The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award in the 2024/2025 School Year

Preparations for the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award (DofE) expeditions are once again gaining momentum at our school. This year, nearly 70 students are participating across all three levels. The Year 7 group, aiming for the Gold level, is planning particularly ambitious journeys — from trekking in the Alps to paddling down Slovak rivers.

As spring approaches, not only nature but also the students involved in DofE are coming to life. And there are many of them: this school year, 26 Year 5 students are working toward the Bronze level, 25 Year 6 students toward Silver, and an unusually large group of Year 7 students — 18 in total — are fulfilling the demanding requirements of the Gold level. At the end of January, our Year 7 students travelled to Kutná Hora for the Silver Award ceremony. True to form, they did not hold back — two of them, Jana Perská and Ondra Galyáš, even delivered a speech sharing their experiences with the programme.

All participants are now beginning to plan their expeditions. The Gold-level students are the furthest along. They have split into three expedition teams: in early May, two groups will set out on hiking expeditions in the Alps, while the third group is preparing for a canoeing expedition in Slovakia. The Bronze and Silver groups still have some time to finalise their plans. Before their expedition, Bronze participants will first take part in a DofE Outdoor Day (1 April), where they will receive basic training to help them plan and complete the journey safely.

During the expeditions — lasting from two to four days, depending on the level — students travel completely independently in teams of up to eight. They meet their supervisors once or twice a day at prearranged points. Students cook for themselves, choose their campsite, and spend the nights on their own. Each day, they cover roughly 20 km with full gear along a route they plan themselves and must follow, which can be quite demanding. Overall, it is an unusual yet deeply enriching experience that allows students to get to know not only their classmates but, above all, themselves.

We will certainly bring you a student report from one of the expeditions.