The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award

The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award is the World’s leading youth achievement award. It operates in over 130 countries and has inspired millions of young people to enrich and transform their lives. As one of the few Independent Award Centres in France, Sainte Anne has been licensed to offer the award since 2021. Starting in Seconde, it is available to students from all pathways (Classic, Euro and International Section).

The Award has three levels, each progressively more challenging:

• The Bronze Award, ages 14 and over (Seconde)
• The Silver Award, ages 15 and over
• The Gold Award, ages 16 and over

There are four sections at each level: Service to the community, Skills, Physical Recreation and Adventurous Journey. At Gold level, participants also complete a week-long residential project.

All projects are student-led, focusing on the principle of experiential learning, and supported by teacher-mentors. Students set individual goals and then work over a set period of time to achieve them. The Adventurous Journey is a group expedition/exploration where the participants work together to plan, prepare for and then complete their journey in unfamiliar terrain and in total autonomy.

Both challenging and highly rewarding, this Scheme offers students the opportunity to develop personal interests and skills. It is a great extra-curricular programme, building confidence and self-awareness, and is a real bonus post-bac in a highly competitive world.

For more information, please visit the site www.intaward.org

First journey !

Victoria Kuhn, Axelle Lannou, Anaïs Ferrec, Gaspard Malpot, Lorenzo Spinosi, Victoire Rajjou, Clément Petit-Etienne

Since October 2021 there has been a new initiative at Sainte Anne’s, Brest, as we now offer the Duke of Edinburgh Award. This award is based around extra-curricular activities, experiential learning and project creation. Students create their own projects around four notions; physical activity, a skill, voluntary work and an adventurous journey. This is a well-known award in Great Britain and around the world, and many of our anglophone team were involved as students themselves.

In September we were proud to see our first team go on their own for the weekend (remote monitoring by teacher-spies!). They walked 25 km to Camaret-sur-mer, to photograph the traces of the Second World War. They had to leave with everything they needed for the stay, camping equipment, food, water, on their backs. Cut off from the world for a weekend, without a phone, team spirit was essential for their success. Congratulations to the whole team for their positive attitude, organisation and good humour. This is the first team in Brittany to do a Duke of Edinburgh expedition!

This award is a real bonus for their future: an added value on Parcoursup, and a real life lesson, in physical and mental well-being, in teamwork, management, autonomy.

Our students are “World Ready!”