At GSO and IB World Schools across the board, the student is not only required academic commitment, but also to be engaged in extra-curricular activities, beside being encouraged to put into play his/her talent for the community advantage.
Why investing in this kind of experiences?
The world is longing for change
Poverty, hunger, peace, climate change, sustainable development, equal opportunities are only some of the problems that need to be sorted out and with which each continent of the world is nowadays challenged — change, though, is no easy task. Notwithstanding the deep need to act in order to make the world a better place, motivation is not as strong as the need. Indeed, change is a troublesome process forcing us to get out of our comfort zone. It’s a leap in the dark, something unknown, unsafe.
The young are more flexible and motivated towards change: therefore, in contrast with the adults, they have higher chances of success in leading the world to a better future.
The young have a different vision
The talked-about generation Z grew up during the digital time with access to a great amount of information and to such a high speed that were unbelievable before. These young people, our students, see the world and its problems from different points of view, being therefore able to conceive solutions that previous generations wouldn’t be able to imagine.
Youngsters are therefore essential for the development of a country and the future of the world and they should be supported and encouraged to give their contribution.
The importance of networking
Present-day world complexity calls to action several people collaborating together. This doesn’t mean being social, that is using those nowadays most effective tools to make our voice heard. Conversely, it means being effective in our actions after our words, pushing a ripple effect where someone takes on the responsibility of a problem that needs a solution, influencing their mates to do the same. It’s many people’s little actions that assure a change.
School is an opportunity for the community
It is compulsory to support the young in developing their potential, in order to make them ready to take on the challenges that our current society makes them face. School isn’t only learning space, but also an opportunity of education and development of those features and skills needed for a young adult to meaningfully contribute to their community.
Activities of service, social initiatives and projects are practical experiences helping the student raise awareness of their potential in contributing to the community, develop social skills, become accountable citizens, take on the responsibility of social problems and become positive role models. If students are given appropriate support, the whole community will benefit from it.
The young are the present
The youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow
Nelson Mandela stated. But is it really so?
Several changes in history saw young adults as protagonists, that, motivated by the idea of a better future, put themselves at stake. Nowadays too there are youth deeply contributing to their community: Malala, Olivia Bouler, Maren Johnson, Jonny Cohen, Kendall Ciesmier, just to mention some. Therefore, we should say that the students of today are the leaders of tomorrow, but also of today.