The Comet

The New sletter of K. International School Tokyo
Volume 19 | Issue 4 | June 2016

In this issue...
02...Class of 2016

13...G12 Visual Art Exhibition 2016

03...Fundraising for Kumamoto

14...The World Scholar’s Cup

04...Tuition Fee Increase16...Grade 9 Camp

06...How Does Your Garden Grow?

18...Basketball Champions

08...PYP Exhibition

20...Community Connections

12...Career Experience Program

31...Family Day 2016

From the Head of School

DATES TO REMEMBER

Here we are at the end of another busy and eventful year, a great time toreflect on our accomplishments, look forward to a restful break, and startplanning for the next school year.
We started off the year with a proud announcement of our 2015 graduatingclass DP results, the best results in KIST history. We were extremely pleased
to celebrate with our community the near attainment of our goal of a 36-point
average by 2018. With further recent initiatives introduced to support learningschool wide, we are confident that we will hit, and hopefully exceed, our target,
perhaps earlier than planned (maybe this year???).
Our continued progress from, and further development of, learning initiatives
are a result of strong support and collaborative efforts of many members of ourschool community. This year as well, we saw great progress from ourmathematics initiatives. Both our ISA and our PSAT results showed that ourstudents are performing at a high level compared to other schools and thatmathematics has become an area of strength for the school. Our strength inEnglish as well continues to improve; we are very pleased to see suchprogress as a result of the initiatives that have been introduced school wide tosupport students with their English language development. With regards towriting proficiency in particular, the ISA results for our Grade 7 to 9 cohortscompared against the same Grade’s performance last year improved
significantly, indicating that the early morning Academic Writing classes arehaving a positive impact on learning. Also of particular note, in 2014–15 we
had only one student who scored in the 80th percentile on all four componentsof the ISA exam – this year we had nine such students (with six of them from
our Grade 6 classes). Very well done indeed!
KIST is fortunate to have amazing levels of commitment and support from ourentire community. Staff, students and parents collaborate to deliver wonderful
events over the year, events which continue to grow in scope each year.
KISTival, the DEAR events, our annual New Year party, World Cultures Day
and Family Day were once again fantastic for all who attended (we evenwelcomed some special ‘Star Wars’ guests to our DEAR event and were
fortunate to have Sampei Hayashiya present Rakugo during World Cultures
Day). Involvement in co-curricular events was solid as well with strong
representation at off-campus arts, sports, and academic events and wellattended celebrations of learning at our concerts, exhibitions and displays over
the year. These events and others demonstrate our KIST spirit and clearlycommunicate the power of our KIST community.
Continued on next page
KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for Life KIST Learning for Life

June 2016
8 (G5-G11) Peer student-led
conferences
8 (S) Secondary awards assembly
8 (G10) Promotion ceremony
8 (Nu-G11) Semester 2 reports
issued8 Last day of school for students(Half day for students)
9 (G9-G10) IGCSE mathematics
examination (*Morning)
9-24 Office open
13-24 Summer program session 1
25-Jul 24 School closed

July 2016
25-Aug 5 Summer program
session 2

August 2016
11 (K1/K2/K3) Parent welcomenight
15 First day of school for all
students
15 (G6-G10) Mathematics
diagnostic tests
16 (G1-G5) Mathematics diagnostic
tests
17 (G1-G5) Parent welcome night
18 (G1-G5) English diagnostic tests
19 (G6-G12) Parent welcome night
19 (G12) University information
night

KIST is an
IB World
School
PYP | MYP | DP2

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Continued from previous page

Our most recent accomplishment, and one of great
pride, is the graduation of our class of 2016. We havea total of 38 graduates this year who have overcome
the challenges that the DP has presented and are now
awaiting the announcement of their DP results in July.
On behalf of all of KIST, congratulations to all families
who are celebrating graduation. We wish you the bestwith your child’s plans for after KIST and look forward
to keeping in touch with you and learning about futureaccomplishments. It takes a community to raise a child– the care and support from all members of ourcommunity towards our graduates is second to none.

world through education.

On behalf of the school, thank you to our parents,
students and other community members for all that you
have done to support KIST in 2015–16. We have anamazing community full of great people and I feel
blessed to be working in such a great environment.
Thank you also to our Community Association for theleadership they provide in getting all of us involved withschool happenings. The valuable time and generous
support you provide contributes so much to making
KIST the best that it can be. Your efforts are truly
appreciated – THANK YOU! And of course, a very big
thank you to KIST and KIPS’s amazing staff who work
so hard to support our school and students. It is a truepleasure working with you to make a difference in the

There are a lot of interesting articles in this edition of
The Comet and I hope that you find the contents
entertaining, informational, and a source of pride foryou as you reflect on the great year that is coming to aclose.

As we look forward to next year, one of the significant
events coming up is the merging of our current KIPS
preschool with KIST and the opening of a KIPS
nursery school for students aged 0 to 2 years at a newlocation in Morishita. This is a new ambition for theschool through which we will become one of the onlyinternational preschools in Tokyo offering English
education to students younger than one year of age.
We look forward to this opportunity to develop future
KIST students from such a young age.

I wish everyone a delightful summer break with family
and friends and I look forward to seeing you on August
15!
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Jones
Head of School

Congratulations to the Class of 2016!
This time of year is a bittersweet time for our Grade 12 students. The last day of classes at theend of April is a celebratory one signifying the end of a long journey but this day also brings
stress as students realize that the DP exam session, and the formal completion of theirschooling at KIST, is right in front of them.
For the school as well, graduation is a time of contrasting emotions. The relationships developed with our
graduates during their time studying with us, some of whom have been at KIST since Kindergarten, are precious to
us. We are proud of the fine group of young adults that represent our school each year as our graduating class andtake great pride in their accomplishments and in the acceptances and/or scholarships that they receive from theuniversities they apply to. While we celebrate at this milestone in the students’ educational journey, it is also sad tohave to say goodbye as graduates leave to commence the next stage of their educational journey at various
universities around the world. But we do so with hope that these goodbyes are not forever, that we will continue tokeep in touch with our alumni and continue to celebrate their successes and the contributions they make towards
making the world a better place for all.
To the KIST Graduating Class of 2016...
CONGRATULATIONS! You have done well to complete yourstudies with us and we hope that the challenge and rigor of the
program at KIST has provided you with a high level of satisfaction
as your time with us comes to a close. We wish you the best withyour next adventure and hope that you always carry with you a
special pride of having been a KIST student. You have made us
proud and we look forward to hearing from you in the coming
years and to celebrating with you the successes to come.
We wish you all the best and look forward to you visiting us at
KIST again soon!
Mr Jones

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Fundraising for Kumamoto
Blessed with fine weather on
Saturday, May 21, we were able toenjoy an ideal day for sports at ourannual Family Day this year!
(There was actually sudden rain in
the area of the school in theevening, so we were very
fortunate.)
We were pleased to see so many
people participating and enjoying
the event. The G12 students, who
had just finished their final DP
examinations, were also present
and participated wholeheartedly to
enjoying the games as a group
after the long and stressful days in
the DP, thereby acting as excellent
role models for the younger
students.
The number of visitors to theinformation booths is increasing
year by year, and we are pleased
that one of the other aims of
Family Day—to inform the schoolcommunity of initiatives for the
coming year—is definitely being
achieved.

appreciate the generosity ofparents, students and staff who
made cash donations to the relief
fund or purchased products fromthe booth. A big thank you also to
the parent volunteers and the CA
Executive Committee for theirsupport in operating the booth.
Thank you also to the school café,
Café Tomato, for their cash
donation.
The balance for the day is shownin the table below. The total profitof 1,025,147 yen was donated to
the Kumamoto Disaster Relief
Fund.
In addition to the support activities
conducted on Family Day, the SRC
proposed providing emotional
support as earthquake relief for
Kumamoto. This led to various
student-led support activities. The
Elementary SRC proposed an
activity to send pictures and lettersto cheer the elementary children in
Kumamoto. Thanks to thecoordination of Mr Miller, we wereable to send a package ofheartwarming and caring
messages and pictures to Kojima
Elementary School, a public
elementary school in Kumamoto.
We are pleased that we alreadyreceived a friendly reply from thePrincipal of the school on behalf ofthe students (photos below).
Activities to provide emotional
support by the Secondary School
are also in progress.
We plan to continue supporting thepeople of Kumamoto throughfurther fundraising activities suchas at KISTival.

This year, a mathematics
information session for G5 parents
and students was also held, andwe received a lot of positive
feedback from those who attended.
In cooperation with the KIST
Community Association (CA) andthe Secondary SRC, we also ran a
special booth to sell products anditems from Kumamoto as a way tosupport the people of the
Kumamoto area affected by the
recent earthquakes. We sincerely

Sales/Donations
142,977

Expenses
76,646

Profit
66,331Student booth (fair-trade coffee)

15,1004,300

10,800

Kumamoto product booth709,1500709,150

Donations from Ito-en drink sales

3,740

0

3,740

Donations from Café Tomato sales

15,0000

15,000Donations box cash donations

220,1260220,126

1,106,093

80,946

1,025,147

School booth (shaved ice)3

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CIS Accreditation Update
As the CIS Accreditation Coordinator at KIST, I would
like to share with you the progress of our application
for CIS accreditation. As most of you will know, KIST
applied for CIS accreditation at the end of 2014 andwas accepted as a candidate for accreditation in
January 2015. We are now coming to the end of the
two-year accreditation process and the staff have beenworking extremely hard, gathering evidence, andbuilding documents for our CIS visit in November
2016.
So far, we have conducted an online survey of parents,
students, staff, board members and alumni through the
Endicott College in Massachusetts. We analyzed theresults of this survey and used the data, along withother evidence, to evaluate how well KIST is aligned to
a comprehensive list of CIS standards. Reports werethen written detailing this alignment and proposals
were made to address areas of non-alignment.

