Principal's Blog

Rights of Workers

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Recently I was researching 'Rights of Workers' worldwide. I approached the inquiry with the view to how RCHK can be involved in the movement to eliminate sweatshops through a procurement policy that allows the College to purchase resources and materials that are produced by business committed to the 'Rights of the Worker'. Article 24 of the Declaration of Human Rights states: "Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay."

It occurred to me that as a reflective community we need to examine our own practices in light of our own mission statement: "....RCHK strives to build a culture, which promotes peace and democracy, values diversity, and works toward a sustainable future for all."

Many of us in the RCHK community are privileged and employ domestic help. Are we all abiding by Article 24? We know that change comes from within, and that the greatest teaching tool is to model. Our College mission statement strongly encourages students to support and champion concepts such as human rights and justice within the curriculum and in students’ daily lives. I often see domestic helpers with students treated with respect and as partners in caring for children. Yet we have probably all seen at some time or other domestic helpers walking behind some students carrying school bags, hats, sporting equipment etc. and not being treated with due respect. On the RCHK campus our mission statement is that all who enter are equal community members. In raising independent, culturally aware global citizens we have an obligation to ensure that students respect all people equally. I will be assessing my own practices at home and on campus and invite you all to uphold our mission to promote human rights through modeling them in how we live.

Peter Kenny
(extracted from our newsletter, Sepetember 2007)

The Challenge of Empowering Youth

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This week I write in regard to the challenge of empowering youth through optimism. I have great hope and confidence for the future because I know the children of today. The students of RCHK. Your sons and daughters. I do not prescribe to the those that doubt the talents and intellect of today's youth. The young people I interact with daily astound me with their knowledge of current issues, their passion to take progressive action and in the main their desire to know more and contribute to a better world. Today's students are confronted with far greater challenges than those presented to my own generation. To simply retain knowledge is not enough. Our students are assessed in their understanding of concepts, their abilities to critically analyze information and to synthesize multiple perspectives on world issues into various papers, presentations and practical applications. All this in addition to retaining the essential knowledge required for each discipline. The expectations for all RCHK students to participate and contribute to our CAS programme ensures our students are well rounded and more than fully engaged. Tomorrow will be better if we continue to invest in our richest resource. Your children.

International Schools could be viewed by some as islands of western influence and possible targets of extremist groups worldwide. This is already reflected in government warnings from the U.S., EU, Canada, Britain, NZ and Australia. Our response to these physical threats range from the obvious initiative of tighter entrance and perimeter checks to perhaps total school closures during periods of increased tension. Hong Kong has thankfully not been exposed to the security measures required at many other International Schools in this region.

Our students are not immune to this sudden increase in personal and community tension. Feelings of insecurity and alienation are already issues faced by our transient international families. In the wake of terror bombings worldwide our communities of students and teachers are now confronted with the even more tangible anxiety of terrorism. International schools more than ever must provide a pastoral care programme that can increase and promote emotional security and a curriculum that focuses on our ‘shared values’ across cultures, religions and borders.

In as far as pedagogical methodologies and curriculum are concerned, already Education is faced with a barrage of opinions, directions, lobbying and even sponsorship (the current push by business into ‘focus’ schools) that hope to apply pressure, favor and leverage in policy formation.

The rapidly evolving global economy leaves in its wake massive and, on the whole, previously unexperienced social problems. Under employment, the emergence of the underclass, the drug taking sub-culture and youth crime are complex and unresolved challenges that schools in varying degrees deal with each day. The threat of terror and impending war impacts greatly on our school communities and we must take action to ensure our students do not resort to pessimism and depression that can evade the school’s culture and undermine learning environments. We need to address the affective in order to instill the intellectual.

Our challenge must be to provide experiences and examples that demonstrate that people have the power to make a difference. Democracy cannot work unless people participate. The environment cannot be improved without people taking action and changing behaviors. Finding the solutions to the contemporary problems we face will only be possible if we empower our students and children to be creative, confident and compassionate people. From Berlin to Burma we see how people overcome oppression against enormous odds.

We expect a great deal from our students. What expectations do they have of our generation?

Blog Post 3 (8th Nov. 2007)

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As the world shrinks, the philosophy and practice of leading educational institutions, such as RCHK, have a leading role to play in recognizing and strengthening local culture and linguistic diversity, and in focusing students’ awareness on the inequities in the lives of others.

