Sponsored by Beijing City International School (BCIS). Located in Beijing’s CBD, BCIS lives by its motto: “Empowering and Inspiring Through Challenge and Compassion.” This not-for-profit, co-educational day school provides a personalized, inclusive international curriculum under the International Baccalaureate (IB) World School system, offering the PYP, MYP and DP to both expatriate and Chinese national students from Toddler to Grade 12. For more information, please email admissions@bcis.cn
Current Beijing City International School Grade 10 student, Grace Wang, shares her reflections on her 10 years at the school. Grace is one of several BCIS students who has been there since its opening back in 2005:
“Hey there! My name is Grace Wang, and I’ve been at BCIS for 10 years — ever since day one! Throughout my years spent at this school, I have seen the student numbers grow magnificently, from about 80 students when the school has just opened, to more than 900 now. I have really seen the size of the BCIS community grow and flourish. The funny thing, yet the thing I love about the BCIS community, is that although the number of students has grown, and my social circles have massively grown, the BCIS community as a whole still feels so tight and connected. Everyone knows everyone, and they’re all very loving and caring to one another.
Being a part of the BCIS community from the beginning has given me many amazing learning experiences inside the classroom,but I think more important are the experiences I have gained outside of the classroom. One of the major aspects of these would be sports. As a kid and all the way up into Secondary School, I have always been very active in participating in sports outside of the classroom. These were great in my personal development as an athlete, but have also become a great learning experience for teamwork and bonding with other people. Community and Service activities such as the Migrant Children Foundation, which my friends and I have started together, are also great learning experiences, which have helped me grow as a person.
Moving through the Primary Years Programme (PYP) to the Middle Years Programme (MYP), my school life began to change. In the PYP, of course, homework was easier, there were not many aspects of school which I had to feel concerned about, and everything seemed very simple. Moving into the MYP, and now in my last year of MYP, I have realized that my school life has changed significantly. It used to consist of only play time, and study time. Now, I have to balance in-class work, with my MYP Personal Project, along with Community and Service activities I participate in, and extra curricular activities while juggling in some free time as well. This can become quite difficult and quite a lot to handle. However stressful it may be, I have realized that it has made my school life much more interesting, enjoyable, and colorful. Especially the Community and Service activities, I have really learned to love these. Being largely involved with service activities, it brings this positive vibe into my life; an energy that is unique and can be brought in no other way.”
Reflection is an important part of the learning process. In fact, some might argue that it is the most important part. By understanding how far she has come on her journey at BCIS, Grace is more able to direct herself forward into her future as she prepares to move from the challenging Middle Years Programme (MYP), to the even-more demanding Diploma Programme (DP).
Photos: BCIS
