throughout the year, MS students have engaged in activities that promote “Service to Community.” Middle School students took their music into the community by performing at local elderly centers, spreading God’s love, and the joy of music into their lives. Following a long-established tradition, groups of Middle school students regularly visited Loc Ling Home for the Elderly. November MS students again participated in different service, cultural, and adventure Week Without Walls trips in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Unfortunately, Hong Kong based trips were negatively affected by government school closures. However, student reflections, particularly from the overseas trips, illustrate that Week Without Walls trips continue to have a deep, positive impact on our students.

“Life in the Middle” for all of us this school year certainly contained unprecedented and challenging events. Despite this, we give thanks to our heavenly father for His continued grace, wisdom, and guidance in enabling the ICS Middle School community to continue learning and finish out the school year.

To God be the glory!

MS students playing a game of soccer

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The 2019-2020 academic year will likely be one of the most memorable and historic for students worldwide. In the face of sudden and unexpected limitations, the ICS High School (HS) faculty and staff, by God’s grace, we’re able to “Flourish” (the Chapel theme for 2019-2020) and continue to provide authentic learning experiences while caring for the spiritual and emotional needs of their students as well. Our students also displayed remarkable resilience and strength.

Before online learning in Semester 2, some highlights of the HS included: Vida Nueva, Grade 9 Beach Clean-Up Day, the student-led 30 Hour Famine in which over 50 students participated in poverty simulations and raised above $30,000 for World Vision, and ACSC overseas trips for Boys and Girls’ volleyball and boys’ soccer. The Boys’ soccer team took gold for the third year in a row. HS Camp, with an RZIM speaker, also received positive feedback. Fourteen juniors and seniors attended the Tokyo Design Fiesta in November, and two high school artists had work featured in the EARCOS journal. The first semester ended with a successful production of “You Can’t Take it With You” by the HS drama department.

The Fine and Performing Arts Department was challenged by the school closure to reinvent their courses, which depend almost entirely upon customized spaces, materials, and interaction, culminating in public performances. Despite this, the year ended with several impressive and original virtual concerts, art shows, and performances that would never have been previously imagined.

AP Seminar and AP Research, two relatively new courses, were conducted this past year successfully. The AP Capstone experience is significant because these two courses consolidate the skills of a 21st-century student: information literacy, creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, problem solving, inquiry. They offer students individual choice to pursue an area of their interest and encourage them to consider how they might be part of the solution for some of the problems facing their generation.

Much could be said about each department and the positive outcomes of COVID-19. From creativity in assessment to new technology usage, some takeaways and experiences were rich enough to be considered for future implementation in each course.

In a victorious spirit of culmination, graduation was able to be conducted at ICS with a socially distanced physical ceremony. It was a fitting celebration of our seniors’ dedication and resilience.

The 2020-2021 HS Chapel Theme will be “Sufficient,” using the theme verse of 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. Many unknowns are going forward, and the fragility of life and changeability of what is known and comfortable is a present reality. However, when sufficiency is found in the unchangeable one, there is strength, hope, and peace.

May God impress these truths upon each one in increasingly new ways this year!

HIGH SCHOOL

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Junior Senior Banquet held on Shek Mun Campus HS students in band class

Annual Thanksgiving lunch

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With nearly half of the year being spent conducting classes through online learning, all teachers have had many challenges this year. The ICS Bible teachers are highly qualified, not only do many of them hold degrees from seminaries and Bible colleges, but they are also great teachers who care deeply for their students’ spirituality. Whether the students are learning about Godly character traits in Elementary School or studying how the early church dealt with heresy, ICS students are thinking deeply about who God is and how He can make a difference in their lives. They are learning to study the Bible and understand that God has been working and is still working in the lives of women and men, girls, and boys.

A Grade 9 student illustrated how God was working in her life as she reflected on how the Old Testament covenant pointed to Jesus. She wrote, “The Old Testament covenants all point to Jesus, who came to fulfill all broken covenant relationships and extend God’s blessings to the rest of the nations. It makes me feel extremely blessed and grateful because we cannot fulfill the broken relationships solely.

Still, we need Jesus, through God placing the Spirit within us, to be the way to renew our partnership with Him. By understanding God’s promises, I know that the only way to God is through Jesus, and by committing my life to Him, I can become more and more faithful and live in hope for a fully renewed world. Many people live only to get through the short life we all have on Earth, but I want to live for Jesus and live a fruitful life where I guide people to Jesus so that they too may experience the goodness of eternal life with God.”

