New Schools
Welcome to two new International Schools that started in September; in Indonesia - The New Zealand International School http://www.nzis.net/ and in Macau - The Sheng Kung Hui Primary School http://www.geocities.com/skhps2002/
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Shambles Website http://www.shambles.net
The new Shambles website went live in September 2002 and is designed to support all members of the International School communities in S.E.Asia ... but rather than give a detailed listing of content here I hope you will be happy just to browse around.
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UK Curriculum materials online http://www.dfes.gov.uk/curriculumonline/
Curriculum Online – the new on-line service from the Department for Education and Skills UK) - is planned to be launched this month. The idea is to offer teachers free and priced online digital learning materials which will form a comprehensive educational service. Curriculum Online is intended to free teachers to do what they do best - teach - by making lesson planning and administration easier and faster. Schools can receive eLearning Credits (eLCs) to help with purchasing. The Getting Involved section of the site has details. http://www.dfes.gov.uk/curriculumonline/
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Implementing ICT http://www.thelearnzone.net
This free online new publication has a new structure, reflecting recent developments to ICT in schools. It focuses on four key themes relating to the effectiveness of ICT in schools: leadership and coordination, teaching and learning, managing infrastructure and measuring success.
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What Every Principal Needs to Know About Technology And Where to Find It Online
http://www.techlearning.com/db_area/archives/WCE/archives/handlerp.html
It's not easy being a 21st Century, technology-savvy principal, is it? How do you keep up in this new, time-intensive area? Do you know what is important to know about planning for technology use; about helping teachers integrate technology into the curriculum; about creating different learning environments; and about using different pedagogical approaches? ... this website should help.
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Looking for Material for a School Assembly http://www.shambles.net/pages/staff/Assembly/
You've been asked to organise a school assembly ... have a look here for some ideas.
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Shambles Tour 2003 http://www.shambles.net/profdev/2003tour/ ..... (INSET & Professional Course)
It is planned to run a Shambles Professional Development event every year just after Chinese New Year in February. The first one planned is a "Training course for ICT Coordinators and for "Aspiring" ICT Coordinators" with full details available at the link above. The course will be run twice, once in Bangkok and then repeated in Hong Kong. It will consist of a 3-day event run by UK facilitators followed by assignments to be done in school but with online help from the facilitators. The course is accredited by the Nottingham Trent University (UK).

Keep in mind that lots of other professional development opportunities (not run by Shambles) can be seen on our online calendar at http://www.shambles.net:88/default
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Vision 2020 Online Conference brydon@bigpond.net.au
Online conferences are certain to be used more and more as one of the options for teacher professional development, not only are they cost effective, they do not take staff out of classrooms and also allow them to take part at a time that is convenient to them.
But taking part in an online conference is a completely new experience for most teachers and administrators and it requires more self motivation and planning than attending a traditional conference.

But rather than talking about it why not try it yourself this term. Fortunately the UK Technology Colleges Trust has organised an online conference that has some themes that will be of interest to International Schools, especially to senior staff.
The conference is in two parts each lasting two weeks, you have missed the first but the second two weeks starts on 24th November ... and it is free (fortunately you'll have the advantage of being able to see all the material produced in the first half).
I'm not allowed to tell you the website address (URL) as it is not password protected ... but if you email the conference manager, Ms Debra Brydon at brydon@bigpond.net.au she will give you all of the details ... this will be a valuable experience .. please let her know you found out about this from Shambles.

Taking part in an online conference is valuable professional development in its own right, putting "life-long learning" into reality .... try it ... because the students are going to be doing this next !

