International Middle Years  Curriculum

As the IMYC Coordinator I was tasked with not only teaching IMYC language arts but also implementing the curriculum. It was very self-directed position with a full teaching load and in my developed workshops, did the whole school displays, shared information and promoted the school through communications with IMYC Fieldwork & on the pin board on the website, provided workshops and trainings for teachers, coordinated exit and entry points as well as supporting teachers in developing their understanding of what exit points are, and writing and editing newsletters f that reflected on all aspects of the  school community.

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The newsletters for me  were important to me on many different levels - they were  a means of myself processing the many great things that were happening in the school, demonstrating accountability to management and helping them understand what IMYC was  and also  develop a greater appreciation  of the work of teachers;  to help  doubters ( be it students or teachers - see the value of  the IMYC curriculum in action);  to provide  an  point of departure for further discussion at home between parents and students;. I spent a lot of time and derived a lot of pleasure from  making an effort to understand what was happening in the school, doing extra research, gathering  students work and  writing the newsletters. For the IMYC Newsletters and EMCEES for exit points made an effort to have a variety of students work ( not just top students) as well as  have members form special needs contribute as  emcees and  in writing. I never had the same emcees at any  of my events. In terms of writing, I valued ideas

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 I also took this same kind of pride and joy in creating IMYC displays and creating visually literate spaces that helped students connect their learning, helped teaches see the connections between their own subjects and others, and present opportunities for both teachers and students to be amazed, inspired and motivated by the work of others.

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 I was tenacious in my sourcing of  learning opportunities and  saw potential everywhere. I spent many hours of my personal time working with outside  organizations to develop  workshops and learning experiences that would  support the IMYC BIG IDEAS and  different elements of the curriculum. For example, for Entrepreneurship, I saw that my local coffee shop  near the school had tremendous potential to demonstrate entrepreneurship without the need for big budget. I could see that the performance groups of MIss Tjitjih  and Gado-Gado Betawi  linked to the BIG IDEAS of Adaptability, Resilience, Community. In my personal life I am extremely mobile visiting artists, communities, watching theater, and just simply a wanderer. I am often taking people's numbers  for future networking as a seed of an idea emerges  immediately and I can see a great learning opportunity for students.

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 One of the  biggest things I did when I had six week hiatus  and could not go into the office due to visa issues was crate a curriculum match up document between the learning goals, content of IMYC and the Indonesian curriculum. Where there was no correlation, I would make suggestions for the teacher how they cold adapt aspects of   the Indonesian curriculum to the IMYC. I did this because I know teachers can be overwhelmed ( aside from the fact that I do have a   high work ethic and if I am still getting paid then I should still be working),, that I wanted to make it easier for teachers so that their time could be spent on planning and delivering amazing learning experiences  and develop an understanding of the IMYC rather than getting bogged down or burdened by working out to possible to do it. I am also fly aware and understanding that for someone who is not a fluent reader in English would take much longer to get through the material.

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 In leadership , I believe in respecting teachers time, what they do and provide support. They should never feel like they are thrown in the deep end. Any expectations that I placed on teachers, I had already tried myself ( and for my first two years in the position I actually had the highest teaching load in middle school and high school). The ultimate goal was to  provide the best learning experience  for students with a strong focus on evidence of learning.

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