Meet the Team: Senior School at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi
Senior School at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi is characterised by a diverse group of international young adults who are widely recognised as being confident, friendly, outward-looking, collaborative, motivated, and smart young leaders within our school. Each of our students is guided and coached through their bespoke Senior School journey by our highly qualified, kind and caring teachers. Our teachers spend time getting to know their students and families; forming positive working relationships based on open communications, in order to help each student become the best possible version of themselves.
The Senior School Leadership Team support both our students and teachers - bringing a wealth of expertise, experience and passion to the community. In this article, our Senior School Leadership Team share their passion for education, and why they enjoy working with the Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi community;
Kelly King
Head of Senior School
"As Head of Senior School in one of Shanghai's finest secondary schools, I consider myself to have the best job in the world! Every day, I get to spend time with young people whose thoughts, ideas and observations about the world around them provide provocations for all of those with whom they come into contact - young and old alike. When I think about our school, I think about sound - from the sounds of laughter to the sound of silence, and from the sound of conversation to the sound of debate. These sounds provide a small window into our community, and the value we are creating for the lives of the students in our care. Each day I count my blessings for being able to work with such a motivated, diverse, driven group of young people who will, undoubtedly, go on to become the next generation of leaders in the world, guided by the values we instill in them here at the College."
Biography
Kelly King is a fully qualified and experienced History Teacher with 19 years of experience in British - specifically London - based schools and 3 years of experience in international schools. She qualified as a History teacher at the Institute of Education, University College London, later receiving a qualification as a Chartered London Teacher, received only by those who have demonstrated the unique skills, experience and knowledge specific to teaching in London schools. Kelly was then afforded the opportunity of studying for a Master’s degree part-time in Leadership and Innovation in Education at the Institute of Education, University of Warwick. Kelly is in her fourth years as Head of Senior School at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi, and has two children at the College.
David Brown
Sixth Form Assistant Head and IB Coordinator
"In my role as the IB coordinator, I have the privilege of watching our students cap their time at Dulwich with a variety of learning experiences and projects that they develop themselves: their CAS project, and their extended essay, as well as the Theory of Knowledge work that they do which connects all their disparate subjects together into a coherent narrative.
These projects stretch and challenge the IB students while allowing me to collaborate with the amazing colleagues that I have here at Dulwich: our IB CAS coordinator, and the teams in the High School Phase and the Middle School Phase.
What keeps me excited about this is the self-directed learning and the amazing ideas of the students that I teach. It’s a privilege to be around people with such big ideas and the passion to try to develop them, and to connect their ideas and their experience to the Dulwich community and beyond.“
Biography
David Brown has nearly two decades of experience in international education in Asia. David has a BA in Journalism & Communication Studies, an Honours BA in Applied Linguistics, and a Master of Philosophy in English Literature from The University of Hong Kong, as well as postgraduate certification focused on language learning and teaching.
David has spent the bulk of his professional life in Hong Kong, working with the Education Bureau developing programmes for literacy and computer-enhanced language learning, a field which has also seen David collaborate with the Ministry of Education in Singapore, and then lecturing at the Education University of Hong Kong. Prior to this, David taught in international school settings in Thailand and Taiwan.
Francine Hearn
Assistant Head of High School
"In my role as Assistant Head of High School, I am privileged to be working with students in Year 9, 10 and 11. These years are of particular significance, as it is at this time when students navigate key decisions regarding their IGCSE and IBDP pathways. The adolescence years are a critical developmental period, and I am passionate about enhancing individual wellbeing by supporting the increase of protective factors. Examples of this are developing strength, resilience and learning positive self-talk, all of which contribute to the success of our students not just academically, but also socially and emotionally. We have a strong commitment to wellbeing at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi, and it is my pleasure to lead the team in High School as we help our students navigate such a critical and challenging time in their lives. The impact we have here can yield significant positive benefits for our students for the rest of their lives."
Biography
Prior to joining Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi, Francine completed her teacher training in the United Kingdom after reading a Masters Degree at the University of Warwick in Strategic Management and Cultural Entrepreneurship. Francine has been working in China for almost a decade, with 7 years in the role of Head of Business and Economics successfully delivering a track record of excellent academic results and 3 years as Deputy Head of Sixth Form for an established international school. Francine has recently completed a Master of Science Degree in Educational Leadership with a vested research interest in student wellbeing which she is committed to applying it practically in her role as Assistant Head of High School.
Charlotte Sneath
Middle School Assistant Head
"I joined Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi as an Art Teacher, and have since undertaken ongoing professional development opportunities, moving into the Assistant Head of Middle School role. In this capacity I have both academic and pastoral oversight of our Year 7 and 8 cohorts. I enjoy supporting students as they transition from Primary, and become accustomed to the rigours of Senior School life. I see a large part of my role as helping our students excel in their studies, whilst also supporting them to become kind, considerate and independent members of our community. I am passionate about ensuring that each and every child thrives, and that wellbeing is at the centre of every decision that we make."
Biography
Charlotte Sneath teaches Senior School Art and Design, and is the Middle School Assistant Head at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi. Following a BA in Illustration, she taught in England for four years and internationally in Romania for two. She aims to enable all students to have confidence in their abilities, the technical knowledge, and the independence to achieve success.
