WORLD CUP!!

BIC is bursting with excitement about the 2010 World Cup! Students wore their supporter's gear and were obviously supporting their teams. Most of them are supporting Bafana Bafana, but being an international school, we also have a range of students supporting other countries.

Also cause for celebration - today is the last day of exams for May/June! Finally, the end has come! Students are, of course, overjoyed and happy to be able to have a wonderful weekend without studying for exams.

BIDC is currently trying to correct the database as many students have incorrect information - one student had the wrong date and would have literally been born yesterday. If you have not received the email with the update form, please contact your student advisor immediately to correct this. Also, please help everyone out by filling in ALL fields. This ensures that all the information that we have about you is correct, and helps us to address any issues before they arise.

Please remember, BIC is only going on holiday on 26 June. We do have a fan zone where students can view any afternoon games, but they MUST NOT MISS LECTURES BECAUSE OF FOOTBALL!! Remember, there is limited time to cover all the material and students will suffer if they are not prepared for their exams.

Upcoming Events:
19 June - BIC Annual Ball
22 June - Community Service Day
22 July - IGCSE Parents and Students Forum
26 July - Foundation Formal

New additions

Very exciting news! We are getting two new members to our team at BIDC! They will be coming on as Students Advisors at the end of June, and we are really looking forward to working with them. Pictured below are Dan Garden and Marise Hanekom, the new additions to the staff! Some of you may know Marise as she has been working as our receptionist; we are proud of her for being promoted to Student Advisor.

In other news, exams have entered into their final week, at long last! It has been a long process but finally the stress and anxiety is almost at an end. Now we must just wait for the results...

We are also getting excited for the World Cup! Please, do not worry, though - we will still be at work throughout the tournament. BIC and BIDC will go into shortened hours for admin staff when the full-time college goes on leave from 28 June -17 July, but we will still be here to answer queries and provide information. As always you can call us on 011 706 7775 or 011 706 7199.

Reminders for upcoming events:

19 June - BIC Annual Ball

22 June - Community Service Day

22 July - IGCSE 2 Parents and Students Forum

Examination season

Examination season is upon us! Students have been hard at work writing exams. It is a nerve wracking experience for all involved.

All students should please be reminded not to bring valuables with them when writing exams. Bags, iPods, mobile phones and other electronic equipments (other than calculators when applicable) are not allowed into the examinations hall - these items should be left with reception for safekeeping. Please also be aware that Cambridge has instituted 'key times' during which students must be kept in isolation. These are until 11a.m. and 3p.m. for morning and afternoon sittings respectively.

Full-time students will need their parents or guardians to go to progress interviews with the Dean or Director of Studies in order to get their latest reports, as well as exam entry forms. Students are also welcome to attend these meetings, but it is imperative that parents are there as this is the opportunity to touch base with management as to how the students are doing. It is also advisable that parents and students make a list of any questions that they may wish to pose to the Dean or Director of Studies, as this can make the progress meetings even more effective.

The full-time A1 Psychology students went on an excursion last week to a school for special needs children. The students thoroughly enjoyed the experience - some even wanted to take the children home! It was a wonderful experience for all involved, and the students are hoping to go back for Community Service day.

Community Service day will be on Tuesday, 22 June. It is an important day for all full-time students as they are given the opportunity to give back to their communities. Some students are hoping to go to underprivileged schools or orphanages.

Dates to remember:
19 June - BIC Annual A-Level Ball
22 June - BIC Community Service Day
22 July - IGCSE 2 Parents and Students Forum

Open Day, Career Day and Elephant Sanctuary!

What a busy week it was last week - so sorry not to blog, but there was so much going on!

On Tuesday we had an Open Day for our prospective students. We had a range of prospective students and parents interested in enrolling, from Foundation to Post-Matric. Some parents even booked interviews on the spot in order to enrol - very exciting! Please remember that you can always call for an interview at 011 706 7775, or email Lulu at Communications@bicollege.co.za

Thursday was our Career Day. Both full-time and distance students were invited to attend, and approximately 20 institutions were there to give information. It was a very busy but highly beneficial day for students and the tertiary education institutions. We were happy to provide the service to our students, and look forward to hosting it again next year.

On Friday, I had the priveledge of going to the Elephant Sanctuary with the IGCSE 2 students. It was a lot of fun to see the elephants - such majestic animals! I even go to ride one, which was an exhilarating experience. Students thoroughly enjoyed themselves and said it was their favorite excursion of the year - mine too!

