Issuu

ET J

FALL 2026

URNAL

A L I N K TO E D U CAT I O N A L E X C E L L E N C E I N E AST AS I A

FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE CURRICULUM & LEARNING Educating for a World We Are Still Learning to Understand JIS CELEBRATES 75 YEARS EDUCATIONAL INSIGHT Good for Nothing SERVICE LEARNING Beyond the Hallway: Building Community Through Art

THE EARCOS JOURNAL

The ET Journal is a triannual publication of the East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS), a nonprofit 501(C)3, incorporated in the state of Delaware, USA, with a regional office in Manila, Philippines. Membership in EARCOS is open to elementary and secondary schools in East Asia which offer an educational program using English as the primary language of instruction, and to other organizations, institutions, and individuals.

OBJECTIVES AND PURPOSES

* To promote intercultural understanding and international friendship through the activities of member schools. * To broaden the dimensions of education of all schools involved in the Council in the interest of a total program of education. * To advance the professional growth and welfare of individuals belonging to the educational staff of member schools. * To facilitate communication and cooperative action between and among all associated schools. * To cooperate with other organizations and individuals pursuing the same objectives as the Council.

EARCOS BOARD OF TRUSTEES

James Dalziel (NIST International School), President Maya Nelson (Jakarta Intercultural School), Vice President Jim Gerhard (Seoul International School), Secretary Rami Madani (The International School of Kuala Lumpur), Treasurer Catriona Moran (Saigon South International School), Past President Karrie Dietz (Head of School, Nexus International School Singapore) Margaret Alvarez (WASC), Ex-Officio Marta Medved Krajnovic (Western Academy of Beijing) Matthew Parr (Nagoya International School) Sam Mills (Sias International School in Zhengzhou) Andrew Hoover (Office of Overseas Schools, REO, East Asia Pacific)

EARCOS STAFF

Edward E. Greene, Executive Director Cameron Janzen, Deputy Director Bill Oldread, Assistant Director Emeritus Porntip (Joom) Rattanapetch, Administrative Assistant & Membership Coordinator Kanjanarat (KJ) Visanjaron, Professional Learning Events Coordinator Yanee Na Ranong, Professional Learning Events Coordinator Maica Cruz, Events Coordinator Edzel Drilo, Web, Marketing, & Digital Platforms Manager RJ Macalalad, Accounting Staff

East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS) 39/7 Soi Nichada Thani, Samakee Road, Bangtalad Sub-District, Pakkret District Nonthaburi 11120, Thailand Phone: +66 2-963-5800 ext. 8898

Email: info@earcos.org

In this Issue 2 4 6

Welcome

Executive Director’s Message Welcome New EARCOS Nembers Curriculum Educating for a World We Are Still Learning to Understand By Dr. Dave Secomb & Taryn Berghuis

Designing a Curriculum Review Cycle By Dr. Brenda Williamson & Dr. Jenny Sabin

From Input to Understanding By Tan Huynh

Engineering Belonging for Multilingual Learner Success By Jomar B. Conde

AI, Language, and Safety: Building Bilingual Training for Technical Learning Spaces By Christopher Hansen & Carla-Mari van den Heever

28 30

Jakarta Intercultural School Marks 75 Years of Meaningful Learning and Global Impact

Educational Insight

Beyond the Next Step: Making Space for the Present

Beyond the Hallway: Building Community Through Art By Katriona Hoskins, Haley Osbourne, & Amanda Deibert

Action Research Measuring the Impact of Guided Intercultural Development By Iryna Klyuk and Tríona Ryan When Learning French Becomes Child’s Play By Loan Dubreuil

Global Citizenship Giving Supplies New Life By Vardaan Sharma

Learning Through Service By Lei Lei Nandar Aung and Phone Min (Brian)

From English Lessons to a Global Network By Feyy Avilla Yolwans

Middle School Art Gallery

Good for Nothing By Nicholas Alchin

EARCOS-CIS Institute on International Admission & Guidance

Service Learning

EARCOS Insight Collaboration and Camaraderie in University Counselling By Iain Hudson

Green & Sustainable Energizing IST’s New Gym By Na Ye Kim, Tung He Wang & Da Hyeon Lee

Student Voices - Creative Writing The Ride Home By Bran Carson

Fall2026 Issue 1

Welcome from the Executive Director

elcome to the Fall 2026 edition of the EARCOS Tri-Annual Journal. This issue is packed with insights and ideas from educators across the EARCOS region. I encourage you to take time to explore the many outstanding articles in this issue. Once again, ET provides a glimpse of the richness and quality that define our community of international schools. I want to express my appreciation to the educators (and students) who have contributed to this issue. I do not need to remind any of you that life in an international school today is an incredibly busy, complicated and challenging one. Therefore, creating the time and space to write an article worthy of publication is no meager task. We must recognize the professionalism, selflessness and commitment to educational excellence that drove each of the authors who contributed to this issue. It is truly a privilege to be able to share their thinking with thousands of colleagues across East Asia. EARCOS continues to thrive thanks to the dedication of so many in this dynamic region of international schools. This past year we reached a milestone of 250 member schools (and counting), with some 26,000 teachers and counselors caring for more than 200,000 students. The experiences provided to students in EARCOS schools represents the very best of the best. That is because of the dedication, the commitment to innovation, and the shared mission of creating a better world that define who we aspire to become. The issue of ET you hold in your hands (or see on your screen) offers but a small sample of the inspirational programs and thinking that drive the extraordinary educational community that is EARCOS today. Again, I thank our contributors and encourage you, our readers and colleagues, to create time in your busy lives to share the good things happening in schools and classrooms across the region—and beyond. With best wishes for a fantastic 2026-2027 school year to all,

Edward E. Greene, Ph.D. Executive Director

EARCOS Triannual Journal

Fall 2026 Issue 3

,, Welcome New Members

Welcome New Schools

EARCOS Triannual Journal

School Head of School Australian International School Malaysia Ms. Teresa Foard Canadian International School of Phnom Penh Dr. Daun Yorke Chengdu International School Ms. Grace Hale Hsinchu International Academy Mr. Christian Choquette International Bilingual School at Tainan Science Park (IBST) Mr. Sergio Gautreaux Mudita School Mr. Markus Meier Nexus International School (Singapore) Mr. Simon Mann Raffles American School Bangkok Mr. Matthew Alexander Tate Ruamrudee International School, Ratchapruek Campus Dr. Sean Licata The International School of Macao Mr. Lorne Schmidt

Welcome New Associate Institutions Amplify Asaman Technologies Atlas Life Insurance BenQ (Thailand) Co., Ltd. Diligent Education Accelerated FACTS FlexiSchools Global Safeguarding Collaborative H2H Brand Solutions, Inc. Himalayan Regenerative tourism Nepal Pvt. Ltd. iBusChina Integrated Financial Planning Services LASALLE College of the Arts Paperly Resource Furniture The Hutong The SchoolHouse Agency Truman Group Ubiq Education University of Southern California, Rossier School of Education University of Sunderland US Performance Academy VPass

Welcome New Individual Members Dr. Rachael Stevens The Jataka School Dr. Rebekah Owens Life Academy International (LAI) Mr. Darryl David CICA Associates Mr. Tiago Miguel Da Silva Vanke School of Pudong Ms. Lori Livesay Day to Day Educational Consulting Dr. Michael Allen Achieve Xiamen International School Cody Rogers Asian Hope Caroline Xu Dehong Shanghai International Chinese School Vincent Rocheteau Rocheteau Consulting

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Whether you’re transforming an organization, leading an international school or strengthening education systems, you’ll connect research to challenges in your region and learn alongside an international community of professionals. Build the skills, global perspectives and connections to lead across cultures and create lasting impact in the organizations and communities you serve.

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EXPLORE YOUR GLOBAL LEADERSHIP PATH

Fall 2026 Issue 5

CURRICULUM & LEARNING

Educating for a World We Are Still Learning to Understand By Dr. Dave Secomb & Taryn Berghuis

cross the world, education is evolving in response to an increasingly uncertain landscape. In classrooms and schools everywhere, educators are rethinking what it means to prepare young people for lives shaped by complexity, interdependence, and rapid change (Biesta, 2021; Hannon, & Temperley, 2022). Questions of climate, equity, identity, and wellbeing are no longer peripheral concerns; they are the lived realities of our students. Within this reality lies both a profound challenge and a quiet sense of possibility. Research across learning science and youth development points to a growing tension: as young people's awareness of global challenges increases, so too do experiences of anxiety, disconnection, and a reduced sense of agency (Hannon, 2024; Machado de Oliveira, 2021). Cognitive understanding alone is no longer enough. To discern meaning from complexity and choose to act within it, students need emotional awareness, perspective-taking, relational understanding, and a clear sense of purpose. Addressing this requires deep care in how learning experiences are designed - not just in the content delivered, but in how students are invited to encounter, process, and embody what they learn.

Compassionate 01 The Systems Approach Encouragingly, a growing movement of educators is reclaiming education as a relational, restorative, and human-centered endeavor. Central to this movement is the Compassionate Systems Approach. At its heart, this approach is less concerned with teaching specific tools than with cultivating particular ways of seeing, being, and relating (Goleman & Senge, 2014). It operates on the premise that humanity's greatest challenges are deeply relational. Responding effectively requires cultivating three interconnected domains of practice: Inner Awareness By noticing their own assumptions, emotions, and patterns of thinking, learners develop the capacity to pause and respond intentionally. Relational Awareness Through dialogue and collaborative inquiry, learners appreciate that different people experience the same situation differently. Compassion emerges from the 6

EARCOS Triannual Journal

capacity to remain curious in the presence of difference. Systems Awareness Learners explore the patterns, structures, and mental models beneath surface events, seeing themselves not as outside observers, but as active participants within living systems. Rather than treating wellbeing, relationships, and systems thinking as separate initiatives, they become interconnected dimensions of the same learning journey.

Systems Sensing in Middle School

In a Grade Eight Language and Literature class, this approach is integrated to elevate students' relational and critical capacities. Exploring concepts of conformity, resistance, and change, the teacher structures her unit using a pedagogical rhythm that balances cognitive rigor with affective growth. During the Learn phase, the teacher opens modules with somatic check-ins, normalising the act of looking inward. Students utilise tools like the Wheel of Emotion to name their internal state, posing a foundational question: What do you need to be ready to learn today? In the Identify phase, having tuned into their own internal landscapes, students extend awareness outward. Using a short animated film depicting a protagonist entering a male-dominated workplace, students analyse how conformity and resistance manifest, identifying emotional states experienced by different characters. To verbalise these concepts, students re-engage Shirley Jackson’s novel The Lottery to examine the mechanics of mob mentality. Prompted to imagine themselves as community members within the story, they detail sensory observations. Using the Wheel of Emotion, they name complex feelings arising from the story's climax and reflect on what action they would take when confronted with systemic injustice. During the Analyse phase, the teacher introduces the Systems Iceberg alongside a documentary about a child who experienced severe bullying. Students use the Iceberg to distinguish visible events from underlying emotional drivers, structural dynamics, and cultural mental models, synthesising their learning through podcasts, poetry, or formal essays. Finally, through continuous practice, the Normalise phase ensures emotional literacy becomes a natural component of academic inquiry. As one student reflected, "From the Iceberg, I learnt that my role may feel small, but it matters. Together, our willingness to resist conformity and embrace compassion can create a more just world."

"My role may feel small, but it matters." - Student reflection

Space: A Masterclass 03 Holding in Kindergarten This systemic awareness has deep resonance for learners at any age. To see this in action, let us turn to a Kindergarten classroom. Each morning, a group of students sits in a circle. Guided initially by their teacher but increasingly led by the children themselves, they use the Wheel of Emotion to check in. They grow confident in naming their feelings, and themes of anticipation and joy frequently emerge. Joy, of course, does not appear by accident; it reflects a carefully cultivated culture of belonging. But on one particular morning, a child looks down at the carpet, his hands clasped tightly together. "Remorse," he murmurs quietly. "I feel remorse." The circle holds. No one rushes to fix, correct, or soothe him. No one changes the subject. The feeling is simply allowed to rest in the space between them. After a patient pause, the teacher gently asks, "Would you like to share anything else?" The boy begins to tell the story of his morning, articulating why he carries this weight, while the class holds space and listens. In an education system historically obsessed with speed, efficiency, and emotional regulation-as-compliance, a community simply holding space for a child’s discomfort is a quiet revolution. What these children are practicing is more than emotional literacy. They are learning how to remain present in the face of vulnerability and how to participate in a community where care is a shared responsibility. This foundation of emotional awareness enabled the introduction of another systems tool: the Ladder of Inference. The opportunity emerged when one child appeared to be gathering many popular toys and hiding them. Initially, one of the teachers interpreted this behaviour as exclusionary. However, upon speaking with the child, she discovered he was collecting the toys so they could be displayed and more easily found by everyone. Recognising a teachable moment, the teachers designed a collaborative reflection. Together, teacher and student shared what they had observed, what they had assumed, how they had felt, and how those assumptions influenced their actions. The conversation revealed a profound truth for five-year-olds: our assumptions shape our interpretations, and different people can witness the exact same event while deriving completely different meanings. The Ladder of Inference quickly became a conflict-resolution tool across classroom life. Through repeated experiences of reflection and dialogue, children developed not only new ways of thinking, but new ways of relating.

Experiences as 04 Learning Ecosystems The stories from these classrooms illustrate a simple but profound idea: learning experiences function as living ecosystems. The tools provided helpful scaffolding, but their true power emerged from Fall 2026 Issue 7

the interactions between curriculum, pedagogy, relationships, environment, and teacher presence. Every learning experience carries a visible curriculum (the concepts we intentionally assess) and an invisible curriculum (how conflict is navigated, whose voices are heard, and how emotions are welcomed). In the classroom examples, the students are developing knowledge while simultaneously building habits of attention and capacities for participation. What they learned and how they learned were inseparable. Compassion, systems awareness, and reflective judgment cannot be acquired through explanation alone; they emerge through repeated experiences that shape how we perceive the world. It can be useful to think about learning experience design through eight interconnected dimensions that shape this ecosystem: Curriculum Defines what is explicitly valued, investigated, and prioritised. Pedagogy Shapes how learners engage with ideas, complexity, and one another. Resources Determines whose perspectives, voices, and modes of expression are made visible. Environment Communicates implicit messages regarding agency, belonging, and participation. Relationships An essential foundation for the psychological safety necessary for intellectual and emotional risk-taking. Students Positioned not as passive recipients, but as active cocreators bringing rich histories and wisdom. The Educator Contributes not only technical expertise, but also presence, awareness, and relational modeling. Time Provides the rhythm through which learning deepens, relationships strengthen, and understanding matures. Surrounding and unifying these dimensions is the social field - the intangible yet palpable relational atmosphere generated within a community (Boell & Senge, 2016). In schools, every learning environment generates patterns of interaction that influence what people feel able to express, question, and become. The emotional safety that allowed a kindergarten student to name his remorse was not created by a single strategy; it emerged from an ecosystem cultivated over time. Education is not the delivery of pre-packaged content into isolated heads, but the tending of a living ecosystem. Every interaction is quietly answering the question: What does it mean to be human together? By embracing a Compassionate Systems Approach, we reclaim the classroom from an assembly line of economic preparation and restore it as a sanctuary for human becoming.

