At BASIS International Schools, the health and wellness of our students, faculty, and staff is of the utmost importance. During the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, we have followed all government guidelines and have taken extra precautions including closing each campus through the end of February to avoid the possibility of viruses spreading within our schools. Measures such as these are similar to what some schools in the United States do during a bad flu outbreak.
Our schools are taking every precaution, while still prioritizing the outstanding education our teachers provide and students expect. Read on for more from our schools about how every campus will continue to foster learning, support their faculty, and grow through this challenge.
“BASIS International Schools, China, as educators, we must figure out new ways to keep instruction happening so that our students can continue to learn, even in the face of these challenges. I want you all to know that over the last week or so, teachers and staff began work on a new, temporary change in our educational delivery. We will be utilizing, for the time being, an online format.
Our goal remains the same: to deliver high quality education, at world-class levels to our students. The path may have temporarily changed, a detour to on-line instruction, but the end point remains.
This community is strong, and this situation will just make us even stronger. I have complete confidence that this will be a great story for us all to retell someday. In the meantime, wash your hands!
– Jason Shorbe, Head of School, BASIS International School Guangzhou
“At BASIS International School Park Lane Harbour, we have taken extensive actions to support our teachers. Thinking about some teachers who may not cook themselves, the school has started to provide three meals daily in our school cafeteria since February 4th. We have been able to acquire masks for our teachers and staff, and have also sent lots of materials to our teachers to help them understand the virus and all methods of protection. Not many schools are able to provide these accommodations for their teachers, but we have made it happen.
The school has already set up temporary online learning in an orderly manner. Our goal is to provide a review of existing content and to introduce new content, moving subject curricula forward. Our teachers will help our students with their studies, and will also guide, encourage, and reassure them during this time. We all care about our students and want to help each student to be successful. No matter what the current circumstances are, our love and care for the students will not waver.
Meanwhile, our school has hired a professional disinfection team to disinfect the campus.
We are warmly connected during this challenging situation! Two of our students took the initiative to set up a platform for people to donate nCOV’s detection kits, and another student’s parents donated 400 bottles of alcohol-based hand sanitizer. We strongly believe that our community has been contributing to win this battle in their own ways and we are very proud!
– BASIS International School Park Lane Harbour Operations Staff
“We must look to our health and wellness, and the health of our families and friends, and as educators, parents and students, we must do all within our means to ensure that our great faculty continues to teach and our curious, ambitious, and hard-working students continue to learn.
Rest assured, our school continues its journey through the academic year, even though in this journey we have suddenly departed from the familiar route and from the map itself. No matter where they are in the world, I know our teachers and our students will engage in this new virtual classroom with the care and imagination and effort that characterizes the work that proceeds daily within our school walls.
Our community is here for all of us. Our community will persevere and move forward.
– Dr. Q. Mark Reford, Head of School, BASIS International School Shenzhen
“The leadership group of BASIS International School Nanjing are all working hard to provide lots of support to our teachers. All senior leadership team members welcomed and greeted teachers who have returned to Nanjing; letting the teachers know that we are all here with them is so important at this time.
Meanwhile, the school prepared masks for our teachers, although it has been very difficult to collect them. The school will be disinfected entirely before re-opening and regularly afterwards to make sure the teachers and students are safe on campus. School nurses will be available on campus 24 hours to assist the needs both from teachers and students.
Supermarkets are opening and some food deliveries are resuming. Meanwhile, our school cafeteria will be opening to all staff and teachers beginning next Monday, February 10th, for free, even though the school will be closed. All of our school operations staff are also in Nanjing to support any needs from our teachers.
Our teachers are also covered by the private, English speaking clinic should any health needs arise. We also have made sure that any teachers who live alone have friends and contacts they can turn to.
The teachers are sending online learning activities to students to continue instruction during the delay. Our team is resilient and adaptable.
– Dr. Mark Starbuck, Head of School and Dr. Wendy Ren, Vice Head of Operations, BASIS International School Nanjing
“Inevitably, our staff is concerned about the situation. I have considerable admiration for the manner in which the authorities have been dealing with this situation and the compliance of citizens. I suspect there are few countries that could build a very large hospital in a week, but China clearly can.
Though the streets of Hangzhou are quiet, food supplies are good and water is not a concern as tap water in Hangzhou is regarded as clean–though some do choose to boil water to be sure. We have offered teachers’ families assistance in obtaining groceries or whatever, should this be required. However, nobody has felt the need to take up this offer to date. We are all here for each other, and have the bonus of so many local colleagues who intercede when we expatriates hit snags.
I am far, far from expert in medical matters. However it would appear that it is persons over 60 years and those with existing medical issues who have, extremely sadly, been most affected by the virus. Whilst I rather unnervingly fall into the former criterion, I do not feel any compunction to leave China at this time.
Inevitably, the above is one man’s perceptions of the situation. Nevertheless, I suspect you would be intrigued to know what is happening here in Hangzhou!
– Alan Wilkinson, Head of School, BASIS International School Hangzhou
