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| Robert (on left) greets families on the first day of school. |
Dear WAB Community Members,
Welcome to the 2008/2009 school year! The first day of school was amazing, complete with blue skies, smiling faces and great expectations. As the new Director of WAB, I feel fortunate to be part of WAB’s caring community and look forward to meeting many of you at the Community Picnic this Saturday.
The theme of the picnic is “WAB’s Olympic Closing Ceremony,” which seems fitting for an international school community that has celebrated as a Beijing Olympic Education Model School, hosted the Australian Olympic Committee and experienced China’s spectacular success as host of the Olympics, Paralympics and the Special Olympics, all in a year’s time.
From the moment my family arrived in Beijing, I’ve been struck by the warmth and kindness of the Chinese people, especially the friendliness of Olympic volunteers. I look forward to increasing my own depth and knowledge of the Chinese culture and language, beginning, I hope, by making moon cakes with our Elementary students next week and witnessing our Middle School students’ enthusiasm as they embark on China Studies field trips later this month.
Now that school is underway, I am struck anew by the reality, and excitement, of my new position as Director, as well as the awesome responsibilities it entails. My stated goal is to begin a process of continued improvement based on a concept called “Schooling by Design.” Two of the many strategies this concept details are as follows:
• To ensure structures, policies, job descriptions, practices, and use of resources consistent with mission and learning principles.
• To establish a set of tactics linked to a straightforward process of planning for orchestrating the key work of schooling and school reform “backward” from the mission and the desired results.
It’s a reality that no school can remain stationary, just as we live in a world that is changing and evolving daily. Schools need to be focused on the future, strategically ready to meet the challenges and opportunities of tomorrow. Michael Fullan, a scholar at the University of Toronto, says this about change:
"Educational change is based on creating the conditions to develop the 'capacity' of both organizations and individuals to learn. The focus moves away from an emphasis on structural change towards changing the culture of classrooms and schools, an emphasis on relationships and values."
Our Mission at WAB is clear: "Educate our children to reach their full potential in a warm and caring community that fosters excellence and responsibility." It’s our responsibility to ensure there is little or no gap between our mission and our daily practice.
Fortunately I have a superb team of committed and experienced professionals who are passionate about collaborating on behalf of our students, and who are ready and willing, in partnership with parents, to provide our students with an exceptional academic and extra-curricular program.
I look forward to meeting you and sharing the WAB experience. It is our goal to communicate, discuss and reflect as we orchestrate change while promoting and preserving our Mission and Core Values.
Best regards,
Robert Landau
Director