今天GJXX小編搜羅了廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校怎么樣?在實(shí)踐式教學(xué)中培養(yǎng)創(chuàng)新型人才希望給擇校的家長(zhǎng)們提供參考。

創(chuàng)新是引領(lǐng)發(fā)展的第一動(dòng)力，培養(yǎng)創(chuàng)新性人才是我國(guó)教育的重要使命。如何培養(yǎng)適應(yīng)時(shí)代發(fā)展和變革的創(chuàng)新性人才？是我國(guó)當(dāng)今國(guó)際化教育發(fā)展中面臨的重要挑戰(zhàn)。廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校怎么樣？

為進(jìn)一步了解國(guó)際學(xué)校人才培養(yǎng)模式，深度挖掘國(guó)際學(xué)校辦學(xué)特色，由教育部主管的中國(guó)教育國(guó)際交流協(xié)會(huì)中學(xué)分會(huì)與京領(lǐng)創(chuàng)新人才課題組聯(lián)合多位哈佛、劍橋、牛津、北大、清華的專家學(xué)者共同發(fā)起，北京大學(xué)教育學(xué)院高中教育大數(shù)據(jù)實(shí)驗(yàn)室提供學(xué)術(shù)支持的“國(guó)際學(xué)校百校調(diào)研”于2020年7月正式啟動(dòng)。

“校長(zhǎng)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)力”是此次調(diào)研的重點(diǎn)環(huán)節(jié)，國(guó)際學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)作為掌舵人不僅需要具備一系列超越普通教師能力的素質(zhì)，還需要具備強(qiáng)有力的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)力、品牌意識(shí)、創(chuàng)新意識(shí)以及優(yōu)質(zhì)教育教學(xué)人才的鑒別與吸引能力。

“校長(zhǎng)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)力”是學(xué)校辦學(xué)成功的關(guān)鍵所在，本次百校調(diào)研團(tuán)隊(duì)專門對(duì)廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科Bob Darwish校長(zhǎng)進(jìn)行了專訪。

學(xué)校介紹

亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科（Alcanta International College，以下簡(jiǎn)稱AIC）是獲得世界文憑組織（IBO）認(rèn)證的IB成員學(xué)校，IB學(xué)校編號(hào)006668。亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科是目前廣州唯一可以同時(shí)招收國(guó)際學(xué)生和中國(guó)學(xué)生的IB國(guó)際學(xué)校，國(guó)際學(xué)生占20%。AIC從2011年起開設(shè)IB國(guó)際文憑大學(xué)預(yù)科課程項(xiàng)目，至今已經(jīng)有九屆畢業(yè)生成功獲得IB國(guó)際文憑并考取心儀的大學(xué)。

學(xué)校硬件設(shè)施先進(jìn)，教學(xué)條件優(yōu)越，擁有獨(dú)立的教學(xué)樓、宿舍樓和綜合樓，配備了教室、實(shí)驗(yàn)室、創(chuàng)作室、藝術(shù)室、設(shè)計(jì)室、戲劇教室、多功能室、廚藝教室、音樂室、鋼琴室等，完全滿足IBDP國(guó)際文憑預(yù)科課程的教學(xué)需求。學(xué)校還擁有足球場(chǎng)、籃球場(chǎng)、網(wǎng)球場(chǎng)、健身房、瑜伽室等運(yùn)動(dòng)設(shè)施，以及餐廳、劇院、圖書館、超市、校醫(yī)室等配套設(shè)施，為學(xué)生創(chuàng)造了優(yōu)美的學(xué)習(xí)生活環(huán)境。學(xué)生公寓設(shè)計(jì)寬敞明亮，每層設(shè)置公共活動(dòng)室，每個(gè)房間均配有獨(dú)立衛(wèi)生間和淋浴間，提供空調(diào)、冷熱水和無(wú)線網(wǎng)絡(luò)，極致體現(xiàn)AIC以學(xué)生為中心的辦學(xué)理念。

嘉賓介紹

Bob Darwish

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科 執(zhí)行校長(zhǎng)

京領(lǐng)：您可以介紹一下廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校嗎？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校是亞加達(dá)教育集團(tuán)旗下的學(xué)校。

我們的教育集團(tuán)的三位創(chuàng)立者中的兩位曾就讀于曼徹斯特大學(xué)。他們是教育和商科背景出身，他們希望為中國(guó)學(xué)生打造一個(gè)讓他們擁有開闊視野，并能成為思想開放的終身學(xué)習(xí)者的教育平臺(tái)?；谶@些理想，他們?cè)诖蠹s25年前成立了亞加達(dá)教育集團(tuán)。

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科原在2011年成立于廣州市白云校區(qū)，于2017年因?qū)W校規(guī)模擴(kuò)大搬遷至南沙區(qū)。它是廣州第一所允許中國(guó)公民參加IB國(guó)際文憑項(xiàng)目的IB學(xué)校。國(guó)際文憑預(yù)備課程（IBDP）之前，我們?yōu)閷W(xué)生提供劍橋大學(xué)IGCSE項(xiàng)目。我們的學(xué)校通過(guò)了美國(guó)中部各州大學(xué)院校協(xié)會(huì)(MSA-CESS)認(rèn)證，這說(shuō)明了學(xué)校的課程符合美國(guó)教育標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，擁有高質(zhì)量的教學(xué)模式，硬件設(shè)施能很好地滿足課程的需要，以及除了提供高質(zhì)量的教育外，還擁有能夠照顧到學(xué)生幸福感的政策和管理模式。我們?cè)谀仙骋灿幸粋€(gè)雙語(yǔ)課程，招收學(xué)生參加愛德思IGCSE、愛德思A level和美國(guó)AP課程。

AIC還獲得了ENLP（教育學(xué)神經(jīng)語(yǔ)言程序?qū)W）的認(rèn)證。該計(jì)劃確保教師知道如何照顧每個(gè)學(xué)生，并確保每個(gè)學(xué)生的學(xué)習(xí)方式都是獨(dú)特和不同的。

京領(lǐng)：您可以介紹一下學(xué)校的愿景和使命嗎？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：我們的使命宣言包含三大部分。一是以中國(guó)文化為經(jīng)。二是以IB國(guó)際教育為緯，即讓我們的學(xué)生了解中國(guó)以外的國(guó)際世界，對(duì)不同觀點(diǎn)、不同信仰和對(duì)事物的不同理解保持開放的態(tài)度。我們不僅從中國(guó)文化中學(xué)習(xí)，也從其他文化中學(xué)習(xí)，這使學(xué)生能夠成為更開放的思想和終身學(xué)習(xí)者。第三是引領(lǐng)亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科AIC莘莘學(xué)子，跨入他們期盼的世界知名學(xué)府，成為有作為的世界公民。我們學(xué)校所有的工作都是為了達(dá)到這個(gè)三個(gè)使命宣言。