CIS (the Council ofInternational Schools)
states that, “accredited
status demonstrates thata member school has
achieved high standardsof professional performance in international educationand has a commitment to continuous improvement.” Itis vital that we show our “commitment to continuous
improvement” so we hope to act upon as many ofthese proposals as possible over the coming months.
I want thank the whole school community for yourcontinued support during this process, and I will writeanother update as the CIS visit draws nearer.
Oliver Sullivan
CIS Accreditation Coordinator

Tuition Fee Increase
Where will the money be used?
As announced earlier this year, tuition fees for the 2016-17 school year were increasedslightly for our PYP and MYP programs. You may be wondering, where the increased funds
from this tuition increase will be used by the school.
Although inflation has been very low in Japan, operating costs have risen substantially overrecent years, partly as a result of the consumption tax increase from 5 to 8% and also due tomarket demands on services related to the upcoming Olympics. Part of the increased funds
collected by the school will be used to cover such increased costs.
Another large part of the increased funds collected will support a salary increase of 4% for all
educational staff to partially offset the 3% consumption tax increase and inflation over the
past few years.
As you know, KIST has a goal to attain and sustain a DP average of 36 points. To support us
in reaching this goal, various measures have been introduced, such as an increased numberof support classes and programs, further curriculum development, and policy refinement.
While such measures are important in us attaining our goal, quality teaching is essential aswell and an aspect that KIST wishes to continue to develop, recognize and celebrate.
One way we support teacher development is through our teacher appraisal system. Each
year, KIST teachers prepare and submit a portfolio of documentation to which feedback isprovided on six professional standards. One of the professional standards measures theteacher’s impact on learning; teachers collect data, measure their influence on learning,reflect on the progress of their learners, and make plans for future development of theirpractice. The appraisal system is thorough and it allows us to support our teachers with theirprofessional development, and also to recognize great teaching. To reward great teaching,another part of the increased tuition collected has been allocated to support the introductionof results oriented bonus systems which reward teachers based on appraisal results andother data such as DP results.
While the above changes are modest, we believe that we are doing our best to ensure thatthe additional funds collected through the tuition fee increase are being put to best use inways that have direct influence on the quality of teaching and learning at KIST. Thank you foryour understanding and continued support.

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Elementary School NewsPYP News

Curiosity and learning

Closing shop for thesummer…

In education we continuously ask ourselves “How dochildren learn best?” This is a complicated question
where numerous theories and even more opinions
exist. At KIST, and in line with the philosophy of the IB
Primary Years Programme, we believe a constructivist
approach best allows for our students to learn in anauthentic and purposeful manner.
The psychologist Lev Vygotzky defined learning as “thecreation of meaning that occurs when an individual
links new knowledge with existing knowledge”. Much of
constructivist theory is based on this idea, the conceptthat we build on what we already know. This type oflearning goes beyond the school walls; our students
can use and apply what they have learned out in thereal world while furthering their inquiries.
Soon we will be moving into our summer vacation. Thisis a perfect opportunity for our students to build on
what they have learned and experienced this school
year. By reviewing with our children the central ideas
they have inquired into or the math concepts they havelearned, endless connections and further inquiries canbe found during our play and travel over the summer
holiday.
I encourage you to inspire
your children to continue to
ask questions about theworld and apply what they
have learned over thesummer vacation. Curiosity
feeds inquiry which in turnstimulates further curiosity!
This is a wonderful cycle
which can motivate ourchildren to think, puzzle andexplore!
I wish you all a wonderful and wondrous summer
holiday!
Warm regards,
Kevin Yoshihara
Elementary School
Principal

Each year when students
and teachers reach theend of their last unit, it
signals the call for days filled with fun and adventureassociated with the summer holiday. Something thatyou might not have considered is the preparation that
goes on after the building closes for the break andreopens in the fall. In this case I refer to theProgramme of Inquiry which is constructed along theguidelines of the International Baccalaureate.
The IB
Transdisciplinary
Themes are published
for the schools to use
and are important as
the written curriculum
designed to provide
students with a means
to explore content thatis relevant andtranscends the boundaries of traditional studies.
These T.D. themes are the subject matter that will fuelthe investigations for the students throughout the year
and must be carefully balanced with the explorations
that one expects an elementary student to haveexperienced on their way to graduation. The themes
resemble the subject areas that you would find in amore traditional school, such as science, math, social
studies and so on. Therefore, teachers and theelementary administrators alike are constantly holding
these TD themes and their corresponding Central
Ideas up to the light to see that expectations are being
met in a meaningful way.
This coming school
year, the elementary
school will be looking
across the board to
see that theseelements are all ingood alignment. Thismeans that a balanced
selection of units will
fall in place vertically(from the K levels on up to the grade 5), as well as
horizontally (from unit to unit within a grade level).
These adjustments are highly important so that thelearning provided is not only interesting, but isinformative in the sense that it is providing aninternational education with global awareness that will
prepare our children for the world that awaits themupon graduation in the future.
Clay M. Bradley
PYP Coordinator56“ T h e Co m e t ”

How Does Your Garden Grow?
Have you noticed that a corner in the kindergarten playgroundhas been removed of some of its old and cluttered planters?
Have you also noticed that a nice little garden has appeared inplace of the old planters? The K1 and K2 students brought
together some flowers and vegetable plants and we havecreated our own little flower and vegetable garden. It has been
3 weeks since we planted it, and already, the plants havestarted to grow! We have multi-colored flowers, as well assome cucumbers, bitter melon, eggplants, strawberries,
tomatoes, chili peppers and various herbs planted in ourgarden. The eggplants and tomatoes are even starting to fruit!
We picked some of the strawberries today and 3 lucky kids got
to eat them…one was sweet, but the other two were still sour!
Come check our garden out whenever you have a chance! By
the time summer vacation hits, maybe we will be ready to dosome more veggie-fruit picking…
Claire Yoneyama and Aya Kurosaki
K1 and K2 Teachers

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K2 Living Things Inquiry
The K2s spent 9 weeks studying living things and what living thingsneed to live (Sharing the Planet). The students learned that there
are 5 characteristics that define a living thing:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Living things move.
Living things grow and change.
Living things breathe.
Living things reproduce.
Living things need food and water to live.

Through our inquiry, the students explored our own needs andwants as human beings and as individuals, before selecting an
animal and doing some research at home on the animal’s needs.
The students learned that some animals, even if they live in thesame habitat, will have different needs according to the foods they
eat and the homes in which they live.
To summarize the unit, the researched information of their selectedanimal was expressed in the form of a diorama. The K2s spent morethan 3 weeks overall working on their individual projects…fromplanning what their dioramas will look like, actually completing them,and then to finally writing the explanatory paragraphs. It was anextremely big project, and we all showed effort, perseverance,
creativity and uniqueness while exhibiting our understandings of theinquiry. The finished dioramas were displayed in the elementary
foyer, where we also held our own “Sharing the Planet – K2 Animal
Exhibition.” Thank you teachers, parents and students who came tosupport us on exhibition day!
Aya Kurasaki
K2 Classroom Teacher“ T h e Co m et ”

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PYP Exhibition

CentralIdea...

This year’s Exhibition put on by the grade 5 class wasfilled with success stories. The collection of teams
investigated and presented a number of interesting
topics with world-wide and local significance. This
year also saw the greatest amount of parental involvement that the school has witnessed in recent
years. The parents rolled up their sleeves and dug into help with excursions which supported the teams’
endeavors and research. Mr Archibald, Mr Grant, Ms
Parkinson, and the school’s staff mentors were thefacilitators for the entire project that was without adoubt a stunning success. The Exhibition was held on
April 28 and 29, 2016 in the school gymnasium.

The way we organize ourselves can have positive
and negative impacts on us and our environment.
Animal abuse
Animal rights
Bicycle issues
Cyber bullying
Fair trade
Food wastage
Homelessness
Japan’s military policy
Littering in public
Mammal fishingNon-organic food
Overfishing
Phone zombies
Traffic safety
Wasting energy
Wasting garbage

Elementary Concert
May the force be with you! Our young Padawan
learners and Jedi in Grades 1 to 5 have been working
hard preparing for their end of year concert in a theatrefar, far away in Funabori Hall on June 3. Students haveinterpreted classic Star Wars moments through songand dance. As Master Yoda would say, truly wonderful
the mind of a child is!

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Thank You and Goodbye KIPS Hamacho
K. International Preschool (KIPS) opened in August 2014 near Hamacho Station in Chuo-ku. As announced
recently, KIPS will be moving to a new location near Morishita Station (just up the road from KIST) and will be
restructured as a preschool for 0 to 2 year olds. Final details are yet to be confirmed, but we expect the newpreschool to open in August or September 2016. On this page, the current KIPS class teachers share theirthoughts about their final year at Hamacho.

Nursery
It was my pleasure to teach Nursery class at
KIPS. Nursery class started with only one student
and has grown to the biggest class at KIPS. Dueto the average age of the students, students criedfor mommy and most of them couldn’t speak
English when they started. Some students couldn’t
even talk yet. However, they became independentby the end of the year to be ready for K1. They
don’t need diapers and they can talk. It is always
amazing to see how much students grow by theend of the year. I will miss this KIPS, but I also
look forward to seeing the new KIPS next year!
Thank you for these wonderful two years!
Tina Aya Nishihara
Nursery Class Teacher

K1
Two years ago, I was still working at a different
international school, not knowing anything about
this new school opening at Hamacho. In the
middle of August in 2014, our new KIPS team
met in the MPR at KIST to discuss for hours andhours about our coming school year, which was
to start two weeks later.
We started this campus with a small number ofchildren. We worked together as a KIPS
community – children, parents and all the staff –to make this preschool a better learning place forour children. Since this is such a small
environment, our children know each other well
between the grades and also all the staff in theoffice, kitchen, as well as the cleaner. Also, as
we offer before and aftercare, 7:30-19:00, someof our students stay here till 19:00 while somestart to come in before 8:00. I feel that webecame a big family as we worked very close toeach other through our school calendar.
We are physically away from KIST. However, K1
and K2 classes visit the KIST Library every week.
We also have Hamacho Park and Sumida Riverto visit and explore a lot with nature. The children
had a well-balanced time learning outside and in
the classroom, Literacy, Maths and PYP.