Bible class at the Elementary School level aims to teach students that what they learn in the Bible is not only for head knowledge, but that the Bible is about life and how they can live and experience God. At the Middle School level, Bible classes now have better-defined units that align with the School’s Bible Standards. For High School, students learned about spiritual needs, and that the Bible provides a framework for understanding who God is and how to address the needs they have.

BIBLE DEPARTMEMT

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The Bridges Program caters for students with special needs aged 11-18 who need an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and require a non-standard course of study. Whether in or outside the classroom, Bridges students displayed many accomplishments and skills. Along with learning from their IEPs and ASDAN curriculum, students worked in the Warrior Shop, at Sodexo (school lunch provider) and in the Human Resources office. These opportunities allowed them to learn independent work and social skills, equipping them for employment one day.

Students practiced life skills at the Bridges Cafe. Students also purchased and prepared food items to serve their peers at snack time.

Using the ASDAN curriculum, which focuses on the life and work skills, students focused on communication skills in the community. This year, students visited an elderly center to spread some Christmas joy and the love of Jesus. They also passed out small gifts to the elderly and interacted with them. An unexpected benefit of the school closure due to COVID-19 was that the students learned new technology skills, such as using Google Classroom and Google Meet. Finally, the Bridges Program teachers and students celebrated the graduation of Yew Ming Cheah, the second student to graduate from the Bridges Program.

BRIDGES PROGRAM (SPECIAL EDUCATION NEEDS)

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DiscipleshipSpiritual formation is a journey that includes the heart and mind. We’re thankful for the 35+ adults committed to coming alongside students in this process through Roots (discipleship) groups in Middle School & High School. The High School groups have become more established, with greater choice for students and collaboration between leaders.

Students are growing in their faith experientially as they participate in worship teams and present in chapels, or lead events such as Vida Nueva and Oxygen retreats (High School). Through these experiences, student leaders

are being developed to reach out to others, especially younger students. Students who attended the C3 leadership conference worked on making connections with new students and ideas to integrate students of different grades better.

Affirming the need to wrestle with questions of faith, a speaker from Ravi Zacharias Ministries was brought in to speak at HS camp and HS/MS chapel. Students had opportunities to discuss and ask meaningful questions. Faculty and staff were invited to choose a book on spiritual formation for their enrichment and development.

CO-CURRICULAR EDUCATION & PASTORAL CARE

Students at the MS Swim Event

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Service Learning The skills to succeed in the 21st Century include collaboration, communication, creativity, flexibility, leadership, social skills, and the initiative’s ability. At ICS, students are given multiple opportunities to learn, develop, and demonstrate these skills through Service Learning both within the curriculum through integrated service units and co-curricular activities. Serving and transforming their communities and being responsible members of the global community is core to the ICS Mission and Purpose.

In Elementary, events are organized through classes and whole school events such as the collection and distribution of Christmas Shoeboxes, Food Drives, and other events. In Middle School, there are also service clubs, service days, Service Events such as Community Music Performances, and weekly events such as visiting an Elderly Home. After extensive research, ICS developed twelve Service-Learning Standards to guide best practice in designing Service Learning Experiences both in Curricular and Co-curricular activities.

All ICS High School students participate in a Make a Difference project (MAD). In Grade 9, they attend training sessions, go on organized events, and develop their initiatives. In Grade 10, they design and carry out their projects, and in Grade 11 and 12, they are expected to identify a major area of concern and develop solutions to meet that need and are given eighteen months to complete this project. HS clubs organize events such as the Roots & Shoots Beach Cleanup, where over 100 students remove harmful plastics and other waste from the beach. The data collected as a result is used by Hong Kong Cleanup, which uses it to educate the public, businesses, and government officials about the problem’s scale and seriousness.

Other major events include the World Vision 30 Hour Famine and hosting a Domestic Workers Open Day, where over 500 domestic helpers are entertained, fed, and entertained for the day. Many service clubs reach out to the elderly, the dispossessed, the physically and mentally challenged, and children.

Week Without Walls (WWW)While local MS WWW trips were disrupted by social unrest in Hong Kong in November, and HS WWW had to be canceled due to COVID-19, there were four overseas MS WWW service trips to Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, and Thailand. Each WWW trip is designed with specific learning goals, and we survey students after the trip to assess the impact on participants.

