Editorial Team Annie Divaret, Yasmin Hollis, Debbie Macklin, Hilary Moser, Debby Russell, Phillip Shaw-Latimer. Student Editor Verity Emanuel Next Issue February 2008 Text & photos [email protected]Advertisements [email protected]Visit the British Section website at www.lycee-international.net November 2007 N o 87 The British Section Magazine Lycée International St Germain-en-Laye & Partner Schools insites Throwing eggs to break the ice! Reports on a new initiative for Seconde students (see page 8 and 9)
You can now browse back copies of Insites magazine on
the British Section’s new website!
Click on British Section Life on the main menu bar, and
then on Insites in the sub-menu options,
or go direct via
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Headlines
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Headlines
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About a quarter of our staff began working for the British Section this last September. This is a striking fact following a school year which
began (September 2006) with the French authorities – at the highest level – calling into question the very raison d’être of the parents’ association which employs our staff. The right to ‘recruit and remunerate’ is fundamental and – mercifully, following the Senate amendment of last December – it is a right which has been maintained.
As we continue to point out at every available opportunity, it is the freedom and ability to recruit teachers of British nationality with British qualifications and British teaching experience which allows sections like ours to offer something authentically different while remaining an integrated part of the French host system. We continue to suggest that the French authorities have yet to realise just how rare (internationally speaking) and just how much of an atout this is.
True to our own traditions and in a spirit of ‘business as usual’, we ended up recruiting four new teachers – all then working in UK schools – during the spring. Two posts represented vacant slots in the new responsibility structures and were already programmed to exist in 2006. We knew we needed an additional History teacher who would take over the duties of coordinator for that subject in the collège cycle – to match the structure which already existed in the Secondary English department. And we had planned an upper primary (Key Stage 2) responsibility post to complete a Primary leadership team covering the full age range. Welcome, therefore, to two young colleagues, both from Cambridgeshire – Emily Mills and Julia Parry.
The departures of Claire Lewis and Annie Jilbert from the English department required us to seek replacements for those two highly talented teachers; and, here again, we naturally sought them in the UK. Michael Eccles joins us assuming a special responsibility for Drama in succession to Claire, and Nikki Charlwood takes over the timetable (including two Group 2 classes in Le Pecq) formerly taught by Annie. And then, at the last minute (August) Barbara Simon was called back to the UK and we found her replacement within our own community in the person of Suzy Le Gousse.
Finding and appointing teachers in the UK without recourse to recruitment agencies (for they are geared to the different needs of an international school circuit) is an extremely costly and time-consuming business – but nothing we do is more important. The Section has developed its own recruitment methods over the years and continues to refine them, with the active help and involvement of governors. The expertise which we recruit will not only assist our section in St Germain to build on past success; it will also be diffused through the international sections in France who form our family of schools – most obviously in the servicing and development of the International
Option.Our other local recruits
all have significant roles in supporting the educational mission of the Section and in delivering an efficient service to s ta f f and community . Catherine Vironda has arrived as our librarian at Hauts Grillets
(with Anne Steadman moving over to Le Pecq); Sandrine Hurst is our new information technology manager; and Jane Newson now offers her welcoming smile at the office front desk.
In working out how all these new faces fit into the larger staff picture, the updated organisation chart on pages 12 and 13 should prove helpful. Also in this edition (pages 14 and 15) you will find interviews of new teachers carried out by students and a spotlight on who does what in the administrative team (page 20).
www.lycee-international.netMany of you will, I am sure, have already
explored the elegant new website launched in September. For those who have not, may I recommend a visit? Amongst other things, we have tried to explain how the different bits of the BS system fit together – not an easy task. You will also find fresh pages on university entrance, past pupils, the libraries and other aspects of British Section life. The latest IGCSE and OIB results are also up there: the latter were the best results we have ever had, with 70% of last year’s Terminale achieving either a mention bien or mention très bien.
Philip Shaw-LatimerDirector of the British Section
We are delighted to welcome two new members of staff,
Julia Parry and Suzy Le Gousse.Julia completes the Primary
Leadership team as Assistant Head, Key Stage 2 Leader.
In her previous school, Cottenham Primary, and across
the Cambridge Authority, she was responsible for the development
of language and literacy.Suzy Le Gousse, who worked last year with the Early Years team as the Maternelle 3 support teacher,
replaces Barbara Simon, who due to her husband’s unexpected
transfer back to England, was unable to stay with us.
Suzy, an experienced Key Stage 1 teacher, is teaching the
11ème/CP in the Ecole Felix Eboué.Determined to fi nd out more about their new teachers,
the 7ème pupils composed a questionnaire while the
youngest artists in 11ème /CP and 10ème/CE1
drew their portraits.
❂ What kind of school did you last teach in?
JP: A large village school north of Cambridge. There were 500 children on the roll. I was the Key Stage 1 Leader and the Leading Literacy Teacher for Cambridge.
➵ SLG: Most recently I have been a full-time mum, devoting myself to my three young children. I began my teaching career in Southwark, then moved to Korea where I taught in the British School of Seoul Foreign School and then, on arriving in France at the International School of Paris.
❂ How did you get the job here in the British Section?
➵ JP: France is a country which has always fascinated me and as I was thinking of a change of direction and possibly moving abroad I was particularly attracted to the advertisement in the Times Educat ional Supplement. I t seemed a perfect opportunity to develop my professional skills as well as fi nding out more about French culture.
➵ SLG: For me the appointment was a real last minute dash. Two days before the term began, I was interviewed and appointed as the new 11ème/CP teacher.
❂ Have you found living in France a big change?
➵ JP: Actually it’s all very exciting. I am living in a really comfortable fl at in Saint Germain. I love the
food and doing my shopping at the market. I am still
having to look closely at some of those tiny euro coins.
➵ SLG: Being ma r r i e d t o a
Frenchman helped me settle in quickly. I
enjoy living here immensely. Le Vésinet is a perfect location which allows me easy access to Paris and all that it has to offer while I can also benefi t from all the greenery and lakes
which surround my home.
❂ What have you found that is particularly different?
➵ JP: The language and driving. Having three classes instead of one and the curriculum focus on language and literacy exclusively instead of the whole primary curriculum.
➵ SLG: The language, Christmas traditions, the little mouse instead of the tooth fairy. At school I fi nd the 6 hours I spend with my class very short, it pushes me to make the most of every second.
❂ Anything you miss about England, for example the pubs?
➵ JP: Nothing really, my friends a bit!
➵ SLG: Marks and Spencers.
❂ What is your favourite music?
➵ JP: I love all sorts of music – from Elvis to Justin Timberlake.
➵ SLG: Since arriving in France, French music has grown on me to the extent I happily sing along to Benabar and went to Charles Aznavour’s 80th birthday concert.
❂ Is there anything else you can tell our readers?
➵ JP: I love pain au chocolat, drinking red wine and buying new
pairs of long boots. Gardening, growing roses, is a favourite hobby and I love to read – Laurie Lee, poetry and John Donne. At weekends I like to get up early when there’s no one around and the day is fresh and new.
➵ SLG: My husband and I met in Asia and it is my ambition to take the family there, especially to South Korea. I enjoy water sports and one day would love to race kayaks. Having seen the excellent portraits of me drawn by my 11ème/CP class, I have booked an urgent appointment to have Botox.
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Ice cream tastes succulent milky vanillary and sweet. But when it melts you will get messy.
When we have ice cream we scoop it into a cone. If we don’t lick our ice cream, it will start to melt. I wait until it melts. I like it runny because it turns all creamy in my mouth.
I put the ice cream in my mouth until it tingles my tung.
I looked in a book and it was interesting to find out that air is whipped into ice cream.
I learned that lots of sugar keeps the ice cream cold.
