Welcome to the wonderful world of Round Square.
“There is more in us than we know. If we could be made to see it, perhaps for the rest of our lives we would be unwilling to settle for less.”
These profound words from Kurt Hahn, who inspired the creation of Round Square, nearly sixty years ago, still sit at the heart of our movement to this day. Hahn believed that given the right opportunities, and encouragement, we can each dig a little deeper and achieve more than we might expect. When we put our minds to it, we can be kinder, listen more, study harder, be braver, speak up, climb higher, be better friends to one another, travel further, volunteer more, be happier, challenge ourselves and achieve greater goals. And in doing so, we can discover a greater strength of character.
In a world that is becoming increasingly virtual, in which seemingly infinite knowledge is at our fingertips at all times, it has never been more important for education to focus on building character. In the age of Artificial Intelligence, the next generation will be defined by its humaneness – those human qualities and that practical intelligence that cannot be replaced. We need them to be tenacious and responsible problem solvers, who are committed to sustainability. We want them to be inquisitive and inventive, self-aware, and able to communicate across cultures with an appreciation of diversity. Most importantly, we hope they will be courageous, and at the same time compassionate.
These are all qualities that students in Round Square schools discover and develop through interacting with six themes shared across our community: Internationalism, Democracy, Environmentalism, Adventure, Leadership and Service, summarised with the acronym IDEALS. By exploring these themes across different cultures between 50 countries, and over 60 years, the schools in our network have built a strong, supportive and collaborative community that shares good practice and creates opportunities for young people to explore the world through interacting with their peers across the globe.
It is a privilege to be a part of that community and to be inspired every day by the achievements of its schools and their students. I hope that you will be just as inspired as you discover and explore some of their stories on our web site.
Rachael Westgarth
Chief Executive