Many Huili parents who hold high-level executive positions are often out of our sight in light of their busy schedule. However, they still can exert their influence on us because their thought-provoking viewpoints that can shed some light on the essence of education. We were honoured to interview such a Huili pupil's father and learn his opinions on education——Editor's note Interviewee IntroductionPeter's father earned an MBA in England and received an international education earlier than most of his peers. He chose a Huili education for his children, and they have been pupils at our school since its founding. When Peter joined Huili school as a grade 3 pupil, his younger sister Alice was enrolled in Huili Nursery. This year marks Alice's transitioned to Huili School as a grade one pupil. We sat down with Peter and Alice's father to talk about the Huili educational philosophy and what it means to him and his children. THE BILINGUAL EDUCATION AT HUILIWe paid a lot of attention to Huili School Shanghai since its founding and were attracted by its strong leadership and academic teams. International and bilingual schools both espouse a holistic education philosophy and integrate Chinese and Western educational values. To the casual observer, they would seem to be identical in their methodologies. But upon closer examination, there are subtle and important differences between the two.From my family's perspective, it is important to instil a sense of identity into our children. Our society is constantly changing. Just as a ship needs an anchor to keep it in place, people also need a strong sense of identity. We are Chinese, and we want our children to be aware and proud of their heritage. At the same time, I also want them to be global citizens. Third culture children can often easily adapt to different cultures and different settings. However, that adaptability sometimes comes at the cost of having a strong sense of identity. Huili strikes this balance between building a sense of identity while encouraging a thoroughly global outlook in its pupils. THE LEARNING JOURNEY AT HUILIThe more I see of my children's education at Huili, the more I believe I have made the right decision in enrolling them here. Firstly, I am quite satisfied with Peter’s academic achievements. They are the natural result of the independent learning habits his teachers have helped him develop. He also speaks highly of his CCAs and the variety of school events he takes part in, both of which underscore Huili's philosophy of holistic education. Secondly, from the homework and regular progress reports, we have an up-to-date understanding of our son's progress as well as the teachers' objectives. Thirdly, we also like the emphasis that Huili places on cultivating its pupils to become bicultural. Looking back on my own experiences, I think the Huili's bilingual learning environment is conducive to bicultural immersion.Pupils at Huili are immersed in Chinese and Western cultures. They study not only Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare but also Peony Pavilion by Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu. Their appreciation of two cultures helps them to develop a more open mind and keener insight. Language and culture, of course, are interconnected. Moreover, the daily flag-raising ceremony and coursework in ethics align with my family’s educational philosophy. When self-identity is consolidated, courses such as wellbeing ensure a pupil's mental and physical health. The school’s curriculum also promotes in my children an international perspective and encourages them to be open and inclusive. These are important values that will serve them well in their adult lives.I like that the school diligently maintains a line of communication with us as well. Huili offers 12-year schooling, ensuring a stable, consistent learning environment for pupils. We are informed as early as possible of anything relevant to our children. For example, the school holds workshops for grade 8 parents to introduce them to the IGCSE and IBDP curriculums. Parents of younger pupils are also welcome. Early access to such information means that we have ample time to prepare and start making decisions with our children. The school puts great effort into instilling the Huili Values and Identity into its pupils. These soft skills will prepare them to deal with life's uncertainties more constructively. OPEN COMMUNICATION AT HUILIMy work keeps me busy. Nevertheless, communicating with my children daily is very important to me. Normally, I do not correct Peter’s homework for him. I expect him to complete it and seek feedback and instruction from his teachers. However, if we discover that his work is unsatisfactory, we work together to figure out the reason why. If it is because of his own failure to study, we encourage him to redouble his efforts.Sometimes unsatisfactory results come in despite hard work. In those cases, we can reach out to the teacher directly and figure out a new course of action. The quality of homework is an indicator of Peter's studies at school. I notice Peter applies many learning skills to his homework. For example, when writing a speech, you should have a thesis to prove, learn how to conduct research and cite your sources properly. Homework guides pupils in how to apply their knowledge and expand on what they learned. The school wants to teach pupils how to learn on their own, not just remember facts and figures. Before he does anything else after school, Peter is expected to finish his homework and do a good job of it. We also insist on not signing him up for additional classes outside of school. Huili has its own bilingual curriculum that is unmatched in other schools. Over the past two years, I have witnessed the gradual improvement of its curriculum framework, which helps pupils build a systematic cognition pattern and skillset through differentiated and small class teaching. Another reason is the assignments designed by the school can consolidate what pupils learn in class. Teachers’ meticulous feedback about their homework can help parents in coaching their children. ENCOURAGING CHILDREN TO PURSUE THEIR PASSIONSPeter is part of the school orchestra, and we fully support this. He plays the violin. We believe he should practise regardless of any raw talent he may have. Besides the practice, his experience playing in the orchestra will also be influential to his later life in the form of soft skills. His success in this orchestra depends on his ability to work well with others and recognise that he is part of something greater than himself. This is an invaluable skill in any career.We encourage Peter to pursue things he is passionate about. For instance, he is interested in computer programming. He particularly loves developing games. A child’s interest enables them to understand the world from another perspective. It can also enhance their appreciation for the arts, sciences or any other field. Parents often have their own ideas about what kinds of hobbies their children pursue. I am no exception in this regard. Nevertheless, I understand the importance of respecting a child’s unique talents and interests. This will ultimately drive them to put their passion into whatever they pursue.
How can we prepare children for an unpredictable future? （I）
Among all the ways to get to know a school, it one of the best and most direct is to hear the thoughts and ideas of current parents. Hence, we interviewed Yinuo’s father so he could share with us his experience of selecting a school for his child and his perspective on education. After graduating from a renowned private school in the city, Yinuo is now a sixth grader at Huili Junior High.The interview was edited by Huili marketing dept. 1. Huili School Shanghai is a new school but one that is steeped in the rich heritage of Wellington College in England with over 160 years of history. Could you tell us why you wanted to choose Huili? We did face some dilemmas when choosing a school for my child, considering that it was a relatively safe choice for him to continue his education at his previous school. If he were to follow its learning journey, we would have been reassured to clearly know his education path without making any potential mistakes. On the contrary, selecting Huili was a risk because it was a new school at the time and had no graduates to prove the quality of its education. Nevertheless, Huili was more inspirational in its proposed philosophy of education and presented what I thought was a better chance for my child to navigate an uncertain future.Reflecting my own experience, ten years before 2005 was the PC Era when many traditional works could be done by PC. From 2005 to 2015, mobile devices replaced PCs and our lives went through earth-shaking changes. In 2015, the first rudimentary AI solutions started to emerge, overturning many of our deep-rooted thinking patterns. Right now, it seems impossible to predict what will happen in the next ten years. Hence, I intend to let my child grow in an open and inclusive environment where more possibilities exist. My feeling is that many schools push their pupils to overlook true learning and just do plenty of exercises repeatedly for the purpose of remembering the standardised answers and achieving good scores in the college entrance examination. In my view, this does not make full use of pupils’ stage of rapid development which is the prime time for them to thrive and study. This is a pity and a missed opportunity. In addition to the changing times, my decision to choose Huili also came from my own work experiences. The multinational company that I serve has undergone rounds of reformation. In each reform, it removes or outsources a large number of repetitive works which can be done by computers because these works are not creative or related to strategic planning. We find that finance, human resources, IT and purchasing work with low functional value have been largely outsourced to places like India or Eastern European countries in light of their much lower labour costs. Moreover, law firms are gradually stopping their employment of young lawyers. This is because AI can finish a week-long research task done by a group of lawyers in just a few tenths of a second. The world is preparing for this change in workplace trends, not just China. Many young people graduating from top-ranking universities are not truly prepared for this change and they will meet severe, even cruel challenges. Therefore, I hope my child can enjoy and make use of a freer and more open space to study, one that can prepare him for the changes that will occur in the coming decades. 2.How did you make your decision when selecting a school? We participated in the open day held by Huili, where I had plenty of in-depth discussions with principals and teachers. There are a few reasons that made me put Huili on our candidate list straight away. Confidence is the first reason. Both the senior leadership team and the international and Chinese teachers all demonstrated great confidence. Secondly, we felt equally and mutually respected when we talked with Huili teachers. Traditionally, many teachers in China give off a sense of distance and an attitude that strongly suggests that parents need to obey and agree with what they say. We also observed on the open day that pupils casually sat in the corridor before entering classes, while their eyes were fixed on their teachers and they attentively followed teachers’ instructions. These pupils were confident and energetic, eager to interact with their teachersFrom the leadership team, to teachers and pupils, they were all full of confidence and optimism. To some degree, it may have something to do with the Wellington brand which gives them reason to be confident. Besides, the confidence showed by the leadership and academic teams also comes from themselves, as they seemed to truly enjoy being in such a caring, loving community. This impressed me greatly. We also noticed that all teachers’ photos were posted on bulletin boards on campus. It is not difficult for schools to hire experienced Chinese teachers, but it is not the same case to employ international teachers of a similar standard. International teachers at Huili are all recruited and tested at Wellington College in England, which sets a strict teaching qualification requirement for all teachers. According to the senior leadership’s introduction, excellent English teachers are inclined to choose bilingual schools because they believe that compared with international schools, teaching at a bilingual school enables them to better understand the local culture and benefits their teaching of multi-strategy approaches. This is the same situation with my company. My European and American colleagues enjoy working in China as they want to gain experience of cultural differences and even culture shock. It is helpful for them in terms of adapting to the globalised world. Thus, I truly believed that a confident school that emphasises the importance of hiring the right staff would be a good and suitable choice for us. 3. How has Yinuo settled into Huili? Children need a transition period when entering a new school. Because of the different learning modes and language environment, it may take a long time for parents to track and understand their level of academic progress. However, even from an early stage, we clearly saw his positive changes in terms of mental attitude and his overall character once he had joined Huili. Parents also need some time to get used to the transition. We tried our utmost to create a better environment for independent learning at home for our child. Although this process may not have always run smooth, we do not regard it as a big problem. 4. Do you think Huili is markedly different from Yinuo’s previous schools? To be honest, my overall communication with teachers is less frequent than in his previous school. This is actually a kind of liberation for parents. We had so many WeChat groups before. It seemed that we communicated anywhere and at any time. Initially it took us some time to get used to Huili’s style because we had to switch from using WeChat to email for communication. Huili’s teachers put most of their efforts into their teaching. They try to solve pupils’ problems through face-to-face communication and emails are used for more formal and important matters. Accordingly, teachers do not need to spend so much time on managing relationships with parents, something I completely understand and acknowledge. However, the school has rightly established many channels to let parents know how things are going on with their children at school. Another big change is the always open and energetic Huili community, which often holds so many activities that we can hardly participate them all because of our limited spare time. Parents can take part in parent workshops, which are frequently held sessions where teachers share their educational philosophy and invite feedback. Even if we could not join all of these events in person, we can always get outlines of the sessions shared in the Week Ahead. The school has many channels to tell us what is happening on campus.Huili School also has a house system for Junior High and each house is led by a housemaster or housemistress who sends regular emails to parents, telling us about our children’s updates. If necessary, they conduct one-on-one communication with us. I think this is a pretty good system. The house system also enables pupils to engage in campus life wholeheartedly, regardless of their year group and age. This kind of involvement can improve their leadership ability while motivating them to be role models. House points also play an important role in school’s house system. Pupils put their whole hearts into all types of evens to win house points. It has become a positive incentive method as pupils care greatly about their house’s honour. House points also strengthen inter-house relations as well as pupils’ connections with their own housemates. Teachers have different approaches to how they give pupils’ house points. While some are cautious and their points have much value, others may be generous, and either way pupils can be motivated to do their best. This also leads to pupils learning independently, something that an essential lifelong habit for them to cultivate. 5. Do you have any expectations about your child’s future? I hope that what he aims to accomplish in the future will be good for humankind. Many Huili parents that I know all expect that their children will grow to do something meaningful to them. This is to be encouraged as long as it is valuable for both the child and the wider world. If he can think independently, understand what he wants to do and spare no effort to achieve his goals, I will not worry about him and will give him freedom to spread his wings. I will always stand by him if he has clear, reasonable life goals and faces any challenges with a positive mental attitude. This is why we chose to leave a relatively safe and stable educational environment to step into an uncharted world. We attach great importance to developing his independent thinking. No matter how the world changes in the future, if he knows what his life goals and ambitions are, I am confident that he will achieve them.
