How modern education can broaden your child’s future pathway

One way of developing these skills is through an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme. Developed in Geneva in 1968, the IB Diploma focuses on critical thinking, a global outlook and a holistic education.

Westbourne is one of about 20 private schools in NSW that currently offer the IB Diploma as an alternative to the Higher School Certificate (HSC) – it is the only one offering purely the IB Diploma, and also one of about 5000 IB schools worldwide. Uniquely, Westbourne offers the IB Diploma with a strong emphasis on STEM subjects and future ready skills.

One aspect of the IB Diploma Programme (a two-year course) is Theory of Knowledge, designed to promote critical thinking and problem-solving: tools that should help students adapt to whatever the future throws at them. And as well as being critical thinkers, IB graduates tend to have a broader outlook, Underhill says.

“In general terms, the HSC tends to focus students’ studies into a specific area; the IB Diploma ensures that scientists still have an acquaintance with literature, that language students engage with mathematics and that humanities and science students learn across the range of disciplines.”

STEM and a global perspective

If anything in our rapidly changing world can be predicted with any certainty, it is that the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) are going to be exciting places to be.

As the COVID-19 pandemic has illustrated all too clearly, the world needs scientists.

“STEM professionals have a reputation for innovative, inspiring, often life-changing contributions in their fields of scientific study to the benefit of society,” Underhill says. “It is not without significance that many of the leading nations in the developed world are endeavouring to improve the numbers of students engaged in STEM studies.”

It also provides international opportunities for its students, with opportunities to take part in exchange programs in the UK and at INSEAD, one of the world’s leading business schools, in France.

While not all schools have these types of connections, any opportunity to undertake a foreign exchange during senior high school is something that should be considered, Underhill says.

“There is no doubt that travel is an education in itself. The ability to learn about different cultures, ways of living, different values and languages, is to be prized.”

While schools around the world are encouraging the uptake of STEM subjects, at Westbourne it’s part of the College’s DNA. STEM is the main focus, and the selective co-ed is dedicated to preparing the brightest and best students for global careers.

The college’s campus is in the same innovation and technology precinct as the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and TAFE Ultimo, with which it collaborates to provide access to cutting-edge thinking and facilities. Westbourne College was borne from Westbourne School UK, UK’s 2019 ‘IB School of the Year’ – and ranked within the Top 50 schools world-wide for results in 2021.

To learn more, visit www.westbournecollege.com.au