Mrs Melinda Richardson
‘Action is a means for students to show that they have linked their learning to real-life issues and opportunities, and that they are developing responsible dispositions and behaviours towards social and physical environments, and to the community within and beyond school.’
IB Principles to Practice: The Learner (pg29)
As a school community, we desire to provide our students with opportunities to make meaning of their learning, especially through the Units of Inquiry. We want our students to understand that they are the next generation and that their voice and subsequent action can bring about positive change.
Through exploring real-world issues, our students are able to intentionally consider the actions of others in these situations and to reflect on and evaluate the outcomes. They intentionally learn about decision making processes within the syllabus, understanding the role of the government in the subject area of Geography, and personal choice within Personal Development, Health and Physical Education.
For our youngest learners, we start by developing their awareness of their responsibility for the actions and choices they make. This is driven by the way they interact with others in their class and the words they use. As students progress through the years, we begin to encourage them to consider ‘what would you do’ in this situation, with our Year 6 learners developing their skills to encourage others to make a difference. We see evidence of this as part of Exhibition.
Action can be both seen and unseen; it can be short-term or long-term. The PYP outlines five (5) key examples:
Participation - being actively involved in the learning community and showing commitment to contributing as individuals and as part of a group.
Advocacy - taking action individually or collectively to publicly support positive social change, environmental or political change.
Social justice - taking action for positive change relating to human rights, equality, and equity. Being concerned with the advantage and disadvantages within society, and with social wellbeing and justice for all.
Social entrepreneurship - supporting positive social change through responding to the needs of local, national and global communities; applying prior knowledge and skills to identify and address challenges and opportunities in innovative, resourceful and sustainable ways.
Lifestyle choices - making positive lifestyle choices in response to learning.
Families are a key component of the learning community; we recognise you as your child's first teacher and the constant in their learning journey. So how can you support action at home?
Acknowledge action - whether it is something you are naturally doing, or something you notice your child doing.
Help your child make connections with personal experiences and the action they could take.
Help your child to reflect on, and evaluate, the choices they have made.
Where age appropriate, watch the news together to help your child understand real world issues.
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. Colossians 3: 23 - 24
As God’s chosen people, we have been entrusted to care for His creation. We seek to develop an understanding among our students that the actions they take should be for the glory of God. It is an opportunity for us to show others’ God’s love.
