Registration Day

Shakib registered for school today.

He is attending an International Baccalaureate® school -- a public high school with a twist.

According to their website, IB schools offer a curriculum which helps "develop the intellectual, personal, emotional and social skills to live, learn and work in a rapidly globalizing world."

The New York Times ran a good article about IB in July. IB is a unique international collaboration blending the best practices from many nations into their educational methodology. More than 855,000 IB students attend 3,036 schools in 139 countries.  IB core values include international-mindedness and teaching students how to think and learn.

Shakib is required to complete 30 hours of community service, and IB students have a similar requirement so the school provides many volunteer opportunities during the school year.

This high school also has a uniform dress code. Given the difference in culture, we believe that a dress code will ease the transition to American school life, both helping Shakib to fit in and limiting the distractions that come with attending a co-ed school for the first time.

Given these advantages, we were eager to get Shakib into this school and were quite pleased when after 3 months of discussion we got a green light from the school district.

The school counselor who registered Shakib could not have been more helpful. She met with Shakib, Donna (the Regional Coordinator for American Councils), Jon, and me, answering all of our questions and giving us direction regarding everything from backpacks to school lunches. She took her time and really made us feel welcome.

Then there was the matter of his classes. Shakib is required by American Councils to take English and US History or Civics while he is here. Otherwise, class choices are up to him. His English assessment revealed that he is proficient but not yet fluent in English and resulted in a recommendation that he be placed in a Structured English Immersion / English Language Development class rather than English Literature.

The English Immersion path takes up two of Shakib's six periods. So after the addition of US History, he was able to choose 3 subjects. He chose Algebra I, Computers, and Spanish.

I wanted Shakib to choose his classes freely but had been hoping he'd pick at least one artsy class. He expressed an interest in music and drama from the moment he arrived here and said that wants to learn to sing and play piano. While at the Pre-Departure Orientation (PDO) in India, he competed in a singing contest and acted in a play.

When he looked back over his class list, I could tell that Shakib was a bit uneasy about something. He said that he was worried about US History since he had no background in that subject. While assuring him that he would do fine, we suggested he consider lightening his load by replacing the Spanish class with something fun.

He picked Drama, and it turns out that the drama class not only puts on 2 shows during the year but also takes field trips to a number of performances. Perfect! This class will be fun, exciting, and social - just what he needs.

As for Shakib's musical education, I am sure that Jon, a professional arranger, orchestrator and composer, and his father, Ray, a celebrated vocal arranger, will give Shakib an unforgettable musical education over the coming year.

Meanwhile, last night, I pulled out my guitar and Shakib and I sang together. He only knows a few American songs, which he learned at the PDO. All are easy to play standards: Oh What A Beautiful Morning; Oh My Darling Clementine; Shoo Fly; You Are My Sunshine; Bicycle Built For Two; Deep In The Heart Of Texas; Take Me Out To The Ballgame; Home On The Range; She'll Be Comin' Round The Mountain; Obladi Oblada; and Oh Susanna.

Alas, he also knows some Shakira and Rihanna songs, but that's where the generation gap comes in.

Maybe I can interest him in the Beatles.