K2
Being a part of KIPS these last two years has
been an extremely rewarding time. From the very
beginning we have worked together to build avibrant learning environment for our amazing
students where they feel cared for, inspired andchallenged. I have enjoyed watching our students
develop their social, emotional and academic
skills. I am often amazed at how far they havecome. I believe that learning can happen
anywhere, anytime and that our greatercommunity is also a vital part of ourstudents’ learning journey. It has
been wonderful having the supportof all the loving families who havecontributed to this fantastic learning
community we call KIPS. I know that
we will all treasure our time here andare looking forward to newadventures at KIST and at the new
KIPS campus.
Luke Callaghan
K2 Class Teacher

As the Head Teacher, I have learned a lot
through dedicated parents and talented teachers
here. I feel very privileged to have shared thistime with all of you. Thank you for thesewonderful two years – it happened because all of
us love our school and our children!
Eri Ozawa
Head Teacher /K1 Class Teacher

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Elementary ELS

Elementary Japanese

Repeat reading andviewing: A summertime
luxury that’s good for us

During autumn, students in
Grades 2 to 5 prepared bookreviews for the “All Japan YouthBook Review Contest” and the“Sakura Medal Contest”. From
the reviews received,
representatives were selected
and submitted for both contests.

For many of us, summer may be a time when we don’t
have so much opportunity to speak English, however
we can take advantage of our free time to get as muchchance as ever to listen and read in English. Movies,
YouTube videos, and songs are just some examples
of how we can keep listening to English all summer
long, and for reading, many books are available
online. (KIST librarians recommend this site, forexample: http://en.childrenslibrary.org/). There isalso the International Library of Children’s Literature in
Ueno (http://www.kodomo.go.jp/english/.)Just as with the videos that
we send home via Moodle
during the semester for mathor Unit of Inquiry, remind
your child that even when
watching movies or videos
for pure entertainment, they
have power over the “pause” and “rewind” buttons. Not
only is rewinding the first time you watch a video agreat way to catch new words but, for the favorites,
repeat viewing all the way through – any number oftimes – is also a fantastic language learning strategy.
Once the story, characters, images and distracting
details have become familiar, our attention more easily
focuses in on the new words and expressions in thevideo, until we’re even saying lines by heart.
Keep in mind alsothat understanding
the main ideas,
details and meaningof new vocabulary inwhat we listen to,watch and read isdeepened when wetalk about it. Talking about English language books
and movies in your mother tongue is a very effective
way to help your child improve their understanding andexpand their vocabulary in both English and theirhome language(s).

We are pleased to announce that a number ofstudents received awards in both contests.
Tomoyoshi (G3A), Haku (G5A) and Gun Hyuk (G5A)
received awards in the “61st All Japan Youth Book
Review Contest”. Details may be viewed at the link
below:
http://www.dokusyokansoubun.jp/books2015.html

Tomoyoshi (left), Gun Hyuk (middle) and Haku (right) with
Elementary School Vice Principal, Mr Bradley.

Sara (G5A) and Taimu (G5B) received awards in the“Sakura Medal Contest”. Details may be viewed at thelink below:
https://sites.google.com/site/sakurajpncontest/
home/result/2015-16nian-duHave a fun-filled vacation full of entertainment andlanguage learning!
Rachel Parkinson
Elementary ELS Coordinator / G5 ELS Instructor

Sara (left) and Taimu (right) with Elementary School Principal,
Mr Yoshihara.

Students will be asked to write more book reviews
over the summer holidays in order to further develop
their writing skills and prepare for next year.
Yoshiko Torikai
PYP Japanese Teacher

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MYP News
MYP students and teachers lookback on a successful year
KIST students, teachers and parents haveworked hard all year. Wednesday, June 8marks the end of another successful year for
the IB Middle Years Programme at KIST.

G7s working on a joint English/Individuals and Societies unit.

There have been a number of highlights
throughout the year for students in the MYP.
Building on work from the previous year,
teachers have been revising their MYP
courses to find better alignment among theconcepts, objectives and assessment withineach of the MYP subject groups.
As the school moves toward an evaluation
visit from the IB in November, the school isreflecting on how to strengthen its work with
Service, to fully implement a program-wide
Approaches to Learning focus on skills, andto explore Interdisciplinary learning for all
students.

Experiential learning at the G9 camp.

G9s interview G10s at the MYP
Personal Project Exhibition.

Grade 10 students completed a round of
Personal Projects. For the first time, KIST is
participating in project assessment throughthe use of an electronic portfolio system.
In addition to the regular academic work of
the MYP, students in Grades 7 and 9 also
had the chance to experience camp trips.
These trips allowed students to put theirunderstanding of concepts in their school
subjects to work in new and exciting
contexts.

G6s in the LMC during theSpelling Bee.

G10s visiting the Museum ofContemporary Art Tokyo.

Finally, students were able to experience awide variety of school-life activities. Theseexperiences, ranging from the arts toathletics to co-curricular activities all offer arich education for students to grow as wellrounded individuals.
Robert WhiteMYP Coordinator

MYP students during a break participatingin the KIST MUN scrimmage.

Ms Aoe speaks to G6 to G8 students
during the semester one Wall of
Honor ceremony.

At the starting line of the KIST Cross Country.

G8s after they added their handprints to the Wall of Honor; they
were recognized for their workwith the IB Learner Profile.

Japanese teachers meet to discuss
the self-study conducted for theschool’s IB evaluation visit.

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Launch of the “Career Experience with KIST” Program
Expanding minds, building dreams
While opportunities have long existed for internationally minded job seekers
at large Japanese companies, more and more small to mid-size Japanesecompanies are now looking to hire increasing numbers of foreign employees
to support with globalization and expansion overseas. Globalization trends
are not new, even to Japan, so there has long been pressure for Japanesecompanies to internationalize their workforce. Compared with Singapore,with a 36% foreign labor force, Japan’s 1% foreign work force indicates asignificant need for Japan to make more efforts to compete in today’s
increasing globalized world.
With Japanese language proficiency and strong understanding of Japanese culture, KIST graduates offer globallyminded companies in Japan an attractive option to hiring foreign staff from overseas. KIST believes that throughdeveloping long-term relationships with Japanese and Japan based multinational companies, we can be of support
in fostering connections to employees that support companies in managing their globalization challenges.
One related initiative that we are proud to have introduced this year is the Career Experience with KIST program.
Through this annual program, all KIST Grade 9 students participate in a two-day placement at Tokyo-based
companies of interest where they learn about the host company, what types of work are available at the company,
and about how they might be able to contribute to the company in the future. While some companies may involvethe students in authentic work tasks related to the student’s career of interest, the objective of the program is notfor students to gain work experience but rather for them to gain an understanding of how the company contributes
to society, what types of careers are available at the company, and whether they would be interested in working atthat company at some time in the future. KIST hopes that, through this experience, company visits will expand theminds of students and build dreams for the future, dreams which influence our students’ university and career
choices as they enter their final year of the MYP and start planning for DP course selection. KIST also hopes thatcompany hosts have opportunity to share about their globalization intent with KIST students and plant seeds which
may develop into long-term relationships for further opportunities such as internships or future employment.
This June we were fortunate to have had strong community support to make placements for 33 students at 15
locations around Tokyo in fields such as finance, IT, manufacturing, logistics, education, sales
and other areas. We look forward to expanding the placement offerings next year and ask foryour support in doing so. If you know of a company that might be interested in supporting theCareer Experience with KIST program, please contact Yukinori Honda, our Development
Manager, in the main office.
Thank you to all who worked so hard to make this project a reality for KIST! 

Grade 7 KidZania Excursion
On Thursday, May 12, all of the Grade 7 students
set out on an excursion to KidZania in Toyosu.
This was part of the interdisciplinary unit of study
they are currently working on in both Individuals
and Societies and Language and Literature. The
aim of the excursion was to observe a real life
model of a successful theme park. Whilst on the
excursion the students worked in groups toobserve the marketing and advertising techniquesthat KidZania uses to cater to the needs and wantsof a global audience. It really was both an
educational and a fun experience! Now thestudents are going to work in groups to create abusiness proposal and an advertising campaign
for their own theme park.

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G12 Graduate Visual Art Exhibition 2016
The graduating Art class of 2016 worked tirelessly topresent this year’s graduate exhibition, and the effort
and hard work paid off to bring a dynamic, diverse andcreative display of such a range of media andconcepts. The DP Visual Art course does not sit aformal exam, but the exhibition is the culmination of
their work which is portfolio and studio based.
This year’s exhibition was titled “After the
Imagination…” and suggested a theme of showcasing
what happens beyond the initial idea, and all of thehard work, conceptualizing and creation that is neededin order to make art. By no means is this an “easy” or“non-academic” subject just because there isn’t an
exam! The students also study and document theirprocesses, and analyse the work of selected artists indetail.
There were 11 students this year, all with different
concepts and themes in their work. The work featured
are just some of the pieces in this year’s show, and wehave worked hard to make work with variety;sculptures, installations, video installation, paintings,
prints, digital work, drawing, wire work and ephemeral
art are just some of the media the DP students workwith. We hoped you enjoyed visiting the show as muchas we enjoyed presenting it to you!
Emma Justice
MYP/DP Visual Art Teacher...and the Graduating Visual Art Class of 2016

Artwork from top right:
Felix
Saya
Liam
Ryu
Aashvi
Masaki
Misol
HamishCindy
Hee Dae
Ayaka

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KIST students compete in Tokyo roundof the World Scholar’s Cup
During the Golden Week holiday, KIST students from
Grades 6 to 10 traveled to Senzoku Gakuen in
Mizonokuchi, Kanagawa prefecture to participate in theTokyo round of the World Scholar’s Cup.

KIST scholars and their alpacas at the end of the competition.

Akino (G8B)
The competition sees students from across the Kanto
Plain region for a two-day event. Participants vie todemonstrate their knowledge of a range of academic
subjects. Competitions included Collaborative Writing,
Debate, Scholar’s Challenge (a written exam), and the
Scholar’s Bowl (a quiz show-type activity).
This year, KIST was represented by five students inthe junior division and eleven competing in the seniordivision. After a very short preparation period, thestudents did very well in the competition.
Three junior team members – Kishore (G6B), Aditya(G7B), Nimit (G8B) – are planning to attend the global
round of the competition in Bangkok at the end ofJune. We wish them good luck. Student reflections
from the Tokyo competition are below.

