Academic Development and Students Well-being in MS: 2025 Xiehe Cross-Campus Spring Teachers PD Day was Held Successfully

On the afternoon of March 15, 2025, nearly 250 Chinese and Expatriate school leaders and teachers from nine middle schools of Xiehe Education gathered at SUIS Shangyin to attend the 2025 Xiehe Cross-Campus Spring Teachers Professional Development Day. Some principals and teachers in other SUIS campuses watched the live broadcast of the event from their respective campuses.

▲ Click to watch a video on the event

This event was co-hosted by Ms. Margaret Yue and Mr. Alan Lam from SUIS Shangyin.

Opening Addresses

General Principal Ms. Maxine Lu said in her opening address that the era we live in is undoubtedly one of both opportunities and challenges. Like other industries, the education sector is full of change and uncertainty. However, SUIS teachers’ passion for education, their enthusiasm and capacity for self-growth, are the most vital certainties that enable Xiehe Education to navigate industry cycles and move forward steadily. Xiehe Education provides platforms and resources that enable like-minded Chinese and expatriate educators who love to learn, enjoy sharing, and grow together to join hands and move forward. This represents the most significant certainty in personal career development for us.

Keynote Speeches

Professor ZHAO Xudong, a chief physician and professor at Tongji University’s School of Medicine and School of Humanities, delivered a lecture titled “Cross-Cultural Life and Mental Health.” Using witty and humorous language along with vivid and illustrative case studies, Professor Zhao analyzed the psychological challenges and mental structures faced by groups in cross-cultural mobility from the perspective of cultural psychiatry. He also provided suggestions for schools and families to collaborate in safeguarding the mental health and development of adolescents.

The title of Mr. Andrew Tiffany’s lecture, Senior Academic Consultant for National Geographic Learning, was “Balancing Academic Growth and Student Well-being: Positive Intelligence for Middle School Success.” Andrew used specific teaching strategies and classroom examples to illustrate that school learning can and should include goals and activities that focus on students’ personal development and physical-mental well-being. He emphasized the importance of integrating positive intelligence into school teaching and students’ learning, enabling students to succeed not only as learners but also as “good people” who contribute positively to society in the future.

Tea Break

Tea break is happy time for principals and teachers from various campuses to discuss ideas and build connection with each other.

Workshops

This event featured a total of 10 parallel workshops, with 13 experts from both within and outside Xiehe Education invited to share their practical wisdom in teaching and nurturing students. The topics covered included classroom teaching strategies for positive intelligence, the use of AI in school education, online learning for knowledge education, science and innovation education, integrated humanities education, experiential moral education activities, mental health, Philosophy for Children (P4C) and middle school classroom practices.

// WU Qiang //

Keep Up with the Frontier Development Science and Technology and Cultivate Talents in Science and Engineering: Innovation of Science and Technology Education in Shanghai Schools (Chinese)

// Andrew Tiffany //

Activities For Growing Student Well-being Alongside Academics: Developing Middle School Success (English)

// Stephen Walshe & Amy Zhang //

Philosophical Teaching and Learning (PTL) in Middle School (E-C bilingual)

// KK Lee //

Tools that Help Students to be Efficient, Active, and Reflective-Full Value Contract (Chinese, experiencing moral activities mainly)

//Mindy Wu & Armin Chen //

Mindfulness and Sound Therapy Meditation Experiencing Activities (some Chinese, Music and Movement mainly)

// WANG Jing //

Psychological Health of Students in Schools: How to deal with Students with Special Needs (for Psychology Teachers and Moral Education Teachers mainly) (Chinese)

// Jack Zhai //

Using Smart Study System to Make Your Study Smarter (Chinese mainly, with bilingual PPT)

// Andrew Watt & Irene Chen //

Integration of Chinese Humanities with English Global Perspectives: Cross-cultural Dialogue and Academic Integration (E-C Bilingual)

// Matthew McGrath //

AI Prompt Engineering: Transform ChatGPT, Deepseek, or Other AI Chatbots into the Creative Assistant for Teachers. (English mainly)

// Dr. Adam Neufield //

Exploring UCL NPQs with Xiehe Education (English mainly)

Final Words

In addition to the main venue at SUIS Shangyin, sub-venues at other campuses, including SUIS Gubei, SUIS Hongqiao, SUIS Pudong, SUIS Wanyuan, SUIS Qingpu, SUIS Wuxi, and SUIS Hefei, simultaneously hosted peer-sharing workshops. Meanwhile, the “Integrated Mathematics Curriculum Development and Assessment in Middle School” project team, led by Quality Assessment and Evaluation Institute of Xiehe Education Center and involving SUIS Jiaoke, SUIS Hongqiao, SUIS Wanyuan, and SUIS Wuxi, conducted a full day of research activities at SUIS Wanyuan.

Cold Rain Drizzling in the Chilly Early SpringWarm Love Flowing along with the Soft Breeze.

The 2025 Xiehe Cross-Campus Spring Teachers Professional Development Day was successfully held!

类别： Groupnewssuiseditor 2025-03-18