Innovative and committed teachers from many different cultures have played a very significant role in the development of best practices and they have clearly believed in a style of teaching that not only stimulates curiosity, inquiry, reflection and critical thinking, but also promotes the development of empathy.

One of the practical ways in which good schools develop citizenship is through service to others. Service that requires both action and reflection. The inclusion of this area in the design of an educational programme within our College is vital and provides many opportunities for translating theory into practice and for engendering the satisfaction that comes from giving, whether that be within one’s family, the College community, the local community, one’s country or the wider global community.

Some might say that teachers have an inflated view of themselves…I beg to differ… many of them under estimate the impact they have on the future of the world. They can directly shape the future of the students and members of our College community and the world.

It is the idealism, mission and values that we aspire to instill and live out through our student body that identify our College as a leading institution. Authentic leadership requires that we all ‘live’ the life we profess to value. To value service, schools need to be invitational, outward looking and endeavor to embrace the wider community. Schools that operate as enclaves from other cultures and nations, that choose to contrive an environment separate from reality are conducting a disservice to their student body and shirking a responsibility we have to our society.

I repeat what I articulated in my last blog. Our students and teachers like us, are presented each day with issues, headlines and curriculum content that focuses their thoughts on conflict, terrorism, disasters, environmental doom and economic frailties that augment an already pessimistic vision of their world. This view is depicted and reinforced in movies, music videos and the mass media. Homer Simpson once said that “writing rock songs to depress teenagers is like shooting fish in a barrel.” Pessimism is easy. Optimism requires courage, effort and creativity.

Service learning, I believe, promotes action and experiences that feed optimism and perpetuates sustainable development, and independence. It motivates and creates community in both parties where service is directed.

There are some very positive signs within the RCHK community that minds are opening and a social conscience/service culture is growing. Students are initiating awareness programmes from Child labor/abuse to Sustainable practices. Our Year 12 Diploma students under the direction of David Chilton (CAS Coordinator) are leading the way with their personal service commitments around Hong Kong. Teachers at RCHK have and continue to be great role models with their own service commitments external to RCHK and within the College through leading and facilitating CAS activities for students. The RAPT committee have ensured that the fund raising events they convene also contribute to the service activities of the College e.g. Schools to Schools and Starfish Bay.

At the recent RAPT Annual General Meeting 11 RCHK community leaders (Teachers and Parents) offered their own service to the students as representatives of all RCHK Parents and Teachers.

To teach is to answer the call to service. As Parents we commit a life of service to our children. It is through service learning that our students walk in another’s shoes, view the world from another perspective and grow tolerance into empathy.

“The aim (of education) must be the training of independently acting and thinking individuals who, however, can see in the service to the community their highest life achievement.” Albert Einstein

Annual Report 2007

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Here is the Annual Report for 2007:
Annual Report 2007

Donate to help Bangladesh

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The cyclone disaster in Bangladesh is another horrific awakening to us of the gap between societies in the developed world and those on the fringes. Whilst the early warning systems in place today have saved hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshis from the cyclone (which ten years ago would have caused a death toll in similar proportions to the Asian Tsunami) the nations lack of infra-structure and disaster preparedness will mean that more will die from the inevitable spread of disease, lack of food and shelter and access to medical aid.

Plan Staff Work with Partner Agencies to Assist in Cyclone Relief

The link above will allow us to contribute to assisting the immediate needs of our brothers and sisters in great need. Again, after this disaster (Bangladesh is the most disaster prone area in the World) what actions will be taken to build a robust infra-structure to ensure the nation can protect its people from such cyclones? Bangladesh may be seen by some as consistenly requiring aid. Why after all these years is the country not better equipped. The simple answer is Bangladesh is better equipped now, but as Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated areas of the world, the investment needed is immense. (The present population is about 120 million which makes it the eighth populous country of the world. The average density of population is about 1978 persons per square mile.)

Bangladesh is not a drain on the world. It has contributed more than 10,000 defence personel to UN forces globally, from East Timor to Sierra Leone. It has the 31st largest economy in the world and the is the world's largest garment producer.

