Interview
Q:
What are the differences between Keystone’s
Chinese curriculum and the Chinese curriculum
used at other international schools? And will the
program be attractive to foreign students?
A:
For learners of Chinese as a second language, Keystone
offers students a unique opportunity – most of Keystone’s
students will be mother tongue learners – for language and
cultural immersion. The Chinese program content that the
foreign student will study will vary depending on the Chinese
language level of that student at the time they enroll. The content
will be more academically advanced, for example, for those
foreign students who begin studying with us at an earlier age. To
be sure, the Chinese program will challenge any foreign student,
regardless of enrollment age. And is most suitable for families
and students who see the value in receiving a world-class,
international education in a predominantly Chinese community.
“…we have to be careful that we are
not just telling our children what we
believe to be right and wrong, but
also acting out what we teach.”
Q:
What type of Chinese teachers will Keystone
recruit? What makes a Chinese teacher
effective? And how will Keystone assess their work?
A:
At the very minimum, a Chinese teacher must have many
years of teaching experience. And teachers should have the
ability to work hard and possess a strong understanding of their
profession and the responsibility required of them to succeed.
Teachers should also be able to demonstrate a passion for their
profession and ability to effectively interact with children.
For our founding group of Chinese teachers, we are focused
on recruiting seasoned professionals because they will be
responsible for leading the team. After a culture of excellence is
established, we will consider bringing in younger and relatively
less experienced teachers because they can bring new thoughts,
perspectives, and an infectious energy to the team. So you will
have a staff that learns from each other and grows together.
Chinese teachers at Keystone will be treated equal to their
peers from other countries. This means that their work will be
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The Keystone Magazine
Dai Min reading to students
on Keystone’s Ladybug Day
assessed and compensation determined according to a unified
set of processes and criteria. Just as we expect our teachers to
cultivate a student’s passion to learn, similarly, we also place
the responsibility on ourselves, as an organization, to create
an environment or culture that encourages teachers in their
professional development. So we anticipate that our Chinese
teachers will react positively and use the treatment and respect
that they will receive, here at Keystone, as an opportunity to
improve professionally.
Q:
How will teachers approach teaching if their
students have a large disparity in the level of
their Chinese language skills?
A:
For students whose mother tongue is Chinese, a difference
in their Chinese language skills will not be a big issue.
Instead, what concerns us most is whether or not the student
has developed their higher-level thinking skills, because this is
what our tests are designed to assess. If two students read the
same article, for example, and one student is able to understand
the abstract concepts, while the other student can only obtain a
literal meaning, then there will be a wide disparity in the quality
of their academic performance. So the depth of a student’s
understanding is more depend [