Orientation Days

“It takes a village to raise a child.”

As a tight-knit institution that advocates for every member of the community, The Multiple Intelligence International School (MIIS) empowers students, parents, faculty, staff and caregivers to create the best learning environment possible. We do not only seek to enroll students, rather, we aim to enroll families. Through the core values of the school embedded in the daily lives of the MI community, the positive culture is embraced and seen not just inside the classrooms, but also in the well-lit hallways and the school gates with the school staff greeting every student, parent and visitor with a warm smile.

MIIS, as a learning community that believes that everyone has the potential to make a difference using their intelligences, creates Orientation Days opportunities for its members to learn about the school, its mission and vision, core values, practices, protocols and activities. Throughout the year, various kinds of school orientation geared towards specific members of the community are designed to properly onboard the members of what is fondly called the MI Village. It has been the school’s thrust to engage all the members of the school community before the school year starts.

It is not just the students, parents and teachers who speak the language of this small yet vibrant community – from the school custodians to the students’ caregivers and drivers, everyone is an active participant in sustaining the culture of respect and learning.

PARENT ORIENTATION
Prior to the start of the school year, new parents are invited to the New Parents Orientation where they will gain more insight about the school, its curriculum, student opportunities, yearly activities, and school rules. Through this orientation, the parents learn more about the community, the Leadership CORE of the school, and the academic team who will be sharing in the journey of unlocking their child’s different potentials. As major stakeholders of the education of the students, parents are also introduced to different means by which they can communicate and collaborate with the school as part of the Parent School Partnership Council.

STUDENT ORIENTATION
As every student faces apprehension in being in a new learning environment, the Student Orientation is designed for the students to gain important information about what to expect in their school, from the different subjects, unique yearly activities, school administration, faculty and staff, and the school campus to different local and international opportunities given to them as an MI student.

Emphasis is placed on one of the school’s core beliefs that every child is smart. On the very first day of school, students are introduced to the multiple intelligences framework and are given the chance to reflect on their own capabilities. Furthermore, they are empowered to go beyond understanding what they can do – they are encouraged to think of ways in which they can use their different smarts to make a positive change in their immediate community. In order for students to understand what it means to be an MI student, the members of the Lower Middle School Council of Leaders and the Upper School Student Council members take part in designing and hosting the school orientation.

FACULTY ORIENTATION
Being a faculty member of the school also means embracing the loving and learning culture espoused. Teachers are also formators and are critical in making the school’s mission and vision alive in the classrooms every day. There is week long faculty onboarding for returning faculty and a two-week long orientation for new faculty. The orientation aims to familiarize the faculty members on the mission, vision, philosophy, core values and operations of the school. Health, safety, and emergency orientations are also conducted. Their roles in building partnership and community, as well as espousing the various thrusts of the school are discussed through workshops.

CUSTODIANS, CAREGIVERS AND DRIVERS SCHOOL ORIENTATION
In MIIS, we believe that there are no small roles to play in the life of a young student. One of the unique initiatives of the school is its Caregiver and Drivers School Orientation, which is headed by the Student Services Department and is run at the beginning of the school year. As part of the MI village, the caregivers and drivers of students are stakeholders in the holistic development of a child. To equip them as members of the community, the orientation aims to onboard them with regard to school culture of respect and positive communication, expectations, safety and security protocols. In addition, they are also given workshops ranging from administering basic first aid and basic concepts and practices of positive discipline. To better understand the child under their care and his or her needs, these members of the community are also given primers on the multiple intelligence framework and school core values which are deeply embedded in all aspects of the life of every member of the MIIS community. To children, their school is their second home. School is their life and not a preparation for life. We aim to make the daily life of children meaningful through interactions and experiences with the adults in their life. Membership to our MI Village means sharing roles, responsibilities, values and the vision to make this world a better place through our thoughts, words, and actions to make a difference in the lives of others.

About Multiple Intelligence International School
The Multiple Intelligence International School (MIIS) was founded in 1996 with the aim to hone leaders of the 21st century who use their intelligences to make a difference. It is the first educational institution in the Philippines that has based its approach on the multiple intelligence framework of Harvard-based cognitive psychologist, Howard Gardner. The MI approach, which is implemented in the United States and other countries, backed by recent research on how children learn, is truly responsive to the needs of the 21st century. MIIS is a progressive international school that offers programs from PreK-12. As an accredited institution of the Council of International Schools (CIS), we are committed to be a premiere international institution that embodies best practice and global trends in education.