YCIS-BJ Welcomes New Teachers | 北京耀中欢迎新教师

The previous academic year was one with many challenges, changes and, most importantly, numerous learning opportunities for our YCIS Beijing community. With dates recently announced for the beginning of the new semester by the Beijing Municipal Education Commission, plans are in motion for the return of our staff back to Beijing. Amongst those currently abroad – we want to welcome the new additions to our community, also scheduled to be back in Mainland soon.

Although the beginning of their journey in a new job, city and country has not been as smooth as they had envisioned due to the closing of borders as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, they are all in good spirits and keeping positive attitudes in anticipation for their new roles in ECE, Primary and Secondary.

According to Sandy Li, YCIS Beijing’s Head of Human Resources, “We are working closely with teachers to ensure they can return to China as soon as possible.” This is taking place despite respective countries having different visa application procedures. The new group of teachers consists of citizens from the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Ireland, the United States, South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago, to name a few. 

The process to have staff back in China began months ago with extensive “communication with the local education bureau to find a solution to have teachers back” according to Ms Li. This was followed by several steps which culminated in the submission of PU invitation letters that grant permission for teachers to apply for visas in the countries they are in.

Once those letters were received, teachers were guided by the school on how to get the visa. “We later got in contact with various travel agents to help find flights for teachers to return to China,” added Ms Li.

It is important to note that some teachers are in their home countries and others, like some returning staff, are still in countries they visited during Chinese New Year when the pandemic first started. Despite this, there has been light at the end of what seemed like a perpetual tunnel.

First, it was the approval for Paul Bawden, our Education Director to return to Beijing , and for Hayley Edge, Secondary Coordinator and Head of Humanities to return just in time for the academic year, after being in South Korea for the past three months.

With the larger group expected to also return now that the dates are confirmed for the academic year, we are looking forward to beginning the year on a hopeful note.

Meet our Teachers

Ms Alicia Milne, Primary Art Teacher 

Ms Alicia Milne hails from Trinidad and Tobago and has been in Beijing since 2018. She accepted an offer to teach in China after working as an art teacher at a public school in her home country for seven years. Her first experience with YCIS Beijing was in 2017 when she was the Artist in Residence. Speaking to why she joined YCIS Beijing, she said, “Joining the teaching faculty at YCIS Beijing was an easy decision to make. I knew it would be a good fit for me as I had already witnessed first-hand the supportive school culture and the amazing students. I am excited to join a school that values and supports the arts.” She is eager to get back into the classroom and collaborate with her new colleagues.

Mr Joseph Tagliarini, School Counsellor

Mr Joseph Tagliarini is a UK citizen who will be in Beijing for the first time in the coming school year. His experience as a school counsellor spans 15 years, and he has worked with both children and adults. As a therapist, he enjoys incorporating creative arts in his lessons and interactions with students to facilitate learning. In addition to experiencing the culinary aspect of China and developing friendships, he is also looking forward to fostering connections with students, his colleagues and parents. But also “to build relationships that foster growth, trust and inspiration in my team, albeit it face to face, online, home visits or even playing football with students during playtime,” he shared.

Mr Robert Ondere, Mathematics and Digital Literacy Teacher

Mr Robert Ondere from Kenya taught Mathematics in South Carolina, USA for the past 14 years. Before that, he taught Mathematics and Computer Science in his home country. His move to Beijing was prompted by a conversation about exciting opportunities in China with a friend, which led him to YCIS Beijing. He will be joined by his wife and two children and is looking forward to sharing his vast knowledge with students through fun and engaging experiences. “My goal for this coming year is to harness the power of digital tools to create a rewarding and memorable e-learning experience for my students. There will be nothing more rewarding to me than my students showing substantial growth in their learning,” he said. Through his family’s love for travelling, he is eager to share their rich collection of experiences over the years with students.

Mr Tony Kydd, Economics Teacher

Mr Tony Kydd from Canada is not new to the YCIS community. He previously worked at YCIS Chongqing and has lived in Xi’an before his recent decision to move to a bigger city like Beijing as it provided new opportunities. Mr Kydd was inspired by movies such as “To Sir, with Love” and “Dead Poets Society” to become a teacher as well as aspects of the profession which he finds rewarding, which includes opportunities such as the YCIS CAS programme. In the upcoming school year, he is looking forward to “Refining my pedagogy both online and in the classroom, collaborating with peers on engaging lessons both online and in the classroom, and maintaining top IGCSE and IBDP scores.”

Ms Laura Malone, ECE Teacher

Ms Laura Malone from Ireland lived in Beijing for three years before returning back to her home country but is back to explore the capital. Ms Malone holds an honours degree in Early Childhood Care and Development and has worked in the field for over nine years as a homeroom leader, progressing to assistant manager and later Early Years setting manager. What she finds rewarding about her position is observing and facilitating development emotionally and socially in young learners, while offering encouragement and setting goals. She is “very excited to work for YCIS Beijing to cultivate positive working relationships with my colleagues and to continue my development as an individual and a teacher. I believe as responsible educators, we should always strive to better ourselves.”

