Grade 10 at UWC ISAK Japan is a year of exploration, challenge, and growth. Students arrive from across the world and spend their first year developing the academic foundations, leadership skills, and learning habits that will prepare them for success in the IB Diploma Programme and beyond.
The Grade 10 experience is built around three interconnected elements: the Leadership and Innovation course, a MEXT-certified academic curriculum, and Outdoor Education. Together, these provide opportunities for students to develop intellectually, personally, and as members of a diverse community.
The Leadership and Innovation course is at the heart of the Grade 10 experience. It is built around a simple premise: the best way to develop leadership skills is to use them on something real.
In the first semester, students explore what is important and needed within the school community, the local community, and the wider world. Through design sprints and creative challenges, they learn how to understand people’s needs, gather evidence, challenge assumptions, and identify opportunities for meaningful impact.
In the second semester, students apply these skills to a project of their own. Working with mentors, organizations, and community partners, they refine ideas, test solutions, gather feedback, and communicate their work through a public showcase.
Recent projects include a sustainable fashion initiative pitched to Motherhouse Japan, and Mizube, a student-led environmental project developed in partnership with MS&AD Insurance Group.
The foundation gets built in Grade 10. These videos show a bit of what that first year looks like, and what our students have gone on to build from it.
Alongside the Leadership and Innovation course, Grade 10 students follow a MEXT-approved curriculum that meets Japanese national education standards and prepares students for success in the IB Diploma Programme. Students study a broad range of subjects, including Mathematics, English, Humanities, Sciences, Japanese Language, and the Arts in small discussion-based classes.
Through investigations, presentations, collaborative projects, and independent research, students develop critical thinking, communication, and problem-solving skills. The leadership skills developed through the Leadership and Innovation program are reinforced across all subject areas, encouraging students to take ownership of their learning and engage thoughtfully with the world around them.
Outdoor Education forms an important part of the Grade 10 experience. The year begins with a multi-day camp designed to help students build relationships, develop resilience, and establish a strong sense of community.
Throughout the year, students participate in outdoor learning experiences that challenge them to collaborate, adapt, and put leadership into practice.
Grade 10 is a foundation, not a standalone year. Through both the academic curriculum and the Leadership and Innovation program, students develop the knowledge, skills, and independence needed to thrive in the IB Diploma Programme.
Many students continue their Grade 10 projects through Creativity, Activity and Service (CAS), applying the same processes of research, reflection, collaboration, and action that are central to the IB philosophy.
Students select their IB subjects at the end of Grade 10 in consultation with their advisors, drawing on a year of academic exploration, personal growth, and leadership development to make informed choices about their future pathways.
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