Emiri (G9A)

A

word which I would choose to describe my first WSC
experience would be, “Remarkable.” From the moment
we entered the auditorium until we departed, every secondof it was spectacular. At the event, we got to participate indebates, writing, scholar’s challenge and scholar’s bowl,
either as an individual or with your group. Regardless ofhow, in my case, we only were a team of two instead ofthree, my partner and I tried our best and as a result, we
won three medals each. I felt that through this event, I wasable to interact with many students from various schools andbecame closer with the students representing KIST. Somehighlights of the event include the talent show that I
participated with few of my friends, and the moment when
our names were called on stage for the award ceremony.
Every time we would see a name of a student from ourschool, we would scream and cheer as loud as we could,
and celebrated our victory with one another. Considering theshort amount of time that was available, I think what we havedone and shown is a remarkable result. However, this would
have not been possible if it weren’t for the teachers who
supported us, taught us and made us the scholars we arenow. I would like to thank Mr White, Ms Evelyn, Ms
Jesuthasan and Ms Snow for everything that they have done
for us, and giving us this wonderful experience.

The day started in a stadium where the opening ceremony
was held. I remember feeling very anxious and uneasy. I
was in a place I have never been before, ready to competewith people I have never met before. I looked over to themusic player that was blasting off as the two men walked up
on stage. I felt better when they cracked up their funny
anecdotes as the crowd went wild. I loosened up a little after
writing a really long essay, but then I was told that we weregoing to start to debate. Three debates. My heart sank. I was
informed about the debates earlier during the club sessions,but I was not ready. I tensed up, and started frantically trying
to talk everything over with my partner to make sure that wewere ready for it. Were we? Oh no, not at all. But did we havefun? Oh yes, a lot of fun. We ended up winning 2 debates.
Meeting with other people from different schools during thedebates were very fun, and looking at different types of ways
to debate was also very interesting.
That was the end of all the hard part, and the next day wasvery chilled out and easy. We took quizzes with buzzers,
listened to more of the WSC team’s anecdotes, watched talentshows, and well, most importantly, adopted our alpacas. The
debate showcase was also very interesting since I was able tosee the top debaters, the cream of the crop, fight each other.
Then there was the award ceremony. Hundreds of people
were called out on the stage as they received silver and gold
medals, along with trophies. I remember sitting on my chairfeeling proud every time a student from our school was called.
All in all, going to the World Scholar’s Cup was an
extraordinary experience, and I was able to enhance myessay writing, debating, quiz taking and social skills. It wasboth entertaining and educational, and so, I hope to see more
students from KIST in the crowd next year.

Akiko (G8) and Lilya (G8) prepare
for the opening of the competition.
Nimit (G8), Kishore (G6)and Aditya (G7) takenotes during the debatecompetition. The boys
will also compete in the
global round in Bangkok
in June.

Gabriel (G10) at the podium as
Shouheng (G10) looks on.

The KIST seniorteam prepares
during the last clubsession before thecompetition.

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V o l u me 1 9 | I s s u e 4 | J u n e 2 0 1 6

Math Field Day Reflections

New Face

Math Field Day for students in G7 to G11 was held on
Wednesday, April 20 at Camp Zama in Sagamihara.

Since the last issue of The
Comet, we have welcomed a
new staff member to ourteam—Dennis Ota—who iscurrently performing various
relief duties, but will take overas the new PYP PE Teacher
from 2016-2017. On behalf ofthe school community, wewish you all the best in yournew role and hope that you
enjoy your time with us.

Math Field Day is an annual competition thattakes place at Camp Zama, a United States
Army post in Japan. Many students from different
international schools take part to compete
against each other individually, and in groups.
When we got to the place of the competition, wewere first given individual tests to take. They
were just like ordinary tests that we take inschool. Then, after taking the individual tests inthe morning, we were grouped together with six
other students, who were all from different
schools. Although it took a little time, we wereable to enjoy our time together after getting toknow each other. As groups, we participated in acompetition where we tried to solve as many
math questions as possible in a limited amount oftime. We also completed a designing project,
where we had to think creatively in order to makea simple machine that would complete a specifictask. We did not win any of the competitions as agroup, but it was altogether an enjoyable learning
experience.
GaOn (G8B)

Today, I went to math field day. It the first time forme participating in such contest. After spendingtime there, I have realized that it is not just agathering of nerds, but actually meeting where
people who love math gather and talk aboutmath questions that interest everyone. After
solving math questions, we conducted aninteresting experiment making a paper car
without any engine. We had to build a car using apaper box, straw and some tape. At first, it was
really hard and absurd making the car. However,by cooperating with my team mates, I
successfully built a car that ran about 3 meters
without power. From this event, I have learnt
communication skills with team mates and more
about physical studies such as making papercars. I hope I can participate next year as welland next time want to come back to school with a
medal on my neck.
Chan (G10A)

15

Dennis Ota
Relief Teacher(PYP PE Teacher)

Office Updates
Updating your registered details
This is a reminder to families of the importance of
keeping your registered details up to date. This
includes details of your postal address, telephone
contacts and contact details of your nominatedemergency contact persons. It also includes detailsof any changes to your child’s health condition. For
example, if your child develops a new allergy,
contracts any major illnesses, undergoes anoperation etc., please be sure to inform us so that
we can update his/her emergency card.
To update your details, please complete the Change
of Registered Details Form (available from theschool website at the link below) and submit it to theoffice or send an e-mail to info@kist.ed.jp.
https://www.kist.ed.jp/node/5

School fees payment method
To ensure efficient office operation and to avoid thepossibility of problems caused through money
handling, we remind you that all school fee
payments (including payments for school uniform
orders) should be made via bank transfer. We
apologize for any inconvenience this may case andask for your understanding and cooperation in
making payments by bank transfer.

Donation report
Every year on March 11, we offer a moment of silent
prayer for the victims of the Great East Japan
Earthquake at KIST. In conjunction with this day, wehold a free dress day where students and staff areencouraged to wear clothes that are red and white,
the colors of the Japan flag. Those who choose toparticipate are asked to pay a small fee which is
donated to orphaned children in Miyagi prefecture.
This year, we were able to donate a total of 69,558
yen to this cause. Thank you to all those who
participated for your support.

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Grade 9 CampG9s kick-off the MYP Personal Project at camp
trip to Yamanaka-ko
Grade 9 Camp took place the second week of May.
Scheduled to coincide with students beginning totransition to the final year of the MYP, students andtheir homeroom teachers had the opportunity to work on
a variety of activities to help build their sense of unity
and to experience physical activities in a beautiful
natural setting. The trip had a curricular focus on an
introduction to the MYP Personal Project which is to becompleted in Grade 10. The following gives a sense of
the students’ experience of the camp and its activities.

Chae Hyun (G9A)
We G9s went to a one-night excursion to Yamanashi
from May 9th to May 10th, and I was able to learn newthings from my experiences during this G9 camp.
On the first day, we were divided into two different
groups for the group activities which were cycling,
canoeing, and hiking. Unfortunately, because theweather wasn’t cooperative enough and it soon started
to rain, we had to change our plans a bit and shift thehiking to the next day. Even though we had to canoe
and cycle under the continuing rainfall on our first day ofthe camp, it was surprising to find myself actually
enjoying the activities; I overcame my fear on canoeing
for the first time in my life by getting surrounded by thewonderful view of endless nature, and by sharing
thoughts with my friends; I can’t forget the swans thatswam right beside our canoes. Also for cycling, I wasable to feel the strong bond between friends bycheering each other, helping each other, andsometimes by waiting for each other while riding ourbicycles under the rain – and I would say that, because
all this happened, I was able to enjoy all the activities insuch weather condition. The group games that we
played that night (we couldn’t do the campfire becauseof the rain) once again reminded me that we are all inthis together, and that each of our friendship is reallyvaluable and significant that would stay in our hearts forthe rest of our lives.
We started our second day by getting to know more
about the next year’s Personal Project. During thissession, we were able to learn new things such as how
we can decide our topics for the Personal Project andhow we can approach to our chosen topics. We also
received individual letters written by the current G10
students who just finished their Personal Projects, and I
was grateful for the G10 student who wrote me a letteron how G10’s Personal Project would be like. From theletter, I learnt that time-management is the key to enjoy
working on the Personal Project, and I thought this lettercan really help me when I start working on my projectnext year. After the Personal Project explanations, all
G9s went hiking together to a mountain called Mt.
Ishiwari. The hardest part during this activity was that
we had to climb the endless stairs and steep slopes justGrade 9 students and teachers at the shrine on Mt. Ishiwari.

like the endless view of nature, and yet everyone tried
their best to go to the destination. It was heartwarming
to see people cheering and supporting each other bysaying things such as “You can do it!”, “Good job!” and“You are almost there!” which once again showed how
powerful the friendship and the mind of caring is.
Overall, I thought this camp was a great opportunity for
us to get closer with our friends – or even with someone
we didn’t play together before, and deepen our
understanding on the terms ‘together’ and ‘each other’ –trying hard together, laughing together, enjoying the
moments together, sharing ideas to each other, caring
each other, supporting each other, and cheering eachother. I really had fun in this one-night excursion witheveryone in the grade despite the worries that I had at
the beginning of the camp, and I hope everyone else inG9 made a lot of great memories at the camp as well!

Kevin (G9B)
For me, the G9 camp was the event I was excited forsince the beginning of grade 9. Personally throughout
my childhood camp was an activity that I did often,
because my dad took me to a lot of camps in different
places during occasions like the summer break. From
my personal experience I believe camps are not justsomething that’s fun, but also, you can learn different
lessons in life because the lifestyle you live in camp is
contradictory from the convenient life you live usually.
In our grade 9 camp this time, unfortunately it was
raining for the whole of the first day and we had to cycle
and canoe in the rain. However, for me cycling andcanoeing in the rain didn’t feel as bad as it seems,
because we had extra clothes and being wet wasn’t a
problem so we could break out our shells and justsplash into the rain. So even though it was raining thecycling and canoeing activities were very enjoyable.
Personally speaking, I really liked the canoe because it
is not an experience we have often, and I was very badat rowing the oars but once I got used to it I was able toimprove a lot so that was one skill I was able to develop
in the camp.

