Written by: Roseline Yang, Parent Relations Officer
We often underestimate the power of our thoughts and we may not realize the importance of our intention and how this can influence our actions and the interaction we have with others. Being aware of our thoughts and using the right words to express them to share our dreams and hopes is an essential element to put the right setting for a successful result.
This article aims at sharing with you how members of our school community came together to organize this first-time Global Community Week and reached a common goal by following the principle: “Share, Support, Succeed”.
Share your ideas, hopes and dreams – but also your concerns, doubts and fears
By sharing with others what we think and who we are, we open ourselves to our authentic and vulnerable selves, but we are also allowing others to understand what we need, our limitations, our thinking process and our intention.
When you are able to share your thoughts and express your needs, people are able to be inspired and to think and see if they can or want to help and support you.
This is how our Global Community Week started.
A faculty member and parent volunteer shared their concerns and doubts about how our annual international event would look like this year due to the pandemic situation. Since this event had always been parent-driven, in a meeting with POP Core committee members, we came up with a first concept of an inspiring quote: “Be the candle in the darknessinstead of a star in the sky” with a topic based on the school motto “Love and Charity Around the World” in honour of our school founder Madam Tsang Chor-Hang who was 16 years old when she decided to create a school to ensure that children could have an education during a time of political conflicts. The idea was to explore other charity organizations in Shanghai and around the world and allow students to reflect and identify the qualities of people who are able to inspire others to do good actions that endure in the long run. The final theme was then confirmed after our first Global Community Workshop with parent volunteers: “Take Action to Care”.
Support and Success work closely together, because you need a team of people who are willing to support you and can contribute thanks to their knowledge, skills or network.
Thanks to our Artist-in-Residence and her helpers, we had a beautiful installation prepared for the Love & Care activity in each campus and we managed to collect videos from different members of our school community for the Servant Leadership activity together with the “did you know” posters from parents and teachers to inspire students with their “take action to care” story poster competition. From the parent volunteer side, we had a team leader and a designer to work on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals Banners based on the contribution from a group of parents, teachers and students. We also had a parent volunteer coordinating with parents welcoming students every morning for each continent based on the country food prepared by our food service provider Chartwells.
To succeed, you need teamwork but also the tenacity to persevere until the end.
Success or failure can be visible when the project is being carried out. Support was essential at that moment and it was provided because of an existing network of people. In the last part of the project, parents and also colleagues reached out to offer their support for whatever was needed. At YCIS, members of the community are strongly connected with one another and they are able to identify when a member needs help because they care for each other and they know that teamwork is a key for success. This is how, this first-time organized event was able to be such a successful week, allowing participants to enjoy a diverse, rich and fruitful week of learning. Our Global Community Week even ended with an externally organized charity organization where more than 200 members of our school community joined to take action to care for “More Than Aware” and raise awareness for SDG #3 “Health & Wellbeing”.
As Chinese people like to say: “有缘分“ – It was meant to be. There’s no coincidence in the fact that our lives have converged in into this place and at this point of time.
What was the probability that our international event Global Community Day would become a Global Community Week ending with an event where we could actually “Take Action to Care” by supporting a charity organization that was celebrating their 10thyear anniversary.
As kindred spirits, we have chosen YCIS as a school or organization of which philosophy is aligned with our values and the ones we want to share with the younger generations.
Did you know that the tagline “Share, Support, Succeed” comes from the Parent Organization of Pudong (POP) and that at YCIS, we have hidden talented people because these people are actually humble and usually already have the qualities of servant leaders?
If you would like to review the content of the Global Community Week, please visit our blog: http://blogs.pd.ycis-sh.com/gcd/(password: pudong21)
If you want to be part of the story and take action to care, please join POP to share your wishes, support with your knowledge & skills and succeed in helping make our world a better place! (contact: poppd@sh.ycef.com)