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Global education for global kids
May 29, 2013, Wednesday
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FROM adaptability to expanded linguistic skills, children who grow up internationally have numerous advantages. Maximizing these benefits requires an education that is as global as they are.
For many parents, the primary hesitation in accepting an international work assignment is having to move their children across the globe: how will they adjust to the new culture when they arrive - and how will they readjust when they leave? What kinds of schools are available, and how will their children do with the transition? Bearing equal weight in the equation are the enormous opportunities that their children will be able to take advantage of while living abroad, and parents must consider how these can be maximized so that their children thrive.
As the practice of companies globalizing and shifting their employees around the world becomes more commonplace, one concern for families who plan to live abroad long-term is how much emphasis should be placed on instilling their original culture in their children. Based on this increasingly common situation is a body of research surrounding what anthropologists have termed, "Third Culture Kids" (TCKs) - defined as a person who has spent a significant part of their developmental years outside their parents' culture.
"We relate to our shared 'Third Culture' better than to our parents' culture (the first) or that of our host country (the second)," writes Anne Sophie Bolon in "At Home Abroad," an article published in the New York Times.
"What is surprising is that someone who grew up in a mission in Africa shares the same 'third culture' as a diplomat's child who grew up in Guatemala," because it is their global upbringing that gives TCKs their shared heritage.
Yet the experience for TCKs at Yew Chung International School of Shanghai (YCIS) is about much more than how students relate to one another; it's about how they relate to the global community.
New students are a constant at international schools anywhere, but this is particularly true in Shanghai, where it's not unusual for students to enter school midway through the year.
According to YCIS teachers and Department Heads Christopher Westcott and Glenda Perks, the multicultural nature of the school helps smooth out the transition of new arrivals. At YCIS, there is a "buddy system" in place to help new students get settled, and since everyone has been "the new kid" at some stage, students are friendly and welcoming to new arrivals. "YCIS teachers understand TCKs," says Westcott, "We help students understand that their internationalization is an asset."
One parent, Myloan Yang, whose twin boys attend primary school at YCIS, notes that, "the parent organization is a very strong community that supports parents in many ways so they become more comfortable." The benefits provided go beyond simply settling into Shanghai; for Yang's children, their time at YCIS has "helped them learn about cultural differences through school activities, and with community support. Now they are more open-minded and willing to face challenges themselves, in other environments or other countries."
The YCIS curriculum also actively provides opportunities for students to fully integrate into the culture and language of China. Providing a bilingual program in both English and Chinese languages, along with cultural study, is fundamental to the school's philosophy, and helps students develop a strong academic base for future moves - whether the move is back home or to another country. Students also have opportunities for extended learning with trips to other countries through the schools' World Classroom Program. Being able to travel to Thailand, destinations in Europe, the US and even Africa, for experiential learning, cultural immersion, and community service, ensures that students become accustomed to experiencing other cultures and customs. The experiences gained while crossing the globe have a direct connection to what is learned in the classroom, as well.
"In our English language and Literature classes, we focus on literature from a variety of countries, study translated works, and explore other cultures' ways of thinking and writing. This is firmly rooted in our 'East Meets West' philosophy, and provides the students with links to their home culture," says Perks.
YCIS Secondary students, engaged in a recent class discussion, agreed that the integration of "Chinese culture, language, and experiences into the curriculum helps with a faster adjustment," as it gave them the tools to bond with their new home. Acquiring the host country's language and culture helps with this adjustment, and enriches lives - something that led this group of students to theorize that future employers "will hire them because their international education was very thorough."
As it turns out, the latest research on the TCK phenomenon supports this claim. TCKs are linguistically adept, and four times more likely than non-TCKs to earn a college degree, according to studies by anthropologist Dr Ruth Hill Useem, who first coined the term. This experience, combined with fluency in two of the major world languages, will offer substantial benefits to these TCKs as they graduate, go on to further study, and then begin their careers. While reports like Dr Useem's may or may not encourage a new wave of families moving abroad, it clearly highlights the impact the opportunity to study abroad has on children.
