“We need to create educationally secure routes for the next generation”
Hi Jon! First things first, please tell us a bit about yourself:
Name: Jon Halligan
Current Role: Managing Director
At: Montreux International School
In 50 words or less, please describe your area of expertise:
I’ve worked in education for over 25 years: school leadership, school improvement, and teacher development before working for the International Baccalaureate. I’m particularly interested in international education, curriculum development & design, and bridging the gap between school, university and career. I’ve led projects around curriculum implementation at 40 schools in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to innovative single school projects.
Most passionate about:
Quality and future of learning, making sure students receive the most relevant and authentic learning opportunities and experiences.
For anyone who hasn’t heard of it, could you please explain what the IB program is in a nutshell?
The IB has been around since 1968. The philosophy of the IB is to make the world a more peaceful place through education. One of the IB’s key points is that people with different opinions can also be right, leading to a holistic view of the world.
The educational approach is “constructivist” (editor’s note: Constructivism is the theory that says learners construct knowledge rather than just passively take in information) and inquiry based (where the learner is taking into account and exploring multiple perspectives).
The IB has four programs. It started in 1968 with the diploma program, which was set up as a pre university program, structured by six core disciplines. Then came the Middle Years Program (MYP), followed closely by the Primary Years Programme (PYP), and finally in 2012 the career-related program (IBCP). The latter 3 moved away from the rigidity of the Diploma Programme structure (designed to meet the needs of university progression). Instead they offer a learning framework which allows students to follow an interdisciplinary approach, with greater flexibility and breadth of learning experiences.
How does the IBCP fit into that?
So the IBCP is developed out of the Diploma Programme and allows schools to adopt a plug and play option for the career-related aspect of the course. What makes it unique is that 1) it bypasses the traditional Diploma Programme subject limitations and allows students to combine relevant subjects and 2) builds off of the Diploma Programme core program, by providing a more career focused and practical program for critical and creative thinking. It gives students a toolbox they can use in life and in their professional work.The beauty of the IBCP that it is designed to ensure students understand the why behind the learning, how it relates to their career goals and how all of their classes inter-relate.
What sets it apart from the traditional IB and other programs (e.g. A-levels)?
We live in an uncertain and highly complex world where, now more than ever, as educators, we need to create educationally secure routes for the next generation. In turn, students are demanding from us that their education is relevant,authentic and meaningful. Many of the current qualification offerings are unfortunately a step away from what’s needed.These qualifications focus on getting students into university but lack real world application and it’s creating a schism/gap between what education provides and what industry needs.. The IBCP and Montreux International School are very much looking at addressing these issues and bridging that gap. We sit right in the middle of academic vs practical application, so we can give you the academic reputation as well as the professional experience. We’ve made sure that our IBCP program is relevant, authentic, accelerated, aligned and accessible.
What type of students does the IBCP attract?
It’s attracting a wide range of profiles. What we are finding though, is that real-world relevance plays a key role. Montreux International School offers two IBCP programs: 1) Business, Luxury Hospitality and Brand, and 2) Business and Digital Marketing. Both of these fields require students to be prepared to hit the ground running, students who want to experience and see what the challenges are in the real world, and look towards the future of these industries.
Is it true that the program is usually developed in partnership with higher Education institutions? If so, how does that work and what are the benefits for the students?
Generally that isn’t the case, but Montreux International School is in a unique position as we’ve partnered with Swiss Education Group (a group of top 10 QS hospitality schools) and the EU Business School (with campuses in Geneva, Montreux and Barcelona) to offer a learning programme that provides pre-university credits. Our goal is to keep that pace of learning acceleration going by giving students a head start in their university years. By working with our industry partners we’re also making sure that the courses are relevant, aligned and creating a secure route into future employment .
You’ve worked with hundreds of schools around the world. In terms of education, do schools in Switzerland stand out to you in any particular way?
We decided to launch in Switzerland because the Swiss education system has the best appreciation of the blend of professional and academic learning through its own qualification, the Professional Matura. It focuses more on the vocational aspects than we do, but maintains the respect of a traditional academic diploma. We liked that Switzerland supported professional learning. Switzerland is also synonymous with excellence, and excels in the industries we’re focusing on. Switzerland is the birthplace of hospitality and there’s a strong culture of entrepreneurship here too.
Montreux International School (MIS) is a new private school in Switzerland, with the first intake due in September 2021. As a prospective student, why should I choose MIS over a more established school?
Our school is 100% laser focused on the quality and real world application of teaching and learning, hence all our teaching staff are excellent practitioners who have also had extensive industry experience.
As a student, if you have a career passion, or a keen interest in an industry sector, Montreux International School will provide you with the best preparation through our unique programme. Our aim is not only to empower you to manage the world of today, but prepare you to thrive in the world of tomorrow.
Thank you for your time!
Montreux International School
Bio: Montreux International School is a co-educational international school for students, aged 16-19, who wish to study either business, luxury hospitality and brand or business and digital marketing. The school delivers a highly structured and blended approach that harnesses technology and emphasises academic rigour alongside development of a wide range of high-level technical skills. It is an International Baccalaureate World School (IBWS), authorised to offer the Career-related Programme. The world-class qualification earned at MIS, leads to exciting further and higher education opportunities and career pathways with internationally renowned universities and business partners.
Website: https://montreuxis.ch/
Contact details: info@montreuxis.ch
