An interview with Mrs Sarah Wright: GEMS Wellington International School, Senior Vice Principal for Student Culture and Experience. The full interview recording can be found here.
Transition means moving beyond something. It is a process that every child will go through, along with every adult that surrounds them. It seems to happen all of a sudden, but how can we help?
Which year group should we focus on?
No year group is more significant than the others. A successful transition depends on the child: their resilience, adaptability and open-mindedness are key throughout this move. For every child in every year, the move is exciting and brings a whole wealth of new experiences. Friendships can change at any point and for any year group, as their interests grow and develop. When venturing into new subject choices, this can affect some friendship groups more widely than others, which is often highlighted by families. Although making and losing friends can be a delicate process, social skills develop as children explore new avenues such as hobbies, sports and performing arts experiences. It is less about ‘important year groups’ and more about supporting each student in every year group in their own way.
I’m a student. What should I know and be doing?
The more open-minded you are, the more opportunities that you invest in, the easier the transition becomes. This active choice in participation and helping others is vital at every age. Teachers are great sources of advice here. They have seen your move upwards happen many times before. They know in September you will likely feel a certain way and by December a different scenario will likely be the case. Make the choice to be involved and listen to the advice you are given. Communication is key. If you do have a question, no matter what it is: ask. Students can build essential relationships with any member of staff. It is all about the right opportunity at the right time. Particularly within an international and mobile community, seeing familiar faces can make an enormous difference. Find your ‘people’ and go through this together!
Transition for parents: an exhilarating experience!
As students become older, an increase in independence is vital. We should do everything we can to foster that independence. For many parents, that can be daunting. You have had to organise their bags each day, pack their lunch box and you know exactly what they are doing and when. That release of responsibility can be hard! There is nothing wrong with that. Every parent’s journey is just as individual as their child’s journey. Schools have a wealth of opportunities to support this process: parental engagements, the accessibility of the teaching staff body, including heads of year and tutors. There is a wealth of information shared prior to, during and after the move designed to support every step of the way. We do have student’s best interests at heart, we promise. Parents will hopefully have to do less physically, but your child will still need you! It is vital to give children the opportunity to work things through themselves first. Support them with enough knowledge that you are there but give them advice on what they could try, don’t do it for them. This might take a little bit longer, but the outcome is much more purposeful to that student and their personal development. Every child will have their own journey.
Pastoral vs academics. Which is more important?
For a child to feel successful, the first thing they need is to feel safe, confident and secure; not just in their academic ability but also in their personal, social and emotional development. They need certainty. Without that it’s hard to build on. Feeling safe and confident can come from academic success and depending on the year group, one can be more important than the other to the student. At WIS, we have found that many IB students (years twelve and thirteen) are more focused on their curriculum aspects, sometimes at a detriment to their friendships, building relationships and social engagements. Our student culture and experience team anticipates this and encourages students to take part in a wide range of opportunities. At WIS, we have been accredited as outstanding for student wellbeing. One of the reasons is because we monitor and track our support over the whole year to identify when there are particular peaks on an hourly, weekly, termly basis. This informs how we are proactive before those peaks; by inviting our parents in, changing assembly content and altering curriculum structures. It is vital we are proactive and forward planning not just for the ‘big events,’ but those small changes that happen throughout the child’s journey.
What is a successful transition?
This can vary enormously for each and every student. Young people will always be invited to the challenge: at the edge of what is possible. Children that take every opportunity: activities, events, experiences and try everything they possibly can, are pushing the boundaries of what they thought possible. You know these children inside and out. You will see it, hear it, feel it within the school. For some children, making the adjustment can be so much easier than others. Where this does not come as easy, we need to make sure we are putting the right support in at the right time. It all comes down to personalisation. Not just personalisation to that child but everyone around that child too – nobody knows them better than you!