Continued on next page

Mr Otis leads a singalong with the G9s.

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V o l u me 1 9 | I s s u e 4 | J u n e 2 0 1 6

Continued from previous page

However, the worst part of the camp came after this. We
couldn’t do the camp fire because it was raining! For me
the camp fire was one of the main events, and that being
cancelled was very shocking. However we did theactivities we were planning to do in the camp fire indoor,
which was overall enjoyable. We sang and played games,
and Mr Otis played his guitar for us which I thought thatwas very good in creating a very happy mood foreveryone erasing the fact that we couldn’t do the camp
fire.
Also in the nextmorning we
had a session
for planning our
personal
projects, which
I thought
helped me get
an idea about
what and how I
want to makeOn the bike trail around the edge of Yamanaka-ko.
my personal
project look like. But considering everything, overall I
thought that the camp was enjoyable.

Igor (G9A)
On May 9th and 10th, G9 went to an overnight trip to
Yamanakako, and there we did various activities, such as
canoeing and cycling, that required many skills, such as
collaboration, critical thinking and interpersonal skills.
Throughout the camp, I learned various things andgenerally had a great time. Some things that I learned at
the camp include; how to work with others more
effectively. Specifically, the activities we did on the firstnight required a lot of collaboration (such as selling yourproduct). Here, I noticed that each person has his/her own
unique idea, and it is important to listen to them to makesure we can get the best possible outcome.
Another thing that I learned is more about the Personal
Project. Thanks to the activity on the second day, I
already have a pretty good idea on what my topic will be
for the PP, and it was really helpful to get the ideas thatthe teachers might have. I thought the camp as a whole
was very fun, especially the three main activities (while
quite tiring). My favorite activity was the cycling, as we didfor quite a while, and I also like cycling myself. Somepeople complained about
the rain that was pouring
on us while doing these
activities. I thought
differently, and felt that therain had added to theexcitement.
Overall, this camp was agreat experience for me,
where I learned a lot ofthings and also had a greattime. If I were to rate thecamp, it would be from a
9.5/10 to a full 10/10.

Sharing advice on the Personal
Project in letters from the G10s.

17

Athletics Update
Staff vs students basketballmatch
On April 23, ISTAA basketball players took on a small
group of staff athletes in our KIST Staff vs Students
friendly match. Representatives from the U18 girls’
and boys’ teams as well as the champion U14 boys all
combined to challenge the staff. This year, despite agreat late 4th quarter run by the staff, the students
won by a score of 59–49. Special recognition to ourteam captains Tyson (G12B) and Oshin (G11A) for
leading their fellow students to victory on the day.

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KIST Middle School Basketball Champions
On the Saturday morning of March 12, 2016, the KIST
Comets U-14 Boys Basketball team gathered atSangenjaya Station before heading to The British
School in Tokyo (BST), hosts of the ISTAA Under 14
Basketball tournament 2016.
It was a round-robin tournament, meaning that all of
the teams played each other once. The team with thebest record at the end of the tournament would be
declared ISTAA champions.

After playing three straightgames, the team had a welcomed
rest before playing their lastmatch. In the final game, theComets finished as they had
started, with a fantastic win
against valiant opponents, KAIS, winning 49–18.
With an unbeaten record of 4–0, the KIST Comets were
declared the ISTAA U-14 Basketball 2016 Champions!

The Comets were quietly confident, as they had won
all of their games leading up to this tournament.
However, some of the more experienced players werequick to remind each other of last year, where we hadlost our first game to the eventual champions of thetournament. So the team knew that they would need
be focused from the very beginning of the tournament.

On behalf of the team, I would like to thank thosestudents and parents who came along to support theteam, as well as the support we received at all of ourhome games at KIST.

The Comets’ first game, against TIS, proved to be theirmost dominant performance of the tournament,
winning 52–5. They then went on to win their second
match against CIS, 26–13. After playing back-to-backgames the Comets faced BST, who have proven to be
tough opponents in past competitions. With fatigue
starting to set in, the Comets traded baskets with BST
in the early stages of the game. However, after a tense
first half, the Comets started to edge away from theiropponents in the second half, eventually winning thegame 26–16.

Scott Grant
Middle School Basketball CoachFinally, I would like to congratulate all of the players on
an excellent (undefeated) season!

Team members:
G6B: Kaiser, Roi
G7A: Deniz, Dohhyun, Koju, Preston, Jihoo
G7B: Den, Jun
G8A: Aryan, Kenzo, Kai

Photos courtesy of Kevin Williams

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ISTAA Cross Country Invitational
The ISTAA Annual Cross Country Invitational took
place on April 8, 2016 after many cancellations andrescheduling due to inclement weather conditions.
A total of over 275 runners from grades 1 to 12
representing eight different schools participated inthis year’s event. Our KIST runners made us very
proud this year, bringing home many bronze, silver
and gold medals.
Special thanks to Mr Jay, Mr Aki and Mr Lee fororganizing and running another wonderful event.
Also, special thanks to the KIST Community
Association volunteers. We couldn’t do it withoutyou!!
Congratulations to these student athletes!!

ISTAA Cross Country Invitational
Boys
Girls
Grade 1
Gold:
Luca (G1A)
Uta (G1A)
Silver: Sora (G1B)
Aina (G1B)
Bronze: Akihiro (G1A)
Akane (G1A)
Grade 2
Gold:
Roan (G2B)
Kate (G2A)
Silver: Naoki (G2A)
Sara (G2A)
Bronze: Mark (G2A)
Emily (G2A)
Grade 3Gold:
Killian (G3A)
Silver: Ryo Y. (G3B)
Bronze: Sebastian (G3B) Mano (G3B)
Grade 4Gold:
Kaito (G4B)
Silver: Lance (G4B)
Aina (G4B)
Bronze:Homare (G4B)
Grade 5
Silver: Keanu (G5A)
Bronze: Soma (G5A)
Elena (G5B)
Grade 6
Silver: Ryuta (G6A)
Manaka (G6B)
Bronze: Hugo (G6A)
Nanami (G6A)
Grade 7
Gold:
Ririka (G7A)
Silver:Alia (G7A)
Bronze: Den (G7B)
Grade 8Gold:
Nimit (G8B)
Karen (G8B)
Silver: Ewan (G8B)
Emily U. (G8A)
Bronze: Namiki (G8B)
Katherine (G8A)
Grade 9Gold:
Keina (G9B)
Bronze: Tom (G9A)
Ayumi (G9B)
Grade 10
Gold:
Seina (G10B)
Silver: Moe Min (G10A) Leia (G10A)
Bronze: Shouheng (G10A) Selena (G10B)
Grade 11Silver: Ken (G11B)

Logo Design Winner
KIST is proud to announce the new logo for our
Future Horizons Scholarship Program. Chae Hyun
(G9A)’s design was the student submission
selected. Her rationale for the design is as follows.
Thank you Chae Hyun for your support!

“

In my logo design, I tried to emphasize
the KIST spirit by using all four housecolors, drawing the KIST logo, and the
KIST motto. Also, I drew the graduation
hat and the book to represent
education and scholarship.

”

19

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Developing Community Connections
With Japanese language proficiency and strong
understanding of Japanese culture, KIST graduates
offer globally minded companies an attractive option tohiring foreign staff from overseas. Through developing
long-term relationships with Japanese and Japan based
multinational companies, KIST can be of support infostering connections that support companies inmanaging their globalization challenges. We believethat such relationships will benefit companies in
globalizing their workforce but also that such
relationships will benefit our students by allowing themto utilize their skills and abilities, explore opportunities,
and build dreams of how they can make positive
contributions towards making our world a better place
for all. We see such relationships as a win-win for allparties involved.
In order to establish and further develop KIST
connections with our local community, KIST has been
networking with local organizations and inviting a
number of company representatives to come in andlearn more about the school and about what we do.
Already we have made some foundational relationshipsthat have enabled collaboration to begin in areas suchas:
 Guest speakers from organization visiting regularclasses to provide real-life perspective on issued
related to our curriculum.
 Sites being arranged for off campus excursions forregular classes and also students in our summer
camp program.
 Establishing our first ever Career Experience with
KIST program where all KIST Grade 9 students
spend a two-day placement with local organizationsof interest to learn about the host company, whattypes of work are available at the company, andabout how they might be able to contribute to thecompany in the future. This year 33 students
participated in placements at 15 local companies/
organizations.
To build on the progress made thus far, we would like toask our KIST community members for support withfurther developing our community connections in the
coming school year. Some areas where support isneeded are:
 Expanding our placement options for the Career
Experience with KIST Program
If your company or organization would be able tohost KIST student(s) for a 2-day placement in Juneof 2017, we could love to hear from you. Throughsharing time with professionals in a career ofinterest, and experiencing real life knowledge andskills, students will have the opportunity to expand
their career options and gain knowledge of thevarious career choices.
 Providing guest speaker workshops or seminars
If you or someone you know are able to share







practical knowledge
and experience with
KIST students, wewant to hear fromyou. We are planningon holding various
workshops/seminars
that bring the real world into classroom experiences.
In international community there are many who canshare with students of all ages. Some Economics
seminars and IT Programming workshops are being
planned. Why not share your passion with curious
minds?
Volunteer opportunities
We aim for our students to take action to make theworld a better place for all. Since its foundation,
KIST has actively participated in volunteer activities.
Some activities have been small in scale but somehave been major ones as well, such as earthquake
relief efforts in Tohoku, food drives through Second
Harvest, building houses overseas through Habitatfor Humanity, and this year we have a group of
students and teachers going to Cambodia toempower underprivileged youth through theTASSEL project.
Donations to the Future Horizon Scholarship
Program
As a whole school effort to make the world a better
place through education, KIST established the
Future Horizons Scholarship Program to provide
opportunity to academically inclined high school
students, located domestically or overseas, whose
personal context does not allow them access toquality international education. The program isfunded through corporate and individual sponsors
and hence provides excellent opportunity to further
support globalization in Japan and increase accessto quality international education.
Contributions to KISTival
KIST does not receive any subsidies from thegovernment to support with operating our schooland hence community support is essential in theschool being able to deliver quality education and tokeep tuition as low as possible. Our biggest
fundraiser of the year is KISTival and we are
grateful to the strong community support we receive
each year for this event. We are always looking forcorporate sponsors or groups/individuals able tooffer entertainment during the event. If you orsomeone you know may be able to support ourannual festival, through tax-deductible donations,revenue generating entertainment options, or otherideas, please do contact the school office.

