After another successful year in IC ‘s history, the last day of classes for academic year 2017-18 will be on Friday, June 22.

Cette année, l’élève Haya El Achkar, en classe de 4^ème à Ain Aar figure parmi les lauréats du concours Le Plumier d’Or organisé par l’Association pour la Défense de la langue française. Plus de dix- huit mille candidats en France et dans le monde ont participé à ce concours. Haya a reçu son prix et son diplôme au cours d’une cérémonie grandiose organisée par la Marine française dans les grands salons de la Maison de la Musique à Paris et présidée par l’ancien ministre de l’Education Nationale et membre éminent de l’Académie Française, monsieur Xavier Darcos.

Haya s’est distinguée par sa connaissance profonde de la langue française, son esprit créatif et son style métaphorique allègre. Le sujet proposé portait sur le thème du « silence ». Pour elle, le silence est polysémique, il se métamorphose et revêt différentes formes.

Article submitted to and accepted for the Near-East South-Asia Council of Overseas Schools (NESA) Fall Newsletter Edition 2018:

International College Adopts the Danielson Framework

Beirut, May 24, 2018

International College in Lebanon has identified the Danielson Framework as its reference for the teaching and learning experience offered at the school. Since February, the school has been progressively adopting the Framework, initially with the school leadership team, and building to an In-Service professional development day for all administrators and faculty members from both campuses (Ain Aar and Ras Beirut) on May 24. Six consultants from the Danielson Group, Margaret Leibfried, Linda Goodwin, Lynn Sawyer, Peggy Olcott, Cody Claver, and Dr. Ron Anderson, joined Charlotte Danielson on this BIG Danielson training day. Through the Framework, IC is able to enhance professional practice and autonomous, engaged student learning. As part of this initiative, Charlotte Danielson, the creator of this framework, traveled to Lebanon, leading the training on IC’s Beirut campus.

“Our aim is to find common language and shared understanding of practice which permits conversation and dialogue, whilst creating a community of learners” commented Danielson.

The Danielson Framework is segmented into four domains pertaining to planning and preparation, the classroom environment, professional responsibilities, and instruction. Through this framework, a positive learning atmosphere is created. Teachers are educators who pave the way for students’ understanding and engagement. They are not simply transmitting facts anymore, but are facilitators who help students make their own arguments and assumptions.

The seven common themes of the Framework revolve around equity, cultural sensitivity, high expectations, developmental appropriateness, accommodating individual need, the appropriate use of technology, and student assumption of responsibility. Based on the framework and the themes, educators following the Framework can measure the level of performance by four elements, unsatisfactory, basic, proficient, and distinguished. At the distinguished level of teaching, teachers would create a community of learners whereby students are deeply involved in the learning and the classroom is self-generating.

“We have chosen the Danielson Framework because it is a valid instrument supported by several large research studies. These studies showed that when teachers demonstrate high levels of proficiency on the Framework, their students show greater learning gains. Secondly, the Framework applies to all disciplines from KG levels up to 12^th grade and this is based on the fact that teaching requires the same basic tasks,” explained Dr. Mahmud Shihab, Director of IC’s Educational Resources Center.

IC applies the Danielson Framework with the involvement of school parents, represented by the Parent Committee at Charlotte Danielson’s opening address on May 24. Indeed, part of the training provided is how teachers communicate with families about individual students and how to engage them in the instructional program itself.

The adoption of the Danielson Framework is just one step among many to accelerate the progression and growth of IC, both as a leading academic institution and as an engaged and thriving community. The school constantly identifies and pursues new opportunities to benefit all key stakeholders of IC and strongly believes that student learning is paramount to the success of IC as a whole.

A collaborative 60 metre mural involving the Upper Elementary and Middle School students of Ain Aar has been completed. Local artist Rami Chahine, art teacher Kim Wright and Community Service Coordinator Chantal Mailhac organised the mural with the intention to connect students of IC with each other through art. The students were challenged with different artistic tasks to lay a black foundation, to color, to emphasis and, finally, to elaborate. The wall is a strong reflection of the highly creative, engaged and artistic students at IC.

IC is pleased to announce its successful re-accreditation with the Council of International Schools' (CIS). A full five-year term of re-accreditation has been granted (the maximum achievable). 

IC has dual accreditation from both CIS and the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) in the US. Both agencies participated in a joint visit to IC in March. The role of the accrediting agencies is to ensure that schools offer quality educational programs and services for students and that they are supported by sound governance and appropriate financial resources. Accreditation ensures that IC students' academic achievement is recognized for transfer to other accredited schools and universities. 