A fascinating fact about ice cream is that the most popular flavours are chocolate, strawberry
and vanilla.
Marco Polo was an explorer who went to China and saw that the Chinese were eating ice cream for centuries. He told stories when he
got back because we did not have television.
An interesting thing I found out is that ice cream contains seaweed called Giant Kelp.
I found out that crushed cochineal beetle gives pink dye.
At last June’s Primary Forum one of our parents requested that a topic on
‘Nutrition’ be included in our programmes of study. This term we are taking a whole Department approach, from Maternelle 1 through to 7ème/CM2, with each class studying an aspect of this interesting and ‘much talked about’ subject.
Our focus will range from traditional dishes around the United Kingdom and how our recipes have been influenced by other cultures, the history of ice cream, the digestive system, the role of vitamins, the spice routes and through to a healthy balanced diet. The 7ème/CM2 pupils will continue their investigation of water, comparing water provision, sanitation and the first Public Health Acts of the 19th Century with present day conditions in the Third World and the impact of growing populations on water supplies.
This topic offers us exciting opportunities for our pupils to be practising and developing their speaking and listening, reading and writing skills. It is a topic which will associate practical ‘hands on’ activities with the more formal skills. As the pupils complete their investigations, we will be encouraging them to record their findings using a variety of mediums and collectively the work will be displayed in the classrooms.
Nutrition has and will continue to receive much media attention. Throughout the topic a common-sense approach will be taken, and indeed we are discovering how aware and attentive some of our youngest pupils are to what makes a healthy diet. My own experience of the 7ème/CM2 pupils at Les Fauvettes (the class ecology trip) is of children who eat well, who are accustomed to eating a varied diet and who are no strangers to fruit and vegetables, so well done the parents!
The schools too are playing their part and now on the Lycée site, pupils are encouraged to opt for ‘healthy’ snacks at playtime, while at the Ecole Felix Eboué morning snacks are discouraged placing emphasis on a substantial breakfast and ensuring that the appetite at lunchtime has not been dulled.
Annie Divaret
Food Glorious Food... !
Fact
s an
d th
ough
ts o
n i
ce cre
am from 10 ème/CE1 pupils
There’s nothing like doing it yourself - pupils from 10ème making fruit drink “smoothies” and making their own “healthy” sandwich in Maternelle
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PrimaryMaking a big impact in a short space of time
My point of view
A marine biologist
In 1965, my colleagues and I had the idea to save the Bluefin Tuna by creating a marine reserve. But the hostile fishermen argued, “We have fished here all our lives, our ancestors too, so don’t try to stop us living well!” Twelve years later, we finally convinced the fishermen to leave us large areas of the ocean to make the reserve. We have managed to prove them wrong. Our plan finally permitted everyone to benefit from it. A process which we call ‘Spillover’ has meant that millions of fish eggs that were spawned in the reserve drifted to the seas outside the reserve and began to breed. Therefore the fish stocks revived and now everyone is happy.
A fi sherman from Senegal
Senegal, a poor country on the west coast of Africa, is where my family has lived for generations. Fish is one of the main meals we can afford. Traditionally, we fish off shore, catching small quantities in our little fishing crafts.
Our families feed on the fish we catch and the leftovers are sold at the market. Since the 1990s industrial fishing has caused great problems and now we are having to sail further out into the ocean. Industrial fishing trawlers are hoovering up the fish and so are depriving us of our food. Someone needs to help us and save the fish and our population.
A Newfoundland fi sherman
My ancestors settled here 200 years ago. At that time there was an abundance of cod. My family had a profitable business which earned hundreds of dollars. We lived comfortably in a spacious house and I looked forward to the day when my own son would take over the business. However since the 1990s the business has not made as much money because the industrial fishing has destroyed the stocks of cod. Nowadays the government has decided there will be strict laws to limit the amount of fish caught each year. I have lost my job, nobody wants to buy my boat or my house. Many young people are moving out to live elsewhere.
Primary pupils have been getting involved in La Fête de la Science, and raising
awareness of the fate of the Bluefin Tuna…
Sustainable Development has featured prominently in the 7ème/CM2 topic, ‘Ecology and the Environment’, so when the Secondary Science Department at the Lycée International represented by Veronique Bouchiat and Philippe Levert, launched the idea of a whole school exhibition as part of the nationwide ‘La Fête de la Science’ we volunteered to participate. Our environmental theme this year is water, a vast subject that we have divided into smaller units. For ‘La Fête de la Science’ we focussed on over-fishing of the oceans and took as an emblematic symbol the bluefin tuna.
An extract from ‘Deep Trouble’ in the BBC’s production of the Blue Planet was the locomotive for intense discussion and research. Pupils thought how they could raise people’s awareness of the issues involved and how best to seize the audience’s attention. They had to make a big impact in a short space of time and had to decide which techniques to employ.
Visitors to the exhibition found fascinating facts on the bluefin tuna on PowerPoint slides and eye-catching art-work. Different points of view were presented and calls for action distributed in the form of posters and flyers. The following are extracts from pupils’ work.
Annie Divaret
Eye-catching, visitor-stopping posters and leaflets from the 7ème exhibition on over-fishing.
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Pedagogically, the upward move-ment of our 7ème/CM2 pupils
towards the first year of the Secondary Cycle (Key Stage 3) is increasingly smooth. Here, our policy of ensuring a supportive continuum is firmly in place with attention being paid to a series of bridging topics which encourage 7ème/CM2 and pupils in 6ème and beyond to work together, La Fête de la Science being one example. Towards the end of last school year, the collège teachers worked with the pupils, establishing contact and setting the expectations of this new phase in the pupils’ learning. Parents are, of course, included in the process and we try to make this as transparent as possible.
When does the process start?The administrative process begins in January.
The Headmaster writes to all families concerned explaining the principal organisational features and the composition of three classes, one for each of the collège sites. An important element in the decisions to be made is the 7ème/6ème Commission which is composed of the class teachers, the Head of Primary and the Headmaster. Their task is to ensure that the three classes are roughly equal in number, reflect a similar balance of gender and linguistic background.
Which criteria play a role in the decision making?
Firstly, those pupils who joined the Section through Français Special are directed to one of our collège sites. This provides them with the opportunity to immerse themselves in a distinct francophone environment, strengthening their language performance in good time for the lycée cycle, 2ème to Terminale.
Pupils who are graduating from the Ecole Felix Eboué proceed to the Collège Pierre et Marie Curie.
Children who have been externé over a long period of time are accorded a certain priority for places on the Lycée site.
Last but not least, parents are given the opportunity to indicate a preference and draw
to the Commission’s attention any factors which they would wish to be taken into consideration.
Are there opportunities to visit the collège sites?
In January, the Headmaster invites the parents to an information meeting held at the Collège des Hauts Grillets.
When the decisions have been made, visits are organised for the pupils to visit their future schools and they often spend a morning exploring the classrooms and the libraries. There is an additional visit organised by our French colleagues in the Ecole Felix Eboué.
The organisational features of a secondary timetable can be challenging for pupils in 6ème. Which strategies are put in place to help pupils?
Throughout the 7ème/CM2 year, the class teachers are laying increasing emphasis on independence and autonomy. The time spent with the collège teachers creates the bonds and the confidence to meet the challenges and, of course, there is a transfer of information between teachers to support the pupils. The British Section librarians also play a role, introducing the new skills required in the libraries which are now independent areas outwith the classrooms.
Annie Divaret
Entry to 6ème - a key bridging point
Our PowerPoint fact fi le on the Bluefi n Tuna:
The body of the bluefin tuna is cigar-shaped and robust. The head is conical and the mouth rather large. The outer part of the body is a shimmering blue while the underside presents a spotted silver colour.