The people of Bangladesh are in need now. As Bangladesh consistently reaches out to help others we should follow their lead and contribute what we can in their hour of need.

The following is an extract from the Canadian Press.

"At least 3,113 people were known dead and more than 1,000 were missing, said Lt. Col. Main Ullah Chowdhury, an army spokesman. The Red Crescent Society, the Islamic cousin of the Red Cross, warned the death toll could rise to 10,000 once rescuers reach outlying islands.
Mike Kiernan, spokesman for the charity Save the Children, said the final toll could be between 5,000 and 10,000 deaths, but added that "we won't know for certain for days or weeks."
He said hundreds of thousands of people managed to escape physical harm, but many lost their homes and crops.
"Just the fact that people were able to survive this does not mean they will survive the second wave of death that comes from catastrophes like this: from lack of clean water, food, basic medicines and shelter," Kiernan said.
In the village of Parulkhel, residents and rescuers used bamboo poles to probe flooded fields, looking for submerged bodies.
When a woman's corpse was discovered, workers rushed in with sacks and plastic sheet to lift the body out. Onlookers gathered, and one weeping man identified her as his mother.

"Some were identified and taken away by relatives. We buried dozens of others near where we found them," said Ali Akbar, a volunteer.
Survivors picked through the village's wreckage, looking for anything salvageable in a jumble of splintered wood, bamboo and corrugated iron houses, fallen trees and bloated animal carcasses. A stench filled the air.
In the neighboring village of Bainsamarta, Sheikh Mubarak, 40, sat among the ruins of his hut weeping for his 12-year-old daughter."

Randy Pausch's last lecture

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Randy Pausch's last lecture:

Carnegie Mellon Professor Randy Pausch, who is dying from pancreatic cancer, gave his last lecture at the university Sept. 18, 2007, before a packed McConomy Auditorium. In his moving talk, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," Pausch talked about his lessons learned and gave advice to students on how to achieve their own career and personal goals.

Source: http://video.google.com

Creativity and Freedom

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What a beautiful start to 2008. I returned to RCHK after attending teacher recruitment fairs in Sydney, Australia. Together with Mr. Mark Beach, Principal, Discovery College (DC) we interviewed over 50 teachers. We were both overwhelmed with the demand of teachers to come to our colleges. Last year in London and Boston I received the same response from teachers globally. It seems that 'word of mouth' via teachers, students and Parents has meant that RCHK is gaining a reputation as a International College of high quality. Perhaps the most important task a Principal has is to recruit high quality teachers to work with your children. I believe that we are able to access the world's best teachers to join our 'exceptional' educators here at RCHK.

This year we have coordinated 2 email accounts to handle the huge traffic of applications from teachers. To date over 1200 applications have been dealt with. Over Chinese New Year I will attend the London teacher recruitment fair with Mr. Hughes (Deputy Head) to finalize our recruiting for 2008-09. As we move into Year 13 and extend the Primary years programme we seek teachers with subject expertise, IB curriculum experience and most importantly a passion for teaching. My greatest task has been in recruiting people of good values to deliver a value laden curriculum to children and families seeking the same.

Thursday 24th January marks the end of semester 1 and the beginning of the second half of the academic year. For many children in the Primary school January marks a time of great development socially as they look toward the next year level. Even the general stature of children across the Primary School is higher. Year 6 students will begin a programme of transition to the Secondary school both socially and academically. Year One students move about the College like they have been here for years and Year 5 students are itching to become the leaders of the PYP.

In the Secondary School students are beginning to realize that this academic year will quickly evaporate and settling into a good study routine is vital in making the most of your learning opportunities. The holidays around Chinese New Year and Easter hasten the arrival of April. Teachers, parents and students must be ready to make the most of every minute.

