Dear Parents / Guardians,
Welcome back, I hope you had a restful and stress-free summer and are feeling positive about the new school year. I know it is not exactly what we had hoped for, but I am looking forward to getting to know everyone better and to seeing what successes the students can enjoy this year.
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Samantha Hine, Head of Year 9 and English teacher. This is my second year at DBIS, although I have been teaching in Hong Kong for nine years. Despite the tumultuous time we had last year, I am determined to make this one a positive one for our students and to empower them to develop independence, to make positive choices and to be mindful of themselves and others.Â
We have a very strong tutor team – Mr Evan Murphy and Ms Natasha Johnstone continue to support their tutor groups and our new additions, Mr Peter Wray and Ms Anais Fenning are very much looking forward to getting to know their tutees through daily tutor sessions as well as through upcoming 1:1s.Â
This is an important year for our students as they make some choices regarding subjects they would like to pursue at IGCSE. Much more to come on that front later in the term, for now, I encourage all students to work their hardest and engage actively in all of their subjects so they may be clearer on the subjects they particularly enjoy and can see themselves succeeding in.Â
In line with this, expectations are that students are actively participating in their lessons, that they arrive at their Google Meets on time, dressed appropriately and having set up a positive learning environment. They must, as per last year, follow their timetable and attendance is expected to be 100% from all pupils at all times. Again as per last year, students’ lessons are all scheduled via Google Calendar and all work and assessments will be uploaded to the class teacher’s Google Classroom. If your child is to be absent from any lessons, then please ensure that you fill in the JotForm here (this can also be found under the ‘Parent Information’ section on the Hub) so that no follow-up action is taken.
Finally, if you have any questions, your first point of contact is your child’s tutor. They may then contact me if required, and of course, you are also welcome to contact me for urgent matters. We are here to support your child in terms of their academics and wellbeing and look forward to enjoying a positive and productive year, whatever that may look like.
Best wishes,
Samantha Hine