Dear High School Community,

It was incredible to have all students back on campus this week. It was a little daunting for some to see so many of us in corridors and classrooms but once the initial oddness was over, students and faculty eased back into the learning. We thank all parents for their support over the past 18 months and sincerely hope that we continue with a full campus into the future. Here are some photos of the week...

COVID-19 Updates

Thankfully we report that there were no cases in the High School this week. However, we remind parents to keep your child at home if they are sick. We have a high vaccination rate in our division but we remain vigilant and determined to sustain a safe learning environment for all our students and staff. Thank you.

We reiterate our plea to parents not to send their children to school if they exhibit symptoms related to COVID-19. Please err on the side of caution and take them to be tested.

Vaccination Documentation

We remind parents to upload their child(rens) vaccination record. This is vital information required by the Ministry.

Here is an online form where you can fill out your student's information and upload an image of your student's vaccination card or certificate.

Full Opening Zoom Expectations

As indicated last week, the High School will no longer provide synchronous Zoom sessions for students. Students who are not able to be present on campus are expected to visit the class Teneen page to check for assignments and resources. Students may also reach out to their teachers via email, and can set Zoom appointments outside of class time as necessary.

Parent Advisory Forum (PAF)

On Thursday, October 7, we hosted our first PAF meeting of the year. We held the meeting virtually and discussed topics relating to the full reopening of school, and also spoke about:

• Celebrations

• Service and EDIJ Updates

• Assessment Practices

• Recruitment Updates

Thanks to all who were able to attend. Here’s the recording of the meeting. We will host our next PAF meeting Thursday, December 9.

DragonCards

Please be reminded that students need to bring their DragonCard to school every day to access campus and make purchases. If your child has lost his or her DragonCard, a new one can be purchased by visiting the reception desk at the entrance to the central administration building.

AP Updates

AP students are reminded that there are excellent online resources to provide opportunities to study and practice as they proceed through their courses. The AP Classroom provides students with the opportunity to complete formative quizzes and review content, and AP teachers use this to assign homework and can track student frequency of use and completion of tasks. Another resource that ASD provides free subscriptions to is Albert.io, which provides further content support and practice opportunities. Students are encouraged to log into this resource if they have not, and to speak to their teachers if they have any challenges in doing so. If you have any questions about our AP Courses or the AP Capstone Diploma program, please contact our AP Coordinator at: joshua.giddens@asd.edu.qa

IBDP Diploma Updates

IBDP students are currently undergoing their first set of formative and summative assessments where they will be receiving feedback. It is important that students get familiarised with how to respond to IB questions utilising IB terminology. It is important to note that students will initially struggle but with practice they will be able to improve their performance. Students are encouraged to make appointments with their teachers as well as attend their support sessions. Students will be supported if they are underperforming to ensure we offer early intervention in semester 1. If you have any questions or you would like additional information please do not hesitate to contact the IBDP Coordinator, Ms. Katrina Charles at katrina.charles@asd.edu.qa

Teaching and Learning Moment

Diploma Program Visual Art students had a private Zoom Q&A with renowned artist Jason Lazarus. Lazarus has long been admired for his photographic works. In recent years, he has also gained recognition for his work as an educator, curator, and writer. Lazarus was offering Zoom sessions for students that were interested in talking about his current exhibition entitled a portrait, a choir, a swell, which is a site-specific installation at the Tampa Museum of Art. Mr. Venditti found out about the wonderful opportunity on Lazarus' Instagram.

The artwork acknowledges both the ongoing conversations of those in mental health treatment and those not privileged to access the treatment they may desperately need. The monumental installation asks for solidarity for mental health treatment, not as a private healthcare benefit, but as a human right. Students in Ms. Chaffee and Ms. Huddleston's Art classes generated thought-provoking questions before the Q&A and Lazarus was beyond generous with each of his responses. Some of the quotes from the Q&A that resonated with the cohort are below:

• The complexity of living is really good fuel for making

• Sometimes the function of a piece is to get you to the next piece

• You can create work that is as unanswerable as the world is

• Your job as an artist is to care deeply

Lazarus taught at Columbia College and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, he currently holds a position as an Assistant Professor of Photography and Digital Media at the University of South Florida, Tampa.

