VIS Annual Report 2021-2022 - Report - Page 10
Primary School
The
Vienna
International
Primary
School
opportunities for students to demonstrate their
programme continues to achieve its ambitious
capacity to explore complex themes and to solve
goals by meeting the needs of our learners in a
problems, some of which is based on work done at
changing world.
Reggio-Emilia learning centres. Twelve of our
The International Baccalaureate (IB) recently
teachers worked last year in training together
released an update to its Primary Years Programme
to support our development of this important
(PYP) which very much supports the VIS mission to
approach for our youngest students. This past
support each student to meet his or her potential.
year, the Primary School has also been granted the
The enhancements state that students must be
Umweltzeichen label from an organisation that is
provided opportunities to develop agency (voice,
guiding schools in Austria to improve the quality
choice and ownership, which directly aligns with
of the education by engaging students in acting in
our strategic intention to support students to co-
environmentally sustainable ways.
design their own learning. In terms of alignment,
Christine Lang
Primary School Principal
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Transdisciplinary Skills are now called Approaches
Our students need to develop and retain core values
to Learning, and these skills are clearly articulated
and skills, whilst at the same time developing
from ELC to Grade 12, providing a structure for
and applying new and needed competencies.
everyone in the community to be monitoring and
Our Primary School students use their eyes and
supporting students in similar ways and areas.
brains to see and understand the problems in
In the Primary School, all teachers are finding
our world. They then use their hearts and hands
ways for students to increase their understanding
to care enough to take action to solve them,
of agency. Our programme has been adapted
demonstrating agency. This is in evidence from our
to provide time for voice, choice and ownership
youngest learners as they share their experiences
and to allow deep inquiry learning through the
and new knowledge with each other at regular
Creative Arts, for example, with the inclusion of
student-led assemblies to our older learners who
a new Drama Programme and a change in the
are motivated by issues that affect and concern
timetable for Grades 4 and 5.
them to innovate and guide us towards paths
One area of the Enhanced PYP that has been
of needed change. We use the expertise of our
significantly updated is that of the PYP’s Early
teachers and community members who work
Years programme. IB philosophy has been
together to support our students to deepen
developed to explicitly articulate that students
their skills and understanding in a spirit of true
between the ages of 3 and 6-years-old should
inquiry so that they can make their individual and
experience a learning programme that provides
collective marks now and into the future.
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