Thomas Education

A good organization’s e-mail system has a directory readily available to staff, preferably also other stakeholders as well.  A staff member should be able to type the first few characters of a name in the addressline and either offer a list of matching names or actually complete the name and e-mailaddress; or press a readily-available Contacts button that would do the same.   I should be able to search via either firstname or lastname.   The organization’s e-mail addresses all follow the same naming pattern, so that if the directory search is not available, I can deduce the name by following a logical pattern such as firstname.lastname@ Even when switching to a new naming standard, if old staff insist on keeping old addresses, add new addresses that fit the new standard, and move mailbox to the new name (and auto-forward mail sent to the old address).   Mixed standards ensure confusion. Documentation is double-checked for correctness.  Trip...

Tips: Before going to Korea: Get google-voice number, and Vonage/Magic-jack phone: Obitalk.com Take US cell phone?  probably, if it’s unlocked and recent.  Probably not, if it’s old.  US service will work, though expensive.   Barb’s sister gave us a cheap phone on her plan, which we keep as emergency.  However, Korea phone service, cable, wi-fi is a bit cheaper than US; and our school gets package deal with KT.  Newer US phones probably can convert to KT service. Electronics: voltage=220, plugs are round.  Take 1 or 2 plug adaptors.  Most electronic equipment is multi-voltage, but not all:  check it, and try not to take 110volt-only items.  Can get plug adaptors in most hardware stores.  School typically supplies 1 transformer per house.  School provides MacBook to each teacher, so you probably do not need to bring your own laptop, unless you prefer not to carry back and forth. Things to bring: whatever ...

As we prepare for service trips, I compiled a list of tasks that a typical school group should include.  Giving each participant a definite role in the group evens out the load and helps the students learn organization principles and responsibility.  It can be very helpful in case of emergency or problem situations; but it also takes more investment in preparation and requires accountability to keep it going -- further, it confirms the educational nature of the trip, as it is not just a casual holiday. Group leader:  the face of our group, meets with corresponding leaders, accepts awards, speaks for the group, calls meetings to order Assistant leader:  backup, when leader is not available. Attendance:  are we all here?  Where is Zoey?  where is Mr.B ? Backup attendance person Accountant/Treasurer: simply keep track of group spending, request and store receipts, disburse money.  (Be sure to take extra envelopes to store receipts, a...

My overall statement about the goals of my literature courses, at all levels of high school: Through our program, students learn to appreciate and analyze a wide range of texts, exploring the different ways the human condition is expressed across time and culture. YISS students seek to demonstrate excellence in the areas of listening, speaking, reading, and writing in order to evaluate information, listen actively, communicate responsibly, and inform and articulate their worldview. Through the tools of language, YISS students are empowered to form and communicate their identities and utilize the gifts that God has given them.

I have 8 0 World Literature students.    If I assign a 3-page essay, how much time should I spend reading and marking and scoring each essay?   10 minutes each (on average, plus typical paper-shuffling or computer startup time) totals 6 hours.   My instructional time with those same students (again, given typical attendance administrative settling down time; and including occasional summative assessments) is 3.5 hours per week.   In my conversations with several different principals on this topic, all have cannily refused to even mention an expected number. When I am scoring an essay, one of the big psychological hurdles is getting past any misspellings or minor grammar errors.   My reader-brain finds it hard to avoid marking those errors, or to avoid reducing some related score because of those errors.  A computer can catch many of those minor spelling, punctuation, word-choice, usage errors (note: the computer does not corr...

Private schools can be selective, by definition.  And international (private) international schools are patently selective, excluding students who do not meet certain standards of ability, whether that be linguistic, physical, or social.   But I would argue that international schools should do more to accept students outside that range, particularly when the schools are (at least partially) funded by government or charitable foundations, and when they are intended to serve a particular population, as is the case with our school. In the More Developed Countries, Special Educational Needs are required by law and funded by the taxpayer.  Typically the principle is to educate all students together, providing as much support as possible in the main classroom or in the same building.  Private schools can follow the same principle, with the extra-support funding from specific tuition surcharges, as many schools now do for ESL.  It certainly makes for more cha...

The NYTimes published a fascinating portrait of the modern writer, and a discussion pertinent to all students of writing, about research, style, and serendipity (open the old newspaper!). Laura Hillebrand has had a surprisingly important effect on recent writers, after the success of Seabiscuit .  Her meticulous research is unusually old-fashioned, relying on paper artifacts rather than google or microfilm simply because of the author's own physical limitations.  This allows her to be more immersed in the time period, and thereby include the small details that then immerse the reader as well.   We also find out that the idea for Unbroken  came from her accidental viewing of an article about Louis Zamperini while she was reading an actual copy of the New York Times with an article about Seabiscuit. Let this  be  a vote for varied research sources!