Sports HighlightsThe U20 Boys’ Football team continued their dominance by winning the ACSC tournament for the third time in a row. The Girls’ Volleyball teams won their first-ever banners this year, as the U14 and U16 girls finished a fantastic season by bringing home the trophies. The U14 Boys’ basketball team had a historic season winning every game substantially. All the players’ performance ensured that the future is undoubtedly bright for our boys’ basketball teams. The Warrior U20 Boys’ basketball team produced another competitive season, finishing a close second in the ISSFHK league. They did, however, retain the Timberwolves tournament for the second year in a row. The U20 Girls’ Basketball was able to win promotion to the first division by having a dominant season winning every game in the second division.

Sports at ICS is not just about winning. The varsity athletes have been running sports clinics for our Elementary students as part of their MAD projects. Students attending ACSC tournaments contribute to service activities. As always, ICS is proud of the sportsmanship and character shown by the Warrior sports teams.

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The Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) department consists of a diverse group of faculty and staff. C&I supports the Curriculum and Instructional Leadership Team and the curricular Department Chairs in the alignment with an effective Christ-centered culture of excellent teaching and learning that is sustainable. The team works together to serve faculty and support continuous school improvement in the area of curriculum alignment and instructional improvement. Led by the Dean of Curriculum and Instruction, the team includes coordinators in the following areas: Chinese Program, Testing, Literacy (Elementary), Academic (Secondary); and teacher-librarians supporting Chinese, Elementary, and Secondary.

In 2019-2020, approval was provided to restructure two roles for 2020-2021. Rather than two full-time faculty focus solely on technology, technology expertise and support would become key responsibilities of the respective coordinator (e.g. the literacy coordinator would have the expertise to coach teaching in elementary literacy platforms). In 2020-2021, the new role of Mathematics and Science Coordinator (Elementary) will help the Elementary teachers align and implement Mathematics and Science curriculum and instruction including the supporting technology platforms. This position will fill an identified gap in curricular support. In the Secondary divisions, the Curriculum Coordinator will work alongside teachers in aligning Secondary curriculum, as well as the generic Secondary technology platforms. Curriculum and Instruction departmental support crosses school divisions and helps support ongoing professional learning and teacher growth, and aligns and refines learning, scheduling, and course advisory systems for students. Despite challenges in the midst of protests and COVID-19 uncertainties, ICS made progress in curriculum alignment and instructional understandings.

CurriculumCurriculum alignment is a significant part of the Continuous School Improvement Plan (CSIP) and the ICS Strategic Plan. Work in this area has been documented in the CSIP section of this report.

Professional LearningUntil school disruptions and uncertainties emerged, ICS welcomed the expertise of Dr. Marie Alcock, a renowned educator, author, and speaker. Dr. Alcock provided a curriculum boot camp for all faculty, and advanced curriculum camp for learning leaders, and consultancy with various groups. The nine days established common vocabulary, built curriculum understanding among the faculty, and further supported the school’s curriculum alignment efforts. The different divisions continued working on developing and mapping yearlong contexts for each curricular area throughout the year. As a result, teachers better understood grade-level achievement benchmarks, and how they align vertically. This work is ongoing. We hope to have Dr. Alcock visit again in 2020-2021 or 2021-2022. Plans are tentative with the state of health and travel worldwide.

Dr. Sarah Donovan, a Mathematics consultant, was due to visit February. Just before the visit, the consultancy was canceled due to COVID-19. Dr. Donovan was generous in sharing the work she prepared with ICS, so we can use her planning and resources to feed into future professional learning once school at ICS normalizes.

CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION

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Elementary Academic SupportA dedicated Literacy Coordinator supported the Elementary teachers’ implementation of reading and writing workshops, a literacy model with units of study developed by the Columbia Teachers College Reading and Writing Project. Support focused on evaluating units by ensuring standards were being addressed and students’ needs were at the forefront of instruction. Teachers engaged in coaching one-on-one or in small groups with the Literacy Coordinator focusing on areas such as reading conferences and conferring, understanding age-appropriate learning targets, and reading comprehension and fluency skills. As a result of teachers building their capacity, elementary students became more independent and self-directed readers and writers.