Howard Gardner has a nice line: he says if we ask our kids what they did in school today and they reply "Nothing" they're probably right. They didn't do anything because traditional schooling is "done to students". There are a thousand signs of this. One is boredom, which we parents shrug off as a natural response. It doesn't occur to us to wonder with Dewey whether each child has to "leave his mind behind because there is no way to use it in the school" Another, even more specific, symptom is the tendency to use the indefinite pronoun when talking about a book-as in, "They say on page 76 that....." When the author disappears into "they," you can bet that kids haven't been helped to recognize (much less wrestle with) the particular point of view being offered. They haven't been encouraged to see books as a source of ideas that can be challenged. (from "The schools our children deserve" Alfie Kohn)

Last Thursday night Dr. Ted Faunce (Headmaster CIS) and myself invited the Heads of International and National Schools in Hong Kong to a presentation by Prof. Allan Snyder. Some information of Prof. Allan Snyder;

Allan Snyder is recognised for groundbreaking discoveries covering the fields of visual neurobiology, communications, optical physics and the mind sciences. Dr. Snyder received the world's "foremost prize in communication and information technology", the Marconi International Prize, in New York city in December 2001. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of London and the recipient of its 2001 Clifford Paterson Prize for "contributions which benefit mankind."

His discoveries in brain science are hailed in the prestigious journal Nature as "breaking a 19th century mindset", while his advances in physics are described in Science magazine as a "giant step forward" and featured in the Economist.

Allan holds the 150th Anniversary Chair of Science and the Mind at the University of Sydney. He also acts as CEO mentor.

Previously he was a Guggenheim Fellow at Yale University’s School of Medicine and a Royal Society Research Fellow at the Physiology Laboratories of Cambridge University. He is a graduate of Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and University College London.

Allan challenged us to see creativity as an act of rebellion. To enhance the learning of our students by inviting them to explore alternatives and to view the world from multiple perspectives. To 'break the rules' is to be creative in terms of knowledge.

Creative people, people that change the world or that stand out focus on the UNKNOWN not only the KNOWN. If we merely measure and test the known or knowledge (content) we are not measuring the application of that knowledge, the understanding or most important the conceptual understanding that can then be transferred across disciplines and experiences. Learning the essential knowledge (the rules) is a prerequisite to discovering the unknown (breaking the rules) and displaying creativity.

I would describe creativity as freedom. Freedom to express, to think differently, to act independently and to challenge the conventions in all disciplines.

May 2008 "The Year of the Rat" be a year when we encourage creativity, life long learning and grant freedom to all.

For Art's sake - February

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In your life of work, family, friends and love, do you draw more on your experiences in Math, Geography, Languages, Physics or from the world of the Arts? Are you a business person, a doctor, bus driver, lawyer, cleaner, teacher, or politician? Do you interact with other people, ideas, places and issues that involve managing relationships, presenting a plan, idea, proposal or yourself, inquiring about a new product or technology? Do you value people's material capital or the content of their character? Math of course can be described as the language that explains the universe. Language allows us to communicate and is at the heart of each of us, expressing either emotion or the steps to construct a rocket ship. However, in a ranking of subjects where would you place Drama, Music, Visual Arts and Dance.

"We spend much of our time trying to understand what other people mean, what they are really trying to tell us. Through their actions, what they say, what they write and perhaps even through their appearance: what is it they want us to understand?

Knowing is not the same as understanding when it comes to making sense of the world around us. Knowing stops at information and interest;understanding implies engagement and you will be familiar with the proverb attributed to Confucius:

I hear and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand"

(George Walker AHISA 2004)

Around the world Math and Language are described as the 'core' subjects. Suggesting that if we could only choose 2 disciplines in which to be competent these 'core' areas would suffice. Is this really so? What discipline lay at the core of what it is to be human. What areas allow children and adults to engage their whole being?

Like all national curricula world wide the IB also rank the subjects. Art or "the Arts" are given a minimal slice of the curriculum pie and within the Diploma it is the only subject group that can be dismissed. This 'ruling' I believe under values the importance and creative elements of education. To me, an education without creativity and an emphasis on the aesthetics becomes less human.

In providing a Holistic education should not the Arts be as prominent as Language or Science? One could argue that all disciplines are founded on Man's desire to express him or herself to engage with others and to explore new perspectives. The Arts allow students to travel, feel and live and learn vicariously. Drama allows students to be anyone, anywhere, any time. Through drama students can learn to understand anyone, anywhere, any time. If we truly have a desire to develop our children's standing in the world and to impact on creating a more peaceful, compassionate and sustainable planet then surely it is through a quality Arts programme that this can be effected.