If you are able to support your school in developing
community connections that expand minds and build
dreams for our students, please do not hesitate to get incontact with our Development Manager, Yukinori Honda
in the office at yukinori.honda@kist.ed.jp.

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Spotlight on Clubs
Cross Country Club (Elementary)
The Elementary Cross Country Club in its present form, finished its
fourth year in May this year. In this time, the club has beensuccessful in both the number of members as well as the results
attained from the students’ hard work. Each successive cycle has
produced students who are able to run farther and enjoy the time
we spend together in a more meaningful way.
The club can point to many of the participating runners in theschool’s Cross Country as well as the ISTAA Cross Country who
have performed at a high level, as having used the club as a
training ground for their performance. Many of the club members inthe second cycle of the year join with that particular goal in mind.
Strength and endurance are not the only focuses that are importantwith the group, proper training as well as stretching techniques areemphasized to enhance every runner’s experience.
The runners range from grades 3 to 5 and have a lot of enthusiasm
for running and exercise. The supervising crew made up of Mr
Vodden, Mr Yoshihara and Mr Bradley are runners themselves andspend the time on the course pushing their own limits as well as
over-seeing the development and safety of each club member. If
you are looking for a fun, productive way to apply yourself nextschool year, look to the Cross Country Club for an experience that
could truly be “Life Changing”!
Clay Bradley
Cross Country Club Co-Supervisor

Drama Club (Secondary)This semester, the Secondary Drama Club has been working hardto prepare an original skit for the End-of-Year Concert. Building on
the skills many of the students developed during the Drama
Intensive Workshop in the fall, the club members (in Grades 6–10)
enjoyed a number of improv games and activities.
Each Wednesday afternoon, the club has worked towards our final
performance. For the first few weeks, in addition to getting to knoweach other, we also wrote and performed a number of short scenes
or sketches. A few students wrote longer scripts to share with thegroup. One of these, written by Leia (G10A), became the idea weselected to expand and adapt for the concert.
As we prepared the script, we gathered lists of elements we wanted
to include: a story of two different worlds, much like that of ‘Romeoand Juliet’ or ‘West Side Story’; a connection to school life andsummer vacation; a story with both comedy and authenticity; and astory with music. While we are still busily revising and rehearsing,
we are excited to share the final product with you at the End-of-Year
Concert.
Steven Otis
Drama Club Supervisor
KIST is a really special place: the only school where ALL of the students arrived 10 - 15 minutes
early, excited and ready to go, the most motivated group of students we’ve worked with, thebiggest age range but most inclusive, and overall the best teamwork we’ve seen.
Celine Held from Drama Intensive
regarding her experience leading the Secondary School drama workshop in January 2016

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Staff 10!
In this month’s Staff 10!, weare pleased to present Helen
Campbell who joined us in
August 2013 as the PYP Art
teacher in the Elementary
School.
 Tell us somethinginteresting about yourhometown.
I am originally from Edinburgh
Ms Campbell and ain Scotland, although when I start
feline friend.
to count the years, I have actuallyspent more time living in London and the SW ofEngland…Perhaps I will share something interesting
about Edinburgh, apparently JK Rowling wrote her first
Harry Potter series at the Elephant House café there.
 What is your favorite place in the world?
Oh my! This is a tricky one as I have been extremely
privileged to live in quite a few different countries andtravel extensively around this amazing world of ours. I
love nature, expanses of space, whether desert, water,
mountains, forests, or city skylines, and feel just athome and happy in quiet environments as I do in abuzzing busy city metropolis…to name one favourite
place I’m afraid is impossible, as there are too many!
 Who would you like to meet if you had the chance
and why?
One of my closest friends when he was in elementary
school …or Gandhi!
 Do you have any special skills or talents?
I have been told that I take good photographs.
 Please share a little known fact about yourself.
I write poetry and am working on refining my haiku
skills. Words often inspire my artworks (nature andtravel also) I don’t broadcast this much, but I am apracticing artist and have exhibited my artwork in
London, Singapore, and several times in both Vietnam
and Japan.
 What is your most prized possession?
My family, friends and of course my two cats, whosometimes disguise themselves as monsters!
Oh and freedom…
 What words would you use to describe yourself?
Dependable, determined, calm, compassionate,humorous, easy going and creative. But better to ask
those who truly know me  If you could live your life again, would you doanything differently?
No, I am most thankful for the life I have led. I try to live
life with no regrets.
 Is there anything you are trying to learn/improveabout yourself at the moment?
Personal:- I am always trying to learn and improve myself – here
are just some of the things that I am striving to improve:my cooking – I love to cook and eat!!; my downhill skiing
technique and cross country skiing which I learned forthe first time last year; my swimming – I go every week,
not so sure if my style is improving though (I swim like a

V ol u me 19 | I s s ue 4 | J u ne 2 01 6

dog, with my head above water!), but I love it as a formof relaxation and exercise; doing Pilates; and getting outof the city on hiking trails when the weather is good.
- Finding peace and balance in life.
Local/Cultural:- Seeing as much art as I can absorb while in Tokyo
town, it’s a great city for culture and catching live music
performances whenever possible.
- Learning more about haikus.
Global:- Searching for ways to contribute to humanitarian andanimal welfare while in Japan.
- Being a responsible consumer, particularly of plastic
items.
 Do you have any special message for your fans?
Yikes… just one?
- Carp diem!
Don’t sweat the small stuff – life’s too short!
- Try not to waste…anything!
- Grow, learn, teach. Try to give back to those lessfortunate than yourself.
- Keep wondering…don’t just google it! discuss it,
guess it, debate it!
- Laugh lots - Learn to love and appreciate everything around you.

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23

Library News
Sakura Medal Book Bowl
For the second time, KIST students participated in
the All Japan Sakura Medal Book Bowl. Eleven
KIST students visited Yokohama International
School to compete against other students fromschools in and around Tokyo.
Our team worked hard to prepare, taking detailed
notes and practicing together to do their best. The
competition was in April, but our team started
preparing way back in September. New members
joined us in January and did double time to catchup. Congratulations to all of you!
Interested in joining us next year? The Sakura Medalclub is open to G4 and G5 students. Please see Ms
Hynes in the Elementary Library for more information.

Winners of KISTv 2016 Sakura Book Trailer
This year, the Library Team
has launched the KISTv
Channel on the KIST Office
365 video site. This channel
aims to share information
about library events and to
display students’ work. Last
March 25 during the secondary school assembly, thewinners of the 1st KISTv 2016 Sakura Book Trailer
were announced and awarded with a token, certificate
and iTunes card. Special thanks to Mr Jones, Mrs
Shindo (CA President) and the teachers from theJapanese Department for helping us choose anddecide who will be awarded with the following: Best in Video and Sound Editing – Amina(G10B) and Yurika (G10A)
 Best in Script and Storyline – Emiri (G9A)
and Kevin (G9B)
 Best in Animation and Effects – Manaka(G6B) and Se Young (G6B)
 Best in Book Interpretation – Miu (G10A) andErika (G10A)
 Best in Graphic Illustrations – Natasha (G9B)
and Hitomi (G9B)
 Best in Middle School Category – Julie (G8A)
 Most Trending Book Trailer – Natalie (G10B)
and Nikita (G10A)
 Best Actor – Tomomi (G9B)
 Best Actress – Maki (G7A)
 Best Director – Ellen (G10A)
 Sakura Book Trailer of 2016 2nd Runner-up –Natasha (G9B) and Hitomi (G9B)
 Sakura Book Trailer of 2016 1st Runner-up –Ellen (G10A)
 Top Award - KISTv 2016 Sakura Book Trailerof the Year – Aska (G10A) and Ibuki (G10A)

Mr Cowe with Asuka (G10A)
and Ibuki (G10A).

Mr Cowe with Tomomi (G9B).

If you would like to watch the winning book trailers,
please visit the LMC Moodle Page, then click the
KISTv logo. The videos are only shared within the KIST
community so you will need your official KIST e-mailaddress and password to access their work.
Congratulations to all the winners!

2016-2017 sneak peakWithout giving too much away, the Library Team wants
you to know that we have some exciting things planned
for next school year. You’ll see some old favorites like
DEAR and World Cultures Day, but with a new twist.
We’re spicing up DEAR with a “Mystery Book Swap”
and “Blind Date with a Book”. Ever heard theexpression “don’t judge a book by its cover”? Well, we’ll
be hiding some book covers, and you can choose
based on the blurb. Who knows? You might find yournew favorite book! And to think, you might never havepicked it up.
KIST Library Team

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Service Opportunity in the LMC
The Book Blog Team
Research studies claim that there has been a decline in
the number of students who like reading books once
they move-up to middle school (Gander, 2013;
VanSlyke-Briggs, 2011). This could have negative
impacts in our KIST community as we believe that
“reading is a life-long learning skill” that will benefit us in
the future. This situation pushed me to create a groupof students to come together and organize a book
blogger’s forum whose aim is to review andrecommend books to the LMC which we think will beinteresting to our fellow students.
This “Book Blog” Service is a new opportunity andplatform that will promote “reading for pleasure” in thelibrary. My team reviewed several books that we thinkis worth the student’s free time to read. We exchanged
ideas and discussed why these books must be includedin the final recommendation list.
Our discussion forum is found on the LMC Moodle
page. If you have time, you can read our book reviews
and brief introductions about our chosen books. Somefactors that we considered in choosing the books werebased on how good it is in terms of teaching us
important life lessons and how to deal with trials anddifficulties. Most importantly, we considered books thatwill be appropriate and aligned to the school
philosophy.

