The full faculty and staff are back to work this week in preparation for next week’s start of school. I am trying to participate in as many of the events, meetings and workshops as possible. This morning the assistant principals led us through a session helping us reflect on and think about the mission, vision, learning principles and the idea of international mindedness. My takeaways from the session were as follows:
- When I am trying to learn about an issue as the new director, I receive different viewpoints from a variety of sources. I think this is the same for our students, who get information not only from the teacher, but from their classmates, parents and internet. Critically evaluating information and fitting it into your understanding is a key skill in today’s complex work environment.
- International mindedness is difficult to assess. I was thinking about the verbs in our definition, “receptive to”, “valuing” and “communicating through” another culture. Yes, I see international school students interacting with each other in the classroom, but does that always carry over socially? Does it have to be truly internationally-minded?
- Robert Jackson who led the session, asked participants to focus on one of the TIS Learning Principles this year. I chose, “Learning is enhanced in a physical environment that is safe, welcoming, adaptable and inspiring.” I see in my short time here, that I can contribute quickly to the physical environment.
TIS Director's Blog 
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