Service Updates

In our desire to ensure our parent community has more access to Learning Service information, we have provided access for parents on the “Learning Service” tab on the HS Office Teneen page. The same information is available on the HS Student Teneen Page for students. Supplementary information can also be accessed on our Learning Service Libguide. This page is now updated and live.

This week has been a busy week for all of our service clubs as most clubs have had their first informational meeting for students. If you are the parent of a Grade 9 or 10 student, please ensure your child has either been invited to or attended one of these meetings. If they have not heard from a club that they have signed up for, please have them email the contacts on the club’s slide on the Virtual Service Job Fair. If they have done this and have not yet heard back, please have them email Mr. Shang (cshang@asd.edu.qa) who will help them get in touch with the teacher sponsor of the group.

Additionally, if you are the parent of a Grade 9 student, we have officially opened up our Managebac Portal for Freshmen. Managebac is the platform that service commitments are tracked on at ASD. All Grade 9 students should have received a link sent to their ASD email account. If they do not see it, this may have ended up in the Spam folder. At this point, we need students to click that link to activate their account and set their passwords. They do not need to do anything more than to activate their account by clicking on the link and setting their passwords. They will complete the setup of their accounts with their chosen service club at an upcoming club meeting. The detailed instructions for this are here. We are asking students to complete Part A ONLY. Their club leaders will guide them through the remaining steps at a subsequent meeting. They should not go beyond part A in the instructions.

Also -- a big shout out goes to our group of IB CAS students who have officially started their first Externship Sessions at the Equine Veterinary Medical Centre this past Monday and Tuesday. Last week, they had their orientation tour. This week, they started their first “real day” learning beyond our walls which is what ASD is truly about. WELCOME BACK TO THE “NEW” NORMAL, DRAGONS! And thank you to EVMC and Dr. Tatiana Vinardell for making this possible.

For questions about service or IB CAS at ASD, please contact Mr. Shang at cshang@asd.edu.qa.

Counseling

PSAT

The PSAT will take place for all Grade 9, 10 and 11 students on Tuesday, October 26, there will be no classes for Grade 12 students on this day. There are student guides for students in Grade 10 and 11 that can be picked up in the HS Office. Students in Grade 9, can find a student guide here. All students and parents received emails last week and additional information will be sent out after the break.

Senior Counselor Course

As this was the first week back in school with all students on campus, we wanted to give students a chance to adjust and therefore there was no Counselor Course this week and it will resume next week.

Week 1: Housekeeping - Transcript Review, Application Platform creation, Maia Learning Uses & Common App sync, Letter of Recommendation Requests

Week 2: Crystallization - Finalizing university choices, Adding them to Maia, Requesting documents for submission, a reminder to schedule a meeting with Counselor

Week 3: Essay Writing Workshop (Essay, Personal Statement, Motivational Letter)

Week 4: What to expect after you've applied

Week 5: Misc - Interviews, Scholarships, Etc.

Week 6: Working Time

MaiaLearning

MaiaLearning is a program we use in the Counseling Department. We use it extensively in Grade 11 and Grade 12 through the university process, but it is also used in our Grade 9 and Grade 10 during Counselor Courses for different personality and career inventories as well as the creation of students' 4 year plans! Please check this video on how to access your account

Virtual University Visit

Gulf Edu is hosting a virtual visit in Qatar on Monday, October 11 from 5:00pm - 7:30pm. This fair will include universities from the Europe, UK, USA, Qatar and Malaysia. Get more information and sign up here.

Resources

We encourage students and parents to check out the HS Counseling Teneen page within the Main HS Office as it has lots of resources available for students and parents.

Have a great weekend.

Michael Roberts,

High School Principal

American School of Doha