Student Support Services

Student Support Services at YIS is a collaborative cross-divisional team that provides a support structure to ensure the well-being of students and the broader YIS community with regard to health, social-emotional growth, learning, English language proficiency, and college and career counseling. Team members teach programs throughout the school to promote identified aims and support students, teachers, and parents as needs arise.

Health and Well-being Programs

A nurse is on duty during school hours to assist students from the Early Learning Center through Grade 12, as well as advise teachers and parents with health concerns. Beyond managing the bumps, bruises, colds and coughs of daily life for over 700 students, the school nurse organizes the annual physical examinations for students in Grades 1, 4, 7 and 10. Our Middle and High School health study program is based on the Ophea Health and Physical Education Curriculum and is taught by the Student Life Advisor in conjunction with the Physical Education Department. In early spring, an annual career and health education fair is offered for High School students where guest speakers and outside presenters meet with students and cover various topics related to Personal Health and Social Education (PSHE).

Social-Emotional Programs

Social-Emotional Education

YIS teachers actively contribute to the social-emotional curriculum through their daily interactions with students. The School Counselor works with teachers in developing and delivering a developmental and preventive social-emotional program throughout the school. The program promotes student learning by supporting the positive personal, social and emotional growth of all students.      

• ELC: Students receive Personal Social Education (PSE) lessons on a regular basis.  Topics such as feelings and friendship are covered in these sessions.
• Elementary School: Students receive ten PSE lessons throughout the year. Topics such as transition, conflict resolution, friendship, stress management, and bullying are covered in this class. The School Counselor is available for other classroom visits scheduled on an as-needed basis.
• Middle School: The Student Life Advisor works with Humankind Curriculum teachers in developing and delivering the program within the ‘Vitalic Domain’ of the curriculum. Students receive one period per week of the Humankind Vitalic class. Topics such as transition, conflict resolution, friendship, stress management, bullying, and values are covered.
• High School: The School Counselor and Student Life Advisor support and reinforce healthy social-emotional development through various programs dealing with such topics such as the dangers of alcohol & drug abuse, stress management, and conflict-resolution.

School-wide Themes

Throughout the year Student Support Services promotes school-wide-themes based on the International Baccalaureate Organization’s student learner profile and attitudes. They include such themes as ‘Caring’, ‘Appreciation’, ‘Open-mindedness’, and ‘Independence’.

Personal Counseling

The School Counselor and Student Life Advisor are available for students individually, or in small groups, to assist them with personal problems that may affect their school life, and to help promote the personal, social and emotional growth of the student. Students may directly seek counseling help or be referred by teachers, parents or friends.

Peer Helpers

Student Support Services overseas Elementary and High School students who volunteer as Peer Helpers. The Peer Helpers are given training to become good listeners and helpers. They are involved in activities such as helping new students make smooth transitions to YIS, providing extra help after school, and assisting students to maintain positive friendships.

Learning Programs

Learning/Language Support

• Elementary School: Students who require extra support in English language or are in need of particular learning strategies are referred to Student Support Services by classroom teachers. These students receive assistance either in class or out of class, depending on individual circumstances, with a support teacher for short periods of time.

• Middle School - English as an Additional Language: Students who require more practice to advance their English Language acquisition may opt for English as an Additional Language (EAL) support classes instead of a third language in Grades 6, 7 and 8. They may also be recommended to do so. EAL support classes meet meet three times a week in grade 6, four in grade 7, and 5 times in grades 8 and 9 respectively. Within a linguistic genre framework the curriculum of each course is based on projects in which all students can participate; but within each there is differentiation to allow each student to work from and to his or her appropriate stage of language development. Using the writing process and a whole language approach allows students to address their own particular learning needs at the most productive time. In addition to the EAL support class, students in Middle School may receive short-term in-class individual support. This is across the curriculum and through consultation with Student Support Services and the class teachers.

• High School - EAP: In Grades 9 and 10, EAL develops into EAP (English for Academic Purposes) classes. The EAP course is aimed at meeting the specific language needs of English as an Additional Language (EAL) students, in order to facilitate effective access to the curriculum across all disciplines. It can be seen as a natural continuation of the EAL support class offered in Middle School. The course focuses on the study and examination of key linguistic genres that are embedded in our school curriculum. Students will learn to examine critically and understand the relationship between audience and social purposes and their influences on text construction. Content-based tasks ensure that grammar and vocabulary are taught in context, with an emphasis on developing transferable academic language skills across the curriculum.
  During the course, students will engage in a variety of tasks that will require them to apply this knowledge using the four-macro skills; speaking, listening, reading and writing. There are no support classes in Grades 11 and 12. However, students are able to ask for help from the Student Support Services team.

Mother Tongue Program

The Mother Tongue Program is supported and coordinated through Student Support Services. In keeping with the IB philosophy, maintenance of mother tongue is encouraged and supported at YIS. In the Elementary School, four classes per week are designated for mother tongue instruction. In the Middle School mother tongue classes can be accommodated within the curriculum, after discussion with the Middle School principal. The teachers are employed and compensated by the community, and YIS provides classroom space on the premises. Progress of students in mother tongue classes is included in report cards sent out twice a year. An annual mother tongue festival celebrates the linguistic diversity in YIS.

Community Connection Program

Professionals from various educational disciplines are invited to give talks and workshops for parents and others in the YIS community at Community Connection meetings held on a regular basis. Talks have covered topics such as Parenting, Bilingualism, Emotional Intelligence, and Stress Management.

College and Career Counseling

The Student Support Services Team also includes the College Counselor/Academic Advisor. The College Counselor works with classes and students individually to plan their academic path through IGCSE and the IB Diploma Programme. During 11th and 12th grade the Academic Advisor works with all of our graduates in preparing them for the next phase in their lives, which most often includes applications to colleges and universities, post graduate programs, or exploration of career options.