1. BISbuzz Issue 12 | 1
BRITISH INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL - HO CHI MINH CITY| SECONDARY CAMPUS
NOVEMBER 14 2014 | ISSUE 12
IN THIS ISSUE
From the Head Teacher 02
Remembrance Assembly 03
Armis ce Day 06
Sport News 07
Community Services 08
PTG 09
From The BIStro & Underground 11
November
12th ‐ 16th U15 FOBISIA Games, Jakarta
13th ‐ 18th FOBISIA Music Fes val, Beijing
19th Year 10 Parent Teacher Student Conference, 4pm
20th Teachers Day
20th Year 12 Parent Workshop , 6.30pm
21st ‐ 22nd Psychology Sleep Study, 7pm
UPCOMING EVENTS
2. BISbuzz Issue 12 | 2
From The Head Teacher
Happy World Kindness Day!
There are a number of websites and organisa ons you can access to help you join in with World Kindness
Day 2014. Among them are:
h p://www.randomactso indness.org/
h p://www.kindnessuk.com/
Armis ce Day
This week much of BISbuzz is dedicated to Armis ce Day, which the school marked with a poignant
assembly led by Mr Sean O’Neill on Monday. If you s ll believe that this event is less relevant in SE Asia,
do take me to read Mr. O’Neill’s piece here in BISbuzz and the responses of our students.
Richard Dyer
Head Teacher, Secondary
Only at BIS.
A dark room. A white screen. Shadows. An ancient legend.
UV Light. Dayglow paint. Loud music. A mimed fantasy.
This was the BIS Theatre students this week, in their shadow play and
black light studio performance.
Bizarre, moving, funny, technically awe-inspiring. A real treat!
Only at BIS!
3. BISbuzz Issue 12 | 3
It is a real privilege to lead our Remembrance assembly today on this, the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of The
First World War. I know there’ll be many of you asking, “Why is WWI so important?”. There were countless wars
before and there have been many since , why does our ‘remembrance’ begin here?
As a History teacher one becomes used to discussing conflict, tragedy and the darkest episodes of our past, but yet
it is teaching about WWI that always upsets me the most– I’ve o en asked myself why?
Is it because of the sheer numbers of dead? Or because it was the first war which involved mass industrial warfare?
Or the first involving people from every corner of the globe?
I don’t believe so.
WWI is so heart‐breaking for me because of the cruel irony of the fact that so many young men signed up joyfully,
willingly, excitedly, whipped up into a patrio c fervour by those in power and indeed those around them, only to
find themselves faced with the horror of the trenches.
And behind the thousands of soldiers who volunteered lies a human story. And today I’d like to share 3 of those
stories with you.
…
Firstly, John Condon, from Waterford in Ireland. John like many Irishmen enlisted enthusias cally for the army and
a er some ini al training le his home for the first me on his way to Belgium where he found himself at the
Second Ba le of Ypres in 1915.It was at this ba le that poisonous chlorine gas was used for the first me.
The trench John lay slumped in to escape from the ar llery and grenade onslaught of the advancing enemy was
drowned by a cloud of the yellow gas, tearing at his lungs and scorching his eyes.
A thousand men died that day, May 24, 1915 in one of the worst
massacres of the war.
When he died, John was 14 years old.
The same age as some of our Year 9 students here today.
Such was the demand that recrui ng sergeants turned a blind eye to
teenagers who were obviously far too young to fight. And when the
recrui ng sergeants were being paid two shillings and sixpence for
every new recruit, they weren’t going to turn many away. And
children like John would lose their lives as a result.
Remembrance Assembly
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The next story I’d like to share with you is that of Harry Farr from London. Harry was a soldier before the war
started and so was part of the Bri sh Expedi onary Force involved at the very outbreak of war in 1914.
Harry fought in many early ba les and was subject to horrendous condi ons, his posi on at the Front Line was
repeatedly bombarded by shellfire and in 1915 he collapsed with convulsions.
Harry was one of thousands of soldiers in WWI whose bodies could no longer stand the con nuous bombardment.
Today we refer to this condi on as Post Trauma c Stress Disorder – then it was known as Shell Shock. Its effects
were devasta ng.
Despite suffering from Shell Shock, Harry was returned to the Front at the Ba le of the Somme. Harry Farr broke
down, unable to fight. He was put on trial for cowardice, for disobeying orders to go to the Front Line. He was
found guilty and shot by firing squad. No allowance was made for his medical condi on. He was one of 306 Bri sh
soldiers who were executed by their own country in WWI.
The shame associated with being labelled a coward meant that these men were never spoken of by their families
and although the 306 were pardoned in 2006.Their names s ll do not appear on official war memorials.
‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐‐
The last story I’d like to share with you is not that of an individual – but rather a group of men – in fact quite a large
group.
The 92,000 men of Vietnam who fought for France in WWI. Many from Saigon, and the surrounding region.
