Culture

We do everything in our power to ensure that:

• BG is a school where the collaboration between the different educations and across year groups and classes is thriving.

• BG is characterized by strong friendships that are not grounded in hierarchy but in genuine interest and curiousity across year groups.

• BG is a school with many events that strengthen our community. 

• BG is a place where you want to stay and mingle after classes. 

• Students have co-influence and are heard.

• Staff care for all students and ensure that they are thriving. 

• We show respect for knowledge. 

• We persist in the things at which we excell and thus engage with the world from a point of firmly established professionalism.

• We revise our approach to interdisciplinary work in connecting our proffesional knowledge with topical issues, so that academic subjects, either individually or interdisciplinary, contribute to solving real-life problems. 

• We do what we say, and only say what we do.

• What we do, we do because we want to, and not because we have to. 

In 2022-23 there will be a special focus on:

On-going effects on student learning due to Covid-19 and learning culture.

During the school year 2022/22 BG had a natural focus on student well-being and on dealing with the aftermath of schooling and potential loss of learning during lockdown. In 2022/23 we will continue this work but with increased efforts in re-establishing a productive and strong learning environment thus ensuring mutual respect in the classroom. It is BG's responsibility to be clear in our communication and direct with regards to our expectations for students behaviour. Classroom culture and student culture at BG should be shaped by positive social conventions and responsibility for our shared community. Therefore we will focus on several aspects such as what it means to have an academic attitude and how one acts with respect towards knowledge and the learning environment. In general it is about a balancing of expectations with regards to what it means to attend school. 

These are some of our initiatives: 

• Strengthened collaboration on class supervisor and teacher teams. More resources have been allocated to strenghten class leadership teams next year. Monthly team meetings for teachers in each class have been scheduled. During these meetings, the class supervisor and teachers will discuss well-being and the general learning environment in each class. 

• Strengthening the CAS classes as a class community for IB students. A special focus on this point will be established early during the intro-week (collaboration between CAS and TOK).

• Increased focus on the IB Learner Profile and ATL (Approaches to Teaching and Learning). This initiative is in coordination with the CAS program. A special course on the Learner Profile will be established. 

• The school's rule of conduct will be reviewed and revisited in collaboration with the student council.

• Clarification of school values. In general and especially with regards to various intro actitivites. 

• Collaboration with the student council and student clubs with regards to sensible student conduct at parties. There will be a sharp focus on creating a social culture at BG in which there is room for everyone. This work will be done in collaboration with the student council and student clubs. 

• Getting BG’s long-standing and proud traditions back on track. The Kaffebal (School Galla), spring concert, Christmas events, school parties, friday café, etc., will be revitalized with the help and collaboration from the  many student clubs at BG. A special focus is placed on developing new traditions concerning last day of school.

• BG's alumni network. We will revisit BKS (BG's alumni network) and alumni parties. We want to create a new concept for previous students' connection to Birkerød Gymnasium.