Dear students, staff, parents, alumni and the whole Sekolah Ciputra community,

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the very successful celebration of Independence Day. During the week students and staff participated in traditional Indonesian sports and generally focussed upon reasons for pride in Indonesia. On Thursday morning the whole school marked the occasion with a very solemn flag ceremony which demonstrated, as per the school vision, pride in our cultural heritage.

On Monday we begin PAIS testing from grade 3 to grade 10. The purpose of this testing is threefold. It allows us to benchmark our own assessments against international standardised tests. This helps reinforce our own practice in ensuring that our students are operating at the highest possible levels internationally. The testing also is extremely useful for quality assurance purposes. We can identify areas where we perform very well as a school but also opportunities for improvement. Lastly the testing enables us to give specific feedback to students on their strengths and areas for improvement. I look forward to getting feedback on both the macro as well as the individual data.

We are all very proud of our basketball players. On Tuesday night they won their game in the final thirty two and in so doing qualified for the sweet 16.  Unfortunately, on Saturday night they were knocked out, after leading into the fourth quarter but they can take a lot of comfort from the progress and dedication they have demonstrated.

Finally on Friday we will hold a STEAM rally across the continuum. Students will be off timetable and working on a series of science, technology and arts challenges. The school has invested a lot in building up design, as a natural companion to our ongoing focus on entrepreneurship. It should be a wonderful day. 

Have a great week!

Martin Blackburn

Executive Principal