Student Support and Well-Being

The HIS student is at the heart of everything we do. We recognise that students are more likely to reach their full potential when they are happy, balanced and working in an environment where they know that they are valued members of the community. In developing the whole child we are reinforcing the importance of social emotional wellbeing, emphasizing the significance of transferable skills and utilising a reflective approach in building independent, lifelong learners.

At Hanoi International School, MYP and DP Student Support Services encompasses homeroom, extra learning support, counselling, and pastoral care.

The driving principle behind our student support services is to create and enhance a caring and positive learning environment for all. The objectives underpinning this aim are guided by aspects of both the International Baccalaureate and the mission statement of Hanoi International School.

We aim to help our students to develop into, “responsible, globally conscious citizens” (Hanoi International School mission statement) in encouraging them to be, “active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right” (IB mission statement).

In practice, and in everything we do, we strive to be, “Inquirers, Thinkers, Communicators, Principled, Open-Minded, Caring, Knowledgeable, Risk-Takers, Balanced and Reflective.” (IB Learner Profile attributes).

Support in the Elementary

Every student is seen as special and the class teacher is responsible for understanding the needs of each individual within their class and catering to their learning styles. Intervention is intended to decrease risk factors and provide a firm basis for strong future development along the programme continuum.

Therefore, the purpose for intervention include:

Provide support for students in developing academic skills in reading, writing, maths, Unit Of Inquiry (once children have enough language to access the curriculum), social emotional and organization
Help teachers with students who need to affirm their self-identity

Identification and Intervention Procedures

It is the class/subject teacher’s role to identify the student’s learning style, scaffold their learning and differentiate the curriculum in order to help develop the student’s true potential.

Model of Action

Students’ learning needs are identified through a two stage model of assessment and provision. This graduated approach allows for a continuum of addressing students’ needs across the school, and recognises that students’ needs may vary or may be of a temporary nature.

Home-school Partnership

Parents are seen as being vital in any student's education and therefore we strive to build a strong partnership with all parents. The school values the contribution of parents and encourages their participation in any decisions regarding any issues relating to their child. The school will inform parents if/when their child is first identified as requiring learning support provision and will inform parents on a regular basis of their child's progress. The school will also respond to expressions of concern made by parents.

Parents will provide the school with any information which may be relevant, including details about their child's health, early development and behaviour at home, or any learning support provision in the past. Parents will participate in their child's attempt to meet his/her targets, offering support and encouragement when necessary. Parents will collaborate with the school in working consistently with their child. Parents will liaise with the school by attending review meetings, informing ELS staff of any concerns that may occur between meetings and by contributing to any home-school liaison arrangements.

Support in the Secondary School

Learning Support (LS)

This program is individualized for each student and built around details provided by observations, teacher feedback and assessment, both within the school and, if seen as necessary, using an external assessment educational expert. This data helps the school to develop an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) or a Student Support Plan (SSP) which is built collaboratively through meetings with parents, students, the school success team and, if required, input from external specialists. Within this program, students receive additional support, in or out of class, as determined by their level and nature of need. Close monitoring and reviewing of progress occurs throughout the year.

Extra Learning Support

“Extra learning support has made a huge difference to me. It has taught me and helped me through. It helps to build my confidence and to always have somebody to keep me on track.”
- Grade 9 student

At Hanoi International School, we recognise that not every student is the same. As an inclusive school, we welcome students with a range of abilities and aptitudes. Where students present with a learning weakness, our approach is to teach the student how to use their strengths to compensate for things they find difficult. Our long term goal is always to develop independent, lifelong learners with a strong sense of self-worth.

For students who require additional help, our learning support department works with teachers to ensure that learning and assessment is differentiated. We can provide one on one support, small group support, in class support as well as working with private tutors and learning assistants to ensure their focus is supporting the student’s progress in line with MYP / DP development.

Our ‘Additional support framework’ illustrates the sort of in-school support we can provide for students who have different levels of need. Additional support may have a cost implication. Please ask at the main office for more details.

As well as an admissions procedure that helps us to identify students who may require extra learning support, we have a comprehensive referral procedure that ensures a clear pathway for concerns to be raised by either student, teacher or parent, at any point during the student’s time with us.