Ain Aar

As has been the tradition for the past years at IC, our Grade 5/CM2 students celebrated the culmination of their learning journey in the PYP, through the PYP Exhibition. The event took place on Friday, June 1 and lasted the whole day, with parents, students from other classes and people from the school community as visitors to the stands. The students wrote their own central ideas and lines of inquiry under the Transdisciplinary theme “How We Express Ourselves”, jump-starting their research to collect data; the ultimate goal being to take action that will impact their lives and that of others, by finding solutions to real life problems. They interviewed experts, surveyed samples of people and made connection to their own lives. This experience gave them ownership of their own learning, taught them autonomy as well as the skills to work within a group; they gained new knowledge, enhanced their skills and took action, rendering them ready to face middle school next year!

Ras Beirut (with details on particular alignment to the Sustainable Development Goals; text as submitted to the UN Global Compact Network Lebanon)

Students of Grade 5/CM2 at Ras Beirut examined IC’s mission statement “Inspiring learners of today to be global citizen leaders of tomorrow” and connected it to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that were adopted by countries of the world in 2015.

Students worked with their teachers to identify the goal(s) that interest them the most and they were grouped together based on common interests. Some of the groups that evolved out of this activity are:

Clean water and sanitation, reducing inequalities, poverty and hunger, gender equality, good health and well-being, climate action, life below water, life on land, and quality education. 

Students engaged in rigorous inquiry and were supported by different members in the community. The UN Global Compact Network Lebanon put our students in contact with several institutions that champion specific SDGs. We were happy to receive representatives from BEMO bank, BLF, and BLOM who supported our learners to understand how leading businesses in Lebanon are showing commitment to these SDGs.

(Added note: IC's Grade 5/CM2 students, in a similar way to that of Ain Aar, celebrated their Exhibition with their peers, parents, teacher and administrators over two days, on May 17 & 18. A musical show was performed and the students presented their research and findings in the Gymnasium). 

« Graines de Poètes » 2018

La 17ème cérémonie de la remise des prix du concours interscolaire de poésie versifiée « Graines de Poètes » a eu lieu le jeudi 10 mai, au Collège International IC Ras Beyrouth, en la présence de Madame Paula MUFARRIJ, Chef d’établissement. Cette année, nous avons eu l’honneur et le plaisir de recevoir à cette occasion :

Monsieur le Directeur adjoint de l'AEFE, Jean-Paul NEGREL,

Monsieur le Coordonnateur délégué de l'AEFE de la zone POMOPI, Guillaume CARIO,

Monsieur le Conseiller adjoint de coopération et d'action culturelle, chargé de l'enseignement français, Serge TILLMANN,

Monsieur Christophe LUCZAK, Directeur National adjoint de l'Union Nationale du Sport Scolaire.

La cérémonie, à laquelle ont aussi assisté plusieurs Chefs d’établissements de notre réseau, était animée par Monsieur Ludovic Marty, chef de mission pour l’homologation de l’IC et organisateur de ce concours.

Nous nous réjouissons vivement du succès grandissant de ce concours qui a réuni cette année 56 candidats (26 en catégorie 3^ème et 30 en catégorie 1^ère) et 14 établissements du réseau AEFE : l’Athénée de Beyrouth, le Collège International (IC Ain Aar et Ras Beyrouth), le Collège International Montana (MIC), le Collège de La Sagesse Beyrouth, le Collège Louise-Wegmann, le Collège National du Chouf (SNC), le Collège Notre-Dame de Nazareth, le Collège Notre-Dame de Jamhour, le Collège Protestant Français, le Collège de la Sainte-Famille Fanar, le Collège des Saints-Cœurs Sioufi, le Grand-Lycée Franco-Libanais, le Lycée Abdel Kader. Le lycée Houssam-Eddine-Hariri de Saïda s’était inscrit mais ses candidats n’ont pu participer cette année.                                                                     

Saluons aussi la participation de 2 établissements du réseau LabelFrancEducation, représenté par Madame Blandine Yazbeck (IFL) : le Collège du Sacré-Cœur de Gemmayzé et l’Ecole secondaire Rawdat Al Fayhaa de Tripoli. Nous souhaitons la bienvenue à ce réseau dans la grande famille de notre concours !

Cette année, les thèmes tirés au sort étaient :

-          « On n’est pas sérieux quand on a dix-sept ans. » (Arthur Rimbaud) (1^ère )

-          Je ne pourrais pas vivre sans ça. (3^ème)

Quant aux prix, ils ont été décernés aux candidats suivants :

CATÉGORIE 3^ème

CATÉGORIE 1^ère

Messieurs Jean-Paul Negrel, Guillaume Cario, Christophe Luczak et Serge Tillmann ainsi que Monsieur Pierre Doumet et Madame Mishka Mourani, ancienne Vice-présidente de l’IC, ont remis diplômes et récompenses aux candidats et ont lu, avec les lauréats, les poèmes récompensés, pour le plus grand plaisir de tous. Monsieur Luczak a profité de sa présence parmi nous pour évoquer les Jeux Internationaux de la Jeunesse qui se tiendront au Liban au printemps 2019.