核心價(jià)值觀和學(xué)校目標(biāo)取決于學(xué)校的關(guān)鍵理念。一是以學(xué)生為中心——每位學(xué)生的價(jià)值都受到重視，每項(xiàng)決定都將學(xué)生的最大利益放在首位。我們使用IB課程的學(xué)習(xí)方法和教學(xué)方法來(lái)作為我們達(dá)到這個(gè)目標(biāo)的準(zhǔn)則。我們還關(guān)注環(huán)境的可持續(xù)發(fā)展，確保學(xué)生意識(shí)到這個(gè)世界是為他們而存在的。學(xué)校的所有學(xué)生每年都必須參與至少一個(gè)服務(wù)項(xiàng)目。學(xué)生們會(huì)去養(yǎng)老院，清潔海灘、山區(qū)、小學(xué)和學(xué)前班校區(qū)；我們還會(huì)去廣東境內(nèi)和一些鄰近省份的不同地方，提供持續(xù)的服務(wù)；我們學(xué)校服務(wù)項(xiàng)目之一是去養(yǎng)老院：我們的學(xué)生從長(zhǎng)者身上學(xué)到很多東西，并與他們分享許多新鮮的事物，他們一起唱歌、跳舞、玩游戲和做表演。

其他在二十一世紀(jì)社會(huì)中發(fā)揮重要作用的能力如創(chuàng)造力、批判性思維、協(xié)作學(xué)習(xí)和溝通，學(xué)校也非常重視。這四種能力被稱為21世紀(jì)教育的“4C”，我們希望學(xué)生能夠磨練這些技能，并在以后的大學(xué)生活中發(fā)揮好這些寶貴的品質(zhì)。

京領(lǐng)：您可以介紹一下學(xué)校的核心文化嗎？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：如果問(wèn)我們學(xué)校的學(xué)生或員工， AIC有哪些優(yōu)點(diǎn)？他們首先會(huì)回答 “關(guān)心”。在這個(gè)充滿愛心的社區(qū)里，我們希望給學(xué)生提供安全感，他們可以毫無(wú)顧慮地提出問(wèn)題以及分享他們的想法。照顧學(xué)生的心理、社會(huì)和個(gè)人健康是班主任工作的一個(gè)重要部分。

我們鼓勵(lì)“卓越”和“激情”這兩點(diǎn)，這兩點(diǎn)可以讓孩子們?cè)谒兴麄兯龊退P(guān)心的事情上發(fā)揮潛能。我們提倡的口號(hào)是“只做到OKAY是不夠的”。所有的學(xué)生和老師都要盡最大努力超越自己的潛力，踐行終身學(xué)習(xí)以及實(shí)踐使人進(jìn)步的理念。學(xué)生和老師們不會(huì)說(shuō)自己什么都知道，總是有學(xué)習(xí)和進(jìn)步的空間的，這就是我們?cè)趯W(xué)校努力推廣的基本內(nèi)容之一。

此外，我們也相當(dāng)重視利用我們的社區(qū)作為一種資源。孩子們不僅在教室里學(xué)習(xí)，和與其他人互動(dòng)、溝通的過(guò)程中，甚至在觀察欣賞周圍的環(huán)境中都能學(xué)習(xí)。

我們有中國(guó)學(xué)生和來(lái)自許多其他國(guó)家的學(xué)生。他們都在一個(gè)小社區(qū)里，當(dāng)他們?cè)诩瘯?huì)或課堂上時(shí)，互相傾聽，分享彼此的文化。我們的每個(gè)學(xué)生集會(huì)都是中西元素相互交融的，不同文化背景的孩子相互展示才藝和分享新聞。

歸根結(jié)底，我們希望我們的學(xué)生的發(fā)展是平衡的。我們希望學(xué)生既熱愛祖國(guó)又能欣賞他國(guó)文化；我們希望學(xué)生從書本、從人、從整個(gè)社區(qū)中學(xué)習(xí)；我們希望學(xué)生既飽含激情嘗試新事物又能承擔(dān)風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，迎接失敗，并找到方法從中學(xué)習(xí)。經(jīng)過(guò)多年在AIC的學(xué)習(xí)，我們希望學(xué)生有了充足的準(zhǔn)備進(jìn)入大學(xué)和社會(huì)，成為一個(gè)更加優(yōu)秀的人。

京領(lǐng)：學(xué)校的學(xué)生和老師背景非常多元，請(qǐng)問(wèn)學(xué)校是如何進(jìn)行管理的？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：學(xué)校的文化因其組成人員的多樣化而呈現(xiàn)出多元的。同時(shí)我們的行事與學(xué)習(xí)方式也是多元的。我們相信學(xué)習(xí)是在不同的環(huán)境下進(jìn)行的，可以采取不同的形式。

我們也相信一個(gè)問(wèn)題不一定有唯一的正確答案。我們讓學(xué)生超越文本進(jìn)行思考，找出解決問(wèn)題的其他方式，或提出不同的想法，或欣賞另一種角度的觀點(diǎn)。

當(dāng)我們雇用教師時(shí)，我們?cè)噲D盡可能多地雇用不同的人。我們目標(biāo)是打造一個(gè)多元化的社區(qū)，以便我們的學(xué)生盡可能多地從不同的人、不同的風(fēng)格中學(xué)習(xí)，這樣他們就能更好地欣賞學(xué)習(xí)的多樣性。

京領(lǐng)：目前為止學(xué)校最大的變化是什么？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：最大的變化是就是由于疫情，一些外教和學(xué)生無(wú)法返回校園。我們更加關(guān)注學(xué)生的幸福感，因?yàn)樗麄儸F(xiàn)在沒有兩年前自由，比如不戴口罩在校園里走動(dòng)或者在周末和朋友見面等等。

學(xué)術(shù)上最大的變化是引入了ENLP，它的重點(diǎn)有5個(gè)要素，我們稱之為ENLP的ABCDE。

A代表主動(dòng)學(xué)習(xí)——所有的學(xué)習(xí)都必須是主動(dòng)的，學(xué)生和工作人員都參與到課堂上發(fā)生的事情中。學(xué)習(xí)必須超越僅僅是聽講的范圍。

B代表基于大腦的學(xué)習(xí)——這要求員工和學(xué)生了解大腦和學(xué)習(xí)之間的關(guān)系（也就是要關(guān)注學(xué)習(xí)風(fēng)格、個(gè)性、注意力等）。

C是指輔導(dǎo)和合作——合作是指共同完成項(xiàng)目、討論等，以確保學(xué)生學(xué)會(huì)與他人合作；輔導(dǎo)要求教師和班主任與學(xué)生一起努力實(shí)現(xiàn)他們的目標(biāo)，并定期檢查學(xué)生是否行進(jìn)在這些目標(biāo)的過(guò)程當(dāng)中。

D是指數(shù)字化——確保學(xué)校能夠在教學(xué)中使用數(shù)字技術(shù)，并在此過(guò)程中讓學(xué)生學(xué)會(huì)使用這些工具來(lái)幫助他們學(xué)習(xí)。

E是指情商——雖然智商很重要，但學(xué)生的情商也不可缺失；這需要學(xué)習(xí)如何與人打交道，如何快速掌握情況和社會(huì)線索，以及了解自己的情緒和管理個(gè)人情感，等等。

京領(lǐng)：在您看來(lái)，學(xué)校最引以為豪的方面是什么？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：學(xué)校最引以為豪的就是我們的學(xué)生，因?yàn)槲覀兒芏鄬W(xué)生來(lái)自中國(guó)的公立學(xué)校，沒有國(guó)際學(xué)校的背景。但他們后來(lái)都獲得了很多成就，不僅融入于我們的社區(qū)中，還完成了IBDP課程，進(jìn)入了世界知名的大學(xué)，最后從大學(xué)畢業(yè)，找到了他們一生熱愛的工作，比如經(jīng)營(yíng)自己的公司或者在谷歌、普華永道這樣世界500強(qiáng)企業(yè)工作。

從研究能力到備考，從時(shí)間管理到自我管理，我們都確保學(xué)生們能夠掌握這些為人生旅程做準(zhǔn)備的技能。我們幫助學(xué)生成為身心健康、終身學(xué)習(xí)的世界公民。

今年，我們已經(jīng)收到了許多頂尖大學(xué)的錄取通知，如UCL、KCL、多倫多大學(xué)、麥吉爾大學(xué)、不列顛哥倫比亞大學(xué)、墨爾本大學(xué)、香港大學(xué)（2個(gè)全額獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金）、新加坡國(guó)立大學(xué)、美國(guó)排名前20的大學(xué)以及全球排名前50的大學(xué)。

京領(lǐng)：請(qǐng)您談?wù)剬W(xué)校的管理經(jīng)驗(yàn)，以及作為學(xué)校的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)，您認(rèn)為校長(zhǎng)的責(zé)任是什么？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者是給他人賦權(quán)的人。因此，我們努力增強(qiáng)我們的員工和學(xué)生的能力。這就是為什么他們?nèi)〉媒裉斓某煽?jī)，因?yàn)樗麄冏鍪聲r(shí)，可以擴(kuò)展自己界限，也被允許犯錯(cuò)誤。領(lǐng)導(dǎo)并不是告訴他們一定要做具體的事情，而是設(shè)定一個(gè)方向。所有的學(xué)生和員工都在每年年初設(shè)立了自己的目標(biāo)。我們的工作就是支持他們達(dá)到目標(biāo)并為自己的成就感到自豪。

此外，讓我們的社區(qū)看到學(xué)校的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)層至關(guān)重要。我們經(jīng)常走出辦公室，在校園里與學(xué)生和工作人員交談，走進(jìn)教室，看是不是所有的規(guī)則和規(guī)定都在有序執(zhí)行。因此，對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)，領(lǐng)導(dǎo)力意味著引導(dǎo)人們，監(jiān)督人們，以確保他們?cè)趯?shí)現(xiàn)目標(biāo)的過(guò)程中；以及如果遇到困難我們需要找出問(wèn)題并盡自己的努力來(lái)支持他們。

校長(zhǎng)的角色在領(lǐng)導(dǎo)層中非常重要。校長(zhǎng)需要成為榜樣，才能去要求別人。好的校長(zhǎng)會(huì)照顧好學(xué)校的員工，會(huì)為他們創(chuàng)造一個(gè)好的工作場(chǎng)所，會(huì)關(guān)注他們的幸福感。我們確保教職員工的工作和生活是平衡的，讓他們有足夠的時(shí)間陪伴家人也確保他們能為學(xué)生提供足夠的支持。校長(zhǎng)還要對(duì)學(xué)生和社區(qū)的安全負(fù)責(zé)。校長(zhǎng)在如今疫情的情況下的一項(xiàng)重要任務(wù)是檢查好學(xué)校安全與保障的各個(gè)方面，確保學(xué)生佩戴口罩、遵守規(guī)則，以及確保學(xué)校在防疫工作上遵循政府的政策和協(xié)議。

與家長(zhǎng)溝通并每周向他們提供孩子在學(xué)校的情況是我們要做的另一個(gè)重要方面。我們確保家長(zhǎng)了解校園內(nèi)發(fā)生的所有事情，以及讓他們知道學(xué)校各方面都在很好地照顧學(xué)生。家長(zhǎng)是學(xué)校的合作伙伴，確保公開及時(shí)地與家長(zhǎng)交流對(duì)幫助學(xué)生至關(guān)重要。

京領(lǐng)：與其他類型的學(xué)校相比，經(jīng)營(yíng)和管理一所國(guó)際學(xué)校最重要的事情是什么？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：在中國(guó)辦學(xué)最重要的是要了解中國(guó)的法律、法規(guī)等的最新情況。我們有一個(gè)專門的團(tuán)隊(duì)在關(guān)注這個(gè)問(wèn)題，以確保我們擁有所有需要的信息，并確保我們遵循法律規(guī)定的每一條規(guī)則。

第二，我認(rèn)為對(duì)于任何學(xué)校的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)來(lái)說(shuō)，確保學(xué)校社區(qū)尊重東道國(guó)的文化、國(guó)家的主權(quán)，尊重所有的規(guī)則和條例，也是非常重要的。

第三，學(xué)校必須告知家長(zhǎng)，在國(guó)際學(xué)校學(xué)習(xí)的中國(guó)學(xué)生將很難在中國(guó)大陸的大學(xué)攻讀本科課程。

京領(lǐng)：您認(rèn)為作為國(guó)際學(xué)校的校長(zhǎng)，在辦學(xué)過(guò)程中遇到了什么樣的挑戰(zhàn)？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：新冠疫情給許多學(xué)校都帶來(lái)了很大的挑戰(zhàn)。學(xué)校目前很難招到目前不在中國(guó)境內(nèi)的學(xué)生。這是最大的挑戰(zhàn)，因?yàn)檫@影響到了學(xué)校學(xué)生人數(shù)和社區(qū)多樣性。招聘員工也是一些學(xué)校面臨的主要挑戰(zhàn)，因?yàn)樵谥袊?guó)國(guó)內(nèi)，由于市場(chǎng)上缺乏合格的教師，學(xué)校之間競(jìng)爭(zhēng)非常激烈。很顯然的是現(xiàn)在國(guó)際學(xué)校必須支付比以前更多的工資來(lái)招聘員工，這樣的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)使得員工的工資和福利增加。

顯然，另一個(gè)挑戰(zhàn)是學(xué)生從中國(guó)學(xué)校過(guò)渡到國(guó)際學(xué)校的思維方式，對(duì)家長(zhǎng)來(lái)說(shuō)也是如此。來(lái)自中國(guó)學(xué)校的家長(zhǎng)與那些孩子一直在國(guó)際學(xué)校學(xué)習(xí)的家長(zhǎng)有著不同的期望。比如他們對(duì)家庭作業(yè)的概念可能僅限于課后完成的紙上作業(yè)，而教學(xué)僅限于在課堂上講課。

第三點(diǎn)是在疫情發(fā)生之前，我會(huì)定期與家長(zhǎng)見面，但現(xiàn)在由于有許多限制和風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，這樣的定期會(huì)面變得不那么容易。但隨著越來(lái)越多的人接種疫苗，我們遲早會(huì)克服這個(gè)問(wèn)題。

京領(lǐng)：您認(rèn)為應(yīng)該為學(xué)校提供什么樣的支持來(lái)克服這類挑戰(zhàn)？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：這很難說(shuō)，因?yàn)橐咔閹?lái)了大部分目前學(xué)校所面臨的挑戰(zhàn)。國(guó)家對(duì)于邊境的管控是處于人民安全的考量，所以我認(rèn)為地方和政府在確保人們的安全方面做得很好。同時(shí)，我們也有學(xué)生和教師已經(jīng)很久沒有回家了。這對(duì)我們所有人來(lái)說(shuō)都很困難，我們都期待著不必面對(duì)疫情壓力的時(shí)代能早日來(lái)臨。

在教師招聘方面，由于缺乏能教授像IBDP這樣項(xiàng)目的教師，市場(chǎng)競(jìng)爭(zhēng)非常激烈。在邊境管控重新放松之前，這對(duì)國(guó)際學(xué)校來(lái)說(shuō)也是一大挑戰(zhàn)。

我還認(rèn)為，京領(lǐng)這樣的機(jī)構(gòu)也許可以在指引家長(zhǎng)方面發(fā)揮很大作用，讓他們了解在國(guó)際學(xué)校就讀意味著什么，以及應(yīng)該有什么期待。為考試而教育學(xué)生的學(xué)校和為學(xué)生的大學(xué)生活以及未來(lái)做準(zhǔn)備的學(xué)校之間有很大的不同。我認(rèn)為很多家長(zhǎng)并不完全理解這兩者之間的區(qū)別，而京領(lǐng)這樣的平臺(tái)可以給家長(zhǎng)提供許多有價(jià)值的信息。

京領(lǐng)：在您看來(lái)，什么樣的學(xué)生可以稱為創(chuàng)新人才？學(xué)生應(yīng)該怎樣做才能成為創(chuàng)新人才？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：創(chuàng)新是人生成功的一大因素。創(chuàng)新并不一定意味著一定要在技術(shù)層面發(fā)明一件物品。創(chuàng)新與用創(chuàng)造性方法解決問(wèn)題息息相關(guān)。創(chuàng)新型人才能夠批判性地思考，可以看到所有可能性并找出許多解決問(wèn)題的方法。創(chuàng)新者并不追求問(wèn)題的唯一答案，而試圖去看看尚未探索的可能性。因此，創(chuàng)新人才通過(guò)從不同的角度思考不同的問(wèn)題來(lái)推動(dòng)思想的發(fā)展。

我們的老師不只是站在教室講課，他們還讓學(xué)生從不同角度探索所學(xué)知識(shí)。讓學(xué)生調(diào)動(dòng)自己的創(chuàng)造力和批判力是讓他們成為創(chuàng)新者的關(guān)鍵因素；而這正是我們的目標(biāo)，即讓我們的學(xué)生成為創(chuàng)新者。

京領(lǐng)：到目前為止，學(xué)校在培養(yǎng)創(chuàng)新人才方面有哪些做法？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：我們相信，學(xué)生不僅通過(guò)閱讀、記憶、傾聽來(lái)學(xué)習(xí)，還通過(guò)實(shí)踐來(lái)學(xué)習(xí)。動(dòng)手學(xué)習(xí)、項(xiàng)目式學(xué)習(xí)、實(shí)踐學(xué)習(xí)都可以培養(yǎng)學(xué)生的創(chuàng)新心態(tài)。例如，學(xué)生能通過(guò)做數(shù)學(xué)題來(lái)學(xué)數(shù)學(xué)，但如果他沒有看到題目背后的深層含義，就不能欣賞數(shù)學(xué)。我認(rèn)為這就是為什么學(xué)校要非常關(guān)注除了從教師那里獲得知識(shí)以外的項(xiàng)目式學(xué)習(xí)、合作學(xué)習(xí)、實(shí)踐學(xué)習(xí)等多維學(xué)習(xí)方式。

通過(guò)這種方式，學(xué)生才能把書本上學(xué)到的知識(shí)應(yīng)用到實(shí)際中并讓其在現(xiàn)實(shí)生活中發(fā)揮作用。例如，在商業(yè)管理課中，學(xué)生學(xué)習(xí)SWOT分析法，當(dāng)他們研究某家公司為什么做得這么好或?yàn)槭裁从袧摿r(shí)，他們可以把這些知識(shí)運(yùn)用起來(lái)。注重創(chuàng)新的學(xué)習(xí)有助于學(xué)生成為更好的批判性和創(chuàng)造性思維者。

京領(lǐng)：學(xué)校為學(xué)生提供了什么樣的資源來(lái)實(shí)現(xiàn)這個(gè)目標(biāo)，讓學(xué)生在校內(nèi)外更具創(chuàng)造性思維和批判性思維呢？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：我們?yōu)榻處熖峁I(yè)培訓(xùn)，以確保他們知道如何更好引導(dǎo)學(xué)生。擁有準(zhǔn)備充足的高素質(zhì)教師是學(xué)校工作的一個(gè)重要部分。

另一個(gè)方面是提供有利于學(xué)習(xí)的環(huán)境，有支持學(xué)生學(xué)習(xí)的資源。我們確保教室配備了學(xué)生需要的設(shè)施，以便能夠開展不同類型的學(xué)習(xí)。STEAM教室的整個(gè)房間的設(shè)置方式為學(xué)生提供了科學(xué)實(shí)驗(yàn)的平臺(tái)，藝術(shù)工作室的設(shè)計(jì)也允許學(xué)生有自己的空間來(lái)進(jìn)行自由探索。

我們還讓學(xué)生走出教室，走入社區(qū)。每年，我們學(xué)校的目標(biāo)之一是確保學(xué)校周圍的社區(qū)資源得到了充足利用。因此，所有老師都要帶學(xué)生到校外進(jìn)行學(xué)習(xí)活動(dòng)。例如，他們會(huì)去印刷廠，看印刷行業(yè)是如何運(yùn)作的；去3D打印博物館，親眼看看這項(xiàng)特殊技術(shù)甚至自己動(dòng)手進(jìn)行3D打印。讓學(xué)生有機(jī)會(huì)從現(xiàn)實(shí)生活中受到啟發(fā)，提出問(wèn)題，進(jìn)行探索，正是是我們激勵(lì)學(xué)生的方式。

另外，要提供充足的硬件設(shè)施來(lái)確保學(xué)生能使用不同的媒介進(jìn)行學(xué)習(xí)。例如，在CAS活動(dòng)中，學(xué)生們會(huì)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)地雷工藝、數(shù)字藝術(shù)、機(jī)器人等科技項(xiàng)目；同時(shí)也領(lǐng)導(dǎo)像設(shè)計(jì)、編程、創(chuàng)作等項(xiàng)目來(lái)提高彼此的能力。

而老師們則在一旁進(jìn)行監(jiān)督并與這些帶隊(duì)的學(xué)生一起工作，并向他們提問(wèn)：有哪些是已經(jīng)做到的，還有哪些沒有成功？下一次你會(huì)怎么做？你對(duì)這件事情的感受如何？學(xué)校的老師和其他所有人都是為了支持學(xué)生以及挖掘?qū)W生的潛力，是他們成為最好的自己。

京領(lǐng)：您認(rèn)為創(chuàng)新人才的培養(yǎng)與最終被大學(xué)錄取之間有什么關(guān)系，特別是對(duì)中國(guó)家長(zhǎng)來(lái)說(shuō)？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：學(xué)生實(shí)際參與到了項(xiàng)目中并感受到了自己的熱情，他們會(huì)擁有更多的動(dòng)力，因?yàn)樗麄兏宄约合胍裁匆约白约簩⑷绾芜_(dá)到目標(biāo)。我們的許多學(xué)生在他們的個(gè)人陳述中，以及在面試當(dāng)中都會(huì)用到這些實(shí)際的例子。

雖然我認(rèn)為學(xué)生在申請(qǐng)大學(xué)時(shí)，學(xué)術(shù)上的優(yōu)秀表現(xiàn)確實(shí)很重要，但大學(xué)也非常注重經(jīng)驗(yàn)以及學(xué)生對(duì)于研究領(lǐng)域的投入和激情。這也是我們的學(xué)生在申請(qǐng)時(shí)做得非常出色的一點(diǎn)。我們的學(xué)生被劍橋大學(xué)、倫敦大學(xué)、倫敦經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)院、多倫多大學(xué)、麥吉爾大學(xué)、塔夫茨大學(xué)這樣的名校錄取，以及在香港、韓國(guó)、加拿大和美國(guó)的學(xué)校都有全額獎(jiǎng)學(xué)金的原因就在于，我們的學(xué)生是創(chuàng)新者，他們?cè)谂行院蛣?chuàng)造性思維方面非常出色，并能以自己的方式傳達(dá)自己的熱情。

京領(lǐng)：在國(guó)際學(xué)校的市場(chǎng)競(jìng)爭(zhēng)十分激烈的情況下，貴校認(rèn)為將怎樣在激烈的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)中脫穎而出？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：優(yōu)秀的學(xué)校之所以能脫穎而出，是因?yàn)閷W(xué)校學(xué)生的優(yōu)秀表現(xiàn)和良好口碑。

另外，有京領(lǐng)這樣的平臺(tái)向家長(zhǎng)介紹學(xué)校，講述學(xué)校的故事，介紹學(xué)校的信息是非常棒的。這在中國(guó)，甚至在廣州都是一項(xiàng)大工程，如果沒有像京領(lǐng)團(tuán)隊(duì)這樣的專家，學(xué)校也就無(wú)法展示自己，這樣的平臺(tái)對(duì)于推廣學(xué)校品牌方面發(fā)揮著不可或缺的作用。

好的品牌團(tuán)隊(duì)會(huì)分析大數(shù)據(jù)并找出有利于學(xué)校的市場(chǎng)定位。我們的大部分學(xué)生和家長(zhǎng)都很喜歡學(xué)校溫暖的氛圍，以及學(xué)校對(duì)幸福感的注重，對(duì)學(xué)生的個(gè)性化支持，讓學(xué)生相信“只做到OK是遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)不夠的”。

京領(lǐng)：什么樣的學(xué)校在未來(lái)更受中國(guó)家長(zhǎng)的歡迎？他們尋求的是怎樣的學(xué)校？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：這個(gè)問(wèn)題一概而論可能并不準(zhǔn)確。根據(jù)我在這里9年的經(jīng)驗(yàn)可以說(shuō)，我們學(xué)校的大多數(shù)中國(guó)家長(zhǎng)關(guān)心的是他們的孩子在學(xué)校的幸福感和所能獲得的學(xué)術(shù)與實(shí)踐上的各種機(jī)會(huì)。家長(zhǎng)們關(guān)心學(xué)校是否能很好地照顧他們的孩子，與他們溝通，并成為他們孩子進(jìn)步的伙伴。

有些家長(zhǎng)喜歡那些能保證他們的孩子進(jìn)入頂尖大學(xué)的學(xué)校。我認(rèn)為教育質(zhì)量很重要，但與此同時(shí)，重要的是，學(xué)生不僅要被送到大學(xué)，而且要為這些大學(xué)和社區(qū)做好準(zhǔn)備，因?yàn)樗麄儗⒃谖磥?lái)3-6年內(nèi)沒有父母的陪伴下生活。

我們希望我們的學(xué)生能在人群中脫穎而出。我們希望他們能夠有效地溝通、計(jì)劃、領(lǐng)導(dǎo)、組織和管理自己的學(xué)習(xí)、生活和周圍的社區(qū)。我們向孩子們灌輸關(guān)懷、熱情和成為一個(gè)平衡的終身學(xué)習(xí)者的態(tài)度。

京領(lǐng)：在當(dāng)前數(shù)字化和人工智能快速發(fā)展的情況下，如何把握國(guó)際學(xué)校和雙語(yǔ)學(xué)校的未來(lái)發(fā)展方向？以及如何在未來(lái)更好的發(fā)展？

廣州亞加達(dá)國(guó)際預(yù)科學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)Bob Darwish：我們可能無(wú)法預(yù)計(jì)到10年、15年后的生活會(huì)是什么樣子，哪些工作還會(huì)有，哪些工作會(huì)被人工智能所取代。如果我們要讓我們的學(xué)生為未知的世界做好準(zhǔn)備，創(chuàng)造力和人際交往能力是必不可少的。機(jī)器將能夠完成所有需要計(jì)算的工作，自動(dòng)駕駛汽車將使出租車司機(jī)變得多余，機(jī)器人也能做家務(wù)。那么，人類的工作是什么？我認(rèn)為將是任何涉及創(chuàng)造力、個(gè)人魅力、情商等的工作。

因此，為學(xué)生準(zhǔn)備好21世紀(jì)的技能，也就是21世紀(jì)的四個(gè)C：溝通、協(xié)作、創(chuàng)造力和批判性思是非常必要的，這些學(xué)生將不害怕挑戰(zhàn)，面對(duì)任何挑戰(zhàn)都將有勝利的決心。

English Version

KingLead: Could you please introduce me about the history of AIC?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: Alcanta International College is operated by Alcanta Education Group, based in Guangzhou. We have a private Chinese school in Baiyun, and our International School, called Alcanta International College, is based in Nansha, Guangzhou.  Our education group was originally set up by three owners, two of whom studied at the University of Manchester. With background in Education and Business, they wanted to provide young Chinese students a forum where they could broaden their horizons and learn to be open-minded, life-long learners. Based on these ideals, Alcanta Education Group was formed about 25 years ago.

Our campus started 11 years ago in 2011 in its Baiyun campus and moved to Nansha in 2017 because we grew too big for the space we were in. It was the first IB school in Guangzhou that allowed Chinese nationals to be enrolled in the IB Diploma program. For our pre-diploma program we use the Cambridge IGCSE program. Our school is accredited by the Middle States Association of Schools and Colleges (MSA-CESS), the oldest American accreditation granting agency which basically says that the school’s programs meet standards for education, quality of teaching and learning, facilities that cater to the programs well and have policies and governance that cater to the well-being of students in addition to providing quality education. We also have a bilingual program on-site in Nansha, enrolling students in the Edexcel IGCSE, Edexcel A level, and the American AP program.

AIC also have accreditation from ENLP which stands Educational Neural Linguistic Programming. The program ensures that teachers know how to cater to each student, and know that each student is unique and different in the way they learn.

KingLead: Could you tell us how do you understand the mission and vision of the school?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: Our mission statement has three big elements. One is making sure that whatever we do is grounded in Chinese culture. The second element is international mindedness, which is making sure that our students understand that there's a world outside of China as well, where people may have different views, different beliefs, and different understandings of things around them. We do not only learn from the Chinese culture but also from other cultures. This enables students to become more open-minded and lifelong learners. The third part of our mission statement is to make sure that our students end up in universities of their choice. The school team works hard to ensure that we uphold the three elements of our mission.

Core values and school goals depend on some key elements of the school’s philosophy. One is student-centered education. All decisions that we make sure that they promote students’ learning and well-being. We use the IB approaches to learning and approaches to teaching as principles for these.

We also talk about environmental sustainability, making sure that students are aware that this world is here for them, and they do everything possible to protect it and be involve in their community, including looking at environmental sustainability project, like gardening, cleaning the neighboring beaches, mountain, and the school’s community; this helps with global citizenship and so on.

All students at the school have to be involved in at least one service project each year. We go to elderly homes, clean beaches, mountains, primary and preschool. We go to different places within Guangdong and some neighboring provinces to provide sustainable service. One of the important service projects that we do is going to the elderly homes. Our students learn a great deal from their elders and share many new things with them; they sing, dance, play games and do performances.

Other principles that relate to the 21st century, such as creativity, critical thinking, collaborative learning, and communication are also essential to the school. These are known as the 4C’s of 21st century education and we want our students to hone these skills and be prepared to function well in their universities and communities that they move to after graduation.  

Those are some main principles of our education that are really important to us. I think education is not only for today but also for the future, so it is important for school to have this view of the future in mind when they work on their education programs.

KingLead: So could you introduce us about the culture of your school ?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: If you ask our students or staff what are some of the things that stand out about you school, they would probably say “care” would be number one. We have a very caring community. We want students to feel that they're in a safe place where they can ask questions and share their ideas without a worry. We look after their mental, social and personal well-being, and this is an important part of our homeroom teachers’ job. 

We encourage excellence and passions so that they can achieve their potential in all the things that they do, and they care about.  

We want all of our students to learn English, so we encourage them to practice speaking English as much as possible, but also, we also promote practicing their mother tongues outside of the academic building. If they are in the canteen, soccer pitch, or outside, they can still speak in Chinese, Cantonese, Russian, or in whatever language they are comfortable speaking.

All students have to learn Chinese as well in our school.

We promote our slogan “Okay is not good enough”. All students and teachers have to do their best to exceed their potentials, never stop learning, the idea that practice makes people better. You never say that you know everything; there's always room for learning and growth... and that's one of the fundamental things that we try to promote in our school.

Also, we care quite a lot about using our community as a resource. Learning does not happen just within the classroom; learning happens outside in interacting with other people, listening to other people, and even observing the surroundings, appreciating the nature around us, so on.

We have Chinese students and students from many other countries. They're all in a little community listening to each other, sharing about their cultures when they are in the assemblies or the classrooms. Each of our student assemblies has a Chinese culture element and a foreign culture element, talents they have, sharing of news and so on.

Ultimately, we want our students to be balanced. We want to learn to love their country, at the same time to learn from others and to appreciate other cultures. We want to learn from books, from people, from their community. We want them to have hobbies and passions, to try new things, to take risks, to fail and to find ways to learn from these to be even better as they move through years and prepare for their universities and life beyond school.

KingLead: The school is very diverse, especially in the population, so how does your school manage all this?  

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC:  The culture of the school is diverse as evident by its diverse population. We are also diverse in the way we do things, in the way we learn. We believe learning takes places in various setting and can take different forms. When students first join our school, especially from Chinese schools, it is not easy for them to immerse into our community and programs. It takes time for them to learn what it means to be in an international school. For example, their understanding of homeroom is something to be completed on a piece of paper. We think homework is a lot more than simply completing task assigned. Homework can also be to review the work already done in classes, to over notes, to revise for tests, to observe and experiment with different ideas, etc.

We also believe that there is not always one right answer. We get students to think beyond just what they have read, to figure out other ways of solving problems or proposing different ideas or appreciating another perspective.

When we hire our teachers, we try to hire as many diverse people as we can; we don't just hire Americans or Canadians or Australians, we try to diversify. Our goal is to make sure that we have a very diverse community so that our students learn from as many different people, styles as possible so that they have a better appreciation of diversity in learning.

KingLead: What's the most important change since the beginning of establishing of the school by far?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: The biggest change has been the fact that we have not been able to have all of our students on campus due to Covid-19 and some teachers who could not return due to border closures. We are placing even more focus on student well-being, now that they do not have all the freedoms they had 2 years ago, such as walking around the campus without their masks, seeing their friends on the weekends, and so on.

The bigger academic change has been the introduction of ENLP with a focus on 5 elements: which we call the ABCDE of ENLP.

A stands for Active learning- all learning has to be active where students and staff are all engaged in what is happening in the classroom. Learning must be more than just listening to a lecture.  

B is for Brain-based- requires staff and students to know the relationship between the brain and learning (focus on learning styles, personalities, attention span, etc.). 

C is about Coaching and Collaboration- collaborative projects, discussions and so on are planned to ensure students learning to work with others; coaching requires teachers / homeroom teachers to work with students on their goals and check regularly (checkpoints) that they are on course to attaining those goals.

D refers to Digitalization- making sure that we use digital technologies and in so doing involve and train students in learning tools that will promote further learning.

E is about Emotional Intelligence- while IQ is important, it is also important for students to be emotionally intelligent; this requires learning about various working with people, the ability to understand situations and social cues, knowing emotions and managing personal feelings, emotions, etc.

KingLead: What's the proudest aspect of your school?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: We're proud of our students because quite a lot of our students come from Chinese schools, with no international school background. They go on to achieve such great things, from not only immersing into our community, but also completing their IBDP, going to some amazing universities, and finally graduating from universities and getting jobs that they are passionate about, like running their own businesses, working for fortunate 500 companies, like Google, PWC, etc.

Education is a journey, and we believe our school is an important stop within that journey.  We work diligently to prepare them for the next phase (university) and their life. So, when the students go through and achieve excellent results in studies and in life, naturally we feel very proud. We make sure our students are equipped with skills that help them throughout this journey, from research skills to how to prepare for tests and exams, and from time-management to self-manage skills, etc. We help them become well-balanced, citizens of the world who are lifelong learners.

For this year, we have already received many excellent offers from top  universities, such as UCL, KCL, University of Toronto, McGill, University of British Columbia, University of Melbourne, University of Hong Kong (2 full scholarships), National University of Singapore, top 20 universities in the US and many more ranked within top 50 worldwide.

KingLead: Could you tell us the experience of management of the school and as a leader of the school, what do you think about the responsibility of a principal?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC:  Leaders are people who empower others. So, we try to empower our staff and empower our students. That's why they achieve, they do so well because they can stretch their boundaries, they can made mistakes. We're not telling them to do this and to do that. We set a direction. Let me explain this using an analogy. If I want to go to the Canton Tower, I chart my course, draw a map, use GPS or make a mental map, and I head out to get there.

Now, imagine if you leave your home not knowing where you are going, and in spite of the fact that you are in the best car in the world, you will end of running out of gas and get stranded. So, for us, it is essential to know where we're going. We set our goals right at the beginning of the year. All students have a goal, and all staff have a goal to achieve. Our job is to support them to get there and be proud of this achievement.

It is also important for leadership to be visible. We are often outside of our offices, checking on our community members, talking to students and staff, going into the classroom, making sure that the standard we have set is followed. So, to me, leadership is more about mentoring people and monitoring them to make sure that they are on course to achieve their goals. If not, why not and what support they need or what can be done to support them. 

The role of the school head is very important in leading. They need to be role models as much as they ask others to be. For example, I make sure I am in meetings before others, that I am ready with all my material. It would not make sense, and no one would follow me, if I did not do what I told others to do.

Good school heads look after their staff. They create a happy workplace. They look after their well-being. We make sure that staff are balanced, that they have enough time for their families. This is important for schools, but also at the same time making sure the students are provided with all the support they need.

Schools head are also responsible for safety of the students and the community.  Looking at all aspects of the school safety and safeguarding nowadays with the COVID, making sure students wear masks, that they follow the safety measures and that the school is following government policies and protocol in these regards is another important task.

Communicating with parents and providing them with weekly progress reports is another aspect of our school that is important. We make sure that our parents are aware of what is happening on campus, that they know that we are taking good care of their children and preparing them for their further studies and life, and that if something is not going right, and what we're doing about it. Parents are our partners in the education of their children and nothing is more important that open and frequent communication that is helpful in supporting our students.

KingLead: Comparing with running other type of schools, what is the most important thing to run and manage an international school?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: The most important thing for running a school in China would be to be up to date with the Chinese law, regulations, etc. We have a team of people who are looking at this constantly to make sure that we have all the information we need and that we follow every single rule as it is stated in the law.

I think it is also really important for any school leader to make sure the school community respects the host culture, the sovereignty of the nation, and that it respects all the rules and regulations. School heads must know these and train their staff. Making sure that you have the right textbooks and resources, and that you have a committee that checks them for political correctness.

Thirdly, it is important that the school informs parents that Chinese students studying in the international schools will find it difficult to study for their undergraduate programs within the mainland.  

KingLead: What kind of challenges do you think for a principal of an international school have encountered in the school running process so far?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: COVID-19 brought quite a lot of challenges to a lot of schools. You cannot recruit teachers and students who are not within China presently. That would be the biggest challenge because it affects your student numbers and the diversity that you want in your community. Recruitment of staff is also a major challenge for a number of schools because of the stiff competition within China due to lack of qualified teachers available in the market. Obviously, you have to pay more than you used to recruit staff now than before. It doesn't help but the competition has increased staff salaries and benefits.

And obviously, another challenge is the transition of students from a Chinese school mindset into an international school mindset, the same thing for the parents as well. Chinese parents who are coming from Chinese schools have different expectations to those who have studied in international schools all along. Their concept of homework may be something to write on a piece of paper, or teaching to be just lecturing, for example. Before Covid-19 I would meet with parents regularly, but now due to many restrictions and risk, it is not as easy. This is another challenge but one which we will overcome sooner than later as more and more people get vaccinated.

KingLead: What kind of supports do you think should be provided for schools to overcome these kind of challenges?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: It's difficult to say, because we the pandemic is more responsible for some of the challenges that schools are facing. National policy with regards to the closure of borders is mainly for public well-being reasons, so I think the local and federal government is doing a fabulous job of making sure that people are safe. At the same time, we have students and teachers who have been away from their families. It has been difficult for all of us. I think we're all looking forward to being in a time when we don't have to stress this much about COVID.

And then, in terms of teacher recruitment, the market is very competitive due to lack of qualified teachers for programs like the IBDP. Until borders reopen, this will be a big a challenge for a number of schools.

I also think companies like yours could probably play a big role in educating parents about what it means to be in an international school and what to expect. There is a big different between schools that train students for exams and those that prepare them for university studies and beyond. I think a lot of parents don't quite understand the difference between those and companies such as yours could be a big help.

KingLead: In your opinion, what kind of students can be called innovative talents? And what should they do to be like that?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC:  Innovation is a big factor in being successful in life. Innovation does not necessarily mean you need to technologically invent something. Innovation has to do with solving problems in creative and different ways. People need to be able to think critically, a person who can look at all possibilities and figure out many solutions to a problem. Not the right answer, innovators try to look at possibilities that are not yet explored. So, they move ideas forward by thinking about different problems from different angles.

When you create a collaborative culture, when you put people together, the creative elements of their minds, the art and the diversity of seeing things from different perspectives is on display. Collaboration can produce different kinds of answers. Look at STEAM programs, for instance; students come together and use scientific, mathematical, technological and logical thinking in combination with artistic skill. A student may know the science behind motion, math for calculating different forces, power necessary to move the rocket upwards, the technology to manipulate different parts, but they also need to understand the design element to fully understand all aspects of making a rocket. The reality is that schools that are future focused do not only teach a subject but also know why it is important to understand how this subject fits in with others; curriculum boundary lines are becoming more blurred.

Our teachers do not just stand in front of the classroom delivering content, they also get their students to explore different aspects of the content studied. Getting students to use their critical and creative faculties is an important element of getting them to become innovative; and this is one thing we aim for our students to become.

KingLead: What methods does the school have for cultivating innovators so far?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC:  We believe that students do not only learn by reading, memorizing, listening, but I'm also by doing thing. Hands-on-learning, project-based learning, learning by doing are some examples of ways through which innovation mind-set can be cultivated.

For example, one may be able to learn math by doing math, but if they see no implication of it, they may not be able to appreciate math in the same say. I think this is why it's important for schools to look at project-based learning, collaborative learning, learning-by-doing, not just one-dimensional learning where the teachers are the beacon of knowledge.

In this way, they're using different parts of learning from the book, then looking at what it is in the application and trying to understand how the knowledge learned works in real life situations. In business management, for example, students learn about SWOT analysis. They can put this knowledge to use when they look at why a certain company is doing so well or has the potential to do better. Learning that focuses on innovation helps students become better critical and creative thinkers.

KingLead: What kind of resources does the school provided for everyone to achieve this goal to become more creativity in the creative think and critical thinking inside and outside the school?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: We provide our staff with professional development opportunities to make sure that they know how to be better prepared to lead their students well. Having better prepared and well-qualified teachers is an important part of a school’s job.

Another aspect is providing a physical environment that is conducive to learning with resources that support student learning.  We make sure the classrooms are equipped with the tools that one needs to be able to run different types of learning. If you go into the steam classroom, you will see the whole room is set up in such a way that provides the platform for students to experiment.  Art studios are likewise designed in a way that allows for students to have their own space so they can explore their art without worrying about someone else moving their things.

We take them out into the community. Every year, one of our school-wide goals is to make sure that we use the community as a resource. So, all teachers have to take students outside of the school to make sure that they learn from the practices that are within the community. For example, they would go to a printing press to see what skills are needed and how they are used within the industry or students would go the 3D printing museums to learn more about the impact of this particular technology and have the opportunity to make their own 3D objects. Giving students opportunities to see things in real life and to be inspired, to ask questions, to explore are some of the ways we inspire our students.

It is also important to make sure technologies are available for students to ensure the students learn using different medium. During the CAS time for example, students lead activities such as mine-craft, digital art, robotics and many other such activities to inspire each other in become more technologically savvy. They're learning to design, program, create, lead, rationalize through the many activities that they lead for each other.

The adults are there to supervise and work with these students who were leading, and ask them questions about what worked, what didn't work? What would you do next time? How did you feel about this? The school and everything within the school is thee to support the students in achieving their potential and doing their very best.

KingLead: What do you think is the relationship between the cultivation of innovators and eventually the results of college enrollment especially for Chinese parents?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: If students are involved in many projects, if they know their passions, then they are more motivated because they know what they want and how to get it. Many of our students use these examples in their personal statements, in their responses to universities and their interviews with universities.

When answering questions like why you want to be an engineer, you can see their passion in the way the speak about it.

While I think academic excellence is really important when students are applying to universities, universities also look at their experiences and their commitment to the field and their passion in how they speak or write about their hobbies and interests. This is why, I think, our students do so well with their university acceptances. We have students in universities like Cambridge, UCL, LSE, Toronto, McGill, Tufts and so on. We have students on full scholars in Hong Kong, Korea, Canada, and the US. I think this is particularly because our students are innovators, they are excellent in critical and creative thinking and they can communicate their passions clearly.

KingLead: The market in international schools is competitive as well recently. How can the school stand out among all these international schools and the competitors?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: Excellent schools stand our because the word of mouth, good stories shared by students from within the community.

Also, I think there are organizations such as yours who are involved in telling parents about schools, as you present their stories, you help them see what each school offers. So this is a big job in China, even Guangzhou is so big that you can’t stand out without having experts like you, who play an integral part in marketing different schools.

Good marketing teams analyze the big data, shrink it and figure out their niche market. Majority of our students and parents like our caring environment, the focus on well-being, the individualize support for all students and getting students to believe that “okay is not good enough.

KingLead: What kind of schools are more welcomed for Chinese parents or for parents in general in the future? What are they looking for?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: It's a difficult question because it may not be accurate to generalize. From my experiences, of being here for nine years, I can tell you that most Chinese parents at our school care for the well-being and variety of choices that their children receive. These choices are academic and after school related. Parents care that schools look after their children well, communicate with them and be a partner in their child’s progress.

Some parents prefer schools which guarantee that their child goes to a top university. I think quality of education is important but at the same time it is important that students are not only sent to universities but are prepared for these universities and communities where they will live without their parents for the next 3-6 years.

We want our students to stand out in the crowd. We want them to be able to communicate effectively, plan, lead, organize and manage, not only their studies and time, but also their lives and the communities where they live. We instill in them care, passion and the attitude to be a balanced person and a life-long learner.

KingLead: With the rapid development of digital and AI currently, how to grasp the future development direction for international schools and bilingual schools? And how to develop better in the future?

Bob Darwish, Head of School at AIC: If you think about 10, 15 years down the line, you may not know what life is going to be like. What jobs would still be available, and what jobs would have been taken by AI. We need a lot more creativity and a lot more interpersonal skills if we are to prepare our students for this kind of world, the unknown. Machines will be able to do all the jobs that would require calculations, automatic cars will make taxi drivers redundant, the home-helpers will mostly be robots (we see this already in hotels).  So, what jobs would still be available for human beings? I think anything that involves creativity, personal touch, emotional intelligence, etc.

So preparing students with 21st century skill, like communication, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking, the four C’s of the 21st century, I think are super essential, so these students are confident in solving problems; that they are not afraid of challenges but are confident that no matter what challenge they face, they will be able to come on top.