From the Principal #97

As the Christmas lights are now illuminating the London sky, students and teachers are looking forward to the Christmas holiday. After a busy term, it will be a well-deserved rest. It is however, also essential to plan ahead and effectively prepare for the looming examinations in January 2021. The BTEC students start their public exams on the 6th January and all year groups will have their Mock examinations in the week beginning 18th January 2021, except for the IFP students who will sit their official examinations the following week. The first round of official exams is this Saturday for our students taking the IELTS exams and we wish them every success.

I am not wishing students “good luck” but “good preparation” as I believe students can influence their outcomes by working in a smart fashion. What this means is, to put a couple of hours aside each day to go through past exam questions or to review what is most difficult. By following their teachers’ advice and putting the effort in, students will not only be testing their knowledge and understanding of key topics but also improving their time management. Practice is key and timed practice is even better because it helps students to remain focused going over the tests and quizzes done previously. Testing oneself again or rewriting a paragraph is a very effective way of preparing for an exam.

As I write this, we have more good news: London is now out of lockdown and in Tier 2 and we continue to keep students and staff secure, as we have been doing since the beginning of September 2020; and we are delighted to confirm that DLD College London has been awarded the Carnegie Centre of Excellence Gold Status for Mental Health in Schools ‘Boarding School Mental Health Award’.

Next week is the last week of term and we have two very important traditional fixtures on the DLD Calendar: on Tuesday 8th December at 4pm, you are all warmly invited to watch our Christmas Concert online (look out for the link on Monday) and on Friday, the term will end with the festive Christmas lunch served in the Global Kitchen.

Finally, but not least, I commend to you the Humanities Review: it will give you a chance to sample the talents, creativity and wide range of interests at DLD College London. I am sure that like me, you will find it informative, relevant and impressive.

Wishing you all a very happy and safe festive season as well as a “good preparation” for the new year.

Best wishes
Marie-Do
Marie-Do Reza, Vice-Principal (Academic)