The Dragon's Tale
The Biweekly Newsletter of the Kaohsiung American School
2019-2020, Issue #14: April 13
Dear KAS Families,
親愛的家長您好:
We thank you for your ongoing partnership in keeping students, staff, and our community safe during these unusual circumstances. Taiwan is one of the few places on earth where students are able to come together safely in schools, and we are so grateful that with everyone’s cooperation with our safety precautions, we are staying strong together as a school community. We have kept safe thus far, but we must remain vigilant in our fight against COVID-19, and persist in taking every possible precaution for the health and safety of our school community. More information about the school’s actions during COVID-19 is available here: www.kas.tw/health-update
謝謝您在這段艱難的時期持續地與我們合作來確保學生、教職員以及整個高雄美國學校大家庭的安全。台灣是全世界少數幾個地方學生還能安全地前往學校上課,我們很感恩,我們的安全防範措施加上全體人員的配合,我們因作為一個學校社區而強大。直到目前為止大家都很安全,但我們必須要在這場與新冠肺炎的戰役中持續保持警惕,並持續實施每一個必要的措施來保護整個大家庭的安全。更多關於學校防範新冠肺炎的相關資訊都可以在學校的官網上供您查閱。
Even during challenging times, we are still forging ahead to create new opportunities for students. We are pleased to officially announce the beginning of the KAS Future Leader Program. Our Board of Directors led in creation of this new program, which will support students with knowledge, resources, connection, and support in professional fields. Through the KAS Future Leader Program, we will link students and alumni together with opportunities in our community for mentorship, research and lab work, internships, and volunteer work and community service.
即使是在這段艱難的時期,我們仍努力在為學生創造新的機會。我們在此很高興正式宣佈KAS未來領袖計畫的開始。 我們的董事會領導了此計畫的創建,藉此為學生在專業領域上提供知識、資源、人脈上的支持。透過KAS未來領袖計劃,我們將把學生、校友與社區中的機會串連在一起,以此計畫為學生和校友提供專業指導、研究、實驗室工作、實習以及志工服務與社區服務。
We are grateful to the South Taiwan Academy of Implant Dentistry for their founding partnerships in this endeavor. Our founding groups and clinics are ABC Dental Group, Special and Perfect Dental Clinic, Snore No More Dental Clinic, Oral Healthy Dental Clinic, and Dainty Dental Clinic. Each group/clinic joined in the official Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony here at KAS this recent Friday, April 10.
我們很感謝南台灣牙醫植體醫學會與我們建立夥伴關係。我們的創始成員是ABC牙醫集團、專佳牙醫診所、止鼾王國牙醫診所、雅康牙醫診所、馨高美牙醫診所。上列每個團體/診所都參加了4月10日星期五正式在KAS舉行的簽署儀式。
We already have some interested students, and we hope to see our first internship placement this summer or even earlier. But this is only the beginning. We are starting with these opportunities for students in the dental field, and we hope to grow this program to include many diverse professional sectors here in Southern Taiwan.
我們已經有一些學生對此感到興趣了,我們也希望能在暑假或是更之前就讓學生開始去實習。然而,這只是剛開始而已。我們首先提供機會給對牙醫領域有興趣的學生,以後我們也希望能壯大此未來領袖計畫讓台灣南部各領域的專業人士都能參與。
If your organization/group is interested in partnering with KAS to provide these opportunities for students, please contact our Board Chair, Mr. Ken Lin. His contact details are available in our front office.
若是您的機構組織/團體對未來領袖計畫以及和高雄美國學校合作提供機會給學生感興趣,請您與我們的董事長 Mr. Ken Lin 聯繫。 請向學校辦公室諮詢董事長的聯繫方式。
Kind regards,
Dr. Ploeger, Superintendent 總校長
Ms. Rock, High School Principal 高中校長
Mr. Payne, Middle School Principal 國中校長
Mr. Coyle, Elementary School Principal 小學校長
IB BITS
Ms Deborah Haines, IB/AP Coordinator IB/AP召集人
Like with many things international, IB exams, scheduled to be administered in May, have been cancelled. Students that were registered to take IB exams will still earn IB Diplomas and Certificates; IB will use work from students that has already been submitted, along with formulas that look at past school history. Universities have already agreed to consider this year’s IB scores as acceptable college acceptance. Most IB students around the world are not able to attend their IB programs, other than online, so KAS has been fortunate to be able to sustain classes for nearly the entire year. IB students should remember to let the IB Coordinator know to which school(s) they wish for their IB results to be sent. (deadline is June 1 for North American schools, and May 1 for other schools) IB results should be released to students on July 6th, and students can use their IBIS user and pin codes for access.
