The Magic of Electricity

It may seem a million miles away from Didcot, but the steam billowing out of Hogwart’s express as it thunders over majestic railways bridges is also what lights our schools, roads and homes. And like  the speed with which Harry can summon light using the magic words ‘luminous’, electricity is available to us at the flick of a switch.

The seemingly magical process of producing electricity was explained by kindly volunteers at Didcot power station on a recent visit.  With Visual aids akin to a 1970’s game show, all was revealed, and if comprehension required a decent amount of brain power of our own, staff were on hand with biscuits and squash to recharge our batteries.

After the theoretical explanation, it was our chance to see the power station in action, but before setting off, some safety regulations had to be met. Waiting on the table in front of us was a canary yellow industrial hardhat, an innocent looking packet and some lab glasses. As the realisation dawned that we were expected to don these, reactions varied: some giggled, others sighed; a deathly hush fell over a table of trendies.

All looking the part, we were ferried to our next stop by mini bus, which gives an idea of the scale of facility, to our next destination: the control room. Many commented on how it lent itself to comparisons with a NASA mission control centre; however, in place of frenzied activity by short-sleeved shirt and tie wearing astronautical engineers, the area was populated by blue boiler suit clad technicians reclining in swivel chairs. The relaxed pace can be explained by the fact the power station was standing idle. Day-shift workers were holding the fort, ready to hand over to their colleagues, who would, our guide informed us, respond to the increased nocturnal demand for power by firing up the boilers.

Having infiltrated the nerve centre of the operation, the next stage approached, but entering a working power station’s beating heart would require further safety precautions. Those innocuous little packets were carefully opened and Madeline, our guide, explained how to fit the ear plugs effectively.  Fortunately, the turbine room was a visually stimulating experience. Walking along a gangway to the muffled din of heavy machinery in use, Madeline pointed out diagrams labelling the various pieces of equipment. Focusing on the tiny pictures- much like those in GCSE text books-then refocusing on the humongous boiler brought home how privileged we were to be witnessing physics in action.

All in all, the visit was a fascinating insight into the energy industry and the production we all take for granted: electricity.


Text by English teacher Anna Irvine and Physics teacher Angus Roberts

Christmas Fair 2011

It may seem that Christmas is still some way away, but it's coming early to d'Overbroeck's College! On Saturday 26th November, between 11am and 2pm, you are warmly invited to join us at Leckford Place for our annual Christmas Fair. There will be an array of stalls and games for adults and children - the perfect place to snap up a few presents - with refreshments available, including mince pies and mulled wine. All money raised will go to local children's charities.

There is also the opportunity for you to have your own stall or to help with the running of the fair, so if you'd like to be involved or would like more information then please contact anne.brooks@doverbroecks.com.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Rugby: Wasps Stung by Oxford Blues

Oxford Blues v London Wasps
17th October 2011, Kick Off 19.30

A match report by Flaminia Manghina, studying at the International Study Centre

"Sure, at first everyone thought that London Wasps would have won with 100000 points more than the Blues (Oxford University Team), but, that evening, at Iffley Road, the biggest happiness ever reigned over the spectators : The Blues won 35 – 0!

Everybody, approximately 300 people, was watching the match: youngs, children, olds... and because of the cold weather, they were drinking hot tea or hot chocolate, and for those who were a little bit more excited about the match, they were drinking some beer.

At the beginning we were not wonderstruck about the game, because it was quite calm and the players seemed patient and peaceful. But after, the rugbymen were being more and more confident and by the going of the game, they became completely fierce !!

Minute after minute, the men were lying on the ground, with open mouths and open arms, and at the same time , 6 others players were jumping over a huge man who was trying to steal the defenceless ball!

It could have seemed funny to see some guys trying to dive on the grass, but even if they looked invulnerable, i think that sometimes it can be painful and dangerous !!

I really enjoyed to watch this match because I had never seen a rugby match before that one and the crushing victory of Oxford made me proud of my host-city.

Sports at the ISC

Written by ISC student Gabby Malevanyte:

"Sports at d'Overbroeck’s College gives you an opportunity to open yourself as a personality and discover all the deep force of your soul. Here you have a great chance to make lots of new friends doing team sports and individual sports. There are lots of different activities. For example: aerobics, hockey, basketball, netball, football and so on. Also some of these games are played in any weather conditions. This term, Hockey Coach, Dan Austin says the ISC students are doing really well and 'are the best international students he has taught'. We are hoping this means we will be able to play a hockey match against another ISC team soon!