How can we prepare children for an unpredictable future? （II）
Among all the ways to get to know a school, it one of the best and most direct is to hear the thoughts and ideas of current parents. Hence, we interviewed Yinuo’s father so he could share with us his experience of selecting a school for his child and his perspective on education. After graduating from a renowned private school in the city, Yinuo is now a sixth grader at Huili Junior HighThe interview was edited by Huili marketing dept.1. What were your thoughts about Yinuo’s studying performance after he gradually settled into Huili’s learning environment?Frankly speaking, as parents, we also experienced a transition period considering that we selected a school very different from the one he previously attended. However, if we still had expected school to constantly increase the difficulty of courses and assign plenty of exercises to pupils for the sake of learning in advance, we would not have selected Huili for my child. We were anxious at the beginning when we realised that Yinuo fell behind his peers and usually he was at the head of his class. So, we all had to adapt to this new reality. Then we asked ourselves why he needed to follow his previous learning tempo. Advancing his learning aimed to save more time for his preparation for entrance into a higher school, which went against our initial intentions around entering him at Huili. We hope our children can do more meaningful things which benefit his future career and life by making full use of his current precious learning time. We believe this is better for him overall. Education is about teaching and nurturing. At the same time, teaching is not restricted to teaching, but the combination of teaching and learning. Obviously, parents have diverse anticipation about teaching. I think Huili’s educational philosophy matches with what I want for my child.First, the school wants to give pupils a more comfortable transition from a Chinese learning environment to the bilingual environment, which is the basis for its immersive learning mode. Compared with unified teaching mode, character-based mode shows respect for pupils and their uniqueness. Although his learning did slow down in the initial stage, Yinuo was able to find his own appropriate tempo. This kind of adjustment has liberated Huili children from the uniform learning schedule and enables them to have free time to play instruments or sports. Eventually, they will identify the various learning possibilities of themselves by utilising these times effectively. It is always a shame if children feel they have to suppress their true thoughts and feelings because of the pressure of the college entrance examination. After years of study, it seems that they are all produced from the same mould without their own characteristics. It’s only when they go to college, that they may come to realise that they need to find out their own personal strengths, what they want to do in the future and what kind of people they want to become. However, at Huili, children are encouraged and motivated to discover multiple facets of themselves as early as possible. This is an important aspect that I appreciate most. It may be more accurate to say that we do it in the correct timing rather than in advance. I have worked for a foreign company for many years. Many of my international colleagues like to go to pub to relax after a whole day’s hard work. They are all versatile and have their own hobbies. They are glad to perform on the stage for other customers. Two or three of them can form a band to sing several songs, whose happiness affects everyone present. Contrarily, Chinese colleagues are hard-working but shy. Most of them are reserved under such circumstances because we were all educated by the same system. I think the difference lies in that we lack a passion for life relatively speaking. On a training held by our company, we were asked what we would like to do after retiring. I never seriously thought about this question and touring around the world was the most common answer given by my Chinese colleagues. Nonetheless, all kinds of answers were given out by my international colleagues. Even though their positions are highly professional, someone who likes carpentry and music said he wants to make wooden guitars and even open a store to sell guitars that are all made by himself. Therefore, I hope that Yinuo can bravely discover and try different things to find his own hobbies and interests at the current transformation stage, leaving no regrets for the future. 2. What do you think about the change of learning methods when Yinuo studies at Huili? Huili provides many platforms and tools which all respect differentiated leaning. If you want to learn Spanish, you can use Duolingguo. If you want to have a large vocabulary, you can use Memorize. You may use AR technology to amplify your reading experience. I have been against issuing schoolchildren a large amount of repetitive work that can be easily replaced by machines. It is meaningless for pupils to spend so much time on learning these repetitive tasks. However, doing exercises can also be regarded as a way to strengthen acquired knowledge rather than a complete repetition of the same task. Some knowledge can be mastered by pupils through repeatedly doing related exercises, which is necessary. The precise amount of exercises is hard to define because apparently it varies from parent to parent. 3. What is your opinion on your child’s academic performance? At Huili, tests are not designed to give pupils their specific scores and rankings. Rather, it is a way to know to what degree pupils have mastered the knowledge hared with them. This does not mean that the school plays down the importance of tests. On the contrary, it is inclined to use formative evaluation to observe a pupil’s progress, and shortcoming, offering supportive programme for the next stage. The 12-yearschooling system ensures the consistency of Huili’s education and pupils can focus on their study without any outside distractions.We want to see the outcome of education in the long run and that is why we eventually chose Huili. It does not matter if it may take a long time. Yinuo has begun to experience the Project Based Learning (PBL). He needs to finish his project by himself, record the process and adhere to it. This training will cultivate many of his key soft skills. I hope my child will be able to go to a higher education institution which has a world-leading discipline that he favours most if it is compared with a top-ranking comprehensive university. We hope he can develop a specific hobby and have his own ambitions. Thus, we care more about his ability to form his own independent thoughts. Moreover, we want him to be physically and psychologically healthy and attach great importance to developing his soft skills, including willpower, emotional resilience, positive thinking patterns, teamwork as well as his moral character. These will all have a great impact on his life. Many things that are considered correct today will not necessarily remain correct in the future. Thus, we are determined to give him more freedom to thrive, although this also will bring him many uncertainties. Take the PBL for example. I have asked each instructor to write down their remarks on Yinuo and other participants’ performances, which are attached to the printed slides used in classes. The project is conducted twice a year and I will keep all these files archived from he joined grade 5 until he graduates from high school. These true records of what he has achieved will be useful for him to apply to his ideal university. It may be a big plus for him if the admissions officers admire his perseverance in undertaking increasingly large and difficult projects year after year. 4. Yinuo had taken on leadership roles in his previous school for many years. Does he want to assume a similar position of responsibility at Huili? When Yinuo started to study at Huili, I asked him whether he would like to apply for a leadership role and his housemaster also sent email to us, encouraging him to try. However, his has reached an age where he has his own thoughts and priorities, which is something we respect and admire.Yinuo is a cautious child but we believe that he is willing to try after some all-round observation and preparation. He may consider applying in the next semester when he fully adapts to the new environment. At that time, we will encourage him to give it everything he has. 5. We know that Yinuo is a member of school football team, something you have supported him to achieve. Why do you strongly support his extra-curricular activities? Football is Yinuo’s favourite sport and he was thrilled about being selected for the school team. To help him pursue his interest, we made some compromises. We often find it hard to make this kind of decision because of contrasting needs, but we think it is a responsible way to help him develop and he is able to balance his study and interest wisely. Parents’ anxiety often comes from their children excessively concentrating on their studies. We resort to holistic education to help Yinuo balance his study and personal interests without focusing to heavily on either aspect. Only through equal emphasis on these two parts can we truly fulfil this concept. I remembered that the football team once needed to compete outside of Huili and Yinuo was absent from his Chinese class in the afternoon. As Chinese is a core subject, pupils seldom choose to be absent from it. More importantly, he had tests a few days later. We knew that he truly loves playing football and there were options to apply for make-up examination. Therefore, we allowed him to participate in the competition instead of putting the class first under such circumstances. We felt the true happiness shown by him after the competition as he really enjoyed himself. Yinuo also understood that he should prove to us that participation in matches would not adversely affect his study. He put his whole heart into his studies the following week. So, I believe that hobbies or development of other areas will encourage him to use his initiative in during his studies. It is not necessarily true that your engagement in hobbies will adversely affect your ability to study. Compared with forcing him to make promises that he will not lag behind, this kind of positive motivation is more beneficial for him. Our philosophy is: “We support you and want to communicate with you like we were friends.” This will ultimately develop children’s lifelong ability to self-motivate. In addition to football, Yinuo has stuck to practising baseball for years. His weekends are mainly occupied by these two sports. In my opinion, boys need to engage in team sports where they experience cooperation and confrontation. Whether they win or lose, they go through all these emotions and life lessons together as they try their best to win as many matches as possible. This experience is definitely something that goes beyond daily classes.Sometimes, he plays football for the entire afternoon or joins in four competitions in a single day. When he comes back, he is too tired to study. But we think what he gained is no less than finishing three exam papers and we find that sports has made him a healthier and more optimistic person. I will continue to support his efforts in team sports. At the same time, he can develop his interest in individual sports. This will be done by respecting his personal preferences and willingness to explore new things. If he is eager to participate in these activities, we believe he can achieve a good personal balance. 6. What is your opinion on home-school partnership at Huili? In my view, home-school relationship is cooperative and based on mutual support, whilst both sides have their fundamental stances. In the school’s case this is that its pedagogy cannot be influenced by parents. It would be devastating if the school always compromised because of the suggestions of the parents’ committee. Members of committee can change and I think both sides are good at listening to and respecting each other’s viewpoints. The parents’ committee acts as a bridge between the school and families, helping to communicate with those who are not familiar with the school while coordinating school events. The parents’ committee will give school valuable suggestions, but the ‘red line’ is that they are not allowed to intervene in the school’s education policies. We need to trust the school to give its pupils the top-quality education that they are trained to deliver.The home-school partnership enables parents to use their resources to extend pupils’ leaning at school. For example, Yinuo’s mother works at a customs office and once held a workshop for pupils. Her beautiful customs uniform motivated pupils to explore different occupations. She also shared some practical information with them, telling pupils what kind of items bought overseas will be taxed or put you in prison. Even many teachers participated in this workshop, asking her questions about buying agents and the defined goods quantity. This example shows that parents’ resources and experiences are valuable learning tools. 7. What do you expect to see when Yinuo finishes his studies at Huili? Selecting Huili means that we abandoned the established leaning path and have further expectations of him. We put much emphasis on cultivating his cognitive system, all-round competences and correct values, which will help him to face the uncertain future, playing down the importance of specific goals such as test scores, rankings and target universities. I believe that many parents may have the same opinions, hopes and expectations for their own children.
