WHAT ARE THE VARIOUS FAQ LINKS TO BE AWARE OF?
For General information or FAQs, click:
https://www.schoolofthefuture.sg/faqs-for-school
For information on our Transport & FAQs:
https://www.schoolofthefuture.sg/faqs-for-transport
For information on Technology related FAQs, click
https://www.schoolofthefuture.sg/faqs-for-technology
For all the students and parents of GIIS SMART Campus, please select ‘PG-SmartCampus’ on the https://mygiis.org and use your existing login and password of the previous campus.
For existing Parents to register for a campus tour in July or Aug (every Sat), click
http://singapore.giis.events/campus-tours-for-current-parents
SCHOOL
WHEN is THE SMART CAMPUS COMMENCing schooling?
The new GIIS SMART Campus commences classes from July 2, 2018. Students from Queenstown campus would be joined by their fellow students from Balestier campus and senior students from the East Coast campus.
The campus was originally scheduled to be ready by Sept 2018, but is now ready to take in the students and teachers earlier from July 2018 itself.
WHEN CAN WE VISIT THE GIIS SMART CAMPUS?
We encourage all our parents to visit the campus at their convenience, either before the start of the school on 2nd July or thereafter. For the benefit of all parents, we will be continuing our campus tours during the month of July and August on weekends ie. on Saturdays, at 9:30 a.m and 11:30 a.m.
Parents are encouraged to RSVP on the following link as the campus tours would be strictly on registration basis.
http://singapore.giis.events/campus-tours-for-current-parents
What are the contact details of the new campus?
The campus contact details remain same and are as follows:
https://sg.globalindianschool.org/home/connect/campus-contact-details.
Here are some useful numbers common for all campuses within Singapore.
1. GIIS Singapore (Main) - (65) 6914 7000
2. Admissions - (65) 6914 7100
3. Helpdesk - (65) 6914 7070
4. Finance - (65) 6914 7150
5. Transport - (65) 6914 7088
6. Tech Support (MYGIIS & Apps) - (65) 6914 7075
7. GICC Main - (65) 6914 7050
IS THE NEW CAMPUS READY TO GO LIVE?
Yes, all regulatory approvals have been obtained and all school functions will be operational by 2nd July. However, implementation of all technology-related facilities is underway and will completed before Sept 2018.
Students will notice minor works in progress and finishing touches being conducted in select places around the campus. The school would like to assure parents that these procedures are totally safe and will not obstruct the daily routine of students or teachers.
Outdoor playgrounds, which were scheduled to be completed by 30th Sept, 2018, will now be completed well before that date. However, until such completion is obtained, playgrounds will not be accessible to the students.
WHO WILL BE IN THE LEADERSHIP ROLES FOR THE SMART CAMPUS?
The Campus is led by a vibrant leadership team comprising of Ms Melissa Maria and Ms Rekha Varghese, supported by an outstanding team of Supervisors, Heads of Departments and Coordinators.
Melissa Maria
Principal, Grade 6-12
Ms Melissa Maria will be the Principal/Head of School for the 'S' block and will be responsible for IB, IGCSE, CBSE academic operations of Grades 7-12.
Rekha Varghese
Vice Principal, KG and Grade 1-6
Ms Rekha Varghese will be the Vice Principal and Acting Head of School for the 'P' block and will be responsible for academic operations of Grades KG-6.
WHAT CURRICULA AND GRADES ARE BEING OFFERED AT THE SMART CAMPUS?
The school will offer IB, IGCSE, CBSE and Global Montessori Plus, under one roof at the SMART Campus. It is open for enrolment for Grades KG to Grade 12.
ARE THERE ANY PLANS TO INTRODUCE INTERNATIONAL CURRICULA FOR PRIMARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS?
The school intends to offer International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (PYP) and Middle Years Programme (MYP) from 2020 academic session. The school has already commenced the necessary registration process with the IB board.
WHICH PUBLIC TRANSPORT FACILITIES are available for reaching the SMART CAMPUS?