The Elementary library benefited from regular, part-time Library Assistants this year, allowing Teacher-Librarians to be more available for reading support, inquiry planning, and information literacy lessons. In particular, Elementary teachers received support in the creation and implementation of their first C3 social science units, and Chinese teachers were supported in promoting reading in their classes. Students became more familiar with the school’s online catalog and are now able to access eBooks as well as place holds on materials. The English and Chinese collections continued to grow, with more unit-related and popular books added. The Literacy Week and Battle of the Books programs continue to be enjoyed by elementary students, parents, and teachers.

Secondary Academic SupportThe Secondary course advising process was refined and went fully online in 2019-2020. Students accessed a combination of teacher-created videos, course syllabus, and the enhanced and well-organized course offerings booklet to support their initial decision-making. Plans were already in motion to provide a more effective way to track and communicate course selections, and intentions for meeting

graduation requirements prior to COVID-19’s impact on school attendance only weeks before the advisory and final course selection season. Students followed steps to complete their online four-year graduation plan. The plan, shared with parents and advisors, was used as a tool for advisory, communication, and parental approval. Students selected advisory timeslots seamlessly using ‘youcanbookme’, and they zoomed with their advisors. We look forward to face-to-face advisory in future course selection seasons, however, some other procedures were so effective and efficient that they will be retained.

The Secondary library completed the genrefication of its fiction collection early in the year. The various genres are now displayed on modern mobile shelving and students are browsing the shelves and borrowing more as a result. A Middle School Facegroup library program commenced providing exposure to various books, and dedicated borrowing time for students. Secondary students in a range of curricular areas including Mathematics, Social Science, Theatre Arts, and Bible improved their information literacy skills in connection to research projects, enabled by greater library accessibility during class time and targeted teaching sessions by the Teacher-Librarian. The interschool Middle School Battle of the Books competition was unfortunately canceled in Semester 2, however, ten Grade 6 students participated in the Hong Kong KidsLitQuiz competition in Semester 1 for the first time. An Australian poetry troupe visited ICS in November to perform for students in Grades 8-10, presenting ideas relevant to their English Language Arts poetry units.

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During the 2019-2020 school year, Elementary School (ES) teachers continued to strengthen their reading and writing teaching through the workshop model and by implementing the units of study developed by the Columbia Teachers College Reading and Writing Project. Grades P1-Grade 2 took on the challenge of using the workshop model to implement new study reading units with true professionalism. Grades 3-5 focused on bettering their instruction using the workshop model, while some grades also introduced new units of study for reading. Throughout the year, grade-level teams collaborated on incorporating new professional learning into their units of study resulting in units that reflect best practice for students’ learning. They focused on evaluating units by ensuring standards were being addressed, and students’ needs were at the forefront of instruction. Teachers participated in professional learning communities focused on reading and writing needs that they saw present in their classrooms. These communities focused on topics from book studies discussing new units, reading conferences and conferring, understanding rubrics, creating year-long contexts for ELA standards, developing skills better to develop reading comprehension and fluency, and much more. Some teachers also worked one-on-one or in small groups with the literacy coach to help better develop their teaching practices for literacy. After the Chinese New Year, teachers worked tirelessly to ensure students’ reading and writing instruction was authentic, student-focused, and progressing when learning transferred from the classroom to online. They continued to use the workshop model to deliver reading and writing lessons, met with students through video conferences through whole groups, small groups, and one-on-one instruction. Teachers provided platforms for students to read books and write stories and engage in their learning by listening and discussing their learning with others. Throughout the year, students demonstrated growth in their fluency, ability to talk about their reading, and written expression.

Students continued to grow as more independent and self-directed readers and writers through our teachers’ devoted instruction.

The strong emphasis in ES on literacy basics means that the students are thoroughly grounded in the essentials of language learning and usage. This builds excellent foundations for literacy as the students progress up the grade levels. A highlight in Secondary School is the continuity of all MS and HS ELA teachers (no new ELA faculty this academic year), giving stability to the sound teaching practices that have come to be normal and expected in the English Department over the years. Boats are rarely rocked and only with much discussion to benefit the education of their students solely. Because of the English language’s cross-curricular relevance, the students are continually adding to their skills and knowledge to become the literate individuals that the CCSS English curriculum encourages and requires.

