Sweet-toothed fund-raising for Amnesty International

Once a year the International Study Centre hosts a fun-filled day of fundraising for a UK or international charity. The teachers and students work hard at preparing the event with the teachers and staff baking biscuits and cakes to sell to students and staff throughout the college with the aim of raising as much money as possible for a good cause. This year, Amnesty International was chosen as the charity that would benefit from all our baking skills at the ISC.


Students are the ISC are currently studying the topic of Human Rights and the role of charities in their citizenship subject, and planning their coursework around this sensitive and challenging topic.

Teachers and students alike feasted on biscuits and cakes in a party-like atmosphere at break times. The cakes and biscuits were delicious with the chocolate brownies and coffee cake in particular going down a storm with all staff and students.


Talal said, “It’s good to help people and see people doing something. Every little thing you do counts.”

Toby found the day’s event very enjoyable. “I liked being involved with a cause that affects society, either locally or globally.” It gave me a good opportunity to improve my English by focusing on wider issues in society that we don’t normally cover in class.

The amount of £71.83 was raised in total.


Everyone was particularly impressed by the tasty treats baked by the ISC staff. Rumour has it that the students will have the task of cooking biscuits and cakes for the next event, and we are sure they will be just as delicious as those eaten on our fund-raising day!

Our school trip to London

We had a fantastic sunny day for our school trip to London. After arriving, we walked around Parliament Square, stopping to take snaps of the bronze statues of Richard the Lion Heart and Oliver Cromwell. We’d just learned about the development of rights in Britain in our Citizenship classes, so it was exciting to see the ‘mother of Parliaments’. We even saw some protesters camped outside and read some of their posters.


Next, we walked up Whitehall Avenue, stopping to see Downing Street (the home of the Prime Minister) and the Cenotaph (the memorial to all who have died in conflicts around the world) on our way. Helen, our head teacher, explained how the Cenotaph is the focus of Remembrance Sunday celebrations in November.

Everyone enjoyed seeing the soldiers in their brightly coloured uniforms at Horse Guards Parade, and the girls all took photos. We’re not sure who they were most interested in – the horses or the soldiers!

Before lunch in Chinatown, we made a detour to Buckingham Palace. The Queen wasn’t at home, but there was a film crew working on Johny English 2. Watch out for us on film when it is released at the cinema! That’s us in the background during the car chase. (Just kidding!)


Our expert guide for lunch was Tian Song, better known to us as Tim. He took us to the ‘best restaurant in Chinatown’, where we ate incredibly spicy Chinese food. The teachers were not brave enough to join us and went to eat Dim Sum instead – but they said it was very tasty.

Last stop: shopping in Covent Garden. Some of us explored the smaller, more interesting shops, while others just wanted to hang out in the Apple Store! There was also a chance to watch some street entertainment. We saw a man pretending to be a hamster in a cage. British people can be pretty strange!

Spinning, plunging and soaring at Thorpe Park

We had an adrenalin-packed day out to Thorpe Park on Sunday. All of us were armed with our waterproof clothes as the weather was really terrible – but we soon realised this was actually a positive thing ... It seems British people don’t like to go to theme parks in the rain, so we didn’t have to queue very long for rides, if at all for some!

For many of us, including our Biology teacher Jill, it was our first time to ride a rollercoaster, so with the support of our friends we gave it a go and we were all very brave!

We experienced many different sensations, like G-Force and speed on the white knuckle rides like Saw: The Ride and Stealth where we reached heights of 205ft and speeds of 80mph in only 1.7 seconds! … and absolute fear in the terrifying Saw:Maze which had real life actors jumping out at us in recreations of scenes from the horror films!

After lots of spinning, plunging and soaring, we treated ourselves to some delicious sweets, like candy floss and the teachers were surprised that we were not sick!

We had so much fun that we think that we should go to Thorpe Park every week!

– By Form Reps: Andrei, Nathalie, Ou Joe, Masha, Toby, Kate

Tour of Oxford Castle Unlocked!

As part of our ‘Out and About’ club we visited Oxford Castle where we were met by a costumed guide who led us around the old building. He told us all about the history of the site and explained its origins in Norman England.

After watching a short video, we walked up the 101 steps to the top of St George’s Tower where we could see out over the roof tops of Oxford and beyond! Our guide told us some stories about people who had lived in the castle like Empress Matilda in the 12th Century and a prisoner named Rowland Jenks in the 16th Century who was thought to have cursed all the officials involved in his case.


We then moved from the highest point to the lowest, below the prison to the remains of the Norman Church or crypt and were alarmed to hear that food and dead bodies were stored there together! They say that their ghosts have not left the vault and people have seen or heard them there…we had a fright when we saw a ‘dead’ monk wandering through the corridors! Daria was so afraid she needed a hug, while the boys tried to take pictures and ran after him!


We then went to the Prison area and were appalled to find out that in one small cell in the 17th Century they would keep 30 prisoners! In more modern times, this became home for one – but even so, we decided we wouldn’t want to live there. We also found out that there was inequality within the prison and that people of a higher social class were allowed to have a servant and even have visitors for tea!

