The Global Search for Education
“I can think of few art forms that invite students to immerge themselves in other cultures as wholly as film, through its unique combination of visual, performance, technological, musical and narrative elements.” — Nick Lindner
Part 2 of the Education in Film series
By C. M. Rubin with Harry Rubin and Michael Freeborn
The International Baccalaureate (IB) film program aims to develop in students the skills necessary to achieve creative and critical independence in their knowledge, experience and enjoyment of film. Today in The Global Search for Education, I am joined by Richard Harvey, Chief Examiner of the IB’s film program, and Nick Lindner, IB film teacher at The Dwight School in New York City.
Richard Harvey worked in the theater before turning to teaching, and currently acts in several UK television series. He has taught media, film, English and drama for more than thirty years. As Chief Examiner for the International Baccalaureate’s film program, he has led IB film workshops in New York, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Athens, Florence and various venues in the UK.
Nick Lindner graduated magna cum laude from the University of Pittsburgh with B.A.’s in film studies and fiction writing. He holds a master’s degree with distinction in film and television studies from the University of Glasgow, Scotland. When not teaching, he travels around the world working in freelance film and television production for networks such as PBS, ABC, National Geographic and HBO.
Richard, studies show that the need for cine-literacy is long overdue. What were your key goals with the IB film curriculum?
We wanted to enable students to explore film in both a practical and academic sense. I don’t believe there is a young person across the world that isn’t a film fan. Our goal was to develop that passion into an awareness of how film is constructed and how meaning is developed when you work with audiovisual imagery. By understanding that process, students develop a greater awareness of how film communicates to them. For example, a film may have a particular agenda; students need to develop the ability to question that agenda. This isn’t just an academic study. It is something they need to be able to carry into their everyday lives so that they can watch a film with the pleasure that comes with greater experience and understanding.
“This isn’t just an academic study. It is something they need to be able to carry into their everyday lives.” — Richard Harvey
Nick, as a film major in university and in real life, how has this helped you teach the IB film curriculum to high school students?
As someone who has been privileged enough to connect to film as both student and theorist in the undergraduate and graduate classroom, and as a crew member on productions worldwide, I revere the IB program for recognizing the value of coupling the practice of formal academic film analysis to practical film creation. I find it necessary to stress to students early in the program that cinema possesses its own language of concepts, techniques and codes, and the more they understand that language, the better prepared they are to create effective works of their own. Having examples set before them that expose them to innovation within the medium very often triggers “eureka moments” that inspire them, not only to draw connections between various films throughout cinema’s global history, but to also attempt to adapt similar stylistic and narrative techniques in their own works.
Richard, what key elements did you build into the curriculum to realize the IB film goals?
Filmmaking has never been easier for young filmmakers. We wanted the IB film course to include films originated by students as well as the study of films made by their favorite contemporary filmmakers and filmmakers of the past, whom may not be encountered in the normal experience of a young film fan. We wanted students to learn the different aspects of filmmaking. Understanding film techniques from the past gives students a better understanding of where films are today. Students learn that nothing is a totally new invention. They learn to explore old ideas in new and different formats. They learn that the critical analysis of an existing film and making their own are two sides of the same coin.
Nick, studies show that reading literacy is fading while film literacy is thriving with kids today. How might you suggest teachers respect both?
I would fear imagining that teachers cannot recognize the symbiotic relationship between the written word and celluloid. At the end of the day, both are simply means of sharing humanity’s ideas, and I’d like to believe the ideas themselves should remain the key focus, rather than concerns about competition. Across many disciplines, over the past century, it has been argued that film, (and the cinematic language it has inspired across various forms of visual media) is the most important art form of our times. While I won’t shy away from agreeing with that statement, I think that it is crucial to understand that cinematic language shares many commonalities with the written word, and owes much of its form to our literary traditions; a point I believe should always be stressed to students.
“I love exposing students to the techniques of filmmakers globally, and working with them to trace the influence of those innovations across borders.” — Nick Lindner
Richard, how do you recommend teachers balance the subject discipline while nurturing innovation at the same time?
We don’t recommend teachers start with the theory. Students are allowed to explore films first. The class should explore questions such as: What have you noticed about the way the story is being told in this film? What elements draw you in? Teachers might show students very brief sequences of only a few seconds each from a variety of films and ask: What kind of a film do you think those excerpts came from? What ideas are being communicated in such brief extracts? As students explore the process of past work, the teacher is preparing and encouraging them to play with different ideas. How would you shoot this in a more thoughtful, different or creative way? That then needs to be carried into the assessment process in which no copyrighted material whatsoever may be used in anything they create. They must learn to create their own sound effects; they can commission their own music, etc. And so the process moves from what they have learned into the exploration of new experiences that explore international perspectives; for example, looking at films that are outside their immediate cultural experiences. The beauty of the film program is that it encourages individual initiative but also collaborative work.
Nick, what has surprised you most and least about teaching the IB curriculum?
