Dear Parents,
I hope you are enjoying the change in weather and first semester at XLIS. It was lovely to meet you all last month during our international day celebration. I cannot tell you how much I enjoy meeting the students each Monday morning and hearing about their weekend.
XLIS Strategic Plan
Our vision is to lead education through innovation and a student-centered, community-driven approach. This vision took shape in 2022 when we conducted a thorough self-study process involving multiple stakeholders. We examined all areas of the school to find strengths and areas for growth before a visiting team came to interview students, parents, staff, and our governing body from the Gaoxin Education Bureau.
This resulted in the following three-year strategic plan. I would like to take a moment to update you on our progress towards this plan. It is further broken down into a much more detailed annual action plan, which is carried out through each division of the school, each year.
Goal 1: Supporting students to develop their competencies in XLIS language of instruction.
Goal 1 remains Goal 1 at XLIS, meaning it is the area still most in need. Our students generally excel in numeracy but need further development in literacy. This year our programme development plan is solely focused on this important area. We also have invited two consultants to work with the primary and secondary school this year to help us further our students literacy skills.
Goal 2: Vertical articulation – Align curriculum between PYP, MYP & DP to ensure smooth transitions of students between the programs.
Significant development has been made on Goal 2. The entire PYP curriculum may be found on our website here. We have also recently added our MYP curriculum here. Our DP curriculum is provided for us by the IB, but it will also be coming to our website soon. I hope this high level of transparency, enables us to partner in our child’s education.
Goal 3: Implement self-study recommendations to create a cohesive organization.
Much of Goal 3 has been achieved, which includes ATLs mapped throughout the curriculum and the creation of a whole school student support department. We have hired a second counsellor as well as a second enhanced learning teacher to support our students. We are committed to inclusion at XLIS, which is something I am planning to share on in a future newsletter.
Goal 4: To increase communication between parents and the school. To gradually work with our PTA to develop stronger community partnerships.
Goal 4 is perhaps the area we have made the most development, thanks to our fantastic parent-teacher association and brand development team. Last year we hosted
· Parent Workshops: 25 sessions for the 2023-2024 school year
· Open Days: 4 sessions
· Parent Open Days: 8 sessions across 15 grades
· Parent Coffee Mornings: 30 sessions
· Parent Sports Days: 16 sessions
· PTA meetings: 10 sessions
We are so fortunate to have such a positive and supportive parent community at XLIS. It is something I treasure and mention often in PTA meetings. I will say it here again though, I greatly appreciate our supportive parent community! Without your support and encouragement, none of what we are achieving would be possible.
As much as I love meeting our students on Monday mornings, I also very much enjoy hearing from you, our community. If you have time please reply to this email and let me know how your child is doing at XLIS. If you would ever like to meet me face to face about anything, I would be delighted to schedule this time also.
Yours sincerely,
Brian Lalor
Deputy Head of School