如近來許多國際上的事一樣,原定五月舉行的IB考試已被取消了。已註冊參加IB考試的學生仍將獲得IB文憑或證書,IB將使用學生已提交的作品以及回顧學校過去歷史的公式。大學已經同意將今年的IB成績視為可接受入學申請的成績。除了線上課程之外,世界上大多數的IB學生都無法參與他們的IB課程,因此KAS很幸運的能夠維持近一年的課程。IB學生應該記住讓IB召集人知道,他們希望將IB成績發送給哪間學校。(北美學校截止日是6/1,其他地區學校是5/1) IB成績將於7/6公佈,學生可以使用自己的帳號及密碼查詢成績。
AP exams will go ahead, but in an online format, 45 minutes long, with students being allowed to use notes and texts. These exams will be given between May 11th and May 22nd, but in order to maintain test integrity, AP is only offering the exams between 12pm and 5am, Kaohsiung time. Students who take these exams will still receive AP credit and should go to their accounts in collegeboard.com to indicate to which college(s) they wish for the results to be sent. If students decide not to take the AP exam (or sleep through it) they will receive a refund.
AP考試將如期舉行,但以線上形式進行,時長45分鐘,並允許學生使用筆記及課本。考試將於5/11至5/22舉行,但為了考試的公正性,AP僅在高雄時間下午12點到5點間提供考試。參與考試的學生仍將獲得AP成績,並應進入collegeborad.com的帳戶已指示希望結果發送至哪所大學。如果學生決定不參加AP考試,他們將獲得退款。
It is with some sadness for me that I see all these changes; I like the ritual and feeling of accomplishment and closure that comes with these important exams. I understand why it must be, and in the end, KAS students will come out no further behind than they would have, had all the exams run as usual. I see IB, AP, universities, and KAS staff demonstrating great flexibility and effort to assure that the current happenings will have no lasting detrimental effects on students.
看到這所有變化讓我有些難過,我喜歡這些重要考試帶來的儀式感,成就感和尾聲。我理解為什麼必須這樣做。最後,如果所有考試如期舉行,KAS的學生也不會比他們原來落後。我看到IB,AP,大學和KAS的員工展現出極大的靈活性與努力,以確保當前發生的事情不會對學生產生持久的不利影響。
Alumni Corner 校友天地
KAS alumna, Jennifer Kuo is no stranger to pursuing her passions! After she graduated from KAS in 2014, Jennifer started her college journey at Dartmouth College, one of the prestigious 8 Ivy League schools in the U.S., majoring in Linguistics. She minored in Japanese, which was also her favorite class at KAS for how hands-on and interactive it was.
Jennifer Kuo,KAS的校友,對於追求自己熱愛的事從來都不陌生。她自2014從KAS畢業後,旋即就讀於美國著名八所長春藤盟校之一的達特茅斯學院。主修語言學,輔修的是她當年在KAS最喜歡的課:日文,因他容易上手且互動性多。
As an IB Diploma student at KAS, she says she gained skills that benefitted her when it came to the university environment. “The IB program helped me to develop a more logical, critical thought process, which came in really helpful when writing in a college setting,” says Jennifer. “It gave me a bit of a head start and helped me transition into the type of writing and argumentation you are expected to do in college.” The IB DP program often means students gain advanced standing or college credit which means they can skip introductory classes in some areas.
身為一個KAS的IB文憑學生,她提到她獲得了許多能在大學環境中受益的技能。“IB課程幫助我思考邏輯上更有邏輯性與批判性,這個在大學環境中寫作時很有幫助” 她說。 “這給了我提前準備好並幫助我過渡到了大學裡所期待的寫作與辯論方式。”國際大學預科文憑通常代表著學生具有超前的程度,這表示他們在某些地區可以跳過一些基礎的課程。
Jennifer loves challenges, and advises other KAS students to try new things! “In most U.S. undergraduate programs, the classes you take in your first year don’t have too many consequences on where you end up. It’s a great time to take risks and try out some classes you wouldn’t normally have considered.”
Jennifer喜愛接受挑戰,並建議KAS學生們去嘗試新事物。“大多數美國大學本科課程中,第一年修讀的課程不會對你的升學造成太多的影響。這是一個非常好的時機去冒險和嘗試一些平常你不會考慮的課程。”
Her next steps are already in progress as a Ph.D. student in Linguistics at UCLA with an eventual goal of developing a career in academia. Though Los Angeles is a beautiful area to live, what she misses most about Taiwan is the inexpensive and delicious food and the convenient public transit. Congratulations to Jennifer on her path to success and for finding her passion for languages while a KAS dragon.
