Dynamic Student Growth
Written by Mr. Torrance
Here at CTBC International Academy a wide range of activities are offered both within, and as a supplement to, our school curriculum that aim to holistically reinforce positive values and actions in our students. One such opportunity is the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award administered through our school counseling center. Starting at age 14, students can sign up to pursue one of three tiered awards through the program: Bronze, Silver, and Gold. The award, whose patron is Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, is globally recognized and has expanded from England to 144 countries.
To achieve an award, students must create individual programs that demonstrate their growth in the fields of Skills, Physical Recreation, and Voluntary Service. At each award level, students must also develop an Adventurous Journey which is an overnight adventure of various lengths of time depending on the level of the award. One of our grade 11 students has recently embarked on her Gold award, which requires students to invest 12 months on two of the award categories and 18 months on one of them. Let’s hear how she came up with her award plan:
“For DofE Awards, I decided to choose reading to children in the public library under volunteering as I genuinely enjoy interacting with children and bringing a different way of learning English. Meaningful interactions with kids are often overlooked; through these interactions, children’s confidence in English rises– which is my personal goal. I chose piano for my skills category as I’ve already built a dedicated and disciplined habit with it for 14 years. Having this as my focus for the awards helps keep me more on track on a specific goal. As for physicality, I picked boxing as I wasn’t able to commit to it as much before, fitting this into my schedule now allows me to have something to put off stress.
Inspiring stuff! If you are interested in your student pursuing the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, please contact Mr. Torrance at christ@ctbc.edu.tw.