Perhaps what has surprised me least is just how technologically savvy the majority of the students are. The accessibility of tools that provide them outlets to create films of their own exist all around them in devices ranging from their mobile phones to their home computers. As a result, they bring a level of confidence to the production phases of the curriculum that I find is very often based upon their own self-taught experiences. What surprises me most however, is those very same technologies that they use as tools for film production, very often also serve as devices of absolute media bombardment that provide audio-visual information at an intense pace through outlets such as YouTube. Drawing the students away from this form of audience reception, and engaging them in challenging films that require patience is very rewarding. I take great joy in seeing a class of 17-year-olds wholly engrossed by a foreign, silent, black and white film that was created before many of their grandparents were born.
“Five years from now students might not be making a film within their own school but might be collaborating, sharing ideas and making a film with students across continents.” — Richard Harvey
Richard, how do you assess students’ original work?
Assessing creativity is not easy. Young people come up with great original ideas in this course. We look for ideas that are fresh that don’t necessarily take the easiest route. We look at the process a student has worked through. We look at the way a student questions the approach of doing something. How have they used their imagination to communicate their message to an audience? Is there a special spark or recognizable flair? Our hearts sink sometimes when students say I want to make something that throws out all the rules. It’s obvious that the rules need to be understood before they are rejected and that rejection must have purpose.
Nick, how have you made the IB film curriculum truly international in its content in your classroom?
I believe the greatest asset of an IB education is its true internationality in the modern world. To teach a comprehensive series of film studies courses, it is necessary to not only stretch beyond the boundaries of Hollywood cinema, but western cinema as well. I love exposing students to the techniques of filmmakers globally, and working with them to trace the influence of those innovations across borders. Furthermore, I can think of few art forms that invite students to immerge themselves in other cultures as wholly as film, through its unique combination of visual, performance, technological, musical and narrative elements. This cultural immersion is conducive to the curiosity of high school students, as I find they often take more from their foreign viewing experiences then their domestic ones, simply because they are eager to expose themselves to something that they perceive as different or new.
Richard, five years down the road, what additional development would you like to see to the IB film curriculum?
There is already an excited buzz about the film program and IB has dynamic drive to look forward with its programs. From a personal point of view, I would like to see film in five years as part of a much broader spectrum of the arts. I’d like to see the barriers between the assessment elements of film, art, dance, and music become much more interdisciplinary. With global communications advancements, I’d like to see filmmaking become a form of education without frontiers so that five years from now students might not be making a film within their own school but might be collaborating, sharing ideas and making a film with students across continents.
For more information on the IB Film Program
C. M. Rubin
Photos courtesy of The Dwight School, Richard Harvey, and Nick Lindner.
In The Global Search for Education, join me and globally renowned thought leaders including Sir Michael Barber (UK), Dr. Michael Block (US), Dr. Leon Botstein (US), Professor Clay Christensen (US), Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond (US), Dr. Madhav Chavan (India), Professor Michael Fullan (Canada), Professor Howard Gardner (US), Professor Andy Hargreaves (UK), Professor Yvonne Hellman (The Netherlands), Professor Kristin Helstad (Norway), Jean Hendrickson (US), Professor Rose Hipkins (New Zealand), Professor Cornelia Hoogland (Canada), Mme. Chantal Kaufmann (Belgium), Dr. Eija Kauppinen (Finland), State Secretary Tapio Kosunen (Finland), Professor Dominique Lafontaine (Belgium), Professor Hugh Lauder (UK), Professor Ben Levin (Canada), Lord Ken Macdonald (UK), Professor Barry McGaw (Australia), Shiv Nadar (India), Professor R. Natarajan (India), Dr. Pak Tee Ng (Singapore), Dr. Denise Pope (US), Sridhar Rajagopalan (India), Dr. Diane Ravitch (US), Sir Ken Robinson (UK), Professor Pasi Sahlberg (Finland), Andreas Schleicher (PISA, OECD), Dr. Anthony Seldon (UK), Dr. David Shaffer (US), Dr. Kirsten Sivesind (Norway), Chancellor Stephen Spahn (US), Yves Theze (Lycee Francais US), Professor Charles Ungerleider (Canada), Professor Tony Wagner (US), Sir David Watson (UK), Professor Dylan Wiliam (UK), Dr. Mark Wormald (UK), Professor Theo Wubbels (The Netherlands), Professor Michael Young (UK), and Professor Minxuan Zhang (China) as they explore the big picture education questions that all nations face today.
The Global Search for Education Community Page
C. M. Rubin is the author of two widely read online series for which she received a 2011 Upton Sinclair award, “The Global Search for Education” and “How Will We Read?” She is also the author of three bestselling books, including The Real Alice in Wonderland.
Follow C. M. Rubin on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@cmrubinworld
The Global Search for Education
“Dwight Seoul is about creating real leaders and not just test takers.” — Kevin Skeoch
From South Korea
By C. M. Rubin with Harry Rubin and Michael Freeborn
The first IB “through school” (primary years, middle years and diploma program) will open its doors to students in one of the world’s leading education systems in August 2012 — Seoul, South Korea. The school is located in Seoul’s new Digital Media City, considered Korea’s Silicon Valley.
