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Back home in Peru, Jessi remembers seeing dozens of new people in her neighbourhood. At the time, she lived in Huaycán, a small town nestled in the valleys of an ancient archaeological site just outside Lima. It was the height of the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, and thousands of refugees were pouring into Peru, settling in cities and rural towns like the one Jessi lived in.
Jessi, now a Grade 11 scholar at UWCSEA Dover, wonders how she can support refugees in her hometown, especially youth, to integrate into the local community – and eventually, help build pathways for their futures. She is one of 54 students embarking on the two-year IB Diploma Programme (IBDP) course, Systems Transformation: Leadership for Change. The two-year Standard Level course aims to provide students with the opportunity to engage in real-world solutions to relevant and significant issues.
“One of the UWC Values that closely aligns with me is compassion. Having solidarity and being empathetic with others is important. The Systems Transformation course offers an opportunity to make a real change,” Jessi says.
UWCSEA, following UWC Atlantic, is the second UWC College and one of only a handful of schools in the world to offer this new IB Diploma pathway. The course is equivalent to two IBDP subjects. Eivind Lodemel, one of the course designers, shares the focus for the first of three units: ‘How do we improve available pathways for refugees as they enter into entrepreneurship, further education, or employment?’
Empowering students
At the course launch, students kicked off with a hands-on systems mapping exercise, visualising complex data and identifying patterns leading to ways to support refugees. In roundtable groups, they brainstormed solutions and discussed the many challenges refugees face in accessing higher education. Through mind mapping and filming their presentations, they turned their ideas into impactful conversations.
In partnership with Amala Education, the first Systems Transformation unit focuses on making positive change in refugee communities through effective student projects that drive new initiatives in awareness and advocacy.
“The partnership is an obvious connection as we try to break down the walls of the classroom and engage students in authentic partnerships for real-world learning,” Eivind says.
Louie Barnett, the education lead at Amala and guest speaker at the course launch, is deeply passionate about providing refugees access to post-secondary education. In collaboration with Eivind, co-course designer Clayton Chmiel, and their teams, Louie developed the unit’s focus on students creating resource packs, toolkits, and country profiles to support refugees when they graduate from Amala.
“The UWC Mission is to use education as a force to unite people, nations, and cultures. There’s that element that you can support refugees in overcoming barriers and bringing people together; it’s a force for good to do that. It’s a challenged community, so overcoming those barriers is pretty important,” Louie says.
As the Systems Transformation course focuses on project-based learning, the course aims to create opportunities for students to learn from industry partners like Amala. To facilitate interactive learning, UWCSEA is hosting a series – ’Changemaker of the Month’ – where guest speakers can connect with students at the East and Dover campuses.
Developing pathways
Focused on making positive change and forming solutions with real-world impact, the Systems Transformation course aims to develop the competencies and skill sets needed for students to take on independent projects. This starts with a series of scaffolded, teacher-led projects in Grade 11, which are conducted together with interactions with experts and industry partners like Amala.
In Jessi’s hometown of Peru, the refugee crisis is unrelenting. Today, more than 1.5 million Venezuelan refugees living in Peru – nearly 35% of them are under 19 – need access to entrepreneurship opportunities, further education, and employment. To Jessi, the partnership with Amala empowers her to make the first step in understanding the needs of refugees.
“You’re giving them tools and opportunities. The UWCSEA mission is to use education as a force to unite people, so that connection with Amala is important and that the work we students do makes a difference,” she says.
UWC South East Asia
Dover Campus: 1207 Dover Road, Singapore, 139654 | East Campus: 1 Tampines Street 73, Singapore, 528704
www.uwcsea.edu.sg | admissions@uwcsea.edu.sg
