Secondary Newsletter
Ajman Academy
Deputy Principal’s message
Secondary School Leadership Team
Mr. Peter Ross
Mr. Mark Pollitt
Ms. Sam Hamdani
Curriculum meetings
During the week commencing Monday 20th February, the parents of our Key Stage 3 and 4 parents are invited into school to participate in a discussion regarding the introduction of ‘Learning Ladders’ and how these will support the individual development and progress of students. Ajman Academy’s Director Dr. Tassos Anastasiades will lead the sessions. Learning Ladders are useful methods for schools to create a flexible approach to curriculum and assessment based on the needs of their pupils. They are driven by formative assessment; pupils take ownership of their learning and are aware of their individual next steps. The sessions will take place on Monday 20th February 2017 for Years 7, 8 & 9 and Tuesday 21st February 2017 for Years 10 & 11.
Secondary School
Our aim at Ajman Academy is to provide a curriculum that meets the needs of all our students. Through encouraging independent learning and the development of both academic skills and personal qualities, we guide our students into becoming constructive members of society and prepared for life in the 21st century. Students in Middle Year 7, 8 and 9 follow a broad and balanced curriculum of 30 lessons per week studying English, Mathematics, Science, Arabic, Islamic, Art, Computing, Drama, Geography, History, Music, Physical Education, PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education) and Spanish.
In Middle Years 10 and 11 students study GCSEs (General Certificate of Secondary Education) and IGCSEs (International General Certificate of Secondary Education). These are internationally recognised qualifications that are administered by UK based examination bodies. The final assessment varies from subject to subject but is typically a combination of controlled assessments and external examinations.
The Key Stage 5 curriculum provides an opportunity for students to gain the qualifications needed for university entrance. Year 12 students will study four subjects at AS Level with examinations at the end of Year 12.
Email: school@ajmanacademy.com
Website: www.ajmanacademy.com
Phone: 06 7314444
Year 11 Information Evening
On Wednesday 8th February, Dr Tassos and the Secondary School Leadership Team welcomed the parents of our Year 11 to an information evening. The aim of the evening was to initially share the development plans of the Academy’s Sixth Form, as well as to provide support and advice on the next few months with regards to the student’s preparation for their upcoming examinations. Over the coming weeks, the Secondary School Leadership Team will be hosting a similar event for our Year 9 students as they prepare to choose the subjects they plan to take in Years 10 & 11.
"The Horrible Headmaster", our Secondary Production
Over the past few months the Secondary School students, under the direction of Mr. Andrew van Nooten, Ms. Debbie Vincent and Mr. Keith Lines have been rehearsing extensively on this year’s school production of "The Horrible Headmaster". This play is adapted from a series of books by Gillian Cross. Further information will be shared with regards to booking tickets for the production in future newsletters.
Student Leadership
Year 11 have taken on the role of School Prefects over the past few months. The role of Prefects at Ajman Academy is to provide support to younger students throughout the school day. Students are often more at ease speaking to a fellow student about their problems than with a teacher. Our Prefects serve as a liaison between students and teachers, helping both get their opinions heard and understood. Our Prefects will be involved in presenting information to the students, both in a formal and informal capacity.
Environmental Trip to the Wetlands Sanctuary, Ajman
On Monday a few of the ‘Green Team’ members had the opportunity to visit the Wetland Sanctuary in Ajman. Thirty-three students were selected from the Primary and Secondary schools’. The ‘Green Team’ got an opportunity to:
- Paint the scenery
- Plant mangrove trees
- Learn about the Mangrove Wetlands
Head of Science Visit
During the week commencing 12th February, the Secondary School had the opportunity to welcome the new Head of Science, Mr. Peter O’Byrne. Mr. Pete is presently working at the Regents School in Thailand and prior to that he has spent 10 years teaching in Qatar and Oman. During his week in school he has had the opportunity to work with our Year 11 students during their preparation for their upcoming IGCSE’s. He also worked with our existing Science Department, in preparation for next year and the exciting new developments that are planned for Science at Ajman Academy. Mr. Pete completed his week by hosting a Science workshop for our parents on Wednesday 15th February.