EARCOS Triannual Journal

References

Biesta, G. (2021). World-Centred Education: A View for the Present (1 ed.). Routledge. Boell, M., & Senge, P. (2016). School Climate and Social Fields – An Initial Exploration. Garrison Global Collaboration for Emotional, Social and Systems Education & MIT. Goleman, D. and Senge, P. (2014) The triple focus: a new approach to education. Florence, MA: More Than Sound. Hannon, V. (2024) Towards an education workforce dedicated to human flourishing. Melbourne: Learning Creates Australia. Available at: h t t p s : / / w w w. l e a r n i n g c r e a t e s . o r g . a u / w p - c o n t e n t / u p loads/2024/12/2024_03_Towards-an-education-workforce-dedicated-to-human-flourishing.pdf Hannon, V., & Temperley, J. (2022). FutureSchool: How Schools Around the World are Applying Learning Design Principles For a New Era (1st ed.). Routledge. Machado de Oliveira, V. (2021). Hospicing Modernity: Facing Humanity’s Wrongs and the Implications for Social Activism. North Atlantic Books.

About the Authors Taryn Berghuis is a Kindergarten teacher at Yokohama International School, Japan. She has been teaching for over 20 years at national and international schools in Australia, Asia and Europe. She is a Compassionate Systems Master Practitioner and her passion lies in Early Childhood education. Dr. David Secomb has worked in schools throughout Australia, Asia and Europe. He is currently Elementary Principal at Yokohama International School, Japan, and is a Compassionate Systems Master Practitioner. Dave is passionate about helping every learner recognise how their gifts can benefit a community.

Fall 2026 Issue 9

CURRICULUM & LEARNING

Designing a Curriculum Review Cycle: Aligning Theory, Agency, and Systems in International Schools Dr. Brenda Williamson Teaching and Learning Coordinator-Curriculum Development Advisor Jakarta Intercultural School (bwilliamson@jisedu.or.id) Dr. Jenny Sabin Curriculum Coordinator Jakarta Intercultural School (jsabin@jisedu.or.id)

The Dilemma of Unwritten and Episodic Curriculum

hen joining a new international school, educational leaders and instructional coordinators frequently encounter a familiar, frustrating reality: curriculum that exists primarily in individual teachers' heads or personal drive folders, with little to no systematically documented structure across K–12 pathways. In many settings, curriculum review is treated as an episodic event—a frantic, multi-year overhaul triggered by an upcoming accreditation visit or leadership change, followed by long periods of inactivity. This reactionary approach breeds decision fatigue, teacher cynicism, and fragmented learning experiences for students. To break this cycle, curriculum leaders must construct a systematic, transparent, and continuous review model that prioritizes teacher agency while remaining manageable across varying institutional sizes. At Jakarta Intercultural School (JIS)—a K–12 international school in Indonesia comprising over 2,200 students and 250 faculty members—we designed a four-stage Curriculum Review Cycle (CRC): Stage 1 (Research), Stage 2 (Development), Stage 3 (Implementation), and Stage 4 (Review/Consolidation). This model was developed to move away from top-down mandates and instead cultivate authentic teacher ownership, transparency across all stakeholder groups, and evidence-based curriculum design.

EARCOS Triannual Journal

The core principles of effective curriculum architecture remain consistent. Drawing from our co-presentation at the 2024 EARCOS Annual Leadership Conference, this article details the theoretical foundations, concrete tools, leadership strategies, and scalability adjustments required to implement a robust curriculum review cycle in any EARCOS school.

Core Design Principles

Agency, Transparency, and Authentic Review Before embarking on structural planning, curriculum cycles must be grounded in explicit philosophical commitments. At JIS, our curriculum review framework is anchored in three non-negotiable principles:

Teacher Agency

Curriculum work must not feel like something that is "done to" teachers. Teachers must operate as collaborative designers and evaluators who possess genuine voice and choice in defining pedagogical frameworks and standards adoption.

Systemic Transparency

Curriculum documents, timelines, and decisionmaking criteria must never be sequestered in a curriculum office. Clear communication channels ensure that teachers, instructional leaders, parents, and board members understand where every subject sits within the multi-year cycle.

Authentic Review

Curriculum changes must reflect the unique culture, vision, and student demographics of the school rather than publisher-driven trends. Review processes must evaluate both internal and external data to ensure meaningful impact on student learning.

Stage 1: Research Establishing Rails, Trust, and Decision Clarity

At JIS, Stage 1 spans a single semester and centers on a small, intentionally selected committee. Rather than involving every teacher in a department immediately, Stage 1 relies on a cross-disciplinary research team composed of representative grade-level or subject teachers, division leaders, and key specialist educators, potentially including English as an Additional Language (EAL) specialists, Learning Support faculty, and librarians. The Task Brief and Guaranteed Resourcing To establish trust and psychological safety, leadership must answer teachers' questions before they are even voiced. We utilize a formal Task Brief that outlines committee responsibilities, deliverables, collaborative norms (JIS Core Dispositions: Reflective, Resourceful, Resilient, Relational), and precise time allocations. Committee members are guaranteed release time—specifically two full schoolwide professional development days and four half-day release sessions within the semester—ensuring that research work does not become an unmanageable burden added to full teaching loads. Defining Roles via the RAPID Framework A primary cause of committee burnout in schools is decision ambiguity—when teachers spend months researching choices, only to have leadership veto their proposal due to budget constraints or strategic misalignment. To prevent this, we embed Bain & Company’s (2024) RAPID decision-making framework directly into the Task Brief: Recommend (R) The Stage 1 Curriculum Committee synthesizes data and proposes standards adoption and professional development directions. Agree (A) Executive leadership (Principals, Director of Teaching & Learning, Chief Financial Officer) must agree on resource and operational implications. Perform (P) Teachers and divisional leaders put the agreed decisions into practice during Stage 2 and Stage 3. Input (I) Subject teachers, specialist teams, and community stakeholders provide data and feedback into the research process. Decide (D) The Executive Leadership Team makes the final formal decision on standards adoption and budget authorization. By establishing who fills each RAPID role before research commences, leadership maintains transparent guardrails while honoring teacher expertise.

Figure 1. JIS Curriculum Review Cycle Diagram of the 4 Stages

Figure 2. RAPID Framework Example

Fall 2026 Issue 11

Concentric Circles of Data and Research Protocols Stage 1 research is guided by three to five focused research questions endorsed by executive leadership shared in the Task Brief. Committee members examine data through four concentric circles: (1) core institutional documents; (2) host country cultural context; (3) internal demographic and transition data; and (4) external benchmarks.

lum Review Cycles. CBAM posits that educators progress through distinct Stages of Concern: Self-Focus (Awareness, Information, Personal), Task-Focus (Management), and Impact-Focus (Consequence, Collaboration, Refocusing). Curriculum leaders must diagnose teacher concerns by listening to their driving questions and deploying targeted leadership interventions, as detailed in Figure 3.

To process academic literature efficiently without overwhelming teachers, we implement a "Research Summary Gallery Walk". Committee members summarize research articles into 200-word abstracts attached to the original source. During a collaborative session, teachers walk the room, analyze key findings, and utilize post-it synthesis protocols to complete standard sentence stems: "Schools with best practice teaching and learning in [Subject] do/are/ have...". This process yields a synthesized list of empirical rationales that serves as the foundation for Stage 1 deliverables, such as a departmental philosophy, divisional graduate profiles, common instructional agreements, and a standards adoption proposal.

Stage 2: Development — Honoring Adult Learners and Navigating Teacher Concerns

At JIS, Stage 2 extends across a full academic year and expands from the small Stage 1 committee to include all teachers within the discipline. This transition represents a shift from conceptual research to practical curriculum architecture, including scope and sequence alignment, unit planning (using Understanding by Design [UbD]; Wiggins & McTighe, 2005), assessment design, and resource inventorying. Applying Adult Learning Theory Designing curriculum with an entire faculty body requires a nuanced understanding of adult learning principles (Knowles, 2015). Effective curriculum leaders recognize five key adult learning dynamics: 1. 2.

3. 4. 5.

Self-Concept: Adults require self-direction and autonomy; curriculum design must provide choices within agreed frameworks. Readiness and the "Why": Adult learners must understand the compelling rationale for change before engaging in execution. Leadership must connect curriculum changes directly to student impact. Leveraging Experience: Faculty members bring rich, diverse professional experiences that must be valued as primary learning resources rather than discarded. Orientation to Learning: Adult learning is problem-centered and competency-based; professional learning must focus on practical classroom applications. Internal Motivation: While curriculum cycles may originate from external accreditation demands, sustainable implementation relies on tapping into teachers' intrinsic desire to improve student growth.

Navigating Change via the Adapted CBAM Framework To support teachers across the broad spectrum from early adopters to reluctant veterans, we developed a specialized matrix aligning Hall, Wallace, and Dossett (1973) and Hall and Hord’s (2020) Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) directly with Curricu12

EARCOS Triannual Journal

Figure 3. Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) Aligned to Curriculum Review Cycles *Adapted from Hall et al., 1973; Hall & Hord, 2020; Williamson & Sabin, 2025

Stage 3: Implementation — From Adult Workflow to Student Experience

At JIS, Stage 3 spans a minimum of two academic years and represents the operational core of the cycle: enacting written units in the classroom. Crucially, Stage 3 shifts the primary analytical lens from adult workflow to student learning experiences. Addressing the Gap Between Planned and Experienced Curriculum Curriculum implementation is inherently iterative. The first time a new unit or inquiry framework is taught, instruction can feel clunky as teachers adapt to new resources and pedagogical approaches. By the third or fourth iteration, instruction becomes refined and responsive. Teachers refine idealized plans that have been made, working between the planned curriculum (what was written on paper) and the experienced curriculum (what students actually encountered and mastered). Multi-Tiered Reflection Structures To ensure continuous improvement during implementation, reflection must occur systematically across three institutional levels: 1. 2.

Individual Teacher Level: Educators collect formative student data, reflect on instructional pacing, and adjust daily lesson design. Team/PLC Level: Grade-level or subject-specific teams or Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) can utilize DuFour et al.'s (2016) four essential questions to moderate stu-

dent work samples and analyze common summative assessments. Teams complete UbD Stage 4 reflection protocols at the conclusion of each unit, documenting required revisions directly in curriculum mapping documents and software. Leadership Level: Administrators evaluate systemic resource needs, advocate for targeted professional development or external consultants, and ensure cross-campus alignment across divisions.

Stage 4: Review and Consolidation — Data-Driven Triangulation At JIS, Stage 4 spans six months to one year and serves as the bridge between implementation and the launch of the next curriculum review cycle. Rather than conducting subjective evaluations, Stage 4 relies on triangulating multiple quantitative and qualitative data streams: • •

•

Internal Longitudinal Data: Course enrollment trends, elective selections, grade distribution patterns, and internal benchmark scores. External Standardized Metrics: Measures of Academic Progress (MAP), Advanced Placement (AP) score summaries, International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma results, and external accreditation recommendations (CIS, WASC). Qualitative Stakeholder Perception: Targeted teacher feedback surveys, parent coffee dialogue trends, and authentic student voice.

Incorporating student agency, drawing upon the work of Jacobs and Zmuda (2023) can support authentic review at this stage. A compelling example of authentic student voice occurred during JIS's Social Studies Stage 4 review. Leadership engaged the high school History Club as student consultants to evaluate proposed C3 Framework inquiry standards, ensuring that student perspectives informed formal curriculum adoption proposals. The Staggered Multi-Subject Master Calendar To maintain organizational stability and prevent initiative fatigue, curriculum review cycles must be mapped across a multi-year master calendar. At JIS, subject cycles are staggered so that no department undergoes Stage 1 (Research) or Stage 2 (Development) during major institutional accreditation self-study years. This macro-level scheduling ensures consistent financial resourcing, dedicated consultant budgets, and predictable release time allocations. Another important calendaring consideration is the number of subjects an elementary teacher might be engaged with during the curriculum review cycle in a given year. For example, institutional efforts might be stretched thin if Reading and Math are happening simultaneously.

Conclusion and Actionable Takeaways

Transitioning from an episodic, disorganized curriculum to a sustainable, four-stage Curriculum Review Cycle is one of the most impactful structural investments an international school leadership team can undertake (Williamson and Sabin, 2024). By grounding Stage 1 in decision clarity (RAPID) and transparent Task Briefs, honoring Adult Learning Theory and teacher concerns (CBAM) in Stage 2, establishing multi-tiered reflection during Stage 3, and systematically triangulating data in Stage 4, curriculum leaders can cultivate a culture of continuous instructional growth. Ultimately, systematic curriculum architecture is not merely an administrative exercise in documentation; it is an act of empowering teachers, honoring student learning pathways, and delivering on the mission of international education across the EARCOS region.

References

Bain & Company. (2024). RAPID: decision-making. https://www. bain.com/insights/rapid-decision-making/ DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., Many, T. W., & Mattos, M. (2016). Learning by doing: A handbook for professional learning communities at work (3rd ed.). Solution Tree Press. Hall, G. E., & Hord, S. M. (2020). Implementing change: Patterns, principles, and potholes (5th ed.). Pearson. Hall, G. E., Wallace, R. C., & Dossett, W. A. (1973). A developmental conceptualization of the adoption process within educational institutions (Research Report No. 3006). Research and Development Center for Teacher Education, The University of Texas at Austin. Jacobs, H. H., & Zmuda, A. (2023). Storyboarding your curriculum. Educational Leadership, 80(5). https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/storyboarding-your-curriculum Knowles, M. S., Holton, E. F., & Swanson, R. A. (2015). The adult learner: The definitive classic in adult education and human resource development (8th ed.). Routledge. Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by design (2nd ed.). ASCD. Williamson, B., & Sabin, J. (2024, Fall). Designing your scalable curriculum review cycle [Conference presentation]. EARCOS Annual Leadership Conference, Bangkok, Thailand.

Fall 2026 Issue 13

CURRICULUM & LEARNING

From Input to Understanding

Designing Instruction for Multilingual Learners with the Input-Output Loop By Tan Huynh Secondary EAL Teacher International School of Phnom Penh

The Need

hen I am collaborating with schools around designing instruction for multilinguals (MLs), schools typically report that their students often do not understand the content. Despite the teachers’ expert content instruction, many MLs often say, “I don’t understand.” While many schools have EAL teachers collaborating with homeroom / content-area teachers so that MLs do understand, the need for these experts far exceeds the staffing capacity. If schools do not have the resources to hire additional EAL teachers, the EAL department can support their colleagues by sharing ways to design effective instruction for MLs. The typical response is to offer translations and visuals. However, what MLs truly need are invitations to process the content. My suggestion is to use the 14

EARCOS Triannual Journal

Input-Output Loop as a framework for planning lessons for MLs that intentionally integrate these processing opportunities (Huynh & Skelton, 2026).

The Input-Output Loop At the International School of Phnom Penh (ISPP), the EAL and homeroom / content-area teachers work collaboratively to ensure that MLs achieve grade-level standards. Many of our collaborative teams have started using the Input-Output Loop to structure their instruction for MLs.

Planning with the Loop makes content comprehensible by incorporating frequent opportunities to process the topic-specific details. Using the Loop, our teachers list out all the essential topic-specific details (e.g. stages of a butterfly, types of governments, character archetypes in a play; elements of fitness). For each detail, the teachers plan a brief opportunity for students to process this detail. These can include the ones on the output side in the Loop in Figure 1. After one detail is processed, the lesson continues with the next detail.

However, the science teacher remembers what her EAL colleague shared about planning with the Loop. Without changing her overall plan, the science teacher applies the Loop to the video segment of the lesson. She plans to pause after each type of plate boundary is described in the video. At each pause, she will ask students to pause and create

Different Inputs. Brighter Outputs. Figure 1. The Input-Output Loop (Huynh & Skeleton, 2026). By designing instruction this way, content instruction is taught rather than simply covered. When instruction is covered, the details might be explained clearly but lack the processing opportunities. Without these opportunities, students are less likely to internalize the details, leading to not understanding content. If academic content is like a house, then content-specific details are bricks that build the house. Therefore, the Loop takes the segmenting of content, typically known as chunking, and intentionally integrates the processing opportunities. Integration means that these processing opportunities are woven into the instruction and not given as comprehension questions at the end of the lesson. When comprehension questions are left to the end of the class after the content is taught, the chance to correct misunderstandings is lost. The cyclical nature of planning for comprehensible input and the processing opportunities is represented by the infinity shape in the Loop. Teaching instructions rather than delivering content flows between teaching topic-specific details and processing opportunities.

