A Milestone in the Tudor House Learning Adventure

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE

Our unique regional campus The King’s School, Tudor House, is now firmly planted on the global stage with its registration in October 2020 as a prestigious International Baccalaureate (IB) global school.

The IB is more than an international education programme and certificates. Since its establishment in 1968, at the heart of its mission is a motivation to create a better world through education. This aligns directly to the nearly 200 year mission of The King’s School, as we seek to make an outstanding impact for the good of society through our students, and by the quality of teaching and leadership in our Christian Community, as articulated in 1832 by Bishop William Grant Broughton;

“The education in The King’s School is not for the exclusive benefit of those upon whom it is bestowed, but for that of the entire community.”

The IB has a presence in over 150 countries across the globe, and universities worldwide recognise the strength of the IB programmes.

A Rigorous Journey

Tudor House is now one of 20 IB schools in NSW, which also includes The King’s School, Preparatory School. Tudor House is now the only school in the Southern Highlands registered to offer the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP).

It has been a demanding, but exciting three year journey to registration. Every student at Tudor House from Pre-Kindergarten to Year 6, is now immersed in the PYP curriculum.

The Chair of Council, Mrs Rosemary Abrahams joined Ms Anni Sandwell, Head of Tudor House and her team to host an on-site Certification Visit by an IB Panel at the end of Term 3 – a critical part of the IB registration pathway. The IBO panel conducted a review over their two-day visit and were impressed by staff and students alike in the journey thus

far, while acknowledging the important support and involvement of both the parent community and the Council of The King’s School.

The PYP Curriculum Framework

The framework differs from the curriculum in a non-IB school, in that it begins with the premise that students are agents of their own learning. Agency implies a sense of responsibility to participate in the world; influencing people, events and circumstances for the better.1 The PYP offers a transdisciplinary, inquirybased and student-centred education with responsible action at its core, enabling students to learn between, across and beyond traditional subject boundaries.

It encourages students to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right. Founded on a philosophy that recognises a child’s natural curiosity, creativity and ability to reflect.

The PYP aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect - not as an alternative to a sense of cultural and national identity, but as an essential part of life in this global century. The framework serves as the curriculum organiser and offers an in-depth guide to achieve authentic conceptual inquiry-based learning that is engaging, significant, challenging and relevant.

Through the programme of inquiry and by reflecting on their learning, PYP students develop knowledge, conceptual understandings, skills and the attributes of the IB Learner profile.2 The IB Learner profile in this framework is an excellent match to the King’s distinctives and values, as it encourages learners to strive to be:

• inquirers • knowledgeable • thinkers • communicators • principled • open-minded • caring • risk-takers • balanced • reflective

The Way Forward

A significant list of commendations arrived along with the registration for Tudor House as an IB School. At the top of the long list, the Panel noted that, “The School strives to build a culture within the learning community where everyone has agency and sees themselves as informed and valued contributors who respond to challenges and build on strengths and successes.”

It is clear that the Tudor House learning community, has excelled in the delivery and execution of this major project. Now, they turn their eyes and effort to the next phase of development. They will review the current central ideas and lines of inquiry to identify a component of the globally and socially driven transdisciplinary theme. This will inform the starting point for learning that will examine issues and opportunities that connect to the real world.

The adventure that is an education and life experience at Tudor House continues!

Caitlin Hayman Director of Academics, Tudor House & PYP Coordinator

“The School strives to build a culture within the learning community where everyone has agency and sees themselves as informed and valued contributors who respond to challenges and build on strengths and successes.”