The highlight for most of our students at RCHK will be the performances, trips and experiences that engage the whole person. The Drama production in Year 11, the orchestra tour, Service programmes, the field trip to Starfish Bay, the Year 5 performance of Captain Cook and sporting events. It is this experiential learning that Kurt Hahn envisaged for all students and influenced both the United World College movement and the International Baccalaureate. The première night at schools and Colleges worldwide are the performances and cultural experiences. It seems that we acknowledge the worth of these experiences publicly in extra curriculum and mission, but fear providing the Arts with a purposeful, appropriate and relevant status within our curricula.

We are driven by Universities and national curriculum committees that lack the courage to acknowledge a quality arts education and to set variable entry requirements based on more than a scored measurement that does not assess creativity, attitudes or application.

Whilst the Diploma demands a more holistic pre-university educational experience than many alternatives, I believe the IBO needs to re-examine how it can promote the aesthetics more.

"But certainly I concluded, and the events of the last 10 or 15 years have contributed mildly to that, that we don’t have a lack of people who are smart in various ways, we have a lack of people who act in ethical ways, people who display and embody a character. "

Howard Gardner "Five Minds for the Future"

The school that provides a balanced educational experience, that values consistent service and the qualities of the learner profiles should be acknowledged and recognized. It is the graduates from such schools as this that have a greater chance of impacting positively on others and move into the adult realm with hopefully a developed sense of other's culture and perspective. A heightened intellect and strengthened character.

View this presentation by Sir Ken Robinson (copy and paste)
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/66

The real message from me is this. There is 'knowledge and understanding'. We have divided this whole into subjects and discipline so we can focus on the unique and similar concepts and content within this 'knowledge'. No discipline is of greater importance. Each has its function and beauty, and all deserve to be engaged in each.

'You can’t remake the world
Without remaking yourself.
Each new year begins within.
It is an inward event,
With unsuspected possibilities
For inner liberation. '

From Turn on your light by Ben Okri (Phoenix House, 1999)

Kung Hei Fat Choy

Peter Kenny

Choose independence Feb 2008

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Independence and learning for RCHK students-February 23rd 2008

The power of observation is perhaps the most under-valued form of assessment used in both education and parenting. As teachers and parents we are often too sensitive to the objective observations of others about our student/children and about the way we and they, engage or disengage with each other. How often do we seek the observations of other family members, aunts and uncles, teachers? How often do we create the opportunity when we can simply observe our own children interacting with others, engaging in a task or finding a solution. Whilst reports provide good data and feedback to both student and parents, the student led and 3 way conference provides the opportunity for teachers, Parents and students to reflect on observations of each other. A truly independent learner will seek constructive criticism from observations and invite peers and others to comment on talents and areas of development.

If we aim to produce independent learners (for life) we need to provide the feedback, experiences and skill/trait foundations that motivate and reward independence. In managing our homes and schools we can be disadvantaging students growth of independence.

Lunchtimes are an opportunity for the young to gain independence and life skills yet we line children up, provide a seat, a table and service of a hot meal each and everyday of school. We feed children a full meal that is pre-ordered (often without student input) a month in advance and in a very passive nature. Wouldn't it be refreshing to develop the life skill of preparing for the day and making healthy eating choices through children preparing their own lunch meal. It would add time each morning in preparing for lunch and at the end of the day in washing containers and preparing for the next. It would though, provide a wonderful opportunity in gaining a life skill that many university graduates have not developed...the ability to plan and prepare a healthy diet. Having 3 of my own children I too acknowledge the added stress to each morning when the entire family is preparing to get to work and school. Perhaps schools should consider food preparation areas on site where children and adults could prepare their lunch before the school day begins?

Even allowing children to purchase a healthy meal at school regularly will provide another opportunity to make healthy choices and manage finances responsibly. It also gives children an insight into the economy and the traits of trust honesty and reliability.

It may be once a week and develop as they develop skills and demonstrate independence.

Observation of our children can provide insights into what skills they already possess and what skills need to be developed.