An Example To demonstrate this, I will use a lesson with the objective of teaching students about the three types of tectonic plate boundaries. In this scenario, the content teacher finds a highly informative video that animates the process for each type of plate boundary. The teacher plans to show the video to provide content knowledge. Next, they plan an engaging activity where students will apply this knowledge through a hands-on project involving crackers (the tectonic plates) and cream cheese (the semi-liquid upper layer of the Earth’s mantle).

simple sketchnotes (annotated diagrams) of what they learned. Finally, she will also teach students to use a hand gesture for each type of plate boundary to help them quickly recall each concept. Convergent Boundary • Sketchnote annotation: tectonic plates push against one another, causing one plate to slide underneath or forcing both upward to build mountain ranges. • Gesture: hands moving together, fingers forming mountains Divergent Boundary • Sketchnote annotation: tectonic plates pull away from each other, creating a gap where magma rises from the mantle to cool and form brand-new crust. • Gesture: hands moving away from each other Transform Boundary • Sketchnote annotation: tectonic plates slide horizontally past each other in opposite directions, building up friction that releases as earthquakes. • Gesture: hands side to side, one hand slides past another Planning with the Loop in this way, the science teacher intentionally created processing opportunities for students to internalize each plate boundary. Because her students internalized the content by processing it as they watched the explainer video, they were able to develop greater conceptual understanding of tectonic plates when engaging with the hands-on activity. This science teacher demonstrates how she doesn’t have to endure extraneous steps or be an EAL teacher to design instruction that makes learning content accessible. All she has to do is teach the same content with slight manageable, intentional adjustments.

Fall 2026 Issue 15

CURRICULUM & LEARNING

Engineering BELONGING for Multilingual Learner Success Jomar B. Conde, LPT CIA FIRST International School

Rethinking Inclusion In the diverse and rapidly evolving landscape of international schooling across the EARCOS region, the term "inclusion" has become a cornerstone of institutional missions. However, for many Multilingual Learners (MLLs), the lived experience often deviates from this ideal, resulting in a sense of "othering"—a systemic positioning as an outsider within the academic and social fabric. As educators, we must recognize that intention does not always equal impact. This discrepancy is rarely a result of poor intentions; rather, it often stems from how educational systems are designed. To move toward genuine equity, schools must shift focus from isolated instructional "fixes" to the intentional engineering of a comprehensive Multilingual Ecosystem.

The Foundational Priority Learning Through Belonging

The R.I.S.E. Framework: Strategic Pillars for School-Wide Alignment To operationalize this shift from the periphery of being "Othered" toward a core of "Belonging," a shared operational roadmap is required. In my personal time, through deep reflection on institutional structures and continuous conversations with the wider community of MLL specialists and international educators, I was able to conceive a conceptual model to address these systemic gaps. This crystallized into the R.I.S.E. Framework. As mapped out in Figure 1, the framework transitions students away from an "othered" state by systematically anchoring school-wide alignment across four critical pillars to ensure institutional impact matches intent (Conde, 2026).

A recurring pedagogical assumption in many educational environments is that academic competence is a prerequisite for belonging—the idea that once a student "masters" the dominant language of instruction, they will finally fit in. However, foundational research suggests a much more interconnected relationship. The "need to belong" is recognized as a fundamental human motivation (Baumeister & Leary, 1995). This pervasive drive to form and maintain positive interpersonal relationships is so central to human functioning that it fundamentally shapes emotional patterns and cognitive processes. Within Maslow's motivational hierarchy, belonging is positioned as a foundational requirement for self-actualization (Maslow, 1970). For an MLL, if a student feels linguistically or culturally "othered," their cognitive load may be consumed by the stress of exclusion rather than the rigors of academic content. This suggests that belonging is not merely a byproduct of learning; it is an essential condition for it. We do not just learn and then belong; we learn through belonging. 16

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Figure 1 Roots (The Asset-Based Mindset) As illustrated in Figure 1, this factor focuses on shifting the educator’s perspective from a "deficit" to an "asset" mindset by valuing students’ cultural and linguistic backgrounds. School leadership plays a critical role here in fostering an asset-based culture where a student's home language and background are recognized as in-

tellectual capital (Griffin, 2024). Shifting the discourse requires institutional initiatives that move educators toward recognizing the inherent "depth of knowledge and skills" that students possess. When a school mission values students because of their linguistic identities, it establishes the psychological safety required for deep engagement. Intervention (Scaffolding Up) This domain involves providing targeted academic scaffolds and provisions that maintain high cognitive complexity rather than watering down grade-level content (Walqui, 2006). As detailed in Figure 1, this also directly takes into account crucial collaborative components like co-planning, co-teaching, co-assessment, and coreflection. This includes intentional translanguaging—encouraging students to use their full linguistic repertoire as a cognitive tool for knowledge construction (García & Li Wei, 2014). Systems (Collaborative Infrastructure) Belonging is rarely sustained by individual effort; it requires intentional organizational design. As visualized in Figure 1, this factor covers the vital school-wide policies, curriculum, and organizational changes required to normalize support and resources for all learners, expanding into day-to-day classroom and session structures. When language development is treated as a shared institutional responsibility rather than a siloed service, the MLL is naturally integrated into the school’s academic DNA. Environment (The Visible Ecology) This domain addresses the creation of a physical and emotional atmosphere that explicitly fosters a sense of welcome and safety for every student (Figure 1). It actively encompasses parent and home involvement alongside the physical resources provided. When schools ensure that multiple languages are reflected in the halls and validated in policies, it triggers "identity affirmation," creating a "safe to fail" space where academic risk-taking is possible (Cummins, 2001). The Belonging-to-Competence Continuum When these four pillars—Roots, Intervention, System, and Environment—are strategically aligned, they support a functional Belonging-to-Competence Continuum. As seen in Figure 2, when an institution engineering these systemic scaffolds, it unlocks a circular, self-reinforcing dynamic where a stable foundation of belonging actively anchors a student's multilingual identity, building the confidence required for ultimate academic competence.

The outer circular arrow in Figure 2 stands as an essential operational reminder: belonging is not a temporary initiative or a singleday project. Belonging is a constant and must be consistent across the educational journey. Systems in Practice: Shifting the Paradigm In implementing these strategic pillars, the 'Systems' component often yields the most immediate structural change in international education. For instance, transitioning from a traditional "pull-out" service model to an "integrated co-teaching" ecosystem requires a significant shift in scheduling and professional collaboration. However, the impact on student belonging is profound. MLLs no longer see themselves as students who must be "taken away" for help, but as core members of the classroom community who benefit from the simultaneous expertise of two teachers. This systemic shift validates the learner's presence in the grade-level curriculum and removes structural barriers to inclusion. Conclusion: Redesigning the Road Multilingual learners are not "broken" versions of monolingual students; they are simply a different shape. If they struggle to navigate certain educational systems, it may not be due to a deficit in the "wheel" (the student), but a need to redesign the "road" (the learning experience). The collective task as a community of international educators is to ensure that institutional impact matches philosophical intent. By intentionally engineering ecosystems through frameworks like R.I.S.E., schools move closer to ensuring that every student is part of a community where all learners can truly thrive.

References

Baumeister, R. F., & Leary, M. R. (1995). The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 117(3), 497-529. Conde, J. B. (2026). RISE: Engineering belonging for multilingual learner success. [Forthcoming Publication]. Cummins, J. (2001). Negotiating identities: Education for empowerment in a diverse society (2nd ed.). California Association for Bilingual Education. García, O., & Li Wei. (2014). Translanguaging: Language, bilingualism and education. Palgrave Macmillan. Griffin, R. A. (2024). Shifting the discourse: How asset-based literacy practices unlock multilingual learners' potential. The Reading Professor, 48(1), 2-11.

Figure 2

Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and personality (2nd ed.). Harper & Row. Walqui, A. (2006). Scaffolding instruction for English language learners: A conceptual framework. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 9(2), 159-180.

Fall 2026 Issue 17

CURRICULUM & LEARNING

AI, Language, and Safety: Building Bilingual Training for Technical Learning Spaces By Christopher Hansen and Carla-Mari van den Heever Keystone Academy, Beijing

What does it mean for a student to be ready to use technical learning spaces?

n a traditional classroom, readiness might mean having a notebook, understanding the task, and knowing how to ask for help. In technical learning spaces, readiness is different. A student must understand the tool, the material, the sequence of steps, the risks, the safety language, the warning signs, and what to do when something unexpected happens. At Keystone Academy in Beijing, KEyTEC was created to support this kind of hands-on, interdisciplinary learning. It is less a traditional classroom than a space where students can move from idea to prototype using tools, machines, and processes more often associated with university fabrication labs, design schools, and professional workshops. KEyTEC supports a range of project-based work, from digital fabrication and robotics to woodworking, metalworking, and machining, along with processes such as 3D printing, laser cutting, and welding. Its purpose goes beyond teaching students how to make things: it is to help them develop technical judgment, independence, and a deeper understanding of how ideas become physical reality. This kind of learning is powerful, but students can only create freely when they know how to work safely.

Safety in a technical space

Technical learning spaces contain tools, machines, materials, and processes that introduce real safety considerations. These environments can involve heat, fumes, dust, sharp edges, pinch points, and fast-moving machinery, along with electrical, eye, hearing, and burn hazards. Some processes also call for material approval, machine guarding, emergency-stop procedures, restricted access, and close supervision.

These risks do not mean students should be kept away from technical spaces but that the training system must be clear, consistent, and understandable. In a space like KEyTEC, this is especially important, since it primarily serves students in Grades 6-12. The users are not adult trainees or professional technicians but middle and high school students at different stages of physical, cognitive, and emotional development. 18

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itself establish that bilingual safety instruction reduces operational risk (Mayer, 2002). Occupational safety guidance reflects the same principle. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (1988, 2010) states that required employee training must use language and vocabulary that employees understand. De Jesus-Rivas et al. (2016) identify language, literacy, and technical wording as barriers to safety comprehension and recommend visual aids, hands-on instruction, and comprehension checks. Although these sources concern workplaces rather than schools, they support a relevant design principle for KEyTEC: students should receive safety information in forms they can understand, demonstrate, and act on.

Advanced technical learning spaces create authentic opportunities for students, but they also require clear, age-appropriate, and language-accessible safety training.

Designing for Grades 6-12

Safety training should be designed around how adolescents learn, practice, make decisions, and respond to risk. Adolescence is a period of significant learning potential, identity formation, and developing independence, but reward sensitivity, peer influence, and decision-making continue to develop (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2019). Safety training should therefore provide scaffolded access through clear explanations, modeling, guided practice, checks for understanding, and supervised progression. As students gain experience and demonstrate competence, they can take on greater independence, while higher-risk activities continue to require clear boundaries and active oversight. This approach is consistent with Rosenshine’s (2012) instructional principles and with guidance from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (2026) that young people should receive safety training in language and wording they understand. Safety training, then, must be both age-appropriate and language-accessible.

The Language of Safety

In many international schools, English is the language of instruction. KEyTEC serves a predominantly native-Mandarin-speaking student population. Safety in a technical space requires specific forms of language proficiency. A student can follow an English classroom discussion and still need support with the language that safety depends on: specialized technical vocabulary, rapid verbal correction mid-task, hazard warnings, and emergency instructions. In an ordinary lesson, that gap may reduce comprehension. Around a running machine, partial understanding can have more serious consequences. In a technical space, comprehension moves from being only an academic concern to becoming a safety concern. Cognitive-load research suggests that novice learners have limited processing capacity during unfamiliar problem solving (Sweller, 1988). In a technical space, students may already be attending to material behavior, body position, machine motion, and nearby classmates. It is therefore reasonable to hypothesize that unfamiliar technical vocabulary or translated warnings could add to that burden. The cited research does not directly test bilingual safety instructions during machine operation, so this should be treated as a design concern rather than a proven causal claim. Well-designed instruction that combines concise verbal explanations with relevant visuals may help students construct clearer mental representations of procedures, although this does not by

Evidence from multilingual science classrooms points in a related direction. In a 16-lesson electricity unit with 479 Hong Kong eighth-graders, Fung (2021) found Chinese-medium instruction more advantageous for lower- and middle-ability students, while English was more favorable for higher-achieving students. Ryoo (2015) found that introducing science concepts in everyday English before technical terms improved fifth graders’ conceptual understanding. These studies support using familiar language as a bridge to technical vocabulary, but neither directly tests bilingual safety training. UNESCO’s guidance on multilingual education is consistent with this approach while also emphasizing continued access to additional languages (UNESCO, 2022, 2025).

AI can assist with the initial development of bilingual safety signage, but all terminology and instructions must be verified by qualified technical and bilingual staff. Bilingual support allows students to understand procedures and hazards securely while building the English technical vocabulary needed for safe participation.

How AI Could Help

AI can support the development of bilingual safety training. It should not replace teachers, technicians, operations teams, or safety oversight, and it should not be treated as an unsupervised authority for safety-critical instruction. But for a space like KEyTEC, with its range of tools, procedures, learner ages, and language needs, AI could make bilingual safety training easier to develop, update, and adapt. Whether it makes training more effective or sustainable would still need to be tested in practice. AI could help draft safety modules in English and Mandarin, technical glossaries, plain-language hazard explanations, comprehension checks, and scenario-based questions. Qualified technical and bilingual staff would need to verify every safety-critical term, instruction, translation, and scenario before use. The approved materials could be delivered online before students receive access to a tool or machine. Students could review them in Mandarin, English, or a bilingual format, then complete a quiz or scenario-based assessment before moving to in-person demonstration. AI could also help adapt training for different age groups, provided the changes are reviewed by educators and safety staff. A Grade 6 introduction to a high-risk process may use simpler language, more visuals, more repetition, and more concrete examples. A Grade 10 or Grade 12 module may introduce more technical vocabulary, greater detail about material behavior, and more independent troubleshooting. In both cases, the core safety rule stays the same, while the explanation, examples, checks for unFall 2026 Issue 19

derstanding, and expected independence can shift. For example, a bilingual safety module for a high-risk machine could explain what the equipment does, its primary hazards, what materials or behaviors are prohibited, what warning signs to notice, and what to do if something unexpected happens. It could also introduce key English technical vocabulary, such as emergency stop, machine guarding, feed rate, dust extraction, and pinch point, alongside verified Chinese equivalents and plain-language explanations. In this model, students are not avoiding English; they are building English technical vocabulary on top of secure comprehension, while also learning the procedures, judgment, and safety behaviors that responsible tool use requires.

Humans Are Not Replaced

Human review is essential. Recent research on multilingual LLM safety shows that language can affect how models respond to safety-related prompts, while a survey of LLM-safety papers in major ACL venues found that the field remains strongly English-centered (Shen et al., 2024; Yong et al., 2025). These findings support a cautious review process for AI-generated bilingual safety materials. AI-generated materials should therefore be reviewed by qualified technical staff, bilingual reviewers, and operations or safety personnel before being used with students. AI can accelerate the work, but it should not be the final safety authority.