Leaders of Learning Update
The week commencing Sunday 12th February, members of the Secondary School Staff worked alongside Incyte International. These staff members included Mr Ben Barry (Mathematics), Mrs Rebecca Barry (Mathematics), Ms Debbie Vincent (English), Ms Elise Marlow (English), Ms. Ghada Fahmi (Computing), Ms Samina Qadir (Business & Economics), Ms. Carolina Fuentas (PE), Mr Tayseer Qudah (Arabic) and Mr. Alaa Zein (Islamic). These staff members are continuing to work alongside an Incyte International teaching and learning specialist. The specialist identified what good learning looked like in the classroom and the key attributes that were essential when planning to ensure this takes place. Over the coming months, these individuals will work with the Secondary School Leadership Team to ensure that these key ingredients feature in all lessons within the Academy. The ultimate aim is to make the school outstanding!
The external consultant for Secondary also provided the school with a short report of progress so far on the Inspire..2..Teach programme:
Coming into the Academy to work with some of the teachers has been a real privilege for us. The Inspire..2..Teach programme is designed to provide high quality support to improve the quality of teaching and learning in lessons to a level that would be identified internationally as outstanding practice.
Initially, before going in to the classrooms to see the teaching and learning taking place we worked with the senior leaders to ensure that that we were all clear about the expectations of the programme so that in between visits they are ensure that the aims of the programme are continually met.
We then spent three days with a group of teachers in both the Primary and Secondary phases, sharing ideas about teaching and learning and developing skills of working developmentally with other colleagues. Lessons were jointly observed and most importantly discussions were held about the learning that was seen, what worked well and what could be further developed. The level of enthusiasm for this opportunity to discuss and share ideas about their skills and how this could lead to better engagement and student involvement in their learning was significant. Even after the second day, teachers could be seen planning together and encouraging one another.
There was a buzz about the programme and in school. The children in Primary were excited to welcome visitors into their classroom and the consultants were impressed with the vast majority of behaviour of the students on the campus. We are looking forward to our next visit in April and in between times we will be visiting meetings via Skype so that we can hear how the programmes is progressing. The ultimate will be when all teachers are working together and sharing their ideas about how to ensure your children learn as well as they can. More importantly that they are excited about learning new things and can see why they are important for their next steps in life and how they connect to the world.
Caroline McKee
Director Incyte International Ltd
Director MGA Education Ltd (Research and Development)
Afternoon Tea for Secondary Parents
Thursday, Feb 23, 2017, 11:30 AM
Ajman Academy - Ajman - United Arab Emirates
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
Welcome to the Secondary Library
As the school year rolls along this appears to be a good moment to look back at the Ajman Academy libraries and review what we have achieved. The secondary library has adapted well to its temporary home and every day we have welcomed students either with their teachers or coming in during their free time to conduct their own research.
We have been extremely lucky this year with receiving new stock. The large order placed last year arrived safely and is slowly finding its way onto the shelves. In addition, Ajman Academy also invested in a sizeable local purchase so we are looking at adding some 3,000 books to our stock by the end of the year. There is still some way to go – a library can never have too many books – but we have taken important steps towards becoming a learning centre worthy of a school with our reputation and ambition.
However, even more than books, a library is about people and we are proud of the warm atmosphere that we are establishing. Students are increasingly coming to the library to conduct research and the library staff have arranged their timetables to keep the library open at lunch times giving a quiet refuge to students who want to sit and read or use their computers away from the bustle of the playgrounds.
We have displays of staff and students photographs – we are always looking to showcase other artists within the school community – and the library staff worked alongside Bookworm to host the successful Book Fair. A second event is planned for later this term. We are aware that in this day and age a library is far more than books and recent additions to our services include TV broadcast of morning world news, a framed map of the world and hosting the daily newspapers.
We would like to invite parents to drop by and see the library in action.
Bob Pateman and the Library team
Welcome to the Art room!
Kim Ross is an Art teacher who is based in the Elementary school but works with students from Grades 4 to 8. A large part of her job has been to develop a course of work that meets the needs of her students. As Miss Kim says, “We are working hard to introduce the basic elements of Art, such as line, shape, proportion, unity in a painting and colour theory.”
Her role has also involved close co-operation with classroom teachers in their topic areas. Most importantly of all, Miss Kim is working to create a love of Art and develop the artist that lies buried within us all!