DECEMBER 2022

LIFE & FAMILY

While SAS is currently undergoing a major upgrade of its facilities, it’s the values of the school that guide the students and the school’s community. What are the SAS values and how are they defined? We have five core values, which we call the Eagle Way. Compassion: Individuals exhibiting compassion are kind, show that they care, express gratitude, forgive others, help people in need, and are charitable and altruistic. Honesty: Individuals exhibiting honesty avoid deceiving, cheating or stealing, are reliable and do what they say they will do, have courage to do the right thing, build a good reputation, and are loyal. Fairness: Individuals exhibiting fairness play by the rules, are open-minded and listen to others, avoid taking advantage of others or blaming others carelessly, and treat all people fairly. Responsibility: Individuals exhibiting responsibility do what they’re supposed to do, plan ahead, persevere, do their best, are self-disciplined, think before they act, are accountable for their words, actions and attitudes, and set a good example for others. Respect: Individuals exhibiting respect are tolerant and accepting of differences, treat others as they would like to be treated, use good manners, are considerate of the feelings of others, avoid threatening, hitting or hurting anyone, and deal peacefully with anger, insults and disagreements. In the second instalment of a regular series by Singapore American School (SAS) on how to design a school, Superintendent TOM BOASBERG takes us through the importance of having strong values.

What role do values play in SAS? Our values directly guide our expectations for how our students conduct themselves both in and out of the classroom, the way our teachers collaborate, and the way our teachers teach. Strong established values help to build a community with high trust among students, educators and parents. Values are easy to put on a wall; our daily challenge is in living those values. We seek to embed them inside the classroom, for example in counselling and advisory lessons and even in a catchy song, thanks to one of our talented elementary music teachers. We believe that what we celebrate as a community is an indicator of what we value most. Each week, we recognise two educators – who range from custodial staff to teachers, instructional assistants and school leaders – publicly for their actions that demonstrate their commitment to living our values. At the end of each year, during a celebratory assembly for all employees, several are selected to receive The Eagle Way recognition honouring their commitment to living our values every day. Our students are quite successful academically when measured against their global peers, and we’re proud of that as a school. However, I’m even more proud when I hear stories of students who demonstrate their commitment to our values in ways that may never be officially measured. I see it in students reaching out to support their peers, taking on service responsibilities, standing up for those less fortunate and maintaining high academic integrity in their work. I know that our students’ commitment to living a life of our shared values will become one of the most important experiences they will take with them after leaving SAS. Our hope is that they will continue to live The Eagle Way, every day. How will these values benefit students now and in the future?

Singapore American School is at 40 Woodlands Street 51 | 6363 3403 | sas.edu.sg

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DECEMBER2022