There were many interesting changes made to the prison system over the years and we saw how it developed into a modern successful prison … and then finally a hotel!

We decided even though it is supposed to be a luxurious hotel – we would still be afraid to stay there!

– Report by Carey, Bonnie, Dasha, Masha and Natalia

Out and About with the Pre-Rafaelites

Each week as part of 'Out and About' club, students on the GCSE Programme find out more about Oxford's past and present. Recently they were finding out about The Pre-Rafaelite Brotherhood In Oxford – and this is what they wrote about the experience…

First of all we watched a short documentary film about the Pre-Rafaelite Brotherhood. Then we saw a clip from the BBC television series, Desperate Romantics, which dramatised the lives of three of the founding members of the group, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Everett Millais and Edward Burne-Jones. We learned about the major themes in Pre-Rafaelite painting, life, love, death and nature and the importance of 'real issues' to their art.

Next we went 'Out and About' to Oxford University's world famous Union Society building. In the Old Library at the Union Society there are wall murals depicting scenes from the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the round table. These were painted by Rossetti, Burne-Jones and William Morris (another pre-Rafaelite) between 1857 and 1859.


After our trip to the Union Society, some of us continued on to the Ashmolean Museum where we went to a special exhibition called The Pre-Rafaelites and Italy. The exhibition continues until the 5th of December and is really interesting.

— Report by Helen Zhang, Bonnie Shi, Kristen Li, Kate Markman and Jeremy Feng

Winter Term activities roundup

Our activity programme last term was, as usual, varied, exciting and action packed. Read on for a summary of the Winter Term's activities and events – taking us everywhere from London to Didcot!

The year’s activity programme kicked off with a sightseeing trip to London. Apart from taking in all the usual tourist sights, such as Parliament and Trafalgar Square, we managed to celebrate Chinese mid-autumn festival in our own unique way: by holding a massive leaf fight in St James Park! After expending all that energy, a hearty meal was in order, which we enjoyed in Chinatown.


And what better way could there have been to burn off all those calories than a serious bout of shopping in Covent Garden?

Appropriately, the onset of colder weather coincided with our trip to the skating disco at Oxford Ice Rink. For some students from tropical parts of the world this was a new – and very awkward – experience. The Russian speakers, however, were clearly in their element. As the rest of us slowly shuffled around in circles, clinging to the edge of the rink, they whizzed past gracefully. Still, a few more trips and we might be as good as them.

The annual Party for Parkinson’s coffee morning was an opportunity for the staff to surprise the students with their culinary skills. Most astounding of all were Melinda’s ‘New Zealand Afghan’ biscuits. Although no one understood the name, they were certainly popular and with them we managed to raise over £80 for the Parkinson’s Disease Society.

The November 5th Fireworks trip was particularly successful this year and the clear night provided a great opportunity for our amateur photographers (as you can see from the photo). It also meant the fire lit more easily than previously. All in all, it was a spectacular night.


The highlight of our social calendar had to be the ISC Pantomime – a truly memorable performance. There were too many good moments to mention them all, but a special mention must go to Daniel who had lost his voice but somehow managed to mime his entire performance. Well done, Daniel!


Our final trip of the term was to Birmingham to visit the Thinktank science museum and to do some serious shopping at the annual German Christmas market and the spectacular new Selfridges.

The ISC Pantomime 2009: Strictly Xinderella

For most staff and students, December means one thing: holidays. But not at the ISC. Here, December means it's time for the annual panto – this year, Strictly Xinderella.



The panto has become an important fixture in the College social calendar – and has even acquired a cult following among certain theatregoers.

'Oh, no it hasn't,' I can almost hear you say.

Oh, yes it has!

Is it the expertly prepared, professionally crafted sets that appeal most? Or the stunning colours and exquisitely cut costumes? No, let’s be honest, it’s probably just the sight of Chinese boys pretending to be British boys who are pretending to be girls that makes our panto the must-see event of the season!

The story begins in the X Factor studio, where the panel of Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole, Louis Walsh and Danii Minogue are portrayed as a group of stock characters trying to find a cast of talented pantomime players to appear in a new pantomime production.



You can guess who the villain is (and if you can’t, it’s Simon Cowell, or, as he’s known in the panto, Warlock Atrocidocious).

The action then shifts to the Strictly Come Dancing studio where a fantasy King and Queen are busy trying to arrange a glittering party where their son can find a wife from all the fair maidens in the land. After that, well, let’s just say it gets a bit complicated…

Always impressing is the fact that all the students, regardless of ability, play a role and are given the opportunity to improve their vocabulary and pronunciation. This year was probably the most ambitious production we’ve ever done, and the fact that it was produced a week early meant even less time to rehearse than usual. Combined with that was the fact that the cast had to contend with an epidemic of 'flu, colds and laryngitis, this was certainly a challenge. But the brave crew soldiered on and managed to give an exciting, memorable and entertaining performance.

A huge thanks is due not only to the students and staff of the ISC who worked so hard, but also to all the other staff and students of the Sixth form who helped with costumes, make up and set.

Photos from the performance (view on Flickr)



Photos from the dress rehearsal (view on Flickr)

Writeup by David Wareham