The green grass, natural light in almost every room, the lush trees, the garden starting to grow to attract butterflies, the soothing sound of birds and none of the noise that used to come to school every morning. More than going to school, the students – from first year grade to sixth year of high school – from University of St. North Georgein Powder kegseems to have entered a remote area where learning flows smoothlyalthough it is a bilingual double shift that trains international secondary school graduates with certification exams in the UK.

Almost uninterrupted during the pandemic (only one morning class was not held in March 2020 due to virtuality having to be regulated), high school students weren’t surprised to end up facing distance learning. Since 2017, technology is a major part of their school days and by the end of this year, a new milestone will be reached: the first cohort of high school graduates who are fully trained with digital tools in and out of the classroom. Perhaps, the transit is more than a year without attendance, but with the same quality of learning as in a comfortable classroom where there are no symmetrically arranged benches in front of the blackboard, they experience it without the ups and downs of many children and youth. who have difficulty adapting to the “new normal”. Both students of all levels and teachers are far from facing problems adaptation to the new educational language which passed through many private and public management institutions and which even resulted in the desertion of at least 500,000 students across the country.

If the crisis can be seen as an opportunity, the versatility of teaching during the pandemic attracted more students in later years. “For 2022 enrollment, 135 new students enter; 50 corresponds to kindergarten, 49 to elementary school and 36 to middle school. By 2023, we already have 24 more students insured. We will see how that number develops in the coming weeks, when the demand for new registrations typically increases,” he said. Oliver Proctorthe general director of the school, who next year will celebrate its 125th anniversary and through classes through which generations of families have passed.

“All students are able to follow the national and international curriculum and that is different from other schools in the region. The pandemic found the education system with several weaknesses that we, from previous programs, knew how to overcome. That’s a plus many families can verify that the pedagogical proposal is not lostwhich has extraordinary results that go beyond and attract the new“, added Supervisor a COUNTRY.

“University of St. North George It also has the peculiarity of year-round admission, as it is an international school”, he added. Supervisora 41-year-old Briton, who took over management in 2017 and scored the unusual stamp of education specialist and drama graduate (theater, for our country), among many other university diplomas.

The flag that crowns one of the walls of the ground-level dining room confirms its international status: from Japan to Brazil, including Argentina and several European countries, each flag indicates the origin of the student. Different cultures come together to advance the goal of excellence in education, which is achieved in part because of all work teams are “fully bilingual” and “full time”shift Supervisorwho does not deny his pride in knowing that students score very well in standardized learning tests conducted at home and abroad, although he did not elaborate as current legislation does not allow timely disclosure of results.

“We are a student-focused school: active learning, infrastructure, well-being and leadership. That’s why we apply learning based on interdisciplinary projects and supported by skills and abilities, not content. Students take a leading role in their learning process, which makes them develop greater responsibility and commitment, as well as more autonomy. The context in which and how students learn is very important, so we focus on turning classrooms into study spaces to enrich the student-centred pedagogical approach. We are fortunate to have an eight acre campus with lush trees, lots of outdoor classes. We do not offer an academic experience by itself, but it is accompanied by a holistic and comprehensive training, accompanied by an interest in developing emotional management and developing soft skills that will accompany them throughout their lives”, explained Proctor.

The director also pointed out that among the latest innovations, especially in terms of technology, are the first certification in Argentina as a Google Reference Schoolin 2019. In the following years, several private companies were added and, a few weeks ago, the same status was achieved by Municipal Primary School of Manuel Dorrego, Vicente Lópezbecame the first public management in the country to integrate such a technology school club in the world.

“We don’t know what the future of work will look like, so we want to provide students with the tools and skills that will accompany them on whatever path they choose.”, said the school director, stopping at the sector where, at the student’s initiative, a butterfly garden and forest classroom, built by the students themselves. The purpose of the forest is to produce real trees carry out reforestation in various areas in the country. He also anticipated that a group of schoolgirls started a project to use solar panels to improve the energy efficiency of the eight-hectare campus.

Crossed by virtuality, Supervisor views that one of the challenges of schools today is “train efficient users in technology”. “This will allow our students to have more opportunities in a global field of work where they will naturally compete with people from other parts of the world. For young people to be successful in the future, they need the knowledge, skills and character to thrive in a changing world. Their time in college should prepare them to become world citizenfoster curiosity, critical thinking and agency in learning”, he concluded.