English continues to be the primary medium for communication and learning at ICS. Parent and student questionnaires accept that it is one of the main reasons students apply to enter the school. Many of the students have been at ICS since Reception 1, so their longevity has given them ample opportunity to learn the language well. At ICS, English is the dominant language, and the expectations are naturally high for its proper usage and relevancy. The future of the ICS student to study at universities around the world depends on their ability to read and write to a high standard, listen and speak fluently, and view and present knowledgeably. These are the six main objectives of English language learning. At ICS, the teachers are given the Professional Development reading and training to make these goals a reality for each student in their care.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS DEPARTMENT

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Improvement of Fire Safety for Shek Mun CampusThe Fire Services Automatic Fire Alarm System (AFA) at Shek Mun Campus was upgraded with an addressable system in 2019-2020. This system’s benefit is twofold: individual field devices such as smoke detectors are monitored continuously, and the possibility of false alarms is reduced. Thus, the disruption of classes is minimized due to unnecessary fire evacuations.

Replacement of Air Conditioning VRV Outdoor UnitsAll fifty-one Daikin outdoor units at the end of their lifespan were replaced in 2019-2020 to retrofit the Air Conditioning System for both Elementary and Secondary school. The overall energy usage of the VRV system for air conditioning was improved. There was a 14% decrease in energy usage when compared to the same period from previous years.

FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

The Automatic Fire Alarm System

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It is no secret that the 2019-2020 school year brought a number of challenges, culminating in school closure from February to May, and possibly beyond. The Fine & Performing Arts (FPA) courses are, to a certain extent, aimed at producing a show of some kind, whether that be a drama, a concert, or an art show, and this year saw many of those canceled or re-imagined. Of course, any of our courses’ real goal is to teach skills that can be used lifelong; we hope we were successful in this case.

Still, the first semester ran smoothly, with a successful production of “You Can’t Take it With You” by the HS drama department. Our December concerts and art shows featured our students’ talents in multiple ways. Our upper-level art students escaped the chaos of Hong Kong to attend and exhibit at the Tokyo Design Festa. The second semester brought several challenges, including teaching subjects that depend almost entirely on custom spaces and materials. We managed well enough, and while the experience was probably not as strong as it would have been having we been at school, enough progress was made to show evidence of learning. We are planning some form of virtual concerts, and art shows to finish the year off to reward our students’ hard work, even in this trying time.

In General Music (Pre-Grade 1- Grade 4), students continue to learn music through the Kodaly, Dalcroze, and Orff approaches, enhancing students’ physical coordination, singing skills, and instrumental playing skills. Extra-curricular activities such as choir and hand chimes are offered to allow students to develop their musical talents, which become an asset to contribute to the music class learning. In Grade 5, students are assigned to take part in band or strings orchestra based on their interests and the teachers’ advice.

All Grade 6 and Grade 7 students participate in both band, and an instrumental ensemble (either strings or band), and a good portion of the Grade 8 students continued to play their instruments. Students auditioned for and were accepted into the AMIS MS Honor Band but, due to the coronavirus situation, the festival did not take place. We offered MS Ringers for the first time this school year.

The MS visual art situation could be better. Students have only one semester of visual arts, with the class every other day, instead of music, which meets every day all year. The Grade 8 elective replaced the mandatory Grade 8 art class, but it does allow students to take art all year. STEM moving into the room has created some complications, for both MS art and STEM.

In High School, ICS offers a number of music classes including band, string orchestra, choir, music theory, AP Music Theory, digital music, and class guitar. Class Piano was offered but did not run because of a lack of student interest. Students auditioned for and were accepted into the AMIS HS Honor Band and the ACSC Honor Choir, but neither festival actually took place due to the COVID-19 situation.

The HS curriculum continues to be quite varied, giving students the option of focusing on traditional arts, digital arts, two-dimensional arts, or three-dimensional arts. Media classes are starting to be brought back after a few years of fewer classes. The challenges of COVID-19 meant changes to the curriculum that will have minor repercussions in the coming years.

FINE AND PERFORMING ARTS DEPARTMENT

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The 2019-2020 academic year has been a challenging but fruitful year at the Information Technology department. There was significant understaffing at the beginning of the school year. The year ended with a full and experienced team to provide comprehensive coverage in the key IT areas (AV, software development, devices support, and IT infrastructure). The team completed the Elementary School 1:1 initiative to ensure elementary students are equipped with the appropriate IT devices for learning. The wireless presentation technologies (Airplay for Apple devices/Miracast for Windows laptop) in the classroom have been revisited and further optimized to improve the user experience. In response to COVID-19, the team spent significant effort to evaluate various technologies used in distance learning and provided extensive training to assist teachers with the technology. With the team’s strong AV production background, the IT team took on an active role in various virtual events.

