The “I” in ICS stands for international. They did not misname the school.While the school is an English language school that follows an American curriculum and an American calendar, the staff is definitely international. While about half of the staff is from the States, the remainder comes from around the globe. ICS has staff from Canada, Britain, Australia, New Zeeland, The Czech Republic, India, Nigeria, and of course, China. We have on staff one teacher who is Aussie through-and-through, but he is Nepalese by birth.
While the vast majority of students are Chinese, ICS has a small, diverse minority. We have a handful of Korean students, and a few Japanese. For the most part, the only western students are children of teachers. So in a school of 900 students, I would say there are less than 75 Anglo, western students. Annika and Elise are definitely getting a taste of what it feels like to be an ethnic minority in school.
Elise is the only non-Asian in her 4th grade class. Annika is one of just three non-Asians in the entire 8th class of 75 students.
For the most part, my students seem to speak perfect, idiomatic English. In fact many of them –I’m not sure what percent- seem to have lived in either the States, Canada, or Australia at some point in their lives.
I have no problem understanding my Chinese students, it's trying to understand my Australian colleagues that is proving a real challenge!
-Jack
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