A bluefin tuna can:
■ weigh up to 600kg
■ measure up to 4 metres long
■ swim 50km per hour
■ dive to a depth of up to 2km
The bluefin tuna needs a lot of oxygen and swims with its mouth open. It has a warm blooded circulatory track which means it can swim in very cold temperatures. The bluefin has a reddish pink flesh because its blood carries more oxygen.
The bluefin tuna is becoming extinct because of over-fishing. The stocks are down by 90%. The northern bluefin is an important source of seafood, providing most of the rich red buttery tuna used in sushi and sashimi. The catches of tuna are airlifted to the markets in Japan. One tuna can be sold for over £12,000.
How can we help?Stop fi shing young tuna
Avoid buying this endangered species of tuna
Eat fi sh from sustainable sources
Lobby the government to enforce a total ban onthe bluefi n tuna.
Join organisations such as WWF (Worldwide Wildlife Fund) and Greenpeace!
8
SecondaryBreaking the ice - and a few eggs - in Seconde…
The entry into the Lycée cycle can be a trying and daunting time for many students. After the relative security of a small school and familiar faces, pupils from our partner
Collèges are launched into a large school, with new class mates, new teachers and possibly new expectations regarding their work. Moreover, at the end of the year, not only do they have to take the IGCSE examinations in English Language, English Literature and History, but they also have to make important decisions concerning their ‘orientation’ and the Baccalaureate they will follow in Première and Terminale.
In order to help students from the three Collège sites to integrate into Seconde this year,
we decided to try an experiment by launching a day of induction into the Lycée cycle. The aims were to help students to get to know each other and their new teachers, and to introduce some study skills with tips on how to organise their time and
make the most of Seconde. In order to give the day a special buzz, we all decamped to the Centre Equestre Les Fauvettes in Neauphle le Vieux on September 4th. After a welcome and a few brief i n t r o d u c t o r y r ema r k s f r om P h i l i p S h a w -La t imer , N i c k Baker and myself, w e l a u n c h e d into Debby Russell’s ice-breaker which involved propelling an egg for three metres without breaking it! Several ingenious methods were tried out by the different groups of pupils – some being more successful than others. Two of the groups did actually manage to propel their egg the required distance, in the time allowed, without breaking it. There were a few disasters but not too much mess, since the pupils were extremely co-operat ive about keeping their eggs inside a polythene bag. The lessons learned were that a good plan, discussion, teamwork and co-operation are very important
when trying to accomplish many tasks. Sticking to a time limit is essential.
Throughout the day there were other activities to encourage the pupils to think about how they learn, how to organise their time (especially where homework is concerned) and how to give time to relaxation and to physical activities – all good habits for the Lycée cycle. Pupils generally participated in the activities with enthusiasm, although we noticed
a certain reluctance to plan a homework timetable! Several students said they wait to see what homework they get and seemed unconvinced by our arguments that regular homework, little and often, and repetition of tasks helps learning and gives control and confidence. A suivre!!
I am following up our induction day by seeing all the Secondes to check on
their progress and to see how they have settled into the Lycée. I shall be going to the first Conseil de Classe in order to pick up any problems and help the students to react quickly, if and where it is necessary.
I am extremely grateful to all my colleagues who came along to Les Fauvettes and who helped to make the day so worthwhile and enjoyable. Special thanks go to Debby Russell, our Contact Parent Co-ordinator, who agreed to come along with us and who so successfully animated the egg propelling exercise and to Hilary Moser and Di Robat, who helped me organise the day.
Anne Davis
“There were a few disasters but not too much mess, since the pupils were extremely co-operative about keeping their eggs inside a polythene bag. ”
Seeking a solution with balloons and eggs.
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E veryone had arrived at Les Fauvettes not really knowing what to expect
of this new "initiation day". We participated in a number of activities, the most memorable being the "egg game" and "how the brain works" (the difference between long and short term memory). Throughout the day we were presented with different challenges, some physical and others more intellectual. But there seemed to be one main point to these activities - teamwork. Towards the end of the day, we realised that by discussing problems in our groups and even with people we hardly knew, they were resolved much faster. Although we did not all share the same views,
we were put in situations where we had to work fast and effectively. Not easy and sometimes stressful! Getting to know each other was also an important and fun part of the day.
Has this changed the way I work? Well, to be honest, I do think teamwork is important and it is useful to share your opinions and knowledge on a subject with others. Working in a team makes you explain yourself clearly and communicate effectively.
Georgina Banfield
The day started at around eight thirty when we were dropped
at Les Fauvettes. We were taken to a room where Mr Shaw-Latimer started the day with a few words on how the upcoming year would be for us.
The rest of the day was divided up between a set of activities, some which were a little less serious (throwing eggs over five metres without breaking them), some which were more serious (drawing up homework timetables). During the day we also had the choice between playing rounders or football and going on a nature quiz.
The day at Les Fauvettes was a good way to come out of the holidays and get back to working a bit in a relaxed atmosphere. And it was nice to catch up with your friends after the summer or get to see some new faces or even see some people you hadn't seen for the past couple of years.
Anshuman Kar
On the 4th of September, before the first day of the new school
year, the pupils starting the Seconde year in the British section met up in Les Fauvettes, a riding centre in Neuphle-Le-Vieux for an induction day. The aims of the day were to find out about how the Seconde year works, but also to allow the pupils from each of the three schools, the Lycee International, Pierre et Marie Curie and Hauts Grillets, to get to know each other and to break the ice. We were given presentations on the targets for the day, the Seconde year and study technique from Mrs Davis, Mr Baker, Mr Jackson and Mr Shaw-Latimer. After this, we were separated into groups, and did some team building activities, such as having to find a way to use materials we were given to protect an egg from cracking when launched a distance of at least two metres, or more ordinary activities such as football or rounders.
I was surprised by how relaxed the atmosphere was and enjoyed the activities, as I was expecting the day to be more academic, and I found the day very useful and enjoyable and felt as though I got to know quite a few students from the other schools fairly well and learnt a lot about how to go about planning my work this year.
Joe Lightfoot
Why am I here, feeling lost, in the most unknown place
I have ever been, at eight o'clock in the morning? That is what I asked myself when I arrived with a friend, surrounded by English-speaking people who already knew each other.
I was a bit frightened at first but, as one surprise followed another- throwing eggs in the air, trying to solve a puzzle, playing tennis- I began to feel at home with the naturally friendly people who came up eager to help someone totally lost.
The fun, mixed activities were a successful preparation for the Lycee knowing other pupils made our first day less frightening.
Thanks to this experience, we could easily enter this incredible world which is the Br it ish Section!
Laure Cavenel 2nde Accueil (with a little help
from her friends)
Teamwork at Les Fauvettes
Five heads are better than one.
Secondary
10
Spotlight on Entry into Seconde…
The Section is allocated 60 places in the French Seconde classes but we always have more students than this enrolled in our 3ème groups across the three collège sites. Although not every student in 3ème is a candidate for a place at the Lycée International, this is a situation which tends to produce a squeeze at Seconde level.
The present class stuctures - including the Group 2 stream - have been in place for a long time - almost fifteen years. Some years ago, the plan, and expectation, was that the Lycée International would increase its capacity at the lycée level by using the Château to relieve pressure on classroom space. This has not happened - in fact the Lycée has gone into reverse gear in recent years by reducing the number of Seconde classes from eleven to ten. Lining up with lycée places across the collège cycle would have at least two negative consequences : fewer students in the 11-15 age range would be able to benefit from membership of the British Section; and the loss in revenue would mean significant fee increases. After a strategic studyfive years ago, the Section decided to maintain Group 2 classes. Even if we decided to discontinue them, the effect would only be felt in three to four years’ time. And it would mean the end of an important service to the local French community and lower provision for the Collège Pierre et Marie Curie, as fewer pupils inevitably means less funding.
