by LYIS
Leading Your International School made its way to Canadian International School of Hefei (CISH), to meet with the Head of the School Peggy Gorman-Mitchell and the wider leadership team.
Our second Canadian International School visit, CISH is an IB Continuum School, that accepts students from age 24 months and offers a full international programme, across a range of languages, including English, German, Mandarin Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, Latin, Spanish and French.
At Middle and High School, teachers are all subject matter experts and have relevant subject degrees. At the Primary level, teachers are all Elementary trained. The school’s vision is to ‘Inspire young minds to seek purpose and shape the future towards the betterment of global communities’.
The school’s values are for students to lead with respect, champion discovery, empower creative and critical thinking and foster open-mindedness. Opportunities for students are everywhere, including those to develop debating skills and take part in Drama and Orchestra practice and performance.
We start off by asking Peggy about what ‘international’ means to her. “It is about the right to have an opinion as a person, which should be respected between different cultures” she says.
When we ask Peggy what makes a good leader she tells us it is about “What an individual can do for the world”. It is clear from listening to Peggy talk that she places a lot of emphasis on developing high-quality relationships with new and existing staff. “As a Head of School, you have to be able to get along with people and students, and it is important that you value education” she adds.
We observe an incredible sense of community as we tour the school with the Early Years and Elementary Principal Gregory Macur M.Ed, Middle and High School Principal Tilly Erguder and Middle School Vice Principal Chris Llewellyn. Learning takes place in a wonderful atmosphere. A passion for learning is evident. Visual displays are incredibly inspiring and pay tribute to a vibrant teaching body that genuinely cares about what they do and how they do it.
The school makes a significant investment in its people, training them in the IB.
“We respect and honour the culture of China” Peggy adds.
LYIS extends its sincere thanks to Peggy Gorman-Mitchell, the entire school leadership team, teachers and students for allowing us to experience this wonderful school culture.