In February 1915, these Vietnamese men set sail from Saigon to Marseille, where they were formed into combat
ba alions. The 7th and 21st Indochinese ba alions saw ac on both in France and Macedonia, suffering the same
horrendous condi ons, par cularly at the Ba les of the Somme and Picardy where they repulsed a heavy German
assault. Of the 90, 000 who le Saigon, 30,000 lost their lives.
30,000. Imagine. That’s 50 of these auditoriums full of men from this country who gave their lives. And so whilst
WWI may seem a distant conflict between old European Powers – it is likely that many of us here today will have
connec ons to people who served in WWI.
This photograph of captured soldiers illustrates this perfectly, on the far le a Vietnamese soldier, to his le an
Indian serviceman, Senegalese, Sudanese, Russian, Canadian, Portuguese and Bri sh.
Beyond these human stories, at this 100 year anniversary we remember that WWI was also important in changing
the course of History because it sha ered myths:
The myth that those in authority should be followed blindly
The myth that someone’s social class should determine their posi on
The myth that women were not capable of everything that men are.
And the myth that there are ever any victors out of war.
And so around the 11th November, the date in 1918 at which the armis ce was signed bringing an end to the war
as an act of remembrance, many wear the poppy – the flower that first grew from the wasted ba lefields of
Northern Europe where so many lost their lives. This very familiar act of remembrance is not without controversy,
some cri cise the wearing of the red poppy as glorifying war and choose to wear the white poppy to symbolise
peace. Many choose to wear both.
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To mark the centenary this year over 800,000 ceramic poppies each one represen ng a Bri sh or Commonwealth
soldier who died in WWI, have been planted at the Tower of London in an installa on en tled ‘Blood Swept Lands
and Seas of Red’, 4 million people have been to see the installa on as an act of remembrance.
And yet some have asked why are the Bri sh only focussing on the Bri sh dead? Why not include the many more
young men of Germany or Russia and all the other vic ms of the conflict?
One thing WWI teaches us is to be wary of na onalism and so it is important that we remember those who have
lost their lives in all conflicts irrespec ve of na onality. In 1919 they called ‘The Great War’, “The war to end all
wars”, but since that conflict es mates suggest that 150 million people have died through conflict.
Each life lost a tragedy.
Since this assembly began, 14 more people will have died in conflict.
Just as 100 years ago, today young men are being recruited to fight and die. But despite this we should remain
hopeful that each genera on can slowly replace militarism with peace and na onalism with interna onalism.
And so we remember John and Harry, and the Vietnamese ba alions of WWI, and all vic ms of war to mark their
sacrifice and to help us to avoid conflict in the future.
Please be silent for the Last Post and to observe a few moments of reflec on for all those how have given their
lives in war.
Sean O’Neill
Assistant Headteacher
6. BISbuzz Issue 12 | 6
Armistice Day
Ms Cro ’s Y11 ESL class wrote ar cles to explain why commemora ng Armis ce
Day is so important for the BIS community. Here are two contribu ons:
Armis ce Day, which is be er known as ‘Remembrance Day’ is a very important
day for everyone, including you reading this ar cle. 11th of November is the
anniversary of Veterans Day in the US and commemorates the signing of the
armis ce between the World War I Allies and Germany. However, some students may think that it is not
important to commemorate Armis ce Day.
On Monday, students at BIS heard a lecture and saw a moving clip about Armis ce Day. We also had a
one‐minute silence which made us remember the 20 million who died during the conflict. When I was
young, I didn’t really know what Armis ce Day meant. I couldn’t recognize how enormous the ba le was,
how cruel it was, and also what exactly it was! That was the reason why I always slept during the silence
at school but a er I know how important this is, I started to think once again during this silent me.
It is important to commemorate Armis ce Day because so many people sacrificed themselves for their
own countries. Thanks to their sacrifice, we can live in this safe, convenient life! Those brave people made
this life nowadays and if it hadn’t been for them, maybe, we should have to learn how to fight with others
and how to use guns and bombs. We are thankful to them for making this safe and convenient life for us.
We should always remember and think about those who sacrificed themselves. Let’s think once again and
remember that it is important to commemorate Armis ce Day.
By Soobin Park 11V
War, how many lives has it taken? The seemingly endless cycle of conflict is s ll happening throughout
the world but the one day we all can have a moment together to remember is Armis ce Day. At the end
of World War 1 on the Western Front, all acts of hos li es stopped at 11 o’clock on the 11th of
November.
Armis ce Day not only commemorates the sacrifices of all soldiers around the world, it also represents
peace and harmony. Not just between the people who are surrounding you but also between the global
community: we can unite together as one from all different regions of the world. Our school is a great
symbol for interna onal harmony, because our school community represents different parts of the world,
and we all spend a moment together to remember the ones who have fallen. This can truly show that
world peace is possible if we all join our hands together.
The way in which we commemorate Armis ce Day is through the act of wearing a poppy. The poppy is the
symbol for Remembrance Day because it was the only flower to grow in the middle of the ba le field. To
rise and grow around the bombshells and the remains of those who had fallen represents that peace is
possible even a er carnage.