Other ImprovementsThe key internet infrastructure components (broadband connections and internet firewall) were revisited and upgraded to ensure teachers and students can enjoy speedy and safe access to internet resources for studying. The UPS has been replaced to ensure the school IT infrastructure is protected from a power outage. The chapel and classrooms’ AV installations have been revisited, and the outdated equipment has have been replaced. Numerous 24” monitors have been deployed to teachers to ensure they have sufficient screen space for conducting distance teaching in their classroom.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

High School Show Choir Concert

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The Math Department completed an impactful year of collecting data from parents, teachers, students, and alumni, analyzing the data collected and picking action steps based on the data at the Elementary, Middle School, and High School levels. The Elementary School chose to use the Common Core math standards and develop a consistent math curriculum as a resource and means of providing clear communication for parents. The Middle School reflected on the desire to continue to increase the inquiry-based learning opportunities happening for Middle School students. The High School celebrated their work on curriculum alignment over that past three years and continued the alignment by focusing on Statistics standards.

In the Elementary division, a close look was taken at the math standards that were developed specifically for ICS, and the consensus was to use the math Common Core standards instead. This was decided to remove the confusion that has happened due to having a different set of standards from most other schools and also to be in line with research that students should push deeper on the standards at their current grade level. Math digital subscriptions used in the Elementary level continued to be refined, finding the balance between consistent digital subscriptions from grade to grade and age-appropriate tools. Freckle (Math and English language arts) was purchased for Grade P1 to Grade 2, and Scootpad for Grade 3 to Grade 6 students.

Middle School teachers have worked on creating their Year Long Context (YLC) and documenting it in Rubicon Atlas. Math courses have been renamed to be more specific and clear, such as “Grade 6 Math” to “Math Foundations”. Middle School teachers added interactive screens (installed on classroom walls) into their teaching this year. The increase in the use of this technology has helped make the courses of high interest to Middle School students as well as help our teachers be more efficient in being able to save lessons for later resumption, share out what was taught to absent students, and use interactive online resources.

High School teachers have discussed vertical alignment since 2017 and continued to refine the differences between each of the High School courses and the shared concepts between math courses. High School teachers have excellent resources in the McGraw-Hill textbooks and online digital subscriptions for teachers. High School teachers have also begun to implement the 5 pillars of Biblical Integration of mathematics: Faith of Mathematics, Character of Mathematics, Language of God, Chaos to Restoration, and Good Stewardship.

MATH DEPARTMENT

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2019-2020 was a very challenging year for the Physical Education department in many ways. The department said goodbye to Mr. Whenuaroa in January after many years of service at ICS. His wisdom and content knowledge will be missed. The department was thrown into a new era of online learning with the COVID-19 crisis and had to make many adjustments to provide our students with authentic learning experiences.

Next year, the Physical Education department will welcome Mrs. Sanet Lombard as our new High School PE teacher. The PE department is excited for her to join the team and provide a fresh new perspective. The Australian Health and PE Curriculum is being adopted as the new curriculum framework for PE courses, bringing in more health topics, and improving the curriculum in many ways.

Two new courses, “Personalized Fitness” for Grade 11 and 12 students, and the “Leadership in PE” course are being offered to High School students. These courses will focus on real-world application of Physical Education. The PE department is committed to educating students in, through, and about movement. The PE teachers are excited about the changes being made to the curriculum and being physically back on campus in the 2020-2021 year. The department aims to continue building relationships and equipping students for the future. The overarching goal is to give students the knowledge and confidence to control their health and well-being.

In Elementary, the PE department implemented a workout of the month, with three workout skills that kids would be challenged to do outside of school every day. Students were encouraged to submit videos or results. The title of individual winners, grade level winners, and class winners of the month were announced.

The Middle School PE teachers have focused this year on aligning the curriculum based on suggestions from the Curriculum and Instruction department. Instead of the Society of Health And Physical Educations (SHAPE) standards, the Australian Health & PE Curriculum was chosen to provide a more authentic and meaningful PE experience.

High School has been in the process of grouping PE standards and ensuring consistency throughout the grade levels. The Grade 10 PE class is an essential course for all students graduating from ICS. Since few students take both semesters of the course, care was taken to ensure transparency between genders and that standards match across Semester 1 and 2.

