When you walked by the gymnasium on the first day back to school in Wuxi United International School, you would definitely be attracted. Staff and IBDP students have designed elegant and creative posters to promote their ECA programmes. Students and parents get to have a better understanding of all the programmes by communicating with them. Then, students register for ECA programmes on site.
ECA is short for extra-curricular activities. They are a set of programs in the area of academics, sports, creativity, service, and many more.
Our school provides a variety of ECAs that students can enjoy. For academics, there is Grammar help, Mathematical exploration, Business club and so on. For sports, students can join in badminton, volleyball, basketball and Football. There is also a lot of creativity involved, which includes the visual arts extended studio, embroidery, short filmmaking, and phone case decoration. Finally, there are service opportunities, like Library club, Student leadership, and WeChat post team. Also， one of the programmes offered by staff is Roots and Bud, through which students can make direct contact with nature, and therefore accumulate experience and acquire knowledge.
The ECA fair was an introduction to a variety of clubs, including rich courses offered by senior students in grades 11 and 12. Furthermore, academic guidance was provided by teachers of various subjects.
It can be said that this active and exploratory learning method is becoming the mainstream of international education. Extracurricular activities, which are interest-based learning, is one of the best example of this method. It can inspire students’ extroverted thinking and cultivate students with practical skills and creativity.
As grade 12 student Lois Yang mentioned, “As an IB student, I was always busy with my studies, and was not able to do exercise. By running a Badminton IBDP CAS club, I was able to give myself a chance to enjoy some activities outside academics, as well as gaining energy for studying.”