news: International Members News

International Members News

• International Department Staffing Update

• Theatre and Dance Sport Faculties
• Teaching Qualifications

• Theatre Faculties only
• Replacement certificates
• New Marking System for Vocational Examinations
• Vocational report forms across all Theatre Faculties
• Category B report forms
• New process for delivery of report forms
• Syllabus Outlines
• International Courses
• Examiners lunch arrangements
• Travel Expenses
• Tap Update

International Department Staffing Update
Greek Organiser
All examinations in Greece will be organised by the International Examinations Department with immediate effect.

An information pack will be sent to all teachers in Greece in due course and if you have any questions please call on the main ISTD number or email: international@istd.org

New Administrator
Kayleigh Francis has joined the team as an International Examinations Administrator and will work alongside April Da Silva Santos. Both are responsible for the Candidate Registration Process, Timetables and Certificate mailouts. If you need to contact them please email: internationalassistant@istd.org

Theatre and Dance Sport Faculties
Teaching Qualifications
Please note: teachers outside of Europe are still able to take Associate and Associate Diploma (Theatre) examinations. Please contact TraceyEames for an updated copy of the guidelines for the Faculty in question, email: internationalassistant@istd.org

The New Teaching Qualifications will be introduced to other areas of the world over the next 10 years.

It is only teachers within Europe who are affected by the New Teaching Qualifications at the moment. The Associate and Associate Diploma (Theatre), within Europe, have been replaced by the Foundation in Dance Instruction and the Certificate in Dance Education.

Teachers do not lose their previously gained ISTD qualifications but instead they are credited towards the new qualifications that replace them. Teachers need to complete an Accredited Prior Learning (APL) form and this can be obtained by contacting Beth Duffield within the Education and Training Department on the main ISTD number or by emailing: bduffield@istd.org

Teaching qualifications examinations can only take place within an ISTD Approved Dance Centre. If you wish to find out more about how to become an ISTD Approved Dance Centre please click here>>

Theatre Faculties only
Any changes that take place, within any of the Theatre Faculties, will affect all teachers and candidates worldwide.

Replacement certificates
No replacement certificates can be produced for International examinations taken before 1st September 2001, which is the last time the format of certificates changed. The award must be printed on the actual Certificate
that was in use at the time and stocks of these older versions are no longer being held.

Teachers must check their certificates are correct as soon as they receive them. Teacher number 1 will also receive an official result sheet which shows all candidates taking examinations on that day, along with their pin numbers and the results obtained. All successful candidates will receive a certificate or a medal. If any information is not correct, Teacher number 1 must complete the Amendment form within the certificate pack and return to ISTD HQ. If a form was not included please contact April or Kayleigh within the International Examinations Department.

New Marking System for Vocational Examinations
A new marking system for Theatre Vocational examinations came into effect on 1st September 2004. This will not affect what the candidates perform, however examiners will be marking in a different manner. Further explanations are available within the Syllabus outlines.

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Vocational report forms across all Theatre Faculties
New Vocational report forms were introduced on 1st September 2004
and are being used worldwide. This is due to the introduction of a new marking system for Theatre Vocational examinations. All teachers should dispose of any old Vocational Report Forms they possess, as their organiser or ISTD HQ will forward the new Vocational forms.

Category B report forms
Category B no longer exists. There is now just an Intermediate Foundation, Intermediate, Advanced 1 and Advanced 2 report form. (Tap Dance Faculty has Vocational Preparatory instead of Intermediate Foundation). If any candidate feels they require special consideration they should complete an ‘Application for Special Arrangements’ form which must be returned to the Customer Service and Quality Assurance Department at the time of requesting the examination. If you require this form please contact the Customer Service and Quality Assurance Department or download the form from here>>

New process for delivery of report forms
International teachers will receive their report forms when their computer generated timetables are returned and they may arrive directly from
ISTD HQ or via your organiser.

Teachers will continue to prepare them, ensuring that the correct PIN number is used. If teachers are unsure of their PIN numbers they should contact April or Kayleigh and their list can be sent to them.

