As I sit here writing this month’s blog, our Grade 12 students are in the Multi-Purpose Hall, in the middle of their final IB Diploma examinations. It is, as you would expect, a stressful time.
At this point in the year, I often find myself reflecting on a quiet paradox. For our students and their parents, this moment represents the culmination of years of learning — a journey that began as soon as they opened their eyes and took their first breath, and one in which NIS has been honoured to play a significant role. For some of our learners, NIS has been home for 15 years; for others, only a couple. But for all of our students, the moment is now! The examinations are here.
And yet, for all its importance, it is hard to believe that this experience can be fully captured in a series of final examination papers or a transcript. Surely learning is more than that?
Of course, these assessments matter. The results that follow will play a significant role in shaping university pathways and opening doors to a myriad of future opportunities. We take academic success seriously — as do our students. Of course we do. But while this moment is essential, it is not the whole story.
Because, alongside the grades and the university offers, there is another question worth asking: who are these young people about to leave us? What have they become over the course of their time at NIS, not only as students, but as learners, and as people? What is the true promise of an NIS education, and how will they be impacted?
A learner is not simply a student. And a student is not the sum of their exam results. These are young adults, ready to go into the world and have an impact. But who are they? And how can we reflect on their NIS journey in that light?
Each year, as university offers begin to arrive, we are, of course, proud of the destinations our students earn. This year’s cohort is no exception, with offers from universities across the UK, North America, the EU, Australasia, and Asia. Once again, our students have been accepted to and/or received provisional offers to some of the most highly respected universities in their respective countries. When we look over the past five years, we see a consistent pattern: students moving on to a wide range of leading institutions around the world, pursuing pathways as diverse as engineering, the arts, medicine, business, and beyond.
These are strong outcomes. They matter to our learners and our parents. They are an important part of what we do as a school.
But we should never forget that these outcomes are not the starting point for what we do as a school. They are the outcome of the kind of learning and well-being we aspire to — the mission-driven, values-led education that is the core of NIS.
What universities recognize in making an offer to an NIS student is not only their grades and predicted IB scores, but also a profile of a learner. They are young people who are curious, think critically, manage complexity, are willing to struggle with difficult ideas, and reflect on their own learning. They are students who have learned not just to succeed within a system, but who can show that they are able to grow within it; students who truly reflect the learner profile, and have a moral compass founded in the school values of growth, safety, responsibility, and belonging. Our alumni testify to this through the success stories they share as they enter the world beyond school.
These are the qualities that endure long after the final examination papers are written or the final transcript published. These are human qualities that transcend any grade or number. They are much harder to see, but they are ultimately the best indicator of success beyond school. They are a better indicator of happiness and fulfillment in life.
As a school, we often try to explain the importance of designing learning that develops not only knowledge, but also concepts, skills, and dispositions. We know that learning is not a linear process. It involves uncertainty, feedback, collaboration, and reflection. It asks students to take risks, to make mistakes, and to try again. Over time, it builds not just competence, but confidence. Not just achievement, but identity. Each member of the Class of 2026 will forever be a part of that collective identity, and it is this that is the foundation for the rest of their lives.
Just a few weeks ago, the Class of 2026 gathered for one last group photo. For many of our students, the traditional photograph taken under the sakura trees will become a symbol of this moment in time, a moment of transition. The sakura bloom briefly, beautifully, and then fall. But what makes the sakura metaphor so strong is that when the blossoms fall, it is never the ending - it is a reminder of the celebration of the cycle of life, the stages of renewal, and the opportunity to move forward from one stage of life to the next.
So too for our graduates.
The final assembly for the Gr.12s came with a surprise farewell from the Gr.11s
As they prepare to leave NIS, we celebrate their academic successes and the university and tertiary pathways upon which they embark. But more importantly, they will leave as learners, as young people who have developed the habits of mind and the strength of character to navigate what comes next, in a world that will continue to change, evolve, provoke and inspire.
Success for an NIS learner is not simply where our students go next, important though that is. It is who they are when they get there, wherever that may be!