The Friends of Huili, an indispensable part of the Huili family
Huili School Shanghai is committed to achieve our vision of becoming the top-ranked school for Chinese families, embedded with both the heritage of Western and Eastern culture and with the wellbeing of pupils at its core. We, together with all parents who share the same goal, aim to continuously support pupils to smoothly embark on and engage with their education journey. Friends of Huili (FOH) is a large community of Huili people. Children enrolled into Huili School become schoolmates, while their parents automatically become members of the FOH. As home/school cooperation is our consensus andintention, FOH is designed to organise diverse activities in collaboration withthe school, creating a splendid and harmonious community experience for theentire Huili family, as well as lending a hand to the school’s ‘whole-child’ educationethos.The FOH Committee At the beginning of each academic year, FOH will elect its committee members from voluntary candidates through a secret ballot. Our current committee is comprises of a chair and seven vice-chairs who are respectively responsible for events, finance, communications, charity and secretary functions.It is a closely coordinated group whose members put their heart and soul into managing the various school affairs tasked to them in order to help achieve our ambitions for the FOH.Throughout the last school year, the FOH committee, together with the wider Huili community, held three large events, the Winter Bazaar, Huili Annual Ball and Summer Carnival, along with routine coffee morning activities based on the themes of education, health, charity and so on. They take charge of the planning, organisation, fundraising and implementation of all these activities. Money collected will be used in support of our chosen charitable causes.Through the FOH’s devotion to our community, the group continues to enrich pupils’ school life, making it a more caring and loving group for all members who observe and practise the Huili Values every day. Class/House Representatives Class/House representative is a critical role in our FOH. As a bridge between home and the school, these representatives help teachers to deal with specific class affairs. When each school year begins, the school will select class/house representatives for each class/house from among the nominations. Class/house representatives and FOH will continue to support each other to build a close home/school relationship.In fact, home/school cooperation is demonstrated in the more detailed home/class educational practices, which is why we created the role of class/house representatives. Class/house representatives act as a communication channel for the other parents who thus will be more likely to actively participate in home/class coordination. This approach also extends to our frequent school events. The FOH Volunteers FOH volunteers are also of vital importance in our Huili community. They are warmhearted parents who pool their wisdom, talents and resources to help reinforce that all-important home/school bond.Parents volunteers show up eager and on time whenever the school needs their support. They wrapped the books in the library；they sought out better resources for theme-based activities to enrich pupils’ experiences; they put forward their ideas and thoughts in the crucial academic assessment meetings; they helped teachers to extend pupils’ learning outside school in past field trips; they showcased their culinary skills to show appreciation to Huili teachers at the end of the term. All these past deeds, as well as future plans contribute to make our Huili community a warm and loving family. Accompanying pupils' growing path A child’s all-around growth cannot successfully happen without the mutually supportive elements of well-considered parenting and schooling. The integration of parenting and schooling will help children to thrive and flourish – a process which is often tough yet rewarding. FOH is a bridge connecting home and school as well as an envoy, uniting the Huili community. Huili School, in combination with the FOH, will always strive to provide the best bilingual education for our pupils.When pupils start their learning journey at Huili, their parents who stand behind them also take on their own journey too. It is the FOH that unites all parents who understand and respect one another through frequent and genuine cooperation. Since our school and its composite families have similar expectations for children who attend Huili, we will surely continue to work together to keep a close eye on both their personal growth and academic development. We are all proud to be members of Friends of Huili
The Huili Charity Fund Celebrates its First Anniversary
Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference. Education means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. But one thing is certain: Education goes well beyond just teaching a child how to make a living. Education is also about personal growth and building character. Therefore, we must give pupils more opportunities to gain a variety of life experiences. These experiences include an immersive bilingual campus culture and a wellbeing programme that helps them to develop empathy for others. The Shanghai United Foundation 'Friends of Huili' Charity Fund was launched on 11th December 2019 by Friends of Huili (FoH) and Shanghai United Foundation. As the main charitable organisation and the class 5A public grant-making foundation, Shanghai United Foundation works closely with Huili School Shanghai to identify the most innovative and beneficial models of charitable education. The FoH Charity Fund is chaired by Ms Stella Zhou, the Master of Huili School Shanghai, and supervised by Ms Zhang Bona of the Shanghai United Foundation. Together with the other seven members of the board of governors, they have defined the functions of fundraising, project implementation and compliance and best practices for this fund. The fund builds a bridge between the school and charitable organisations, providing Huili pupils with many opportunities for meaningful participation.▲The Shanghai United Foundation 'Friends of Huili' Charity Fund Committee In spring of 2020, the FoH Charity Fund launched its first funding programme — ‘Elevating People through Kindness’ — which helps design charity and education programmes. The aim was to create more opportunities for pupils to participate in public services and charitable activities, giving them roles to play in community service, conservation and scientific research efforts. “The Shanghai United Foundation ‘Friends of Huili’ Charity Fund is the first donor-advised fund created by parents and the school. It aims to make our community a warm and caring place that encourages our pupils to take part in charitable activities.”—— Ms. Song Yifan Secretary of FoH Charity FundPutting Kindness into ActionMembers of the Huili Community do not regard their charitable activities as acts of heroism. Rather, they see it as lots of small actions that ultimately make a big difference. The Huili Community therefore constantly seeks charity programs that it can engage in for the long term. As a result, our pupils have the opportunity to build their character and give back to their community.Huili Organic FarmDr. Jane Goodall has been recognised by Time magazine as "the most outstanding primatologist of the 20th century" and a United Nations Messenger of Peace. She is also the founder of the global charity organization Roots & Shoots. Dr. Goodall travels around the world, promoting environmental protection, encouraging young people to take action to protect animals and be stewards of the environmentThe Roots & Shoots organic farm was the first funding programme that our charity fund council selected. Since this programme was closely connected with the school's organic gardening curriculum, it was the first campus activity that got both pupils and parents involved. Our academic team took charge of the school's organic garden and designed interdisciplinary lessons centred around gardening. Pupils learned the entire process of planting vegetables, such as tillage, pest management, fertilisation and farming techniques. They also learned what goes into food production. Moreover, the campus garden programme enjoyed support from FoH, which helped us to promote the idea of gardening at home.“Pupils took good care of all that they planted. They learned the importance of eating organic food and living a healthy lifestyle, both of which help to protect our environment. They also learned why maintaining a harmonious relationship with nature matters.”——The Organic Garden Team The Special Olympics Unified School ProjectFollowing the Roots & Shoots organic garden project, the Huili Charity Fund launched the Special Olympics Unified School project in cooperation with the Pudong Fudu School. The principals, teachers, pupils and parents of the two schools took part in an exchange visit to explore possibilities for cooperation in sports and arts. During the visit, Huili pupils learned about the studies and lives of their peers, gained a new perspective on social affairs and got to know the meaning of humanistic concern. They were deeply impressed by the passion and perseverance of their peers at the Pudong Fudu School.▲Huili visited Pudong Fudu School “We exist in society as unique individuals, but we must embrace what is special in others, too. In a recent art class, we painted our unique characteristics on our faces, which taught us that everyone is special and that we need to respect each other in the community.”——MaggieGrade 8, De houseIt is important that our pupils learn the value of philanthropy because it encourages mutual goodwill among all people. A spirit of goodwill allows us to shift our focus from ourselves to others. The Special Olympics Unified School project is an exploration for Huili School in public service. It also links our pupils to the society, making them more open and inclusive. We expect Huili people to bring this attitude to all future charity programmes. Youth leadership programWith two successful fundraising projects launched during the Huili Charity Fund's first year, the Huili Community has made great strides in its charity efforts. Now in its second year, the fund has decided to involve Junior High pupils in the decision-making process. The idea is to get pupils thinking about how to develop sustainable charity projects. Under the leadership of housemasters and the support of the charity fund, Huili pupils will work in their respective houses to find new public service projects. Each house will explain the practical value of its project to get funding for it. The Huili community service CCA was set up to create collaborations beyond our own Huili community. We believe that it is important for Huili pupils to be exposed to diversity within society to enable them to develop a social conscience and act in accordance with moral values. On Monday, the pupils took the first step to fulfilling this goal as they organised a drink stand for the workers involved in building the Huili high school. While participating in public service and preparing for high school CAS subjects, pupils are encouraged to think about the meaning and feasibility of these projects. Doing so broadens their horizons while it teaches them the meaning of public service. “On Monday, the pupils took the first step to fulfilling this goal as they organised a drink stand for the workers involved in building the Huili high school. While participating in public service and preparing for high school CAS subjects, pupils are encouraged to think about the meaning and feasibility of these projects. Doing so broadens their horizons while it teaches them the meaning of public service.”—— FoH Charity Fund The power of charity causeOften, the journey is as important as the destination. We are only celebrating the Huili Charity Fund's first anniversary, but we are already looking forward to celebrating the tenth.How can we better focus on the Huili Charity Fund's original purpose, which is to establish and maintain long-term charitable efforts? We believe Huili pupils have answered this question. They will continue to find more and more worthwhile projects and put their hearts into every charitable effort they set their sights on.
Meet the new Head of High School – Ms Lana Kulas06 November 2020Underpinned by a bilingual educational vision and philosophy, Huili School Shanghai is committed to turning its pupils into critically thinking, globally-minded citizens. This immediately attracted Ms Lana Kulas to join us this academic year as our founding Head of High School. A graduate of Oxford University, Ms Kulas has gained a wealth of experience in preparing pupils for university. We are confident that she will lay a solid foundation for our High School and will help us achieve even greater heights. “I recently started listening to the audiobook version of ‘Becoming’ by Michelle Obama, and there is a great thing she says about what her father taught her, which I think summarises what my motto may well be: “work hard, laugh often, keep my word”. I like this. It summarises all the key things that you need to be a good human being in all aspects of life. It is important to work hard, as you are then being true to yourself, but it is also important to not take life too seriously. You should always remember to enjoy yourself too. Finally, having integrity and keeping your word will ensure you will always have people in life you can rely on.”——Lana KulasHead of High School01 Tell us about yourself and your work experienceI was educated in the UK. Throughout my career, I have been focused on working with pupils of High School age and have experience in preparing pupils for universities throughout the world. I spent the first seven years of my career working in secondary schools in London. I worked as a university and careers adviser for three years as well as a gifted and talented coordinator, focusing on pupils who wished to attend Oxford and Cambridge or who wished to apply for Medicine or Dentistry. I have also assisted with medicine application interviews at University College London (UCL). After that, I moved to Qatar in the Middle East, where I initially worked as a University and Careers Adviser at a very large international school that offered the British Curriculum. This was an invaluable opportunity to learn about university systems from around the world and support pupils with their applications to a range of universities.Before joining Huili School Shanghai, I was the founding Head of Secondary School at the Swiss International School Qatar. This was a start-up school that offered the IB programme, and I was very lucky to be able to work with a great team to set up what quickly became one of Qatar’s most successful schools. All my experiences have given me an excellent insight into what makes a successful high school and the opportunities and support that need to be available to ensure that pupils succeed and fulfil their potential. 02 What made you decide to join Huili?One of the key things that attracted me to Huili School was the bilingual model of education. I think Huili is one of the few schools in the world that is genuinely adopting this approach in an authentic and meaningful way. I was also attracted by Huili’s vision to educate the whole child and ensure that there is a focus on all aspects of education, not just academic results. I think this is so important in today’s world. Both Wellington and Huili have a great reputation across the world. In my school in Qatar, I worked with a couple who had joined us from one of the WCC schools. They spoke very highly of WCC and China.Finally, I wanted the opportunity to explore another culture that is very different from my own and to become immersed in it. What better way is there to do that than joining a school where Chinese and Western cultures mix so much and work so closely together? I have been very impressed by Huili’s collaborative and caring approach to everything. My arrival in China was challenging due to the current pandemic, but I have been humbled by the care that has been taken to make sure that I am comfortable, looked after and feel part of the team. It is clear that pupils, and their needs, are at the centre of everything the school does. I already feel like I have been here a while and that I can make suggestions and take risks to help achieve the best for the pupils. 03 What is your outlook on your new position as the found Head of the Huili High School?The key thing I have learnt about starting new schools and coming into a new environment, especially one that may be very different to one’s own, is the importance of taking the time to listen and find out as much as possible about the community. This will be a key principle to bear in mind as I work to set up the High School. It is important that the High School meets the needs of Huili pupils and gives them a world-class education. The second key thing is summarised in one word: opportunity. It will be incredibly important that pupils have as many diverse opportunities as possible in the High School. This will help them find out about themselves and what they may wish to do in the future. This includes opportunities in and out of the classroom, as it includes the opportunity to study different courses, the opportunity to learn in different ways and the opportunity to take part in as many activities as possible outside the classroom.The biggest difference this time around is that I will have a year to plan and to get to know the Huili community. This is incredibly valuable in ensuring that everything is ready for the start of Huili High School. The biggest challenge, but I think also a very exciting one, is coming into a community that already exists and trying to add something new. It is very important that Huili High School still feels like Huili Shanghai but also has its own identity that is appropriate for the age group it serves. With High School, there will be certain expectations, responsibilities and privileges granted for pupils, so they must be prepared for this. Two aspects of education I am very passionate about are pupil leadership and service learning. I would like Huili High School pupils to be leadership ambassadors for the school who can take on responsibility and learn valuable skills in the process while acting as role models for younger pupils. I also strongly believe in service learning and community work to engage with the local, national and global community, so I would love to introduce aspects of community and service into Huili.04 What will be your focus in the 2020-21 academic year?The key focus for this year will be preparing our pupils and staff for the start of the IGCSE courses. Pupils and their families must understand the different courses that we have available and what those courses will mean in terms of future choices and aspirations. Our staff will be writing the IGCSE schemes of work and attending training ahead of teaching the courses next year. Another key thing for me to focus on is getting to know the pupils and their families and Huili in general.I will also be recruiting staff for the high school and making sure we have all of the support in place for things like university applications and careers advice. This support and preparation must start early. We