A practical delivery model could be simple: • Students complete an online bilingual preparation module. • Students pass a comprehension check. • Students participate in an in-person demonstration. • Students demonstrate safe operation under supervision. • Staff sign off access only after comprehension and behavior are both verified. The online module should be treated as preparation, not as a replacement for hands-on training. Before students use higher-risk tools or machines, they should receive live, in-person demonstrations, observe critical safety behaviors, practice under supervision, and demonstrate that they can respond appropriately if something goes wrong. The exact requirements should follow KEyTEC’s equipment-specific risk assessments, manufacturer guidance, and school safety procedures. This in-person training should include more than basic tool operation. Users should be shown where emergency stop buttons are located, how and when to stop a machine, where fire extinguishers are positioned, where emergency exits are located, how to alert staff, and what behaviors require immediate pause or shutdown. They should also practice recognizing warning signs such as unusual sound, smell, smoke, heat, unexpected movement, material instability, or unsafe peer behavior. For this reason, access to technical spaces should not be granted simply because a user has watched a video or passed an online quiz. A responsible safety system should combine online bilingual preparation, verified comprehension, live demonstration, supervised practice, and staff sign-off. AI could help students arrive better prepared, but the final evidence of readiness must include what students do in the physical space, with the actual tools, under the supervision of qualified adults. This progression gives less experienced students structured, bilingual, visually supported instruction. As students demonstrate competence, they can take on more advanced technical reasoning, risk assessment, and independence. Tool access should remain tied to demonstrated understanding and safe behavior. The question is not simply, “Was safety training provided?” The better question is, “Was it understandable for this student, in this language, at this age, for this tool, and at this level of risk?” AI can also help keep training materials consistent. In school technical spaces, safety preparation can vary with the instructor, the time available, and whether documents have been updated. AI-supported workflows could help staff prepare first drafts of updated training documents, convert machine manuals into student-friendly language, create quizzes, produce bilingual checklists, and adapt explanations for different age groups. All such materials would still require review and approval by qualified staff. Students should receive comparable safety preparation regardless of the instructor, class period, or time available that day. A shared bilingual training system could provide a more reliable foundation for teachers, technicians, and students, while leaving final decisions with qualified adults. 20

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Technical learning spaces help students become capable and responsible makers when access is paired with clear training, verified comprehension, and supervised practice.

Beyond One School

This model has implications beyond one school. International schools that develop maker spaces, engineering labs, robotics rooms, and digital fabrication centers need safety systems designed for their tools, students, and languages. These spaces are exciting because they give students access to real tools and real problems. But real tools require real safety systems. If safety information is not delivered in language and wording students can understand and act on, schools may unintentionally create barriers to both access and safety. The goal is not to choose between English and Chinese, or between English and any other language, but to build a bilingual technical learning culture where students understand safety deeply, use tools responsibly, and develop the English vocabulary they need to take part in global engineering and design conversations. Native-language support gives students a stronger foundation for meeting demanding technical and linguistic expectations. In complex technical learning spaces, safety begins with comprehension. AI-supported bilingual training could offer international schools a practical way to strengthen safety preparation while preserving qualified human oversight.

About the Authors

Christopher Hansen Chief Science Officer and Director of Interdisciplinary Studies Beijing New Talent Academy, Beijing, China Email: hansen.c.ralph@gmail.com ORCID: 0000-0002-6640-2745 Carla-Mari van den Heever English Teacher and EARCOS Teacher Representative Keystone Academy, Beijing, China Email: carla.vdheever@keystoneacademy.cn

Fall 2026 Issue 21

Jakarta Intercultural School Marks 75 Years of Meaningful Learning and Global Impact JIS honors the people, milestones, and contributions that have shaped its evolution from a small garage classroom into a globally connected learning community. 22

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Jakarta Intercultural School (JIS) is commemorating 75 years of teaching and learning in Indonesia, celebrating the generations of students, educators, staff, families, and partners who have shaped its history while looking ahead to the future of international education.

Maya Nelson JIS Head of School

“We are incredibly proud to commemorate this important moment in our school’s history and to honor the generations of students, faculty, and staff who shaped JIS into the warm and inclusive community it is today,” said JIS Head of School Maya Nelson. “Each has left an indelible mark on our legacy and continues to inspire our mission to be Best for the World.”

At the High School level, students can pursue individualized academic pathways through the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme or the Advanced Placement, AP Capstone Diploma. “While our campuses and learning tools have changed, we remain guided by the same commitment to meaningful, future-focused learning that places students at the center of everything we do,” Nelson said. That commitment extends beyond the classroom. JIS Peduli, the schoolwide service arm, supports studentcreated initiatives addressing social, educational, health, and community needs. The JIS Learning Center offers specialized, individualized learning designed to help students participate meaningfully in school and community life.

A classroom in the 1950s. From a simple room in a garage, the school quickly became established, and more classrooms were needed.

JIS’s story began on September 1, 1951, when United Nations workers established makeshift classrooms in the garage of their Jakarta home. The International School of Djakarta ofﬁcially opened with three teachers and eight students ranging in age from 3 to 10. As the school community grew, JIS acquired land in Pattimura, Kebayoran Baru, in 1952. The Pattimura campus opened in 1953, offering nursery and kindergarten classes as well as Grades 1–6. Continued demand eventually led to the development of the Cilandak campus for older students on 10 hectares of land in South Jakarta. The school’s subsequent names reﬂected its evolving identity. It became the Joint Embassy School in recognition of support from the embassies of Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Yugoslavia; later became Jakarta International School; and ultimately adopted the name Jakarta Intercultural School. In 1991, growing elementary enrollment led to the opening of Pondok Indah Elementary, known within the community as PIE, adjacent to the Cilandak campus. In 2018, PIE introduced a dedicated Early Years Center designed to support the development of JIS’s youngest learners.

Students, teachers, and staff of Jakarta Intercultural School (JIS) form a sprawling “JIS75” in celebration of the school’s 75th anniversary.

The anniversary has already brought together generations of JIS Dragons, with alumni traveling from around the world to reconnect in Jakarta and Bali. Among those returning were alumni from the late 1960s who witnessed the school’s early development at Pattimura. Throughout the anniversary year, JIS is honoring the milestone through community events, creative showcases, alumni activities, and commemorative initiatives celebrating the school’s history and its continuing connection to Indonesia. “Years and even decades from now, we hope future generations of JIS Dragons will look back on this moment with pride, just as we do today,” Nelson said. “It is a profound privilege to build on this legacy, strengthen our culture of open-minded curiosity and meaningful learning, and continue preparing students to be Best for the World.” Jakarta Intercultural School Jl. Terogong Raya No.33, Cilandak www.jisedu.or.id

Today, JIS serves more than 2,200 students from Early Years through Grade 12, representing approximately 70 nationalities across three campuses. Students beneﬁt from a balanced academic and co-curricular program designed to develop curiosity, resilience, creativity, and global understanding. Fall 2026 Issue 23

EDUCATIONAL INSIGHT

Good for Nothing This is a condensed version based on a “Wider Answer” provocation to the Bangkok CISEARCOS Institute on International Admission & Guidance in September 2026. The full text will shortly be available at nickalchin.com By Nicholas Alchin

EARCOS Triannual Journal

hen I was about eleven, my mother arranged piano lessons for me after school on Wednesdays. I hadn't asked for them, and I was not a good student. I would walk slowly up the road and arrive ten minutes late and bash the keyboard clumsily for Mrs Gardner, who had a habit of shutting her eyes during my playing. At the time, I thought she was sleeping, but now, as a teacher, I realise it was to hide her disgust. After some months, I told my mother I wanted to give up. “You'll regret it when you're older,” she said. “You'll wish you could play.” “Maybe,” I said, “but I still don't want to go next Wednesday.”

Both sides are measuring human beings by what they are good for. Each looks at the other's graduate and sees someone “good for nothing” - meaning nothing I have a future use for. The colonists and the Iroquois both agreed to judge what happens today in terms of what it leads to in years to come. The same game my mother and I were playing about the piano, three centuries later. We are very good at asking what education might be for in the future, and answering it. And we should ask that question - it’s important. But if what is it for? is the only question we ask, we have lost something important as a result. ***

The lessons ended. And my mother was right; I wish that the eleven-year-old had chosen differently. But 'my mother was right and the boy was shortsighted' is a standard reading that I want to interrogate. Because the boy also understood something true: whatever the piano might give his future self, it gave him very little in the present. And he was not prepared to make his present merely a means to a future he had not chosen. My regret is genuine, now. But so was his refusal, then. Both were right, just about different things. The thing that was beyond both me and my mother that day was the real reason to play; not for the future I'd use it in, and not just for the pleasure of the present. But because the playing might change me. We couldn’t see that so things came to an argument about the future she wanted and the present I wanted. This issue is broader than me and my piano. It runs through many systems we work in - schools, universities, guidance, admissions, entry jobs, careers - and most of those systems lean towards my mother's side of the conversation. *** The argument didn't start with me and my mother. Let's go back to 1744, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where well-meaning Commissioners from Virginia offer to educate six Iroquois young men at the College of William and Mary. The Iroquois' reply - as Ben Franklin later recorded it - is both gracious and devastating: “Several of our young people were formerly brought up at the Colleges of the Northern provinces … but, when they came back to us, they were bad runners, ignorant of every means of living in the woods … and were therefore neither fit for hunters, warriors, nor counselors; they were totally good for nothing. …if the gentlemen of Virginia shall send us a dozen of their sons, we will take great care in their education, instruct them in all we know, and make men of them.” It's tempting to read and applaud this purely as a story of resistance; the Iroquois refusing assimilation, defending their way of life against colonial education. True enough - the power was all on one side. But note what the Iroquois don't say. They don’t say the colonial education was worthless; they say it was worthless for their purposes because it produced men unfit to be hunters, warriors, counsellors.

Where does this relentless pull of the future come from? Some of the pressure our students feel is inevitably external - the exams, the deadlines, the league tables and sometimes us, the teachers and parents in their lives. But the trouble is, the pressure is no longer solely from external sources. Korean philosopher Han Byung-Chul has a helpful way of describing this. In his book The Burnout Society, he argues that we have shifted from being disciplinary societies - enforcing conformity through external institutions like prisons, barracks and factories - to being today what he calls achievement societies, where the enforcement has moved inwards. Think about the language we use with young people. Innovation. Best self. Full potential. Not wasting your talents. Grit. Agency. I have used all of it - with my students, with my own children, and on myself. It is the language of perpetual inadequacy. It points at the gap between who you are and who you could be, and urges you to close it. The gap, by definition, never closes. That's the hallmark of the achievement society: nobody is making us do it. We feel like we are doing it freely, even enthusiastically. Han puts it starkly: "In this society of compulsion, everyone carries a work camp inside them." Han is describing adults - people who no longer need anyone to push them. Our students are not there yet. For them there is still a parent, a teacher, a deadline doing the pushing. But that is exactly the apparatus by which the external becomes internal. The work camp is not something they are born carrying. It is something we teach them to carry - teachers and parents alike; I have done it in both roles - so that one day they will do it without us. Fall 2026 Issue 25

And here the evidence is not just anecdotal. Thomas Curran and Andrew Hill, in a meta-analysis across three decades of data, found that perfectionism has risen sharply in university students since the 1980s - and in particular the socially-prescribed kind of perfectionism - the sense that others demand perfection of you.

You will have spotted what I did there. I said “better prepared for what comes next” and in other words I was justifying breadth in terms of what it led to, not as valuable in itself. I was critiquing instrumentalism, but I've just replaced one instrumental argument with another. That's how ingrained the instrumental reflex is.

***

If something is always in service of something else, then when you finally get to that next thing, that's also in service of something else. We've seen that from the student who thinks the thing is getting a great IB score, and then it's getting into Harvard, and then it's being the valedictorian, and then it's getting the job, and then it's becoming a partner, and so on. If everything is in service of something else, then where does it end? What's the ground we can stop at?

I am not saying we should stop caring about excellence, or stop encouraging young people to develop. I’m pointing to our biggest assumption: that the purpose of education is to produce something in the future, not the present. This instrumental deal has shaped education for a few hundred years, and for many millions of people it has been a lifeline - the route out of poverty, to lives better than their parents had. But every deal has a cost. Some years ago, a father came to see me about his daughter. I taught her Theory of Knowledge. His question was entirely reasonable: what will she do with this? I gave him the standard answer. Transferable skills. Critical thinking. Creativity. He was polite but unconvinced, and honestly, perhaps I am beginning to be too. What I should have said was that the question assumed that if the study didn't lead anywhere, it was wasted. But some things don't lead anywhere because they aren't on the way to anywhere - they're where you arrive. She was being changed by the ideas in the lessons themselves. I didn't have the language to say that, so I conceded his whole premise. “What will she do with this?” asks about the product. “Who will she become by doing this?” asks about the person. The systems we run are organised around the first more than we care to admit. That includes most schools - certainly the one I lead. Every year we publish our IB results and our university destinations. I’m proud of the results; they represent years of work. But they address only the first question. So when I talk about the instrumental system, I’m inside the tent. One place where the instrumental logic shows up clearly is in the move toward early specialisation. It feels rational; if the world is competitive, get ahead early. But David Epstein, in his book Range, argues that this path works only in what Robin Hogarth calls ‘kind’ environments - constrained, predictable, repeatable domains where the rules are clear and fixed, and feedback is immediate. But most of life is not like that. Life is what Hogarth calls ‘wicked’ - the rules are unclear, the goal (if there is one) is unclear, and feedback comes in years, not seconds. In those environments, and this is most of what our students will face, it is the generalists who tend to thrive. We all know the student with the curated profile: the future doctor with the chemistry, the hospital internship, the volunteering at the clinic, the Extended Essay in immunology - every piece pointing the same way. And we know the student who has tried many things, changed direction, followed interests that don't add up to a neat narrative. Our systems tend to reward the first student - perhaps for understandable reasons. Epstein's evidence suggests, however, that the second may be better prepared for what comes next. 26

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I want to suggest that the spiral can stop at the point where something is valuable not for what it leads to, but for what it does to you. Where it changes you. That ground is the thing that is not in service of anything else, because being changed is not a step on the way to somewhere; it is the somewhere. It is also good for nothing, in a very different way to how we normally use the phrase. I am not going to specify what anyone should change into, because the moment I do we will have defined more targets, more gaps to close. That, by the way, is a difficulty with moves to drop exam grades on transcripts and instead report on qualities like critical thinking, creativity and communication, because the instrumental approach will simply move the game to those very qualities (though I concede that they are more meaningful qualities). Instrumentalism is a universal acid here. It can dissolve anything turn ineffable qualities into metrics, reduce richness to a strategy. So I will point to the general direction - the openness to be changed by what you meet. *** We might then reasonably ask what kind of life that openness makes. There have, traditionally, been two ways to think about the good life. The first is the happy life - characterised by comfort, stability, and positive emotion. The second is the meaningful life characterised by purpose, significance, coherence. But I think there is also a third possible answer, and here I want to draw on the findings of psychologists Shigehiro Oishi and Erin Westgate. They name the psychologically rich life - by which they mean a life characterised by variety, interest and perspectivechanging experiences. If, looking back on their life, the happy person says “I had fun!”, the meaningful person says “I made a difference!”, and the psychologically rich person says “What a journey!” This is relatively recent research, so it needs some care, but when Oishi and colleagues asked people across nine countries what made a life good, a substantial proportion reached for richness the experiences that changed how they saw the world. We should make sure the third option doesn’t degenerate into one more thing to optimise - collect experiences and win at variety too. Richness is not simply variety; it is the psychological depth that comes from encounters that change how we see. 'What a journey!' said as a boast about a full CV is just instrumental self-promotion. Said as a recognition that you were changed by what you met, it

is something else entirely. It has something the others do not: it enlarges you. Just over a year ago, on the first day of a new term, I watched a fouryear-old grip his father's hand as if the world depended on it. His new teacher was crouching a few feet away, patient, unhurried, her hand extended. The boy stood rigid, eyes wide, caught between the safety of what he knew and the terror of what he didn't. And then, slowly, he let go of his father's hand and reached for the teacher's. He did not think his way to courage. Courage happened to him. And the teacher did not persuade him with an argument. She offered a hand, and waited for him to take it. Moments like this do not appear on a transcript. They are not in service of something else. The colonists and the Iroquois might both have called them good for nothing; that is the point I am making. These moments are not down payments for some deferred future. They are the thing. So what might any of this mean on a Monday morning, for those of us who work in schools and those of us who are raising children? Don't let students mistake the stories needed for the personal statements for the truth. University applications need a coherent story, and helping students tell it well is part of a school's job. Counsellors are very good at it: they take a wandering history - the inevitable ups and downs of middle and high school - and smooth it into a line with a clear trajectory. The risk is that the student comes to believe the smoothed version, and concludes that the wandering was a mess to be managed, rather than the education itself. Protect these moments. Some of the most formative moments in school are conversations that aren't in service of anything: the lesson that wanders off-topic, the counselling meeting that turns into something other than the application. But these unscripted, unhurried and unmeasurable moments are also the first thing to go when everything is in service of the future.

