Do you believe that our world is in need of pioneering thought in the field of education? Jim Hawkins, vice-chancellor and global head of school heads at Whittle Schools & Studios, believes that the time has come. Whittle is the first global school with campuses in the world’s top cities, created by an international consortium of experts from around the world, connected by a single faculty and a common curriculum operating with a collective intelligence. With a campus scheduled to open in Shenzhen in autumn 2019, Urban Family sat down with Mr. Hawkins for an exclusive interview about the Whittle Schools & Studios philosophy and what parents can expect at the soon-to-be-unveiled Shenzhen campus.
UF: Please tell more about your background. What brings you to Whittle School & Studios?
JH: I studied mathematics and completed a teaching training qualification at Oxford University. Following that, I went on to teaching and leadership positions at Radley College, London Forest School, Chigwell School and Norwich School. I was then appointed to be Headmaster at Harrow School, a famous all-boys boarding school renowned for educating the likes of Winston Churchill, Jawaharlal Nehru, Lord Byron, three Nobel Prize winners, several prime ministers and members of royal families, amongst others. Whilst at Harrow, I was introduced to Chris Whittle, who set out the vision for Whittle School & Studios, including the aspect of having one school across many global campuses and encouraging and teaching people how to learn. When I heard this, and the scope and scale of Whittle School & Studios across 36 campuses in the next few years or so, I thought, what an amazing opportunity for the students. It’s not newfangled or gimmicky; it’s just essentially putting into one place all the things that we fundamentally know work and resonate within us, and discarding the old school legacy systems. My current role as vice-chancellor and global head of school heads involves appointing heads of the campuses, helping lead and manage them as a team and overseeing the way the schools are run and establishing their own culture, systems and approaches. It’s a very exciting project with an incredibly talented team of people from around the world.
UF: Shenzhen has been chosen to house the inaugural campus in Asia. Why?
JH: In order to sustain the scale and type of development, our campuses must be in large cities with populations who will desire this sort of education and approach, and also urban environments that enable the kind of learning that Whittle School and Studios aims to provide. We see the learning environment as not just the campus, but the whole city. So why Shenzhen? Taking a global view, a deep analysis of large, thriving cities was conducted, and from that we have an indicative plan of where our campuses will be. Shenzhen came to the fore because it combines so many appealing characteristics and is undergoing rapid expansion and development, with start-ups and industries pouring in, especially in Qianhai where our campus will be located. To be a part of this growing community that is embracing innovation and technology just seems like a great fit, and we will be incorporating this in our Center of Excellences, where individuals can interact and communicate with others with whom they share a common interest. We’ve had a global team assembled for the last three years, with each campus having an on-the-ground team. Having been in education for the last 30 years, I have not seen a school, or schools, that has got the resources with these sorts of functions. It truly is a very exciting opportunity.
UF: What is the Whittle Schools & Studios philosophy and how is it re-imagining education?
JH: We believe that education is stuck in the past, and that a dramatic modernization is long overdue. As the first global school network, we’re challenging traditional schooling methods and creating a better, more connected world. We are creating an extraordinary and unique school, the first truly modern institution serving children from age three to 18 and the first global one. The aim is to change for the better the lives of those students who attend and, beyond our own campuses, contribute to the cause of education on every continent.
UF: What can parents look forward to at the Whittle School & Studios in Shenzhen?
JH: Unlike many educational institutions, our aim to use local curriculums to inform our programs, to create global centers of excellence with local adaptability. To be truly global, students need to be rooted in their local community and local culture, so that they have a toolkit to help them engage with their city and their country. Having acquired that, they can then experience the world by going to different campuses and apply what they have learned in their context. There is a lot of evidence to show that the best kind of background to facilitate elite university entrance is not through slogging through subjects or tests, but through our mission of preparing learners that learn differently and innovatively, through work that goes far deeper.
Our Shenzhen campus will open in autumn 2019, from kindergarten to Grade 12. The stunning design by Renzo Piano will feature spaces that will inspire, whilst being conducive and creative. The campus is also home to Whittle’s most expansive Workshop Floor—over 50,000 square feet. Along with our outstanding team, I am very excited to experience the campus when it opens next year.
For more information, visit whittleschool.org.
[Cover image via Urban Family]
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