@TheRegentCollege Vol 3 Issue 5.pub

@TheRegentCollege VOLUME 3, ISSUE 5 FRIDAY, 1ST MAY, 2020 EDITORIAL FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK We have come to the end of an- other eventful week of virtual Dear Parents/Guardians, learning at The Regent College. We are very pleased with how things are progressing with our online classes From @TheRegentCollege desk, and thank you for your back-up role in ensuring that our students make the we are delighted to bring you up to best of this necessary format of learning. speed on the experiences of both As it is, our partner institutions and curriculum providers are all working online students and teachers so far. and Term 3 has started in earnest. We, therefore, need your support in coun- We hope that you will turn the selling the few students who need to take their classes more seriously. Our stu- pages with pleasure as you jour- dents will be writing joint Foundation exams with the students of St. Andrews ney with the students on the ad- College (STAN) in June and they must be fully prepared before then. We are venture of transitioning from initial glad that despite the lockdown, the research projects which account for 40% of state of anxiety to a kind of learn- the final grades have been completed and sent to Cambridge for assessment. ing they are “growing fond of!” AS & A LEVEL CERTIFICATION Happy reading, and be safe! In preparation for the final submission of our students’ grades to Cambridge Mr. Tim Hyua exams at the end of May for their certification, the students are variously re- viewing their syllabuses and will be assessed continuously. IN THIS ISSUE: LEADERSHIP PROGRAMME From The Principal……...………….……….1 To positively build our students’ portfolios the online leadership classes are HOD’s Report………………….….. ………....2 geared towards creating content that will enhance their standing and perfor- E-Learning Experiences…………..…….3-6 mances in their various university visa interviews. They are practical and hands- Protecting your Health.…………..……….7 on guidance which will make each student’s individual and team participation skills stand out. Please visit the leadership class on Friday 8th May, 2020 for a glimpse. We again request that you partner with us in encouraging our students to take online classes, tests, and assessments seriously in the new week. Their co- students in Cambridge are also getting ready for the same exams and we must not fall behind them. Thank you for your constant support. Do stay safe, C.I.Ebiai Principal Respect Responsibility Resilience

Page 2 Page 2 HOD’S REPORT FOUNDATION PROGRAMME REPORT With plans already laid down for the third term, the coronavirus pandemic turned out to be a huge dis- traction. Undaunted, we quickly turned to the internet for both teaching and administration. Aside from occasional internet hitches, lessons have been going on as planned. Monitoring of classes too has been going on remotely via Google Meet invites, which grants supervisor(s) access to all clas- ses on Google Classrooms and WhatsApp platforms. Though it’s challenging, our students and parents do not deserve less and we remain absolutely committed to delivering at the highest level. In a couple of weeks, Foundation students will be writing their final examinations. Teachers are work- ing very hard towards exceeding the grades-spread achieved last year. This is through focused teach- ing and continuous assessments. To, prepare our students for University life and challenges, a reading list was shared with the students. This also includes a free course they can take to boost their thinking and analytical skills. The coming weeks will see us working even harder to improve on teaching and administration. Thank you. Michael Monday Business Teacher/HOD, University Foundation Programmes ADVANCED LEVEL & ADVANCED SUBSIDIARY PROGRAMME REPORT The Advanced Subsidiary and Advanced Level Programme at The Regent College Abuja has continued to witness progress in delivering academic curriculum amidst the COVID-19 pandemic via its online classes. The online learning programme has showcased various teaching methods within two weeks of the College's resumption. 90.5% student attendance was reported after the first two weeks of the online learning programme. In line with the Cambridge International Examination recommendation for schools in grading registered candidates for the June 2020 examination series, The Regent College Abuja has embarked on a weekly online assessment in addition to other assessments gathered before the school vacated in Term 2. Stu- dents are encouraged to take this assessment serious as it is advantageous to their final CAIE grades. We also seek the assistance of our esteemed parents to sustain the provision of needed support so that students will continue to enjoy learning even while at home. We would appreciate it if students are equally sensitized by parents to attend classes regularly and on time. Awonusi Babatunde HOD Adanced subsidiary and Advanced Level Programme. Respect Responsibility Resilience

Page 3 Page 3 E-LEARNING EXPERIENCES My experience with classes has been quite nice and easy. Although I don’t have the full school experi- ence with longer classes and face to face interaction, I am able to learn just as much as I would with regular classes. I also do have some part of the school experience as well since my teachers try to give us students as much help and support as they can. I feel it is now way easier to reach out to teachers and talk to them about topics or issues I may be having one on one. I believe the online classroom in general is an innovative way that ensures learning continues, rather than having teachers just giving us websites and books to read because some students, like myself, have an easier time learning when it is more hands on. In this light, I think the novel covid-19 pan- demic might have driven us out of regular in-person classrooms, but it has equally introduced us to an all new, exciting and rewarding online learning experience, which holds strong potential to greatly in- fluence how learning happens in future. Halima Sadia Sani Foundation Student Respect Responsibility Resilience