Immediately following the examinations the examiner will return the report forms directly to ISTD HQ for checking by the Customer Service and Quality Assurance Department. Once completed the report forms will be mailed directly back to Teacher number 1 using the address supplied when submitting the timetable. Certificates will continue to follow in due course.
If an examiner stays within a country for more than a week, procedures are in place to ensure that candidates at the beginning of the tour are not disadvantaged and will receive their report forms before candidates at the end of the tour. The ISTD cannot be held responsible for the speed of any postal systems.

We do appreciate that the return of report forms to ISTD HQ will cause a delay in discovering whether candidates have passed, however procedures are now in place to ensure that the delay is kept to a minimum.

Please note: Under no circumstances will the examiner give any oral or written indication of results to teachers or parents. Similarly, examiners will not leave ‘quick results’.

Organisers will also have information on this procedure if you wish to contact them.

International Courses
Courses which instruct teachers on any new work are the responsibility of the Faculty concerned. If any teachers are still requiring a course on the new work and the course is not listed here>>, please ensure the relevant Faculty Secretaries or International Examinations Department are aware.

Any refresher courses/new work courses which are added onto the end of an examination tour will be dealt with by country organisers and the International Examinations Department, in conjunction with the various Faculties.

If teachers wish to attend any courses they are responsible for obtaining the various syllabi notes and CDs from the ISTD Sales Department beforehand. They will not be on sale at the course itself.

To purchase goods contact the ISTD Sales Department:
Tel: 020 7377 1577
Fax: 020 7247 6728
Email: sales@istd.org
or order online here>>

Examiners lunch arrangements
A change to the Examiners lunch arrangements comes into immediate effect for examinations outside of the UK. For many years, teachers have provided lunch for an examiner during a day of examining without request for reimbursement. It has been very much appreciated both by the ISTD and, of course, by examiners themselves. The time has arrived to re-assess this situation and we feel that teachers should, quite deservedly, receive reimbursement for their expenses.

Teachers are now entitled to retain some of the examination fees in order to provide the examiner with lunch. The amount to be deducted per day is located on the reverse of the Summary of International Examinations Entries document, which has recently been updated. This should be calculated; the sum indicated and deducted from the examination fees sub-total. The fees are then submitted to the Organiser/ISTD HQ along with your timetables by the required deadline.

Whilst we are aware that many teachers may wish to provide a lavish spread, the expected lunch consists of a sandwich or salad and a drink. Research has been carried out to establish an average cost of this lunch per country.

If teachers do not wish to provide a lunch for the examiner, no fees
should be retained, and the examiner will be advised to make alternative arrangements before coming to the studio. If a teacher is not providing
lunch please indicate this by adding ( - ) in the necessary box so we can inform the examiner.

Travel Expenses
Similarly, thanks go to International teachers where they have assisted
with collecting examiners from airports, train stations etc with no request
for reimbursement.

If the Organiser or ISTD HQ has asked a teacher to transport the examiner to or from the airport, train station, hotel or another teachers’ studio, travel expenses can be requested.

Teachers will already have submitted their examination fees to ISTD HQ or their Organiser by this time therefore the examiner will re-imburse the teacher for his/her petrol costs.

Within the tour planning stage, teachers will be asked to estimate the distance to be travelled and will be informed of the reimbursement rate for their country. This information will be passed onto the examiner so they are aware of the approximate cost of the journey. The examiner will calculate the mileage travelled and re-imburse the teacher directly.
If a teacher cannot assist with the travel arrangements, the examiner will be informed and he/she will organise a taxi.

Tap Update
All Grades and Vocational Tap examinations can be examined using the official CDs, available from the Sales Department at ISTD HQ.

From 1st September 2004 the following examinations were discontinued: Tap medals, Junior and Senior Bronze, Silver, Gold and Gold Star.
Licentiate candidates will be required to have knowledge of the new Grade
6 syllabus work. Within section 2 candidates will be expected to demonstrate both Advanced 1 amalgamations and their own choice
of one of the Grade 6 amalgamations.

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