When it comes to Round Square, there are probably two explanations. One is the official line, the one you find on the Round Square Website and the one you hear from most schools and Round Square representatives. Two is what the pupils involved in Round Square will tell you. In this blog, we are going to try and give you both explanations.
Let’s start with the official brief, shall we? It’s a copy-and-paste job and you’re probably better off surfing to the Round Square Website but so long as you’re here, here is our brief explanation. Round Square is a collection of schools located all over the world that connect and collaborate on a number of matters relating to education. By doing this, these schools create meaningful opportunities to and learning content for their students and – chiefly among these – student exchanges (but more on that later).
The Round Square ethos is built around six Ideals, which are themselves underpinned by twelve discoveries. Ideals are things such as Spirit of Democracy and Spirit of Adventure. As said, these are then underpinned by discoveries. Under Spirit of Democracy, for instance, you can find discoveries such as Communication and Responsibility. Under Spirit of Adventure, you can find Tenacity and Inventiveness. All these Ideals and Discoveries are joined in a big wheel, which is called the Round Square Discovery Framework. If you’d like to get to know them all, then just visit the Website! You can also check out their promo video on YouTube.
Round Square schools share a commitment to character education and experiential learning built around these themes and these discoveries. They come together to enrich the student experience through international learning and exchanges. Scarborough College has been a Round Square School for a few years now and we have just seen the first student return home after a Round Square exchange.
You could say that Emily was a little bit like Neil Armstrong. The First Scardeburgian to set foot where no Scardeburgian had set foot before and we were dying to know what her experiences had been. After all, Emily’s story is not the official Round Square brief. What Round Square means to the children that participate and go on exchanges is probably best encapsulated by the video that Emily made. The video highlights her time at Lakewood College School in Lakewood, Ontario, in Canada.
First things first, we have it on good authority that Scarborough College is now applying for planning permission for an indoor ice rink. We think it’s a fantastic idea and are thinking of names for the Scarborough College ice hockey team. Feel free to submit any inspiring names!
Back to seriousness and back to Round Square, we believe that the video speaks for itself. The opportunity to go on exchanges like these is the stuff of dreams. ‘Scary at first,’ as Emily explains in an interview with the Lakewood College School newspaper. ‘But it is totally worth it. The people I have met and the things I have done are things that will stay with me forever and things that I will look back on fondly. I have loved my time here and am kind of sad to be leaving but will always remember my time in Canada.’
Although based on very serious Ideals such as a Spirit of Environmentalism and serious Discoveries such as Inquisitiveness, it would seem that Round Square is an amazing opportunity to explore the world. It is an opportunity to see other countries, enjoy other schools and ways of teaching and learning, spend time with host families and basically make friends for life. Right now, another Scarborough College student is on an exchange and if you thought that Ontario was out of the way… Kelsey set off to The Armidale School, which is in New South Wales Australia. We cannot wait to find out about her experiences!
If you would like to find out more about Round Square at Scarborough College, then there are a couple of things you can do right now. You can contact our Round Square representative, Mrs Ellis. As RS representative, Mrs Ellis has her finger on the pulse regarding all things Round Square. Student exchanges that are posted by schools from as far as New Zealand to as near as France are posted on the bulletin board. Mrs Ellis can help you find a suitable school and destination, as well as help with the paperwork involved. You can also check out our school’s Round Square page and the Round Square Website itself.
Never stop exploring and remember that, ‘There is more to us than we know.’
