TES Annual Report

Park. Kindergarten students visited the Taipei Zoo, a pottery studio in Yingge, and the paper museum, promoting discovery and social interaction.

Creative and Thematic Learning: Students expressed themselves through theatre, art, and literature. Projects included a stage production of 'Romulus the Great', a creative reading journal based on the novel Tschick, and an art exhibition on dream rooms inspired by Hundertwasser. School-wide events such as Peace Day, Carnival, and a Christmas card station added colour to the school year. Literacy, Language & Cultural Exchange: The school celebrated language and culture through author visits, Europe Day, and the Franco-German Day, featuring bilingual performances, cultural presentations, and collaborative activities. A reading with a guest author on bicultural identity encouraged thoughtful discussion and reflection. Student Initiatives and Wellbeing: Student-led programmes included the launch of the BLU peer mediation initiative and participation in the “Democracy in the Classroom” project, linking to the German Bundestag elections. The school also hosted a Safer Internet Week, covering topics like cyberbullying and digital responsibility. Kindergarten and Primary Highlights: Young learners took part in events like a Sports Day, the Kindergarten Olympic Games, and musical performances with guest artists. The year began with the traditional School Start Ceremony for Grade 1 and included joyful seasonal celebrations such as Chinese New Year and Easter. Open House Days welcomed families into the early years learning environment. British Secondary and High School Section The British Secondary and High School (BSHS) offers an education that develops the whole child. The three main programmes provided are the International Baccalaureate (IB), Middle Years Programme (MYP), the IB Diploma Programme (DP), and the IB Career-related Programme (CP). An IB education provides for the holistic development of our students into successful lifelong learners who can thrive and look after their wellbeing when they graduate. Our first IB CP students graduated with university credit from their Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) courses and the World Academy of Sport (WAoS). Two of our students with SCAD achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA score for their five SCAD university courses. These programmes have proven highly effective in helping students with specialist interests get a serious head start in the professions they want to pursue and achieve excellent university placements with impressive scholarships. The MYP entered its fourth year, and we are seeing impressive results from our students engaging in concept-based learning and inquiry. Students see more relevance in their education and its significance to real-world applications. Additionally, students have also been learning through service projects, as well as engaging in their real-world projects. Additionally, to support the MYP, we have introduced coordinators for community engagement and personal projects to enhance the opportunities and experiences for our students to learn authentically. Next year will see the final year of the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE). This programme has served us well for more than 25 years, but the MYP will provide our students with an education more suited to the work they will do in their professional careers. Additionally, we regain more than 12 weeks of learning and teaching time. The IB DP programme that commenced in 2002 is very well established. That said, seeing that our average DP score of 36 in the May 2025 session was impressive, as this score is enough to get students into excellent institutions such as University College London. It also puts us in the top band of IB schools. Furthermore, to help our students progress further, we are introducing a Theory of Knowledge coordinator and an Extended Essay/Reflective Project Coordinator to support our students in the DP and CP core areas. These experiences reflect the German section's commitment to holistic education, where academic excellence, creativity, community, and well-being are deeply interconnected.

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