Founded in 1968, the IB currently works with 3,371 schools in 141 countries. Dr. Siva Kumari, Chief Operating Officer of the IBO Schools Division explains:
“The IB has integrally believed in creating an intellectually challenging but age-appropriate program of study for students. Internationalism and inclusion are part of our DNA, both as an organization and within our curriculum. To understand others, the students must understand their own culture and respect their own language, as well as develop a deep understanding that knowledge and knowing are dependent on perspectives. Alongside intellectually rigorous academics, we feel the need to develop students who are open-minded, caring and principled, and that can effectively function anywhere in the world. We value innovation both in our curriculum and among our students. Our curriculum is co-created with IB teachers from all around the world. We gather their best ideas and germinate those via pilots in other schools; best practices are then circulated to our schools worldwide. We also create a framework where students’ innovative spirits are fostered, given room to grow and are mentored within guidelines. At all levels, we allow students to exhibit their own individualized investigation of a topic that they are deeply curious about.”
Principal Dianne Drew, Ambassador Young-mok Kim, Chancellor Stephen Spahn
The Dwight Family of Schools, headed by Chancellor Stephen Spahn, was selected by the Seoul Metropolitan Government after viewing 100 schools for the project because of its outstanding IB curriculum, as well as Dwight’s leadership in international education.
To find out more about how a leading global education system and a celebrated 140 year old family of IB schools plan to marry their models, I chatted with Head of School in Seoul, Kevin Skeoch:
Apart from being the first IB “through school,” why is the Dwight school in Seoul different from other international schools available?
There are a number of reasons. Dwight Seoul stresses innovation and leadership at its center. It is a continuum of education in the best practices of teaching and learning that follows a tested Dwight Family of Schools model of IB education already working in four IB World Schools on three continents. Dwight Seoul is a non-denominational school that believes there is a “spark of genius” in every child. Its teachers come from a network of experienced IB professionals who know what it means to educate internationally. Dwight Seoul will be an innovative flagship IB school specializing in technology.
“Students who receive an IB diploma are prepared to go on to universities anywhere in the world.” — Kevin Skeoch
Can you speak about your technology focus in Korea and how you envision this will evolve?
If a student wants to know something today, they automatically turn to one of several electronic devices; that’s their dictionary. That in itself represents a major paradigm shift from the way those over 30 were taught. But no school can keep up with technology today. Dwight Seoul is a BYOD (bring your own device) school for grades 6 through 12 and operates on a one to one supported technology framework. Whether a laptop, IPad, tab or something else, your piece of technology is an extension of you in school. Technology is not the answer, but the tool to support you in your search for knowledge and understanding. We will be supplying devices on a 1:3 ratio up to Grade 3, and 1:2 in Grades 4 - 5. We will also have two fully equipped iMac labs. What we want from technology is the ability to turn the classroom into a more collaborative learning experience. When you enter the Dwight school in Seoul, the first visual should be students working together in small groups.
We are taking a very progressive approach to incorporating technology in the classrooms: making all our lessons available in an online learning system, which would be made available to students to use wherever they are. In the classroom, this translates into students being able to replay a lesson in their own time if at first they don’t understand. The individualized approach to learning enables students to review the day’s learning at their own pace in their own environment.
LCD television screens are provided for teachers and students to present multimedia applications in all classrooms. Full wireless access is provided to enable everyone to access our catalogue of online resources for individual and collaborative learning. Students can access the resources at home and in school. In the library and resource center and central foyers, live feeds will present events of the day, news feeds, etc. throughout the school.
Dwight Seoul is taking an approach to online learning environments that will not only bring all Dwight students together (not limited by location) but also network students around the world. Collaborative learning happens by default and together with our virtual classroom. Talking to one another and learning across continents will enhance this online environment even further.
We’re also looking at ways to use technology to educate teachers. The interest in IB in Korea, other parts of Asia, and indeed other underdeveloped countries is huge, but it comes down to basic teacher training. How you change teachers from rote learning styles to the IB style of learning is the challenge for the future. We have built a teacher training center at the Seoul school along with the appropriate technology for teachers to do this.
“How you change teachers from rote learning styles to the IB style of learning is the challenge for the future.” — Kevin Skeoch
Stressed out South Korean students have received significant media attention in the US. Thoughts on stress created by SAT tests and other assessments, including the IB?
