BISK Hawler Early Years

In order to simplify communication we are no longer posting to this FB page.
Please see: https://www.facebook.com/biskurdistan/ for all future BISK postings, news, and information. Thank you!

British International Schools in Kurdistan The British International Schools in Kurdistan-Hawler (BISK-Hawler) welcomes any student who is looking to exceed their own educational potential. At BISK-Hawler we aim to support your development, every step of the way.

The British International Schools in Kurdistan is an independent private school following the British Curriculum.

BISK-Hawler registers students from Nursery to 6th Form.


At present we have a large school just off Mosul Road in Erbil

Ms. Farah's class 2C making school buses. A great way to welcome back and engage our young students!

A Letter from the Principal:

Dear BISK Parents,

On behalf of BISK CEO Mr. Dilshad, and staff of BISK, I welcome all BISK parents and students to the 2019-2020 school year. For those parents who have had their children attend BISK before, this school year will be the best year yet. We are all excited and looking forward to providing your children with a world-class education.

We worked over the past school year, and through the course of the summer, to ensure we are setup for academic success for 2019-2020. As promised last May, with knowledge and approval by Mr. Dilshad Taib, we have made the following improvements for this school year:

1. Native English Speaking Teachers in Early Primary
2. Native English Speaking Teachers for English Department Secondary
3. Native English Speaking Social Studies- Humanities Teachers in Secondary
4. New certified trained SEN teacher from U.S– Special Education Teacher
5. ESL/ABC Native English Speaking Educational Technician
6. A trained Immersion-Dual Language Approach to teaching content to 1st grade students-Optional
7. Fully Staffed with CIE and Houghton Mifflin Books ready for distribution, a new librarian and added journalism course to secondary curriculum.
8. New Uniforms – plus, students can wear black trainers-gym shoes
9. BISK HB Cafeteria – Fresh Homemade food for students prepared by renowned HuQQabaz chef.
10. New Transportation Company

School for primary students starts Sunday Sept 1st, whereas for students in grade 7-12(13) starts on Monday, Sept 2nd. During August 18-29 I conducted in-service training (Professional Development) to new and returning staff. The following are the topics we covered during past two weeks:

1. School Systems and Operation
2. Teaching and Learning
3. Essential Elements of Effective Instruction (EEEI)
4. Mediated Learning
5. Using Data – Collect, organize, analyze and use data to increase student achievement.
6. E-School Portal- so you can monitor your child’s academic progress from your own mobile phone.
7. Grade Keeper – All teachers are required to have grade book to record attendance and four marks a week- homework, participation, quizzes, classroom assignments or project grades

The new BISK Parent Association will be formed during our upcoming Family Fun Day & Parent Convention towards the end of October. More details will be highlighted in an official letter that I will send to all BISK parents translated in Kurdish and Arabic. In the interim, please know that I am available for you from 8 a.m. - 10 p.m. daily, in person, through text (which you should know my school number by now) or through my school email. The Admin staff have been fully trained to handle the influx of new and returning parents. This will help to ensure the registration process is no longer than approximately 30 minutes.

Again, do not hesitate to text, call, or email me if you have any questions or concerns. I am here to serve the educational needs of your most precious prize on this earth – your children. I am truly excited and looking forward to working with all BISK stakeholders to ensure a dynamic academic school year.

Thank you,

Dr. Frano

Minister of Education Meeting:
On August 27th, 2019, his excellency, the Minister of Education of Kurdistan, Mr. Alan Hama Saeed Salih, held a meeting with all private and international school leaders of Kurdistan. Over 200 members of this community participated to her Mr. Alan speak regarding new changes related to these school in Kurdistan. BISK was represented by our principal, Dr. Frano, and Mr. Rebaz, BISK Liaison for Ministry of Education – Kurdistan.
Mr. Alan expressed his determination to stop the waste and corruption within the ministry. We also have a commitment from Mr. Alan that henceforth, our parents will have an improved streamlined process to obtain necessary stamps for school credentials. He also explained teachers who work in public schools and are also employed by a private or international school, must obtain special permission from their line manager and the ministry. Failure to comply will result in placing fines on private and international schools for employing them.
BISK principle, Dr. Frano, being the only internationally acclaimed school administrator in Kurdistan, spoke for approximately four minutes to the attendees. On behalf of BISK CEO, Mr. Dilshad Hassan Taib, and staff, he congratulated the new Minister of Education on his appointment and his efforts to spearhead these much needed changes and improvements within the ministry.
Dr. Frano also shared information from a seminar by Dr. Chinar Saad Abdulla and Dr. Tavga of University of Salaadin, on how over 40,000 students attend international schools in Kurdistan. Of this student population, 20,000 students are located in Erbil where the medium of instruction is English, and Kurdish is considered a foreign language within the school. This is a key issue that will have a significant negative impact. Dr. Frano presented a solution to this epidemic by using the dual language approach to teaching content areas – better known as an immersion program using 90-10 or 50-50 approach. There are currently 400 such schools in the US successfully using this approach. Students should not learn English at the expense of their native language, Kurdish. He also informed attendees and the new minister that a leading research university from Michigan, USA - Wayne State University, will visit during the 2019-2020 school year to conduct professional development for teachers and school leaders on the latest scientific research and best practices for teaching and learning on this subject matter.
A special thank you to Mr. Rebaz, as he did an outstanding job in translating and ensuring the message was accurately conveyed to all members of the audience. Our principle will meet personally with the new minister in the new future to further discuss this and other matters related to the efficiency and efficacy of school operations.

Dear BISK Families:
We are excited to announce a new school bus transportation partnership with Rayan Co. This means an improved quality and timeliness of transportation for our BISK students!
Please remind your children to always be mindful of traffic safety when waiting for the bus.
In addition, it is important that all students are respectful to both the bus driver and equipment/bus. Misbehaving on the bus is a violation of the BISK student code of conduct, and safety is our priority!

Dear Parents/Guardians

We would like to announce our KG Special Offer for children aged 3-5 that are not already enrolled. You can save over $1000 by enrolling your child now!
So hurry!
TIME IS LIMITED!

Kind Regards
BISK KG Team

Fun filled day at Clarise Center! (Part 2)

Fun filled day at Clarise Center!

Mawlood Holiday!

Dear Parents,

Kindly note that the school will be closed on Tuesday 20th November 2018 for Mawlood (Prophet’s birthday).

Wednesday 21st November 2018 will be a normal school day.

Regards
BISK KG Team

Outdoor fun!

KG1 activities!
Topic of the week: Weather

KG 2 activities!
Topic of the week: Weather