ACS Hillingdon Global Citizens Diploma
UK independent school ACS Hillingdon has introduced a Global Citizens Diploma (GCD), designed to recognise student achievements beyond academic grades. The school, part of the ACS group of schools, is based close to Central London and has other campuses in Cobham and Egham in UK and Doha in Qatar.
- The international high school programmes in ACS Hillingdon include:
- International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP)
- Advanced Placement (AP) and AP Capstone Diploma courses
- US High School Diploma Honours programme
- IB Career-related Programme
The GCD is earned alongside and complements the above High School diplomas through engagement and action and service-related activities that enable students personal growth and to become global citizens.
The GCD consists of 16 elements split into core values, competencies and areas of expertise in topics such as community engagement, global understanding, intercultural communication, wilderness engagement, work experience, artistic expression and leadership.
Students are required to publish a series of stories describing the activities they have undertaken and completed and reflect on what they learnt about the required element.
The students can complete the diploma at three levels: certificate, diploma or diploma+ with all students required to take at least the certificate but will be encouraged to complete the full programme. To support students progress to complete their activities and develop the necessary skills, students attend a weekly Personal Development Programme (PDP) lessons.
Martin Hall, the Head of School shares his excitement of being able to offer this effective and carefully structured programme to engage the students so they can become more confident but at the same time more caring and aware.
The diploma is an excellent way of awarding the students’ broader learning, of deepening their understanding about what it means to be a global citizen. It is a tool of igniting interest and motivation to learn more through learning and experiences and using the knowledge for the benefit of others.
The Global Citizens Diploma in Hillingdon is the first one offered in Europe but some schools have been awarding their students with the ‘Global Citizen’ sticker such as Yokohama International School in Japan or NIST International School in Bangkok.
