School Delay Update: February 8, 2020

Dear Parents and Guardians of TLC International School,

尊敬的TLC 家长们,

I hope that this letter finds you and your family well. I would like to give you a few updates on the school’s reopening and our online learning program.
我想借此信向您和您的家人致以健康的问候,并向您更新关于学校重新开学和在线学习计划的信息。

The Education Department of Guangdong has issued a statement saying that no schools in Guangdong province may reopen during the month of February. Please note that TLC will follow the governmental requirements and will not resume until March 2nd the earliest. The authorities will be sending an update closer towards the end of the month with more information regarding the opening date. Meanwhile, the Education Department requires all schools to prepare online platforms for their students in order to continue providing them with an adequate education.

2月7日,广东省教育厅发布声明明确规定,全省各级各类学校2月底前不开学。请注意,TLC将遵循政府的要求,最早的开课时间将推迟到3月2日。具体的开学时间当局将在月底前提前向社会发布。同时,教育局要求所有学校需为学生提供网上学习平台,为学生提供持续、适当的教育。

Since the current situation is unpredictable and unstable, we believe it is not reasonable to waste time and not provide studies to our students. TLC Administration Team joins other international schools and believes that online learning is the best option to support our students’ education at this time. It helps our students to maintain previously acquired skills and continue to progress in their studies while staying safe and healthy. Online classes will count as school days. At this point, there is no plan to make any significant adjustments to the current school calendar.

由于疫情防控情况的不可预测与不稳定性,我们认为不为学生提供学习是浪费时间与不合理的。我们的管理团队与其他国际学校保持紧密的联系,并相信在现阶段为确保学生的持续学习而提供网上课程是最佳的选择。线上课程在确保学生的安全与健康同时,能巩固他们之前所获得的技能以及能使他们继续在学习上获得进步。线上课程将作为正式教学的一部分。在此刻,原定的校历不会做更改。

I understand that an online platform is a new way of learning for you and your children, and it might present some challenges, especially during the first week. Our principals and teachers are open to your feedback and ideas. Please feel free to reach out to them at any time. We will also be sending out parent and teacher surveys to collect more input from you on how we can improve. We have also assigned Ms. Shirley Wang as our Chinese parent tech support. Please contact her at swang@tlcdg.com. Mr. Nathan (nlochala@tlcdg.com ) and Mr. Chad (cwsmith@tlcdg.com) are available to provide support in English. Please feel free to reach out to them if you have technical issues.

我理解网络平台对您和您的孩子来说是一种新的学习方式,对您也会带来一些挑战,尤其是在第一周。我们的校长和老师欢迎您随时与他们联系,向我们提供反馈意见。我们将向家长和教师发出调查问卷,以便收集更多的改进意见。如果您有任何技术上的问题,请随时联系我们的中文技术支持人员:Shirley Wang 女士(swang@tlcdg.com);英语技术支持人员:Nathan先生(nlochala@tlcdg.com),Chad先生(cwsmith@tlcdg.com)。

We agree that face-to-face learning is the best way to deliver instructions. It is unfortunate that we all are facing this current situation, but student safety will remain our priority. I encourage you to consider some of the benefits that online learning presents:

我们知道面对面授课是传达指令的最佳方式。不幸的是,在我们现在这种现状下,确保学生的安全仍是我们的首要任务。我鼓励您思考一下在线学习的一些好处:

• Students can finish assignments at their own pace and availability;
学生可以按照自己的进度和时间完成作业;
• Students can have access to all content and reread or re-watch it as many times as needed;
学生可以访问所有的内容,并根据需求能够反复阅读或重新观看;
• Students can improve their time management and self-discipline skills;
学生能够提高自己的时间管理和自律技能;
• Students have fewer distractions and obstacles to learning;
学生在学习上有更少的分心和阻碍;
• Parents become more involved in their children’s education, which increases their bond and motivation;
父母更多地参与到孩子的教育上,这增进了亲子关系;
• It helps children become more proficient at using technology, which is one of the 21st-century skills.
它可以帮助孩子变得更精通使用技术,这是21世纪的技能之一  。
• It increases student engagement, especially those who are introverted, shy, or have lower self-esteem.
它提高了学生的参与度,尤其是对那些性格内向、害羞或自卑的学生。

Please be reminded that one of the best things you can do for you and your children is to follow preventative safety measures to keep safe and healthy. Please maintain proper respiratory and hand hygiene, ventilate your homes regularly, strengthen your immunity, avoid going outside unless it is necessary, avoid crowded places, and report to the school and the nearest hospital if you have any cold-like symptoms.

请记住,您最能为您和您的孩子做的一件事之一就是遵循防控措施,来确保安全和健康。请保持呼吸道及手部卫生,定期为家居通风,加强免疫力,避免外出或到人多的地方,如有感冒类的徵状,应及时向学校及最近的医院报告。

Stay safe and well-informed.
请确保安全与保持关注

Ana Patenaude

Head of TLC International School
TLC 学校负责人