Character education teaches the acquisition and strengthening of virtues. Its purpose is to develop confident and compassionate students who are successful learners and responsible citizens with the ultimate aim to flourish through the tests of life. This means not only to be happy but to fulfil one’s potential. Therefore, our character education program is an explicit, planned and reflective approach to the development of positive character strengths in our students from Pre-KG to Grade 12.
JBS believes that character education and the IB educational philosophy are a natural fit. The IB learner profile traits and the IB approaches to learning skills also happen to be the building blocks of character. We teach our students intellectual virtues such as critical thinking, creative problem-solving, reflection, resourcefulness, and curiosity; moral virtues such as humility, compassion, integrity, and respect; civic virtues such as volunteering, citizenship, service, and community awareness; and performance virtues such as confidence, collaboration, motivation, perseverance, and resilience. Moreover, both character education and the service-learning component of the IB curriculum emphasizes a commitment to serving others, which is an essential manifestation of good character in action.
Four Core Values
Resourcefulness
Responsibility
Respect
Resilience
Our four core values are Resourcefulness, Respect, Responsibility and Resilience with each ‘R’ focusing on the one of building blocks of character. The 4R’s have a central place inside and outside lessons reminding students that JBS students strive to develop these character traits in all they do.
Although reflection is an important component of the IB philosophy, we feel that character education goes a step further as we aim to develop practical wisdom (or good sense) in our students, which is the ability to make the right decision at the right time for the right reasons when virtues collide.
In November 2020, JBS became a Kitemark School of Character. We are proud to be the first international Kitemark school outside of the UK to be awarded the Kitemark status by the Association for Character Education (ACE).