Dwight Seoul is about creating real leaders and not just test takers. The SAT in a school like ours is less important than creating a well-rounded individual who is able to rise above exams. We will have a clear roadmap for how students prepare for their IB exams, and the SAT is a part of that preparation for university. The worst schools I have visited are those that dump the tests on kids at the end of grade 10 and it just becomes too much for them to handle on top of all the other internal assessments as well as the diploma exams. Koreans are known for their testing performance and they probably work themselves to the bone to make sure they do well on standardized tests. However, parents applying to our school have told me they want to get their kids out of that traditional testing environment. They want a more progressive school that maps students’ testing on a continuum of learning and is more geared towards what is required for their children to compete globally. Dwight Seoul students will take the SAT test if they intend to apply to US colleges where the SAT is required, but the SAT will not be the main focus of their education. The majority of the focus will be on the IB and supporting individualized journeys to discovering each child’s spark of genius.
Have students completing the IB diploma in the US, UK, Canada, China or South Korea been prepared for universities anywhere in the world?
The IB is not only the preferred international school curriculum today, it is also highly regarded by over 4000 universities around the world who accept the diploma as an entrance requirement. Students who receive an IB diploma are prepared to go on to universities anywhere in the world. A child who is going to university in the UK, Australia, Switzerland or the US will have different requirements to meet depending on their course of study and the type of university they are applying to. A recent poll of top UK universities indicated the IB middle years program is a good preparation for the diploma program, which was preferred by 80% of universities polled. With an IB education, students develop a breadth and depth of knowledge, they are known to stay the course and not drop out of university, they approach knowledge with alternative views, share a deeper understanding of critical thinking and research, and they know how to work under stress.
For more information: http://dwightseoul.org/
Dr. Siva Kumari, C. M. Rubin, Kevin Skeoch
Photos courtesy of Ian Wilson and the Dwight School.
In The Global Search for Education, join me and globally renowned thought leaders including Sir Michael Barber (UK), Dr. Michael Block (US), Dr. Leon Botstein (US), Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond (US), Dr. Madhav Chavan (India), Professor Michael Fullan (Canada), Professor Howard Gardner (US), Professor Yvonne Hellman (The Netherlands), Professor Kristin Helstad (Norway), Jean Hendrickson (US), Professor Rose Hipkins (New Zealand), Professor Cornelia Hoogland (Canada), Mme. Chantal Kaufmann (Belgium), Dr. Eija Kauppinen (Finland), State Secretary Tapio Kosunen (Finland), Professor Dominique Lafontaine (Belgium), Professor Hugh Lauder (UK), Professor Ben Levin (Canada), Professor Barry McGaw (Australia), Shiv Nadar (India), Professor R. Natarajan (India), Dr. Denise Pope (US), Sridhar Rajagopalan (India), Dr. Diane Ravitch (US), Sir Ken Robinson (UK), Professor Pasi Sahlberg (Finland), Andreas Schleicher (PISA, OECD), Dr. Anthony Seldon (UK), Dr. David Shaffer (US), Dr. Kirsten Sivesind (Norway), Chancellor Stephen Spahn (US), Yves Theze (Lycee Francais US), Professor Charles Ungerleider (Canada), Professor Tony Wagner (US), Sir David Watson (UK), Professor Dylan Wiliam (UK), Dr. Mark Wormald (UK), Professor Theo Wubbels (The Netherlands), Professor Michael Young (UK), and Professor Minxuan Zhang (China) as they explore the big picture education questions that all nations face today.
The Global Search for Education Community Page
C. M. Rubin is the author of two widely read online series for which she received a 2011 Upton Sinclair award, “The Global Search for Education” and “How Will We Read?” She is also the author of three bestselling books, including The Real Alice in Wonderland.
Follow C. M. Rubin on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@cmrubinworld
The Global Search for Education
“I see schools as being a place for finding your talent, enriching yourself through being socially attached to one another, and building a healthy personality.” - Pasi Sahlberg
Dreams
By C. M. Rubin with Harry Rubin and Michael Freeborn
Finnish educator Pasi Sahlberg and Chancellor Stephen Spahn of the Dwight School in Manhattan have big dreams for education. Sahlberg, the celebrated global reformer and author of newly released (and already in reprint) Finnish Lessons: What can the world learn from educational change in Finland?, spent the day at Spahn’s school in Manhattan.
Sahlberg discussed with faculty and students not just how and why Finland built their phenomenal world class education systems, but even more important, what needs to be done to maintain its educational excellence as this century progresses.
The Dwight School recently began its own strategic review of how it can build on its success. Famous for its highly integrated global learning community — there are five Dwight campuses in New York, London, Canada, Beijing and Seoul Korea; one-third of Dwight’s students originate from another country and represent nearly 40 nationalities; it sponsors the International Baccalaureate (the only curriculum where students are graded according to international benchmarks) — the school’s leadership is nonetheless revisiting the big picture question of educational vision.
Spahn (the longest standing headmaster of any school in New York city) describes his education vision as “a commitment to ensuring all students reach their full potential by helping them find and pursue their unique ‘sparks of genius’.”
Sahlberg describes his vision in Finnish Lessons as “creating a community of learners that provides the conditions that enable all young people to discover their talent.”