Specific skills and traits might include the ability to:
o See mistakes as an important part of the learning process
o Complete tasks without adult intervention (beginning with small and developing into complex tasks)
o Accurately decoding and understanding written instructions and text (English, Chinese and Mother tongue)
o Be able to summarize the main points of a task
o Work in collaboration (group or pair) Listen, contribute, be reliable, take personal responsibility for a group
o Predict likely outcomes-organize, plan and re-draft work
o Use the internet wisely and be able to use a number of sources-be information literate-be an effective user of technology
o Self setting high goals and aim to achieve their best
o Knowing what their (personal) best is
o Demonstrate persistence when a task becomes or appears challenging (maturity)
o Being responsible for organizing their own day in advance
o Making healthy choices-active rather than passive
o Able to travel independently using community resources (e.g. public transport)
o Transfer learning across the curriculum and into daily life
o Managing relationships with peers, children and adults

As educators and Parents we need to look at ways in which we can promote independence.

Many contemporary educational initiatives use terms such as ‘value adding’, ‘outcome driven’, ‘benchmarks’ and ‘competencies’. These are industrial terms used to measure productivity of labor and attempt to shift the focus from education to training. Education is not a predetermined list of outcomes or content. Meeting these outcomes may be no achievement at all. The national standards and outcomes based curriculums worldwide may be leading millions of children down the road to mediocrity. The real danger is when these benchmarks are shifted to testing. The process of learning, experimenting and creating is derailed and forces teachers to focus on tests and scores. Independence and the opportunities to promote independent learning are greatly limited.

In this environment of ‘over measuring’ through standardized testing, mistakes are seen as the worst thing a child can make. The mistake is recorded, reported on and severely hinders the development of independence. Experimenting with ideas and solutions is crucial to inquiry. New knowledge is unearthed when we have the courage to expore, test and suggest new ideas. Authentic assessment that is broad and formative can encourage depth of understanding and rigour in the curriculum. In the extract below, Allan Luke outlines the history to standardized testing and raises many points for reflection.

“The techniques and instruments of educational assessment have traditions and uses, histories and abuses. The development and implementation of mass scale standardised achievement testing is part of a long historical legacy in the United States, having begun in the 1910s with the development and implementation of literacy tests for World War I recruitment. Within two decades of the introduction of testing in the 1920s, virtually all American children were tested. Standardised, norm-referenced achievement tests were a lynch pin in what was sold to administrators and communities as "factory" or "assembly-line" approaches to instruction, with test scores used for sorting and categorising children, assessing teachers and school districts’ effectiveness, assessing and developing curriculum, and public accountability
….Nor is it surprising that almost all American educational debates - from arguments over class size and school district funding levels, charter schools and vouchers, to debates between phonics and whole language advocates - are fought by ideological opponents armed to the teeth with contending standardised test data. For the last century the ‘test’ has become the arbiter of US educational policy and practice. And at this key juncture in the development of Australian educational policy, it is worth asking why and how the American educational system has persistent and deep-seated literacy problems despite repeated years of testing.”
Babies, Bathwaters and Benchmarks:
Literacy Assessment and Curriculum Reform

Allan Luke
Christina E. van Kraayenoord
The Graduate School of Education
The University of Queensland
Brisbane, Queensland

You cannot be creative, advance intellectually or become an independent learner without the courage to make mistakes. To learn from your own mistakes and that of others leads to understanding.

Why independent learning?
Independent learners are independent thinkers!

Independence of thought is critical to promoting the global citizen.

Post-school education depends largely on pupils being able to work independently

Business leaders say that they need employees who are self-motivated and resourceful

Independent Learning strategies encourage children/students to engage in the learning process actively

This can promote intrinsic motivation towards learning, rather than extrinsic, and to help children/students see the value in learning

The attitudes fostered by Independent Learning are those needed in a healthy democratic society

Independent Learning helps cater for the needs of individuals in a differentiated curriculum

Preparing children and students:

The teacher needs to be familiar with the prior learning/achievement of pupils

Literacy, information literacy and ICT skills are likely to be important in Independent learning. (a major focus on the Library and Information Resource Centre, LIRC)

Students are aware of their own most effective learning styles

Work needs to be meaningful and relevant

Pupils should be able to connect the work in hand with a desired goal

Independent learning will often involve internet work and students may need help in distinguishing “sound” information from “rubbish” or unwholesome information

It is helpful if there is whole-school and community emphasis on individual responsibility (e.g. moving to classes independently on time, responsible for own material, secondary students traveling independently, committing to CAS)

Students should see the learning environment as supportive

The text below is from “10 Priceless Gifts Parents Can Give Their Children”
By Rodger Constandse
Gift 8 - Independence & Self-Sufficiency

Some parents dread the time when their kids will leave the nest and go off on their own, but it is just a natural part of the growth process.