Yes. The degree of difficulty depends on the total number of pupils proposed for places, together with the quality of the year group. The main distinctive factor this last year was the very high standard of our Group 2. Most of them transferred to the Lycée, whereas in previous years about half the class had gone elsewhere. It is important to remember, however, that almost all the students the British Section proposed were in fact accepted – and that the Proviseur went above the official ceiling of 60. This fact will allow people to keep a sense of proportion but will be of little consolation, I realise, to the one or two families whose children did not get in.
As I explained at the AGM, the Lycée International now has a mid-term building and development plan which includes significantly more classroom space and which means that this problem will disappear à l’horizon 2012. The problem is the next few years. At the end of this last summer, I conducted an analytical review of the various options which might relieve the situation and made some proposals which were then discussed and accepted by the governing body. We began a dialogue with the Proviseur at the end of September. We should know soon whether the pressure on BS places will ease in 2008 or not. I promised the 4ème and 3ème parents a meeting on this subject and it will be held when we have had the appropriate indications from the Proviseur – but in any case before Christmas.
Not to exaggerate the problem. To follow the clear advice of the British Section in aiming high, working conscientiously and consistently, neglecting no academic subject. Prove that you have the right attitude (teacher comments on those bulletins are important!) and the right profile to succeed in following a demanding bicultural curriculum.
The 60 places I referred to earlier do not include the Accueil class, which stands apart from the BS mainstream. These students are recruited afresh and sur dossier and are following English LVI as well as BS lessons designed specifically for their needs. 15 places are allocated to this class, which has been running since the mid 1990’s. If the class were discontinued, the British Section would not necessarily recoup the places. In 2007, however, the Proviseur agreed to reduce numbers in the Accueil (to 9 – too small a class, by the way !) in order to accommodate more students in the three British Section IGCSE mainstream sets. The result is that each of these now contains 22 students.
The British Sectiononly operates senior classes
(Seconde - Terminale) in one school – the Lycée International – and the transfer from collège to lycée cycle continues to cause understandable
anxiety among our families. Here, ahead of a special meeting devoted to the subject (and the
first term conseils de classe),Philip Shaw-Latimer answers
some of your FAQs.
Why is there a problem of places in Seconde for the British Section?
Why does the Section not reduce its numbers in the collège cycle to fit the number of places available in Seconde?
Was 2007 a particularly tough year?
And 2008 and beyond?
And the advice to parents and students in the meantime?
Where does the Seconde Accueil class fit in to all this?
For many years the Lycée International has offered a particularly interesting
class in Seconde where a small number of French students enter the British Section in Seconde Accueil. Diane Robat describes the challenge of incorporating British culture into the teaching programme…
My challenge last year was to create a History/Geography programme allowing these students to acquire “British Culture” and to set this within the European context while incorporating the students’ experience of their own French culture.
The project started with an incitement to develop a “seeing eye”. The question: “What is written around the Panthéon in Paris?” (asked of one of my own children at an interview) elicited “don’t knows”.
We moved on to key figures in British history and their French contemporaries: “Why is St. Germain important to the Scots?” “Did Queen Victoria and Napoleon have much in common?” “The colonial experience, winners and losers?” We spent time researching the fate of the Aborigine people of Australia and visited the Australian Embassy where we saw a wonderful exhibition of Aboriginal art, heard recordings of Aborigines telling their stories. We watched “Rabbit proof fence” which disturbed the students. “I didn’t know about any of this. I had no idea that Aboriginal babies were taken from their parents and put into boarding schools.”
The unit on politics proved very popular. Using press articles, recordings and cartoons we learned about the main parties and politicians, “spin”, “massaging the facts”, “being economical with the truth” and “lobbying”. We wrote tricky questions to James Purnell (a former pupil of the British Section and then Minister of State for Pensions Reform), and then visited him during a day trip to London – thanks to that amazing example of Franco-British cooperation, the Eurostar!
“We met James Purnell standing at the door of his private room. He shook hands with us all. We were a little nervous to talk to someone who sees Tony Blair every day. He was very understanding and answered our questions with self confidence. He was meeting our eyes when he talked to us with his light blue look. Twice his secretary came in to remind him that he had to go to a debate. Nevertheless, he answered all
Focus on Seconde Accueil
Diane Robat (far left) with her class of Seconde Accueil students, now in Première, appreciating Aboriginal Art during last year’s British Culture teaching programme. On the right is Kay Momjian a parent of former pupils.
“Is there any such thing as British Culture?...”
our questions. When he had left we were very hungry. Miraculously there was a tray of cookies and orange juice in the corner. Was it for us? We ate them politely and then walked out of the Houses of Parliament.
The afternoon was spent in the Cabinet War Rooms.”
“The museum was underground in a former bunker. There are small rooms in which Churchill headed the resistance against the Nazis. We saw photographs, clothes and paintings which had belonged to Churchill. We learned that he had been an unruly pupil. Unfortunately for him he wasn’t elected again after the war . This was probably because people never wanted to hear his voice again saying “we shall fight them on the beaches.”
Our next area of reflection was “Culture and Cultural stereotyping”. Is there any such thing as British Culture? What is the American Dream? What is Australian Culture? Is France being swamped by English-speaking culture? For this the students devised a questionnaire and each set out to quiz 15 people. The result was surprising!!
To encourage students to reflect on society and its challenges we discussed individual liberty, binge-drinking, overeating and obesity, anti-social behaviour, drugs, exploitation of young consumers.
At the end of the year we turned our attention to environmental issues, and ended up by designing the ultimate eco-friendly house.
This first crop of students is now happily integrated into the mainstream British Section and another group sets out on their initiation process. This year we will study the 1930s, a strange and
contradictory period of history with the rumblings of war and yet the huge creativity of artists and architects. We will visit the wonderful Musée des Années Trente in Boulogne-Billancourt. We may go back to Westminster or we may visit Edinburgh. Why? Well the 2ème Accueil group will represent the Section in the Modern Architecture Project being organised in the C.D.I.
in 2008, so we could take photos of the Scottish Assembly building…
Diane Robat
(Thanks to: David Jackson who came with us to London, Mélinée, Alexandra, Marc, Damien, Clemence, Marie, Maxime, Aurore, Constance, Thibault, Marie-Lou, Pauline)
P.S. Since our visit, The Rt. Hon. James Purnell has become Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.
PMC1 Collège Pierre & Marie Curie - Group 1 PMC2 Collège Pierre & Marie Curie - Group 2 FE Ecole Felix EboueJA Ecole Maternelle Jehan Alain HG Collège des Hauts Grillets LI Lycée International 2°Acc Seconde Accueil
Secondary
NICHOLAS BAKERDeputy Head and Subject Leader,
English
ANNE DAVISAssistant Head, Pastoral Care
MARGARET SLAIDINGCollège Coordinator, English
JULIE MARKS
XANA JONESSite coordinator,Hauts Grillets
ROGER STEPHENSDeputy Director,
Pierre et Marie Curie
MICHAEL ECCLES
Senior Drama
JOHN CANNONSeconde Accueil
NIKKI CHARLWOODGroup II, Le Pecq
HILARY MOSER
LycéeCATHERINE VIRONDA
Collège des Hauts GrilletsANNE STEADMAN
Pierre et Marie Curie
Librarians
English
History/Geography
JAMES CATHCARTUniversities, Oxbridge,IGCSE Examinations
DAVID JACKSONDeputy Head and Subject Leader,
History and Geography
13
Staff organisation chart
13
Primary
SUZY LE GOUSSE
JAMES CATHCARTUniversities, Oxbridge,IGCSE Examinations
EMILY MILLSCollège Coordinator,History/Geography
JULIA PARRYAssistant Head of Primary,
Key stage 2
JILL JOHNSTONEAssistant Head of Primary,
Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1
BARBARABENTLEY
JENNIFER TUMELTY
Primary ICT
LUCYGOUGH
JANET HADLEY(also teaches
Secondary History)
DAVID JACKSONDeputy Head and Subject Leader,
History and Geography
DIANE ROBAT KAREN THORLEY
ANNIE DIVARET-HEPBURN
Deputy Head, Head of Primary
PHILIP SHAW-LATIMER
Headmaster
EVELYNE BERGER
FinanceSARAH GREGOIRE
AdmissionsCATHERINE SAGNE
Admissions & OIBMARIE LAURE MCHUGO
Finance
Administrative staff
SANDRINE HURST
IT Internal ManagerJANE NEWSON
Reception
The Primary teaching team
is led by Annie Divaret-Hepburn, who,
as senior manager is responsible for
the development of the department’s
programmes of study and the quality of
the teaching and learning. This school year
the Primary Leadership Team includes
two Assistant Heads, each responsible for
a particular curricular area: Jill Johnstone
remains responsible for the Foundation
Stage and Key Stage 1, and is joined by
Julia Parry who will lead Key Stage 2.