Fortunately, we were sponsored by the CA Library
Committee with 30,000 yen to buy all of our book
recommendations for the LMC. Thanks to the KIST
Community Association and to the Library Team forallowing us to voice-out our opinions in helping ourlibrary address the needs of declining readership in
middle school.
Nikita (G10A)

Cited works
 VanSlyke-Briggs, K. (2011). What went wrong: Middle SchoolStudents and Alliteracy. In North Caroline Middle School Journal.
Available from http://www.ncmle.org/journal/PDF/Dec11/
VanSlyke.pdf
 Gander, L. (2013). Put an end to the middle school reading decline.
Library Media Connection, 32(3), 20.

Standardized Test Results

Congratulations to the following students for
attaining above the 80th percentile on all 4components of the International Schools
Assessment (ISA) test sat by all KIST students in
Grades 6 to 9 in February!

WELL DONE!!
Nanami (G6A)
Hugo (G6A)
Kishore (G6B)
Minn Thant (G6B)
Kaiser (G6B)
Michiko (G7A)
Ririka (G7A)
Natasha (G9B)

The PSAT exam is taken by all G10 students at KIST.
Results are in and once again our students
have produced some AMAZING results:
Mathematics: 69% of our students scored above the80th percentile
Reading and Writing: 57% of our students scoredabove the 60th percentile
Overall Score: 52% of our students scored above the80th percentile with 33% scoring above the 90th
percentile!
A BIG PAT ON THE BACK FOR OUR GRADE 10s.
If your child is looking for practice resources for the
PSAT or SAT, check out the official College Board
online SAT preparation resource available FOR FREE
through Khan Academy at the link below:
https://www.khanacademy.org/sat

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25

Secondary SRC
With the 2015-16 school year coming toan end, the SRC is busy tying up loose
ends and constructing the figurative
bridge (i.e. the upcoming SRC
Executives Elections) that will lead it
into the next year and beyond. After an eventful year, it isimportant to look back at all that has been achieved bythis dedicated team of young individuals. Starting with our
first ever, student-run Amazing Race-style event “Survivalof the KISTest”, the SRC made efforts to strengthen
bonds between grade levels, promote teamwork skills,
and provide an opportunity for students to gain familiarity
with each other at the beginning of the academic school
year. The SRC then went on to organise an information
booth at KISTival and the annual Winter Concert inNovember, garnering a total of ¥29,580 for the SRC
General Budget and Student Fund, both of which wereused to fund events and long-term investments for the
students and wider school community. Some of these
involved the first SRC dance of the year, “Diamonds in theSky”, as well as the first ever Middle School Dance andHigh School Dance, which were organised as a responseto student feedback that the dances could be made moreengaging for certain age groups. Long-term investments inthe form of dance party lights were made through thepurchase of three versatile dance lights, which not only
served to cut down dance expenses by approximately¥23,000 in total, but were also rented out to other events
such as the World Cultures Day fashion show in February.
The Student Fund was used this year to provide funding
for the purchase of several board games for the LMC as
requested by the House Colour Heads, the provision offood and drinks for the enhancement of the DP Art
Exhibition as requested by G12 DP Visual Arts students,
the provision of celebratory cake at the Graduation of
KIST Class of 2016 as requested by the G12 Graduation
Committee, to provide funding for the TASSEL Family Day
fundraiser as requested by the KIST TASSEL team, andto fund the End of Year House Colour Victory Pizza Party
as requested by the House Colour Heads.
Following the observation that the field is not anaccessible area for a majority of students during lunch
times due to its long-upheld reservation as a football field,
the SRC was able to implement the Open Field Day
proposal, thus creating a day each week when ball sports
are prohibited to make the field open to all students atlunch time. The implementation of Wednesday Open Field
Days received an approval rating of 73% from the student
body and as such was established, with the help of
Secondary School Principal Mr Cowe, as a permanent
component of KIST lunch times.
The administration team has supported the SRC
throughout the year, be it to help donate our March Free
Dress Day revenue to the child victims of the 2011
Fukushima earthquake or to lend materials for events, andamong other collaboration, helped to implement ourBathroom Air Fresheners proposal as well as create an
SRC Video Archive on the school website. The SRC again
worked with the administration in organising a Logo
Design Contest for the new Future Horizons Scholarship
Program, through which G9A Chae Hyun’s logo waschosen and will soon be displayed on the school website.

The SRC, under G10B Rachel’s lead, also collaborated
with the administration and CA on the Kumamoto projectfor family day, which aimed to raise funds for donation,and to set up a pen pal system between KIST students
and the young victims of the Kumamoto earthquake toprovide moral support and a much needed sense of
normalcy during a difficult time.
On March 25, the SRC was able to host another KISTalkevent in which students from grades 10 and 12 (Aska,
Kunthu, Kuni, Rachel and Jiu from G10 and Kei fromG12) presented interesting talks about their experiences
both in and out of school through which they also sharedimportant messages and advice to other students in theaudience. The theme of “sharing ideas” was also
promoted by the continuous funding the SRC provided forthe printing and activities of its 4-year-old brain child, theKISTeens student magazine.
The Arts and Sports Committees are also (albeit younger)
brain children of the SRC under the lead of heads
Muskan (G12A) and Thayalan (G11B), who continued toprovide events and organisation relevant to Arts andSports, such as numerous artistic competitions, biweekly
lunch time concerts, competitive relay events and amyriad of lunch time field reorganisations. The SRC has
also recently confirmed the 2016 Electoral Commission,
an independent group of graduating G12 students who will
not be voting in this year’s elections. Pranita, Saya,
Motoi, Raj and Angela have sworn in to organise the
SRC Executives Elections and look to ensure a smoothtransition between this year’s SRC and the next.
All in all, the SRC has had another productive year in
improving student life at KIST while also providing
opportunities for students in all grade levels to honeleadership and collaborative skills, increase interest in
student politics and cultivate an appreciation for
democracy and community service. We hope that we havebeen a positive presence to secondary school students
and the wider KIST community and look forward toanother great team and year ahead. Yet, thisrepresentative group and its functions can only be as goodas the students of the school, who mould the SRC with
their suggestions. The SRC would like to thank thesecondary school student body and the wider KIST
community for a fruitful year, and would like to remind all
readers to Let Your Voice Be Heard.
Angela (G12B)
President

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Nurse’s Notes
Thermometers
Body temperature
When taking the temperature of students who visit the nurse’s room, I often ask them what
their normal body temperature is; however, most of them do not know the answer. As you
may be aware, a person is said to have a “fever” when their body temperature is 1℃ or higher
above normal. In general, it is said that a person’s normal body temperature is the average oftemperatures taken 4 times a day: when you get up, in the morning between 8:00 and 10:00 a.m., in the afternoon
between 2:00 and 4:00 p.m., and in the evening after 8:00 p.m. If you do not know what your normal temperatureis, I recommend trying this when you are feeling well.
What part of the body is best for measuring temperature?
Different parts of the human body have different temperatures. The temperature of peripheral parts such as thehands or legs, and the surface of the face is unstable as these parts are influenced by seasons and theenvironment. On the other hand, the temperature of the inner parts of the body – known as the centrum – arestable in order to maintain the functions of the brain and heart. The temperature of the inner part of the body iscalled the “core temperature”, and measuring this gives a stable temperature. However, since this is the inner partof the body, it is difficult to measure it in an ordinary setting. Therefore, the armpit, under the tongue, ears andrectum are usually used to measure the temperature which most reflects that of the core, without putting too muchstrain on the body.
Advantages and disadvantages of different types of thermometers Thermometers that measure temperature on the forehead are often used for infants and younger children who
are unable to remain still. The advantage of these is that the temperature can be taken quickly; however,temperatures obtained by this method should only be used as a rough indication. As mentioned earlier, as thetemperature of the face (forehead) is influenced by the seasons and the environment, it is not an ideal position
for measuring temperature accurately.



Thermometers that measure temperature in the ears tend to produce inaccurate results. This type ofthermometer measures body temperature by detecting the infra-red rays emitted from the ear-drum and its
surrounds. Therefore, the thermometer must be inserted deep in the ear towards the ear drum to avoid theinfluence of the outside environment. If this is not done, it tends to produce errors due to its physical nature.



Thermometers that measure temperature in the rectum are suitable for obtaining an accurate temperature thatis not affected by the environment. However, it may not be practical to take a person’s temperature by thismethod due to hygiene issues, as well as the difficulty in doing so in a public setting. This method is usuallyused at NICUs for infants, or when performing autopsies.



Thermometers that measure temperature in the armpit or under the tongue are not influenced by theenvironment and so will produce stable measurements. However, when considering hygiene, there can be
resistance to using the same thermometer someone else has used, even if it has been sterilized. This may
also be the case even with family members. If the tongue is selected as the position to take temperatures,
each family member may prefer to have their own thermometer. Under the tongue is an ideal position to takebody temperature, but also may be disadvantageous if the thermometer has to be shared.



Thermometers that measure temperature in the armpit may be shared without concern for hygiene. As theaxillary artery, which is connected to the subclavian artery, runs directly under the skin of the armpit, it enables
body temperature close to the “core” to be measured. The armpit is the best position to take the most accurate
temperature in a home setting.

I hope this information is useful for families when selecting athermometer.
Makiko Whittaker
School Nurse

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LEAP News
LEAP Semester 2 has come to an end. We thank all parents who participated, and hope to
see you again next year.
We are offering various play based and academic programs for KIST students over thesummer holidays. Please see more information about our programs on the LEAP website(http://www.k-leap.jp/summer-programs). Spaces are filling up fast so get in quick!
If you have any questions about the Summer Programs, please do not hesitate to ask. We look forward to hearing
from you.
Anna Holdaway
LEAP Coordinator

Summer Day Camp (New K1 – G6)

Summer Academic Program (All grades)

Our Summer Day Camp is a play based fun
filled program where students get to explore
their interests and build up their inquiry skills.
This program can also be a great opportunity
for students who are in Tokyo to have fun in
an English environment, and make friends intheir new school.

At KIST, we run regular diagnostic testing
throughout the year to ensure that students
are on track with their learning. Did you
know that students’ scores typically drop
over the summer holidays?

K1 – G2 students take part in various playbased activities at school. This year we areoffering: technology, water play, dance andmovement, music, story writing, art, t-shirt
making and many more!
G3 – G6 students will be visiting various
locations for fun excursions every single day!
This year students will be going to the Haneda
aircraft carrier, local farms, have backyard
tours of many factories, and even have visitsfrom a TV host to teach them how to be agood presenter.