References Graphics by Gemini based on prompts from Claude. Curran, T. & Hill, A.P. (2019). Perfectionism is increasing over time: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 145(4), 410–429. Epstein, D. (2019). Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World. Riverhead. Franklin, B. (1784). Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America. Passy. Han, B-C. (2015). The Burnout Society. Stanford Briefs. Hogarth, R. M. (2001). Educating Intuition. University of Chicago Press. Oishi, S., Choi, H., Koo, M., et al. (2020). Happiness, meaning, and psychological richness. Affective Science, 1(2), 107–115. Oishi, S. & Westgate, E.C. (2022). A psychologically rich life: Beyond happiness and meaning. Psychological Review, 129(4), 790– 811.

About the Author Nick Alchin is Head of College at UWCSEA in Singapore, and an education consultant and speaker. He was formerly the IB's Chief Assessor for Theory of Knowledge and Vice Chair of the IB Examining Board, and is the author of the widely used TOK textbook, now in its third edition with Hodder. His book A Year of Great Conversations will be published by Bloomsbury in February 2027.

Many of those conversations happen at home of course - in the car journey, at the dinner table. Sometimes the better thing is to let the conversation become an encounter: to ask the question we are not required to ask, and then to wait, and to be open to wherever it goes - to be present to one another rather than processing one another. Protect these moments, because they form a person. *** I believe the instrumental question is not the only one, because the eleven-year-old who gave up the piano was not simply shortsighted. He was not prepared to make his present merely a means to a future he hadn’t chosen. He was right about that, even if he was wrong to walk away. What neither of us could see that day was that the playing might change him. Perhaps the real question was never what will you do? but who do you want to become?

Fall 2026 Issue 27

EARCOS - CIS INSTITUTE ON INTERNATIONAL ADMISSION & GUIDANCE

Beyond the Next Step: Making Space for the Present A reflection on the 2026 EARCOS-CIS Institute on International Admission & Guidance Bangkok, Thailand • September 2026

Edward E. Greene, Ph.D. Executive Director, EARCOS

ore than 500 counselors, university admissions professionals, and education leaders gathered in Bangkok in September for the 2026 EARCOS-CIS Institute on International Admission & Guidance. Over two days, participants exchanged ideas, explored emerging issues in international admissions and counseling, and strengthened connections across schools and universities.

Alchin challenged us to consider what can be lost when so much of what students do today is justified primarily by what it might produce tomorrow. Preparing young people for the future matters, but education should not become simply a series of steps toward some continually deferred destination.

Behind those conversations was a question particularly relevant to those who help young people navigate major transitions: How do we help students prepare for the future without allowing the future to consume the present?

Moving Beyond the Next Credential That question was brought into focus by Nick Alchin, Head of College at UWCSEA, in his keynote address. For students navigating university admissions, life can easily become a sequence of objectives: achieve the grade, build the résumé, gain admission to the right university, earn the qualification, secure the job and then move on to the next milestone. 28

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Nick Alchin, Head of College at UWCSEA.

Some experiences have value not because of where they lead, but because of what they offer in the present and how they change us along the way. As Alchin put it, when something changes us, “being changed is not a step on the way to somewhere; it is the somewhere.”

Making Room for a Psychologically Rich Life

Alchin invited participants to consider another dimension of what it means to live well. Alongside the familiar ideas of a happy life and a meaningful life, he explored the concept of the psychologically rich life. This is a life characterized by variety, interest and experiences that change our perspectives. For counselors and admissions professionals, this carries particular significance. Their work necessarily involves helping students plan for what comes next. Applications need to be completed, choices need to be made, and pathways need to be considered. But students also need space to explore, change direction, pursue interests without an obvious payoff, and encounter ideas and experiences simply because they matter now.

Learning Through Community

That spirit of exploration extended throughout the Institute, with more than 40 sessions led by counselors, admissions professionals, educators, and university representatives. Presenters generously shared their expertise and experiences, while participants brought their own questions and perspectives to the conversation. Formal workshops were complemented by the equally valuable exchanges that happened between sessions, over meals, and through new professional connections. This remains one of the great strengths of the EARCOS-CIS Institute .Coming together gives us an opportunity not only to learn from experts, but also to learn from one another.

Bringing Students into the Conversation

Perhaps the clearest reminder of our collective purpose came during the Institute’s University Fair, when more than 700 students and parents met directly with university representatives. Watching those conversations unfold brought the work of the Institute into sharp focus. Behind every discussion about admissions, counseling, applications, programs, and professional practice is an individual young person making choices about both their future and the life they are living now.

A Partnership Built Around Students

The Institute also reflects the strength of the partnership between EARCOS and the Council of International Schools (CIS). We are especially grateful to our CIS partners Jane Larson, Corina van Beelen, Katryna Snow, and Frederico Silva, along with the entire CIS team, for their partnership in hosting this year’s event. We look forward to continuing the conversation when the EARCOS-CIS community gathers again in Bangkok on September 17–18, 2027.

Fall 2026 Issue 29

EARCOS INSIGHT

Collaboration and Camaraderie in University Counselling How solo high school university counsellors support each other across Asia By Iain Hudson University Advisor Chatsworth International School, Singapore

‘I’m interested in applying to universities in Hong Kong, Korea and Japan, but I’m also looking at the USA. Can you help me?’

avigating the intricacies of multiple university admission systems is challenging when you are a one-person office, and a position in which many high school university counsellors find themselves at smaller schools. This task is compounded when working with a highly diverse student population, most of whom seek tertiary opportunities in countries beyond the location of their high school. In 2023 Eric Laug and Hani Rahman presented a session at CISEARCOS called ‘Running a College Counselling Office as a Solo Counsellor’. After the session the solos wanted to stay connected, so the Solo Counsellor’s Office WhatsApp group was born. We now have 132 members and accept members from the Middle East to New Zealand, and the group continues to grow. All the members are in very small or single counselling offices. There is a remarkable spirit of generosity among the members in sharing advice and information..

Members support each other in a variety of ways. In many cases students are exploring options beyond the traditional destinations of the UK, USA and Australia. As counsellors have to learn more about application systems with which they may have been previously unfamiliar, quite often there is someone in the group who is able to offer guidance about what steps to take to support an application 30

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Frequently people will reach out asking for admissions contacts at specific institutions, particularly if they are unable to develop their network of contacts through attending events like the annual CISEARCOS Institute in Bangkok. In the past few days I have reached out to the group as I needed to connect with someone who could provide very specific guidance on foundation pathways in the United Kingdom. When I asked the question I promptly received the details of two experts and another counsellor shared a guide to UK Foundation Pathways he had created. This colleague also shared the document with the whole group in case others find it useful. Setting up a counselling office at a new school, or stepping into the role can be a daunting experience. It is fantastic to be able to learn from experienced colleagues who can share ideas about how to set up a student-parent-school agreement so that roles and responsibilities are clearly defined, or to learn how to draw up an effective university advising policy. How do you cope with the family who believe that submitting 17 (or sometimes more) applications is the way to guarantee success? Singapore is a wonderful place to work. We are fortunate to have a supportive counselling community which meets twice a year to discuss matters of communal interest and developments regarding university counselling and applications. The Solo Counsellor’s Office is special, it connects counsellors from across the region who know there is a colleague out there who will help you, share with you, and commiserate with you when the pressure is on, deadlines are due, and students are being challenging.

Solo Counsellors at the CIS-EARCOS Institute on International Admission and Guidance 2026

Fall 2026 Issue 31

GREEN & SUSTAINABLE

Energizing IST’s New Gym:

Students Lead, LEED Follows, Solar Powers By Na Ye Kim, Tung He Wang & Da Hyeon Lee Grade 12, International School of Tianjin

ligning with our school’s philosophy of looking beyond our immediate needs, as well as our commitment to sustainability, we, three Grade 11 students from IST—Na Ye, Tung He, and Da Hyeon— were invited to track the new gym construction from groundbreaking, full construction, fit-out, to decoration. Because our new gym was designed to be built and used sustainably, it aimed to achieve LEED Gold certification, the most widely recognized green building rating system in the world. To meet the requirements for LEED certification, our new gym incorporated a variety of sustainable features into three key areas: Green Vehicles, Energy Saving Measures, and a Comfortable Environment. The new gym incorporated a range of energy and water saving features, additional lighting controls, and an underground air system. It also featured CO₂ sensors and other air quality monitoring systems, regular indoor air quality testing, fresh air ventilation, en32

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vironmentally friendly building materials, automatic temperature control, and noise reduction measures to create a healthy and comfortable indoor environment. Considering how LEED certification was a central concern in the design and build, we realized that we could initiate a complementary project wherein we could continue to visit and track the construction but also research the possibility of further supporting LEED certification through solar panels. Furthermore, this project was guided by UN Sustainable Development Goal 7: Affordable and Clean Energy. By generating renewable energy directly on our campus, we aimed to reduce the school's carbon footprint and demonstrate that climate action could start at the student level.

The Power of Solar Energy Solar panels are flat devices that convert sunlight into electricity. They have become increasingly popular with the rise of renewable energy (Britannica Editors, 2026). Each panel is made up of a series of photovoltaic cells. When light strikes these cells, electrons are excited from a lower energy level to a higher one, which generates electricity that can be used in daily life (Britannica Editors, 2026). Unlike fossil fuels, this process does not produce emissions and relies on a source of energy that is freely available every day, making it renewable. China, one of the largest drivers of solar energy growth, reached a new record in renewable capacity expansion in 2025, with nearly 500 GW of additions accounting for over 60% of global growth (International Energy Agency, 2026). This national momentum toward clean energy also inspired our own project, reminding us that largescale transitions toward sustainability could begin with individual decisions to invest in renewable infrastructure. The goal was to install 95 solar panels on the new gym’s roof, each of which measured 1,134 mm by 2,278 mm and was rated at 585 watts, for a combined capacity of 55 kW once fully installed. With each panel costing 2,400 RMB, this meant raising a total of 228,000 RMB, which was equivalent to approximately USD 33,700.

From Ideas to Impact To do so, we completed various promotional activities. For instance, we created and displayed promotional infographics and posters with relevant statistics around the school to attract our community’s attention. We also delivered several presentations in front of the school audience by collaborating with lower grade members of the sustainability-focused action group. Another key promotional activity was to create a donor recognition wall to honor all donors’ names in the new gym. Specifying different rankings based on the number of solar panels donated, the recognition wall helped to encourage friendly competition in our community. To make the donation process convenient in China, we used WeChat Pay.

Construction Site of IST’s New

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Through successful promotional activities, we achieved our goal of collecting donations for all 95 panels. The school community’s supportive contributions were crucial for the success of this project, as the total of 83 donors included students, parents, as well as school staff members and relevant corporations. This allowed our project to highlight the importance of environmental education by encouraging members of the community to actively contribute to making our school more sustainable. Through this successful fundraising campaign, we were able to install the panels and make our school even more ecofriendly. Through the installation of solar panels, our new gym was expected to generate 59,400 kWh of clean electricity every year and power more than 900 LED light bulbs across the school. This was expected to reduce our reliance on electricity sourced from fossil fuels, which are non-renewable resources that create harmful greenhouse emissions (United Nations/climate action, n.d). Our school could therefore lower its environmental impact by leveraging a more sustainable source of energy. The new gym was also expected to reduce annual CO₂ emissions by 34–35 tonnes and to have the same environmental impact as planting around 160 trees every year. This was particularly important for climate action because carbon dioxide is one of Earth's most significant long-lived greenhouse gases and is a major contributor to global warming (Lindsey, 2025). Because everyday activities in the new gym, such as LED lights, air conditioning, and heating system operations, all required electricity and were associated with emissions, using solar energy to power them was expected to help slow climate change.

In Conclusion What began as a documentation project for our school's new gym construction grew into a campaign that brought clean energy directly to our campus. Through promotional efforts and the support of students, parents, staff, and local corporations, we successfully secured donations for all 95 solar panels. The impact of this project extended beyond the installation itself, as these panels represented a lasting contribution to our school's sustainability. Alongside this, our progress toward LEED Certification reflected our school's commitment to environmentally responsible design. More than the numbers, though, this project demonstrated that meaningful climate action did not require waiting for institutions or governments to act first. In alignment with UN Sustainable Development Goal 7, we hoped this student initiative would show that clean energy initiatives could start small and create lasting change.

EARCOS Triannual Journal

Solar panels installed on the roof of IST’s new gym

Solar panels installed on the roof of IST’s new gym.

References Britannica Editors (2026, May 11). solar panel. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/technology/solar-panel Christoph Nedopil Wang. (2026). Growing trend of solar energy in China [Photograph]. Green Finance & Development Center. https://greenfdc.org/chinas-15th-five-year-plan-2026-2030-acomprehensive-analysis-for-chinas-green-transition-in-climate-emissions-energy-industry-metals-and-finance/ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (2025, May 21). Climate change: Atmospheric carbon dioxide. Climate. gov. https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-atmospheric-carbon-dioxide United Nations. (n.d.). Forests. https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/science/climate-issues/forests United Nations. (n.d.). What is renewable energy? https://www. un.org/en/climatechange/what-is-renewable-energy U.S. Green Building Council. (n.d.). LEED. https://www.usgbc. org/leed

Fall 2026 Issue 35

STUDENT VOICES — CREATIVE WRITING

The Ride Home

Shinjuku

By Bran Carson Grade 12, International School of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

he train was late again.

Takahashi Hiroshi sighed, adjusting the cuff of his crisp white shirt as he glanced at his watch. The fluorescent glow of the Shinjuku station lights flickered slightly, casting shadows across the platform. He had been standing here for nearly five minutes, yet none of the other commuters seemed to care about the delay. A woman in a navy-blue business suit stood beside him, staring at her phone. A salaryman with a loosened tie leaned against a pillar, eyes closed, swaying slightly with exhaustion and drinking Pocari Sweat. Everything was normal. And yet, something felt off. He had taken the Oedo home for years, and the trains were never this late, not like in America or England. He turned to check the station clock, but for some reason, he couldn’t quite muster the energy to look up at it.

to recall the last thing he had done before boarding, but his thoughts felt muddy, almost like a hangover. He remembered the platform. The waiting. The flickering neon sign. But had there been a ticket gate? Had he scanned his phone?

His fingers tightened around his phone. He tried dialing his wife, but the call wouldn’t go through. Hadn’t she asked him to get home early tonight? He tried to remember what she had told him. Nothing. He tried to recall her voice, her face.

Perhaps he was just tired.

