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Dear Colleagues,

Having spent the weekend preparing to have students on campus, we write now to confirm that we will be moving to Home-Based Learning (HBL) for most students and teachers, beginning Wednesday, 19 May. Principals will be writing with details of what this means in each school section, but below is some general information that is relevant for all.

HBL is expected to continue until the end of the heightened alert period on 13 June, but we will obviously respond to prevailing measures from the authorities. This brings us to the last week of school, so we will be monitoring this closely and will keep you updated. We very much hope that students will have time together in person before the end of the school year.

School

Arrangements

All
  • If you need to take anything (laptop, screen, etc) from your desk, please do so. If you need any additional equipment from IT, you need to go to the helpdesk on the relevant campus and sign it out. If you need something that is not on or around your desk already (e.g. a chair), log it in this form.
  • Teaching staff may be able to come on campus to work between 19 May and 13 June if necessary. Please speak to your Principal as there are restrictions on the number of people that can be on campus at any one time. Please be aware that there will be no food available for sale on campus during that time and the campus will not be fully air-conditioned.

Infant School
(K1–G1)
  • Wednesday, 19 May is a student-free day for our K1, K2 and Grade 1 students. This is because the combination of on-campus and HBL take time to arrange (see below).
  • Local preschools are allowed to remain open, and our Infant Schools (K1 to Grade 1) will also remain open, from 8am to 2pm each day from Thursday 20 May to Monday 13 June, during this heightened alert period.
  • There will be no Activities on campus after school.
  • Families who want to keep their children at home can participate in a limited Home-Based Learning programme. Principals will send further details.

Junior School
(G2–5)
  • Wednesday, 19 May is a student-free day. This is because the combination of on-campus and HBL takes time to arrange and subject-specific teachers are shared across Infant and Junior schools.
  • The full Home-Based Learning programme will begin on Thursday, 20 May.
  • Principals will send further details.

Middle School
(G6–8)
  • HBL will commence on Wednesday, 19 May. 
  • This first day will be asynchronous, which means students will not all follow their timetable exactly. 
  • More information will come from Principals.

High School
(G9–12)
  • (I)GCSE and IBDP exams are allowed to proceed on campus as planned, with enhanced Safety Measures.
  • HBL will begin, as appropriate (this is different across grade levels and campuses due to exams – see below).
  • Internal exams in Grade 9, 10 and 11 will also continue. On Dover, these will be on campus as they are beginning this week, while on East, where internal Grade 9 and 10 exams don’t begin for another few weeks, we will need to make sure we can do so within the stated safety measures. If necessary, East will run the Grade 9 and 10 exams remotely (Grade 11 exams are already completed). 
  • High School students can come on campus to complete Internal Assessments, if necessary. Details will come from the Principal or Head of Department.
  • We will be going ahead with what we had planned for our graduating class and Principals will be in touch with further details.

We will be writing to parents with these plans shortly. We know that the return to HBL and working from home will be challenging for some and we will miss our in-person connections to one another and to students. We have been through this before and we will make it through this time as well. Please be kind to yourselves and each other and reach out if you need any support.

Lizzie and Nick