Our Summer Academic Program is anintensive two-week program to help yourchild to brush up on areas that they are
struggling with, and even extend theirlearning onwards into the next grade.
Diagnostic tests for English andmathematics are held in the first week ofschool, so we highly recommend taking thisopportunity to get your child out of ‘holiday
mode’ and back into ‘study mode’ for thestart of the school year.

Check the website for further details!

Applications for the
LEAP Summer
Programs are still open:
Session 1 applications
close:
Wednesday, June 8
Session 2 applications
close:
Monday, June 16

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University Guidance News
Women in Japan conference at ASIJ
A group of high school students from ASIJ (TheAmerican School of Japan) organized and hosted a
one-day conference: “Women in Japan 2016: Realities,
Challenges and Opportunities” on Tuesday, March 8 at
the ASIJ campus. A total of 19 KIST students from G9,
G10 and G11 participated in this informative programwith Ms Christian, Ms Snow and Mrs Okude. Below arecomments from some of the students who participated.
Information about the event and presenters may beviewed at: http://women-in-japan.com/

Ilearned that the issue of equality among
women takes many different forms.
Depending on your career choice, you will comeacross this issue differently. It was a very eyeopening experience, learning about what to lookout for and how to be more cautious.
Sara (G10B)

ASIJ Women in Japan panel.

KIST Spring University Fair
Thank you attending the fourth annual university fair at
KIST. I hope you were able to gather information
directly from the admissions officers and faculty
members at their tables. This year we hosted 36
representatives from 19 universities. We opened thedoor to other high schools and 7 students from Kato
Gakuen, Gyoshu, 2 students from Ritsumeikan Uji and
8 parents from ASIJ came to attend the fair. As always,
the reps enjoyed a relaxing time after the event with arange of refreshments provided by the KIST
Community Association.

Ilearned about Japan’s current condition
about gender balance. It (Ms Asako Osaki’s
session) was similar to Ms Renge Jibu’s talkwhere Japan’s ranking is 101 out of 147
countries etc. The rankings of Japan was very
surprising because I did think that Japan would
be ranked low.
Meng Ting (G9A)

It was especially interesting to listen to Mr
Sachin Shah as I believe when looking at
gender equality, oftentimes many believe women
only are involved. However, it is an international
problem which also affects men. In this sense, it
was very interesting to hear the male perspective
and I believe it is important for men to also
understand the importance of gender equality as
Sachin Shah mentioned a number of economic
benefits which may arise from not only an equal
workplace but an equal world.
Nina (G11A)

M

rs Akie Abe’s speech was inspiring andmoving, and is definitely something that I
will remember for as long as I will live. Mrs. Abe’s
speech told her story about the role of being afemale and a wife of the prime minister.
Emily (G9A)

Through Ms Kazue Kurihara’s discussion, I
have learnt that achieving a high degree
PhD will be beneficial throughout the whole life.
Also I have learnt that having a wide range ofrelationship with various people, it will be helpful
in the later life. Last of all, I have learnt that I
must speak out and say my opinion or else,things will not go as you initially planned.
Seina (G10B)

KIST Spring University Fair

Class of 2016 college and university
acceptances and offers
This year again, KIST has had a successful year withcollege applications. A total of 33 students out of 38
graduates sent applications and have so far received
103 acceptances and offers from 68 colleges anduniversities. There are several students who are still
waiting for the results, or are planning to send
applications after graduation to universities in AsiaPacific and South America. Congratulations andwishing you all the best for continued success in yourfuture!
Mrs Keiko Okude
Career and University Guidance Counselor
Office hours: Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri 10:00-17:00
keiko.okude@kist.ed.jp

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College and University Acceptances and Offers
KIST Class of 2016*scholarship offered (number of students accepted)
As of May 27, 2016

UK
Brunel University London
City University London
Imperial College
King’s College London (2)London School of Economics and Political Science
Queen Mary, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Veterinary College, University of London
St. Georges, University of London (2)University of Bath (3)University of Birmingham
University of Bristol (2)University College London (3)University of Edinburgh (3)University of Essex
University of Exeter (2)University of Kent (2)University of Lancaster
University of Leeds
University of Nottingham
University of Reading (2)University of Strathclyde (2)University of St. Andrews (3)University of Warwick (3)University of West London
University of YorkUSA
Bard College
Bentley University
California State University East Bay
Fordham University*
Georgia State University
Hofstra University
Indiana University
Maryland Institute College of Art
Millsaps University
New York University
Northeastern University
Ohio State University
Pace University (2)Parsons School of Design
Philadelphia University
Rutgers University
Sacramento State University
San Diego State University (2)SCAD Savannah
School of Visual Art
SUNY Buffalo
SUNY New Paltz

SUNY Stony Brook University (2)Syracuse University
UC Riverside
UC Santa Cruz
University of Alabama*
University of Oregon*
University of Illinois (3)University of Minnesota
University of Nebraska*
University of San Francisco
Virginia Commonwealth University

CANADA
Algonquin College
Sheridan College

JAPANInternational Christian University (ICU) (4)Keio University PEARL (3)Nagoya University (2)Tokyo International University
Waseda University SILS
Waseda University Social Science
Waseda University Political Science (2)HONG KONG
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology* (2)UAE
New York University Abu Dhabi*

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Alumnus Report
Keerti Palanisamy is an alumnus of KIST’s “Class of2015.” She has just finished her first year in the BS
Engineering program at the University of Minnesota
Twin Cities, in Minneapolis, USA.
This time last year, I had justfinished the most stressful periodof my life following my DP exams.
My first year of college was just a
few months away and I was really
nervous. Now, I have come out asa confident, independent person
who doesn’t need her parents tosign contracts or ride airplanes.
My college experience began with
Welcome Week. Most colleges in
the US have this week where they
introduce freshmen to the campus
before school starts. Throughout
the week, we learned the school
chants, interacted with many
people, and we also had various
reflection activities which tied tothings I had learned in the IB. Not
even three months had passed
and I was already talking about the
Learner Profile attributes. The U
had rented the Sea World
Aquarium and Nickelodeon
Universe amusement park for onenight and that was the highlight of
the week. (Actually, thehomecoming football game which
was free for all freshmen waspretty sweet too).
The rest of the school year was
great. Academically, the DP had
prepared me for the rigor of mycourses as an engineering student.

Also, because theuniversity was so big,
there were all sorts ofclasses offered. The
freshman seminar aboutchildren and talking
animals and the pottery
class I took provided mewith a break from myawfully challenging
technical classes. Socially,
Keerti standing in the back row, second from the left.
there was always something
minus ten degrees, it doesn’t reallyto do on campus so I was able tomatter if it gets any colder.
have some social life. On campus,
you can join clubs, go to games, orInitially, it was somewhat hardeven take a road trip to Florida toadapting to my new life. But
do community service like I did
making new friends, taking risks,during Spring Break. I found myand putting myself out there reallyniche through joining my sorority
helped. The only advice I canand pushing myself out of my
impart at this point is, try to
comfort zone by running forbecome really close with thepositions. Never did I imagine that I
people in your dorm because theywould be a senator in thereally do shape your college
undergraduate student government
experience. Now, when I thinkor a secretary in the College ofabout my new family I made andScience and Engineering’s student
the things I am going to be
government for the next school
involved with this year, I can’t wait
year.
to return. I mean, how many
students can boast about the“Now Keerti, wasn’t it cold” is theMississippi River floating in their
number one question I get from
campus or a train running through?
people. I’m not going to lie. Yes, it
Go Gophers!
was cold, but it was a different coldfrom Tokyo since you don’t feel it
Keerti Palanisamy
as much. Plus, Minnesotans are
KIST Alumnus, “Class of 2015”very prepared for the cold and afterV o l u me 1 9 | I s s u e 4 | J u n e 2 0 1 6“ T h e Co m et ”

Message from the Board President
Now that the DP examinations, promotion and graduation ceremonies and the elementary and secondary school
concerts are over, another year is about to end.
As our Head of School Mr Jones has already informed you, and as we communicated with you on Family Day, theBoard of Directors has recently revised the school’s mission statement as follows.

KIST Mission Statement (revised for 2016-17)
K. International School Tokyo provides academically motivated children from diverse
cultural and social backgrounds with high quality education in a safe and nurturing
environment to develop competent and moral individuals who make meaningful
contributions to our global community.

In the previous version of the statement, the phrase ‘highly motivated children’ left for interpretation by the reader
as to how we expect our students to demonstrate motivation. In the revised version, therefore, the word ‘highly’
has been replaced with ‘academically’ to make clearer to all in what ways KIST expects students to demonstrate
their motivation to the school. Similarly, the school’s vision statement has also been revised in line with thechanges to the mission as follows.

KIST Vision Statement (revised for 2016-17)
K. International School Tokyo seeks for all learners to demonstrate excellence inacademics and a commitment to making the world a better, more peaceful place.

The school’s mission and vision define KIST and as such, drive all the decisions that we make as a school. In
order for a clearer understanding of the vision, we have added the phrase, ‘all learners to demonstrate excellencein academics’.
In April 2011, I assumed the role of Head of School in order to realign the school with our original founding vision
through the introduction of various educational initiatives. In August 2014, I handed over the role of Head of School
to Mr Jones, and with the strong leadership and cooperation of the administration team, we were able to further
pursue these initiatives.
As a result of the reforms and initiatives we have made, the students have demonstrated significant progress overthe last five years. This is evident from the fact that students are achieving scores that are well above the world
average in external examinations such as the ISA (International Schools’ Assessment), PSAT, IGCSE and the DP,
as well as internal assessments.
Based on these results, the Board decided to revise the school’s mission and vision statements.
We recently conducted a satisfaction survey with families and found out that the majority of parents are satisfied
with the school’s direction of aiming for high academic levels. In order to achieve high standards, it is importantthat parents have the same expectations as the school.
We ask for the continued support of the school community in working together in order to achieve our goals.
Yoshishige Komaki
Board President

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“ T h e Co m e t ”

Family Day 2016
Saturday, May 21