她已經在進行她的下一步,於加州大學洛杉磯分校攻讀他的語言學博士學位。她的最終目標是發展在學術界的事業。雖然洛杉磯是個美麗的居住地區,她還是非常想念台灣物美價廉的食物和便利的大眾運輸工具。從她在KAS就讀時就發現了自己對於語言的熱情,我們祝賀Jennifer正在通往成功的道路上。
KAS alumni stories are featured regularly in our newsletter. To share an update or join us at an upcoming reunion or on campus, get in touch at alumni@kas.tw or via our Official KAS Alumni Facebook page.
KAS校友的故事會定期於KAS週報上刊登。想與我們分享你的近況,或參與即將到來的校友會活動,請與我們聯絡alumni@kas.tw 或是KAS校友會於臉書的官方粉絲團。
College Corner
Greg Bishop
College Counselor 大學輔導老師
Jill Newman
College Counselor 大學輔導老師
Grade 11 Parent Meeting
11年級大學申請說明會
We are happy to finally have a time to meet with parents regarding the college procedure and our timeline from now until Christmas break. We will be presenting all aspects of the college application process. Please reserve the date of April 22 at 3:15 pm to meet in the Lecture Hall. Students are welcome also. We hope to see you all there.
很高興我們終於有時間和家長們做一次大學申請說明,聊一下從現在起直到明年聖誕假期前的一些準備工作,也和大家講解一下申請表的內容。請大家把4月22日下午3:15的時間預留下來,我們會在演講廳舉行這場說明,學生們也歡迎參加,希望到時見到各位。
College Application Process Lecture
Wednesday, Apr 22, 2020, 03:15 PM
Kaohsiung American School, Cuihua Road, Zuoying District, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
Changes
改變
Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher, had been quoted as saying “change is the only constant in life.” That certainly rings true looking at the beginning of 2020. So many things are changing even on a daily basis because of COVID-19 creating many ripple effects and changing lives forever. Please be assured that the universities are doing all that they can to review their applicants. It is refreshing to see that they all are cheering on the new class of freshmen, knowing what challenges they have all faced. Many universities have made SAT and ACT optional for the upcoming grade 11 students too. They are also waiting to move ahead with their planning for the remainder of 2020. Their care & cooperation will be a benefit to all incoming students as they take great care to welcome them to a new phase of their lives. It is a pleasure to work with such professionals from so many universities all over the world.
We will be updating you as we receive information from the universities.
有人引用希臘哲學家Heraclitus的話:“改變是生活中維一的永恆。”
從2020年初開始,這肯定是的。由於Covid19產生許多漣漪效應並永遠改變了我們的生活,很多事情甚至每天都在變化。
請放心,大學正在盡其所能審查申請人。令人振奮的是,他們都知道各自面臨著哪些挑戰,也正在為新一屆新生而歡呼。許多大學也為即將來臨的11年級學生提供了SAT和ACT。他們還在計劃2020年剩餘的時間。他們對這些情況的在意與合作將使所有即將入學的學生受益,因為他們將非常小心地協助新生迎來新的生活。很高興能與來自世界各地大學的專業人員一起工作。
我們會持續為您更新大學消息。
Virtual College Fairs
線上大學博覽會
Since personal travel to schools has been cut short for the admissions reps due to the pandemic, virtual college fairs have started to take place with a great deal of success. One that you can follow in the coming week is offered by StriveScan with over 300 colleges participating. Several presentations and college tours will make up the fair which runs from April 20 to April 23. All students are encouraged to register as it is free. Please check the website for further details.
由於疫情大流行導致各大學代表的參訪行程被縮短,線上大學博覽會已經開始取得許多正面迴響。 StriveScan在接下來的一周內將為您提供一項服務,有300多家大學參與其中。線上大學博覽覽會將於4月20日至4月23日舉行,屆時將進行一些演講和大學參觀。請連結網站以獲取更多詳細信息。We Are KAS
KAS strives to be one of the finest American International Schools in the World. KAS challenges students to achieve academic excellence and prepares them to be balanced individuals, independent learners, and global citizens.
Kaohsiung American School (KAS) is a private, non-profit, co-educational Pre K – 12 institution offering an American, college preparatory program leading to a US high school diploma and the opportunity for an IB Diploma.
KAS is located in the northern area of Kaohsiung city, the second largest city in Taiwan with 1.5 million inhabitants. Kaohsiung American School was established in 1989 as an elementary school serving the needs of local and expatriate families with children.
Email: admissions@kas.tw
Website: www.kas.tw
Location: 813, Taiwan, 高雄市左營區翠華路889號
Phone: 07-586-3300
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KaohsiungAmericanSchool/
Twitter: @kaohsiungas