By doing any of these sports you can relax, keep fit and express yourself. In addition, school sports kit is included, which is very nice looking and comfortable for doing sports. If you want to do extra sports in Oxford which you like, you can search for it in the internet or ask your form tutor."

Oxford Open Doors

Written by ISC student Sai Chananithitham:

"When we think of England, I guess the very first place that we usually think about is Oxford. It is very famous by its own history, beautifulness, and also well known for being one of the leading educational cities in the world.

I have been in England and living in Oxford for almost a month now. And I am here as an international student in IGCSE program at d'Overbroeck's College. Since I arrived in Oxford, I immediately fell in love with this city because the city is very beautiful and the way people talk or their accent is so charming for me. On Sunday 11th of September, after our first week at school here, my friends and I got a very good opportunity to go and walk around Oxford on the ISC welcome weekend school trip led by our teachers. The special thing about that day was that it was an 'Open Doors' day for the university and college buildings in Oxford organised by the Oxford Preservation Trust. They welcomed everybody in, and let us find out by ourselves what the university is really like.

We saw many colleges and also many gorgeous old style of architecture around the city. While I was walking and looking around the colleges, it really inspired me to have a goal for my future university education and hopefully I can get into Oxford University someday."

Fine Art Students' Fine Afternoon Out!

The International Study Centre GCSE Art class went to visit the Oxford University Natural History Museum on Wednesday 28^th of September to investigate forms in nature as part of their GCSE coursework.

It was a beautiful afternoon with clear blue skies and a low autumnal sun making it perfect for drawing and sketching both inside and outside the museum.

The students were able to use a whole range of materials as inspiration, from dinosaur skeletons to tree roots, fossils, shells and even a living bee hive! Helen Wilson, one of our Art teachers, who lead the group said, "it was a great success and the students all produced some excellent work".

Wendy Rawding, Head of Art

A Trip to London

ISC students Yuyang Zhang and Jackie Zhang describe a recent visit to London.

"On 25th September, we went on a trip to London - The capital of England! We met each other at the Swan building, which is where the Sixth Form usually study. We saw everyone was really excited: people in colourful clothes, carrying big bags...

We spent almost two hours to get to London on the coach, so the traffic was quite bad.  The first thing we saw was the well-known river: the Thames! It is a long, wide river and there were many boats floating on it. Then we got out of the coach and began walking. We passed the Big Ben which was huge and spectacular. After that, on our way to the Buckingham Palace, there was a soldier sitting on a horse, this was the first time for many of us to see a real soldier, so we all took some photos of it.

Finally, we were standing in front of the Buckingham Palace where the Queen lives. Also, the landscape in it was great as there were grass and trees and different kinds of animals everywhere!  One of our teachers, David, took a school photo of us there.

After a long time of walking, we felt tired and hungry.  Our teachers led us to the Chinatown which had many Chinese restaurants and shops.  Some of us were so excited, because we miss Chinese food a lot.  We went to one of the restaurants and had some noodles, rice and chasubao. Haha, the Chinese students feel like they are the guides to help their new international friends to choose which dishes are tastiest.  David also showed us some fruit from Thailand which is very smelly!

In the afternoon, students got really excited because we had free time for shopping! Some of us went to a big market in Covent Garden which sold different kinds of lovely things. We bought some souvenirs in there as presents for our friends back home.  We had a really good time!

By the way, there were some people who pretended to be statues were in some silver and gold clothes, they worked really hard and we took pictures of them, too.

We had fun in London and liked it very much!"

The City of Oxford and d'Overbroeck's College

ISC student Maria Constantinescu shares her thoughts on Oxford and d'Overbroeck's College:

"Oxford is the city to be! Not only does it have a long and interesting history, but its beauty is simply breath taking. I will not bore you with its history, as you can find it written down on Wikipedia. I will, however, relate my personal feelings about this place.

Why Oxford? People might often wonder. My response is, why not? Oxford has everything to offer! From one of the best universities in the world to the smallest convenience store, it has anything your heart might desire. Oxford is a city of life, a city in which students feel at home, where people can get the education they truly deserve and still keep things fun.

I am an international student and I have to say, joining d’Overbroeck’s is the best choice I have ever made. It has a wonderful feeling to it, it’s warm and friendly, but it is also the best environment in which a person can achieve a high level of education. The timetable is created so that you are able to work hard and get good results in your GCSE exams, but it also gives students the opportunity to discover new hobbies or interests.