PHYSICAL EDUCATION & HEALTH DEPARTMENT

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The Science and Technology department is continually changing and adapting. The nature and number of courses needed to keep up with students’ needs are increasing. Thomas Friedman defines “STEMpathy jobs” as those that cannot be outsourced, automated, done by robots, or digitized. These are jobs that require both STEM and interpersonal skills. The Science & Technology department needs to equip students with these technical skills and collaborative skills.

Technology is now incorporated into the Science Department with courses like STEM, Engineering and Design, Robotics, and AP Computing. The Department also offers Forensics and Biology courses that use new technologies such as separating DNA and Phospofluence. Our Physics offering now includes AP Physics C, a calculus-based course to prepare students for prestigious engineering programs worldwide.

Four years ago, the Science Department adopted the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). These are becoming increasingly accepted throughout the world and build the units around a phenomenon that encourages both minds-on and hands-on learning from students. They work together to solve a problem or understand a situation. NGSS is now adopted by all grades and serves as excellent preparation for the Advanced Placement Exams in High School and a perfect platform for cross-discipline integration of learning.

Elementary teaches the NGSS curriculum using the TCi resource. This helps them to identify a phenomenon that develops student thinking and problem-solving skills. Participation has also been increased through the use of Mystery Science and the recent adoption by some teachers of Stemscopes.

Middle School teaches the NGSS curriculum, and this year the HMH Resource - Science Dimensions was used. The resource was on the expensive side for every student to have access to all units. However, every student was granted access for one unit. The Science Department is also exploring the usage of Stemscopes more widely. In addition, this is the second year of the STEM course. Grade 6 students take the class in the first semester and Grade 8 students in the second semester. The course has proven to be a very popular offering.

The Grade 9 Foundations Course has now fully integrated NGSS. This year, the Science Department extended the time spent on biology to take half the academic year. However, the biology portion will be reduced to one-third of the year as a new Biology course will be introduced in Grade 10.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT

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The 2019-2020 academic year has been challenging for the Social Studies Department. During Semester 1, Hong Kong was faced with many challenges that divided students. The Social Science Department saw this as an opportunity to help the students make sense of Hong Kong’s political climate. Teachers from Kindergarten to Grade 12 modified or even supplemented their learning targets to ensure that student learning was not disrupted and addressed the unrest at appropriate levels. In Semester 2, learning went online. Principals and the Social Science Department worked together to provide the best learning type during this stressful time. A decision was made for the Department to implement the C3 Framework. This new framework will provide a clearer learning pathway for students from

Kindergarten to Grade 12. This is exciting because the Department believes that the world is very dynamic, and the need to learn Social Science is more significant than ever.

The main goal for the Social Science Department in 2020-2021 is the implementation of the C3 Framework. Achieving this goal will require setting time aside to plan learning goals that will include and access some of the framework’s dimensions. The C3 Framework will be piloted in specific classes at the Elementary, Middle, and High School levels, establishing a foundation for future courses. Curriculum alignment was a growth area from the Social Science Review, and alignment is also a significant focus for ICS’s strategic plan.

SOCIAL SCIENCES DEPARTMENT

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Student care continues to focus on the Student Services Team as we work alongside teachers to support students’ academic, social, emotional, and physical needs. The Student Services Department consists of Learning Support, Literacy Specialist, Health Officers, Counselors, and the Bridges program. Learning Support and counselors have worked together to maintain the proper referral process and ensure our students receive the adequate support they need. These team members provide guidance and coaching to teachers following the Tiered Model of Intervention and work with parents and teachers to create Personalized Instructional Plans (PIPs) and Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for students with diverse learning needs. CounselorsCounselors across Pre-Grade 1 to Grade 12 have worked collaboratively to update the counseling manual and procedures and provided important insights and feedback to our Student Services Manual. Child safety, protection policies, and protocols have been reviewed and updated to align with the Hong Kong Education Bureau and Social Welfare Department’s guidelines.

BridgesThe Bridges Program caters for students with special needs aged 11-18 who need an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and require a non-standard course of study. Whether in or outside the classroom, Bridges students displayed many accomplishments and skills. Along with learning from their IEPs and ASDAN curriculum, students worked in the Warrior Shop, at Sodexo (school lunch provider) and in the Human Resources office. These opportunities allowed them to learn independent work and social skills, equipping them for employment one day.