With the technology revolution showing no signs of slowing down in connecting the world on everyone’s iPhone (or other smartphone), how will education remain vibrant for young people? How can educators continue to be strong voices that keep dreams alive in the hearts of future generations? Just like modern educators, modern students won’t have to ration their thinking in terms of villages or towns or cities or even individual nations anymore - modern students will know most of the global issues, thanks to their iPads (or other tablets), before they come to school. Modern students will need to understand the impact of those issues in the context of a global arena. Modern students will be interacting with their global peers more often and hopefully in a more meaningful way. Further, the evolution of technology creates exciting new opportunities for younger generations. This too challenges the education system since there will be a greater need for young adults to be self-starters than at any time in our history. To help students identify their passions so they can begin to realize their own big dreams requires teachers to develop new skills, and this requires educators with keen insight into the strategic issues facing education in today’s world.
How is this reform to be achieved?
Both Pasi Sahlberg and Stephen Spahn believe in personalized learning.
More specifically, Pasi believes in creating a socially inspiring, safe learning community; schools that must be pupil friendly; schools that must allow more personalized learning paths. Keeping in mind the tremendous changes in learning that will continue to be made possible by the internet, social networks, and technology, Sahlberg describes his 4 themes for change in his book as:
1. Development of a personal road map for learning for each student.
2. Less classroom based teaching, more facilitation of students’ collaborative skills.
3. Development of interpersonal skills and problem solving.
4. Engagement and creativity as pointers of success.
I asked Pasi Sahlberg where things stand in terms of the Big Dream and moving reform forward in Finland.
He explains: “There seems to be two main options. One alternative is the road traveled by many other education systems. This means looking for conventional solutions to the future challenges. In my book, I show how Finnish primary school pupils have significantly less instruction hours compared to American children. In this respect, Finland is also below the OECD averages. One of the main reform items under discussion now is to increase instructional time for primary school pupils. This leads to increasing subjects in an already full list of syllabi in our schools. We are looking at other education systems in terms of setting more prescribed standards and related data systems using national testing and reporting schemes.
“Schools must provide opportunities that continually connect real world experiences and challenge traditional modes of teaching and learning.” - Chancellor Stephen Spahn
The second alternative is a path not walked much by others. It’s about making a bold move to transform our education system from a very strong foundation to be a more personalized, socially inclusive and truly enriching environment that cares about people learning with passion (i.e. the ideas positioned by my four proposals in Finnish Lessons). Finnish authorities are about to agree the next Development Plan for Education and Research for 2012-2016. A bill stipulating time allocation for schools will be passed in 2012. National Framework Curricula for basic School and Upper Secondary School will then be revised. Universities are revisiting their teacher education programs as well. In other words, all the necessary elements are available to choose this alternative path.
The Aurora Primary School in Expoo (see The Global Search for Education: A Look at a Finnish School) has been a source of inspiration for Sahlberg in terms of the Big Dream he describes in his book. He believes this model primary school is a socially enriching and caring “home of real learning.” There are other schools working to redesign themselves along the lines of the ideas he discusses in Finnish Lessons.
Sahlberg notes: “Current curriculum requirements, facilities, and increasingly shrinking resources often restrict efforts to renew schools. I find an increasing number of people in Finland and in other Nordic countries being connected to the idea of renewing schools to become places for young people to find their passion. Principals and teachers are disturbed by the lack of jointly agreed vision or dream for the future. Educators are not inspired by national goals that are expressed by numbers or are too rational. Teachers and education leaders want to have a vision of what schools should look like in 2020 or 2030. Most of them think that we should not keep assuming that everything will look the same. Nobody knows how the technology will play out. I see schools as being a place for finding your talent, enriching yourself through being socially attached to one another, and building a healthy personality. At the fork of the road, the key issue for Finns is whether there will be new leadership that will make this possible.”
I asked Chancellor Spahn and Dianne Drew, Principal of the Dwight School, to share their themes going forward. They narrowed it down to these 4 points:
“1. Each student must learn to identify and solve real world problems: Schools must provide opportunities that continually connect real world experiences and challenge traditional modes of teaching and learning. By placing students and teachers in different and challenging circumstances, they acquire the interpersonal and problem solving skills that are necessary to be lifelong learners.
2. Time outside the classroom is life’s laboratory:
Life in the classroom must set a positive stage for experiences outside the classroom.
3. Cultivate a community of open-heartedness and practice the art of creating shared value:
Students will desire more than academic success if they are constantly surrounded and challenged by a school environment that they value and that values them. By building confidence, resiliency and respect for all, schools exemplify a community that supports both success and struggle.
4. Seek to become self-sufficient and dispel illusions:
Students must be encouraged to see beyond the confined boundaries of the textbook, the classroom, the school, and society. Guide students to build skills that prepare them to become self-sufficient and acquire their own understanding of the world. Give teachers the ability to pursue their strengths, passions and educational ambitions as well. This will create a dynamic community that supports and inspires one another rather than the traditional formulae of the teacher teaches and the student is just the sponge.”
Big dreamers never seem to give up. More to follow……
Stephen Spahn, C. M. Rubin and Pasi Sahlberg
(Photos courtesy of The Dwight School and Pasi Sahlberg)
In The Global Search for Education, join me and globally renowned thought leaders including Sir Michael Barber (UK), Dr. Michael Block (US), Dr. Leon Botstein (US), Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond (US), Dr. Madhav Chavan (India), Professor Michael Fullan (Canada), Professor Howard Gardner (US), Professor Yvonne Hellman (The Netherlands), Professor Kristin Helstad (Norway), Jean Hendrickson (US), Professor Rose Hipkins (New Zealand), Professor Cornelia Hoogland (Canada), Mme. Chantal Kaufmann (Belgium), Professor Dominique Lafontaine (Belgium), Professor Hugh Lauder (UK), Professor Ben Levin (Canada), Professor Barry McGaw (Australia), Professor R. Natarajan (India), Dr. Denise Pope (US), Sridhar Rajagopalan (India), Dr. Diane Ravitch (US), Sir Ken Robinson (UK), Professor Pasi Sahlberg (Finland), Andreas Schleicher (PISA, OECD), Dr. Anthony Seldon, Dr. David Shaffer (US), Dr. Kirsten Sivesind (Norway), Chancellor Stephen Spahn (US), Yves Theze (Lycee Francais US), Professor Charles Ungerleider (Canada), Professor Tony Wagner (US), Professor Dylan Wiliam (UK), Dr. Mark Wormald (UK), Professor Theo Wubbels (The Netherlands), Professor Michael Young (UK), and Professor Minxuan Zhang (China) as they explore the big picture education questions that all nations face today.
The Global Search for Education Community Page
C.M. Rubin has more than two decades of professional experience in development, marketing, and art direction for a diverse range of media businesses. She is also the author of three bestselling books, including The Real Alice In Wonderland.
Follow C. M. Rubin on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@cmrubinworld
How Will They Lead?
“So many of them have persevered through so much in their lives already, and overcome tremendous adversity, but they don’t even realize it. It is remarkable that they want to continue dedicating themselves to helping others.” — Kirk Spahn, ICL co-founder
By C. M. Rubin
As Americans begin to evaluate the US candidates for the next presidential election, everyone will ask themselves this question: How will they lead? Will those who seek to serve this country in its top job understand the major issues, be passionate about their ideals, and then be able to inspire and educate their peers to take action so as to make a positive difference in the lives of the American people?
Leadership is a complex proposition. Wanting to serve is probably the most important first step, but there are never simple answers or quick fixes along the challenging road to making a sustainable difference. A group of talented students from 30 different countries and very diverse socioeconomic backgrounds understand this better since they got the chance to sharpen their perspectives and broaden their leadership skills this year. Hand picked from hundreds of applicants by a prestigious international panel of judges, including Monica Seles, Brandon Short, Sir Jeremy Greenstock, Ambassador Mitra Vasisht, and HRH Prince Rashid el Hassan, these young people won the opportunity to attend the elite ICL Academy (Institute of Civic Leadership — think Hogwart’s for Civic Leadership). The Academy stands high on a hill surrounded by the world’s largest temperate rain forest, footsteps away from Lake Shawnigan on the magical island of Vancouver in British Columbia.
Finding your passion changes everything. The mission of ICL is to inspire students through other people’s passions and journeys, teach them how to relate it back to their own lives and passions, and equip them with the leadership skills that enable them to take action so that they can make a positive difference when they return home to their schools and communities.
Lucky me! I got the chance to connect with a sample of these talented 15 to 18 year old graduates (i.e. future leaders) after they returned home, to find out more about them and the outcomes of this once in a lifetime summer experience.
First up, I should mention their real-life role models. They include leaders such as Barack Obama “for his tolerance, acceptance and open mindedness to other countries and cultures,” and Oprah Winfrey “for her hard work to become an independent woman and her strong passion to help disadvantaged young women around the world.” Then there are fans of Ban Ki Moon “for his ability to remain neutral while leading the world’s efforts to combat war, disease and human rights violations,” and Wyclef Jean “for his continuing passion to give back to his country by providing educational scholarships as well as raising environmental awareness.” Last but not least in my survey was the popular co-founder of ICL, Kirk Spahn, “for his incredible ability to connect with people on a very deep level.”
Finding your passion changes everything.The ICL teaches global youth leaders dedicated to service.
So, just how effective was their training program? If the ICL program is just a beginning, how might these young adults respond to “How are you a leader? How have you made a difference?” several months after graduation?
“I am (currently) setting up a compost heap at my school,” Julia Masselos (London, England) explains. “I’ve educated and encouraged students, cafeteria staff and chefs to compost any peelings or leftovers from lunch.” The compost will be used to fertilize the rose garden at school or be donated to local farmers so they don’t have to use chemical products.”
Daniel Rodriquez (Oxnard, California) explains the program taught him how to work better with others and motivate them to work better with him. “Along with a fellow I met at ICL,” he says, “we developed plans to go to nearby schools to give gang violence and gang prevention presentations to inspire students through education to take action with us on the issue.”
Zeinab Al-Mohanawy (formally Lebanon now Seattle, Washington) tells me she is in the process of “creating a leadership course for at risk and underprivileged young girls who come from disadvantaged neighborhoods to have the opportunity to change the way they look at things in this world through hands on leadership lessons and activities.”
Dylan Sparks (Johannesberg, South Africa) says that for the first time in his life he asked himself what his morals were and what he is willing to stand up for. In terms of how he is using lessons learned at the Academy, he explains, “I have created personal and academic goals for myself. Giving yourself something to aim for not only gives you a clearer idea of where you are going and what you want to do, but it also motivates you,” he says. “Then you work to create steps that will help you get there!”
Savannah Swann (Vancouver Island, British Columbia) says, “I learned effective ways to convey my ideas, despite my quiet nature, in such a way that engages others to see the value in my passions. Education of youth is vital to the global community. I plan to use the new presentation skills I learned to help me convey my interests and ideas with complete confidence.”
“I have learned to be a balanced leader,” says Taji Phillips (Brooklyn, New York), “to be able to humble myself and express understanding towards others, but also to acknowledge the power and responsibility I’ve been granted for the benefit of those who rely on me. I encourage my peers not to wait to do the things they want. If they want to raise money to plant trees in Central Park, DO IT; if you want to clean the beach, DO IT; if you want to reduce homelessness in NYC, DO IT. You are not alone. I will help you!”
“I believe perseverance, patience, tolerance and generosity form the base of a true leader,” says Daniela Pfeffer (Montevideo, Uruguay). ”These were without question the most inspiring and motivating weeks in my entire life. The range of cultural diversity was huge. It has made me a richer person. The network we formed will last forever and we will make great changes if we work together.”
So what can Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Ban Ki Moon, Wyclef Jean, Kirk Spahn, and indeed, all of us learn about leadership from these young adults? Well naturally, I have calls into all of their role models to ask, but while I wait to hear back, let me just share Kirk Spahn’s response to my question:
“I learned the most about myself through the students in the leadership program. Their passionate enthusiasm and unstoppable drive was contagious. I was so reinvigorated, so inspired by their personal stories, their journeys, as well as their constant idealism and optimism. So many of them have persevered through so much in their lives already, and overcome tremendous adversity, but they don’t even realize it. It is remarkable that they want to continue dedicating themselves to helping others.”
C. M. Rubin with (back row l to r) Zeinab, Daniel, Daniela;(bottom row l to r) Taji, Dylan, Savannah, Julia
For more information on the Institute for Civic Leadership, founded at the Dwight School in Manhattan, visit www.iclny.org
C.M. Rubin has more than two decades of professional experience in development, marketing, and art direction for a diverse range of media businesses. She is also the author of three bestselling books, including The Real Alice In Wonderland.
Follow C. M. Rubin on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@cmrubinworld
The Global Search for Education
Dwight teacher Paul Sanders and student learn Mandarin in Beijing
How to Develop World Leaders
By C. M. Rubin with Harry Rubin and Michael Freeborn
“I don’t speak a foreign language. It’s embarrassing,” said President Obama recently.
It is embarrassing, Mr. President, but it does not surprise me. You did not grow up like I did. Five different overseas schools and numerous cultures before I was 12, and then an international boarding school. My parents (with six children) were following a pay check and a conviction that world travel would give us a better life and make us global citizens with a richer appreciation of all humanity (my father made us study the language of every country we visited, because not to speak the language of your host country was quite frankly, uneducated!). So, now you’re wondering, can I produce a copy of my birth certificate? Yes, but while it will tell you that I am a British Citizen born in Georgetown, Guyana, my husband will tell you, “She’s a multi-national with an international rolodex to be envied.”
Some people talk about preparing children for the global world, others just do it, like my parents. And like Stephen Spahn, Chancellor of the Dwight School in New York City, who has established affiliate Dwight campuses in London, Vancouver Island, and Beijing, where Dwight has a joint diploma program with China’s Capital Normal High School (CNHS), a leading provincial high school. As an International Baccalaureate leader, Spahn’s vision is to educate students to make a difference nationally and internationally. Plans are currently underway for a South Korean Dwight school launch in 2012.
“The Chinese government valued Chancellor Spahn’s international mindedness, cultural sensitivity and expertise,” explains Dianne Drew, Principal of Dwight School in New York City and Project Manager of the school in China. “They also wished to improve admissions of Chinese students to American colleges, which the Chinese consider the best universities in the world.”
Mandarin study at Dwight in New York starts as a core subject from pre-school onwards with more intensive classes available from Grades 8 -12. Other curriculum offerings include Asian cultural and history studies. Each student who participates in the program in China receives a diploma based on concurrent study of a full Chinese National Curriculum and a U.S. AP curriculum. The Dwight college guidance and admissions team assists Chinese students in their application process to American colleges.
I had the pleasure of speaking further with Chancellor Spahn about his roadmap to develop world leaders.
What is your global vision?
Our global vision, as an International Baccalaureate leader, is to build strong relationships between cultures around the world. We want to educationally integrate our campuses in New York, London, Beijing, Vancouver Island, and Seoul in 2012. Our personalized learning approach ignites a spark of genius in every student through a multi-grade mentoring system. We are expanding opportunities for all students and teachers to experience other cultures. Each individual country campus has unique strengths that can be shared with students at the other schools. For example, Korean and New York students will be equipped with the latest digital technology; the campus on Vancouver Island in Canada is a model of environmental sustainability (one-third of the faculty are organic farmers); the London and New York performing arts programs are equivalent to first-year college programs.
What were the challenges in founding the first American high school in China?
The first challenge was to build trust between our schools. When we started in 2007, Chinese students were almost exclusively exam-focused. We had to teach them that learning does not end with an AP exam but that it is an ongoing lifelong process. We thought that the Chinese would have a strict censorship policy. However, we discovered that all of the literary works we taught in New York were able to be taught in Beijing. We have successfully met the challenge of educating Chinese parents on the full spectrum of American universities available to their children. Sixty students are about to receive both a Dwight and a CNHS Diploma. Our first graduation will be held on June 10. All graduating Chinese students have been admitted to leading American Universities.
What are your next steps relating to China?
Our relationship with our school in China will continue to foster international mindedness amongst our students and faculty. Over the last three years, we have had teacher exchange opportunities where we have shared best teaching and learning practices. Our students have travelled to Capital Normal, and this summer we will send six students and one teacher to Beijing for a summer camp opportunity; they will live with CNHS families as guests of the Beijing government. Our program has been a steep but enriching learning curve for both schools. We are moving towards strengthening our ties even further as we make a joint application for the Confucius classroom program run by the Chinese government to promote language and cultural studies. We have been proud to be an instrumental part of preparing Chinese students for Western education models and for their eventual acceptance into North American colleges and universities. We equally want our students to be open to exploring China’s university education and rich culture by having more exchange opportunities in Beijing. We recognize that global sensitivity and expertise will be crucial for future success and for developing world leaders.
Dwight South Korean school project 2012
Why South Korea 2012?
Korea is a significant player in the Asian community from an educational and economic standpoint. Dwight was selected from a review of over 100 leading schools around the world to be the International Baccalaureate model for the Korean educational system. 540 students, grades K-12, will be enrolled starting September 2012. We will also act as the regional center for all the IB schools in Korea. The Dwight International School Seoul is being built by the Seoul municipal government. With the opening of the new campus in September 2012, the school in Seoul will offer training programs for IB teachers and will be the center to share IB best practices with interested Korean schools.
World Wisdom – An excerpt borrowed from Chancellor Spahn’s Chinese graduation speech:
“School is a place that is built on dreams. Dreams where each individual is encouraged to blaze a path where none existed. School is a place that is never stuck in the past, but always honors tradition. It is a place that embraces innovation with all its different and difficult challenges. It is a place that honors teamwork and comradeship, but still guides every individual through his or her own unique path. Dare to dream – to have the courage to take risks – to be a person of action – to make service count – to fill every unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run – to acknowledge we only have 24 hours in any day and we should use them in ways that make us proud and nurture our spark of genius, to build a better world.”
In The Global Search for Education, join C.M. Rubin and globally renowned thought leaders including Sir Michael Barber (UK), Dr. Leon Botstein (US), Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond (US), Dr. Madhav Chavan (India), Professor Michael Fullan (Canada), Professor Howard Gardner (US), Professor Yvonne Hellman (The Netherlands), Professor Kristin Helstad (Norway), Professor Rose Hipkins (New Zealand), Professor Cornelia Hoogland (Canada), Mme. Chantal Kaufmann (Belgium), Professor Dominique Lafontaine (Belgium), Professor Hugh Lauder (UK), Professor Ben Levin (Canada), Professor Barry McGaw (Australia), Sridhar Rajagopalan (India), Sir Ken Robinson (UK), Professor Pasi Sahlberg (Finland), Andreas Schleicher (PISA, OECD), Dr. David Shaffer (US), Chancellor Stephen Spahn (US), Yves Theze (Lycee Francais US), Professor Charles Ungerleider (Canada), Professor Tony Wagner (US), Professor Dylan Wiliam (UK), Professor Theo Wubbels (The Netherlands), Professor Michael Young (UK), and Professor Minxuan Zhang (China) as they explore the big picture education questions that all nations face today.
Chancellor Stephen Spahn Graduation Speech
The Global Search for Education Community Page
C.M. Rubin has more than two decades of professional experience in development, marketing, and art direction for a diverse range of media businesses. She is also the author of three bestselling books, including The Real Alice In Wonderland.
Follow C. M. Rubin on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@cmrubinworld