The SMART Campus is easily accessible via MRT/LRT, public buses and the school bus. It is a 500-meter walk from the Coral Edge LRT station and at a distance of 2.5 kilometres from Punggol MRT station. It takes approximately 7 minutes to drive from Punggol MRT to the Campus.
From Punggol bus interchange, students can avail bus numbers 3, 62, 83 and 85 to come to the school campus.
ARE THERE dedicated PEDESTRIAN (PD) ACCESS GATES FOR STUDENTS walking to the school?
There are three dedicated access gates for students who walk to school.
Gate PD1: Located at Punggol Field Walk roundabout, this gate is to the left of Gate 1 for Visitors' vehicles. It has a two-lane turnstile for quicker entry-exit for students who come by MRT/LRT.
Gate PD2: Located at Punggol Field Walk roundabout near Gate 2 which is dedicated for School Bus Entry.
Gate PD3: Located at Punggol East Flyover bridge. It has a single lane turnstile gate for students' entry-exit who alight public buses.
Is there any ID card required to enter through the pedestrian gates?
Students will be required to tap their Smart ID Cards to enter through the gates. Access through ID cards will be initiated by 1st August, once all students get their new Smart ID cards in July. Effective 1st August, all the students will have to tap their ID cards to rotate the turnstiles when entering through pedestrian gates.
Is there any helpdesk for Defective ID cards?
Students, who face problems with their ID cards, should approach the Students Services Centre (SSC) located at Level 2 of the “S” Block (Next to the Gandhi Centre).
WHAT ARE THE GUIDELINES FOR VEHICULAR TRAFFIC ON ROADS APPROACHING THE SCHOOL?
Vehicular traffic near all international schools is closely monitored by LTA & relevant agencies, and traffic jams caused by vehicles is a matter of serious concern. The Punggol Field Walk road forms a major artery to school’s vehicular traffic and affects nearby residents.
To avoid any traffic jams or inconvenience to nearby residents, GIIS conducted an in-depth traffic impact study and based on which Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) adjusted the timings of over ten traffic lights in the school vicinity and on roads approaching the school to ensure smooth traffic near the school.
ARE THERE ANY RESTRICTIONS ON VEHICULAR TRAFFIC?
LTA has given very specific directives on how the vehicular traffic shall be conducted near the school. Their directives apply to all forms of vehicles including school buses, taxis, private cars and any other vehicles.
Therefore as per LTA directives, the entire PUNGGOL FIELD WALK ROAD AND ROUNDABOUT is declared a ‘NO STOPPING, NO WAITING’ zone for vehicles which is indicated by a double yellow line marked on the entire stretch of the road. Any violation of these rules will result in LTA enforcement actions. The directives need to be adhered to strictly by all vehicles that will be approaching the school.
Can I drop the students along the Punggol Field Walk road?
As per directives, no vehicles are allowed to stop or wait on the roads. Therefore, it is not possible to drop any students on this Punggol Field Walk road, especially the U stretch between the traffic lights.
WHAT ARE THE VARIOUS ENTRY/EXIT POINTS IN THE SCHOOL?
The entry and exit points are as follows:
Gate 1: Dedicated access for STAFF & VISITOR cars which will be parked inside the campus.
Gate 2: Dedicated for official school appointed school buses & private cars and taxis dropping students to school.
As per the school policy, to strengthen the security and safety of the child inside the campus, no private charter school buses of any type will be granted entry into the school premises through Gate 3.
ARE THERE ANY LANES FOR BUSES & CARS and HOW MANY AND WHICH ONES ARE TO BE USED?
The entire Level 1 within the school premises is a dedicated parking area for buses and cars. There are a total of 9 dedicated lanes for all types of vehicles, small school buses, big school buses, cars and taxis. All lanes are fully equipped with Lane Entry-Exit lights to indicate whether lanes are good to enter, as well as car number detectors. Pedestrian crossings and traffic signages are also in place to allow safety of students crossing the Bus Bay area during peak traffic hours.
WHICH LANE SHOULD be used by STUDENTs TAKING TAXI or PRIVATE CARs?