You can help them on their journey by teaching them basic life skills, like cooking and laundry, how to handle finances, how to learn and think for themselves, how to respect and interact with others, and how to be responsible human beings.

For example, even something as simple as learning to cook teaches children about healthy eating, measuring and volume, weight, temperature, and more. It is a practical skill they will use the rest of their lives and is a great teaching opportunity for other important life skills.

Teach your children to put together a healthy meal and you are teaching them to plan, make a schedule, and nourish their bodies. Just the trip to the grocery store alone offers wonderful learning opportunities, from using money to reading labels to budgeting.

Another way you can help your kids become more independent is to let them struggle and find their own solutions to problems. As parents, we often find it difficult to see our kids struggling. Of course we want to help them. But sometimes, the best help we can give is to let them struggle and figure it out on their own.

Obviously, you don’t want to do this if there is any real danger involved, and you don’t want to make their whole life a struggle. Just recognize that problems can sometimes be wonderful teaching opportunities for your child.

If your child is having problems figuring out the solution, you can provide constructive forms of criticism to help them find the right answer.

Constructive criticism focuses on the behavior, strategy, or techniques used, rather than on the traits of the child. For example, “That doesn’t seem like a good way to solve this problem, why don’t you try something else,” or “You are missing those free-throws because you have to bend your knees, tuck in your elbow a bit more, and follow through with your wrist.”

Remember to avoid destructive criticism at all costs… so don’t say, “Any idiot could do that… You stupid or something? Do it again!”

The 3 R's

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Establishing a school community that builds relationships, promotes universal values and promotes peace is somewhat of a challenge. To many of the misinformed, curriculums that don’t have a single focus on an exam or schools that ‘reach out’ are often viwed as ‘soft’ institutions. They may view relationships as unimportant. Discipline, conforming and order are priorities and developing a social conscious is perhaps just a line in a mission statement.

I congratulate the community members of RCHK in speaking out and striving to be agents of change.
Most recently Lawrence Lau of Year 12 met the Secretary for the Environment, Mr. Edward Yau seeking Government support in the Starfish Bay project and also presented a petition to him.

The teachers and students involved in the Starfish Bay project (SFB) have been beacons of action for us all to follow. Whether involved directly in transplanting new starfish or raising funds and awareness, their part has been crucial. The SFB project is a wonderful learning opportunity and testament to students and teachers taking progressive action.

The many service projects initiated by staff and students that have provided not only materials and training for those in need, but also authentic learning for our students. Commitment to the ideals of the IB and RCHK require courage, immense effort and compassion. The service of our staff in arranging, coordinating and enriching the CAS program is outstanding. Personal and family time is often sacrificed by these wonderful people to serve our students and enrich their lives.

Values, morals, relationships, social conscious, intercultural awarenss and peace are the ideals and issues that require strength, intellect, true internationalism and an inquiring mind. As we celebrate our status as one of the few 3 program IB World Schools globally, I want to honor those that live out our mission and urge us all to sustain the courage required to take progressive action.

Governor Jennifer M. Granholm of Michigan coined a phrase which sums up the next development phase of RCHK. You can read her speech through this link below;

Creating opportunity in a changing world

As the 109th ‘all IB program’ World School, RCHK will have the eyes of many educators and community leaders on it. More than ever we need to model the values and live out the qualities we seek to instill in our children.

As a community, RCHK needs to maintain its momentum in developing curriculum that is relevant, assessment of learning which demands authenticity and most importantly focusing on the relationships that engage students, create an invitational spirit within the College and focuses us all on the wonderment of what it is to be human.

The 3 R’s of Renaissance
Rigor, Relevance and Relationships

The 2008-2011 RCHK Development Plan seeks to build on our successes and endeavors of the College community since January 2006. As a Private Independent School established with grants from the Government of Hong Kong and investment through the English Schools Foundation Educational Services, our development plan will take advantage of our future, our talents and our challenging mission.

In implementing the Development Plan we must regularly reflect on our mission and our commitment to action, service, peace and a sustainable future for all. The College Development Plan (CDP) is being drafted now and will involve all stakeholders as it is refined and then launched in August 2008.

