IB graduate profile - Naomi Francis

Graduated from Glenunga International High School, Australia, in 2001.

Written by Adriana Bibbo, a current student at Glenunga High School

Naomi Francis graduated from Glenunga International High School in the year 2001, after undertaking the International Baccalaureate programme. Naomi heard about the IB Middle Years Programme in year seven and the program was one of the reasons that she chose to go to Glenunga. After completing the Middle Years Program, Naomi decided that she wished to continue with the IB Diploma Programme. As a part of the IB she studied geography, chemistry and Chinese at a standard level and math, physics and English at a higher level. During her time at Glenunga, Naomi served on the student representative council and as school captain, sport house captain, and a peer support leader. She also participated in math and science competitions, and in sports such as cross country running and orienteering. Outside of school, she is interested in the arts, sports, and the community. Naomi was a part of the local community theatre group during year 11 and undertook karate at her community club in year 12. She is very concerned about the environment, and since primary school she has been involved in the local water watch group. To educate herself further, she attended community events such as Writers’ Week and Festival of Mind and Womad.

Throughout 2002 and 2003 Naomi studied Chinese at the Beijing Second Foreign Language Institute in Beijing, China. She was granted a scholarship funded by the Australian-China Council and organised by AFS International Student Exchanges to study in China for a year, and enjoyed it so much that she decided to go back for another semester independently. She chose to spend her time in China because she wanted to continue with the Chinese language and was unsure what she wanted to study at university. Naomi believes the best way to learn a language is in that country and sees the importance of Chinese culture in Australia, which is one of the reasons she decided to learn the language. Life in China is very different for Naomi, going from a small city like Adelaide to the largest city in the world was a huge shock and so was the difference in the learning environment. Naomi found that in China the learning method is intensive lectures, which is very different from when she studied the IB where there was textbook work, practical work, and class discussions. Naomi is still involved with sports and has developed many hobbies while she has been in China, such as drawing, photography, and writing. She is currently in Beijing and will return to Australia in January 2004 to study at university. Naomi plans to study either environmental engineering, art, or journalism, but has not yet decided.

The IB contributed to Naomi achieving her main objectives by pushing her to her limits, and she has continued to live her life that way. While she concentrated greatly on competitiveness and her final score, the IB pushed her beyond the boundaries of knowledge and offered her a well-rounded education. A major contribution was the emphasis placed on the importance of internationalism and being surrounded by people from different cultural backgrounds. Naomi feels that if she hadn’t done the IB, internationalism would not have been such a major part of her education.