He shook his head. Of course he had. He did it twice a day.

Why couldn’t he remember?

The train finally arrived, gliding in with a low hum, the doors hissing open. He stepped inside, gripping the overhead handle as the carriage jolted forward. The fluorescent lights flickered once, twice, before settling into a steady glow. He exhaled, closing his eyes for a moment.

The train continued its journey, the silence of the empty train somehow more hollow than the silence of a full one. He turned to look out the window, expecting to see the familiar graffiti on the walls.

When he opened them, the train was empty. That was odd.

Instead, there was nothing. Just an endless, shifting darkness.

Hadn’t there been people on the train when he boarded?

Takahashi stopped breathing.

He turned his head, scanning the carriage. The seats were unoccupied, the windows reflected only his face. The train slid forward steadily. He glanced at his phone. No signal. Odder still. A faint unease writhed in his stomach. He tried 36

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He had taken the Oedo line home from work for years. He knew every station, every advertisement plastered along the walls of the tunnels between his office and home. But now, there was nothing outside, not even the cement and tile wall of the tunnel. The train wasn’t slowing. No announcements played over the speakers.

He had a wife. He was sure of it. He could recall the shape of her hands, the scent of her shampoo. But her face was blurred, like a smudged photograph. The train doors slid open. The platform outside was dimly lit, the fluorescent bulbs overhead buzzing faintly. Takahashi hesitated. This wasn’t his stop. He didn’t recognize the station name. There was no sign at all. No maps. No advertisements. Just a long, empty platform stretching into darkness in either direction, broken only by the stairs and the regularly spaced vending machines, rising like postmodern menhirs behind cheap metal benches And yet he felt like he had been here before.

He stepped onto the platform, the air thick with the scent of recycled air and the faint metallic tang of the sweat of countless corporate drones. The train doors slid shut behind him.

He reached for it, fingers trembling. He could hear the figure behind him now, its breath too slow, too measured. He wrenched the door open and launched himself through.

He turned just in time to see his own reflection in the window. It did not turn with him.

The office was quiet.

The station was silent. Takahashi walked forward, his footsteps echoing, unnaturally loud against the tiled floor without the comforting sound of others walking with him. Something about this place felt familiar. Too familiar. His head ached. A memory, half-formed, pressed against the edges of his mind. He had been here before. He had walked these steps before. But when? He turned, glancing back at the platform. A man stood at the far end.

Takahashi sat at his desk, his hands resting on the keyboard of his company desktop. The fluorescent lights buzzed faintly. He exhaled, rubbing his temples. He had to stop falling asleep on the job. The quarterly report on his screen was halffinished, numbers blurring together. His can of coffee had gone lukewarm. He glanced around. The office was empty, his coworkers must have already left for the night. He checked the time. 23:17 Too late. He needed to go home. He stood, grabbing his umbrella. The city outside the window stretched endlessly, neon lights burning like cold stars in the rain.

The man was wearing his suit. His watch. His shoes. And though the figure’s face was obscured by shadow, Takahashi knew, with a certainty as cold as autumn’s ending, that if he stepped closer, he would be looking at himself.

He hesitated.

The figure raised a hand.

Like he had been somewhere else, just moments ago.

Takahashi took a step back. The man took a step forward. His movements were wrong, too smooth, too deliberate, like a water puppet pulled along by a skilled puppeteer, an external movement not its own. Takahashi turned and ran. His footsteps pounded against the stairs as he climbed, lungs burning, heart hammering. The air grew colder, thinner. The station blurred around him, the walls stretching impossibly high. The whispers began. Soft at first, curling around him like worms and madness.

For a brief moment, something felt wrong. Like he had forgotten something important.

He turned, glancing at his reflection in the dark glass. His reflection blinked. The train was late again. Takahashi Hiroshi sighed, adjusting the cuff of his crisp white shirt as he glanced at his watch. The fluorescent glow of the Shinjuku station lights flickered slightly, casting strange shadows across the platform. He had been standing here for nearly five minutes, yet none of the other commuters seemed to care about the delay. Everything was normal. And yet… Something felt off.

You were never here. The stairs twitched beneath his feet. The walls shivered. You are not real. And then— A door. Fall 2026 Issue 37

E L ERVIC

EARN

ING

By Katriona Hoskins, Haley Osbourne, & Amanda Deibert American International School of Guangzhou

EARCOS Triannual Journal

ho are the people in your school community that students see every day, but rarely have the opportunity to truly know? At our AISG lower elementary campus, this question became the starting point for a Grade 3 service-learning project that brought together visual art, literacy, and community connection. Our students regularly passed security staff, facilities staff, cafeteria workers, administrative staff, teaching assistants, and many others whose work helps our school function each day. These adults were familiar faces, but in many cases, students knew little about who they were or their roles at school. Inspired by our learning with Cathy Berger-Kaye and CBK Associates, we began wondering what might happen if students were given an authentic reason to slow down, ask questions, listen, and learn more about the people around them. As Ascencio (2026) explains, meaningful community engagement moves students “beyond helping and toward learning with communities.” This idea became central to our project. That question eventually became a collaborative project between a Grade 3 homeroom teacher, the visual art teacher, and our PYP curriculum coordinator. What began as an idea for an art commission grew into a transdisciplinary experience centered on relationships, audience, communication, and belonging.

This became one of the strongest elements of the project. The need for an interview was not added artificially as a separate activity. It emerged naturally from the artistic problem students had been asked to solve.

From Art Commission to Transdisciplinary Inquiry The interviews created a natural bridge between visual art and homeroom learning. Students used the conversations to gather information for their commissioned artwork while also developing feature articles about their clients. Listening became an important skill in both contexts. Students looked for details that could inspire artistic choices while also uncovering stories, interests, and experiences that helped them represent each person more fully. Rather than completing separate art and writing assignments, students worked from one shared experience with two authentic purposes. The final exhibition brought these elements together, allowing visitors to view the artwork while learning more about the people who inspired it. This collaboration also shaped our approach as teachers. Instead of fitting subjects together after the fact, we designed one meaningful learning experience and considered how each discipline could contribute.

Starting With an Authentic Audience The Courage to Start a Conversation In visual art, students are often asked to think about why art is made and who it is made for. Young artists are familiar with creating work for themselves, their families, or a classroom display, but creating art for a specific audience requires a different kind of thinking. We asked ourselves: What if our Grade 3 students were commissioned to create an artwork for a real person in our school community? The idea immediately changed the nature of the task. If the artwork was genuinely for someone else, students could not simply begin with what they themselves liked. They first needed to understand their client. What colors did this person enjoy? What subjects interested them? Did they prefer realistic, abstract, or playful art? Were there places, objects, animals, memories, or experiences that were important to them? Very quickly, we realized that making meaningful art for another person required more than artistic skill. It required curiosity and listening. Research suggests that audience influences the quality of student work. Block and Strachan (2019) found that second graders produced higher-quality writing when writing for an external audience rather than their teacher, highlighting the importance of giving students a genuine purpose and audience for their work.

For some students, interviewing an unfamiliar adult was a significant challenge. One student remembered feeling “a bit nervous” before the interview but becoming more confident as the conversation continued. Student A reflected: “I just feel good before the interview, and I feel even better after the interview.” When asked why, the student gave a simple answer: “Because I learned about Miss Faye.” The comment captures something we observed throughout the project. The act of knowing someone better changed the way students felt around them. Another student advised the next group of Grade 3 students: “You don’t need to be nervous. It’s a fun project, and you probably will feel better after interviewing.” These were not staged interactions with a teacher pretending to be a client. Students had to introduce themselves, ask questions, respond to answers, and communicate respectfully with a real adult they might not know well. For an eight- or nine-year-old, this required confidence, flexibility, and social awareness. Fall 2026 Issue 39

The interviews also encouraged students to look again at adults they had seen many times before. A familiar face in the hallway, art room, cafeteria, or school office became a person with preferences, interests, stories, and experiences. As Berger Kaye (2013) explains, interviews can be part of the investigation stage of service learning, helping students gather information and develop understanding through real-world experiences. In our project, the interview became more than a way to collect information for an artwork; it became the first step toward building a genuine relationship.

From Familiar Faces to Community Members Students often know their teachers and classmates well while knowing much less about the many other adults who contribute to school life each day. We wanted this project to help students look beyond roles and build stronger connections across our school community. Lavender (2026) describes meaningful community engagement as creating “real shifts in perspective” when young people move from knowing about someone to actually knowing them. Through interviews and conversations, students had the opportunity to learn about their clients’ interests, experiences, and stories, transforming familiar faces into valued members of their community. As educators, we also became more thoughtful about reciprocity. The participating adults were not simply recipients of student appreciation; they were partners in the learning process. They shared their time, stories, and perspectives, while students responded by creating artwork that reflected what they had learned.

Service Learning as Relationship Building As the project developed, we began to see the service component less as the production of a gift and more as the building of a relationship. The artwork mattered. The feature article mattered. The exhibition mattered. But the conversation that made those things possible may have mattered just as much. One student captured this idea particularly well when reflecting on the interviews: “When we’re interviewing them, we know more about them. Maybe that makes them feel more included.” The student’s use of the word “maybe” is worth noticing. It reflects a question rather than an assumption. Did participating adults feel more included? Did they enjoy being recognized publicly? Did some prefer a quieter form of participation? Were there moments when our desire to celebrate someone risked putting them in a spotlight they had not asked for? These became important questions for us. 40

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Faye, the school’s operations manager, who works across both campuses, recognized her participation as a rare opportunity to be involved directly in learning. “I was excited. In 10 years, very few times I feel I have the opportunity to take part in student projects as operations staff, because we are always behind the scenes.” To have students wanting to know more about her was a pleasant surprise. “I feel like they were curious about what I do and curious about my job.” The impact on Faye was evident: “The article was very touching, about how I make a difference to the school and how they feel about my job. A very unique experience that gave me a great sense of achievement and value and ownership of the school.”

What Changed When the Client Was Real An authentic audience also affected students’ artistic decisionmaking. When students create primarily for themselves, they can make choices based on personal preference. In this project, those choices had to be negotiated against the needs of someone else. A student might love one color palette while knowing that the client had asked for another. A favorite subject might not fit the client’s interests. Students had to interpret information, make decisions, and consider whether the finished work would communicate care for the person receiving it. This did not mean removing students’ creative agency. Instead, the commission created productive constraints. Students still made decisions about composition, media, imagery, style, and technique. The difference was that those decisions had a purpose beyond individual preference. This gave us a much more authentic way to explore the idea of audience in art. Students were not simply answering the question, “Who is your audience?” on a planning sheet. They knew the person. They had listened to that person, considered their preferences, and used what they learned to guide their artistic decisions. Authentic service learning requires more than good intentions; it requires listening, reciprocity, and recognizing community members as partners whose voices shape the work.

What We Learned as Teachers The project also challenged us to think more carefully about the language and assumptions that can accompany community-based service learning.

We wanted to honor people whose work is sometimes less visible to students. At the same time, we did not want to define participants only by the idea that they worked “behind the scenes,” nor suggest that being publicly recognized was automatically desirable.

For us, this project began with a simple observation: there were people in our school whom we saw often but did not really know.

We learned to think more carefully about reciprocity. We learned to ask whether an experience was meaningful for the adults as well as for the students. We became more aware that inclusion is not the same as visibility and that respect sometimes means giving someone control over how much of their story is shared.

Who do your students see every day, and what might change if they were given a reason to stop and truly get to know them?

Perhaps most importantly, we were reminded that communitybuilding does not have to begin with a large event or ambitious initiative. Sometimes it can begin with a question, an interview, or a student sitting across from an adult they have passed in the hallway many times before and asking, “What is important to you?”

Katriona Hoskins is the PYP Coordinator for PK–G3 at the American International School of Guangzhou. With over 20 years of international teaching experience, she believes in relevant, engaging learning rooted in community connections and students’ lived experiences.

Looking at Impact

Amanda Deibert is a PYP Art Teacher at the American International School of Guangzhou with over 12 years of international teaching experience in Africa and Asia. She focuses on meaningful community engagement and authentic art experiences.

The strongest evidence of impact will ultimately come from the people who participated. Student reflections suggest that the project helped some children move from nervousness to confidence, and from simply recognizing familiar adults to feeling connected with them. At the beginning of the following school year, we saw evidence that these relationships had lasted. The students were now in Grade 4, beginning the year on a new campus. Faye shared that seeing a familiar face among so many new ones seemed to provide reassurance: “The first day they see me and feel, ‘Oh, I know someone from Er Sha.’” The connection extended beyond the students themselves. During orientation, students brought their parents over to meet her. “They recognize me and introduce me to their parents. ‘This is Miss Faye. We interviewed her and did artwork.’” For Faye, those small interactions carried real meaning: “I am so proud of that. I feel connected.” Where We Go From Here

The question that followed has stayed with us.

About the Authors

Haley Osbourne is a Grade 3 teacher at the American International School of Guangzhou with over a decade of international teaching experience. She is passionate about connecting classroom learning to real-world contexts and creating meaningful learning experiences.

References Ascencio, S. (2026, July 9). How solutionary learning supports the IB focus on community engagement. Institute for Humane Education. https://humaneeducation.org/how-solutionary-learning-supports-the-ib-focus-on-community-engagement/ Block, M. K., & Strachan, S. L. (2019). The impact of external audience on second graders' writing quality. Reading Horizons: A Journal of Literacy and Language Arts, 58(2), 1-18. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/reading_horizons/vol58/iss2/5/ Jackson, A. (2013, June 13). Five stages of service learning. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/opinionfive-stages-of-service-learning/2013/06 Lavender, L. (2026, April 15). Deep listening to school custodians shifts mindsets and actions. LeeAnne Lavender. https://www.leeannelavender.com/blog/ttomlfkchhjwr2couroco0i4sdmvas

As we continue developing the project, we are asking ourselves how we can preserve its authenticity while improving the experience for everyone involved. We want students to continue creating for a real audience. We want interviews to remain purposeful rather than performative. We want participants to have meaningful choices about what they share and how they are represented. We also want students to understand that service learning is not simply about doing something “for” another person. At its best, it can be about doing something with someone. Fall 2026 Issue 41

ACTION RESEARCH

Measuring the Impact of Guided Intercultural Development Through the Intercultural Development Inventory in High School International School Students By Iryna Klyuk and Tríona Ryan Nanjing International School

EARCOS Triannual Journal

Introduction

sychological safety potentiates intellectual risk-taking and resilience, maximizing learning through safe and respectful interaction. International schools often assume that exposure to diversity alone is sufficient to develop intercultural competence. This study challenges that assumption by examining the impact of proactive assessment of intercultural knowledge and competencies, structured intervention and the measurable impact on meaningful development over time. The problem of practice is, therefore, how can we measure levels of intercultural competence and assess the impact of interventions to develop self-awareness and growth in this area?

Our School Context

Nanjing International School (NIS) is a non-profit school founded in 1992. It is the oldest international school in Nanjing, and the first IB continuum school in China. With almost 600 students, the population is complex range of passport identities, ethnicities and an increase in host culture and Chinese heritage students. With a broad range of students who are third culture kids (TCK), (Pollock & Van Reken, 2009), students from cross cultural backgrounds, and a diverse range of cultural hybridity, the complexity of our student demographic makes the act of identifying and targeting specific cultural communication and conflict resolution issues particularly nuanced.

