By Carme Escorcia, head of Communication
June has been a vibrant month at St. Peter’s school. Walking through the corridors, you could feel that something was brewing. A student in Year 5 could suddenly appear asking for help for their exhibition. You could see Mr. Mauri and their troop running from one side to another preparing the latest technical arrangements for their final launching to the stratosphere. Singularity Foundation needed to have it all ready for the 200 delegates that were gathering to debate possible solutions for the world of 2030. Diploma teachers from different parts of Spain attended for a whole weekend the professional development courses that were held at St. Peter’s. The Math Challenge participants tried to solve the problems presented with creativity. And the students in MYP finalised their Design Projects and gave their first Ted Talk ever held at St. Peter’s. It’s worth looking back at what we have achieved before we move forward.
The teachers want to show how proud they are of all our students, reflecting at the same time upon the challenges that have been faced this year. As Mr. Salvadó, head of PreU stated in the Graduation ceremony for the Class of 2022, “Every single teacher in this school has been influenced by the personality of their students, by the way they see the world…To be honest, they have helped us become better professionals, better people. They have made us more empathic, better listeners and waaaay more patient!”
Considering our three strategic pillars, we can review some of the challenges faced this school year.
EXPONENTIALS
This year we designed an interdisciplinary unit of inquiry on Artificial Intelligence, with the participation of almost every teacher in the school. More than interdisciplinary, the project was transdisciplinary and the Year 6 students were more than ready to face the challenge after their experience in the PYP exhibition. In the end, they presented their findings to their parents and showed how much AI can change the way we search and produce knowledge.
We officially opened our Lab 06, the first Science Lab in a school for children in Foundation Years. It’s been an absolute pleasure to see our Foundation students exploring freely the different corners of the lab, and observe them carrying out different experiments planned and designed by our teachers.
The Y8 students carried out an investigation on blockchain and became experts on this technology. We also introduced this technology in Year 5 and 2, with the younger students sending a Christmas card using blockchain!
Our Science Teachers guided our students through units of inquiry on biotechnology, genetics, sustainability or forensic science. Our Design and Robotics teachers accompanied their classes in the design of possible solutions for real problems: Ecoroads was a solution for pollution in the cities, and the social distance gears tried to help us keep the distance required during the pandemic.
All in all, this strong focus on science tries to connect our students to the real world, presenting possible future careers and itineraries for their future.
FACTFULNESS
Factfulness is an attitude, a method to collect the evidence and facts required for each of our students’ projects. The goal is to find the facts that support our beliefs and claims.
Following this goal, our students in Year 4 collected their Moving Stories of migration by interviewing some relatives that had experienced migration in order to find the facts behind the stories; Our Year 8 students researched the changes in photography and portraiture analysing three variables (looking, tilting and turning); the students that took part in debates league in Madrid had to collect all the necessary evidence to support their hypotheses. And lastly, our Foundation Year students checked the effect of Global Warming in a science experiment in the lab that showed them how fast ice melts with extreme temperatures.
Being skeptically critical is a tool to build knowledge based on facts. Through all these projects, we empower our students to support any claim with the necessary evidence to prove it right, a great tool to fight against fake news and conspiracy theories.
CHANGE MAKING
Our students are willing to create positive impact in the world we live in. This year, students in Primary proposed and elected the first Student Council of St. Peter’s. Our SMUN2030 delegates searched for the best solutions to the challenges we will probably face in 20230. Students in Foundation 4 learned and proposed some ideas to fight against Plastic Pollution. The Year 9 students prepared their own Ted Talks, short public speaking performances in which they presented ideas worth spreading for the community.
These are a few examples of how we understand Change Making at St. Peter’s. Our students will definitely be the leaders of tomorrow, and they have started by influencing us, changing who we are thanks to their actions.
Last week, we had the opportunity to celebrate all our achievements: Foundation 5 are moving to Primary, Year 5 are officially MYP students and our Year 12 students are ready for their adventure at university. From now on, they are officially St. Peter’s alumni. Good luck in your future endeavors!