will also need to register to become a Cambridge school, so we can offer the IGCSEs. Then we will need to start our application to become an IB school so we can offer the Diploma Programme. The IB process is especially long and rigorous and we will need all members of our Huili community to work together to make sure we are successful. So, it will be a very busy year! 05 What would you like to share to the will-be high school pupils for their future path to world top universities?I remember asking one of my Oxford tutors about the admissions process and what they were looking for when they admitted me and the rest of my classmates who were studying English at the time. She explained that universities were looking for two key things: capacity and potential. University admissions tutors want to know that pupils have the capacity to do even more and even better than the top grades they have already achieved. They also want to see that pupils have the potential to do well at a particular university, and so can develop the thinking and analysis skills needed. I asked if they looked carefully at all the non-academic activities that pupils did. Her answer was interesting. She said they looked to see that pupils had done a range of activities, but it did not matter so much what those activities were, so long as pupils had participated in them. She explained that this demonstrated that pupils had the capacity to study and work hard while also having other interests. They preferred this to pupils who had just studied to get their top grades, which suggested they may not cope with the much heavier workload of a top university. Of course, every university is different, and tutors look for different things, so research is key. My advice to anyone looking to study at a top university like Oxford is that you must have a genuine interest and passion in the subject you wish to study, and this interest must go beyond the content you study at school.My second piece of advice is to research the courses and universities very thoroughly before making a decision. The same course at two universities can be very different and this may affect your enjoyment and ability to succeed in that course. The way courses are taught may be very different and what the university is looking for from its applicants can also vary from university to university. Finally, pupils who are aiming for the top universities should prepare early and take on board advice and feedback from their teachers. Applications take a long time and can involve many steps, such as additional tests and multiple interviews. It is important to prepare for all these steps while also making sure that pupils keep up with their studies. There is no substitute for getting the top academic qualifications. Every single pupil that applies to a top university is already predicted to achieve the grades that the university needs; they are considered a minimum, so the other aspects of the application and the genuine interest in the subject are very important. I know that some courses at places like Oxford have a ratio of 3 applications per place, which can appear to look quite low, but the thing to remember is that every single one of those applicants is already predicted and will probably achieve the grades needed. It is the performance at interview and in the other aspects of the application that make all the difference. 06 What will be the advantages that the pupils pursue their higher education abroad after they finish the international high school study?Pupils who graduate from Huili will have obtained world-class qualifications, like the IGCSEs and the bilingual IB Diploma. These are very rigorous qualifications that are accepted and hugely respected by universities all over the world. Our pupils will also be fully bilingual and able to operate in Chinese and in English.Studying abroad will provide pupils with a lot of choices, both in terms of universities and the courses they wish to pursue. It will also allow them to explore a different culture and way of life, which will make them much more independent and self-reliant. After university, pupils will be able to do anything they want anywhere they want. They will be highly employable global citizens with an awareness of different cultures. I understand that Huili’s mission is to combine the very best of the East and West, and our pupils who study abroad will truly encompass this vision. 07 How should we prepare our future High School pupils?High School is a time when three questions begin to be answered: what am I good at, what do I enjoy and what do I want to do in the future? These three questions should be at the core of all decisions made in the High School. If you can find one thing that answers all three questions, then you will be in a very strong position for the future. This is why it is important to create different opportunities for pupils, as they help them answer these questions. Similarly, it is in High School that pupils begin to develop a more independent sense of self. This comes with the opportunity to make choices about things like IGCSE courses, the DP courses, topic choices for the Extended Essay, activities for Creativity, Activity and Service (CAS) and eventually university choices. If pupils can develop this sense of self, then they can make confident choices and if they are happy with their choices then they are much more likely to enjoy what they are doing and be successful.For our Junior High pupils, High School will be different but also very familiar. This is the best of both worlds. Pupils will become more mature as they enter a new setting and a new stage of schooling, but they will still have the familiarity, comfort and support of familiar faces around the school and teachers that they already know. This will mean they have the best support possible. The biggest challenge for pupils entering High School will be with regards to independence and the ability to self-regulate and self-manage. There is a lot of work for pupils and this needs to be managed. There will also be formal external exams at the end the IGCSEs and then things become even more challenging with the IB DP. Pupils will need to manage their time and workload. There will be deadlines, assessments, assignments, group projects, as well as decisions to make about courses and universities. It can seem quite daunting, but with the right support in place, we will make sure that it’s a challenge our pupils enjoy. 08 How can we best maintain the line of communication between the parents and our school?The fact that Chinese parents are so dedicated to their children’s education is a great thing and something that should not be taken for granted. This is the first step in ensuring that pupils are successful, as they will have the support from home. The pupils must be at the centre of everything the school does, and this can only be achieved if the school works in partnership with the parents.Throughout this year, we will make sure that parents are informed about what is going on in school and are aware of all the steps in their son/daughter’s journey towards High School and beyond. One way we will do this is through regular parent workshops where parents will have the opportunity to find out about the High School, thus parents can support their children in the process. I also firmly believe in the principle of ‘no surprises’ when working with pupils and parents. Parents should be informed when things are going well and when they are not going so well. Therefore, regular and clear communication is very important. Similarly, parents need to know that they can always ask questions and ask for a conversation. We want to thank Lana for sharing her experience and insights. In the coming days, she will hold a series of parent workshop to share more ideas with Huili community. We are confident that her expertise will be a valuable asset to the long-term development of Huili High School and our pupils.
Meet with the new Head of Primary – Ms Rosalie Pietsch06 November 2020Primary school years play a critical role in helping pupils develop a habit of lifelong learning. During this stage, they experience transition from learning through play in the early years to learning through more systematic approaches. At Huili School Shanghai, we are committed to helping pupils grow up to become well-rounded global citizens. We believe that each pupil is an individual with their own unique needs. We do not just track their academic progress. We aim to help build their character as well. This academic year, it is an honour to have Ms Rosalie Pietsch join us as our new Head of Primary. She has over 30 years’ experience in education, and we believe that her commitment and passion will make her an invaluable asset for Huili. 01 Introducing the new Head of PrimaryEducation has been my chosen career for over thirty years with a singular focus on working alongside parents and fellow educators to provide a learning environment in which all pupils can flourish; extending themselves beyond what they might originally perceive possible.Most recently I have held the position of Head of Primary at Canberra Grammar School. Located in the capital city of Australia, Canberra Grammar School is the district’s premier school educating over 900 pupils in the primary school and 1000 pupils in the senior years. Situated close to the parliamentary circle, the school provides a high-quality international education to families from the surrounding embassies and high commissions (of which there are nearly eighty.) International pupils undertake their study alongside pupils from local and regional areas.02 What inspired you to join Huili?An alignment of values, intent and philosophy drove my decision to accept the position of Head of Primary at Huili School. Huili’s philosophy is based round the holistic development of each child, a philosophy I also hold. I view it a privilege to be asked to work alongside expert educators dedicated to enabling high levels of learning for each child; to be providing a breadth of opportunities from which pupils’ strengths can continue to grow and a learning culture in which a child’s curiosity is cherished and their independence, confidence and resilience strengthened. While working with others in the leadership team, their ability to think creatively and laterally and their willingness to work with and through the broader staff collective to achieve identified outcomes has been clearly evident.Their tenacity and optimism when faced with challenges is admirable. The warmth, empathy and proactive consideration has helped to ease concerns which have inevitably arisen due to the global circumstances surrounding the start to the school year. During the recent staff induction week, it has again been emphasised that the Huili approach to education is founded in research. The approach also draws on knowledge from the broader Wellington schools’ group, experience of high achieving local educators, and a commitment to continual reflection and support of educators’ professional growth. It is a privilege to be joining a high achieving team of educational leaders and to serve the families of Huili school. 03 What is your understanding of the role it plays in an individual’s lifelong learning journey?‘Why’ and ‘How’ are two words which are often heard when spending time with the very young. They explore, question and solve problems. It is this natural curiosity and wonderment of childhood that we seek to nurture throughout schooling and into later life. By doing so our pupils emerge possessing the confidence and commitment to undertake a lifetime of learning.Of course, in equipping our pupils to answer their own ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions, we arm them with the fundamental skills and abilities needed to do so. We acknowledge that there will be errors along the way, redirected approaches and the fostering of new understandings. We also acknowledge that the pathway of learning is neither linear nor the same for everyone. And so, the greatest challenge of a primary educator is to teach in a responsive way, being mindful of the impact of their instruction on each pupil. For educators to keep alive a child’s wonder, curiosity, love for learning and their capacity to adapt to what is taking place around them. 04 What do you bring to Huili and what do you seek to achieve?Entering Huili I bring a singular focus - that being the fostering of learning so that each of our Huili children can become inspired, intellectual and independent individuals who seek to serve others and do good in life. As a school leader I seek to respectfully challenge decisions and direction asking two questions: “What impact will that have on learning?” and, “How will we be able to judge our impact?” If our ideas, structures and systems do not drive a legacy of lifelong learning and equip our young people with skills for life, then we should change them. If learning is fun without leading to enhanced learning progress, then we should reflect and adjust our approach. I seek challenging learning, every day, in every classroom, for every child. 05 What will be your focus in 2020-21?Positive, impactful teaching for every child, in every class, every day is what will empower our children to attain high levels of achievement, to undertake continuous progress and to flourish as rounded, thoughtful and informed members of their community who mindfully seek to make a positive difference in their own lives and the lives of those around them. After arriving at Huili I have spent time in classrooms, observing our children as they learn and engaging them in conversation about their learning. I have observed the instructional approaches of our educators, encouraging reflection, contemplation and evidence-sharing of instructional impact. I am spending time in classrooms to experience first-hand our pupils experiencing the joy of learning; to observe their persistence in overcoming challenges, and to reflect with them what they are discovering about learning. I am spending time in classrooms to provoke thoughtful and informed conversations with fellow educators. Conversations centred on identifying what is working in classroom instruction and what evidence demonstrates success. Encouraging colleagues to think, notice, reflect, and adjust. Time in classrooms with pupils and educators provides a greater insight into a school’s success than a singular focus on grade results. 06 What can you apply from your earlier experiences to manage the school growth?Within any organisation meaningful action is dependent on effective human interaction. Even when schools create hierarchies with identified lines for reporting, relationships are co-created beyond those which are articulated. Understanding and working with these relationships and moving beyond surface-level structures required to maintain the effective running of day-to day operations such as timetables, meeting times, class compositions and the like, toward focusing attention on creating a culture in which teachers seek to learn with, and from, one another is key. When such a culture exists, teachers are confident and actively engaged in leveraging their collective ability to positively affect pupil learning. It becomes their central focus. Thoughtfully attending to the necessary evolution of a school’s decision-making structure, making known areas of accountability, responsibility, consultation and information-sharing is also a necessary step, as is enabling effective means of operating; in particular paying attention to mechanisms targeted at maintaining a safe and secure place of learning and work.However, creating and maintaining a culture in which mutual learning is fostered will serve the best interests of our pupils, their parents and our colleagues. Educators willingly spending time in each other’s classrooms, engaging in professional dialogue and committing, one micro-shift at a time, will enhance the impact of their instruction. While we can readily commit to valuing curiosity, undertake decision-making based on evidence, agree to keep one another accountable and engage compassionately with one another, living this out through our words and actions is what matters most. 07 The parents of Huili value education and being actively involved in their child’s journey of learning. How will you harness their dedication?I recognise that parents choosing Huili invest a great deal in the education of their child. I seek to honour their investment; both financial and emotional. I value productive relationships between home and school; relationships based on respectful and open communication. Due to the value placed on home/school relationships, I seek to make myself available to parents and will no doubt meet many of you soon at the beginning and end of the day, FOH functions, and school events. I am also looking forward to meeting class parent representatives and gaining their insights into the learning successes evident at Huili.The aspirations held by parents and our educators for each child align. Both home and school seek to provide each child with the best possible educational experience, one that enables a child to flourish beyond schooling. Aligning the understanding between home and school into how to educate and what measurements of success to apply is critical. Such alignment can be achieved more readily through the ongoing development of a shared language of learning. A language to describe learning that is known and applied by all within the school community – teachers, pupils, parents and administrators. 08 What is your understanding of CCA as part of the enriched learning offerings provided to our pupils?When asked to look back on our own school experiences, memories which hold the most profound significance are commonly linked with educators who challenged, inspired and motivated our learning to reach highs we had not initially imagined; educators who themselves held a deep passion for what they were teaching. Such memories are also often linked to specific learning experiences. Experiences which took place beyond the regular classroom. Learning experiences which enabled us to assume directorship of our learning, to mix with like-minded others, to experience ‘deep dive’ refinement of our skills and knowledge; and to test our newly acquired abilities in authentic situations. Such experiences often involved opportunity to learn outside the classroom, on school trips and camps, through service experiences and to connect with the broader local, national and global community.As part of my professional experience I held the position of Director of CCA at a large private school in Australia. Being the first person appointed to the role, I was afforded the opportunity to reinvent the existing programme, drawing on learnings from other educational settings, community sport and arts groups and insights proactively sought from the pupils and their families. It is my aspiration to continually enhance the CCA experience of our pupils; responding to their insights, the expertise of our educators, and forge purposeful connections within the wider community. Our pupils actioning their learning, cultivating character, and serving others. Let us once again extend a warm welcome to Ms Rosalie Pietsch. We are confident that her leadership skills and rich experience will help raise Huili to new heights and make passionate lifelong learners out of our pupils.
Many Huili parents who hold high-level executive positions are often out of our sight in light of their busy schedule. However, they still can exert their influence on us because their thought-provoking viewpoints that can shed some light on the essence of education. We were honoured to interview such a Huili pupil's father and learn his opinions on education——Editor's note Interviewee IntroductionPeter's father earned an MBA in England and received an international education earlier than most of his peers. He chose a Huili education for his children, and they have been pupils at our school since its founding. When Peter joined Huili school as a grade 3 pupil, his younger sister Alice was enrolled in Huili Nursery. This year marks Alice's transitioned to Huili School as a grade one pupil. We sat down with Peter and Alice's father to talk about the Huili educational philosophy and what it means to him and his children. THE BILINGUAL EDUCATION AT HUILIWe paid a lot of attention to Huili School Shanghai since its founding and were attracted by its strong leadership and academic teams. International and bilingual schools both espouse a holistic education philosophy and integrate Chinese and Western educational values. To the casual observer, they would seem to be identical in their methodologies. But upon closer examination, there are subtle and important differences between the two.From my family's perspective, it is important to instil a sense of identity into our children. Our society is constantly changing. Just as a ship needs an anchor to keep it in place, people also need a strong sense of identity. We are Chinese, and we want our children to be aware and proud of their heritage. At the same time, I also want them to be global citizens. Third culture children can often easily adapt to different cultures and different settings. However, that adaptability sometimes comes at the cost of having a strong sense of identity. Huili strikes this balance between building a sense of identity while encouraging a thoroughly global outlook in its pupils. THE LEARNING JOURNEY AT HUILIThe more I see of my children's education at Huili, the more I believe I have made the right decision in enrolling them here. Firstly, I am quite satisfied with Peter’s academic achievements. They are the natural result of the independent learning habits his teachers have helped him develop. He also speaks highly of his CCAs and the variety of school events he takes part in, both of which underscore Huili's philosophy of holistic education. Secondly, from the homework and regular progress reports, we have an up-to-date understanding of our son's progress as well as the teachers' objectives. Thirdly, we also like the emphasis that Huili places on cultivating its pupils to become bicultural. Looking back on my own experiences, I think the Huili's bilingual learning environment is conducive to bicultural immersion.Pupils at Huili are immersed in Chinese and Western cultures. They study not only Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare but also Peony Pavilion by Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu. Their appreciation of two cultures helps them to develop a more open mind and keener insight. Language and culture, of course, are interconnected. Moreover, the daily flag-raising ceremony and coursework in ethics align with my family’s educational philosophy. When self-identity is consolidated, courses such as wellbeing ensure a pupil's mental and physical health. The school’s curriculum also promotes in my children an international perspective and encourages them to be open and inclusive. These are important values that will serve them well in their adult lives.I like that the school diligently maintains a line of communication with us as well. Huili offers 12-year schooling, ensuring a stable, consistent learning environment for pupils. We are informed as early as possible of anything relevant to our children. For example, the school holds workshops for grade 8 parents to introduce them to the IGCSE and IBDP curriculums. Parents of younger pupils are also welcome. Early access to such information means that we have ample time to prepare and start making decisions with our children. The school puts great effort into instilling the Huili Values and Identity into its pupils. These soft skills will prepare them to deal with life's uncertainties more constructively. OPEN COMMUNICATION AT HUILIMy work keeps me busy. Nevertheless, communicating with my children daily is very important to me. Normally, I do not correct Peter’s homework for him. I expect him to complete it and seek feedback and instruction from his teachers. However, if we discover that his work is unsatisfactory, we work together to figure out the reason why. If it is because of his own failure to study, we encourage him to redouble his efforts.Sometimes unsatisfactory results come in despite hard work. In those cases, we can reach out to the teacher directly and figure out a new course of action. The quality of homework is an indicator of Peter's studies at school. I notice Peter applies many learning skills to his homework. For example, when writing a speech, you should have a thesis to prove, learn how to conduct research and cite your sources properly. Homework guides pupils in how to apply their knowledge and expand on what they learned. The school wants to teach pupils how to learn on their own, not just remember facts and figures. Before he does anything else after school, Peter is expected to finish his homework and do a good job of it. We also insist on not signing him up for additional classes outside of school. Huili has its own bilingual curriculum that is unmatched in other schools. Over the past two years, I have witnessed the gradual improvement of its curriculum framework, which helps pupils build a systematic cognition pattern and skillset through differentiated and small class teaching. Another reason is the assignments designed by the school can consolidate what pupils learn in class. Teachers’ meticulous feedback about their homework can help parents in coaching their children. ENCOURAGING CHILDREN TO PURSUE THEIR PASSIONSPeter is part of the school orchestra, and we fully support this. He plays the violin. We believe he should practise regardless of any raw talent he may have. Besides the practice, his experience playing in the orchestra will also be influential to his later life in the form of soft skills. His success in this orchestra depends on his ability to work well with others and recognise that he is part of something greater than himself. This is an invaluable skill in any career.We encourage Peter to pursue things he is passionate about. For instance, he is interested in computer programming. He particularly loves developing games. A child’s interest enables them to understand the world from another perspective. It can also enhance their appreciation for the arts, sciences or any other field. Parents often have their own ideas about what kinds of hobbies their children pursue. I am no exception in this regard. Nevertheless, I understand the importance of respecting a child’s unique talents and interests. This will ultimately drive them to put their passion into whatever they pursue.
How can we prepare children for an unpredictable future? （I）
Among all the ways to get to know a school, it one of the best and most direct is to hear the thoughts and ideas of current parents. Hence, we interviewed Yinuo’s father so he could share with us his experience of selecting a school for his child and his perspective on education. After graduating from a renowned private school in the city, Yinuo is now a sixth grader at Huili Junior High.The interview was edited by Huili marketing dept. 1. Huili School Shanghai is a new school but one that is steeped in the rich heritage of Wellington College in England with over 160 years of history. Could you tell us why you wanted to choose Huili? We did face some dilemmas when choosing a school for my child, considering that it was a relatively safe choice for him to continue his education at his previous school. If he were to follow its learning journey, we would have been reassured to clearly know his education path without making any potential mistakes. On the contrary, selecting Huili was a risk because it was a new school at the time and had no graduates to prove the quality of its education. Nevertheless, Huili was more inspirational in its proposed philosophy of education and presented what I thought was a better chance for my child to navigate an uncertain future.Reflecting my own experience, ten years before 2005 was the PC Era when many traditional works could be done by PC. From 2005 to 2015, mobile devices replaced PCs and our lives went through earth-shaking changes. In 2015, the first rudimentary AI solutions started to emerge, overturning many of our deep-rooted thinking patterns. Right now, it seems impossible to predict what will happen in the next ten years. Hence, I intend to let my child grow in an open and inclusive environment where more possibilities exist. My feeling is that many schools push their pupils to overlook true learning and just do plenty of exercises repeatedly for the purpose of remembering the standardised answers and achieving good scores in the college entrance examination. In my view, this does not make full use of pupils’ stage of rapid development which is the prime time for them to thrive and study. This is a pity and a missed opportunity. In addition to the changing times, my decision to choose Huili also came from my own work experiences. The multinational company that I serve has undergone rounds of reformation. In each reform, it removes or outsources a large number of repetitive works which can be done by computers because these works are not creative or related to strategic planning. We find that finance, human resources, IT and purchasing work with low functional value have been largely outsourced to places like India or Eastern European countries in light of their much lower labour costs. Moreover, law firms are gradually stopping their employment of young lawyers. This is because AI can finish a week-long research task done by a group of lawyers in just a few tenths of a second. The world is preparing for this change in workplace trends, not just China. Many young people graduating from top-ranking universities are not truly prepared for this change and they will meet severe, even cruel challenges. Therefore, I hope my child can enjoy and make use of a freer and more open space to study, one that can prepare him for the changes that will occur in the coming decades. 2.How did you make your decision when selecting a school? We participated in the open day held by Huili, where I had plenty of in-depth discussions with principals and teachers. There are a few reasons that made me put Huili on our candidate list straight away. Confidence is the first reason. Both the senior leadership team and the international and Chinese teachers all demonstrated great confidence. Secondly, we felt equally and mutually respected when we talked with Huili teachers. Traditionally, many teachers in China give off a sense of distance and an attitude that strongly suggests that parents need to obey and agree with what they say. We also observed on the open day that pupils casually sat in the corridor before entering classes, while their eyes were fixed on their teachers and they attentively followed teachers’ instructions. These pupils were confident and energetic, eager to interact with their teachersFrom the leadership team, to teachers and pupils, they were all full of confidence and optimism. To some degree, it may have something to do with the Wellington brand which gives them reason to be confident. Besides, the confidence showed by the leadership and academic teams also comes from themselves, as they seemed to truly enjoy being in such a caring, loving community. This impressed me greatly. We also noticed that all teachers’ photos were posted on bulletin boards on campus. It is not difficult for schools to hire experienced Chinese teachers, but it is not the same case to employ international teachers of a similar standard. International teachers at Huili are all recruited and tested at Wellington College in England, which sets a strict teaching qualification requirement for all teachers. According to the senior leadership’s introduction, excellent English teachers are inclined to choose bilingual schools because they believe that compared with international schools, teaching at a bilingual school enables them to better understand the local culture and benefits their teaching of multi-strategy approaches. This is the same situation with my company. My European and American colleagues enjoy working in China as they want to gain experience of cultural differences and even culture shock. It is helpful for them in terms of adapting to the globalised world. Thus, I truly believed that a confident school that emphasises the importance of hiring the right staff would be a good and suitable choice for us. 3. How has Yinuo settled into Huili? Children need a transition period when entering a new school. Because of the different learning modes and language environment, it may take a long time for parents to track and understand their level of academic progress. However, even from an early stage, we clearly saw his positive changes in terms of mental attitude and his overall character once he had joined Huili. Parents also need some time to get used to the transition. We tried our utmost to create a better environment for independent learning at home for our child. Although this process may not have always run smooth, we do not regard it as a big problem. 4. Do you think Huili is markedly different from Yinuo’s previous schools? To be honest, my overall communication with teachers is less frequent than in his previous school. This is actually a kind of liberation for parents. We had so many WeChat groups before. It seemed that we communicated anywhere and at any time. Initially it took us some time to get used to Huili’s style because we had to switch from using WeChat to email for communication. Huili’s teachers put most of their efforts into their teaching. They try to solve pupils’ problems through face-to-face communication and emails are used for more formal and important matters. Accordingly, teachers do not need to spend so much time on managing relationships with parents, something I completely understand and acknowledge. However, the school has rightly established many channels to let parents know how things are going on with their children at school. Another big change is the always open and energetic Huili community, which often holds so many activities that we can hardly participate them all because of our limited spare time. Parents can take part in parent workshops, which are frequently held sessions where teachers share their educational philosophy and invite feedback. Even if we could not join all of these events in person, we can always get outlines of the sessions shared in the Week Ahead. The school has many channels to tell us what is happening on campus.Huili School also has a house system for Junior High and each house is led by a housemaster or housemistress who sends regular emails to parents, telling us about our children’s updates. If necessary, they conduct one-on-one communication with us. I think this is a pretty good system. The house system also enables pupils to engage in campus life wholeheartedly, regardless of their year group and age. This kind of involvement can improve their leadership ability while motivating them to be role models. House points also play an important role in school’s house system. Pupils put their whole hearts into all types of evens to win house points. It has become a positive incentive method as pupils care greatly about their house’s honour. House points also strengthen inter-house relations as well as pupils’ connections with their own housemates. Teachers have different approaches to how they give pupils’ house points. While some are cautious and their points have much value, others may be generous, and either way pupils can be motivated to do their best. This also leads to pupils learning independently, something that an essential lifelong habit for them to cultivate. 5. Do you have any expectations about your child’s future? I hope that what he aims to accomplish in the future will be good for humankind. Many Huili parents that I know all expect that their children will grow to do something meaningful to them. This is to be encouraged as long as it is valuable for both the child and the wider world. If he can think independently, understand what he wants to do and spare no effort to achieve his goals, I will not worry about him and will give him freedom to spread his wings. I will always stand by him if he has clear, reasonable life goals and faces any challenges with a positive mental attitude. This is why we chose to leave a relatively safe and stable educational environment to step into an uncharted world. We attach great importance to developing his independent thinking. No matter how the world changes in the future, if he knows what his life goals and ambitions are, I am confident that he will achieve them.
How can we prepare children for an unpredictable future? （II）
Among all the ways to get to know a school, it one of the best and most direct is to hear the thoughts and ideas of current parents. Hence, we interviewed Yinuo’s father so he could share with us his experience of selecting a school for his child and his perspective on education. After graduating from a renowned private school in the city, Yinuo is now a sixth grader at Huili Junior HighThe interview was edited by Huili marketing dept.1. What were your thoughts about Yinuo’s studying performance after he gradually settled into Huili’s learning environment?Frankly speaking, as parents, we also experienced a transition period considering that we selected a school very different from the one he previously attended. However, if we still had expected school to constantly increase the difficulty of courses and assign plenty of exercises to pupils for the sake of learning in advance, we would not have selected Huili for my child. We were anxious at the beginning when we realised that Yinuo fell behind his peers and usually he was at the head of his class. So, we all had to adapt to this new reality. Then we asked ourselves why he needed to follow his previous learning tempo. Advancing his learning aimed to save more time for his preparation for entrance into a higher school, which went against our initial intentions around entering him at Huili. We hope our children can do more meaningful things which benefit his future career and life by making full use of his current precious learning time. We believe this is better for him overall. Education is about teaching and nurturing. At the same time, teaching is not restricted to teaching, but the combination of teaching and learning. Obviously, parents have diverse anticipation about teaching. I think Huili’s educational philosophy matches with what I want for my child.First, the school wants to give pupils a more comfortable transition from a Chinese learning environment to the bilingual environment, which is the basis for its immersive learning mode. Compared with unified teaching mode, character-based mode shows respect for pupils and their uniqueness. Although his learning did slow down in the initial stage, Yinuo was able to find his own appropriate tempo. This kind of adjustment has liberated Huili children from the uniform learning schedule and enables them to have free time to play instruments or sports. Eventually, they will identify the various learning possibilities of themselves by utilising these times effectively. It is always a shame if children feel they have to suppress their true thoughts and feelings because of the pressure of the college entrance examination. After years of study, it seems that they are all produced from the same mould without their own characteristics. It’s only when they go to college, that they may come to realise that they need to find out their own personal strengths, what they want to do in the future and what kind of people they want to become. However, at Huili, children are encouraged and motivated to discover multiple facets of themselves as early as possible. This is an important aspect that I appreciate most. It may be more accurate to say that we do it in the correct timing rather than in advance. I have worked for a foreign company for many years. Many of my international colleagues like to go to pub to relax after a whole day’s hard work. They are all versatile and have their own hobbies. They are glad to perform on the stage for other customers. Two or three of them can form a band to sing several songs, whose happiness affects everyone present. Contrarily, Chinese colleagues are hard-working but shy. Most of them are reserved under such circumstances because we were all educated by the same system. I think the difference lies in that we lack a passion for life relatively speaking. On a training held by our company, we were asked what we would like to do after retiring. I never seriously thought about this question and touring around the world was the most common answer given by my Chinese colleagues. Nonetheless, all kinds of answers were given out by my international colleagues. Even though their positions are highly professional, someone who likes carpentry and music said he wants to make wooden guitars and even open a store to sell guitars that are all made by himself. Therefore, I hope that Yinuo can bravely discover and try different things to find his own hobbies and interests at the current transformation stage, leaving no regrets for the future. 2. What do you think about the change of learning methods when Yinuo studies at Huili? Huili provides many platforms and tools which all respect differentiated leaning. If you want to learn Spanish, you can use Duolingguo. If you want to have a large vocabulary, you can use Memorize. You may use AR technology to amplify your reading experience. I have been against issuing schoolchildren a large amount of repetitive work that can be easily replaced by machines. It is meaningless for pupils to spend so much time on learning these repetitive tasks. However, doing exercises can also be regarded as a way to strengthen acquired knowledge rather than a complete repetition of the same task. Some knowledge can be mastered by pupils through repeatedly doing related exercises, which is necessary. The precise amount of exercises is hard to define because apparently it varies from parent to parent. 3. What is your opinion on your child’s academic performance? At Huili, tests are not designed to give pupils their specific scores and rankings. Rather, it is a way to know to what degree pupils have mastered the knowledge hared with them. This does not mean that the school plays down the importance of tests. On the contrary, it is inclined to use formative evaluation to observe a pupil’s progress, and shortcoming, offering supportive programme for the next stage. The 12-yearschooling system ensures the consistency of Huili’s education and pupils can focus on their study without any outside distractions.We want to see the outcome of education in the long run and that is why we eventually chose Huili. It does not matter if it may take a long time. Yinuo has begun to experience the Project Based Learning (PBL). He needs to finish his project by himself, record the process and adhere to it. This training will cultivate many of his key soft skills. I hope my child will be able to go to a higher education institution which has a world-leading discipline that he favours most if it is compared with a top-ranking comprehensive university. We hope he can develop a specific hobby and have his own ambitions. Thus, we care more about his ability to form his own independent thoughts. Moreover, we want him to be physically and psychologically healthy and attach great importance to developing his soft skills, including willpower, emotional resilience, positive thinking patterns, teamwork as well as his moral character. These will all have a great impact on his life. Many things that are considered correct today will not necessarily remain correct in the future. Thus, we are determined to give him more freedom to thrive, although this also will bring him many uncertainties. Take the PBL for example. I have asked each instructor to write down their remarks on Yinuo and other participants’ performances, which are attached to the printed slides used in classes. The project is conducted twice a year and I will keep all these files archived from he joined grade 5 until he graduates from high school. These true records of what he has achieved will be useful for him to apply to his ideal university. It may be a big plus for him if the admissions officers admire his perseverance in undertaking increasingly large and difficult projects year after year. 4. Yinuo had taken on leadership roles in his previous school for many years. Does he want to assume a similar position of responsibility at Huili? When Yinuo started to study at Huili, I asked him whether he would like to apply for a leadership role and his housemaster also sent email to us, encouraging him to try. However, his has reached an age where he has his own thoughts and priorities, which is something we respect and admire.Yinuo is a cautious child but we believe that he is willing to try after some all-round observation and preparation. He may consider applying in the next semester when he fully adapts to the new environment. At that time, we will encourage him to give it everything he has. 5. We know that Yinuo is a member of school football team, something you have supported him to achieve. Why do you strongly support his extra-curricular activities? Football is Yinuo’s favourite sport and he was thrilled about being selected for the school team. To help him pursue his interest, we made some compromises. We often find it hard to make this kind of decision because of contrasting needs, but we think it is a responsible way to help him develop and he is able to balance his study and interest wisely. Parents’ anxiety often comes from their children excessively concentrating on their studies. We resort to holistic education to help Yinuo balance his study and personal interests without focusing to heavily on either aspect. Only through equal emphasis on these two parts can we truly fulfil this concept. I remembered that the football team once needed to compete outside of Huili and Yinuo was absent from his Chinese class in the afternoon. As Chinese is a core subject, pupils seldom choose to be absent from it. More importantly, he had tests a few days later. We knew that he truly loves playing football and there were options to apply for make-up examination. Therefore, we allowed him to participate in the competition instead of putting the class first under such circumstances. We felt the true happiness shown by him after the competition as he really enjoyed himself. Yinuo also understood that he should prove to us that participation in matches would not adversely affect his study. He put his whole heart into his studies the following week. So, I believe that hobbies or development of other areas will encourage him to use his initiative in during his studies. It is not necessarily true that your engagement in hobbies will adversely affect your ability to study. Compared with forcing him to make promises that he will not lag behind, this kind of positive motivation is more beneficial for him. Our philosophy is: “We support you and want to communicate with you like we were friends.” This will ultimately develop children’s lifelong ability to self-motivate. In addition to football, Yinuo has stuck to practising baseball for years. His weekends are mainly occupied by these two sports. In my opinion, boys need to engage in team sports where they experience cooperation and confrontation. Whether they win or lose, they go through all these emotions and life lessons together as they try their best to win as many matches as possible. This experience is definitely something that goes beyond daily classes.Sometimes, he plays football for the entire afternoon or joins in four competitions in a single day. When he comes back, he is too tired to study. But we think what he gained is no less than finishing three exam papers and we find that sports has made him a healthier and more optimistic person. I will continue to support his efforts in team sports. At the same time, he can develop his interest in individual sports. This will be done by respecting his personal preferences and willingness to explore new things. If he is eager to participate in these activities, we believe he can achieve a good personal balance. 6. What is your opinion on home-school partnership at Huili? In my view, home-school relationship is cooperative and based on mutual support, whilst both sides have their fundamental stances. In the school’s case this is that its pedagogy cannot be influenced by parents. It would be devastating if the school always compromised because of the suggestions of the parents’ committee. Members of committee can change and I think both sides are good at listening to and respecting each other’s viewpoints. The parents’ committee acts as a bridge between the school and families, helping to communicate with those who are not familiar with the school while coordinating school events. The parents’ committee will give school valuable suggestions, but the ‘red line’ is that they are not allowed to intervene in the school’s education policies. We need to trust the school to give its pupils the top-quality education that they are trained to deliver.The home-school partnership enables parents to use their resources to extend pupils’ leaning at school. For example, Yinuo’s mother works at a customs office and once held a workshop for pupils. Her beautiful customs uniform motivated pupils to explore different occupations. She also shared some practical information with them, telling pupils what kind of items bought overseas will be taxed or put you in prison. Even many teachers participated in this workshop, asking her questions about buying agents and the defined goods quantity. This example shows that parents’ resources and experiences are valuable learning tools. 7. What do you expect to see when Yinuo finishes his studies at Huili? Selecting Huili means that we abandoned the established leaning path and have further expectations of him. We put much emphasis on cultivating his cognitive system, all-round competences and correct values, which will help him to face the uncertain future, playing down the importance of specific goals such as test scores, rankings and target universities. I believe that many parents may have the same opinions, hopes and expectations for their own children.
The Friends of Huili, an indispensable part of the Huili family
Huili School Shanghai is committed to achieve our vision of becoming the top-ranked school for Chinese families, embedded with both the heritage of Western and Eastern culture and with the wellbeing of pupils at its core. We, together with all parents who share the same goal, aim to continuously support pupils to smoothly embark on and engage with their education journey. Friends of Huili (FOH) is a large community of Huili people. Children enrolled into Huili School become schoolmates, while their parents automatically become members of the FOH. As home/school cooperation is our consensus andintention, FOH is designed to organise diverse activities in collaboration withthe school, creating a splendid and harmonious community experience for theentire Huili family, as well as lending a hand to the school’s ‘whole-child’ educationethos.The FOH Committee At the beginning of each academic year, FOH will elect its committee members from voluntary candidates through a secret ballot. Our current committee is comprises of a chair and seven vice-chairs who are respectively responsible for events, finance, communications, charity and secretary functions.It is a closely coordinated group whose members put their heart and soul into managing the various school affairs tasked to them in order to help achieve our ambitions for the FOH.Throughout the last school year, the FOH committee, together with the wider Huili community, held three large events, the Winter Bazaar, Huili Annual Ball and Summer Carnival, along with routine coffee morning activities based on the themes of education, health, charity and so on. They take charge of the planning, organisation, fundraising and implementation of all these activities. Money collected will be used in support of our chosen charitable causes.Through the FOH’s devotion to our community, the group continues to enrich pupils’ school life, making it a more caring and loving group for all members who observe and practise the Huili Values every day. Class/House Representatives Class/House representative is a critical role in our FOH. As a bridge between home and the school, these representatives help teachers to deal with specific class affairs. When each school year begins, the school will select class/house representatives for each class/house from among the nominations. Class/house representatives and FOH will continue to support each other to build a close home/school relationship.In fact, home/school cooperation is demonstrated in the more detailed home/class educational practices, which is why we created the role of class/house representatives. Class/house representatives act as a communication channel for the other parents who thus will be more likely to actively participate in home/class coordination. This approach also extends to our frequent school events. The FOH Volunteers FOH volunteers are also of vital importance in our Huili community. They are warmhearted parents who pool their wisdom, talents and resources to help reinforce that all-important home/school bond.Parents volunteers show up eager and on time whenever the school needs their support. They wrapped the books in the library；they sought out better resources for theme-based activities to enrich pupils’ experiences; they put forward their ideas and thoughts in the crucial academic assessment meetings; they helped teachers to extend pupils’ learning outside school in past field trips; they showcased their culinary skills to show appreciation to Huili teachers at the end of the term. All these past deeds, as well as future plans contribute to make our Huili community a warm and loving family. Accompanying pupils' growing path A child’s all-around growth cannot successfully happen without the mutually supportive elements of well-considered parenting and schooling. The integration of parenting and schooling will help children to thrive and flourish – a process which is often tough yet rewarding. FOH is a bridge connecting home and school as well as an envoy, uniting the Huili community. Huili School, in combination with the FOH, will always strive to provide the best bilingual education for our pupils.When pupils start their learning journey at Huili, their parents who stand behind them also take on their own journey too. It is the FOH that unites all parents who understand and respect one another through frequent and genuine cooperation. Since our school and its composite families have similar expectations for children who attend Huili, we will surely continue to work together to keep a close eye on both their personal growth and academic development. We are all proud to be members of Friends of Huili
The Huili Charity Fund Celebrates its First Anniversary
Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference. Education means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. But one thing is certain: Education goes well beyond just teaching a child how to make a living. Education is also about personal growth and building character. Therefore, we must give pupils more opportunities to gain a variety of life experiences. These experiences include an immersive bilingual campus culture and a wellbeing programme that helps them to develop empathy for others. The Shanghai United Foundation 'Friends of Huili' Charity Fund was launched on 11th December 2019 by Friends of Huili (FoH) and Shanghai United Foundation. As the main charitable organisation and the class 5A public grant-making foundation, Shanghai United Foundation works closely with Huili School Shanghai to identify the most innovative and beneficial models of charitable education. The FoH Charity Fund is chaired by Ms Stella Zhou, the Master of Huili School Shanghai, and supervised by Ms Zhang Bona of the Shanghai United Foundation. Together with the other seven members of the board of governors, they have defined the functions of fundraising, project implementation and compliance and best practices for this fund. The fund builds a bridge between the school and charitable organisations, providing Huili pupils with many opportunities for meaningful participation.▲The Shanghai United Foundation 'Friends of Huili' Charity Fund Committee In spring of 2020, the FoH Charity Fund launched its first funding programme — ‘Elevating People through Kindness’ — which helps design charity and education programmes. The aim was to create more opportunities for pupils to participate in public services and charitable activities, giving them roles to play in community service, conservation and scientific research efforts. “The Shanghai United Foundation ‘Friends of Huili’ Charity Fund is the first donor-advised fund created by parents and the school. It aims to make our community a warm and caring place that encourages our pupils to take part in charitable activities.”—— Ms. Song Yifan Secretary of FoH Charity FundPutting Kindness into ActionMembers of the Huili Community do not regard their charitable activities as acts of heroism. Rather, they see it as lots of small actions that ultimately make a big difference. The Huili Community therefore constantly seeks charity programs that it can engage in for the long term. As a result, our pupils have the opportunity to build their character and give back to their community.Huili Organic FarmDr. Jane Goodall has been recognised by Time magazine as "the most outstanding primatologist of the 20th century" and a United Nations Messenger of Peace. She is also the founder of the global charity organization Roots & Shoots. Dr. Goodall travels around the world, promoting environmental protection, encouraging young people to take action to protect animals and be stewards of the environmentThe Roots & Shoots organic farm was the first funding programme that our charity fund council selected. Since this programme was closely connected with the school's organic gardening curriculum, it was the first campus activity that got both pupils and parents involved. Our academic team took charge of the school's organic garden and designed interdisciplinary lessons centred around gardening. Pupils learned the entire process of planting vegetables, such as tillage, pest management, fertilisation and farming techniques. They also learned what goes into food production. Moreover, the campus garden programme enjoyed support from FoH, which helped us to promote the idea of gardening at home.“Pupils took good care of all that they planted. They learned the importance of eating organic food and living a healthy lifestyle, both of which help to protect our environment. They also learned why maintaining a harmonious relationship with nature matters.”——The Organic Garden Team The Special Olympics Unified School ProjectFollowing the Roots & Shoots organic garden project, the Huili Charity Fund launched the Special Olympics Unified School project in cooperation with the Pudong Fudu School. The principals, teachers, pupils and parents of the two schools took part in an exchange visit to explore possibilities for cooperation in sports and arts. During the visit, Huili pupils learned about the studies and lives of their peers, gained a new perspective on social affairs and got to know the meaning of humanistic concern. They were deeply impressed by the passion and perseverance of their peers at the Pudong Fudu School.▲Huili visited Pudong Fudu School “We exist in society as unique individuals, but we must embrace what is special in others, too. In a recent art class, we painted our unique characteristics on our faces, which taught us that everyone is special and that we need to respect each other in the community.”——MaggieGrade 8, De houseIt is important that our pupils learn the value of philanthropy because it encourages mutual goodwill among all people. A spirit of goodwill allows us to shift our focus from ourselves to others. The Special Olympics Unified School project is an exploration for Huili School in public service. It also links our pupils to the society, making them more open and inclusive. We expect Huili people to bring this attitude to all future charity programmes. Youth leadership programWith two successful fundraising projects launched during the Huili Charity Fund's first year, the Huili Community has made great strides in its charity efforts. Now in its second year, the fund has decided to involve Junior High pupils in the decision-making process. The idea is to get pupils thinking about how to develop sustainable charity projects. Under the leadership of housemasters and the support of the charity fund, Huili pupils will work in their respective houses to find new public service projects. Each house will explain the practical value of its project to get funding for it. The Huili community service CCA was set up to create collaborations beyond our own Huili community. We believe that it is important for Huili pupils to be exposed to diversity within society to enable them to develop a social conscience and act in accordance with moral values. On Monday, the pupils took the first step to fulfilling this goal as they organised a drink stand for the workers involved in building the Huili high school. While participating in public service and preparing for high school CAS subjects, pupils are encouraged to think about the meaning and feasibility of these projects. Doing so broadens their horizons while it teaches them the meaning of public service. “On Monday, the pupils took the first step to fulfilling this goal as they organised a drink stand for the workers involved in building the Huili high school. While participating in public service and preparing for high school CAS subjects, pupils are encouraged to think about the meaning and feasibility of these projects. Doing so broadens their horizons while it teaches them the meaning of public service.”—— FoH Charity Fund The power of charity causeOften, the journey is as important as the destination. We are only celebrating the Huili Charity Fund's first anniversary, but we are already looking forward to celebrating the tenth.How can we better focus on the Huili Charity Fund's original purpose, which is to establish and maintain long-term charitable efforts? We believe Huili pupils have answered this question. They will continue to find more and more worthwhile projects and put their hearts into every charitable effort they set their sights on.
Meet the new Head of High School – Ms Lana Kulas06 November 2020Underpinned by a bilingual educational vision and philosophy, Huili School Shanghai is committed to turning its pupils into critically thinking, globally-minded citizens. This immediately attracted Ms Lana Kulas to join us this academic year as our founding Head of High School. A graduate of Oxford University, Ms Kulas has gained a wealth of experience in preparing pupils for university. We are confident that she will lay a solid foundation for our High School and will help us achieve even greater heights. “I recently started listening to the audiobook version of ‘Becoming’ by Michelle Obama, and there is a great thing she says about what her father taught her, which I think summarises what my motto may well be: “work hard, laugh often, keep my word”. I like this. It summarises all the key things that you need to be a good human being in all aspects of life. It is important to work hard, as you are then being true to yourself, but it is also important to not take life too seriously. You should always remember to enjoy yourself too. Finally, having integrity and keeping your word will ensure you will always have people in life you can rely on.”——Lana KulasHead of High School01 Tell us about yourself and your work experienceI was educated in the UK. Throughout my career, I have been focused on working with pupils of High School age and have experience in preparing pupils for universities throughout the world. I spent the first seven years of my career working in secondary schools in London. I worked as a university and careers adviser for three years as well as a gifted and talented coordinator, focusing on pupils who wished to attend Oxford and Cambridge or who wished to apply for Medicine or Dentistry. I have also assisted with medicine application interviews at University College London (UCL). After that, I moved to Qatar in the Middle East, where I initially worked as a University and Careers Adviser at a very large international school that offered the British Curriculum. This was an invaluable opportunity to learn about university systems from around the world and support pupils with their applications to a range of universities.Before joining Huili School Shanghai, I was the founding Head of Secondary School at the Swiss International School Qatar. This was a start-up school that offered the IB programme, and I was very lucky to be able to work with a great team to set up what quickly became one of Qatar’s most successful schools. All my experiences have given me an excellent insight into what makes a successful high school and the opportunities and support that need to be available to ensure that pupils succeed and fulfil their potential. 02 What made you decide to join Huili?One of the key things that attracted me to Huili School was the bilingual model of education. I think Huili is one of the few schools in the world that is genuinely adopting this approach in an authentic and meaningful way. I was also attracted by Huili’s vision to educate the whole child and ensure that there is a focus on all aspects of education, not just academic results. I think this is so important in today’s world. Both Wellington and Huili have a great reputation across the world. In my school in Qatar, I worked with a couple who had joined us from one of the WCC schools. They spoke very highly of WCC and China.Finally, I wanted the opportunity to explore another culture that is very different from my own and to become immersed in it. What better way is there to do that than joining a school where Chinese and Western cultures mix so much and work so closely together? I have been very impressed by Huili’s collaborative and caring approach to everything. My arrival in China was challenging due to the current pandemic, but I have been humbled by the care that has been taken to make sure that I am comfortable, looked after and feel part of the team. It is clear that pupils, and their needs, are at the centre of everything the school does. I already feel like I have been here a while and that I can make suggestions and take risks to help achieve the best for the pupils. 03 What is your outlook on your new position as the found Head of the Huili High School?The key thing I have learnt about starting new schools and coming into a new environment, especially one that may be very different to one’s own, is the importance of taking the time to listen and find out as much as possible about the community. This will be a key principle to bear in mind as I work to set up the High School. It is important that the High School meets the needs of Huili pupils and gives them a world-class education. The second key thing is summarised in one word: opportunity. It will be incredibly important that pupils have as many diverse opportunities as possible in the High School. This will help them find out about themselves and what they may wish to do in the future. This includes opportunities in and out of the classroom, as it includes the opportunity to study different courses, the opportunity to learn in different ways and the opportunity to take part in as many activities as possible outside the classroom.The biggest difference this time around is that I will have a year to plan and to get to know the Huili community. This is incredibly valuable in ensuring that everything is ready for the start of Huili High School. The biggest challenge, but I think also a very exciting one, is coming into a community that already exists and trying to add something new. It is very important that Huili High School still feels like Huili Shanghai but also has its own identity that is appropriate for the age group it serves. With High School, there will be certain expectations, responsibilities and privileges granted for pupils, so they must be prepared for this. Two aspects of education I am very passionate about are pupil leadership and service learning. I would like Huili High School pupils to be leadership ambassadors for the school who can take on responsibility and learn valuable skills in the process while acting as role models for younger pupils. I also strongly believe in service learning and community work to engage with the local, national and global community, so I would love to introduce aspects of community and service into Huili.04 What will be your focus in the 2020-21 academic year?The key focus for this year will be preparing our pupils and staff for the start of the IGCSE courses. Pupils and their families must understand the different courses that we have available and what those courses will mean in terms of future choices and aspirations. Our staff will be writing the IGCSE schemes of work and attending training ahead of teaching the courses next year. Another key thing for me to focus on is getting to know the pupils and their families and Huili in general.I will also be recruiting staff for the high school and making sure we have all of the support in place for things like university applications and careers advice. This support and preparation must start early. We will also need to register to become a Cambridge school, so we can offer the IGCSEs. Then we will need to start our application to become an IB school so we can offer the Diploma Programme. The IB process is especially long and rigorous and we will need all members of our Huili community to work together to make sure we are successful. So, it will be a very busy year! 05 What would you like to share to the will-be high school pupils for their future path to world top universities?I remember asking one of my Oxford tutors about the admissions process and what they were looking for when they admitted me and the rest of my classmates who were studying English at the time. She explained that universities were looking for two key things: capacity and potential. University admissions tutors want to know that pupils have the capacity to do even more and even better than the top grades they have already achieved. They also want to see that pupils have the potential to do well at a particular university, and so can develop the thinking and analysis skills needed. I asked if they looked carefully at all the non-academic activities that pupils did. Her answer was interesting. She said they looked to see that pupils had done a range of activities, but it did not matter so much what those activities were, so long as pupils had participated in them. She explained that this demonstrated that pupils had the capacity to study and work hard while also having other interests. They preferred this to pupils who had just studied to get their top grades, which suggested they may not cope with the much heavier workload of a top university. Of course, every university is different, and tutors look for different things, so research is key. My advice to anyone looking to study at a top university like Oxford is that you must have a genuine interest and passion in the subject you wish to study, and this interest must go beyond the content you study at school.My second piece of advice is to research the courses and universities very thoroughly before making a decision. The same course at two universities can be very different and this may affect your enjoyment and ability to succeed in that course. The way courses are taught may be very different and what the university is looking for from its applicants can also vary from university to university. Finally, pupils who are aiming for the top universities should prepare early and take on board advice and feedback from their teachers. Applications take a long time and can involve many steps, such as additional tests and multiple interviews. It is important to prepare for all these steps while also making sure that pupils keep up with their studies. There is no substitute for getting the top academic qualifications. Every single pupil that applies to a top university is already predicted to achieve the grades that the university needs; they are considered a minimum, so the other aspects of the application and the genuine interest in the subject are very important. I know that some courses at places like Oxford have a ratio of 3 applications per place, which can appear to look quite low, but the thing to remember is that every single one of those applicants is already predicted and will probably achieve the grades needed. It is the performance at interview and in the other aspects of the application that make all the difference. 06 What will be the advantages that the pupils pursue their higher education abroad after they finish the international high school study?Pupils who graduate from Huili will have obtained world-class qualifications, like the IGCSEs and the bilingual IB Diploma. These are very rigorous qualifications that are accepted and hugely respected by universities all over the world. Our pupils will also be fully bilingual and able to operate in Chinese and in English.Studying abroad will provide pupils with a lot of choices, both in terms of universities and the courses they wish to pursue. It will also allow them to explore a different culture and way of life, which will make them much more independent and self-reliant. After university, pupils will be able to do anything they want anywhere they want. They will be highly employable global citizens with an awareness of different cultures. I understand that Huili’s mission is to combine the very best of the East and West, and our pupils who study abroad will truly encompass this vision. 07 How should we prepare our future High School pupils?High School is a time when three questions begin to be answered: what am I good at, what do I enjoy and what do I want to do in the future? These three questions should be at the core of all decisions made in the High School. If you can find one thing that answers all three questions, then you will be in a very strong position for the future. This is why it is important to create different opportunities for pupils, as they help them answer these questions. Similarly, it is in High School that pupils begin to develop a more independent sense of self. This comes with the opportunity to make choices about things like IGCSE courses, the DP courses, topic choices for the Extended Essay, activities for Creativity, Activity and Service (CAS) and eventually university choices. If pupils can develop this sense of self, then they can make confident choices and if they are happy with their choices then they are much more likely to enjoy what they are doing and be successful.For our Junior High pupils, High School will be different but also very familiar. This is the best of both worlds. Pupils will become more mature as they enter a new setting and a new stage of schooling, but they will still have the familiarity, comfort and support of familiar faces around the school and teachers that they already know. This will mean they have the best support possible. The biggest challenge for pupils entering High School will be with regards to independence and the ability to self-regulate and self-manage. There is a lot of work for pupils and this needs to be managed. There will also be formal external exams at the end the IGCSEs and then things become even more challenging with the IB DP. Pupils will need to manage their time and workload. There will be deadlines, assessments, assignments, group projects, as well as decisions to make about courses and universities. It can seem quite daunting, but with the right support in place, we will make sure that it’s a challenge our pupils enjoy. 08 How can we best maintain the line of communication between the parents and our school?The fact that Chinese parents are so dedicated to their children’s education is a great thing and something that should not be taken for granted. This is the first step in ensuring that pupils are successful, as they will have the support from home. The pupils must be at the centre of everything the school does, and this can only be achieved if the school works in partnership with the parents.Throughout this year, we will make sure that parents are informed about what is going on in school and are aware of all the steps in their son/daughter’s journey towards High School and beyond. One way we will do this is through regular parent workshops where parents will have the opportunity to find out about the High School, thus parents can support their children in the process. I also firmly believe in the principle of ‘no surprises’ when working with pupils and parents. Parents should be informed when things are going well and when they are not going so well. Therefore, regular and clear communication is very important. Similarly, parents need to know that they can always ask questions and ask for a conversation. We want to thank Lana for sharing her experience and insights. In the coming days, she will hold a series of parent workshop to share more ideas with Huili community. We are confident that her expertise will be a valuable asset to the long-term development of Huili High School and our pupils.
Meet with the new Head of Primary – Ms Rosalie Pietsch06 November 2020Primary school years play a critical role in helping pupils develop a habit of lifelong learning. During this stage, they experience transition from learning through play in the early years to learning through more systematic approaches. At Huili School Shanghai, we are committed to helping pupils grow up to become well-rounded global citizens. We believe that each pupil is an individual with their own unique needs. We do not just track their academic progress. We aim to help build their character as well. This academic year, it is an honour to have Ms Rosalie Pietsch join us as our new Head of Primary. She has over 30 years’ experience in education, and we believe that her commitment and passion will make her an invaluable asset for Huili. 01 Introducing the new Head of PrimaryEducation has been my chosen career for over thirty years with a singular focus on working alongside parents and fellow educators to provide a learning environment in which all pupils can flourish; extending themselves beyond what they might originally perceive possible.Most recently I have held the position of Head of Primary at Canberra Grammar School. Located in the capital city of Australia, Canberra Grammar School is the district’s premier school educating over 900 pupils in the primary school and 1000 pupils in the senior years. Situated close to the parliamentary circle, the school provides a high-quality international education to families from the surrounding embassies and high commissions (of which there are nearly eighty.) International pupils undertake their study alongside pupils from local and regional areas.02 What inspired you to join Huili?An alignment of values, intent and philosophy drove my decision to accept the position of Head of Primary at Huili School. Huili’s philosophy is based round the holistic development of each child, a philosophy I also hold. I view it a privilege to be asked to work alongside expert educators dedicated to enabling high levels of learning for each child; to be providing a breadth of opportunities from which pupils’ strengths can continue to grow and a learning culture in which a child’s curiosity is cherished and their independence, confidence and resilience strengthened. While working with others in the leadership team, their ability to think creatively and laterally and their willingness to work with and through the broader staff collective to achieve identified outcomes has been clearly evident.Their tenacity and optimism when faced with challenges is admirable. The warmth, empathy and proactive consideration has helped to ease concerns which have inevitably arisen due to the global circumstances surrounding the start to the school year. During the recent staff induction week, it has again been emphasised that the Huili approach to education is founded in research. The approach also draws on knowledge from the broader Wellington schools’ group, experience of high achieving local educators, and a commitment to continual reflection and support of educators’ professional growth. It is a privilege to be joining a high achieving team of educational leaders and to serve the families of Huili school. 03 What is your understanding of the role it plays in an individual’s lifelong learning journey?‘Why’ and ‘How’ are two words which are often heard when spending time with the very young. They explore, question and solve problems. It is this natural curiosity and wonderment of childhood that we seek to nurture throughout schooling and into later life. By doing so our pupils emerge possessing the confidence and commitment to undertake a lifetime of learning.Of course, in equipping our pupils to answer their own ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions, we arm them with the fundamental skills and abilities needed to do so. We acknowledge that there will be errors along the way, redirected approaches and the fostering of new understandings. We also acknowledge that the pathway of learning is neither linear nor the same for everyone. And so, the greatest challenge of a primary educator is to teach in a responsive way, being mindful of the impact of their instruction on each pupil. For educators to keep alive a child’s wonder, curiosity, love for learning and their capacity to adapt to what is taking place around them. 04 What do you bring to Huili and what do you seek to achieve?Entering Huili I bring a singular focus - that being the fostering of learning so that each of our Huili children can become inspired, intellectual and independent individuals who seek to serve others and do good in life. As a school leader I seek to respectfully challenge decisions and direction asking two questions: “What impact will that have on learning?” and, “How will we be able to judge our impact?” If our ideas, structures and systems do not drive a legacy of lifelong learning and equip our young people with skills for life, then we should change them. If learning is fun without leading to enhanced learning progress, then we should reflect and adjust our approach. I seek challenging learning, every day, in every classroom, for every child. 05 What will be your focus in 2020-21?Positive, impactful teaching for every child, in every class, every day is what will empower our children to attain high levels of achievement, to undertake continuous progress and to flourish as rounded, thoughtful and informed members of their community who mindfully seek to make a positive difference in their own lives and the lives of those around them. After arriving at Huili I have spent time in classrooms, observing our children as they learn and engaging them in conversation about their learning. I have observed the instructional approaches of our educators, encouraging reflection, contemplation and evidence-sharing of instructional impact. I am spending time in classrooms to experience first-hand our pupils experiencing the joy of learning; to observe their persistence in overcoming challenges, and to reflect with them what they are discovering about learning. I am spending time in classrooms to provoke thoughtful and informed conversations with fellow educators. Conversations centred on identifying what is working in classroom instruction and what evidence demonstrates success. Encouraging colleagues to think, notice, reflect, and adjust. Time in classrooms with pupils and educators provides a greater insight into a school’s success than a singular focus on grade results. 06 What can you apply from your earlier experiences to manage the school growth?Within any organisation meaningful action is dependent on effective human interaction. Even when schools create hierarchies with identified lines for reporting, relationships are co-created beyond those which are articulated. Understanding and working with these relationships and moving beyond surface-level structures required to maintain the effective running of day-to day operations such as timetables, meeting times, class compositions and the like, toward focusing attention on creating a culture in which teachers seek to learn with, and from, one another is key. When such a culture exists, teachers are confident and actively engaged in leveraging their collective ability to positively affect pupil learning. It becomes their central focus. Thoughtfully attending to the necessary evolution of a school’s decision-making structure, making known areas of accountability, responsibility, consultation and information-sharing is also a necessary step, as is enabling effective means of operating; in particular paying attention to mechanisms targeted at maintaining a safe and secure place of learning and work.However, creating and maintaining a culture in which mutual learning is fostered will serve the best interests of our pupils, their parents and our colleagues. Educators willingly spending time in each other’s classrooms, engaging in professional dialogue and committing, one micro-shift at a time, will enhance the impact of their instruction. While we can readily commit to valuing curiosity, undertake decision-making based on evidence, agree to keep one another accountable and engage compassionately with one another, living this out through our words and actions is what matters most. 07 The parents of Huili value education and being actively involved in their child’s journey of learning. How will you harness their dedication?I recognise that parents choosing Huili invest a great deal in the education of their child. I seek to honour their investment; both financial and emotional. I value productive relationships between home and school; relationships based on respectful and open communication. Due to the value placed on home/school relationships, I seek to make myself available to parents and will no doubt meet many of you soon at the beginning and end of the day, FOH functions, and school events. I am also looking forward to meeting class parent representatives and gaining their insights into the learning successes evident at Huili.The aspirations held by parents and our educators for each child align. Both home and school seek to provide each child with the best possible educational experience, one that enables a child to flourish beyond schooling. Aligning the understanding between home and school into how to educate and what measurements of success to apply is critical. Such alignment can be achieved more readily through the ongoing development of a shared language of learning. A language to describe learning that is known and applied by all within the school community – teachers, pupils, parents and administrators. 08 What is your understanding of CCA as part of the enriched learning offerings provided to our pupils?When asked to look back on our own school experiences, memories which hold the most profound significance are commonly linked with educators who challenged, inspired and motivated our learning to reach highs we had not initially imagined; educators who themselves held a deep passion for what they were teaching. Such memories are also often linked to specific learning experiences. Experiences which took place beyond the regular classroom. Learning experiences which enabled us to assume directorship of our learning, to mix with like-minded others, to experience ‘deep dive’ refinement of our skills and knowledge; and to test our newly acquired abilities in authentic situations. Such experiences often involved opportunity to learn outside the classroom, on school trips and camps, through service experiences and to connect with the broader local, national and global community.As part of my professional experience I held the position of Director of CCA at a large private school in Australia. Being the first person appointed to the role, I was afforded the opportunity to reinvent the existing programme, drawing on learnings from other educational settings, community sport and arts groups and insights proactively sought from the pupils and their families. It is my aspiration to continually enhance the CCA experience of our pupils; responding to their insights, the expertise of our educators, and forge purposeful connections within the wider community. Our pupils actioning their learning, cultivating character, and serving others. Let us once again extend a warm welcome to Ms Rosalie Pietsch. We are confident that her leadership skills and rich experience will help raise Huili to new heights and make passionate lifelong learners out of our pupils.