This strengthening of the leadership team
reflects current UK practice and creates
fresh opportunities for the teaching team
as a whole to continue to develop the
work of the classroom. Jennifer Tumelty
continues in her role of responsibility
for the implementation and development
of ICT skills. Currently, there are 6 full-
time and 3 part-time members of staff.
All members of the team are committed
either as class teachers, support teachers
or administratively to both the Lycée and
the Le Pecq sites.
First Impressions
14
Senior students have found time to track down two new members of the secondary
teaching team with notebooks in hand…
Emi ly Mi l l s and Nikk i Charlwood kindly gave interviews, from which we print extracts on these pages. In the next issue, we look forward to hearing from Michael Eccles.
Where were you before you came to France?
Before I came to France I was living in London, in Highbury, very close to the Arsenal stadium, and I was teaching at a school in Hackney.
For what reasons did you decide to move?
Can I have time to think about it? Laughs. I had been at my old school for a few years and felt that I wanted a change. I decided that I didn't want to move to another school in London just at the moment, so I started to look abroad. I thought I might perhaps go somewhere in Asia, or Austria, but then my sister got pregnant, and I didn't want to be too far from her baby, so France became a good option.
What differences have you noticed between England and France?
Well, I would say two major things. Firstly within the classroom, students are incredibly motivated, and they are very serious about their learning, and all seem really want to do well. In England, there seems to be an atmosphere of it not always being cool to be seen to work very hard, whereas that does not seem to be the case in France. But on the other hand, I was quite surprised by the atmosphere in the corridors. It seems to be the students that rule the corridors, and the teachers who are in charge in the classrooms! Quite often, your bag is thrown off your shoulder, or you trip over students who are lying on the floor! That was definitely a big change!
What about differences outside of school?
Well I think people bringing fresh bread home with them every night. And all the men coming home with flowers for their wives which I think is very nice. Perhaps English men have something to learn!
What is your favourite food?
Cheese. That’s also one of the reasons I came to France!
Do you miss fish and chips?
When I went back to England, I had fish and chips, but I am not missing them as much as I am missing a good curry!
Is the glass half empty or half full?Half full, but there's always room for a top-up!
Of all subjects, why English?Because it’s the only subject where you really get to talk about ideas, and what makes people tick. You get to read books from all around the world. You get to think about ideas, get to talk about ideas. Really, you get to talk a lot! That is what that really attracted me to English at school.
What is your favourite book?
My favourite book is, probably rather boringly, ‘The Great Gatsby’, by Scott Fitzgerald.
What would you do with a million pounds?
Well of course, I would give a large portion of it to charity! Then I would probably complete my year's work at the Lycée and go on a long holiday!
Where would you go on holiday?
I really want to do some decent scuba diving, so perhaps Australia, or there's
some very good diving in Belize, where I learnt to dive.
What would you have chosen to be if you weren't a teacher?
Travel writer, definitely.
What grades did you get in your GCSEs?
All As!
What is your favourite colour?It depends on my mood.
Today?
Blue.
Do you read ‘The Guardian’ like all teachers?
I tend to read whatever newspaper attracts me by its front page, but more often than not it will be ‘The Independent’. But at the weekend, ‘The Sunday Observer’, which is ‘The Guardian’, so I suppose yes!
Do you like your students this year?
How much is it worth to answer?! Yes of course I do! They are all going to be very successful!
Harry Clementson (1ère) and Victoria Uwemedimo (1ére)
Students interview new staff...Interview with Miss Charlwood
“The glass is half full, but there is always room for a top up!”
At the wheel: Nikki Charlwood charting a different course outside the classroom
15
Have you always wanted to be a teacher?No, I decided a few years ago, as a result of work I was doing in my former career as an archaeologist – I got involved in the educational aspect of archaeology, working with students who came on summer digs and work experience.
Why did you decide to become an archaeologist?It was my first degree and I’ve always been interested in history. Oh, and I like to get muddy and wear the fluorescent yellow clothing which goes with the job!
What did your work as an archaeologist involve and how did your career take such a turn? I was working on prehistoric, roman and medieval excavations in East Anglia, but I was a bit weedy to work outside in the winter, so I started doing archaeological drawings (on the computer) and got involved in the educational aspect of archaeology. I went on to become a history teacher in Ely, in Cambridgeshire, working with 11 to 18 year-olds.
What was your favourite subject at school?History… up until sixth form, when I preferred English literature.
So, which was your favourite novel at the time?‘Wuthering Heights’. When I read it at age 15 or 16. I thought it was the best thing ever– I was really impressed. If I read it now, it may not have such a big impact.
And your favourite book now? ‘A place of greater safety’, by Hilary Mantel - about the French revolution (which makes me sound like the dullest person ever!). If you’ve got time to get through 800 pages with your busy schedules, read it!
What three things would you take to a desert island?Chocolate! Wait, no, chocolate would melt, so that’s not a good idea… ipod, I’d definitely need my music, and of course, my husband, Nick.
I hate to point this out, but your husband might not be too flattered to be described as a thing…
Right ok… so the third “thing”, would have to be a swimming pool…
But you’d have the entire sea at your disposal!No! I couldn’t swim in the sea, I don’t like swimming in water with weird fish or sharks – I was disturbed by watching “Jaws” at a very young age.
Before you arrived in France, did you have any stereotypical ideas about the country or the people?Not really… I suppose the fact the French like to go on strike, making a political stand or point in a way the Brits can’t be bothered to, because they aren’t as passionate about politics, which is a shame really.
What strikes you in particular about working in the Lycée International Students are more self-motivated, they have a positive attitude and are academically driven, though the length of the school-day shocked me, as did the way the school works, such as the fact that there are no breaks (which means you can’t moan about the students during coffee breaks with teachers – laughs to show it’s a joke… hmm).
What are your views on the future of mankind and the environment?
I believe, that if we don’t “reduce, re-use and recycle” (as Jack Johnson’s song says), we’ll end up living on a mountain of rubbish, which is something that I don’t feel people take seriously enough.
What gestures do you make for the environment?I take showers as opposed to baths, I’m good at turning off water when it is not necessary. I’d like to say that
I’m an environmentally friendly person, but I do have a car (small and diesel, so it pollutes less) for professional reasons and my husband and I share it.
After a hard day’s work, what do you do to unwind?I have a cup of tea!
What is your most memorable work experience?Working as an archaeologist on a site in Hinxton, near Cambridge, when there had been the biggest
snowfall that I could ever remember… so there I was at this site, in my yellow reflective clothing, head to toe, being careful to avoid the massive holes in the ground (some of them six feet deep). The sight of all that sparkling white snow was stunning.
