{"id":10853,"date":"2022-10-05T15:18:04","date_gmt":"2022-10-05T07:18:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.easytest.my\/igbis2022\/?p=10853"},"modified":"2022-10-17T11:37:19","modified_gmt":"2022-10-17T03:37:19","slug":"igbis-newsletter-issue-309","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.easytest.my\/igbis2022\/newsletters\/igbis-newsletter-issue-309\/","title":{"rendered":"IGBIS Newsletter, Issue 309."},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Message from the Head of School<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Jason McBride<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hello IGBIS Community, 
A big thank you to everyone who made today\u2019s Malaysia Day Celebration<\/strong> a success; from those who dressed in traditional attire, to those who were on stage or organizing the assembly to finish the day. Days like today are a powerful reminder that Malaysia stands out as a great example of how many different cultures can come together in a harmonious way to coexist in a country. Nowhere in the world is perfect, and there is an incredible need to elevate the level of equity, inclusion and justice here and globally, but IGBIS \u2014 and Malaysia in many ways \u2014 has a \u201cspecial ingredient\u201d that many other places struggle to include to the same extent. That special ingredient is \u2026 open-mindedness<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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You often hear that diversity is a key to increasing a sense of equality or inclusion, but that\u2019s not the whole story. In fact, diversity in and of itself can cause problems if we bring together different perspectives without an underlying commitment to being open-minded. As one of the IB Learner Profile<\/a> attributes, open-mindedness can be a key in turning diversity into belonging; a recipe that Malaysia has been building upon for the past 59 years as a nation. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Being open-minded does not mean that you do not hold strong beliefs yourself, but that you remain open to others\u2019 perspectives. As the IB Mission Statement<\/a> states, if we want to promote intercultural understanding and respect, we must act in such a way that allows other people, with their differences, to also be right. Open-mindedness is the attribute that keeps our emotional and intellectual doors open, keeps us humble and invites us to be curious about the \u201cother\u201d so that we have the potential to include, rather than exclude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our celebration of Malaysia Day comes two weeks before our Inclusive Schools Week<\/a> from September 26 – 30, a time when we will be diving into all the wonderful, complex, sometimes frustrating, but always interesting facets of what it means to be a school that prioritizes inclusion. Today, however, we celebrate IGBIS\u2019 and Malaysia’s desire to create an environment in which everyone belongs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My question to our community this weekend is how can your open-mindedness help someone around you feel even more included?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yours in building belonging,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jason<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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From the SS Principal<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sandy van Nooten<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It has been a short, but busy week in Secondary and student leadership has been a focus. Here is a summary of what has been happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Student Council Executives<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Congratulations to our newly elected Student Council executives for 22-23.<\/p>\n\n\n\n