The CAS program (Creativity, Activity, Service) is a fundamental part of the diploma program. Since I am just beginning the program, it is important that I set goals for myself which I can refer to along the way.

Creativity

For creativity, I chose to participate in the school concert band as well as the secondary school drama production.I have been involved in the OSC concert band for 2 years and was involved in my old school band for another 2 years prior to that. I first picked up a trumpet in 7th grade and was very interested in playing it. I joined the band in 7th grade after becoming interested in the trumpet. The 4 years of concert band have now brought me to this stage in my life, the DP program. By the end of this 2 year diploma program, I hope to perform in at least 5 different school events with the concert band. I feel this is a SMART goal because it involves a specific and measurable number of performances, an achievable amount due to there being 3-4 performances per year, and a realistic timeline as there are going to be at least 6 opportunities across the DP program for me to perform with the band.

Also for creativity, I decided to participate in the school drama production which this year is, “Oliver! The Musical.” For the 1st semester of DP1, I will participate in a drama production which will involve rehearsals on Mondays and Wednesdays and 3 performances towards the end of the 1st semester in December 2019. I tried something new this year by following my interests and taking HL Theater as one of my courses and I auditioned for “Oliver!” I got a major role in the production as ‘Mr. Brownlow’ and will now have to spend time rehearsing and learning my lines. By the end of the DP program, I hope to perform in all 3 performances in Oliver! The Musical in December 2019 and all 3 performances in December 2020 for the next school production while I am in DP2. I feel this is a SMART goal because it involves a specific and measurable number of performances, an achievable amount due to me being in this years production and I will audition next year too, and a realistic timeline as there are going to be 6 chances across the 2 year program for me to perform and I already know that I will be performing in 3. I will audition next year and I am confident that I can get a role of some sort.

Activity

For Activity, I will participate in the OSC Basketball team for 2 years in the DP program for 3 months each year. This commitment will involve 3 training sessions a week for a total of 5 hours a week for 3 months. I will be doing basketball for the third time while being an OSC student this year, and will do my best to attend all practices. Once again if I make the team I will be traveling to ACS in Amman, Jordan to participate in the SAISA tournament involving 10 other international schools. My goal is to score 50+ points in the SAISA tournament in ACS in February. This is a SMART goal because it is a very specific amount of points and a measurable amount. It is achievable because I scored 16 points in my first SAISA and 30 in my second. I believe that I have made serious progress and can realistically achieve this goal. It also has a realistic timeline as I have time to practice and improve my skills for 3 months before attempting to achieve my goal at SAISA.

For Activity, I will also participate in the OSC Football team for just 1 year in the DP program for 3 months. Once again, this commitment will involve 3 training sessions a week for a total of 5 hours a week for 3 months. I will be participating for the third time while being an OSC student this year, and will do my best to attend all practices. Once again if I make the team I will be traveling to AISC in Chennai, India to participate in the SAISA tournament involving 10 other international schools. My goal is to score 5+ goals in the SAISA tournament in AISC in April. This is a SMART goal because it is a very specific and measurable amount of goals to score. I scored 0 goals in my first SAISA 2 years ago playing as a wide player off the bench. Last year, I scored 4 goals in SAISA as our starting striker. I believe that I have made serious progress and can realistically achieve scoring 5+ goals this SAISA. It also has a realistic timeline as I have about 6 months to prepare as the tournament is the last of the year in April.

Service

For service, I will be participating in the Housing & Habitat service group once again for the next 2 years. Last year, I did it year long for the first time and learned a lot about service and provided service to local schools by building tables and chairs for their classrooms. Last year I was also involved in the Housing & Habitat Week Without Walls trip to Hambantota. This trip was a great learning experience for me and great fun to be a part of. We stayed in a foundation and provided service to a local school by teaching toddlers for 2 days, planting trees, and building a fence. We then went to the Shangri-La hotel and did a beach clean-up to help the environment. This year, my goal is to attend all service meetings and increase the number of tickets sold at the Home Run. This is a SMART goal because it is specific and measurable because I know how many we have to sell to surpass the amount that were sold last year. It is also achievable and and realistic because there are enough students in the school for us to surpass the number from last year. In addition, we have lots of time to work with in terms of advertising and selling tickets. This goal will ultimately lead to a more successful and impacting year of service because we can financially provide more service to local schools.

All Photos: Gecko Net