What’s your most negative work experience ever?In teaching: having students who don’t meet their own expectations for their work.
What was the happiest day of your life?When I got married. Awww... apart from this very romantic, traditional answer? Otherwise, (excluding anything to do with my husband), one of the happiest days of my life was results day at UCL when I found out I got a First Class degree.
Verity Emanuel (1ère) and Victoria Psalmon (1ère)
Interview with Mrs Mills
“I got involved in the educational aspects of archaeology and went on to become a history teacher.”
A head for heights: Emily Mills climbing during her «hen weekend».
16
In pictures...
Left, Active learning! rehearsing for Romeo and Juliet for the drama evening at Hauts Grillets
Left, troisième students in London during this year’s Globe Theatre trip.Below, inside the Globe Theatre
Above, resuscitation practice during the last of the three-part First Aid course attended by last year’s Seconde students in June
Below, Double, double toil and trouble... surely not the three witches?!
Left, Xana Jones and students take a curtain call at the end of the drama evening at Hauts Grillets in June.
Left, Philip Shaw-Latimer deep in discussion with Steve Butterworth, freelance educational consultant, during the staff performance management training day in September, and right, Margaret Slaiding, Hilary Moser and Jennifer Tumeltyaddressing the issues.
17
Colleagues and parents, past and present, gathered in the Château d'Hennemont on 23rd October to celebrate three significant anniversaries: Philip Shaw-Latimer’s 30 years in the British Section; Annie Divaret-Hepburn’s 25 years as Head of Primary and Roger Stephens’s 25 years in the section. In his presentation address, Richard Hadley, President of the BSPA congratulated and thanked all three sincerely for such unstinting contributions to the Section and the wider world of international education. The cocktail was hosted by the BSPA and organised by parent members of the BSPTG. Thanks to Sylvie Dupuis, Anne Aubry and Chantal Singh for their excellent organisation; to Tina Macleod, Jeanette Pollok-McAll (Tina’s mother), and Madeleine Hepworth for the stunning flowers, and to the team of senior students who waited on us so professionally during the event.
Striding for the line, emerging from the polythene tunnel, and the ever-popular sack race: the eternal thrills of sports day!
Left and below - chopping and sifting: young pupils learn about healthy eating in the new nutrition topic.
Right and below - flying the flag for
British fare, and face painting at the Lycée
en Fete in June.
18
Student A Voice at last!
Verity Emanuel (Student Editor)
Our e-mail address for anything you would like to
say or contribute for any budding writers and keen
The start of this new school year has brought with it a new student
editor for ‘Insites’ magazine. The previous editor, Eleanor
Yelland, a British section student, now in Terminale, has passed
on the torch to me. I hope that I will be able to fi ll
her impressive shoes! We have a diversity
of articles this issue, with the announcement of the new
Student Council, as well as an ecologically friendly message and
a rather amusing anecdote on the necessity of washing…
You may have been led to believe, that the only new element this term in the Lycée International, is the startlingly bright orange
and yellow of the ‘Bâtiment E’s’ hallways (which, frankly, is not to everyone’s taste). However, more importantly, on behalf of my fellow students in the British Section, I am proud to announce the creation of a British Section Student Council! Many of you may recall an article by Eleanor Yelland, in the last issue of ‘Insites’, on the subject of student representation. In this article Eleanor put forward this brilliant initiative, which, as a result of her good will, perseverance and determination, has enabled the pupils of the British section to have a voice. For this fantastic achievement, we warmly thank her.
On ‘Open Day’, after a seem-ingly ever-lasting summer holiday, thoughts of sandy beaches and warm sea (for those of us who stayed in Paris, mud and murky puddles) and sunny weather (for those previously mentioned, ever-lasting downpours) were momentarily brushed aside, as those interested in embarking on the new student adventure filed in. The immediate observation was that the idea of a Student Council had sparked a great amount of interest among those concerned – the senior school students.
The meeting was presided over by Mr Shaw-Latimer, our headmaster and Mr Baker, Head of the English Department, who appeared to greatly appreciate the positive reaction from the students. They raised the following issues: What should be
the composition of the Student Council? What should be its role? The unusual sound of lycée student’s brains at work ensued, which resulted in the following decision, supported by the members of staff: the Student Council should have twenty-four members – each British Section class in 2nde, 1ère and Terminale should be represented by one of its members, as well as a sub-representative, who would step in when the student representative would be unable to assist the meeting, due to a prior commitment, illness (or the unlikely case of
abduction by aliens). The role of the Student Council was also established: to act as a mediator between the members of staff and the student body. The ideas of a yearbook and social events were also floated around…The students left with the thought of the upcoming elections in their heads.
On Thursday 4th of October, the newly-formed Student Council members held their first official meeting in Room 217, again presided over by Mr Shaw-Latimer and Mr Baker. The members seemed enthusiastic about involving the council in raising money for charity. The dilemma of selecting a particular charity was averted however, as Mr Shaw-Latimer had received an e-mail from an ex-British Section student, Ali Jetha, who has the ambitious, not to mention courageous (if not slightly petrifying for those who prefer to stay within the comforting realm of their television screens) idea of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for ‘Focus Humanitarian Assistance’. Therefore, watch this space for further developments concerning the Council’s association with Ali…
The idea of a magazine for the students was also mooted. This project depends upon you, fellow students and readers, who would need to fill the pages of such a magazine. Therefore, the Council is looking for budding writers or artists in the making! If you would enjoy writing articles (or even creative pieces) on any number of fascinating subjects, or illustrating, then please, don’t be shy! Send them in to the following e-mail address: [email protected] or let your student representative or teacher know of your interest!
Verity Emanuel
“...the Council is looking for budding writers or artists in the making! ”
Première representatives of the Student Council having temporarily taken over the director’s offi ce.
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Flat for rent in LondonHolloway Station (3 stops from St Pancras).
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basis. And (let’s get this straight) by “on a regular
basis” I mean every day. Not every month.
Only last Sunday I went to the library at La
Villette, where my path crossed that of an individual
whose prehistoric attitude towards personal
hygiene was… displeasing (to avoid saying vile,
gross and unnecessarily pungent). The fact that no
one was sitting within a 5 metre range of him goes
without mentioning. So does the fact that I, of all
people, was the one who ended up within this
foul zone for a solid hour. Compelled as I was to
remain there (yes, I insist on the idea of obligation
- had I had the choice, I would have been the first
to put three bookshelves between us), I spared
my olfactory bulbs (yes, they exist) from untimely
destruction only by sniffing the apple I had hastily
stuffed into my bag that very morning, every five
seconds. An apple a day may not keep the doctor
away, but it keeps bad BO at bay! (which, in itself,
is enough to drive anyone to hysterics). It was all I
could do not to thrust the keyboard at the man.
Was his scheme to monopolise five computers
cunningly premeditated, and his apparent
blindness to the angry glares in his direction a
justification for not instantly running to the closest
“Body Shop”? Perhaps this refusal to comply with
society's unspoken laws of etiquette is a mute (but
nonetheless blatant) form of protest against the
USA’s invasion of Irak which has left his entourage
ailing ever since 2002? Or could it be he was a
committed environmentalist who was leading
a self-inspired campaign against water wastage
based on soap abstinence? Were it the case, I
trust the public won’t be seduced by this radical
trend – after all, it wouldn’t make the world a nicer
(-smelling) place to live in.
Victoria Psalmon
P.S. Having read the above, please opt for the
solution: To wash! (Ed).
Better than a cold shower!
It’s Monday morning; you’re sitting in your first lesson of the day. Your eyelids are heavy, and the prospect of a few more minutes’ sleep is
blissfully tempting…
Don’t tell me that thought has never crossed your mind… (Not that it’s ever crossed mine Mr Baker, promise!) One solution to that problem is bringing a pain au chocolat and a flask of strong coffee to class. Another remedy, far more effective, is coming by bike to the Lycée.