Students coming by private cars or taxis are required to ONLY enter into Lane 6. Any car or taxi is NOT PERMITTED to enter any other lane, which are exclusively designed for school buses.
All Lane number markings can be seen displayed on the top of Lane Entry areas. There are signages displayed around the school roads to indicate directions towards Lane 6 for private taxis and cars.
WILL THERE BE SHUTTLE BUS FACILITY FOR STUDENTS from punggol mrt?
Yes there will be two free 40-seater shuttle services for students between Punggol MRT and the SMART Campus during the morning and afternoon hours. The timings are. as follows:
From Punggol MRT to the Campus: 8:15 am and 8:40 am in the morning.
From Campus to Punggol MRT: 3:45 pm and 4:10 pm in the afternoon.
The services will be on first cum first served basis. Other students are requested to take the LRT which offers a smooth ride to the Punggol MRT station.
WHICH GATE DO VISITORS ENTER FROM?
Visitors travelling by private cars/taxis can enter through Gate 1 and alight at the drop-off area indicated by the signage. Visitors are required to register at the Guard House and then proceed to the Visitor Centre at Level 2.
CAN VISITORS ENTER THE SCHOOL P & S BLOCKS directly?
Visitor or Parents are NOT allowed to enter the P & S blocks at any time. The entire area is monitored by security. Visitors are required to proceed to the Visitor's Centre at Level 2 of 'S' block upon arrival.
IS THERE PARKING FOR VISITORS?
Visitors can avail the paid parking facility in the premises, subject to availability of parking spaces.
SCHOOL BUS TRANSPORT
WHAT IS MY NEW SCHOOL BUS ZONE?
WHAT IS MY NEW SCHOOL BUS ZONE?
With respect to school transport zones, the following will be helpful to all students who take the school bus.
The zones continue to be classified into 3 categories,
Zone 1 lies within 3 kms range,
Zone 2 is between 3kms and 10kms range, and
Zone 3 is more than 10kms
The transport team has updated your new zones based on your registered address in MyGIIS, and the bus timings and route numbers would be SMSed to the parents before 30 June 2018.
Parents who have changed their address and whose children are taking the school bus services, are requested to immediately update their details on MyGIIS. Upon receiving the request through MyGIIS, the transport team will take 10 working days to get the new routes activated. Therefore, it is important that parents inform the school of any such address changes before 20 June 2018.
WHO IS THE TRANSPORT PROVIDER FOR THE SMART CAMPUS AND WHAT is THEir CONTACT DETAIL?
M/s Katsumoto TransCorp Pte Ltd is providing school bus services for the SMART Campus.
GIIS Transport executives along with the transport operator executives would be happy to answer any queries.
Parents can contact the Transport Helpdesk at 6914 7088 or send an email to helpdesk.sg@globalindianschool.org for further assistance.
WHEN WILL PARENTS BE NOTIFIED ABOUT NEW BUS NUMBERS?
The school is aware that some parents will be relocating to new addresses on account of the SMART Campus. They are requested to update their address in MyGIIS portal latest by 20 June, 2018. The transport provider will then assign students to respective buses based on this information. Parents will be informed about the new bus numbers on or before 28 June.
WHICH GATE IS AUTHORISED FOR PARENTS WHO DROP THEIR CHILDREN IN PRIVATE VEHICLES?
Parents dropping off their children to school through private cars/private taxis/public taxis should enter from Gate 2 located at the Punggol Field Walk roundabout, and drop them off inside the premises at Lane 6 drop-off point. It is advisable not to drop students at the roundabout as LTA has restricted stoppage of any vehicle in the entire stretch as this may lead to a traffic jam.
WHICH GATE IS AUTHORISED FOR PARENTS TO PICKUP students after school?
For afternoon, there is a slightly different system followed to prevent traffic jams inside the Campus and a smooth departure of nearly 200 buses from the campus. Only official school buses and pre-registered private cars would be allowed to enter through Gate 2, which is automated.
Are taxis allowed through Gate 2 in the afternoon?
