The Week Ahead 12 April 2019

Dear parents Welcome back after the short holiday, and a particularly warm welcome to families joining Wellington for the first time this term. I hope that you and your children managed a good rest. As you know, we had our Annual Review visit in the final week of last term, and as I reported in my Week Ahead piece, the results were very heartening. The report is in a different format to that of previous years, given that this was the shorter format Review in light of recent progress in the school. A school rated as ‘good or better’ at Annual Review automatically triggers a two-year cycle of short-form review visits, and this was the first of our two-year programme. I will be sending out details of the review report at the end of this week, as well as presenting to parents in briefing on Wednesday 17th April (0930hrs-1030hrs, Common Room), so I will not use the invaluable space allocated to me in the Week Ahead to announce the specific results. Instead, I wanted to concentrate on a particular part of the report we wanted the review team to focus on, as it will play an increasingly significant part of our work in the coming 24 months - developing genuine independence in the pupil learning experience. ‘Independent’ learning covers a wide range of skills and practice in the classroom. It is often simpler to define what is not meant by the term. Effective independent learning is not simply a case of leaving children to find things out for themselves. This is more often than not the characteristic of lazy, directionless teaching masquerading as an opportunity for children to find things out for themselves. Learners need support and guidance from their teachers; the best lessons, where children are actively engaged in their own learning, involve scaffolded exercises and resources provided by teachers, with guidance, stretch and challenge to prompt new avenues of thought. In the process, developing independence means giving greater ownership of learning to the individual, and thus a greater stake in his or her own future progress. As a school, we are determined to foster resilience in our pupils. The ability, confidence and experience of working independently, and the process of weaning a learner away from a mindset which encourages too much dependence on the views or influence of others, are invaluable life skills. Successful learners and adults need to be armed with such tools if they are to succeed in the world beyond Wellington. I think we already do many things that can help support independence – after all, pupils are expected to engage with their teachers in every lesson and activity, but this will not be a rushed process. It takes time to build these learning characteristics into children, and thus from our youngest to our most senior pupils, we will be developing strategies to help them along this journey to greater independence. You will hear much more about this and other initiatives over the coming weeks and months, but in the meantime, if you do have any questions, please do let me know, or do come to one of the weekly Meet the Master sessions (Thursdays from 1400-1500hrs). Best wishes Julian Jeffrey MASTER MEET THE MASTER Duke of York’s Room 1400hrs-1515hrs, Thursday 18th April This week, the Meet the Master slot is aimed at parents of pupils in Nest. If you would like to attend, please confirm via email with Ms. Emma Shi (emma.shi@wellingtoncollege.cn) by Wednesday 17th April. FESTIVAL OF EDUCATION 19th-20th April 2019 China’s leading Festival of Education arrives back in Tianjin this year with a world-renowned line-up of speakers and presenters. Some of the leading thinkers and writers from China, the UK, US and Europe on education will come together for a two-day conference to discuss the future of education. There are sessions on the future of education, technology in education, university admissions processes, mindfulness and wellbeing, with both English and Chinese language presentations. The event is aimed at parents, educational professionals, employers and all those interested in the way that thinking about the future of learning is being shaped across the world. It promises to be an exciting and informative couple of days. Details of the event are included in this Week Ahead.

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PARENTS BRIEFING: ANNUAL REVIEW FEEDBACK Common Room 0930hrs - 1030hrs, Wednesday 17th April Every Wednesday morning, parents will have the chance to engage with the school in sessions that cover all aspects of your child’s education, from the Early Years to A Levels and university admissions. The venue will be Common Room, and for this week's meeting, Mr Julian Jeffrey, the Master, will report on the Annual Review feedback from the UK inspection team. FROM THE SERVICES’ SUPERVISOR We will hold a food tasting session on Monday 15th April for the parent representatives of Nest to collect more feedback on the catering. New swimming suits have arrived in the uniform shop. Parents who would like to exchange the older models, please come along and replace them.FROM THE UNIVERSITY GUIDANCE TEAM Coffee Morning Coffee Shop 0930hrs-1030hrs, Wednesday 17th April On every Wednesday of Week B, we hold university guidance coffee mornings in the coffee shop from 0930hrs - 1030hrs. All parents are welcome to come along to have a chat about any issues to do with university applications. Parents with children in all year groups are welcome to come along. Year 12 University Guidance Session From Monday 15th April The second round of university guidance sessions will be starting again for all Year 12 pupils from Monday 15th April. There will be a sign-up sheet on Miss Luyi's door (217) for pupils to make an appointment for their one-to-one session. If you have a child currently in Year 12, please encourage them to sign up as soon as possible. FORM THE ANGLESEY HOUSEMISTRESS Spring Fashion Show Theatre 1500hrs-1600hrs, Monday 15th April Anglesey pupils warmly invite their peers to our Spring Fashion Show on Monday April 15th. Our theme will showcase the wonders of blossom, flowers and all elements of new life and renewal that we welcome at this time of the year. Pupils and teachers are welcome to wear their own creations to this fantastic event, with prizes for the best hand-made accessories or piece of clothing on show. We are pleased to say that our panel of judges will be made up of our esteemed Art and Design Technology teachers. House points will be given to all of our wonderful catwalk models. We cannot wait to see you all there, dressed in your spring best.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Monday 15 April 2019 All Day Week B 8:30AM - 9:30AM FOW EAL (Beginners) (PF) (MB 235)   3:05PM - 3:45PM Senior School Assembly (JMS) (Theatre)   4:00PM - 6:00PM U-16 Boys Football vs TIS (h) (RG) (Sports Centre)   5:00PM Senior School reports: Years 11-13 Teacher deadline (DP)   Tuesday 16 April 2019 All Day Year 5 residential trip (RA)   8:45AM - 10:00AM FOW Pilates (ES) (Black Box)   10:15AM - 11:15AM FOW Mandarin Class (ES) (MB 125)   4:00PM - 6:00PM MS Boys & Girls Basketball vs IST (a) (RG)   5:00PM Senior School reports: Proofreading deadline (DP)   Wednesday 17 April 2019 All Day GCSE Art Examination (to 18th) (MFC) (Main Building)   8:45AM - 10:00AM FOW Yoga (ES) (Black Box)   9:30AM - 10:30AM Parents' Briefing: Annual Review feedback (JAFJ) (Common Room)   9:00AM - 12:00PM Nest: Open Morning for current parents (DZ) (The Nest)   3:05PM - 3:45PM Junior School Assembly (RA) (Theatre)   4:00PM - 5:00PM Staff CPD (JL)   Thursday 18 April 2019 8:30AM - 11:00AM Junior School Open Morning (for current parents) (Main Building)   9:00AM - 10:30AM FOW: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) (ES) (WCA Room)   9:00AM - 12:00PM FOW Reading Group (ES) (MB 125)   10:45AM - 12:00PM FOW: Yoga (ES) (Black Box)   1:00PM - 2:00PM Health & Safety Committee meeting (VW) (Duke of York's room)   2:00PM - 3:15PM Meet the Master: Nest parents (ES) (Duke of York's room)   Friday 19 April 2019 All Day Year 6 trip to UK departs (to 27th) (RA)   All Day Festival of Education (to 20th) (MS) (Main Building)   8:30AM - 9:00AM Nest Assembly: Year 1 (DZ) (Theatre)   8:30AM - 9:30AM FOW EAL (Advanced) (PF) (MB 231)   8:30AM - 11:00AM FOW Art Class (KM) (MB 125)   8:45AM - 10:00AM FOW Pilates (ES) (Black Box)   9:30AM - 11:30AM Nest Open Morning (PR) (The Nest)