The Pilot Project Redefining Learning
International Baccalaureate Director General Olli-Pekka Heinonen and his team visit UWCSEA East to check in on teachers and students piloting the Systems Transformation course
We were honoured to welcome Olli-Pekka Heinonen, International Baccalaureate (IB) Director General, and the IBO executive team to UWCSEA East in March, 2025. Nick Alchin, Head of College, spoke about our shared mission with the IB and the power of partnerships in driving meaningful educational change.
A key moment was the sharing session on our UWCSEA pilot course, IB Systems Transformation: Leadership for Change. IB teachers Clayton Chmiel and Eivind Lodemel, along with IBDP Coordinators Andrew McCarthy and Gemma Dawson, shared how this pioneering course gives students the tools to understand complex systems and drive real-world impact.
Through this course and our partnership with the IB, we’re not just preparing students for the future; we’re giving them the mindset and skills to shape it. Students leave not only with knowledge but with the confidence to contribute meaningfully to the world.
Grade 11 Systems Transformation student, Hannah, interviewed the IB Director General during his campus visit. Watch the videos below to learn more about the IB's partnership with UWCSEA in piloting this exciting course.
Grade 11 Systems Transformation student Hannah meets with Olli-Pekka Heinonen at UWCSEA East Campus.
"(UWCSEA) goes a long way in history and there's a long connection with the International Baccalaureate. We know the high quality work of excellence that is done in the school, and as we are piloting something that is new, we want it to happen in an environment that we know that there are capabilities of learning from a new approach."
Why is the IB piloting the Systems Transformation pathway? What is the long game?
UWCSEA was selected as one of only a handful of schools globally to pilot this pathway. What unique qualities does the IB see in our learning environment that made it attractive as a pilot school?
How can UWCSEA continue to lead in educational innovation beyond this pilot?
What role do student and teacher voices play in shaping the final version of this programme, and how can our school help refine it for the intended global rollout in 2030?
How does the IBDP and Systems Transformation prepare students for the future of work and global challenges, and what skills or mindsets does it prioritise?
You have spent some time with our students in their sessions now. Are there any moments that stood out to you from your interactions with the Systems Transformation students?
Listen to UWCSEA student Hannah as she shares her perspective on the Systems Transformation course.
"Once you do something like this, it also changes the community, so the community becomes a changemaker. It creates that kind of culture where it is comfortable with constantly adapting with the change of the world and being capable of answering the question : what is the world asking from us? "
Olli-Pekka Heinonen
By Jules Wainwright, UWCSEA Multimedia Manager
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