RCHK is to re-invent the 3 Rs.

Rigor
It is through 'inquiry', criteria based assessment of learning and quality research that our students move from knowing to understanding, our teachers move from instruction to facilitation and our community recognize that learning requires reflection, experiences and encouragement. Rigor is not a one dimensional test or exam. The PYP and MYP demand a deeper understanding of the concepts, which underpin knowledge and skill development. The varied forms of assessment require teachers to plan rich experiences, students to be engaged in seeking new understandings and learning how to learn. The transdisciplinary nature of concepts, skills and knowledge will be a feature of our next steps.
True understanding can only be assessed through application of knowledge and skills, demonstration of learning and performance based tasks. The Renaissance curriculum includes exams where appropriate but demands rigor through authentic assessment tasks and valuing the journey (process) in learning.

Relevance
The curriculum (PYP,MYP and DP) connects to reality and the lives of our students. It is grounded in contemporary research and engages students in issues and content that relates to them directly and indirectly. Real independent learning is facilitated when students see the relevance and are engaged in learning experiences that are realistic. A curriculum that is rich in authentic experiences, engages students in the now as well as the past and future. Trade, beliefs, politics, immigration, systems, the environment, conflict and peace are all issues and concepts that impact on us all. We have a moral obligation to connect our students to their world. Students 'right to connectivity' and a proposed "digital renaissance" will further extend our leading edge ICT resources.

Relationships
The absence of ‘student to teacher’, ‘teacher to teacher’ relationships and the 3 way relationship of Parent, student and teacher limits and/or removes the opportunity for all people to develop. All learning is social. We cannot address the intellectual until we secure the affective side of life and living. Knowing our students and teachers is vital in building a College and curriculum that is relevant and supports learning. Managing relationships, building relationships and supporting the social and emotional development of all RCHK members is a challenge that if we overcome, will enable RCHK to be a truly invitational community and a learning beacon for our students.

In working toward the Renaissance College, Hong Kong(RCHK) Development Plan (CDP) 2008-2011 we wish to articulate to the Community that a school wishing to become an authorized IB World school does not merely adopt a curriculum model. The whole school community (teachers, Parents and students) embarks on a program of curriculum renewal and whole school adoption on a philosophy to education. Rather than offering an international curriculum they understand that “internationalism” is an attitude that is expressed through the teaching, learning and action of the College community itself.

RCHK response to the disasters in Burma and Sichuan, China

1970-01-01T00:00:00+01:00

Dear Community,

The response by the students, teachers and Parents of RCHK has been outstanding. Last Friday $21,383 was raised through donations to our Burmese partner School 'Growing Together'. We have established a direct transfer link to the school thus avoiding any delays imposed by the military government in Burma. The Growing Together school is supporting many families within its remaining buildings and working to re-establish itself once the immediate needs of its community can be dealt with. We expect our support in providing basic needs will last for months. The funds raised by the RCHK community will allow many families to obtain clean water, food and shelter.

Our response to the earthquake in Sichuan is also in full swing. It is hoped that we may establish a 'school to school' partnership with a community in Sichuan similar to those that we have in Burma, Aceh and Cambodia. This Monday 19th May we join with the rest of China in observing a minute's silence at 2:28pm (the time the earthquake hit) in remembrance for the estimated 33,000 deaths, 220,000 injured and their families struggling to cope with this overwhelming tragedy. Some 30,000 people are still believed to be buried.

This Friday there will be a College Wide fund raising drive through holding a 'sausage sizzle' at lunch. I ask all the community to support this RAPT initiative. We have also been giving the students daily reminders and links to charities and agencies assisting in Sichuan.

Like Burma and Aceh, once we can establish a long term service link to a school in the province we have the opportunity to impact on lives of many now and for years to come. A sustained response to these disasters is required by us all.

Your support of our endeavours is most appreciated.

Our thoughts are with those in great need.

Peter Kenny

p.s. RCHK students, teachers and Parents have raised over $50,000 for victims of the Burma and Sichuan disasters. Mr. David Chilton (CAS Coordinator) has just reported that the RCHK community has raised an additional $165,000 for our 'schools to schools' service activities. Well done to all on this wonderful action! Peter Kenny