Q: In your opinion, what is the most important thing in education?

A: Education is more than just a focus on the mind. The mind is important, for academic knowledge and critical thinking. But you also have to experience the process of relating to other people. Education includes the mind, body, heart as well as community. We pursue a balanced approach which addresses the mind, body, heart and community to make sure the student who graduates from a school is a whole person.

Q: All the students here are foreigners and they can receive an international education in SYIS. But since they live in China now, they may need to adapt to the local society. Is there any measure to make students involved in the local community and local culture?

A: Every student has a Chinese language class once a day, even in kindergarten. We not only focus on Chinese language but also on Chinese culture. During some Chinese Festivals, such as the Spring Festival, we have invited some Chinese artists to come and give a performance. Students can learn something from this. What’s more, our middle school and high school students once a year will go to different parts of China to get involved in the local culture. For example, high school students went to Guilin last year to visit some of the beautiful scenery of China. We have also visited minority areas like Inner Mongolia to learn to observe the culture there. Maybe this year we will go to Xiamen. We try to do that because this is the local environment and it’s helpful for students to experience the culture, and to build relationships.

Profile:

Darren Smith, head principal of SYIS, first came to Shenyang in 1998 as an English teacher, working for the Liaoning Business Vocational College (LBVC). In 2000, he began teaching first-year accounting, economics and company law in a joint-venture education program between LBVC and IBC, an Australian business college. In 2002, he joined SYIS as a high school history teacher and director of development. In 2006, he was appointed to the position of head principal.

Darren has a bachelor’s degree in political science and history, and is currently completing an MBA.In 2000, he received an “Excellent Foreign Expert Award” from the Liaoning Provincial Government.