Literature Review

Intercultural competence is widely understood as a developmental process rather than a fixed trait. Bennett’s (1993) Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity (DMIS) outlines a progression from ethnocentric to ethnorelative stages. Individuals initially interpret difference through judgment (e.g., Defense or Reversal) before developing the ability to understand and adapt to different perspectives. Hammer (2012) further operationalized this model through the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI), which provides a validated measure of intercultural development. The IDI distinguishes between actual Developmental Orientation (DO) and Perceived Orientation (PO), allowing researchers to identify discrepancies between self-perception and actual competence. Moreover, deep learning is contingent upon activating funds of knowledge (CAST, n.d.), and reducing cognitive load to optimize retention and assimilation into pre-existing knowledge schemata. Anxiety, stress and conflict are anathema to learning as they flood the brain with stress hormones and shut down its capacity for learning (Mayer & Moreno, 2003; Perry, 2006; Willingham, 2009). Educational research emphasizes the importance of structured interventions in developing intercultural competence. Mere exposure to diversity is insufficient; students require guided opportunities to reflect, engage, and challenge assumptions (Deardorff, 2006).

The Tools and Framework

The Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) is a 50- item assessment based on rigorous research and validation. It is a psychometrically validated tool which identifies strengths and developmental opportunities when interacting with people from different cultural backgrounds. Upon completion, a detailed quantitative and descriptive report of the current developmental stage is provided, as well as a tailored Intercultural Development Plans (IDPs) to guide growth and development along the Intercultural Development Continuum (IDC), as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 Intercultural Development Continuum. Note. Reprinted from the Intercultural Development Inventory, by IDI, LLC, 2023 (https://idiinventory.com/idc). The IDC describes orientations toward cultural differences ranging from the more monocultural mindsets of Denial and Polarization through the transitional orientation of Minimization to the intercultural mindsets of Acceptance and Adaptation. This aligns with The Council of International Schools (CIS) Socially Responsible Leadership framework that aims to “foster global citizens who think and act with intercultural understanding, guided by the principles of inclusion, equity, and anti-discrimination” (I-DEA), (COIS, nd.). A fundamental premise is that to become socially responsible leaders, it is necessary to move from passively encountering difference through accepting and adapting to diversity, leveraging it for engagement and collaboration. This aligns with the IDI intercultural mindsets of acceptance and adaptation.

Methodology

This action research study investigates the impact of a structured, sixmonth IDP on the intercultural competence of international high school students. Using the IDI as both a diagnostic and developmental tool, we measured baseline intercultural competence, implemented targeted interventions, and reassessed growth over time. The study involved an anonymized selection of 12 students from Grade 10 (N1 = 12), from a range of cultural, linguistic, and educational backgrounds, reflecting the diversity typical of international schools in the region. A control group (N2 =12) was also tested after the six month period to assess the comparative growth of intercultural competence with and without supported guidance through the IDP. While the sample size is small, it is consistent with action research methodologies prioritising depth of insight over generalisability. The study specifically examines: 1. Whether students demonstrate developmental progression over time 2. The relationship between actual development and self-perception 3. The impact of a structured intervention on intercultural development 4. Whether patterns observed are consistent across student cohorts Data sources include I. Quantitative Data: Pre-and post-IDI assessments to measure changes in intercultural competence and create metrics for effective and sustainable growth. The IDI provided: • Developmental Orientation (DO) scores • Perceived vs. actual intercultural competence – the Orientation Gap (OG) • A structured basis for individual goal-setting II. Qualitative Data: Participants engaged in structured reflective activities throughout the intervention as part of their IDPs, including written reflections following guided sessions, verbal contributions during facilitated discussions, teacher feedback on engagement and growth and observational data from classroom discussions and activities that integrated transcultural perspectives.

Results Baseline results from the initial IDI assessment in September indicated that despite a high PO of Acceptance, (Figure 3), the DO of N1 demonstrated low intercultural competence, with the N1 PO being Polarization Fall 2026 Issue 43

(Figure 4).

Figure 3. IDI Group 1 Group Report Note: IDI, LLC IDI Group Report, September 2025

Figure 8. IDI Group 1 PO September, 2025 and PO March 2026 Note: IDI, LLC IDI Group Report, March 2026

Discussion

Figure 4. IDI Group 1 Group Report Note: IDI, LLC IDI Group Report, September 2025

Post IDP results of N1 from March, 2026 showed a slight elevation in PO, and a collective growth of 7.14 in the DO (see Figure 5 and Figure 6.)

Figure 5. IDI Group 1 Group Report Note: IDI, LLC IDI Group Report, March 2026

Figure 6. IDI Group 1 Group Report Note: IDI, LLC IDI Group Report, March 2026 Individual participant results in N1 showed considerable variation, ranging from a regression of 9.88 points to minimal change (0.01) and growth of 6.82 points. Quantitative IDI data indicated mixed developmental trajectories, with variation in both the direction and magnitude of change across participants. Following the six-month guided intervention, the number of participants positioned in Polarization decreased from nine to five, while those in Minimization increased from two to five. The number of participants in Acceptance increased from one to two, indicating movement toward more ethnorelative orientations. All students demonstrated a positive OG, with larger gaps in lower developmental stages. The PO shows a slight increase of 3.80 in the post-intervention assessment for Group 1. There is also a decrease in OG in Group 1 post-assessment in March of 3.34.

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Baseline IDI results from N1 indicated a substantial discrepancy between participants' PO and DO. While the cohort largely perceived themselves to be operating within Acceptance, developmental scores were predominantly situated in Polarization, with many participants demonstrating OGs well above the 7-point threshold identified by the IDI as significant. Participants demonstrated movement from assumption to inquiry, greater contextual understanding, and increased capacity for perspective-taking. Reflective responses generally aligned with IDI developmental movement, suggesting that growth was evident not only in developmental orientations but also in the ways participants made meaning of intercultural experiences. Additionaly, many students demonstrated OGs of well above 30 points in the post-intervention IDI in March, indicating a substantial mismatch between perceived and actual intercultural competence. Furthermore, whilst Polarization was the mean, the range varied greatly across the cohort. Despite prolonged exposure to multicultural environments, many students are in Denial mindset, which misses cultural differences entirely, assuming that their own cultural norms and values are universal. This fundamentally disrupts the assumption that exposure to multiculturism fosters intercultural competence. Without support, students may continue to rely on pre-existing assumptions, overestimate their intercultural capacity. The IDP intervention appears to have supported movement away from Polarization by challenging evaluative thinking. Opportunities for students to engage in learning experiences, reflective dialogue and personal goal setting have shown considerable growth in some cases. However, the lack of growth, or even regression appears to be a risk if appropriate trust and support is not established and maintained. Similarly, the persistence of large OGs indicates that students did not develop corresponding self-awareness despite growth in intercultural competence. This highlights a key insight: intercultural competence and self-awareness develop at different rates. Students became more capable of recognizing difference but remained unaware of their own limitations. This creates an “illusion of competence,” which may hinder further development. It is also important to note that engagement with the development plan varied across students. In some cases, lower English proficiency may have limited participation in reflection and discussion which are central to intercultural development. This may be due to the facilitation through the medium of the English language, despite translanguaging throughout, and the option to take the IDI and receive the IDP in the students’ language of choice. It could also be attributable to the fact that these participants are studying language acquisition programs, rather than language and literature, the latter having a specific curriculum focus on core concepts of identity, culture, and perspective. This suggests that language and curriculum function as mediating factors in students’ ability to engage with the intervention, rather than

as a direct cause of limited growth The level of engagement in the IDP Advisory sessions and qualitative depth of reflection clearly impacted the outcomes of participants. This indicates not only that sustained engagement with the IDP is a key factor in growth, but also that motivation is essential for significant progression along the IDC from monocultural to intercultural mindsets. Due to the nature of the anonymized selection and variable desire to engage in deep learning and discomfort, the N1 and N2 cohorts may not have been equally engaged and ready to embark upon this journey of self-discovery. Another limitation of this study is the lack of narrative evidence to triangulate other data points. Despite the collection of weekly reflections, personal interviews and anecdotal evidence, it was beyond the scope of this study to fully incorporate this data into coded indicators. Future iterations would address this shortcoming to gain a more encompassing understanding of the strengths and challenges of such a program. Intercultural competence does not magically develop because of proximity. Exposure to diversity within a multicultural environment does not an interculturally competent individual make. Intentional design, sustained support of trained facilitators, and embedded curriculum experiences are necessary to promote intercultural awareness and adaptiveness. Guided support plays a critical role in developing cultural humility and intercultural understanding. Whilst we acknowledge our position of privilege in working in an environment dedicated to inclusion, and are qualified to work with the IDI tool, we must also recognize that this is not always the case within the diverse spectrum of International Schools, thus time, effort and investment is a necessary condition for intentional development of these competencies in our learners if they are to become socially responsible leaders of the future.

Council of International Schools. (n.d.). Socially responsible leadership. https://www.cois.org/about-cis/socially-responsible-leadership Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2023). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (6th ed.). SAGE Publications. Hammer, M. R. (2012). The Intercultural Development Inventory: A new frontier in assessment and development of intercultural competence. In M. Vande Berg, R. M. Paige, & K. H. Lou (Eds.), Student learning abroad: What our students are learning, what they're not, and what we can do about it (pp. 115-136). Stylus Publishing. IDI, LLC. (2023). Intercultural Development Inventory. https://idiinventory.com/idc Mayer, R. E., & Moreno, R. (2003). Nine ways to reduce cognitive load in multimedia learning. Educational Psychologist, 38(1), 43–52. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15326985EP3801_6 Perry, B. D. (2006). Fear and learning: Trauma-related factors in the adult education process. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 2006(110), 21–27. https://doi.org/10.1002/ace.215 Pollock, D. C., & Van Reken, R. E. (2009). Third culture kids: Growing up among worlds (Rev. ed.). Nicholas Brealey Publishing.

Implications for Practice 1. 2.

3. 4.

Intercultural competence must be explicitly taught. Exposure is not equal to osmosis. Denial mindsets persist despite prolonged exposure to multiculturalism. Schools must address evaluative thinking (“us vs. them”) and create opportunities for students to engage in sustained micro-experiences of cultural awareness, dialogue across difference, and guided discomfort. Self-awareness must be developed intentionally. Growth in intercultural competence does not correlate with increased understanding of capacity and inherent bias. Intercultural learning should be embedded across curriculum. Without consistent exploration across subject fields, intercultural competence learning experiences may be inequitably extended to some, and not to others.

Conclusion

This study demonstrates that intercultural competence is developmental and can be influenced through structured intervention. However, students consistently overestimate their competence, highlighting the need for explicit focus on self-awareness. The findings suggest that international schools must move beyond assuming competence and instead design intentional learning experiences that support development, motivation and reflection.

References

Bennett, M. J. (1993). Towards ethnorelativism: A developmental model of intercultural sensitivity. In R. M. Paige (Ed.), Education for the intercultural experience (pp. 21-71). Intercultural Press. CAST. (n.d.). Building knowledge. UDL Guidelines. https://udlguidelines.cast.org/representation/building-knowledge/ Fall 2026 Issue 45

ACTION RESEARCH

When Learning French Becomes Child’s Play Grammar Retention in Young Learners through Games and Narrative Reformulation By Loan Dubreuil Renaissance International School Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

his study highlights a persistent classroom paradox in early language programs: students can appear highly successful because they produce accurate sentences inside a familiar activity, but that accuracy may not travel beyond the routine. By documenting a clear transfer gap after extensive practice of Il y a + noun, the project underscores that “knowing” a structure in one classroom format is not equivalent to being able to select and use it spontaneously in a new unit. The research contributes to a teacher-manageable way to make learning visible through everyday classroom talk. By coding student output as identical repetition versus reformulation attempts, teachers can track whether a target frame is becoming a flexible communicative resource. This approach keeps the evidence burden realistic for practitioners while preserving methodological transparency.

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based grammar routines and (b) narrative reformulation routines differ in fostering retention and spontaneous transfer of five basic French sentence frames in 7–8-year-old beginner learners? For young learners, the “right” amount of explicit grammar teaching is less important than the design of routines that repeatedly connect form and meaning. Predictable scripts can scaffold participation and lower the cognitive load of interaction, but repetition in a single routine can also create routine-bound language, where a structure is strongly associated with the game cue rather than with its communicative function. The study therefore compared two routines with contrasting affordances: games designed as constrained, rule-governed opportunities for repeated meaningful output, and narrative reformulation tasks that required learners to retrieve a familiar frame and adapt it to new meaning. This action research was conducted in a primary French program at Renaissance International School in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The study followed a Plan–Act–Observe–Reflect logic across two instructional cycles within one school year. A within-subject (same-group) two-phase design was used to compare outcomes when the same learners experienced both routines. Most importantly, the project offers an actionable design principle for primary FLE: sequence routines to serve different learning functions. Games can efficiently build confidence and initial control of form; narrative reformulation can then create communicative pressure to retrieve and reshape the same frames for new meanings. The resulting improvement is not a new “method,” but a replicable classroom sequence that teachers can adapt across topics, languages, and age groups.

Context, question, and design Teaching grammar to young children requires an approach that is developmentally appropriate while still producing usable classroom language. In many primary foreign language programs, learners quickly build vocabulary and classroom phrases, yet core sentence frames remain fragile and context bound. In my international-school context, where Vietnamese is students’ first language and English is the primary language of schooling, French functions as an additional language; hence, time for French is limited and transfer is essential. In Cycle 1 of this action research, students produced accurate target sentences during games, which initially suggested strong learning. However, when a new unit required the same frame in a different context (e.g., describing bedroom objects), students often listed nouns without using the sentence frame. This discrepancy clarified the central improvement question: how can I redesign classroom routines so that beginners not only reproduce accurately in one activity, but also retrieve and use it spontaneously across topics? The guiding research question was: To what extent do (a) game-

Eight beginner learners (ages 7–8) participated. Students’ first language was Vietnamese, and English was the main language of instruction across the wider school program. Prior to the study, students could use greetings and isolated vocabulary but did not reliably produce complete sentences with the target frames. Five high-utility sentence frames were selected because they recur across early topics and support classroom communication. Cycle 1 (“Grammaire en jeu”) used structured language games designed to elicit repeated use of the frames with immediate feedback. Cycle 2 (“L’histoire”) used interactive storytelling and retelling; learners repeatedly reformulated the story by changing characters, objects, or locations, requiring use of the same frames in new meanings. Three sources of evidence were collected: (a) audio recordings of classroom talk during target activities, (b) teacher observation notes focusing on spontaneous use outside the routine, and (c) brief picture-prompt checks. At the end of Cycle 1, students completed an individual picture-prompt task designed to elicit each frame at least once. An utterance was defined as one meaningful student production intended as a response or contribution. Audio recordings were transcribed and coded into four categories: (1) identical reformulation (direct repetition of a model), (2) meaning-changing deviation (substitution or misformulation that altered meaning), (3) paraphrastic reformulation (variation that preserved meaning), and (4) other innovations or errors (partial attempts, novel combinations, or off-target output). Ambiguous cases were discussed with a colleague to improve coding consistency. The inquiry occurred within normal instructions, with non-invasive data collection. Student confidentiality was protected through anonymization, and the instructional intent was to support Fall 2026 Issue 47

participation and confidence. Instruction did not intentionally deviate from established curriculum or assessment practices without documented administrative approval.

Findings Cycle 1 supported rapid stabilization of the target frames inside the game routine. Across 931 coded utterances in Cycle 1, identical reformulations dominated (74.2%), and meaningchanging deviations were rare (2.9%). In addition, the end-of-cycle pictureprompt check suggested strong short-term retention: six of eight learners (80%) produced all five target frames at least once. During games, learners frequently produced fluent, near-automatic sentences with minor pronunciation issues. However, classroom observation outside the routine revealed a transfer gap. When students moved into a new topic that should have elicited the same frame (e.g., describing bedroom objects), learners often produced noun lists instead of complete sentences, and Il y a + noun did not appear spontaneously. This indicated that a structure practiced intensively in a single activity can remain strongly bound to that activity’s cue. Cycle 2 increased evidence of flexible reuse. In the story-based sessions (approximately 700 coded utterances), identical reformulation decreased to roughly 60%, while meaning-changing deviations and other innovations increased. Learners more frequently attempted to adapt frames to express new meanings, for example, approximating negation patterns introduced in the narrative. Although these attempts included errors, they represented productive risk-taking and retrieval beyond imitation, which are prerequisites for spontaneous transfer. Taken together, the data suggests that games and narrative reformulation supported different aspects of learning. Games produce confidence and control of form; narrative reformulation produced more attempts to retrieve and reshape form during meaning-making.

