SUCCESSFUL TRANSITIONS REQUIRE BALANCE
A family that lives and moves internationally faces challenges unappreciated by most of us. Mobility can have a significant impact on children in their developmental years. The hoped-for outcome will be a child’s strong self-image as a member of a global community, with a high level of sensitivity to and understanding of a diverse society. To achieve this outcome, Seoul Foreign School (SFS) provides active support to children and families as they transition in and out. SFS thinks of their students—the majority of whom hold UK or US passports—as "Third Culture Kids—a term coined that signifies that fact that when a child from one culture moves to a second (or third, or fourth) culture for a significant length of time during their developmental years, a third culture is then created within that child.”1
Part of the school’s success is its grounding in British and U.S. educational systems, while following best practices from schools around the world. Other strengths are the school’s Christian ethos and open community. Finally, there is the influence of the Korean culture itself.
Seoul is a megalopolis with more than 11 million residents, one quarter of the total population of the Republic of Korea. The mainstream of Korea’s political, economic and cultural activities runs through this city along the banks of the Han River. Seoul is the 20th wealthiest city in the world.
The capital of Korea since 1394 (it first appears in the historical record in 18 BC), Seoul’s modern energy is balanced by ancient rhythms of palaces and tombs; the city is ringed by rugged slopes topped with temple spires. The business districts are packed with modern high-rise buildings, heavy automobile traffic, and an advanced public transportation system, including one of the world’s largest subway systems.
The Korean flag has a field of white, which symbolizes peace and purity. Korea’s homogenous population (most are Buddhist or Christian) is sometimes described as the “white-clad nation.” Central to the flag is the Um-Yang—the classic image of struggle and harmony—and, from the i ching, symbols that can be interpreted as representing the four seasons, the four compass points, and heaven, fire, water, and earth.
Within the city is a community of 200,000 expatriates, business people and diplomats and their families. A top choice of schools for their children is Seoul Foreign School. Seoul Foreign is an IB World School that offers a Western-style college preparatory education.
Director of Information Technology Jeff Kersting spoke with us via Skype, offering his particular perspective on the unique qualities of the school.
Kersting began, “This school was started long ago. Right now we are in the process of planning for our 100th year anniversary, which will take place in 2012. We are excited about it. We started with 17 students, and have survived occupation and war. Now we enroll nearly 1500 students in four separate divisions.
“One division is modeled on the British system. We also have elementary, middle, and high school divisions, which reflect a Western educational influence. Students in grades 11 and 12 may choose to pursue their International Baccalaureate (IB). Seoul Foreign School is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).
“Our students come to us from 56 other countries. We are a Christian school, but not a prophetic one and our student body represent a plethora of faiths. Our academics are very strong. We are continually expanding and upgrading our campus, making our excellent facilities better every year. We have active parent involvement.
“Seoul Foreign School is fully international: we are a top option for the expatriate business and diplomatic communities and current policy doesn’t allow enrollment of Korean nationals. One requirement for enrollment is either the mother or father has to hold a foreign passport.
“SFS is a PC-based school. We service about 900 machines in three media centers, five computer labs, and in classrooms, and we have 36 servers. The five people in our office are overworked, of course, as is common in IT departments, and we are located, also typically, ‘down in the dungeon.’”
Kersting oversees all technology planning. “My wife and I have worked here for nine years. I began as a 4th grade teacher, then taught 2nd grade, then Middle School computing, and then the Director of Educational Technology, and am now the school’s Director of Information Technology. I have seen our infrastructure expand but our office space has shrunk because of overall demands for more space. Next year we will see a huge increase in the school’s network infrastructure, and our office space will almost double in size.
“Through recent Board approval, we are now able to provide wireless access across the school campus. We’re not ready to become a laptop school yet; we’re taking conservative steps.
“One of the major initiatives we directed was to install 120 SMART Boards; currently we have one in almost every classroom. Technology is definitely used to enhance the delivery of our curriculum in the classroom. We consider carefully how technology should be incorporated.
“It is really pleasant to work at a school where tuition is put directly back into the education process. Many schools in Korea are for-profit. Seoul Foreign School is not a private school owned by an individual—in our case, all the tuition money is put back into the school. We are a non-profit. At Seoul Foreign School, tuition is used very strategically to make sure students and student learning is properly funded.
“We were first introduced to inRESONANCE when we began looking for a new Student Information System. Our Assistant Head of School - Academics had a daughter who was enrolled at Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania. Our Assistant Head raved about how easy it was to apply at Mercersburg, and to follow up on the application process. She really recommended it. Mercersburg uses PORTAL and PWS. I took a look and saw what it was capable of.
“I felt it was important to make a careful choice. If we were going to move to a new SIS in the future, I don’t want to constantly have to change things. I want the ability to interface easily with whatever SIS we pursue.
“The PORTAL installation went very well. We were pleased that while Dottie Adams, our installer, was here, the three days were filled with tons of information and great training. The follow-up since then has been great. We were all new to FileMaker. The Admissions office was not enthusiastic about taking three days for training—we have a big turnover in students around Christmas, so it’s a pretty intense time for the school—but I reminded them, ‘This is important. This will help you.’ The data was not clean when it was pulled out and dumped into PORTAL, but we’re using the FileMaker application as a data cleanup device. It’s going very well.
“The installation of PWS is going a bit more slowly than I thought it would. Having worked with other companies, I understand why a projection of two weeks for an installation can turn into a month. Some administrators who have been out of the country want their input incorporated, so we are having some back-and-forth with iR. Especially with a 14-hour time difference, two-way communication can be daunting. We all may be pushing to get it running but it takes time to get it right.
“It is typical that we enroll 300-400 new students every year. Our Admissions office is staffed by two officers and one assistant. We are looking forward to increased productivity once the web portal is open.”
iR manages the installation process online. Kersting expressed appreciation for the management system, saying, “The ‘project path’ area is very helpful. All communication is centrally located. We can track what has been done, and we can see all the emails back and forth, from everyone involved in the project. With email being the main form of communication between three or four different people, to have all the messages centrally located is invaluable.”
Even with the complexities of managing meetings and expectations from a distance of 6800 miles, Kersting is enthusiastic about launching PWS. “We just keep moving forward,” he explained. “Even after the PWS website is done, I expect we will have to do some tweaking. Some colleagues are just pushing me to get this up, but my philosophy is, if we’re going to have this for many years, let’s make sure it’s done properly. We are taking the time to get it right.”
1. Web site for Seoul Foreign School http://www.seoulforeign.org back to top
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