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IB students say farewell at graduation dinner
IB student Ben Bartlett says
goodbye - and thanks.
Mark Beales
Photos by Ritche Guisona
Garden International School’s held its biggest-ever IB
Graduation Evening at the Holiday Inn, Pattaya.
A total of 19 students have just finished taking their examinations as part
of GIS’s International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP). The
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is the world’s
premier pre-university course of study.
Once the students’ last examination was over, they headed to the Holiday Inn
on May 23 to celebrate the end of their studies and their time together.
The evening highlighted some of the amazing talent and friendships that
exist at GIS. Several IB students took to the stage as parents and teachers
enjoyed a buffet meal to demonstrate their outstanding musical skills.
IB’s Indian students say
farewell with an energy-packed performance.
GIS Principal Dr Tasker then gave each student a special
IB medal and video so they could remember their time at GIS. The IB
programme at GIS continues to go from strength to strength - next year GIS
is set to welcome our biggest ever IB intake!
For more on Garden’s IB programme, visit
www.gardenrayong.com /
international_ baccalaureate.html
The GIS IB Class of 2013.
Some of the female IB
students from GIS look elegant for their graduation.
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Pattaya School No. 5 marks 62nd anniversary
(L to R) Jidapa Suwattaporn, member
of Pattaya city council, and deputy mayors Verawat Khakhay and Wattana
Chantanawaranon pour holy water while attending the religious ceremony carried
out by monks on the 62nd anniversary of Pattaya School No. 5.
Warunya Thongrod
Pattaya School No. 5 marked its 62nd anniversary with congratulations and a
Buddhist blessings ceremony.
Principal Montree Kanjonphak and students welcomed Pattaya Education Department
Director Jintana Maensurin to the May 23 event. Local politicians and
administrators from other Pattaya schools also offered their congratulations.
Nine monks from Nongyai Temple performed a water-pouring ceremony for prosperity
before blessing attendees. The school board then offered lunch to the visiting
monks to jointly celebrate the anniversary.
Montree said that, in addition to the Buddhist ceremony, he also had organized
an Islamic ceremony for Muslim students and teachers. He said he planned to
continue programs started by his predecessor, including education development
and children’s health.
While an old institution in Pattaya, School No. 5 has undertaken modern
improvements, such as a school bank for students, a landscaping overhaul and
academic activities for students.
Students from Pattaya School No. 5
take part in religious ceremonies during the 62nd anniversary celebrations for
their school.
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Garden to Host Major Music Festival
Mark Beales
Garden International School (GIS) is tuning up for a major international
music festival - and is inviting local companies to get involved.
A GIS guitar hero at a recent
concert.
GIS, based in Ban Chang near Pattaya, will host the FOBISSEA Music Festival from
November 15-18.
Around 250 students from all over Southeast Asia will be at GIS for this event,
coming from Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Nepal, Ho Chi Minh
City, and Kuala Lumpur. The festival will involve students in Years 6 to 13
practising various forms of music and collaboration, ending with a large Gala
Dinner and Concert.
As this event will gain significant publicity among the international school
community in Thailand and across Southeast Asia, it is an ideal opportunity for
local companies to support the event. Various sponsorship packages are
available, so if you are interested, or would like to find out more, email GIS’s
Head of Music Paul Shiells at [email protected] or call the school on 038
880 360-3.
The Federation of British International Schools in Southeast Asia and East Asia
(FOBISSEA) is a regional group of the leading British international schools in
Asia. It regularly holds festivals around the region, which aim to bring
students from various countries together for collaborative learning experiences.
Garden International School is based in Ban Chang, near Pattaya. For more, visit
www.gardenrayong.com.
The GIS orchestra at a recent
event.
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Pattaya Sports Club meets Kate’s Project Trust
No walls. Just a roof.
William Macey
Nongprue covers a much larger area than Pattaya with many more
residential areas and, as a consequence, has more families living in very poor
conditions with very little to call their own.
In 2006, Kate’s Project was founded and the aim of the trust is to assist the
poorest families with particular attention to helping children receive an
education. This includes providing uniforms, books and transport. Although there
is help from the government in this respect, it is nowhere near sufficient and a
substantial contribution must be made, by the family, for every child.
There are other areas of concern. Living in shacks made of any material that is
lying around, the families live a very basic existence and living conditions are
very challenging to say the least. With no air conditioning, the temperature in
the huts soars to well over 40 degrees and having to cope with tropical storms
and no running water, these families, particularly the children, face many
difficulties.
That’s better. The almost finished article.
Having clean drinking water is something everyone in the developed world takes
for granted, but this is not always possible for these families without a mains
water supply. Water is delivered on a regular basis but each truck load accounts
for 250 baht of their hard earned money.
Noi of Kate’s Project contacted Pattaya Sports Club for our help. We responded
immediately and a visit to some of the 45 families under Khun Noi’s care
highlighted the areas where we can be of assistance. To help purify the water,
we supplied simple water filters to many of the families so they may, at least,
be able to use clean drinking water for their everyday cooking and drinking
needs.
Many huts still need attention.
We were also introduced to a family that had been evicted from their home and
were fortunate enough to have access to a small area next to a family member,
but with no walls or facilities. Open planned toilets and just a pot on which to
cook needed looking at as did protection against flooding. Supplies were
purchased and a home evolved as did a more private toilet facility.
It was a pleasure to meet Noi for the first time and to experience the amount of
effort she puts into helping these families but she does need help either
financially or to be able to distribute clothing where most needed. If you feel
you can help, please contact William on 0861522754 or Pattaya Sports Club on
038361167.
The kitchen area.
Clean water for the family.
Noi is always there to help.
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A stylish graduation for
Regent’s sixty IB Students
All sixty graduates with the school principal, Mike
Walton.
Year 13 students at The Regent’s School Pattaya celebrated their graduation with
flair on Thursday, May 23. The sixty Year 13 leavers, who have just completed
their rigorous two-year International Baccalaureate course, enjoyed a graduation
ceremony in the school’s Globe Theatre, watched by over 250 family members,
friends and teachers. No graduation would be complete without the traditional
hat-throwing and garden party at the end of the ceremony, and the day finished
in some style with a formal Graduation Ball that evening at the Hilton.
Some of the students have been on roll for just two years, having transferred
over from other schools to join the IB course, but amongst the graduates was
18-year-old Head Girl Eye, for whom Graduation Day was the culmination of 15
years at The Regent’s School. The students now move on to the next stage in
their education, taking up places at universities across Europe, North America
and Asia including the universities of Cambridge, Edinburgh and British
Columbia.
Graduation left students with a sense of pride.
Principal Mike Walton commented, “Graduation Day this year reminded me yet again
why we are so fortunate to have a large and vibrant Sixth Form at The Regent’s
School. These students have benefitted academically from being part of a large
year group, because we have been able to timetable a wide range of subjects for
them to study.
“The high numbers of students taking the IB also lends itself well to discussion
and debate - each student has been able to engage with their peers over the last
two years, which has really helped them to get to know their subjects well.
They’ve also benefitted socially. As I saw them dining and dancing at the Hilton
for their Graduation Ball, I realized that each of them would move on from The
Regent’s School enriched and empowered in a way that gives them far greater
humanity and potential than I had at their age.”
The hat throw traditionally completes the graduation
ceremonies.
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