Les lauréats du 1^er prix de chaque catégorie ont été, comme d’habitude, récompensés par un billet d’avion Beyrouth-Paris, gracieusement offert par M. Pierre Doumet, PDG de La Cimenterie Nationale, dont la générosité date du début de ce concours et nous l’en remercions vivement. Les autres élèves récompensés ont gagné des bons d’achat de 200 $ (2^ème prix) et 100 $ (3^ème prix) offerts par l’IC et la Librairie Antoine. Tous les candidats ont reçu un diplôme de participation et un petit souvenir de l’événement.

Nous remercions tous les établissements, les candidats, les enseignants et leur direction, pour leur participation et leur fidélité à ce concours.

Toute notre gratitude et tout notre respect vont aux membres du jury :

Madame Amal Charara, ancienne Directrice adjointe et Chef du Département des Lettres à l’IC.

Madame Nayla Tamraz, Professeure de Lettres à l’USJ et écrivaine.

Madame Lydia Cardinal, Professeure de lettres à mission de conseil pédagogique.

Madame Salma Kojok, Professeure d’histoire et géographie, auteure et romancière, animatrice d’ateliers d’écriture.

Monsieur Serge Tillmann, Conseiller Culturel adjoint, chargé de l’Enseignement français.

Monsieur Antoine Boulad, ancien Directeur à l’IC, initiateur du concours et poète.

À tous nos très chers candidats, nous disons : « Toutes nos félicitations et à l’année prochaine ! »

M. Ludovic Marty

http://icalumni.org/commencement/2018.html

The school is excited to announce IC Giving Day 2018 on June 5 to support the school’s Tuition Assistance program.  Helping Lebanon through quality education, and, indeed, ensuring a diverse mix of students receive that education, will assist in shaping the country’s future.  The school’s target is to reach 1891 individual donations.  Why 1891 you may ask?  It’s the year IC was originally founded.

No gift is too small when given for such a worthwhile cause.

With your support, we are sure to achieve and even exceed our target number of donors.

Follow this link to donate.

Comme chaque année, et s’est désormais devenu une tradition, élèves et enseignants de la Middle school ont participé à une collecte de livres destinés à des camarades d’une école publique. Cette année, la moisson a été riche puisque deux grands cartons ont pu être remplis. Cette activité s’inscrit dans le cadre de la semaine de la francophonie. A L’année prochaine !

On Tuesday afternoon, the IC Elementary Drama Club held the premiere of this year’s performance: “Beauty and the Beast”. The following day, the actors had the opportunity to present their play to their teachers and peers. While the rush and intensity of a day full of performances gave them the ‘real acting experience,’ their journey started long before when they first joined the drama club in November.

Over the course of several months, the kids worked long and hard to develop their characters and give them their own personal twists. They worked on their character’s ‘voice and look’ and soon began working on the singing and choreography. As the pieces started falling into place, the kids then began stitching all the scenes together along with the music.

Such a journey obviously featured its fill of laughs and tears, but the memories created will forever be cherished. The past few months can best be described as a bonding experience for all. It brought together English and French sections, fourth and fifth graders, and eventually the entire Elementary School. The unbelievable support we have received from the Elementary School administration and from the kids themselves has been amazing. One of the memories that will be cherished especially is from the performance to the Upper elementary classes. Most of the kids grew quite nervous when they realized they were performing in front of their friends, but the applause and cheering that followed one of the musical numbers brought a smile to their face that not even our villain could hide (in one of his most serious scenes)!

This year-long journey has been one of growth, love and everlasting friendships. The dedication and hard work that these kids have put towards their dream and vision not only warms any heart but it also reminds us of an important lesson that we sometimes fail to shine a light on. The feeling of unity and community that the kids have enjoyed over the past week is something that I believe they will hold dear to their heart forever. They look forward to next year as they once again unite to bring together the IC community in support of their dramatic vision.

Tony Asfour, Ras Beirut Elementary Drama Club Head

From: Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Donald J. Selinger

Announcement:

We are pleased to announce that Mr. Joel Peinado has been appointed as President of International College starting July 2019.

The appointment of Mr. Peinado comes after recruiters Carney, Sandoe & Associates completed a six-month global search and presented three finalist candidates, all of whom visited the College for several days of meetings with trustees, administrators, faculty, parents and student representatives.

Mr. Peinado comes to IC from the French-American School of New York where he held leadership positions since joining FASNY in 1995, becoming Head of School in 2012. Previously, he taught at the Kew-Forest School in New York and the Alliance Française de New-York.