Students practiced life skills at the Bridges Cafe. Students also purchased and prepared food items to serve their peers at snack time. Using the ASDAN curriculum, which focuses on the life and work skills, students focused on communication skills in the community. This year, students visited an elderly center to spread some Christmas joy and the love of Jesus. They also passed out small gifts to the elderly and interacted with them. An unexpected benefit of the school closure due to COVID-19 was that the students learned new technology skills, such as using Google Classroom and Google Meet. Finally, the Bridges Program teachers and students celebrated the graduation of Yew Ming Cheah, the second student to graduate from the Bridges Program. Health OfficeThe Health Office received and treated more than 3,900 faculty, staff, and student cases. The two nurses’ team supervised the distribution of government health forms for all students, organized fall and spring immunizations for Grades 1 and 6 with the Centre for Health Protection. It kept in contact with the Department of Health regarding all notifiable diseases. They were kept very busy due to the coronavirus that caused school closure for more than ten weeks in the Spring semester.

STUDENT SERVICES

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2019-2020 has been a good year of ongoing growth and learning within the program, for both teachers and students alike. Teachers received valuable training in Oral Proficiency Interviewing (Oral Proficiency Interviewing) to better understand how to assess and improve students’ oral skills. Teachers have also been implementing the new language benchmarks in various ways, allowing for a more accurate diagnosis of students’ language proficiency.

Across the School, online “leveled readers” are now being used to help students improve by providing the materials that match their reading readiness levels. On the whole, language lessons and units are becoming more engaging, with more authentic language tasks for students. The focus of the program is moving towards developing student proficiency in their language skills. This is rewarding and motivating, more interesting and fun for both students and teachers, and more effective.

Teachers are designing more theme-based units that draw on multiple resources in addition to the textbook. As an example of the kinds of skills that ICS students can attain if they keep going with Chinese, the new “Workplace Chinese” class in HS hosted a “Business Fair.” Using Chinese throughout, students designed products and made arrangements with businesses and factories to

have these produced. They did advertising and presentations, and then “sold” these products (using “ICS dollars”) to parents, classmates, and other students.

This has been the second year at the Elementary School level that a theme-based approach to unit design was used, rather than textbook-driven chapter-based. There has been a greater emphasis on language usage in authentic contexts to gain proficiency with the language elements they have learned.

For Middle School, theme-based units are becoming more accepted by teachers. The teachers are showing greater flexibility in supplementing textbooks with other resources. More contemporary text sources are used, leading to the increased relevance of language learning for students. The OPI training has also proven useful, as teachers are becoming more aware of standards and benchmarks.

This year in High School for cultural components, there were quite a few opportunities, as Culture is part of the World Languages Standards. Students and teachers in different courses prepared cultural experiences that included students from other school parts, even Elementary students. Two High School teachers have been working towards obtaining their OPI rater certification.

WORLD LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT

A Chinese calligrapher

demonstrates Fai Chun writing

for Chinese New Year

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FINANCIAL SUMMARY

Remarks:

*$2 million will be transferred to sinking reserve fund for major building improvements and renovation capital expenditures.

2018-2019 AUDITED FIGURES

INCOME (IN HK$ MILLION)

Net Tuition Fee Income

Donations

Other Revenue

SUBTOTAL

EXPENDITURE (IN HK$ MILLION)

Employee Salary and Benefit Expenses

Facilities Operation Expenses

Instructional & Curriculum Expenses

Administration Expenses

Depreciation & Finance costs

SUBTOTAL

SURPLUS (IN HK$ MILLION)

Surplus before Transferable Debenture

Transferable Debenture

Surplus after Transferable Debenture

150.74

0.41

6.86

158.01

117.66

15.74

5.92

6.18

11.94

157.44

0.57

18.72

19.29 *

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SPECIAL THANKS

We would like to express our gratitude to all the faculty and staff who have contributed to the preparation of this publication - we could not have done it without you!

This report is designed, edited, and published by the Communication & Publication OfficeInternational Christian School1 On Muk Lane, Shatin, Hong Kong

www.ics.edu.hk

Ma On Shan CampusG/F Kam Ho House (Block H),

Kam Fung CourtMa On Shan, Shatin

Hong Kong

Shek Mun Campus1 On Muk Lane, Shatin

Hong Kong

+852 3920 0000 ics@ics.edu.hkwww.ics.edu.hk