Page 4 Page 4 E-LEARNING EXPERIENCES CONTD. Due to the sudden outbreak of C0VID-19, a lot of things have changed for me and millions of others around the world. Everything you could possibly think of that involves social interaction has been can- celled as the nation imposes a full lockdown. Everyday, there’s a new case of the pandemic and the numbers just seem to rise with every NCDC update. As a result, many endeavors including businesses and schools in the country have been closed. For the first time in my life, my once in-class exams and lessons have now transitioned into an online experience. The start of it all was definitely absurd and nerve wracking as it is, of course, an alien ex- perience for me – uncertainty and confusion was an inevitable response from me and, I guess, many fellow students. It has been over a week since regular lessons resumed. So far, they have been interesting to partici- pate in. And yes, I have quickly realized that I can be in class even from the comfort of my bedroom, an aspect of e-learning that I am growing fond of! However, this does not erase the fact that I should never relax when it comes to studying where twice as much effort is now required. Fauziah Amina Gebi Advanced Subsidiary Student Respect Responsibility Resilience

Page 5 Page 5 E-LEARNING EXPERIENCES CONTD. Virtual learning has become our ‘new normal’ because of the coro- navirus pandemic which led to an unexpected global lockdown be- ginning earlier in the year. With the official resumption of our virtu- al term on Monday, 20th April, 2020, we (Members of staff) were certain online learning would rec- ord tremendous success particu- larly because of the many policies and procedures of online teaching and learning put in place by the Management of The Regent Col- lege. Teaching and learning officially began on Tuesday, 21st April, 2020, and it’s been a smooth and exciting journey so far for me per- sonally, and I believe for all my colleagues. I must commend the efforts and commitment of all stu- dents particularly the AS, A Level and International Relations Foun- dation students who have dis- played quality leadership by driv- ing their learning during this peri- od. Teaching and learning has been as normal for us today as it was in pre-COVID-19 days with videos, slides, worksheets and other teaching and learning re- sources still in use while we teach and learn online. In my opinion, online learning has been a blessing in disguise as I have seen students show more com- mitment to their learning than they have done before. With the management and staff working tire- lessly during this period and the unquantifiable commitment of our students, not forgetting the great support of parents and guardians, we are very hopeful of achieving excellent results, believing too that this phase (the coronavirus lockdown) shall pass. Mrs Okereke Ojiaku International Relations Teacher Respect Responsibility Resilience

Page 6 Page 6 E-LEARNING EXPERIENCES CONTD. I definitely think fear gripped everyone when COVID-19 emerged in Wuhan and began to threaten the rest of the world with a rapid and devastating spread. So it wasn’t out of place for schools to be closed, pushing us students into another learning alternative – online classes. At first, I was a bit skeptical about the effectiveness of learning online - I thought about how the inter- net can be really bad sometimes, so I wondered how that would make the online classes flow smooth- ly. But after we started, I realized that it was not as bad as I thought it would be and although there were a few internet hitches, the classes have, overall, gone on smoothly. Contrary to my initial worry, the sessions are also orderly, with no form of rowdiness. So, overall, it has been an exciting adventure and, hopefully, I won’t become a couch potato as I look forward to an early end to the pandemic. Paul-Daniel Paul-Enenche Foundation Student Respect Responsibility Resilience

Page 7 Page 7 PROTECTING YOUR MENTAL HEALTH How adolescents can protect their men- tal health during coronavirus (COVID- 19) Being an adolescent is difficult no matter what, and the coronavirus disease (COVID- 19) is making it even harder. With school clo- sures and cancelled events, you are missing out on some of the biggest moments of your lives as well as everyday moments like chat- ting with friends and participating in classes. Due to the outbreak, if you are feeling anx- ious, isolated and disappointed, know this; you are not alone.  Recognize that your anxiety is completely normal: if school closures and the news are making you feel anxious, you are not the only one. In fact, that’s how you’re supposed to feel. Your anxiety is going to help you make the decisions that you need to be making right now; not spending time with other peo- ple or in large groups, washing your hands and not touching your face. Those feelings are helping to keep not only you safe, but others too. While anxiety around Covid-19 is completely understandable, if you are wor- ried that you are experiencing symptoms, it is important to speak to your parents about it. Keep in mind that illness due to Covid-19 infection is gener- ally mild, especially for children and young adults and remember there are many effective things we can do to keep ourselves and others safe and to feel in better control of our circumstances by frequently washing your hands, avoid touching your faces and engaging in social distancing.  Create distractions: one thing that helps you to deal with this is creating distractions for ourselves. Do- ing homework, watching a favorite movie or getting in bed with a novel as ways to seek relief and find balance in the day-to-day.  Find new ways to connect with your friends: if you want to spend time with friends while you’re practic- ing social distancing, social media is a great way to connect. Get creative: join in a Tik-Tok challenge like #safehands# but make sure you do not spend all your time on social media.  Focus on you: have you been wanting to learn how to do something new, to read a new book or spend time practicing a musical instrument? Now is the time to do that. Focusing on yourself and finding ways to use your new-found time is a productive way to look after your mental health.  Feel your feelings, be kind to yourself and others: missing out on events with friends, hobbies, or sports matches is incredibly disappointing. The best way to deal with this disappointment is to let yourself feel it. When it comes to having a painful feeling, go ahead and be sad, and if you can let yourself be sad, you’ll start to feel better faster. Processing your feelings looks different for everyone. Some are going to make art, some are going to want to talk to their friends and use their shared sadness as a way to feel connected, some find ways to get food. What’s important is that you do what feels right to you. Dr. Sayo Chukwudile Respect Responsibility Resilience