The International Baccalaureate (IB) programme is deeply rooted in principles of action and agency, integral components that shape the heart of the educational philosophy at SCIS. At the core of what SCIS offer as a school, the IB’s ethos of building within each student’s motivation is to learn and study on their own, for the joy of knowledge.
In the IB holistic educational framework, students are inspired to engage in authentic actions that hold meaning and significance. It is within this environment that they come to recognize their competence, capability, and agency as active agents of change, nurturing their capacity for lifelong learning.
A recent conversation with Molly Myers, Lower School Principal at SCIS Pudong, delved into the essence of how the International Baccalaureate (IB) thrives, particularly within the Primary Years Programme (PYP).
Action and agency are at the heart of the International Baccalaureate (IB). As an IB World school, SCIS take pride in ensuring all “students have voice, choice and ownership for their own learning” (IBO, 2018).
When a learning community, like the one offered at SCIS, is supportive of action and agency, students are inspired to take authentic action that is meaningful.
In a ‘Sharing the Planet’ unit, a student explores environmental conservation, creating research questions, investigations, and action projects, showcasing their agency in learning. The benefits of providing children space, time, and support to be agents of their own actions leads to life-time learning.
At SCIS, students know they are part of a learning community that celebrates their learning. Learning celebrations, student action, and student leadership are perfect examples of how students take action to make relevant, real-world connections.
Learning celebrations typically take place at the end of a Unit of Inquiry and are designed for children to share with others by presenting special projects or a piece of work that reflects the essence of their learning.
Students work with their teacher to prepare learning spaces, displays, and experiences for people to interact with during a learning celebration.
It is such an incredible experience to see five- and six-year-old kindergartners confidently communicate their learning with high school seniors.
The benefits for learning celebrations extend to both the students presenting and those in the audience.
A great example of how action inspired by relevant, real-world connections within PYP was the Grade 3 ‘How the World Works,’ Structures Unit of Inquiry. Grade 3 students were inspired by a teacher who uses a walker to inquire into accessibility on the Pudong campus.
The Grade 3 students were very aware of their teacher’s challenges and were highly motivated to investigate and advocate for improving access in the school because they were able to connect their learning to someone close to them.
These Grade 3 students used their teacher’s walker to test ramps, measure space in bathrooms, and navigate between desks and classrooms and discovered opportunities for improvement in the school’s design.
They used what they discovered during their exploration to design models of spaces in the school that could be improved to be more accessible for people with disabilities.
They brainstormed ideas and invited members of the design and operations team to their learning celebration where they presented problems and solutions that are relevant and real to the building’s structure.
During the learning celebration, students confidently outlined the problems and solutions in a clear, coherent, and confident manner, impressing those in positions to make changes.
Without having this real-world, relevant connection, they may have taken a different path during their inquiry; by having a real-life problem to solve, the sense of advocacy and action was more than an aspirational inspiration, it was a sense of urgency that warranted a response.
By giving students a chance to share who they are, what they care about, and how they hope to make changes, they are living their mission by being “knowledgeable, caring learners who contribute positively to their community.”
By advancing their approaches of student action into the Middle Years Programme (MYP), these students cultivate higher-level thinking and lay the groundwork for becoming visionary leaders of tomorrow, championing sustainability and positive change.
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[All images courtesy of SCIS]
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