From the Director

​Dear Members of the AISL Community,
 
I hope that you are healthy and well and that you had an enjoyable Easter break.
 
We are now in our third week of distance learning. We have a lot of evidence of student learning and we are learning a lot ourselves too!  Many thanks to everyone who provided feedback on our recent survey. We received a lot of positive feedback as well as many helpful recommendations. A couple of issues that stood out were requests for more face-to-face time with teachers, either live or recorded, and suggestions about how parents can help students to structure their days. We are working hard to integrate what we have learned. You can read more about refinements we are making later in this newsletter. We will continue to gather feedback and make adjustments on a regular basis. If you have feedback, questions, comments, or concerns, you are always welcome to contact the teachers, the principals, or me. We are committed to continuing to offer rigorous and relevant teaching and learning experiences through these unprecedented times.
 
As you know, we are always looking for new ways that we can support our students. This week’s Leopard’s Tale has information about three initiatives that we hope will be valuable. First, we are continuing with our skill-building video series by our ASA coaches. I hope that our students (and parents, too) find them useful and fun. We are also restarting the circulation of our library books. Although the library itself remains closed, students and parents will be able to continue to borrow books from our library. Finally, we are pleased to be offering a re-imagined Middle School Coffee House. Please see the articles later in this newsletter for more details.
 
I am aware that there is much speculation about who among our community has left Zambia and who has stayed.  You might be interested to know that approximately 67% of our students are still in Zambia and the remaining 33% are spread across three continents, 17 countries, and 13 time zones. The majority of our teachers (72%) are still in Zambia while the others are spread across seven countries. We are truly an international school!
 
I know that everyone is wondering when the campus will reopen. Unfortunately, we do not yet have any indications from the Ministry of Health nor the Ministry of General Education about when they will consider reopening schools in Zambia. It appears that we will have to wait a while longer to see how the COVID-19 situation develops. Rest assured that we will be ready to reopen when it is safe to do so. This will very likely include a combined distance and face-to-face program to support our students who are here as well as those who will be making their way back to Zambia. 
 
I am pleased to report that when we do reopen, our Kindergarten and Grades 1-3 students will be able to move directly into their new classrooms. The construction project has continued during the campus closure and we are making great progress. I look forward to welcoming you to these new facilities in person!
 
Thank you all so much for your patience, flexibility, and support as we navigate this unprecedented historical moment together. I look forward to continuing to look for ways to support each other.  I have always been proud to be a part of this community and I remain confident that, together, we will be able to weather this storm.
 
Stay healthy and safe,
 
Russ