International Award programme at TES
What is the International Award?
The International Award is an exciting self-development programme available to all 14 to 25 year olds. Originally sponsored in 1956 by His Royal Highness, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the International Award has gone on to inspired the lives of countless young people. It is a voluntary and non-competitive scheme of sports, skills, community service and expedition based activities which bring great benefits to the young people involved.
The Award is tough but it is about individual challenge, not about reaching specific standards set by someone else. Young people design their own award activities, set their own goals, and record their own progress. The only person they compete against is themselves, by challenging their own beliefs about what they can achieve. Many of the activities that students chose as part of their character strength development are offered as part of our CCA program at TES, including all manners of sports, music, art, dance, and service clubs such as PEAK, Interstellar Yearbook, Red Cross and Amnesty International.
The benefits of attaining the International Award at any level are varied and numerous, where it is highly regarded by universities and employers. These include:
- Building confidence and teamwork in new challenging environments
- Stimulating interests and developing new skills
- Instilling a sense of responsibility and local citizenship
- Encouraging participation in physical recreation
Developing perseverance and self-motivation
Undoubtedly the most memorable part of the process is the Adventurous Journey component, where participants plan and undertake an outdoor expedition with their friends and peers, after suitable preparation and training. We are lucky that Taiwan offers an amazing variety of opportunities to get outside and test both our physical and mental abilities, while also giving us the chance to fully appreciate the beauty of the natural environment. It is in these challenging situations, where our students are out of their normal comfort zone, that the true value of the award is soon realized though shared companionship.
Who can do the award?
At TES, the award is open to students in H1, H2 and H3 by application. There are three different levels of the award programme, each successive one requiring a greater degree of commitment and time to complete:
BRONZE is for ages 14 years and over. The minimum period of participation to gain this Award is 26 weeks. Participants will generally begin this level in H1.
SILVER is for ages 15 years and over. The minimum period of participation to gain this Award is 52 weeks. Participants who have completed Bronze may complete this level within 26 weeks during H2.
GOLD is for ages 16 years and over. The minimum period of participation to gain this Award is 78 weeks. Participants who have completed Silver may complete this level within 52 weeks during H3.
It is possible to start at any Level – some participants work their way through all three, while others start at Silver or Gold.
How does it work?
To gain an Award, participants must complete an average of one hour per week of activity in each of three sections for the specified minimum period of time. After suitable training, they must also undertake an Adventurous Journey. There is an additional requirement of a Residential Project at Gold Level. Participants decide what they would like to do for each of the following sections:
- Skill – to develop personal interests, creativity or practical skills
- Community Service – to learn how to give useful service to others.
- Physical Recreation – to take part in physical activity to improve performance
At TES, the expedition training for the Adventurous Journey takes place during Co Curricular Activity (CCA) time after school. All of the outdoor journeys occur during term time throughout the school year. Students are also free to choose from several of the other CCAs offered as part of their award scheme to fulfill requirements for their Skill, Community Service and Physical Recreation.
For further details please contact Mr Rob Neroutsos, IA Coordinator at :
robin.neroutsos@tes.tp.edu.tw