Amber Zhou
Head of Mandarin
"As a founding member of the Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi team, it has been a great journey witnessing the growth of our school. It is a wonderful place to work; a place where each student is valued and developed as an individual, and where we live and breathe our values. Having recently been awarded the British Schools Awards Diversity and Inclusion award, our emphasis on our students is clear. Both students and staff are nurtured to flourish as individuals within a caring and connected community. As providers of an international education, Mandarin Chinese is a core part of our curriculum offering here at the College. We have designed bespoke mandarin pathways for our students, and we expect all of our students to become confident using Mandarin in a global context. We understand that if we provide our students with a solid foundation in Chinese culture and language, they will be enabled to truly Live Worldwise, wherever they may be in the future."
Biography
Amber Zhou is the Head of our Mandarin department. She attended Tianjin Normal University, later receiving a Master's degree in Literature from the East China Normal University and an iPGCE from Nottingham University. Amber taught in a key Middle School in Shanghai for five years and was responsible for teaching Chinese on the main campus and in the international department. She has also been to the United States, Singapore and Mexico to participate in educational training. Amber also participates in many volunteer service activities, and is a volunteer of Shanghai International Film Festival. Amber's aim is to ensure that her students are proud of their cultural heritage, and she hopes to foster a love of learning the Chinese language, literature and culture.
Grace Stewart
Director of Sport
"I love being a part of the Dulwich family and leading PE and sport for our community. Our Mustang values of pride, passion, desire and belief exemplify everything our students represent, not only on the pitch, but also off. Their sportsmanship is unparalleled and our students uphold the College values, making coaching them something to be very proud of."
Biography
Grace Stewart is our Director of Sport. She has been teaching Physical Education and sport internationally for the past 5 years. Originally from Lancashire, England, Grace attended the University of Cumbria to obtain her Bachelors degree in Physical Education. From her time teaching in China and the Middle East, Grace has a wealth of experience teaching students from Kindergarten to sixth form, leading extra curricular activities and organising overseas trips for sporting competitions and skiing. In her spare time, she has captained and coached international Netball Teams to international tournaments and competed at the World Championships for triathlon, half ironman distance.
Jonathan Haslett
Director of Creative Arts
"As Director of Creative Arts at the College, I have the opportunity and privilege to watch our students flourish in the disciplines of Music Art and Drama. It is wonderful to see our students develop their skills, knowledge and understanding of the arts through our rich and diverse curriculum offerings as, well as in the extra-curricular and electives programmes. It is always exciting to see our students committing themselves to the different performing opportunities at the school and across the Dulwich family as part of the Dulwich Diversity programme. Our creative arts students enjoy a challenge and consistently deliver high quality performances, should they be performing as part of the Senior Orchestra, Forte Choir, the Senior School Production, or the backstage ‘Tech Crew’ team. Whether it’s an assembly performance, a Chinese cultural event, a Christmas concert or Founders Day, it is always a pleasure for me to watch our amazing students grow from strength to strength. As a founding member of staff, I have had the pleasure to witness the growth of our students since the founding of the College. I am consistently proud and in awe of the wonderful achievements of our community."
Biography
Jonathan is originally from the north-west of Ireland, where he studied Music at Queen's University, Belfast. He started his teaching career in 2004 and spent 10 years working in the north-east of England as a music specialist where held the position of Head of Music in a large comprehensive school in County Durham. In 2014, Jonathan moved to China to become Director of Music at a large British international school in Guangzhou.
Jonathan has created and coordinated a wide range of extra-curricular activities and enrichment opportunities for students. These include running orchestras, choirs, traditional folk ensembles, and music technology. He set up a student theatre company to encourage students within the performing and creative arts to develop their musical skills through practical involvement.
Tom Lee
Senior School Computer Science and Economics Teacher, Data Manager
"Here at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi, I have had the pleasure of working with open-minded educators who allow me the opportunity to explore ways to improve my teaching. One of the long-term projects I am currently working on is producing a new and bespoke computer science curriculum, based on Harvard’s famous CS50 courses, that teaches artificial intelligence programming. I’m excited to see how that develops and how we can further enhance the learning opportunities for our students by implementing bespoke curricula depending on their needs. I believe that those who are passionate about teaching their subjects and about the learning of their students will do everything possible to offer the best lessons. At the end of the day, great teaching and learning is what drives the best schools, and we are building that here at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi.
In this increasingly connected world, I believe it is important for us to have frank discussions about the use of technology in our student body. While I lead on the wide array of technical skills our students learn, from coding to digital literacy, robotics and more, I also work to ensure that digital wellbeing is at the centre of our discussions. We know that wide access to social media is having significant negative impacts on young peoples’ mental health. As we provide an individual education for our students, it is critical that we are aware of these issues and are taking a lead of addressing them."
Biography
Tom Lee attended U.C. Berkeley as an undergrad, with a degree in Economics. Upon graduation, Tom worked in Silicon Valley as an engineer during the dot com bubble. Following this, he attended Loyola Law School, Los Angeles and practiced law for five years. Tom arrived in China in 2010, where he has been teaching since 2011. He loves to teach and has taught Computer Science, ICT, Maths, Business Studies, Economics and Digital Media & Design. His favourite part of being a teacher is being a mentor to students who want to produce real-world projects, beyond those written in the textbooks.
Senior School is a critical time for students. Not only is this the time where their academic and extra-curricular achievements start coming together to inform and shape their pathways to university, but it is also a time of significant change; personally, socially and emotionally. Our team care deeply about our students and aim to ensure that their time at the College is safe, fun, and productive. We create personal pathways for each and every student based on their individual needs.
If you are interested in learning more about Senior School at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi, reach out to our Admissions department to organise a personalised consultation. In 2022 we have started to offer Immersion Days, where prospective students can spend time in the class, meeting their peers and teachers, to ensure that Senior School at Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi truly is a best fit for them.