One of the most important things you have to remember is that the teachers are always there for you. Beginning a new life in a different country with a different language can be rather difficult, but the teachers, as well as the other students, can be of huge help. So don’t worry about anything. All you are expected to do is your job as a student, meaning that you have to study. The rest will come naturally. My only advice: leave your fears behind and smile to the future. Beginning a new life won’t be that difficult if you start it with a smile on your face."

My First Week

ISC student Libing Wan (Amy) writes about her first week here at The International Study Centre.

"In the first week of September, I arrived in the UK  after a long trip and began my life here in Oxford. This is my first time being in England and away from my family. I felt a little nervous about the totally different environment, but my host family was very kind. My host-mother made me feel at home and explained every detail about the life here. I realised that the culture here is very different from my own country, including the table manner and kinds of food people eat - there's so much for me to learn.

On Monday of the first week, my host-mother helped me to get to school. I was still nervous, but I found the teachers were all very kind and enthusiastic. I was taken to my tutor group. Our Form Tutor is a very passionate and funny teacher! I met many schoolmates from different countries and I enjoy talking with them very much.

The lessons in the first week is mainly trial lessons, all of the subjects are very attractive to me, the teachers told us lots of advice about how to choose our courses, such as if you are really interested in the subject or what you want to do in the future; which was very helpful to me. After considering carefully, I have chosen Geography, Biology and History as my extra options.

During the first week, the teachers took us to walk around Oxford, and told us which shops to go to if we need anything, for example a scientific calculator or folders.  I really love my new school, it has changed my concept of 'school'. d'Overbroeck’s College makes me feel more like a big family instead of a school. The first week here impressed me and I hope I can do well throughout the year!"

Collecting books for African schools

Video about the work of READ International

This year, our students have been packing old text books up to send to READ International. This is a student run charity which collects disused, high-quality Key Stage 3 and GCSE textbooks from UK secondary schools and delivers them to schools across Tanzania and Uganda.

To date, READ Book Projects have donated over 850,000 textbooks to over 580 Tanzanian secondary schools and twenty three regional libraries. In the summer of 2011 they aim to deliver another 300,000 across to Tanzania and Uganda — and ship their millionth book to East Africa.

“This year, we’ll be contributing to this great project, which promotes volunteering, young social enterprise, recycling and global citizenship,” said Helen Wood, the Director of the International Study Centre and the person who initiated the recycling of old text books at the College.

“It is frustrating to see large numbers of good quality text books going to be recycled at best or to landfill at worst, simply because the syllabus has changed and we can no longer use them. READ International works on a simple but effective principle: it gives these books a second life and helps contribute to the education of children in more deprived areas of the world, where text books are a luxury and one book is often shared between 10 or more students.”

The International Study Centre students are currently completing their Citizenship Studies coursework. They were pleased to be taking part. “It’s great”, said Sasha Sokolova, “because we’re not just recycling the books into new paper, they are going to be put to a really good use, helping poorer students.”

The sight of Toby Sun, Sasha Sokolova and Kira Liao busily taping up boxes and carefully packing piles of books has spurred Maths teacher, Ursula Boughton, into action. “There are lots of really good text books in other parts of the College that we can no longer use, but are collecting in cupboards, so I’ll sort those out and see if we can send them, too.”

If you have disused textbooks that you wish to donate to READ, are interested in fundraising for us, or simply want more information please contact your nearest book project:

To donate books, email books@readinternational.org.uk; for more information, email info@readinternational.org.uk

No Showers; just Glorious Bath

Saturday 12 February dawned misty and cool but the promise was of sunshine to come. The students and three staff assembled on time at the Swan building ready for trip to Bath. It was a good journey there and we arrived by 10.30. The city looked beautiful with the golden colour of the Cotswold stone buildings making a stunning contrast with the blue sky. A short walk took us to the centre of the town and a chance to explore the Roman Baths.

The Baths were built along with a temple to Sulis Minerva at the site of a Celtic sacred spring. This is a place where hot water rises from deep in the earth’s core and gushes out on the surface. The flow of water is enough to fill your bath in 8 seconds. We walked around the Baths and the Temple and were able to listen to a commentary in Chinese, Japanese, German, French and other languages as well as English. It was fascinating to walk around the areas that the Romans had walked around over two thousand years ago. The water was not clear but we could watch the steam rising from it as it bubbled up from the ground.


