Adira Edge | Adira Academy

In a world that is becoming increasingly unpredictable, academic performance alone doesn't make students future-ready. Adira Academy recognises the need for a grounded and holistic growth of its students. Edge is the co-curricular program at Adira that addresses this need: it's where students build a sense of meaning about who they are, what they're doing, and where they're going.

Edge offers a platform through a set of structured activities and experiences for the student to take action and to invent herself across her five years at Adira.

Explore

Encounter the world.

Explore gives students opportunities to step beyond their usual environments, encounter new people, places, ideas and possibilities, and make choices for themselves. Through experiences both within and beyond Adira, students learn to be curious, take initiative, and build a broader sense of what is possible.

Adira Quest
Independent exploration of the world beyond the classroom.
Adira Quest gives students the opportunity to independently explore their city and discover what it has to offer. Students choose from a range of experiences: from museums, historical monuments and art galleries to plays, festivals, city walks and conversations with authors.
They plan and undertake their visits, document what they experience, and reflect on what they discover. The emphasis is not simply on visiting new places, but on making an independent choice, taking action, and making something of the experience.
Career Exposure
Conversations with professionals that open up new possibilities for the future.
Every month, students meet professionals from a wide range of fields, including emerging and lesser-known careers. Through conversations, moderated interviews and open interaction, students learn what different careers actually look like, the academic paths and skills they require, and the decisions and challenges that shape people's journeys.
The sessions expose students to a broader and more realistic set of futures for themselves, while helping them recognise the attitudes, values and skills that matter across different careers.
External Programs
Opportunities to learn, connect and grow beyond Adira.
Adira curates opportunities for students to participate in high-quality programs beyond the Academy: from technology and research to leadership, creativity and social impact.
These experiences allow students to interact with new peers and mentors, develop emerging skills, explore interests and career paths, and experience different ways of learning. Students are encouraged to take initiative in pursuing opportunities that interest them and to reflect on what they gain from each experience.

Lead

Exercise agency.

Lead gives students opportunities to take responsibility, make decisions, and shape the community around them. Through elected roles, student-led initiatives, publications, and public speaking, students learn to work with others, take their ideas from intention to action, and use their voice.

Student Council
Representing students and shaping the Adira community.
The Student Council is the voice of the student community. Elected representatives connect students with the Adira team, lead initiatives, organise events, and help shape the culture of Adira Academy.
Students take responsibility for representing their peers, creating spaces for participation and celebration, organising events, and building traditions that can be carried forward by future cohorts.
Student-Led Clubs
Turning shared interests into student-led action.
Students are encouraged to form and run clubs around their own interests. From the initial idea to bringing together a group of peers and creating an event or project, students take responsibility for making something happen.
Clubs give students a space to pursue shared interests, develop new skills, collaborate with others, and build something meaningful together.
Adira Times
A student-run publication documenting life at Adira.
Adira Times is a student-run publication that documents life at Adira Academy. A student team plans each issue, gathers stories and contributions, writes and edits content, and works on the design and layout.
Through the publication, students develop skills in writing, interviewing, editorial judgment, design and project management while creating a record of the experiences and achievements of the Adira community.
Adira Voice
Developing ideas and giving them a public voice.
Adira Voice gives students a platform to speak about ideas they care about. Students develop original, evidence-based speeches and present them during school assemblies and community events.
The experience encourages students to develop a clear and well-reasoned worldview, research and structure their ideas, and communicate with clarity, confidence and authenticity.

Build

Develop direction and capability.

Build helps students turn exploration into direction. From Grade 11, students begin to understand their interests, possible pathways, and the choices available to them. In Grade 12, this becomes more individualised, with one-on-one counselling and planning to help each student make decisions about life beyond Adira Academy.

Alongside this, students have opportunities to gain real-world experience through work placements and internships, building the skills, confidence and sense of responsibility needed to navigate what comes next.

Career Pathways
Building a personal pathway for life beyond Adira.
Career Pathways helps students build a personal pathway for life beyond Adira Academy.
In Grade 11, students explore their interests, strengths, possible careers and higher-education pathways together, developing a broader understanding of what is possible. In Grade 12, this work becomes individualised through one-on-one counselling and planning, helping each student evaluate her options, make decisions, and develop a direction for what comes next.
The process continues through application research, career decision-making, program research, and reflection on what is practically possible after Adira.
Work-Study / Internships
Gaining real work experience while continuing to learn.
Adira's Work-Study Program gives students the opportunity to combine their academic studies with real work experience.
Students take on placements with external employers, preferably in onsite roles, while continuing their higher secondary education. Through their work, they develop practical skills in communication, teamwork, time management and professional responsibility, while gaining a clearer understanding of what different kinds of work actually involve.
Students receive preparation before their placements and ongoing support and feedback during the experience. They also reflect on what they have learned and receive feedback from their workplace mentors.
Passion Project
A local problem she cares about, and a solution she designs over two years.
Students identify a local problem they care about and design a solution over two years.
Along the way they develop empathy through research, and problem-solving and leadership skills. The project is graded on the quality of research, execution, and reflection.

Reflection & Show and Tell

Edge is not limited to these activities and experiences.

Anything a student does outside academics (a sport, a personal challenge, a moment where she used her voice) counts, as long as she reflects on it and is able to articulate how it contributes to her growth.

Going through an experience is not enough. Edge places equal emphasis on what a student does and what she makes of it.

Once a unit, the student shares her experiences in a Show and Tell with her advisory group. She talks about what she did, what it meant, and what it says about who she is becoming. Her advisors and peers listen and provide feedback for growth.