Reminder for upcoming events:

May/June Exams

19 June - Annual BIC Ball

22 June - BIC Community Service Day

22 June - BIC IGCSE 2 Parents and Students Forum

Brilliance Awards

We had the Brilliance Awards on Thursday, April 22. It was lovely! I could not get over how many recipients we had - the awards just kept coming for top in the world and top in South Africa, on such a range of subjects - Science, Second Languages and Literature, not to mention Computer Studies... I am actually very impressed with our Computer Studies and Economics lecturers, Andrew Muteera and Ralph Stewart as this was their second year helping students achieve Brilliance Awards.

All the full-time students were in attendance, as well as all the lecturers. There was a lot of cheering and enthusiasm for all the top achievers.

Following the awards, we had a lovely lunch with the students and their parents. The food was fantastic and the conversation was filled with pride for our exceptional students. Just look at the amazing desserts that they gave us.

We barely managed to stop eating to pose for the pictures, but we managed to pry ourselves from the food and almost smile. For those who want to know what your faithful blogger looks like, I'm the one in the back on the left.

Below is my top achieving student, Mariette Strydom, getting her award for 8th in the World for IGCSE English Literature.

I hope that we are as successful next year, if not more so. Each year since Cambridge created these Brilliance Awards we have had students who were top 10 in the world for their subject, or top in South Africa. I hope my students can continue to strive for such success, if only so that I can get the catered lunch again!

A reminder about upcoming events:

4 May - Open Day

This is when prospective parents can come to our campus. There will be lectures about the Cambridge system as well as our college.

6 May - Career Day

This is open for all our students, full-time and distance. We have already gotten RSVP from 12 tertiary education institutions who will be available from 11-16:00.

7 May - IGCSE 2 Excursion Day

Our full-time students in the IGCSE 2 year will be going to the Elephant Sanctuary. It is shaping up to be an educational and exciting excursion.

BIDC Tutorials

It has been a productive and eventful week on campus. Numerous students from the Distance College have come in for the exam tutorials held this week. It was very nice for the tutors to meet their students and give them some exam tips and tricks.

I should probably explain what the purpose of tutorials is. During tutorials, tutors advise the students on the format of the exam and what they should expect. Usually for IGCSE and A-Level subjects, this includes going through the marking scheme for a recent past paper. Tips, tricks and techniques are a key part of this process - helping students know what do look for in different question types so that they are not surprised when they go in for the exam. Following this, students are then able to pose more specific questions to the tutors and get individual advice.

Otherwise, it has continued to be relatively quiet on campus with the students and some staff on holiday. There has been a flurry of activity in the exams department, though, as today is the LAST day for exam registration for the May/June session. Students and parents must be aware that if they have missed this deadline, they must wait until the October/November session.

On that note, I am going to enjoy this last weekend of holiday before the full-time students return. In a strange way, I have missed them, although maybe not all the marking...

No students but plenty of work

We are coming to the end of our first of two weeks without students from the full-time college. The Bryanston campus of British International College (BIC) has been quiet without the buzz of students and lecturers running around. That said, we have been very busy with "spring cleaning" the campus (although it is definitely autumn), and doing all the tasks we don't have the opportunity to get to when we are looking after students.

Next week, we will be welcoming students from the British International Distance College (BIDC) for their exam tutorials. It is always exciting for tutors to meet the students behind the assignments, as I'm sure it is nice for the students to meet the people behind the red pens. It is a nerve wracking time for students as they prepare to write their Cambridge exams in May and June. Hopefully, the tutorial will give the last bit of preparation, encouragement and motivation to see them through successfully.

We are very proud of our top achievers. The news came from Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) - we have 17 (!) recipients of Brilliance Awards. They come from all three campuses, and include students who are in the top ten for their subjects in the world, as well as top in South Africa. We will be hosting an award ceremony for them on 22 April (don't worry, I will post pictures).

I have been enjoying my time without students to catch up on preparations at the Distance College, making work programmes for next year. I am also really looking forward to the Brilliance Award ceremony as one of my distance students achieved 8th in the world for IGCSE English Literature, which was the highest mark in South Africa. I am very proud of all her hard work - she certainly deserved this award. Plus, of course, it will be nice to have lunch with all the top achievers and their families; it is thrilling as a tutor, lecturer and PR-Officer to have this opportunity.

On that note, I will end this first blog post, but fear not! There shall be many more posts to come.