We then had a break for lunch where all could choose a restaurant. After lunch we reassembled and walked as a group up to the Circus and the Royal Crescent. There was much amusement as we walked past the street called Quiet Street — none of us were sure who could live there! We admired the beautiful houses in the Royal Crescent and dreamed of owning one. All were imagining what life would be like if they lived there in the past.

The group then divided with some wanting to enjoy more free time in the city whilst the remainder enjoyed a visit to the Assembly Rooms and the Museum of Fashion.

— Words by Ursula Boughton, Teacher of Maths

Friday Night Bowling Trip

A collage of bowling photos by talented ISC student Sasha Sokolova

An important part of the GCSE Programme is the programme of social events and activities that offer students a chance to have some fun outside the classroom. Last half-term's bowling trip was one such event.

It also proved to be another great opportunity to display our students' astonishing talent: should their summer exams go poorly, Toby Sun and Sergiy Marchenko clearly have a bright future as professional bowlers — they finished the evening with record scores of 95 and 94. Helen Wood also deserves credit for saving the staff from complete humiliation by equalizing with a score of 95.

But the evening was also a chance to show off just how creative some of our students are. We were witness to some unique bowling techniques, never before seen on the UK mainland. These included throwing the ball so hard and with such inaccuracy that it bounced into the neighbour's lane! (Thank you for that, Atsuko Hashimoto…) And, not to be out done, Nathalie Rimensberger rolled the ball so slowly it did not even reach the pins. Last but not least, Joe Ou went to bowl the ball, forgot to let go of it and promptly fell over.

A night of extreme talent, clumsiness and great fun!

— Writeup by David Wareham, Senior Pastoral Teacher

Interactive science at the Royal Institution in London

A trip was arranged by Dr Tuncel Tack, the chemistry teacher at the ISC to the Royal Institution in London. This included the opportunity to work in their laboratories for half a day and an exploration of the museum for the other half of the day.

The students assembled bright and early and following a coach journey through Henley to London we arrived on time at Albemarle Street. The 38 students from the ISC were then split in to two groups and given their tasks for the day.

The work in the laboratory fascinated all the students. They were able to extract strands of their own DNA. This involved chewing the inside of their cheeks to release some cells and then using the fluid from their mouth. They then had to use very carefully measured amounts of various chemicals to breakdown cells walls and then using heat they were able to finally using very cold water to isolate the tiny strands of DNA on the interface between the two fluids. It was amazing to see our own DNA without a microscope. The students were then able to take home a vial of fluid with their DNA strands. It was a memorable experiment.

Museum Tour


The museum at the Royal Institution has examples of the wok of many of the scientists attached to the Institute. We learned that 10 of the elements on the periodic table were discovered by scientists at the Institute. There was an interactive activity to find these based on the Elements song by Tom Lehrer which is a parody of the Major General's song from Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan. There was much to see at the museum and we had a questionnaire to help us to find out as much as we could.

It was a good day for staff and students alike and many thanks to Tuncel for organising it.

Pantomime!

Students at the International Study Centre are excitedly awaiting the release of their very own pantomime DVD which should be available from Friday 14th January. They are looking forward to seeing how their show looked on the night, having worked really hard in the build up, not just rehearsing, but also helping make the costumes and props and designing and painting parts of the set.


Their production of ‘Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins’ – a unique twist on the story of Snow White - transported the tale to Transylvania and turned it into ‘horror panto’. As ever, the audience was wonderfully supportive and the performances completely hilarious.


The cast and crew were delighted to receive rave reviews from avid pantomime fans, including the College Bursar, Peter Talbot, who had this to say: “What a masterpiece of entertainment! It really was a fantastic start to Christmas and a real ‘tour de force’ from all your remarkable students. As always I find it thoroughly humbling to think they are learning all the words in a foreign language after only a few weeks of studying in the UK — and then making it humorous. Awesome!”


The cast wowed other audience members, too. “The kids all did brilliantly! Special big shouts out to Count Von Tusrey, the Dancing Girls, and Blumenthal, but they were all great!” wrote Rebecca Wood in an email to the students. “In my humble opinion, it was the best one yet.”

High praise indeed from someone who has helped produce all the previous ISC pantomimes — and was in the audience for the first time to enjoy it.

— By Helen Wood, Director

Watch a slideshow of photos from the show