How do you envision a better world?
At The International School of Kuala Lumpur (ISKL), ten words make up the school’s vision: know yourself, care for all, and create a better world. The school believes these words put together are powerful tools in its mission to inspire learners as global citizens.
Cultivating learners who think and act as global citizens is important to meet opportunities and challenges of today’s interdependent world, hence why service learning is integral to ISKL’s holistic approach to education. Essentially, we do not just envision a better future; we help create it.
Learning through service
At ISKL, service learning is more than an assignment – the curriculum is designed to ensure students become involved and understand community needs, solution planning, and action. In Elementary School, Grade 5 students take on leadership roles and coordinate many community service projects as a Red Hat. In Middle School, students adopted one service project for the year to highlight the importance of giving service, in addition to the community service clubs offered after school.
In High School, IB students take on CAS, which stands for ‘Creativity, Activity, Service’, where students regularly participate in various activities, including service initiatives. These experiential learnings enable them to undertake new challenges, develop skills, and examine the ethical implications of one’s actions.
Inspiring Co-curricular Program
From starting a National Honor Society club in 1999 to sponsoring service learning clubs such as Habitat for Humanity, a wide variety of service learning clubs are available to students that encourage them to make positive changes in the world around them.
Beyond clubs, ISKL believes in the benefits of combining service learning with an outdoor adventure through programs designed for learners to gain different perspectives, develop new skills, and build global understanding. Our students begin with overnight trips, then on to one of the highlights of Middle School – Malaysia Week, before taking on the exciting challenge of ISKL’s Global Action Program.
A Whole Community Effort
Service learning does not just stop at the student level. Initiatives such as ISKL’s Refugee Teacher Training program to upskill teachers and leaders in the refugee community, exemplify the power of positively affecting positive change in the community. Our dedicated Parent Teacher Association also presents Panther Spirit, as they help raise funds for various local charities.
When individuals move on from ISKL, they still maintain service as a core element in their lives – some even found a lifelong passion. Laurence Myers, who worked at ISKL from 2002 to 2016, supported the learning of refugee children and pioneered the Green Initiatives program, leading to ISKL’s first recipient of the Green Flag Award of the Eco-Schools Programme Malaysia.
As parents, we want to empower our children to lead happy, successful lives and thrive as global citizens. A fundamental element of ISKL’s holistic approach is the service learning opportunities integrated into our curriculum that reaches the entire community.
Please visit our page here to learn more about service learning at ISKL. It’s time to create a better world!
About ISKL
Established in 1965, The International School of Kuala Lumpur (ISKL) has become known as a center of excellence in the world of international education. ISKL is a co-educational, private, non-profit school responsible for the learning journey of over 1,500 students aged 3-18 years representing more than 65 nationalities at its campus in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.
ISKL offers a robust international curriculum which combines leading North American educational frameworks with global best practice. The curriculum recognizes that students are on a lifelong learning journey and is driven by ISKL’s purpose to prepare our students for life itself, as we believe in the importance of helping students to shape their own paths, supporting them in discovering their passions, developing their competencies, and having an ethical impact on the world.
ISKL is accredited internationally through the Council of International Schools (CIS), and in the United States through the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). There is a strong focus on service and sustainability across its divisions and is a member of the Eco-Schools organization and the Green Schools Alliance.
