Congratulations! Brian Chen, Wang Yuan, and Liu Yu-Ting won gold medals at the International Olympiads

After winning the silver medal at the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) last year, Bilingual Department Brian Chen (10A) went on to win the gold medal at the 2012 53rd IMO, becoming the first Taiwanese junior high student to win the IMO Gold Medal. At the same time, Experimental High School Department student Wang Yuan, who is a graduate of the first “Science Class?at our school, also received the gold medal at the 23rd International Biology Olympiad (IBO). She got full score on the General Scholastic Ability Test and is about to study electrical engineering at National Taiwan University. Liu Yu-Ting (H305) also won the gold medal at the 43rd the International Physics Olympiad (IPhO). We are honored that these three students were able to set a school record by representing our country and winning the gold medal at the International Olympiad. Many thanks to all the instructors for their guidance and effort.

IBSH hosts Taiwan regional Learning Focused Curriculum Workshop

IBSH held a Learning Focused Curriculum Workshop for teachers on 9/15, inviting Mrs. Ann Straut to Taiwan to serve as the speaker. A total of 93 Chinese and foreign administrators and teachers from seven schools attended the workshop. These schools included IBSN, Mingdao High School, Kang Chiao Bilingual School, and Hsinchu International School, etc. Having years of experience training teachers and principals, Mrs. Straut was a skilled and precise speaker, explaining what makes curriculum effective in improving student learning and the ideas of Understanding by Design and Backward Design to the participating teachers. The rich content, in-depth discussion, and hands-on practice combined to ensure that all theteachers had a rewarding experience.

NEHS Participates in the MOE "Curriculum Development and Teaching" Plan

In 2011, the Ministry of Education issued plans to improve international education in Taiwan. Beginning this year (2012), the Ministry starts to carry out the development and teaching of four parts of the plan and provided applications for funds. Our school's "Your Home, My Home" and the multicultural "Connect with the World" plans have passed inspection and has also received the funds. "Your Home, My Home" will combine 24 of the students from the second and third graders of IBSH and the fourth to sixth graders of NEHS to participate in a pen pal activity and to exchange lesson plans with Gimnasio Fontana Elementary School in Colombia, South America. The main point of exchanging lesson plans is to show the different cultures as they use videos to show a day of the students' lives in both Taiwan and Colombia, teaching Spanish and English to create a closeness between our students and the students of other countries. The program "Connect with the World”has became popular through the efforts of the High School Academic Affairs. This year, persistent efforts will be made to invite college students from different countries to come and share their cultural and environmental experience, and to lead conversations and discussions with the high and middle school students in English.

The Middle and Elementary Departments have revolutionized the English curriculum

The new 7th and 8th grade English curriculum for the NEHS Middle School Department will incorporate a new English novel reading class starting this term, taught by weatern teacher Mr. Scott Lee, who uses activities such as short plays and debates to enhance students' reading comprehension. The class is scheduled to read three short novels this semester ¡V Charles Dickinson's A Christmas Carol, O Henry's New Yorker, and various other renowned classics. Not only can Mr. Lee's guidance raise students' reading skills, it can also bring a deeper appreciation for the elegance of English literature. Starting this term, the elementary students from grades three through six will learn English in small classes of 20 people. Under the supervision of the foreign teachers, the students will be separated into the curriculum, drama, and discussion groups. Such a lively arrangement can be expected to strengthen oral communication skills and students' interests in learning. In addition, an "International Cultural Education Class" will be available for elementary school students, which will focus on nurturing listening and speaking abilities in English, as well as their experience with the language. Hopefully, this will allow the children to flourish under a multicultural environment and enter the third grade with an extensive understanding of a second language.

Professor Ming Er Wu leads Faculty Strategic Reading Community

The Elementary Department of NEHS has hosted a Hsinchu-wide¡§Reading Workshop¡¨for Elementary and Middle-School teachers on August 22nd and 23rd. The event invited Professor Ming Er Wu, a researcher in the National Academy of Educational Research, to talk about how multiple texts with different perspectives can affect students¡¦critical literacy. This topic discusses the different viewpoints of separate text on the same subject, the ten tactics of reading, and the reading of educational texts such as detective stories. Professor Wu has also been invited to the Middle-School Department on September 19th to demonstrate the education on Chinese reading and Bilingual-Department mathematical reading. Her extensive experiences on teaching and researching has guided the teachers of our school to apply what they have learned from her lessons in their own classes, hoping to improve the teaching abilities of our staff.