NOTE added Dec.02 : now that the conference is over I can reveal where the conference materials are archived, which is at http://www.cybertext.net.au/tct2002/
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Game Online Conference http://forum.ngfl.gov.uk/WebX/gameonline
Another online conference that may be of interest to more staff is ...
The Game Online virtual conference will be launched on 20 November and will be open until the end of December.
Game Online is a free conference about how digital games have been used in classrooms and what influences they may have on educational technology now and in the future. If you are a teacher, ICT adviser, parent, software developer or researcher, this conference is an opportunity for you to share your views and experiences about digital games and their relationship with education.
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Christmas Resources http://www.shambles.net/pages/learning/primary/Xmas/
Christmas is almost here and some teachers will already be making plans ... there is a great list of Christmas websites on Shambles.
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Schools Advertising on Shambles http://www.shambles.net/advertising/
On each of the 17 country pages (click on the links at the top of this page) on Shambles there are five spaces reserved for advertising, if you wish to raise the profile of your own school on that page then have a look at the advertising details at the web address above.
Shambles has only be around in its present form for a short time but we are promoting ourselves in a number of difference ways.
For example try the search engine "Google" http://www.google.com and in the search box type "Thailand International Schools" and see where Shambles comes in the results. Obviously you can put any other S.E.Asian country where I have put 'Thailand'
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Fairy Tales and Folk Tales CyberDictionary http://www.op97.k12.il.us/instruct/ftcyber/next.html
Janet Barnstable [jbarnstable1@attbi.com] manages a website based in the USA which is devoted to Fairy Tales and Folk Tales.
She would like to expand the site to make it more International and is asking if you can help; please contact her directly if you are able to add to her collection from the Asian country you are in.
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Keeping Up To Date http://www.shambles.net/deskilled/
One of the staff concerns about working in an International School is that of 'losing touch' with developments in the 'home' country. I even know of some staff (and principals) who have complained to their line managers of not being 'fed' information to keep them up-to-date. This can, of course, cause even higher anxieties during the recruitment period if looking for a new job.
With today's Continuing Professional Development (CPD) model please keep in mind that there may not be a need for someone else to spoon-feed information to you especially as the technology now lets you 'help-yourself". Take as much or as little as you think you can handle in your own schedule ... a page exists on Shambles to help you with this task ... it's not a large page but it is powerful.
My own favourites for the UK is the BBC Education website and for the USA it is the ASCD website; both allow subscriptions to emailing services so the news will be sent straight to you ... you don't even have to go looking.
So don't just rely on your own school professional development co-ordinator ... be proactive.
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Math(s) Videoconferencing Project for Schools http://www.motivate.maths.org
Many International Schools in the region are now investing in videoconferencing equipment ... for those schools then this could be an opportunity for your Math(s) departments to make use of it for a rich learning experience for the students.
MOTIVATE is a real-time videoconferencing project for schools that enables students to experience the magic of mathematics at first hand through interaction with professional mathematicians.
Motivate launched its newly designed web site on 2 September 2002. Visit it to find out about events planned for the new academic year, and to see the wealth of project material in the archives. There is an on-line form there for schools who would like to join, together with details of how the project works. All our videoconferences are free, although we make a charge for hiring our equipment, or for technical support.

If you have just read this and are disappointed that it is only for Math(s) then have a look at other opportunities at http://www.shambles.net/pages/staff/VideoConf/
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International Schools CyberFair http://www.globalschoolhouse.org/cf/
International Schools CyberFair, now in its eighth year, is an award-winning, authentic learning program used by schools around the world. Students conduct research about their local communities and then publish their findings on the World Wide Web. Recognition is given to schools for the best entries in each of eight categories: local leaders, businesses, community organizations, historical landmarks, environment, music, art, and local specialties.
The theme for CyberFair 2003 is "Educate and Unite!"
Competition judging also takes place online. Students evaluate the projects of other schools by using a Web-based evaluation tool designed by Global SchoolNet. The top forty entries are reviewed by international judges, to determine the winners. Winners of International Schools CyberFair are announced each Spring at a event that is global in itself, with hundreds of schools participating via Internet.
Registration is between October 15, 2002 - March 14, 2003 but you are advised to join asap to give more time for the project itself as the deadline for submission is the end of March 2003.
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BBC Radio - Listen Again (Archives) http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/progs/listenagain.shtml
I'm highlighting this resource particularly with "ESL / EAL / TOEFL / English Teaching" in mind. The webpage is where the BBC archive their Radio 4 programmes .... the audio files can be listened to for free, at a time convenient to you and even works well over poor internet connections (similar to mine in Thailand).
The variety on this site means that you will probably find programmes to interest most students (and teachers) .... they can also be used as homework assignment for those students that have internet access outside the school day.

One option, "The Learning Curve" is a weekly programme that will be of particular interest to those interested in educational developments in the UK ... the topics covered often hold interest for international listeners.
For teachers looking at social studies or current affairs then this is a also "goldmine"

My personal favourites actually have little to do with work (sorry)... programmes such as "Quote,Unquote" and
"The News Quiz" ... educational and fun.

Also - with apologies to non-UK reader - you can also listen to the latest broadcast of "The Archers" and it doesn't have to be on a Sunday morning.
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That's IT
I hope you have found something here that can be of help when working with your students ... and also something that may be of personal interest as well.

The next newsletter will be in March 2003

Feedback http://www.shambles.net/feedback/
Any feedback you can give about this newsletter would be appreciated .... especially ideas or contributions for future editions.

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STOP PRESS

In2English - English Language Site for Chinese Students http://www.in2english.com.cn/
"In2English" is a new website site launched early in November 2002 and is a joint venture between CRTVU (China), the BBC and the British Council running from servers in Beijing.
There is just too much on the site to review here ... all I can guarantee is that if you have Chinese students of any age in your class or school then this website will have resources to help them improve their English language skills .... highly recommended.