No taxis would be allowed inside the Gate 2 in the afternoon after school hours. Students who wish to take a taxi have to walk to the nearby traffic light to do so. This is to ensure that taxis do not enter the roundabout road, and cause traffic jams inside the Campus, as well as for a smooth 200 bus departure from the campus.
ARE THERE ANY DESIGNATED AREAS WHERE STUDENTS WOULD ALIGHT from or BOARD THE SCHOOL BUSES?
Traffic experts have designed the entire 9-lane Bus Bay facility on Level 1 for convenient pick-up and drop-off of students by school buses. They come with covered parking, traffic lanes with light indicators, pedestrian zebra lights and Stop LED indicators at dedicated pedestrian crossings.
The entire Level 1 has the capacity to hold over 100 buses of all sizes, and another 100 buses can be held in open areas along the internal school roads. All 9 lanes in the facility STRICTLY cater to the needs of school buses, and dropping taxis and private cars.
HOW WOULD STUDENTS KNOW WHERE THEIR ROUTE Number SCHOOL BUSES ARE PARKED?
We are in process of implementing a Bus Location System which will allow students to see the bus numbers and their location lot numbers on television sets around the entire school. There are 70 Digital Signage System (DSS) displays around the Campus, and the system on these DSS screens will be updated before 30 Aug.
FACILITIES
how is the smart campus organised?
The SMART Campus is divided into two blocks: Peranakan (P) and Straits (S); names chosen to reflect the rich Singapore culture and its integration into our school.
The ‘P’ block is used by students from Nursery to Grade 6 including those from Queenstown & Balestier campuses.
The ‘S’ block is used by students from Grade 7 to 12, for all three curricula - CBSE, IGCSE and IBDP - from Queenstown, Balestier and East Coast. Four sections of Grade 7 will be present at 'P' block.
Below table indicates the location of various sections.
>Section table>>IMAGE HERE
WHAT FACILITIES ARE AVAILABLE FOR ECA/CCA ACTIVITIES AND WHERE ARE THEY LOCATED?
There are several comprehensive ECA/CCA facilities provided across the two blocks which are available to all students. Please follow the below list which outlines the various facilities, their block, their floor location and their room number.
WHAT ARE THE SMART FACILITIES USEABLE BY STUDENTS AT THE CAMPUS?
There are several Smart facilities which have been offered for students. These include:
1. Smart ID card using RFID
2. G Campus Wallet
3. Facial Recognition for Student Attendance and Access Control
4. Campus Wireless
5. In-class SOB power extensions
6. Restroom Feedback System
7. Whiteboard Apps on Classroom Smart Touch TV
8. BYOD for wireless presentation
9. Reading Stations@Gandhi Centre
10. Library kiosks and Smart drop bins
11. SGR Meeting Rooms with web-based reservations
12. Seminar Rooms with video conferencing
13. Smart Basketball using SPEDAS technology
14. G TV studio
15. G Radio studio
16. Official Student iPad with class-based charging and storage
17. Personal notebook limitations
18. Document printing on dedicated network printer using G Campus Wallet
19. Turnstile gates with Smart ID for Entry and Exit
20. Student-operated Control Room at MPH
21. Food Collection kiosk
22. In-class student presentations
IS THERE A biCYCLE PARKING FACILITY INSIDE THE SCHOOL?
The school has made arrangements for students to park their private cycles inside the school campus. Riders can enter through Gate 1 and park the cycles at the two designated spots near the U-turn sign. The students who are using publicly rented cycles are not allowed to park them inside the Campus and need to leave them on the large, green open space opposite the school.
HOW MANY LIFTS AND STAIRCASES DOES THE CAMPUS HAVE? ARE THEY NUMBERED FOR EASY LOCATION?
There are over 9 elevators in the premises (4 in ‘Peranakan’ block and 5 in ‘Straits’ block) available to students. Besides this, students can take the stairs to access desired floors. All staircases are located near the lift landing.
IS THERE ANY HELP FOR YOUNG STUDENTS WHEN THEY ARE TAKING LIFTS?