If you have concerns about your child or would like further information about the services we provide, please contact knolan@hisvietnam.com

Homeroom

“It’s really good having a homeroom teacher as we get the chance to learn about life problems. My homeroom teacher really cares about me. It’s good to know that somebody cares about us in school.”

- Grade 9 student

Each student in the MYP and DP is allocated a homeroom teacher who is the main point of contact during the school year for both students and parents. Homeroom teachers see their homeroom students for ten minutes at the beginning of every day and for one 45 minutes homeroom period every week.

The role of the homeroom teacher encompasses the following:

Complete administration tasks such as locker allocation, complete attendance records and distribute notices to the students
Be the point of contact for that student with both teachers and parents
Provide care and assistance for individual students in their homeroom class
Develop transferable and social emotional skills and understanding of appropriate real life topics that are relevant to the students
Ensure that students are ready and prepared for each school day

MYP Homeroom Curriculum

The homeroom curriculum is delivered by homeroom teachers, in conjunction with specialists such as the counsellor, nurse and visiting speakers. The homeroom curriculum is taught through the IB framework which means that students not only discuss topics such as bullying and peer pressure, but they also develop their conceptual understanding and transferable ATL skills.

The overall objectives of the MYP homeroom curriculum are:

To guide and counsel students
To support students through social emotional learning
To support students with demands of the IB programme & assessments
To explore developmentally appropriate topics
To promote the development of balanced learners
To develop the whole child as a life-long learner with a strong sense of self worth

Whilst the range of topics taught may change from year to year, in response to the needs of the particular homeroom class, the following topics illustrate the types of themes we are exploring in homeroom.

Our homeroom curriculum is supported by our ‘Anti-bullying’ policy and ‘Exploring intimate relationships in the classroom’ policy. Please see attached policy documents for further information.

Grade Level	Topics Covered
6	School rules and individual responsibility towards them Changing identity; to include what it means to be an MYP student, puberty and relationships with peers Appropriate communication in different relationships, to include bullying and social etiquette in an international environment
7	The value of a balanced lifestyle, to include; study skills, organisation, exercise, screen time, sleep, work and play balance Conflict resolution, bullying - recognising it and dealing with it International-mindedness, to include; connections between identity and culture, empathy for different perspectives
8	Managing conflict and effective group work, collaboration, responsibility, leadership Exploring meaningful action in community, to include; everybody’s responsibility to contribute to society, identifying need, evaluating own strengths, developing research and reflection skills Sustainable relations; exploring how relationships are changing with friends, family and teachers. Exploring how relationships are changing with the opposite sex - to include education on intimate relationships
9	Diversity; an exploration into tolerance, respect, minorities, individual responsibilities to the world Mental health; exploring stress, depression, anxiety Exploring balance in relationships - asserting rights, active listening, independence, self-value, a continued look at intimate relationships
10	Boundaries in communication - exploring what kinds of things we find difficult to talk about, why that is and how can we manage those conversations Understanding where help and support can be found, both within the school and the local community Exploring decision making - a critical look at what informs our choices, an introduction to the influence of reason and emotion on the choices we make

Home Partnership

Home-school Partnership

Parents will provide the school with any information which may be relevant, including details about their child's health, early development and behaviour at home, or any learning support provision in the past. Parents will participate in their child's attempt to meet his/her targets, offering support and encouragement when necessary. Parents will collaborate with the school in working consistently with their child. Parents will liaise with the school by attending review meetings, informing Student Support staff of any concerns that may occur between meetings and by contributing to any home-school liaison arrangements.

Counselling

“The counselling helped me a lot. Having somebody there at the time of struggle meant a lot. I knew that if I needed to talk, the counsellor would be there to listen. It wouldn’t be the same without her help.”
- Grade 7 student

At HIS, we understand that we all need a little help from time to time and students are no exception to this. For those times where students need a chance to talk, we provide a confidential counselling service. Students can drop in or email for an appointment either before school, during the day, or after school.

In serious cases where individuals require long-term or professional psychologist intervention, we recommend contacting Hanoi Counseling Psychology group: http://hanoicounselingpsychology.com/

Student counselling services are confidential unless we are concerned about a child’s safety or wellbeing. In those cases, parents will be contacted.

For emergencies out of school hours, students can contact any of the help lines below: