On May 22, Shanghai United International School’s Qingpu Campus (SUIS Qinpgu) successfully hosted the 2021 East Asia Cambridge International Schools Principal Forum.
The Cambridge International Schools Principal Forum aims to provide better service and support for the Cambridge International Schools community. The theme of this particular forum was ‘Building an Active and Reflective School Community’. School leaders were able to enjoy dialogue and reflection on all aspects of current school development and to seek improvement together so as to build a more vibrant Cambridge school community.
The event started with performances of Chinese traditional music (the “Golden Snake Dance”) and a rock band music (“Red Lotus”), given by SUIS Qingpu High School students.
Ms. Christine Özden, CEO of Cambridge Assessment International Education, opened the forum by welcoming everyone through a virtually-given speech where she described a variety of achievements over the past year of different schools, affirming that Cambridge Assessment International Education will continue to provide support to schools and students.
In the first keynote speech, Dr. Zhao Jing, Regional Director of East Asia of Cambridge Assessment International Education, shared on curriculum development, teaching and learning, assessment and response to schools.
Ms. Maxine Lu, General Principal of the Xiehe Education Group and Principal of the SUIS Qingpu Campus, began her keynote speech with a warm welcome message for the audience, and then provided an overview of the developmental history of the Xiehe Education Group and the profound relationship with Cambridge Assessment International Education. Thus far, nine SUIS schools are authorized by Cambridge Assessment International Education. As the General Principal of the Xiehe Education Group and the principal of SUIS Qingpu, Ms. Maxine Lu also shared on the current challenges and solutions regarding education and international education in China.
The third keynote speaker, Mr. Xia Guming, Principal of the International Department of Tianyuan College, with his rich experience in front-line teaching and school management, discussed the development and re-development of A Level and international courses as well as course internationalization in China.
In the final keynote speech of the day, Mr. Chris Nash, International Head Teacher of the Beijing Changping Xinxuedao Linchuan School, shared on how to use the Cambridge International Teacher Professional Development “Resource Pack” to improve the leadership of and systems within schools.
During the Panel Discussion, several experienced principals answered a variety of interesting questions from the audience.
In the afternoon, breakout sessions provided participants with opportunities to learn about and discuss current educational themes and issues such as team building within international schools, the development of international schools under the influences of the pandemic, current challenges faced by new schools, school improvement, curriculum integration and bilingual teaching, college and university applications, students’ physical and mental health, and learning and assessment in the digital age.
SUIS Qingpu Vice-principal Leo Ge held a workshop with the theme of “International School Team Building”. He shared with participants his experiences in terms of analyzing teacher development, teacher professional development and the collaborative management of Chinese and western staff. Amongst these topics, the focus was on sharing the cases and experiences of implementing the Cambridge International PDQ project in schools.
As a new school that has only been in operation for two years, SUIS Qingpu has been able to both learn much from and showcase itself through hosting this 2021 East Asia Cambridge International Schools Principal Forum. SUIS Qingpu will continue to optimize education and teaching to help its students achieve more sustainable and long-term development.