In the 2017-2018 academic year, TIS will be introducing a new daily schedule in the Secondary School that involves a later start and finish to each day.
In order to share more information about this change, a parent information meeting has been scheduled. The details of this session are as follows:
Date: Tuesday, June 20
Time: 6:30pm
Location: Room 4420 (North Wing)
Presenters: Howard Stribbell, Head of School & Christopher Coates, Secondary School Principal
There are a number of reasons for the change:
– eliminate the split Period 3 class that currently exists in our schedule
– allow for a smooth introduction of the Teacher Advisor Programme (TAP)
– reduce some of the morning/afternoon congestion during drop off and pick up
– current research suggests that a later start optimises learning for Secondary students
Students will be required to report to their teacher advisor each day at 9:00am. They will be dismissed at 3:35pm. Below is the new schedule that we will follow in the 2017-2018 academic year:
New Secondary Daily Schedule 2017-2018
09:00 – 09:15 Advisor Period
09:15 – 10:35 Period 1
10:35 – 10:50 Recess/Break
10:50 – 12:10 Period 2
12:10 – 12:50 Lunch
12:50 – 14:10 Period 3
14:10 – 14:15 Transition
14:15 – 15:35 Period 4
The new schedule eliminates the split Period 3 which exists in our current schedule. This will be a significant improvement for our students.
This new schedule also allows for a daily advisory period which is best utilised at the beginning of the day. Students will meet with their advisor before classes begin. This time will be used for daily announcements, preparing students for the day, and to address pastoral issues.
The new Teacher Advisor Programme (TAP) is a pastoral care programme in which a teacher advisor will deliver a curriculum that focuses on personal social emotional education. The emphasis is to provide time to address non-academic issues (ie. social emotional well-being, digital citizenship, relationships, healthy decision making, academic honesty, etc). The new schedule allows for one 40-minute period every Wednesday, along with the daily advisory periods at the beginning of each day.
A later start time is more in line with the sleep patterns of teenagers. Much of the research available suggests that a later start time correlates with improved academic results. Click here to watch a TedX talk delivered by a sleep researcher that addresses this matter.
There are a number of logistical items that need to be addressed as a result of the changing schedule. The two most notable ones are addressed below:
What if I have children in both the Elementary and Secondary Schools?
The Elementary times will not change. Students should arrive at the usual time each day. Secondary students are still welcome to arrive at the existing times and supervised spaces will be provided for students to do school work before they report to their advisors at 9:00am.
What about transportation to and from school?
The existing school bus schedules will continue. Secondary students may continue to use the school bus services in the morning. Since very few Secondary students currently use the after school bus service, an additional later bus service will not be provided.
We feel confident that this change to the schedule will help us to better serve our students in a number of areas, especially with respect to academics and pastoral care. Change can always be difficult in its early stages, but we must always keep in mind our goal of improving the quality of teaching and learning for TIS students.
If you would like more details about this change, please attend the information session on Tuesday, June 20th.
注意：2017／2018學年新修訂之中學上課日程
由2017-2018學年開始，澳門國際學校將推出新修訂之中學上課日程，重新編排中學生上、下課時間。
為方便家長及學生了解詳情，歡迎 閣下出席「家長講解會」，時間及地點如下：
日期: 6月20日（週二）
時間: 下午6:30
地點: 北翼4420號室
演講者: Howard Stribbell (澳門國際學校負責人)
Christopher Coates (澳門國際學校中學部校長)
以下是重新修訂上課日程之原因：
– 重新整合第三節課上課時間
– 推動明年推行之「老師諮詢計劃」（TAP）
– 疏導上、下課之交通情況
– 回應調查建議，推遲中學部上課時間
學生需要每天早上9:00向老師報到。明年中學部之下課時間改為下午3:35。2017-2018學年詳細上、下課時如下：
新修定之中學部上課日程（2017-2018）
09:00 – 09:15 諮詢時段
09:15 – 10:35 第一節課
10:35 – 10:50 小息
10:50 – 12:10 第二節課
12:10 – 12:50 午膳
12:50 – 14:10 第三節課
14:10 – 14:15 轉堂時間
14:15 – 15:35 第四節課
新修訂之上課日程將原本分開上、下兩段的第三節課合拼，相信更利於學生學習。
新時間表允許學生在上課前向負責老師提出諮詢。該時段同時亦可用作訓示、準備上課以及提出關愛等問題。
「老師諮詢計劃」（TAP）是一項牧靈計劃，老師會將內容著重於個人及社會情感教育上，以解決非學術性問題（如：情緒、健康、網絡安全意識、人際關係、健康管理、學術誠信等）。新日程表為此計劃排定為每天上課前的十五分鐘及每週三，四十分鐘的課程。
推遲上課時間目的是配合青少年的睡眠模式。許多研究均顯示，稍晚的上學時間有助提升學業。請點擊以下連結以觀看相關的TedX睡眠研究。
基於新修訂上課日程，以下兩點尤其值得留意：
如果家中有小孩子同時就讀小學及中學怎麼辦？
小學的上課時間將維持不變，學生需按照原定上課時間回校。學校將為提前到校之中學生安排地方稍作等候。
往返學校之交通安排？
校巴服務之時間將維持不變。承接本校巴士服務之公司不會為數不多之使用下課校巴服務的學生，調整巴士時間。
學校深信調整上課時間將有助提升學生之學習及個人修養。校方明白新規定或使部份家庭感到不便，但祈家長明白，更好地照顧學生及改善學校教學質素是學校辦學重點。
若 閣下對以上之變更有任何疑問，歡迎出席6月20日（週二）之講解會，了解詳情。