The school year for St. Paul’s School pupils has already begun and it is also the first time our 11 new scholars have stepped into the school as Pauleans and no longer scholarship candidates. The beginning of any cycle can be nerve-wracking, and the St. Paul’s Foundation has steps in place to better support our scholars in participating in this new community.
Our new scholars were introduced to their tutors and Heads of Year last Friday, in a special session designed for all new pupils in the Senior School. They got to have 1 on 1 conversations with their tutors, who will support them throughout the year, and got to tour the school with them.
Every new pupil in St. Paul’s is assigned a guardian angel – another pupil in their year group that can welcome them in the social aspects of the school. The St. Paul’s Foundation, inspired by this school initiative, developed our buddy family system. Every new family is assigned to a buddy one, to help integrate them to the school community and also explain elements of the school that are still foreign to many new families.
For the scholars who have been at the school for longer, the Foundation promotes a special barbecue at the beginning of every school year. The next edition will be happening in the coming weeks and it is an opportunity for all scholars and their families to get to know each other, engage and enjoy a delicious barbecue!
Every scholar also takes advantage of well-being sessions with the school counsellor, Dr. Mack. They are also assisted by the Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) team at the school, with individual and group sessions, that equip them to deal with the academic expectations and the social aspects of joining a new environment.
All of these initiatives are part of the scholarship programme and St. Paul’s School in caring for new students. This set of actions reinforces the sense of belonging and promotes active listening among scholars in relation with the school and foundation, key elements for the integration of pupils. “For the scholar to have a successful journey at school, he must always be seen as an integral being, far beyond academics, and the look must be careful in his socialisation with other students at St. Paul’s”, says Ana Paula Rosas, coordinator of communication and selection processes at the St. Paul’s Foundation.