I start at 8 o’clock every morning (welcome to 1ère!). The journey to school by bike takes me 15 mins, and after that short length of time, I arrive, well, cold, numb, but wide awake!
That’s not the only advantage. When you take your bike, you’re not dependent on anyone. You don’t have to rely on getting a lift in, or race to catch the bus (which is late anyway), or get stuck in traffic, or worry about whether the RATP is on strike again.
It’s the same in the afternoon. You are free to go home whenever you want. Why not hang around with friends for a bit, go to Mario’s, the CDI or even ask your favourite teacher for extra lessons? In short, you are truly independent.
So, if you’re living anywhere in Saint Germain, Chambourcy or Fourqueux, make it a new year’s resolution. It’s easy, it’s practical, it’s environmentally friendly.
What’s more, at 7.30 a.m., it’s also a truly invigorating experience!
Thomas Houiller
Can you guess which of these Première students came to school by bike?
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
Th omas with his trusty transport
20
Administration
working in the British Section, and she greatly enjoys the international environment.
Sandrine Hurst IT Internal Manager. Sandrine has been quick to make her mark. Responsibilities feature the development and maintenance of the computer network, and providing help-desk and training for staff and student users. Sandrine also runs and maintains the data base, documentation storage, and helps to maintain and update the British Section website. A French national, Sandrine has worked professionally in IT in the UK (for seven years) and more recently Holland (for four years), before moving to France (2002) with her four children, the two oldest of which are in the British Section (in 4ème and 6ème). After these several years as a full-time mum, Sandrine is delighted to return to part-time work. Her interests feature hill walking, running, reading and picture framing.
Jane Newson Receptionist with responsibilities for pupil data and files, general enquiries and administration. Jane is a qualified medical secretary, and has lived in the UK and Canada prior to moving to France with her family eight years ago. Jane’s eldest son attended the Lycée before going on to Compiègne to study engineering and her youngest is currently in CE1. Jane is a keen gardener.
New faces in the team…! Sarah Gregoire Admissions officer for the
British Section (except Group 2 at Le Pecq). Sarah is the contact point for parents wishing to send their children to the school, handling enquiries and processing applications. She has two particularly busy seasons: in September, when new students are welcomed, class lists are prepared and issued, directories compiled and a plethora of questions from parents and students need to be dealt with; and in January and February when the bulk of student applications are received before entrance tests take place in March and April. In between Sarah keeps tabs on statistics relating to student numbers, and deals with day-to-day enquiries and administration. She will also be working with Sandrine on updating and maintaining the web site. Sarah joined the Section 12 years ago after several years at home with her children prior to which she worked in Paris. She has a daughter in Seconde and her two sons went on from the British Section to universities in the UK. She is an active chorister, and an art lover. Sarah would like to remind families to check that the British Section has their correcte-mail address as almost all communications are sent electronically. It appears that some families have not received British Section messages because they have gone into “spam” boxes so please check that this is not happening to you. By regularly consulting the website calendar, parents can check the dates of forthcoming events.
Evelyne Berger Bursar. URSSAF, ASSEDIC, MGEN, IRCANTEC, TPA, suppliers, retirement programmes: these are just a few of the things that fill Evelyne’s day! She is responsible for the financial running of the British Section, looking after the day-to-day of invoicing, collection, employment issues and payroll, as well as working, in conjunction with the Finance sub committee, on the oversight functions of budgeting and the accounts. Evelyne joined the Section in February 2002 and has a son in CM1 at a school local to her home in Versailles. She loves the bilingual working environment at the British Section, and her personal interests feature reading, golf, skiing and hill walking, and music. Evelyne spent 11 years in California as a French teacher.
Marie-Laure McHugo Secretary, Finance. Working closely with Evelyn Berger across the financial functions, Marie-Laure has particular responsibility for the organisation of school trips, expense and cash administration, and general enquiries. Marie-Laure has a son who has recently completed a degree at Bath University, and a daughter at University College London (UCL) studying Italian and Czech. This is her second year Catherine Sagne with M. Micheleu, Proviseur of
the Collège Pierre et Marie Curie
Evelyne Berger, Marie-Laure McHugo and Sarah Gregoire.
Jane Newson and Sandrine Hurst
Catherine Sagne General Administration with particular responsibility for admissions for Group 2 and for liaison with French colleagues at the Collège Pierre and Marie Curie where she can be found on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. Otherwise based at the Hennemont site, she is responsible for the administration of the OIB exams at the Lycée and liaising with the 20 other associate schools. Catherine has just celebrated her 10th anniversary as a member of the British Section team which she joined following two years at the LI. Iran, Indonesia, Chile and Uruguay are all countries which Catherine has called home, and she continues to love travelling as well as running, gym and dance. Her son attended the LI, and both he and her daughter have completed university courses in France.
Working closely with the teachers and parents, the admin staff make
the wheels of our Section turn. We are delighted to welcome two new members of the team, Sandrine Hurst and Jane Newson, who joined the Section at the end of the summer. Parent governor, Ian Macleod, paid them an early visit to find out what they and the rest of the team do.
21
AlumnaeA winning combination…
If the most recent report on UK university admissions has conceded that university entrance
has more than ever to do with the school applicants attend, then British Section pupils and their parents should be relieved to see that the British Section would rank among the top-10 UK schools in terms of where it sends its OIB graduates (see table right).
James Cathcart reports on how the OIB, backed up by
professional support, is putting the British Section on a par with top UK schools when in comes to securing places at the best UK universities.
A report published by the Sutton Trust in September 2007 has concluded that entrance to Britain’s top universities – whose graduates, it claims, continue to “dominate the professions, particularly at the higher levels” – is led by a small cadre of “elite ‘feeder’ schools.” Indeed, 100 schools, representing just three per cent of the 3,700 institutions with Sixth Forms and Sixth Form colleges in the UK, accounted for one sixth of admissions to the UK’s top-thirteen universities in the past five years. Further, at the thirty schools with the highest admissions rates to the ‘Sutton Trust universities’, seven out of ten university entrants went to this group of leading universities. With 76.3% of its OIB graduates embarking for their first rentrée after the Lycée International at a ‘Sutton Trust university’, the British Section ranks higher than Prince William’s Eton College and, with a further 15.8% of its applicants to the UK winning offers at Oxford and Cambridge, the British Section can rightly regard itself as among the UK’s elite schools.
Even more significant for our pupils and parents are some of the explanations presented by the Sutton Trust for these admissions trends.
First, the most successful schools are attributed with providing a breadth of education that “sets their pupils apart from others and which provide additional attributes not necessarily measured by ‘A’ levels.”
Second, elite schools are praised for providing “a variety of practical advantages, from extra help with drafting personal statements, references from teachers who are more attuned to the expectations of admissions officers, [and] encouragement to apply earlier in the application cycle.”
As you will have read in recent articles in Insites and on the British Section website, Nick
Baker and I have been working with British Section tutors to improve the efficiency and professionalism of the university admissions service we provide, and we are confident that our pupils receive the sort of support one would expect from a good independent school in the UK.
However, British Section pupils have a long history of attending not only the best-performing higher education institutions in the UK, but also those that France and North America have to offer. This surely has to do with the unique qualities that the OIB provides our pupils. Indeed, as we state in the preface to our UCAS references: “The demands of this unique dual curriculum give students a capacity for hard work and an unusual intellectual and cultural flexibility that makes them exceptional candidates for university study in either Britain or France.”
With the combination of a professional support network and a qualification that promotes the acquisition of a broad culture générale and continues to demand the respect of academics worldwide, British Section pupils and parents should be confident that their future goals are within reach.
