尊敬的CIC學生家長，
一月份新學期伊始，我們希望能夠拓寬家長和學校之間的交流渠道。
- 如果您有任何疑問，我們的任課教師、學業指導部、大學申請部、入學部、國際部、副校長、我本人以及其它全面照顧教育計劃®團隊成員都隨時可以幫助您。
- 我們希望您能獲知我校一月份將實施的各項重要舉措。
我們非常驕傲的告訴您，在聖誕假期之前，我校有130名畢業生獲得了安大略省高中畢業證書。我們為他們感到驕傲，並希望他們在加拿大、美國、英國等各大學的繼續學習中能一切順利！
2020年一月學校將有哪些重要舉措？
您知道嗎？從2020年一月開始，我校所有老師將使用谷歌課堂進行教學。在過去的一年裏，我們的老師接受了培訓，掌握了如何使用谷歌教育軟件加強課堂內的數字化教學，如何合作創建谷歌文件和幻燈片、如何提高老師與同學之間的交流。我們為此感到振奮不已！
為了給全天候使用谷歌課堂做好充分準備，我們要求您的孩子攜帶筆記本電腦到校上課。老師會告知您的孩子何時使用谷歌課堂，何時需要認真聽講。老師會用“打開或關上”這樣的指令來使您的孩子明白何時該使用電腦，何時該認真聽講。
我們建議您將孩子的筆記本電腦看做他們校服的一部分——他們需要每天攜帶。我們需要您的支持，以保證您的孩子在1月份開學時擁有合適的電子設備。
手持設備，例如智能手機，不適合在課堂上使用。學校將禁止學生在課堂上通過手持設備使用谷歌應用軟件。平板設備，例如iPad，可以在課堂上使用，但並不提倡。我們建議在課堂上使用谷歌操作系統的Chromebook或者筆記本電腦。
從一月份開始，哥倫比亞國際學院將在全校實行“禁止在課堂上使用手機”政策。這意味著在上課時間學生將需要將手機關機並收起來。我們知道學生會隨身攜帶手機，但是當他們在教室裏時，他們則必須將手機收好。我們相信，這將幫助學生更多的專註於他們在課堂上的學習。
此外，我們想分享一些關於校園及宿舍的最新動態：
- 我們很高興與您分享：哥倫比亞國際學院在2019年10月投入使用了Northcliffe校區。該校區處於漢米爾頓風景最秀麗的區域，為我們的學生提供了絕佳的學習和生活環境。作為宿舍，它為學生提供膳宿、自習室、餐廳、室外活動空間等。
- 我們也很高興歡迎我們的ESL學生和初中部學生（JMS）搬到Maple校區。我們希望這種過渡能夠使我們的學生做好準備，迎接未來幾年的高中學術課程。
此致!
校長 Bill Ironside
副校長 Diana Reid
（附：英文原件）
Dear CIC Parents,
As we begin our January semester, we wanted to open the lines of communication between our families and our school. Please know our school faculty, guidance team, UPO team, admissions and liaison staff, our Vice Principal , myself and our total care team are always available to you should you have any questions or concerns. We want to ensure you are aware of some important information regarding our school wide initiatives beginning in January.
We are proud to share with you that before the holiday break 130 CIC graduates receive their Ontario Secondary School Diploma. We are proud of them and wish them well as they continue their studies across Canada, the US and the UK at post-secondary institutions.
What’s happening in January 2020?
Did you know that when your son/daughter starts their classes in January 2020 that 100% of our teachers will be using Google Classroom to support their learning? This past year our teachers have been working hardto learn how to best use the many Apps in Google Education to enhance digital learning in our classrooms; to create and collaborate on Google Docs and Slides and to better communicate your work with the teacher and classmates. We are excited.
To best prepare for Google Classroom all day, it is required that your son/daughter bring a laptop to class.The teachers will advise your son/daughter when they will be using this technology and when they are asked to focus on instruction. The teachers will using “Lids up and Lids down” to help your child understand when they are working on their laptop and when they are asked to focus on teacher led instruction. We encourage you to think about your child’s laptop as part of their uniform – they have to have it with them every day. We are asking for your support to ensure your child has the appropriate technology ready to start classes in January. Handheld devices are not suitable and will not be allowed for using Google in our classrooms in January. Tablets such as iPads can be used, but are not recommended for Google Classroom. We are recommending a Chromebook or laptop.
In fact, Columbia International College will have an ‘Off & Away’ school wide hand phone policy beginning in January. This means that cellphones will need to be powered off and put away during class time. We understand that students will be carrying their handphone with them but when they are in our classrooms, they must be secured and put away. We believe that this will help our students focus more on their learning in our classrooms.
Finally, we would like to share some news about our campuses and residences. We are delighted to share with you that Columbia International College opened its Northcliffe Campus in October 2019.This sprawling campus is located on the Hamilton escarpment with scenic views,proving a great learning and living environment for our students. As a residence, it includes living accommodations for our students, study rooms, cafeteria, outdoor space, etc. We are also excited to welcome our ESL students and Junior Middle school students (JMS) to our Maple campus. We are hopeful this transition will allow our students to ready themselves for our academic secondary program in future years.
Yours sincerely,
Mr. Ironside & Ms. Reid