We are Wellington | A College that pushes pupils forward

Lexandra Chen and her family joined our Wellington family during the College’s founding year. As part of our ongoing We are Wellington project, she shares her Wellington experience.

  Around four years ago, I saw a Wellington College International Shanghai advertisement and I was instantly intrigued, and not just because I happen to live in the area! After doing a little research, it was clear to me that Wellington would quickly become a great international school that had a different approach to the many others available in Shanghai. The key element that really impressed me was the emphasis on a holistic approach to educating children of all ages. Lots of schools in China focus too heavily on specific subjects, whereas Wellington made it clear that they wanted their pupils to learn a variety of important skill sets to prepare them for the wider world. This was a big part of why I switched my son Leo (now year 8) and daughter Laurentia (year 2) to enrol at Wellington College. I remember that initially Leo struggled with his English and was reluctant to go to school because he felt like he couldn’t understand enough of what was going on. However, with encouragement and support from his family, teachers and class mates, his English language abilities and confidence came on very rapidly. Within just 6-8 weeks, he felt completely integrated and happy to be speaking English in school every day. This was just the beginning: within the year, he entered a short story writing competition and won 3rd prize; a huge achievement given that he had only been properly speaking the language for less than a year. At the same time, Leo has retained and improved the linguistic skills of his Chinese-German heritage, which for us is equally important as his English development.  

Taking on new challenges

Learning a new language is obviously a huge challenge and an ability of lifelong worth. This is only one of many ways that Wellington manages to always keep pushing its pupils to try new things, explore their hidden potential and discover all sorts of things they can become passionate about. For my son, his experience with swimming is a fantastic example of the importance and value of this approach. Leo has not always been hugely interested in sport and I tried lots of different ways to get him involved but without much success. Once he started attending Wellington, however, he very quickly began to show an interest in swimming, which his teachers and fellow class mates solidly encouraged.  Soon he got into the swim team and attended a number of competitions, which gave him added confidence and enthusiasm for the sport. Before long, he was devoting much more time to swimming, pouring his energy into it, winning prizes and, more importantly, really trying his best and proving to himself that he is capable of achieving excellence through his efforts. To my mind, this is entirely representative of how successful Wellington is at boosting the confidence of the children in its care, by giving them the mental and physical tools they need to attempt new challenges and achieve all sorts of important personal goals. I am very grateful to the College for instilling this attitude in both of my children from such a young age, as I believe it will serve them very well in later life.  

Providing support at every stage of pupils’ lives

Since joining Wellington I’ve seen both of my children develop their academic prowess hugely. I think that this is due in large part to the attitude of trying new things, which I’ve already outlined, but it’s also thanks to the emotional support that they receive from Wellington along with their formal tuition. Wellbeing is a very important part of growing up and children require different kinds of support as they get older. While Laurentia is still very young, Leo is twelve: a time which is often difficult, when children develop into young adults and want to express their opinions and growing independence, which can sometimes lead to conflict. Fortunately, many of the teachers have taken great care of the emotional and mental development of my son and his class mates, by spending time talking to them and getting to fully understand their needs and personalities. The whole communication system between staff and pupils all across the College is similarly productive and very positive. Again, I’m extremely grateful for the excellent support system that my children have; I know that they are always well taken care of, whether they are at home or at school.  

Feeling part of a greater community

Critical to this emotional wellbeing is a sense of belonging, of being part of a community. This is another area where Wellington excels. Just walking around the campus, anyone can tell that it is a beautiful, happy and friendly place where people want to come every day to learn and teach. This feeling extends beyond the campus and is a core part of the Wellington community itself. Everyone is welcome in this richly diverse and colourful community, and I feel that both of my children integrated very quickly and easily. While the staff are a vital part of fostering this atmosphere, so many of the parents are also completely committed to bolstering the strength of the community. This attitude of commitment and enthusiasm extends right from the WeChat groups, to the charitable causes, annual events and celebrations that the College puts on throughout the year, such as the International Food Fair, Summer Festival and the Annual Ball. It’s just amazing how these parents bring so much energy and enthusiasm to make these moments as magical as they can possibly be. Through this example, our children learn that anything is possible when we work together. They are given concrete examples of the importance of everybody doing their best and helping each other to make something great. We teach them these values by living them, by setting the example as parents and teachers.   We are Wellington!

More relevant articles :

• WeareWellington | Keeping close as we grow

• WeareWellington | Building a close community

• WeareWellington | Proud tradition, new horizons