For our young students to have a safe and smooth ride to upper floors in P block, 2 out of the 4 lifts shall be manned by lift aunties.
HOW do YOUNG STUDENTS NAVIGATE THEIR WAY TO CLASSROOMS?
After disembarking from the school buses, all students are advised to use the nearest staircases or escalators or lifts. Those who wish to take the lifts are advised to proceed to the lift lobbies of the P & S blocks.
CAN STUDENTS TAKE LIFTS DURING SCHOOL HOURS?
Yes students can take lifts and escalators during school hours. They are advised to follow the standard rules.
CAN STUDENTS TAKE LIFTS AFTER SCHOOL?
Students are advised to use one of the 9 available staircases while climbing down the Campus. This would allow students to avoid waiting times for lifts and they can descend to an area near their parked school bus location.
HOW TO IDENTIFY FLOORS FROM THE STAIRCASE OR LIFT?
Each floor is indicated by a number which is displayed at the staircase landing as well as the lift lobby.
At the staircase lobby, signages will display the floor number prominently in English as well as in Braille, as can be seen in the image (on the left).
At lift lobbies, each signage will have the floor number indicated at the opposite end of the lift door. Each lift is also indicate by a dedicated number as displayed in the image (on the right).
IS THE CAMPUS HANDICAP OR SPECIAL NEEDS FRIENDLY?
Any wheelchair bound person can access all areas of the school without any assistance.
To enable a smooth transition from floors with different floor heights, there are more than 15 ramps provided at all locations to enable any wheelchair bound person to approach the areas on his/her own.
At the staircase lobby, signages will display the floor number in Braille, as can be seen in the image above.
SCHOOL
ARE THE PERANAKAN AND STRAITS BLOCKS INTERCONNECTED?
The 'P' and 'S' blocks are connected at Levels 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Access on Level 2 is through the Nest area, while access through Level 3 is through the cafeteria. Access on Level 4 is through the cafeteria as well as the Friendship Bridge linking the two buildings at the opposite end. Access on Level 5 is through the playground.
ARE the BLOCK TO BLOCK INTERCONNECTIONS SECURED WITH BIOMETRICS?
All the interconnected paths are secured with biometric access controls which will be deactivated during school hours ensuring free access to students moving between the buildings.
After school hours, biometric controls will be activated at all interconnections, and will be accessible through SMART ID cards. Teachers and students can use their respective passes to open doors to access these areas.
WHAT ARE THE VARIOUS LABS AVAILABLE AT THE CAMPUS?
Modern and spacious labs, elegantly designed for students, are available at the Campus. The lab structure is designed to ensure that a maximum number of students can use the facilities with ease and comfort. Labs also have dedicated preparatory rooms and research corners where students can meet with teachers or peers to hold discussions and collaborate.
There are separate labs for CBSE and International curricula students.
Students of CBSE curricula have one each of Physics lab, Chemistry Lab, Biology lab, and a Composite lab.
Students of IB and IGCSE have one each of Chemistry Lab and Biology lab, and a common Physics lab shared with CBSE students.
Each block has one each of Composite Labs to be used by Upper Primary and Middle School students.
WILL STUDENTS CONTINUE IN THE SAME SECTION IN THE NEW CAMPUS?
Most students are in their respective sections, along with fellow students. However, minor changes are likely possible. To see the changes, we request you to login in MyGIIS, choose PG-SmartCampus, use your existing MyGIIS username and password and the former campus selection to be able to view the section and all other features.
WILL TEACHERS CONTINUE TO BE IN-CHARGE OF THEIR RESPECTIVE SECTIONS?
Majority of teachers will continue to lead their respective sections. However, some teachers may be reassigned to new sections.
WILL THERE BE CHANGES TO THE SCHOOL CALENDAR?
The school calendar will continue to be the same as announced at the beginning of the 2018-2019 academic year.
WILL THERE BE A CHANGE IN THE TIMETABLE?
The time table for all classes has undergone some changes and these would be reflected in MyGIIS by 25th June 2018.