The education at YCIS benefits children by helping them develop into global citizens with the skills to navigate cultures. With their broad perspective on the world, they are empowered to make unique contributions, wherever they are, and wherever they go.
For many parents, the primary hesitation in accepting an international work assignment is having to move their children across the globe: how will they adjust to the new culture when they arrive - and how will they readjust when they leave? What kinds of schools are available, and how will their children do with the transition? Bearing equal weight in the equation are the enormous opportunities that their children will be able to take advantage of while living abroad, and parents must consider how these can be maximized so that their children thrive.
As the practice of companies globalizing and shifting their employees around the world becomes more commonplace, one concern for families who plan to live abroad long-term is how much emphasis should be placed on instilling their original culture in their children. Based on this increasingly common situation is a body of research surrounding what anthropologists have termed, "Third Culture Kids" (TCKs) - defined as a person who has spent a significant part of their developmental years outside their parents' culture.
"We relate to our shared 'Third Culture' better than to our parents' culture (the first) or that of our host country (the second)," writes Anne Sophie Bolon in "At Home Abroad," an article published in the New York Times.
"What is surprising is that someone who grew up in a mission in Africa shares the same 'third culture' as a diplomat's child who grew up in Guatemala," because it is their global upbringing that gives TCKs their shared heritage.
Yet the experience for TCKs at Yew Chung International School of Shanghai (YCIS) is about much more than how students relate to one another; it's about how they relate to the global community.
New students are a constant at international schools anywhere, but this is particularly true in Shanghai, where it's not unusual for students to enter school midway through the year.
According to YCIS teachers and Department Heads Christopher Westcott and Glenda Perks, the multicultural nature of the school helps smooth out the transition of new arrivals. At YCIS, there is a "buddy system" in place to help new students get settled, and since everyone has been "the new kid" at some stage, students are friendly and welcoming to new arrivals. "YCIS teachers understand TCKs," says Westcott, "We help students understand that their internationalization is an asset."
One parent, Myloan Yang, whose twin boys attend primary school at YCIS, notes that, "the parent organization is a very strong community that supports parents in many ways so they become more comfortable." The benefits provided go beyond simply settling into Shanghai; for Yang's children, their time at YCIS has "helped them learn about cultural differences through school activities, and with community support. Now they are more open-minded and willing to face challenges themselves, in other environments or other countries."
The YCIS curriculum also actively provides opportunities for students to fully integrate into the culture and language of China. Providing a bilingual program in both English and Chinese languages, along with cultural study, is fundamental to the school's philosophy, and helps students develop a strong academic base for future moves - whether the move is back home or to another country. Students also have opportunities for extended learning with trips to other countries through the schools' World Classroom Program. Being able to travel to Thailand, destinations in Europe, the US and even Africa, for experiential learning, cultural immersion, and community service, ensures that students become accustomed to experiencing other cultures and customs. The experiences gained while crossing the globe have a direct connection to what is learned in the classroom, as well.
"In our English language and Literature classes, we focus on literature from a variety of countries, study translated works, and explore other cultures' ways of thinking and writing. This is firmly rooted in our 'East Meets West' philosophy, and provides the students with links to their home culture," says Perks.
YCIS Secondary students, engaged in a recent class discussion, agreed that the integration of "Chinese culture, language, and experiences into the curriculum helps with a faster adjustment," as it gave them the tools to bond with their new home. Acquiring the host country's language and culture helps with this adjustment, and enriches lives - something that led this group of students to theorize that future employers "will hire them because their international education was very thorough."
As it turns out, the latest research on the TCK phenomenon supports this claim. TCKs are linguistically adept, and four times more likely than non-TCKs to earn a college degree, according to studies by anthropologist Dr Ruth Hill Useem, who first coined the term. This experience, combined with fluency in two of the major world languages, will offer substantial benefits to these TCKs as they graduate, go on to further study, and then begin their careers. While reports like Dr Useem's may or may not encourage a new wave of families moving abroad, it clearly highlights the impact the opportunity to study abroad has on children.
The education at YCIS benefits children by helping them develop into global citizens with the skills to navigate cultures. With their broad perspective on the world, they are empowered to make unique contributions, wherever they are, and wherever they go.
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