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My School Culture IMG_8803 March 2020 (THE FOUNDATION (Intangible…

- - - - Facilities, Symbols and School Uniform
        
        A beautiful campus with lots of good facilities for students. There's a lot of artistic displays promoting scenes of traditional Chinese culture and in Chinese terms the school seems to promote itself as the symbol of Chinese school success. All the pictures, signs, slogans and symbols are again all in Chinese but cannot be missed! There is an official school uniform although it is not required every day, perhaps only for flag raising assembly but I am still unable to get a clear answer :) All in all, its a rich school, the children are privileged and it "looks" good. With regards to us foreign teachers we can therefore not understand why there is never any money or budget available to get any teaching resources that we regularly require. On the outside everything looks abundant but on the inside I can't even find 30 pairs of scissors!
    - - Leadership Orientation and Style of the Manager, Individual and Team Behaviour
        
        In my opinion there’s a real need for improvement in the tangible behavior manifestations when it comes to leadership orientation and management style towards our international division and how we behave and indeed feel as a “team”. There’s little common understanding concerning the achievement of the overall long-term objectives of the school, which facilitates poor cooperation and very much an unmotivated behavior of educators certainly within our foreign team. Apathy seems to again rule!
      - Rituals, Ceremonies, Traditions and Discipline
        
        A vast amount of cultural events and ceremonies are held throughout the school year which some or all of our students have to attend or participate in. The strange thing is that foreign staff never really hear about them until the last minute and are very rarely invited to participate or assist. The connection between the school and parental community is also seemingly very strong as I see them getting involved with many of the schools various “Chinese” school activities throughout the year. However there is limited scope for connection from our international side and again most if not all the foreign teachers feel very much segregated from these facet of the schools culture. I often have to ask my students to explain to me where they have been or even what is about to happen :smiley:
        
        From a foreign teacher perspective, making class rules, norms and procedures, administering consequences, seem rather futile when the backdrop of discipline, rules and regulations are very firmly enforced by the Chinese side of our school. Even our homerooms are not really our homerooms so it really feels like we are just passing guests and not a true member of our school and thus actual school culture!
    - - Rules and Regulations
        
        I believe the effective rules that are seen in the school, including elements such as respect toward the educator, regular attendance of school, and punctuality, is a manifestation of the effectiveness of the “Chinese” culture that permeates the school. Most of our students are very well prepared and well drilled to stand to attention and sit at desks for along period whilst listening to a teacher lecture. For us foreign teachers it is real plus to have such well behaved students although many are shy, quiet, and unwilling to take risks, make mistakes and venture out against the norm.
      - Language, Stories, Heroes and Heroines and Curriculum
        
        There are no manifestations of these in English too as they are seemingly administered by the local Chinese leadership in Chinese via assemblies (all in Chinese with no input from international staff) and through weekly "moral classes" which foreign staff do not attend. There is no actual English curriculum except for the use of Cambridge English and Science textbooks and our Math classes follow what is taught in Chinese. This had led to a disconnection with essential facets of what our students are learning as well apathy and decreased enthusiasm with how and what we are meant to teach.
- - - - I'm not so sure as the results/data are kept secret and I know they are also edited :( I teach and know f many bright, high achieving students but no that many when they finish elementary and apply to enter middle score have a hard time catching up with their Chinese subjects. Bilingual schools certainly pose many challenges and various obstacles on the road to achievement, none more so than a school that is so clearly driven and directed by its societal culture.
    - - I think if it was solely a "Chinese" school and not an "international" one it would be deemed effective