Implications for Classroom Practice The contrast between cycles is best understood as a difference in routine affordances rather than a competition between methods. Game routines constrained the discourse space, which enabled high-frequency accurate performance and broad participation. At 48

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the same time, the strong cueing of the game reduced the need for learners to select a frame independently, which helps explain why the frame did not reliably transfer to a new unit without explicit bridging. Story-based reformulation expanded the discourse space: learners needed to retrieve frames to serve meaning while changing details. This increased error and variability but also increased evidence of flexible use. In practitioner terms, Cycle 2 made learning more visible: students showed not only what they could repeat, but what they could attempt when the model was absent. The most actionable improvement was a blended sequence designed around two learning functions: (1) games to establish confident control of a frame, followed immediately by (2) a transfer engine (narrative reformulation) that requires the same frame to “travel” across meanings and topics. To strengthen this sequence, I will (a) add a short bridge task after each game (“same frame, new context”), (b) embed sentence starters and visuals during retells, (c) use quick recasts and prompts rather than extended explanations, and (d) implement spaced retrieval checks 2 and 4 weeks after instruction. In the next iteration, I will reduce time spent on a single game context, rotate contexts more frequently, and add delayed picture prompts to measure retention. I will also refine my coding by sampling shorter but more frequent recordings to reduce workload while tracking transfer over time.

Limits and conclusion This study involved a small sample (n = 8) in one setting and did not counterbalance the order of routines. Cycle 2 followed Cycle 1 and may therefore reflect cumulative exposure. Participation during story sessions was also more variable, so Cycle 2 totals were approximate. These limits mean the findings are most appropriately used for local improvement and as a transferable hypothesis for similar classrooms. This practitioner’s action research documented a common issue in early foreign language classrooms: accurate grammar inside a routine can mask limited transfer beyond that routine. In this study, structured games rapidly stabilized five high-utility French frames and supported strong immediate performance. Narrative reformulation increased attempts to retrieve and adapt those frames for new meanings, indicating stronger conditions for transfer. The central improvement to practice is therefore a sequence, not a single method: games for initial control of form, followed by storybased reformulation (and explicit bridging) to press for retrieval and flexible use. This blended approach is feasible in primary contexts and provides a practical pathway for supporting both confidence and transfer in multilingual classrooms.

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP | STUDENT VOICES

Giving Supplies New Life

A Student-Led Initiative for Education and a Brighter Tomorrow By Vardaan Sharma Senior, American International School Hong Kong Restoring Rainbows Hong Kong Branch Founder

ust over two years ago, after spending so much time in my school’s human rights club, I felt that I should use the opportunities around me to make a positive impact in my community through an SDG which resonates with me: Education. My name is Vardaan Sharma, currently a senior at American International School Hong Kong. I am the Restoring Rainbows Hong Kong branch founder. Since I became part of Restoring Rainbows, I have both led and participated in initiatives to distribute and refurbish educational supplies for students in and out of Hong Kong.

I am incredibly grateful that the people who have seen the growth of our branch believe in what we can do. For that, I would like to thank Mr Brandon Inman, Ms Nartia, and Mr Baker for giving the structure and the support for our impact to grow.

I founded Restoring Rainbows’ Hong Kong branch to do my bit for the planet and community, We help by refurbishing school and art supplies in order for other students to use them once again. This goal began after looking at how much of the school materials around me at the end of the year go unused. While they had been recycled and distributed to other places, I wanted to do more for the supplies that had been used very little and still ended up being discarded. This branch represents the creativity in students who look at supplies and resources and make them new once more. We’ve restored and donated them to our compatriots in other communities. We also organise collaborative beach cleanup and community service activity. I am very grateful to the EARCOS Global Citizen Community Service Grant. And plan to put the grant to good use by being able to increase the amount of supplies we can collect and clean up. What we hope to accomplish from this is continuing our work by more outreach and strengthening our community. Finding new types of supplies beyond physical stationery and equipment, and other needs that students need the support and encouragement. Fall 2026 Issue 49

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP | STUDENT VOICES

Learning Through Service The Myanmar Children’s Health Project By Lei Lei Nandar Aung and Phone Min (Brian) - Class of 2027 The International School Yangon

or most of us, getting vaccinated is something simple: arrive at a clinic, get an injection, and go home. However, through the Myanmar Children Healthcare Project (MCHP), we learned that access to healthcare is rarely that straightforward. For the children and communities we work with, receiving a vaccine involves long distances, unfamiliar medical procedures, language barriers, fear, and limited access to consistent healthcare. Founded in 2018, MCHP is a student-led service learning group based at The International School Yangon (ISY) in Yangon, Myanmar. Each generation of students takes responsibility for continuing the work of the students before them. At the center of our mission is the prevention of Hepatitis B, a potentially life-threatening viral infection that can lead to chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, and liver cancer. We work with medical professionals to bring Hepatitis B testing and vaccinations to underserved communities, while also promoting healthcare awareness and basic preventative health practices.

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Impact can also look like a child who was crying before an injection leaving with a jelly in one hand and a smile on their face.

Since MCHP began, the project has helped vaccinate approximately 2,000 children, while also extending vaccinations to adults within the communities we serve. During the 20252026 school year, our team vaccinated 177 individuals across two communities. Yet this number represents much more than a single injection. Myanmar is an incredibly diverse country, and Burmese is not necessarily every child’s first or second language. Some of the children we meet grow up speaking ethnic languages, including languages spoken within Chin and Kachin communities. These experiences have taught us that healthcare cannot depend on everyone speaking, learning, or communicating the same thing. We may not always share the same language, but we can still find ways to make a child feel safe.

It can look like students figuring out how to communicate with children even when they do not share a common language. It can look like medical professionals giving up another Saturday to travel with us, students raising the funds necessary for another project, or our team finding transportation during a fuel shortage because cancelling would mean asking an entire community to wait. The vaccine may be the reason that we make the journey, but the relationships we build along the way are what make the journey meaningful.

This is why an MCHP trip never consists of only vaccines. Before our visits, we prepare snacks: candy, jelly, crackers, sweets, and ice lollies for the children. We organize games that can cross language barriers: Duck Duck Goose, Pictionary, and football can quickly transform a group of students and children who have never met into laughing and playing together. At first, these activities might seem separate from our healthcare mission. Over time, however, we realized that they are a part of it. Fear and negative perceptions surrounding medical procedures can make young children especially hesitant about vaccination. A child who remembers only the needle may become more frightened about returning for the next dose. A child who remembers playing football, receiving a snack, laughing with friends, and having someone reassure them may experience that same visit very differently. The goal is not to pretend that injections do not hurt, but to create an environment in which healthcare feels less frightening and more human. Fall 2026 Issue 51

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP | STUDENT VOICES

From English Lessons to a Global Network The Growing Impact of Kunci Inggris Youth Classroom By Feyy Avilla Yolwans Sekolah Ciputra

or many students, English is more than a school subject. It can be a pathway to confidence, connection, and opportunity. Yet across Indonesia, access to meaningful English education remains deeply unequal.

This gap was the starting point for Kunci Inggris Youth Classroom, a student-led initiative founded at Sekolah Ciputra in Surabaya, Indonesia. The name Kunci Inggris—literally, “English key” —reflects our belief that English can serve as a key: not simply to better grades, but to the ability to communicate, participate, and make one’s voice heard. What began as a response to a local need has grown into a wider youth-led education network connecting students, teachers, schools, and educators across Indonesia and around the world.

Starting Local: Building Sustainable Partnerships Youth Classroom began with a simple question: How can students use the educational opportunities available to them to expand those opportunities for others? One of our first long-term partnerships was with SD Manukan Kulon VI, a public elementary school in Surabaya. Following changes in school budgets and curriculum priorities, English learning opportunities for younger students had become limited. Rather than approaching the partnership as a one-time volunteering activity, Youth Classroom worked with teachers to understand the students’ needs and develop a longer-term approach. Youth Classroom volunteers provide English lessons, learning materials, books, workshops, and regular check-ins. Our curriculum focuses on foundational literacy—including pronunciation, phonics, vocabulary, reading, and basic communication—while gradually introducing students to speaking and confidence-building activities. An important part of our model is that we work with teachers rather than around them. By 52

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communicating with school leaders and adapting resources to students’ needs, we hope to create partnerships that continue to benefit students beyond individual Youth Classroom sessions. The goal is not simply for a student to remember a new English word after a workshop. It is for that student to become more willing to raise their hand, speak to someone new, read independently, or imagine opportunities that previously felt out of reach.

From One Classroom to a Global Youth Network As Youth Classroom developed, we realized that our greatest potential impact was not limited to the number of students our own volunteers could reach. We therefore began developing a chapter model, allowing young people in different communities to adapt the Youth Classroom approach to their own local contexts. The initiative has since ex-

panded through student-led chapters and partnerships reaching communities in Indonesia, China, Myanmar, the United States, Honduras, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Turkey, and beyond. This international growth has been especially meaningful because each chapter brings its own community, culture, and educational context. Rather than exporting a single model unchanged, Youth Classroom provides a foundation that young leaders can adapt to the needs of their students.

The result is a growing network of young people who see themselves not simply as volunteers, but as education leaders. Chapter leaders organize lessons and workshops, develop local partnerships, mentor younger students, and share resources with one another. In doing so, the program creates a multiplier effect: one student leader can reach a classroom, that classroom can inspire another volunteer, and that volunteer can eventually establish another chapter.

Creating Impact Beyond the Classroom

many other remarkable coaches and educators who have contributed their expertise, mentorship, and perspectives.

subsequently won three debate competitions, while showing significant improvement compared with previous years.

Youth Classroom’s outreach extends beyond direct teaching. Through the partnership with the International Speech and Debate Initiative (ISDI), we provide resources and mentorship to ambassadors developing debate and literacy initiatives in their own communities. We also speak at conferences and educational events to encourage teachers to launch initiatives within their own schools, while our debate seminars introduce students and educators to debate as a tool for critical thinking, communication, and confidence.

Their involvement has helped Youth Classroom move beyond simply delivering lessons toward building stronger educational resources, leadership opportunities, and professional connections for the young people and teachers involved.

“The well-structured, practical learning materials [are] easy to apply in my own classroom.”

Our work is sustained through fundraising campaigns, book drives, and school-library projects, helping provide both immediate learning resources and lasting access to books. At partner schools, volunteers return for monthly teaching sessions, allowing relationships with students and teachers to develop over time rather than ending after a single workshop.

Collaboration has been equally central to our growth. By working with other student organizations, schools, nonprofits, and educational initiatives, Youth Classroom has been able to combine resources, share expertise, and reach communities that we could not reach alone. Together, these initiatives reflect our broader philosophy: impact is not measured only by how many students we teach, but by how many people we empower to create opportunities for others.

Expanding the Community Behind the Program The growth of Youth Classroom has also been reflected in the educators and coaches who have chosen to support the initiative. Our advisory network has grown to include experienced educators and debate coaches from different parts of the United States and internationally, including Andrew Hume of The Greene School and Lynn Coyne, alongside

This has been particularly important for our Debate Literacy Program, which grew from our belief that English education should ultimately help students develop the confidence to think critically and express their ideas.

From English Literacy to Debate Literacy Debate is a powerful extension of English literacy. Students do not simply learn vocabulary; they learn how to analyze information, construct arguments, listen to opposing perspectives, and communicate ideas with confidence.

Through the Debate Literacy Program, Youth Classroom provides teachers and student leaders with practical resources, weekly learning materials, workshops, mentorship, and training based on the World Schools debate format. Student leaders are encouraged to establish debate clubs in their own schools and communities, allowing the program to reach students beyond the original Youth Classroom network. The impact of these resources can be seen through the educators using them directly in their classrooms. Gading, an English teacher and debate coach in Indonesia who previously competed in debate during high school and university, joined the program after almost six years away from the debate community. He describes debate as much more than presenting or refuting arguments—it is an opportunity to think deeply and critically before communicating those ideas effectively. After returning to debate through the program, Gading began incorporating the resources into his own teaching and coaching. His students

For Gading, however, the value of the program extends beyond the materials themselves. He describes meeting educators and coaches from diverse backgrounds as a source of inspiration and emphasizes the shared goal of making debate more accessible. His experience captures an important principle behind Youth Classroom: impact does not end with the person who receives a resource. When a teacher receives meaningful training, that knowledge reaches their students. When a student leader learns how to coach debate, they can build a club. When a chapter leader receives mentorship, they can create opportunities for an entire community.

Building Bridges Through Debate The Debate Literacy Program has also opened doors to partnerships with the International Speech and Debate Initiative and the Harvard Debate Council. In April 2026, Youth Classroom hosted a youth debate seminar with Dr. Tripp Rebrovick, Director of the Harvard Debate Council, connecting Indonesian students and educators with international debate expertise. The event also helped launch Youth Classroom’s expanded Debate Literacy efforts and brought together students from multiple cities and schools. The relationship continues beyond a single seminar. In October 2026, Youth Classroom will welcome Mr. Ed Williams, Chief of Staff of the Harvard Debate Council, to Sekolah Ciputra for a two-day visit featuring free workshops for students and teachers. The sessions are designed not simply as another large-scale seminar, but as an opportunity for students, educators, and Fall 2026 Issue 53

Youth Classroom leaders to engage directly with an experienced international debate coach and explore how debate education can continue to grow in their own communities.

These are different forms of impact, but they are connected by the same idea: education multiplies when people are empowered to pass it forward.

These partnerships demonstrate what Youth Classroom hopes to build: not a one-directional exchange in which knowledge is simply delivered to students, but a global community of educators and young people learning from one another.

The support of the EARCOS community has been an important part of this journey. Receiving the EARCOS grant affirmed the value of a studentled approach to educational equity and has helped Youth Classroom continue developing a model that prioritizes both immediate outreach and long-term capacity building.

The Ripple Effect of Youth-Led Education

One of the most meaningful lessons from Youth Classroom has been that outreach is not simply about bringing resources to communities. It is about building relationships that allow students, teachers, and communities to shape what those resources become. A child learning English in a public elementary school in Surabaya can become more confident speaking in class. A high school student can become a chapter leader and teach younger students. A teacher can return to debate after years away and use new resources to coach students to competition victories. A conversation with an international coach can lead to new opportunities for an entire school community.

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Ultimately, Kunci Inggris Youth Classroom is not trying to create classrooms that depend on us. We are trying to create students, teachers, and leaders who can continue creating opportunities for others. We started with English because we saw a gap in access. We expanded into debate because we saw what students could do when they had the confidence to use their voices. And we continue to grow because we believe that one key can open many doors—and one student with a voice can help open them for others.

Middle School Art Gallery

Cheongna Dalton School

Heart Shining Jia B., Kindergarten Ceramics

Untitled Sia Y., 1st Grade Paper Pulp

Tropical Fruits Bryan C., Kindergarten Chalk Pastel

True North International School Pak Hanbin Grade: 2 Pencil and oil pastels

Nathan Bui Grade: 1 Acrylic, mixed media

Hoi An Grade: 5 Watercolor paint

Fall 2026 Issue 55