Merchiston International School - “A School of Character”

Mission and Vision: 

At MIS, our vision is to: “inspire academic excellence and strength of character. We instill integrity and courage in our young people so that they will become authentic, ethical, global citizens and the best possible version of themselves.”

And our mission is to: “blend 'the best that has been thought and said' with the knowledge necessary for success in the 21st Century.  As the only British boarding school in Shenzhen, and the only overseas campus of Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh, we draw on 200-years of academic excellence, but we are driven by timeless values.

MIS students learn to understand and to value human achievement in the arts, science, and in public life. We seek to ignite the curiosity common to life-long learners. We teach students to value evidence, never to settle on an easy answer but to search rigorously for truth. Such training does not merely yield strong examination results; it produces the unmistakable authenticity of leaders.
Belonging is fundamental to the development of character. Our unique pastoral and boarding provision develops individuals by emphasising kindness and ethical decision making as duties for all.
Beyond the classroom, our co-curricular programme develops courage alongside skills. The courageous risk making a vigorous tackle in sport, they dare to appear before an audience, or to submit a picture for public exhibition. Through calculated risk, the courageous learn where their strengths and weaknesses lie and, thus, the ground beneath their feet is firm. This is true confidence.

By these means, MIS students are prepared for the tests of life, rather than a life of tests.

MIS Values:

These values are central to achieving our mission. As a moral compass, they guide us from day to day in our learning, thinking and decision making. The impact of our MIS values is evident in the daily life of the school.  Our values ensure that each child is:
Adaptable and resilient, gaining the confidence and leadership skills to succeed in a dynamic and global world, constantly striving for the highest standards.
Enquiring and collaborative, becoming an enthusiastic and curious learner committed to excellence in all that they do, in order to flourish as an individual and contribute meaningfully to a flourishing society.
Principled and respectful, developing compassion and humility, assertiveness and integrity.
Responsible and internationally-minded, understanding and respecting the needs of others to develop tolerance, within and beyond our community.
Expressive and positive, balancing modesty with confidence in pursuit of happiness and fulfilment.

High Quality Learning at MIS:

We believe that high quality learning takes place when the following ingredients are present:
Metacognition: Students are aware of how they are learning; they are aware of the knowledge, the skills and the attributes that they are developing as they are being developed.  Through feedback and self-reflection, students are aware of progress made and of what actions can be taken to make further, significant progress in their learning. 

Critical Thinking: Students are applying their knowledge in challenging ways, such as solving problems, modifying existing rules to create something new, relating the experiences of others to their own context, weighing evidence to make a judgement or evaluating a process or product. 

Engagement: Students are active in the lesson there are multiple opportunities for students to engage by completing tasks, working with others, taking risks, etc.  Students take ownership of their learning and have pride in their work, seeking out opportunities to advance towards mastery of skills and content.

English-Language Mastery: Students are taking advantage of opportunities to advance their subject-specific English in the classroom and use their social English vocabulary. 

A high-quality environment: students are in a supportive and safe environment, free from distractions.  They are able to draw upon subject expertise and resources most appropriate to the task as well as have the skills to make the best use of them.  The environment created helps to foster a spirit of enthusiasm for life-long learning.

Global Citizenship at MIS:

At MIS we prepare our students to carve out their own place in the global community. Through an appreciation of their own culture and how that guides their perspectives, beliefs, values and experiences, students will develop an understanding of and regard for those qualities in other groups and can reflect on commonality and diversity.

The Rights of a Child at MIS:

At MIS we are committed to upholding the rights of a child as set out in articles 1-45 of the UN Convention and strive to reflect the spirit of those articles through our guiding statements as set out above.