Coronavirus Update: Appreciation from Community

Catriona Moran | March 2, 2020 | All Schools | No Comments

Dear Faculty and Staff,

Our community recognizes that you are all going above and beyond the norm to provide an extraordinary experience for our students at this challenging time. This is an excerpt of a comment from a parent today, “I just want to say that I really appreciate everything that the school has done during these past few weeks. “The virus came unexpectedly and caught all of us off guard, yet the school was able to offer alternative learning tools-virtual school, google meet etc. I appreciate how the teachers remain motivated: coming into the school everyday, thinking about how to improve their mode of teaching that’s most appropriate for each individual student…….For me, what I appreciate and learned most is the work that the teachers have put into the lessons. For the first time, I really get a chance to see how the teachers interact with my child in google meet. They genuinely care a lot for our kids and you can feel that they are passionate about teaching, not just doing a job.”

You have reassessed, repivoted, and redesigned the Virtual School experience. It hasn’t always been easy but the outcomes have been extrordinary, and greatly appreciated. I thank you for all that you are doing for our SSIS community.

All good wishes,

Catriona

Below, please find today’s letter to parents.

.———- Forwarded message ———

From: SSIS <noreply@ssis.edu.vn>
Date: Wed, Feb 26, 2020 at 3:19 PM
Subject: Head of School Update, February 25: Virtual School and Resilience
To: <hos@ssis.edu.vn>

Dear SSIS Parents,

I want to take a brief moment of your time to celebrate the resilience of our students, teachers, and parents during these past several weeks. In addition, I want to provide an opportunity for you to give us feedback to make your child’s experience even better.

Despite its challenges, the situation that we find ourselves in has created unexpected opportunities for learning and growth, as we have all adapted to life outside of our normal routines.

Where many see barriers, our community has seen opportunities. Where many find faults, our community has embraced challenges. And in doing so, we have modeled for our children what is one of the most significant factors that determine success – the ability to face adversity with resilience, ie the “process of adapting well in the face of adversity”, as we learned during the online webinar, “Optimizing Resilience” hosted for parents this afternoon by the Institute of Positive Education.

The following excerpt from an email I received from a High School student is a testament to the resilience that he has built as a student at SSIS during this time:

“While virtual school is certainly unfamiliar, I believe that the experience is enriching in the way that it reinforces students’ self-discipline and time management – skills necessary for our college education. Encountering minor difficulties during the first few days, I have now found ways to make my learning more productive and enjoyable.”

I am especially grateful to the many parents who recognize what an outstanding job our teachers are doing to ensure that our students’ academic progress is not impacted. Lessons have been adapted to suit the virtual learning environment, and each division monitors students’ assignments closely so that they can follow up via email or phone calls, with those that need support.

As I referenced above, I would like to invite you to submit your opinion on how Virtual School has worked for your child, in this survey. Your voice matters to us, and it is only with your feedback that we can continue to improve the experience of attending school in our virtual environment during this mandated school closure.

I will continue to update you as we learn more about the Government’s mandates for schools next week. Together with other international schools, consulates, and embassies, as well as the People’s Committee, we continue our discussions as we seek further guidance on the earliest possible opening date. In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about this or any other matters.

All good wishes,

Dr. Catriona Moran
Head of School