Sayyada Khaki, Grade 11
UWCEA (Moshi)
Like any UWC student, I have strong views that are often challenged by others around me, which is only the beginning of why UWC is special to me. However, one idea that I will always hold is that my heart belongs to ISM. Hearing that the school I grew up in, my parents studied at, was completely transforming, I was devastated. I looked up the UWC mission statement and was nervous about the changes to come. Nervous is an understatement; I was horrified. I did not realize that the changes came with new challenges and ideas. Ones that we could all value and learn from. After all, change is the one constant that will stay consistent. And UWC has not only changed ISM but also myself as a person in ways I never expected.
UWC is a worldwide mission that connects individuals, families, and ideas. Bringing together what may never have the chance to. In the time that my school moved towards becoming part of this global movement, I learned more about what UWC was, making it more special to me, instead of something to be afraid of. I’ve learned that changes can bring about great things. I’d like to describe the change my school went through as similar to a butterfly; during the change process, it may have been dark and unnerving because the future was unknown. But the changes that happened were beautiful and worth the challenges.
This year, I’ve met more people than I ever thought I would, people from all over the world, with different cultures, religions, and languages. I never thought I would relate to a student from Russia or Nepal, but UWC had taught me that although we are all different, and we should highlight these differences and learn from them, we are also similar in some ways. We are also all world citizens. And above that, we are all teenaged students, struggling through IB. At times we can discuss our cultures and beliefs, but we can also laugh at school jokes and stress about it altogether. Laughing about school stress makes it all bearable. During some classes, we all take turns measuring our heart rate with our phones, laughing at how high our heart rates are while listening to what new assessment is coming up. My favorite moments and memories I will hold close are the times we sit in the library together, attempting to study, but of course, that doesn’t work out. We end up laughing and talking loudly enough to get kicked out of the library. Every single week. Or on the days when we use TOK knowledge outside of class and unnecessarily ask questions like “to what extent” or “are we even real?” It is incredible that we manage to laugh about these things despite how different we all are. And although UWC takes pride in that the differences within us, I think it is more important to showcase the similarities within us, the similarities that hold us together and will continue to do so after we go off on separate ways. The differences are important, don’t get me wrong, we all learn from each other, but finding what we have similar despite how different we all are, is much more important in making the world a better place.
As I said before, ISM will always be a part of my heart, but UWC will always be special to me. The people I’ve met already, the memories I’ve made, I know I will cherish for the years to come. But one of the most important things I’ve realized is that the differences that tore people apart in the past are what we use to bring us all together.
UWC is a worldwide mission that connects individuals, families, and ideas. Bringing together what may never have the chance to. In the time that my school moved towards becoming part of this global movement, I learned more about what UWC was, making it more special to me, instead of something to be afraid of. I’ve learned that changes can bring about great things. I’d like to describe the change my school went through as similar to a butterfly; during the change process, it may have been dark and unnerving because the future was unknown. But the changes that happened were beautiful and worth the challenges.
This year, I’ve met more people than I ever thought I would, people from all over the world, with different cultures, religions, and languages. I never thought I would relate to a student from Russia or Nepal, but UWC had taught me that although we are all different, and we should highlight these differences and learn from them, we are also similar in some ways. We are also all world citizens. And above that, we are all teenaged students, struggling through IB. At times we can discuss our cultures and beliefs, but we can also laugh at school jokes and stress about it altogether. Laughing about school stress makes it all bearable. During some classes, we all take turns measuring our heart rate with our phones, laughing at how high our heart rates are while listening to what new assessment is coming up. My favorite moments and memories I will hold close are the times we sit in the library together, attempting to study, but of course, that doesn’t work out. We end up laughing and talking loudly enough to get kicked out of the library. Every single week. Or on the days when we use TOK knowledge outside of class and unnecessarily ask questions like “to what extent” or “are we even real?” It is incredible that we manage to laugh about these things despite how different we all are. And although UWC takes pride in that the differences within us, I think it is more important to showcase the similarities within us, the similarities that hold us together and will continue to do so after we go off on separate ways. The differences are important, don’t get me wrong, we all learn from each other, but finding what we have similar despite how different we all are, is much more important in making the world a better place.
As I said before, ISM will always be a part of my heart, but UWC will always be special to me. The people I’ve met already, the memories I’ve made, I know I will cherish for the years to come. But one of the most important things I’ve realized is that the differences that tore people apart in the past are what we use to bring us all together.
www.unitedworldwide.co