The Fort Issue 03 Jun 2019 | Page 22

International Mindedness within the Middle School

MIDDLE SCHOOL

Ms. Sarah Boylin - Middle School Principal

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One of the things that truly impresses me about Verdala is the range of nationalities and cultural diversity within one place. In Middle School, we have staff and students from over 30 different countries...which isn’t bad for a population of around 150! Just walking through the Middle School corridor and taking a look at the flags that represent our school community is a real eye-opener and shows that our school population is really made up of people from all walks of life and from all over the world!

How to acquire knowledge and understanding of what lies beyond their own nationality

How to understand the independence and interdependence of peoples , countries and cultures

How to adapt to other educational systems

How to develop both a national and international perspective

The host and home countries

The countries representing the population of students in their school

Other countries studied in each subject

How to maintain an appreciation for the ideas and cultures outside of one’s own

Through our International Middle Years Curriculum (IMYC) a key area of focus for our students is that of INTERNATIONAL MINDEDNESS. International Mindedness is a view of the world in which people see themselves connected to the global community and assume a sense of responsibility to its members. It is an awareness of the inter-relatedness of all nations and peoples, and a recognition of the complexity of these relationships.

Internationally-minded people appreciate and value the diversity of cultures in the world and make an effort to learn more about them. The IMYC recognises that throughout an international curriculum and all other aspects of school life, students will learn to develop an international mindset that strives to consistently consider others. Throughout all their subject areas students learn about: