Interview
Q:
What education principles and philosophies do
you agree with or subscribe to?
A:
In the statement of educational philosophy that I wrote for
my own application to work at Keystone, I talked about the
necessity of being present. In order for education to really fulfill
its function of the growth and liberation of people, the teacher
and the students have to be fully present in the classroom. We
have to be all there, in the moment, listening to each other. As
an educator, I have to attempt to understand and know what is
going on in a student’s head and heart. This is key to the process
of differentiated learning.
I know that the very best lessons that I have been a part of is
when the students are leaning forward and everyone is listening
intently to what is happening, and the 45 minutes is over before
anyone looks at their watch or the wall because everyone was
present to the conversation.
David Beare at an office meeting
Q:
We understand that Keystone has set high
standards for its teachers. Can you describe
what these standards are?
A:
First and foremost, we are looking for teachers, whether
international or Chinese, who love children, learning and
teaching - this is the baseline for us. We need people who know their
subjects and craft extremely well, and who are respectful listeners
so that they can lead programs forward. It is also important that
staff members are flexible, have robust senses of humor, can get
along well with other people, and are willing to share their lives with
students in a residential setting and build something together. From
our international teachers, we are looking for staff who are really
interested in being in China, want to live in Beijing and work with
Chinese kids, and interested in what China brings to the table of
education. From our Chinese teachers, we are looking for staff who
are open and interested in a variety of modes of pedagogy and ways
that they can learn from the world. All teachers - and we have had
literally hundreds of resumes from people who could do the job, who
have had success in their own setting, who are smart, and have had
good success in their own schooling - must have values that align
with those that we have at Keystone.
We emphasize sense of humor because teachers need to understand
that they can bring the flexibility of their mind and personality into
the classroom. This is not to say that teachers have to be well liked or
must make friends with the students. I am not there in the classroom
to be a student’s friend. Rather, I am in the classroom to understand
what that student needs at any given moment in their intellectual
and social development, and to challenge them in appropriate ways
or give them the support that they need to flourish. But humor can
be a very effective way to humanize this process. There are also many
other elements of starting a school together that require us to be
flexible and have a sense of humor. Things will not always go the way
that we imagined.
For instance, I was very impressed with one candidate, in particular,
who applied to join us. When the candidate was asked a question
about literature, she sat up and her energy came forward. She talked
eloquently about the importance of Chinese identity, the need for
students to understand Chinese literature, and the questions that she
would ask the students about the books, characters and the way the
literature was written. You could see that she had all of the academic
qualities. But she also had a love of literature and love for the students,
and she thought about how she, as a teacher of literature, can really
help form kids as they begin to understand who they can be and what
the possibilities are for their lives. She also was thinking about how
her students might enter into larger questions about what China is
becoming. It was a lovely and exciting moment in an interview because
you could see a real sparkle. The teachers that have all of the academic
pieces plus the sparkle: This is what we want.
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The Keystone Magazine