Head of School philosophy

 

At the very core I believe that a school should be a place where students are encouraged to dream, to believe that it is possible to achieve their dreams, and to be supported in working toward achieving their dreams. 

 

Quality Education

In order for this vision to become reality, it is necessary to ensure that we have the right staff on board; staff who are qualified and experienced, and passionate about the subject they teach; staff who work well together as a team; staff who take the time to know their students individually, and are able to help them to set realistic targets and to work toward achieving them; staff who are positive role models for our students both in their conduct and in their attitude toward education, being the embodiment of lifelong learners themselves; and staff who are concerned to keep parents informed and abreast of student progress, working with parents to bring about the desired results.

 

A Love of Learning

Of course you can have all the systems and procedures in place and still not achieve the desired result because as the saying goes, ‘You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink’. It is therefore vital that we inspire and motivate our students to want to learn for themselves, so that they become responsible young individuals who take an active interest in their education, are willing and eager to learn, concerned when they halt in their progress, and proactive in finding solutions to the problems they may face as they progress toward to graduation and matriculation in the university of their choice. It is my wish that by the time they leave IBSB, our students have acquired a love of learning and the tools they need to succeed in life.

 

Good Role Models

It is extremely important that students are surrounded by positive role models, in the Head of School, the teachers, the Prefects, and their peers. As Oscar Wilde once wrote, ‘A person is known by the company they keep’ and this is as true today as it was in the days of yore. It is not enough therefore to focus on each individual; we need also to look at the individuals that constitute each student’s life in order to ensure, where possible, that the people that they come in contact with on a daily basis are having a positive influence on their life. This means we need to look to each classroom environment to ask whether the students are having a positive effect on each other, encouraging each other to be more than they are and to become all that they can be. There is nothing more concerning to me than a classroom where students are embarrassed or afraid to succeed for fear of being labelled a ‘nerd’. For me, a school can only succeed when each and every student is working to their full potential, and success is valued and positively reinforced by teachers and students alike.

 

Team Work

I also feel it is important that students help each other, because more is achieved when people work together, and experience has shown me that the best way to learn is to teach, for to know is one level, but to know enough to teach something enough to be able to explain it clearly to another individual is an altogether other level. I have always found that the best exam results are achieved when the stronger students help the weaker students and all students are honestly concerned to ensure that all students succeed. Creating this type of learning environment not only encourages the weaker students to work harder, but also, in my experience, usually results in an A-A* class average. This attitude also prepares students well for life where they will have to learn to work in teams before going on to learn how to manage teams to work well together.

 

Happy, healthy individuals willing and able to give back to society

In the end, I believe a school is working well when the students leave with a solid education that opens doors for them enabling them to go on to succeed in their chosen career, with interests and hobbies that continue to develop into lifelong passions, with friends that remain with them throughout their life, and with fond memories that continue to bring them a sense of happiness. I see an international school as a place where students are able to prepare to enter the world as responsible, mature global citizens, willing and able to contribute and to give back to society in a meaningful way.

 

Kendall Peet

Head of School

September 2011