Mr. Peinado holds French and American citizenship and is married with two children. He obtained the French equivalent of a Master's Degree in Science from the Université René Descartes, Paris in 1983. He is fluent in French, English and Spanish and is an accomplished classical pianist. 

We are fortunate to have Mr. Peinado coming on board next summer. His personal history and experience as the head of a bi-lingual and international French-American school which, like IC, offers the IB program, the French Baccalaureate and the American high school diploma, has prepared him well for the challenge of running an international school in Lebanon that offers the same programs to over 3,500 students.

When Mr. Peinado visited IC in May he was extremely impressed with the school, its students and its vibrant community and he is thrilled at the prospect of joining International College in July 2019.

We are delighted that Joel Peinado will be joining us as President starting in July 2019.

Sincerely,

Donald J. Selinger

Chairman of the Board of Trustees

International College

A story for the Inauguration of IC's very own Cedar Hill in the Chouf Biosphere Reserve!

The bus left the Ras Beirut school campus with eager and proud students and parents on board. We headed towards the Chouf Cedar reserve to honor the donors and supporters of our school. At the end of the winding road up the Chouf mountain, we reached the reserve where we met the rest of the IC family around a Lebanese breakfast buffet with fruits and honey and freshly baked saj delights.

A short ride into the reserve and we first stop to discover what is now called “The IC Cedar Hill”: A piece of land planted with cedar saplings in honor of the major IC donor families. A small walk later and we entered the forest under the canopy of thousand-year-old trees with the sound of flute and guitar in the air. In a small clearing in the forest we all gathered to hear some of our students share the essays they wrote on the importance of sustaining our heritage, our land and the role of their generation in protecting the earth for the future. A leading national expert on climate change, Dr Nadim Farajallah, strengthened our belief in the urgency of our role today in the preservation of our land for tomorrow. This was the closing that kept our hopes high and our plans to be the change even stronger.

IC Participation in the Trust for Sustainable Living International Student Debates, Seychelles, 2nd - 7th July, 2018

Twelve students and members of their families flew to the Seychelles for the week of sustainability debates and activities that have become a part of the school’s life, and in particular a very large element of the recently introduced IC Responsibility programme, aimed at capturing all the social and environmental activities the IC community is involved in, both on and off campus.

The debates are organised each year by the Trust for Sustainable Living (TSL), a not-for-profit organisation focused on education for sustainable lifestyles, and committed to promoting one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) each year. This year it was the turn of SDG 14: Life Below Water that was chosen as the core of the debates, as well as the preceding international essay competition.

Over 15 different countries had student representation; from Chile to New Zealand, and from Romania to India.

Our students experienced the very high-level of sustainability debating at the TSL competition yet were still able to come away with great respectability due to their commitment, enthusiasm and knowledge. Indeed, the two winning debate teams (Primary, ages 7-11; and Secondary, ages 12-18) were largely made up of IC students, who were then made even more famous on the third page of the national newspaper of the Seychelles! Coupled with that, two of our students, Alicia Mary Iskandarian and Kyle Khoury (both Ain Aar Upper School), were picked as child ambassadors to represent their debate teams during the expert panel discussion of the Ocean’s Conference held the following day (5th July).

In the essay competition, Hala Sharafeddine and Sophie Farsoun both placed in the Top 10 for the Primary competition. 

The week together in the Seychelles wasn't simply about the competitions and conferences, however, with the near 40-strong IC community contingent enjoying their time together in a truly spectacular environment. Many enjoyed boat trips and snorkelling and scuba diving experiences, as well as gaining an understanding of the Seychellois culture and heritage and sampling the local cuisine, either on the beach or in one of the restaurants near to our location of Beau Vallon, Mahe Island. Indeed, the group were also able to showcase some Lebanese customs and traditions, including the Lebanese traditional dress as well as a fine rendition of the dabke, which had pretty much every other nationality dancing it by the end! 

Here's looking forward to next year's TSL competition set to take place in British Columbia, Canada, under the theme of SDG 15: Life on Land. 

Dear Parents,

Please note the Bus Forms are now available online. Click on the link for either Ras Beirut or Ain Aar. Please ensure this is completed by August 17, 2018. 

Best regards,

Student Section, Business Office

Dear Parents, 

Please note that, since Tuesday, August 21 is the start of the Eid Al Adha holiday, the Business Office will be open on Monday, August 20 from 8:00am until 1:30pm. 

Wishing you a very happy Eid Mubarak. 

IC Business Office

Dear IC Community,

The school is proud to feature in NESA's latest publication for our adoption of the Danielson Framework. Please read the article here. Indeed, today and Saturday (August 31 & September 1) see new Faculty being immersed in the Framework also, helping them prepare for the year ahead.