James Cathcart
Universities Co-ordinator
1 Westminster School 85.62 St Paul’s Girls’ School 85.23 Winchester College 82.84 Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe 81.95 St Paul’s School 80.46 North London Collegiate School 76.97 Wycombe Abbey School 76.9 British Section, Lycée International, Saint Germain-en-Laye 76.32
8 Eton College 75.79 Haberdashers’ Aske’s School (Boys) 71.510 Haberdashers’ Aske’s School (Girls) 71.1
1 The 13 Sutton Trust Universities are: Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Durham, Edinburgh, Imperial College, LSE, Nottingham, Oxford, St Andrews, UCL, Warwick and York. These universities are those ranked the highest in an average of published university league tables.2 British Section results have been calculated according to OIB-graduate destinations (ONLY those that applied to the UK).
Top-10 schools by ‘Sutton Trust University’1 ‘hit-rate’ showing where the British Section would come if it were included.
Rank School % of students going to ‘Sutton Trust Universities’
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In the hope of discovering what it feels like to work in the 'real world', off I trailed to a rather large nature/gift shop, called Fleurilege, in my hometown Croissy-sur-Seine, to see if they would except my offer. One month later, it was the first day on the job, and I was already having a good time. There was another 'stagiaire' called Elsa and it was good to have some non-adult company around. During the week we did many things: decorating plants with Christmas decorations, sorting out stock in the gift section and also my favourite task, gift-wrapping items and flowers for clients. All these jobs enabled me to get in touch with my creative side, so it was all fun. Sometimes,
I even got tips from dear old ladies!
What I learnt from this week, was that firstly, working nine to five is not nearly as tiring as every adult pretends it is; secondly, that I would rather not have a job in a nature shop in the winter because it gets extremely cold, and finally, that working together makes life so much easier in this competetive working world.
Victoria Harris
22
Stage en Entreprise
This December all our 3ème pupils in the Collège Pierre et Marie
Curie and Collège des Hauts Grillets will exchange a week at school for a week “at work”. For Lycée 3èmes the working week will take place next June. For the majority of pupils the experience will be their first taste of professional life.
An obligatory part of the French collège cycle, the stage en entreprise can be a useful introduction to a potential career path but its main objective is to give pupils an opportunity to observe the day-to-day running of a either a company or public sector institution. A vital part of the experience is finding a placement, which is the responsibility of the pupil, guided by the professeur principal. The process may involve phone calls and initial interviews and a formal letter of application, a lettre de motivation, must be sent. Once the pupil is accepted somewhere a convention, or contract, is established between the collège and the company.
During the stage questions should be asked, notes and photos taken and documents collected. These are used to write a report about the week, following advice given by the school. At Pierre et Marie Curie and Hauts Grillets the report is marked by one of the French teachers, usually the prof principal, and the grade appears on the bulletin of the second term. Lycée pupils have the choice of writing the report either in French or, in our case, English. The mark then appears on the first bulletin in Seconde.
The impressions gained over the week can vary enormously for each pupil and depend a lot on how much time and effort the employees of the host company are prepared to put in to assist the pupil. Fortunately British Section students often find the experience to be positive, as some of them recount here...
Hello to all troisiemes reading this article! Since the beginning of this year, you have probably noticed that the teachers are slightly more demanding, asking you to work faster, harder and better. They are trying to make you feel more responsible for what you do, so you can make good choices, for your Bac and then for your future job.
Your job... Adults keep going on about it... Hmm, have you started thinking about that yet? In December, you're going to have to choose a firm in which you want to work for a week. And that ’s where my experience comes in...
I already knew I wanted to go to a lawyer's firm. For more than a year, I'd been really interested in everything to do with lawyers, I'd read quite a lot of books which evolved around courtrooms (Jodi Picoult), and I'd seen quite a lot of films about them.
One of my friend's father is an international lawyer, and when I asked if I could work at his office for a week, he accepted!
For a week, I lived a lawyer's life! I learned how to develop durable relationships with clients and how to behave in a courtroom, I discovered the advantages of this appealing job but also its disadvantages (mainly repairing the broken photocopier). I discovered a profession which was very similar to what I imagined it to be: captivating and always different. This experience reinforced my will to work harder, not for my parents or my teachers, but for myself, to attend a good university where I can study what I want to become. Good luck to all of you, choose an interesting job to discover, and try to take this week seriously, because it really was a unique experience!
Oriane Cannac
A taste of professional life...
I did my stage in London, in a TV production company. I did everything from preparing tea for meetings to watching 'tryouts' of shows and editing programmes. The 'tryout', or pilot, was a comedy show in front of a live audience to test whether people laughed and see whether there were channels interested in buying it. Editing was the most interesting part: the editor had to cut 4 hours of film into 25 minutes of programme. He could change what people originally said (e.g., somebody who said that he was "not stressed" ended up saying he was "very stressed") and the order of events to make the programme more coherent. Even the routine things like making tea, sorting the mail or wrapping presents for actors was still very interesting. One recommendation to current troisiemes is to do everything early to find a really interesting 'stage' and not be searching around for something at the last minute.
Hugo Baker
Fleurilege, where Victoria got a taste of professional life.
23
Est. 1992
��Gap year and summer placements��Voluntary work and internships�����������������
For example over the last year, cricket and football have continued, Saturday morning netball sessions have been set up over in Le Pecq, Sports Day successfully took on a new format and your children have been lucky enough to have some stunning visiting authors come to speak to them, a programme which will definitely continue to grow throughout this year and in the future. You have been able to read about these events in the Section newsletter and look up the activities on the website.
Some activities are organised in coordination with the staff, such as the History Walks for Seconde, but many solely by parent volunteers. We also pick up on items of importance which are raised at the Forums and discuss them with the Senior managers, passing them on in our termly reports to the Governing Body for resolution if necessary
Our activities really depend on parental goodwill; getting involved is very satisfying and also a great way to meet other people.
Obviously, the more parents volunteer, the more the workload is evenly spread. The list of activities is not static, so if anyone has a great new idea, such as getting involved in an after-school club, or offering a new sport, then those ideas are always welcome.
And just to finish off on the note of BSPTG members, our mandate runs out in March and there will be elections so should any of you already be involved in school activities and wish to have a more overall view of what we do, please don’t hesitate to contact any of us to find out what’s involved. You can find our contact details on the newly re-vamped website at: lycee-international.net
Getting involved is very satisfying...
For almost two years now the BSPTG (British Section Parent Teacher Group)
has been co-ordinating and monitoring the continuity of the activities which the Section has traditionally organised on all sites, and encouraging the development of others. We are a voluntary group of parents working with senior members of the staff to encourage the extra-curricular activities which make up an essential part of the British Section experience for both children and parents...
It’s your website - use it...To check out who are the parent governors of the BSPA British Section Parents Association, and what they do for you and the section :
*Offre non cumulable valable jusqu ’au 30/06/2008 pour toute ouverture de compte chèques 16-24 ans dans une des agences BNP du groupe de St Germain en Laye
BNP PARIBAS SA au capital de 1 742 449 268 208 euros - Siège Social : 16, Bd des italiens 75009 PARIS Immatriculée sous le N°662 042 449 RCS Paris - identifiant CE FR76662042449 - document non contractuel 3615 BNP PARIBAS - www.bnpparibas.com
*Offre non cumulable valable jusqu ’au 30/06/2008 pour toute ouverture de compte chèques 16-24 ans dans une des agences BNP du groupe de St Germain en Laye
BNP PARIBAS SA au capital de 1 742 449 268 208 euros - Siège Social : 16, Bd des italiens 75009 PARIS Immatriculée sous le N°662 042 449 RCS Paris - identifiant CE FR76662042449 - document non contractuel 3615 BNP PARIBAS - www.bnpparibas.com
