August 29th
This quote put me in mind of our last 18 months! Back to choppy seas with blended learning, except now we have invaluable experience.
Important Dates
29 August - Group A - on Campus
29 August - Group B - Online
17 to 21 October - Term 1 Mid-term Break
The blog will change slightly this year. We will be including fewer student and staff photos, which will instead be targetted at the PULSE.
The thinking behind this is to trim the length of the blog, making it more focussed on:
- communication
- teaching and learning
- PD-style posts
We are also trying to minimise overlap, so be sure to check the PULSE out each week from now on - you won't have seen all the photos already in the week's blogs! These are "guidelines not tramlines" so if there are still a few happy student or staff pics in the odd blog, no problem!
Each blog is aiming to bring an example, maybe a "top-tip" for the 3 focus Learning Principles for accreditation:
LP 2: Dimensions of Learning (covered Tuesdays in Mr Jonny's blog)
LP 3: Assessment for, of and as Learning (covered Sundays in Mr Lewis's blog)
LP 5: Learner Engagement and Autonomy (covered Thursdays in Miss Renee's blog)
We are hoping to find great examples in school, so if you can share anything relevant pertaining to any of these 3 areas, whether it is something you do in your class, have seen around the school in other classes and year groups, or an interesting article or tip you have come across, please do get in touch! The easiest way is to post in the relevant folder in the Doha Primary shared drive:
All offers are welcome - thanks!
LP 3: Assessment for Learning Top-tip #1
Talk partners - try to encourage discussion and participation in whole class contexts. You can have a "no hands-up" policy in the class or just try to reduce the hands-up a little. This encourages students to be involved, as all are expected to chat through each question the teacher directs with their "talk partner" and be ready to answer, with support from their partner, if needed. There's an easy-to-read article giving further depth from the TP guru, Shirley Clarke, here.
COVID testing - ALL Staff
The Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) has mandated that all schools undertake exhaustive COVID testing of all staff. I am pleased to advise that we have been given a date for all staff COVID testing. The Hamad Hospital testing crew will be on campus on Friday, 3rd September 2021.
We have devised a roster in order to minimise inconvenience. Please bring your QID or passport and attend at the prescribed time. If you are unable to attend, you will be required to complete the test at your own cost at your local Health Centre.
The scheduled times are as follows:
8:30-9:45am Primary School staff - LAs, teachers and Administrators
9:45-11:00am Secondary School staff - LAs, teachers and Administrators
11:00-11:30am Administration / IT / Facilities / Drivers / BAs
11:30-11:45am Security
11:45-12:30pm Cleaners
COVID-19 Protocols
- Vaccinated staff and students no longer need to isolate for 14 days if they were in contact with covid positive cases, but they will need to show negative PCR results before returning back to school.
- Unvaccinated staff and students will need to isolate 14 days in case of contact with a positive case and 7 days if in contact with a reactive case. Sick leave and signed isolation form need to be shared with the school clinic at clinic@emsdoha.net.
- Unvaccinated Students who recently arrived from a red list country shall quarantine for 10 days then show a negative covid test on the 9th day of quarantine before they return to school.
- Students showing any symptoms of flu should be sent to the school nurse to assess and contact parents. The medical team will share with our teachers any updates we receive regarding student health status, and we will share a list of students who have chronic diseases or allergies with each class teacher.
- In case of absence for more than 2 days due to health issues, students should be sent 1st to nurse to be examined and assessed before returning back to class.
Cambridge Professional Development Qualifications
Cohort 8 will begin in October with a rate of over 85% of candidates who receive their qualification from Cambridge University going on to a leadership position or senior leadership position! If you would like to speak to any of our candidates who have gone through this qualification let us know - we have a list of educational leaders happy to share their experience taking this very valuable course.
Cambridge Professional Development Qualifications (PDQs) provide a strong framework to support the effective continuing professional development of candidates. Cambridge PDQs are designed to be integrated into your schools’ professional development planning, activities, and culture. They help schools to improve through cost-effective, sustainable programmes that benefit teachers and their students. They demonstrate to the school community and stakeholders that the school values and nurtures staff development.
It is a rigorous certification with guided learning hours, Program Leader as well as self-study expectations. Your final portfolio will be assessed by Cambridge ensuring the integrity of the qualification and certificate is awarded by Cambridge.
Educational Leadership
Educational Leadership focuses on the theories of leadership and their application in a leader’s own practice and leadership context. Certificate candidates should be serving or aspiring educational leaders. The qualifications were developed in consultation with Cambridge teachers worldw
The cost for this course including 40 hours of classroom contact time and Cambridge Fee is normally 6000 QAR with our discount 5500 QAR!
Registrations are open now and spots are limited to ensure classes stay dynamic and student-focused with lots of room for group work and discussion.
Please find below our list of short training on offer from September to December - Each PD is only 400QAR per delegate with a mix of trainers already in Qatar and trainers we bring in from the USA and UK.
Professional Development / Short course/Workshop
| Date | Title |
| Sep-21 | |
| Sep. 9 | Classroom Management |
| Sep. 23 | Differentiation 1 & 2 |
| Sep. 30 | |
| Oct-21 | |
| Oct. 14 | Teacher Supervision |
| Oct. 28 | Educational Leadership |
| Nov-21 | |
| Nov. 4 | Creating Effective Teams |
| Nov. 18 | Mindfulness in Education |
| Dec-21 | |
| Dec. 9 | Change Management |
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