(30 Apr) The day I had been looking forward to has arrived. Day 4 is the day we go visit schools. Half of the Hong Kong delegates went to a secondary school in the morning while Principal Chan, Mr Kwan and I chose to visit another school, which was named Tallinn German Gymnasium (the word "Gymnasium" in the German language refers to high school, not a place for workouts!). This school provides education to students from Year 1 to 12 (or in their saying, 1st Class to 12th Class). Therefore, that's a "through-train" school like Ying Wa!
As expected, the school was impressively big with plenty of space for students to run around and release their endless energy. The school impressed me with a high level of respect to students' independence. That could be seen through the fact that:
1. Students were basically not required to wear uniforms, particularly the high forms.
2. Mobile phones were allowed to be used during recess time from Year 5 onwards.
3. Students were encouraged to freely run around the campus and enjoy the different apparatuses around the school like gymnastic rings and a range of climbing areas.
Another cool thing about this school is that they are using a lot e-tools to help teachers do marking, like a lot of homework and even tests are done through computers and they are marked by computers. This saves a lot of time for teachers and students. But of course, the effectiveness of this concept is still debatable if used in our school's context.
Principal Chan, Mr Kwan and I were arranged to watch a Year 4 Maths lesson. There were 18 students in the classroom and they were actively engaged in the calculation activities. Although we didn't understand the language they used (Estonian that was), we could feel the energy of the lesson and the clarity of the teacher's instruction.
It was a pity though that we didn't have a chance to speak to their students. I hope that in our later visits, we will be given this chance.
Overall, this day can be described as "energetic" as the vibrant children in the school gave me this impression. And the biggest blessing today is that we had very sincere and helpful presenters from Tallinn German Gymnasium who showed a very high level of courtesy and hospitality. We are all very grateful for that.
Thank you for reading. Write you more soon!
Dr Lee
_________________________________
QUESTION TIME:
As expected, the school was impressively big with plenty of space for students to run around and release their endless energy. The school impressed me with a high level of respect to students' independence. That could be seen through the fact that:
1. Students were basically not required to wear uniforms, particularly the high forms.
2. Mobile phones were allowed to be used during recess time from Year 5 onwards.
3. Students were encouraged to freely run around the campus and enjoy the different apparatuses around the school like gymnastic rings and a range of climbing areas.
Another cool thing about this school is that they are using a lot e-tools to help teachers do marking, like a lot of homework and even tests are done through computers and they are marked by computers. This saves a lot of time for teachers and students. But of course, the effectiveness of this concept is still debatable if used in our school's context.
Principal Chan, Mr Kwan and I were arranged to watch a Year 4 Maths lesson. There were 18 students in the classroom and they were actively engaged in the calculation activities. Although we didn't understand the language they used (Estonian that was), we could feel the energy of the lesson and the clarity of the teacher's instruction.
It was a pity though that we didn't have a chance to speak to their students. I hope that in our later visits, we will be given this chance.
Overall, this day can be described as "energetic" as the vibrant children in the school gave me this impression. And the biggest blessing today is that we had very sincere and helpful presenters from Tallinn German Gymnasium who showed a very high level of courtesy and hospitality. We are all very grateful for that.
Thank you for reading. Write you more soon!
Dr Lee
_________________________________
QUESTION TIME:
1. We found these interesting chairs at corridors of the school we visited today. Why were they designed like that?
2. By looking at these pictures taken from the Year 4 Maths lesson I observed, what difference(s) do you see comparing to your Maths learning experience in YWPS?