The school’s relevant departments have been working tirelessly to ensure teachers have a seamless return to Beijing. Even though they will be subject to a mandatory hotel quarantine when they land, Ms Li reassured us that the school “will provide support as much as we can to ensure teachers’ safety and wellbeing.”

由于疫情的原因，我们在变化和挑战中结束了上一学年的学习。新学年马上就要开始了。随着北京市教委公布新学期的开学日期，我校教职员工返回北京的计划正在进行中。我们希望借此机会欢迎我们社区的新成员——北京耀中的新教师们，他们即将回到国内，来到北京耀中的校园。

尽管由于新冠肺炎导致边境关闭，他们工作的开端并没有像他们设想的那样顺利,但他们仍保持积极乐观的态度。

据北京耀中人力资源部主管李军凤女士表示，“我们正在与教师们密切合作，以确保他们能尽快回国。“尽管不同国家的签证申请程序不同，但我们一直在为此努力。今年，新入职的教师们分别来自英国、加拿大、新西兰、爱尔兰、美国、南非、特立尼达和多巴哥等地。 

李女士表示，协助教师回国的工作几个月前就开始了，“我们与当地教育局进行了充分沟通，以找到让教师们尽快回国的方法”。教师在获得PU邀请函后，可以在所在国申请中国签证。

一旦收到这些信件，学校就会指导老师申请签证。“我们也联系了各个旅行社，帮助教师们找到回国的航班，”李女士补充道。

一些部分教师目前仍在他们自己的国家，另一部分教师则在他们在疫情开始前旅行的国家。尽管如此，这条看似没有终点的道路尽头还是出现了曙光。

教育总监博德先生于今年1月去了香港，如今已回到北京。中学部主管以及人文科组长Hayley Edge女士在韩国度过了3个月，将在学年开始前回国。

随着更多的学生陆续回到北京以及开学日期的确定，我们期待着新学年的开始。。

见见我们的新老师

Alicia Milne，小学美术教师

Alicia Milne女士来自特立尼达和多巴哥，她在当地的一所公立学校当了7年的美术老师。2017年，她作为常驻艺术家首次与北京耀中合作。在谈到加入北京耀中的原因时，她说:“加入北京耀中的教师队伍是一个很容易的决定。我知道这对我很合适，因为我曾亲身感受过耀中的学校文化接触到耀中优秀的学生们。我很高兴能加入一所重视和支持艺术教育的学校。”她渴望进入课堂，与新同事合作。

Joseph Tagliarini，学校辅导员

Joseph Tagliarini是一名英国人，他将在下一学年首次来到北京。他作为学校辅导员的经历长达15年，他与儿童和成人都有过合作。作为一名治疗师，他喜欢将创造性艺术融入到他的课程中，并与学生互动以促进学习。除了希望体验中国的饮食文化和收获友谊之外，他还期待与学生、同事和家长建立联系。“我希望在我的团队中建立促进成长、信任和激励的关系，不论是通过面对面、在线、家访，或是在游戏时间或与学生踢足球的过程中，”他分享道。

Robert Ondere，数学和数位素养教师

来自肯尼亚的Robert Ondere先生在美国南卡罗来纳州教了14年数学。在此之前，他在肯尼亚教授数学和计算机科学。他之所以搬到北京，是因为朋友的鼓励。他将与他的妻子和两个孩子一同前来，他期待着能学生们一起学习进步。“我今年的目标是利用数字工具的力量，为我的学生创造一个有收获并难忘的在线学习体验。”对我来说，没有什么比我的学生在学习上取得实质性进步更值得欣慰了。”他和他的家人都非常热爱旅行，他渴望与同学们分享他的经历。

Tony Kydd，经济学教师

Tony Kydd先生对耀中社区并不陌生。他曾在重庆耀中工作，曾在西安生活，最近决定搬到北京这个城市，因为这里的新机会。Kydd受到《吾爱吾师》和《死亡诗社》等电影的启发，想成为一名教师，也想做他认为有价值的工作（比如：耀中的CAS项目）。在新学年里，他期待着“完善我在网上和课堂上的教学方法，与同事合作参与在线和课堂上的教学，并保持IGCSE和IBDP的优异成绩。”

Laura Malone女士，幼教部教师

来自爱尔兰的Laura Malone女士曾在北京生活了3年，之后回到爱尔兰。这次她回来是为了探索北京。Malone女士持有幼儿保育及发展荣誉学位，并曾在该领域担任逾九年的班主任，后来晋升为经理助理及幼教环境经理。她发现，她的职位带给她的收获是，能够观察并促进年幼学习者在情感和社交方面的发展，同时给予鼓励并设定目标。她“很高兴能在北京耀中工作，她期待与同事们建立良好的工作关系，并继续个人专业发展”。我认为，作为负责任的教育工作者，我们应该不断完善自己。”

学校的相关部门一直在孜孜不倦地工作，以确保教师们能够顺利返回北京。尽管他们在抵达后将被隔离，但李女士向我们保证，学校“将提供尽可能多的支持，以确保教师的安全和福祉。”