Armis ce Day is important to all of us, because it does not only bring us all together and help us to
remember what happened but it also teach us a lesson and allows us to have a moment to just stop and
think. As Mr. O’Neill said “Since the start of this assembly 14 more people have died in armed conflict”.
This really got us thinking about how we live. To tell us not to take things in life for granted but to cherish
it, to cherish the peace we have between each other and the peace we have as a country.
Edward Trinh 11 I
7. BISbuzz Issue 12 | 7
Sport News
COMPULSORY TRIPS: 26th – 30th January 2015.
Some trips may leave before or return a er this date. This informa on will be sent to you from the trip
leaders.
A reminder that the final payment for the trips is Friday 28th
November.
Key Dates
Friday 28th
November 2014
Deadline for final payment.
Week beginning 1st
December 2014
Trip informa on evenings. Further informa on to follow from each trip leader.
Monday 26th
January 2015
Trips depart
(When flights are confirmed, some overseas trips may need to leave on 24th
or 25th
and may return earlier
than 30th
January).
Friday 30th
January 2015
Trips return.
If you have any further ques ons please do not hesitate to contact me by email
PhilipDrake@bisvietnam.com
U15 FOBISIA Games
Wishing all par cipants the best of luck in the U15 FOBISIA Games hosted by Bri sh School, Jakarta.
AP2 Inter House Athletics Day
As a result of Thong Nhat stadium replacing their athle cs track, we have been forced to change the date
of our inter house athle cs event. In order to avoid calendar disrup ons, the new date for this event will
be the Wednesday 4th March 2015. Unfortunately, due to this date being extremely close to
examina ons, we have decided that year 11 and year 13 will not par cipate, but will a end school as
normal. I understand that many students will be disappointed and I apologise in advance. We do have the
Saigon, inter school athle cs meet on the 3rd February however and students are more than welcome to
take part in this compe on.
Phil Drake
Director of Sport/Ac vi es & Trips Coordinator
Term 1 Key Dates
12th
– 16th
November U15 FOBISIA GAMES – BIS Jakarta.
25th
November U14 & U19 Swimming City Championships.
5th
December IGCSE PE Video Modera on 1.
7th
December AP1 ECA’s finish.
12th
– 15th
Bangkok Feeding Frenzy.
14th
December AP2 ECA’s finish.
19th
December Sports Day Assembly.
8. BISbuzz Issue 12 | 8
Community Services
Children with Cancer Ward Visits Club
The members of the Children with Cancer Ward Visit Club paid another visit to the cancer wards in district
2 and Binh Thanh this week. They have prepared a wide range of ac vi es for the children, from doing
Origami, face masks making, pass the parcel to playing musical chairs. Aside from the visits, the club is
also running the Movember campaign with an aim to raise funds and awareness suppor ng the children
with cancer. By the end of November, the top 10 male teachers with the best moustaches will par cipate
in the annual Shave‐Off where the money from the raffles sale will to go to Thuy’s Dream founda on. The
club members also shared their findings regarding skin cancer with the rest of the school. Students in Y7
to Y13 were shown two videos presen ng the impact of the sun on our skin.
Lan Nguyen, 13V
11. BISbuzz Issue 12 | 11
From the Underground & BIStro
Menu 3 (17 November)
From the Underground & BIStro
DAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY
MAIN COURSE
CHOOSE 1
Chicken Carbonara
OR
Roast Pork, Rice
Pasta Bolognese-Pork
OR
Sweet & Sour Fish,
Rice
Battered Fish &
Chips OR
Nasi Lemak
(Chicken & Egg)
Chili Con Carne -
Beef, Rice OR
Won Ton Noodle
Soup
VEGETABLES
Bok Choy & Carrot
Salad
Long Bean, Carrot
Salad
Morning Glory,
Carrot
Salad
Choy sum &
Carrot
Salad
SOUP Choy sum Spinach & Melon
Tomato & Tofu
Soup
Mixed Vegetable
DESSERT Mixed Fruit Mixed Fruit Mixed Fruit Mixed Fruit
VEGETARIAN
Braised Tofu &
Beans, Rice
Choy sum Soup
Mixed Fruit
Veggie Pasta
Chickpeas Salad
Mixed Fruit
Vegetarian Chili
Con Carne, Rice
Tomato & Tofu
Soup
Mixed Fruit
Tofu Noodle
Soup
Choy sum &
Carrot
Mixed Fruit
DELI BAR
OPTION
Baguette & Wrap
Fill it with a variety of choices including ham, chicken, cheese, tuna mayonnaise, beef, baked bean,
mixed bean, bolognese sauce
SNACK MENU
Curry Puff
Samosa
Fruit Cup
Chocolate Mud Cake
Swiss Roll
Fruit Cup
Curry Puff
Samosa
Fruit Cup
Banana/Carrot
Muffin
Sponge Cake
Fruit Cup
FRIDAY
Honey Lime Chicken,
Sautéed Potato
OR
Beef Rendang, Rice
Broccoli & Carrot
Salad
Watercress
Mixed Fruit
Dhal
Mixed Beans Salad
Mixed Fruit
Donut
Cream Puff
Fruit Cup
