Kingdom-class School and Flipped Learning
Kuei Shan is blessed to be graced with the presence of two distinguished guests, Dr. Barrett Mosbacker and Mr. Jon Bergmann. These pioneers in education came to share with the school community their expertise and to inspire them with their vision.
On March 21st, 2016, Dr. Barrett Mosbacker, principal of Briarwood Christian School in Alabama, gave a talk on "What it means to build a Kingdom-class school and classroom" and challenged both teachers and students to work together and have that common goal. He came to Taipei to be one of the keynote speakers during the International Conference on Christian Education (ICCE) held at Christ's College. Dr. Mosbacker defines a kingdom-class Christian school as:
"one that is among the best in the world because of the quality and impact of its educational program. It sets a standard of educational quality and innovation worthy of emulation by both non-Christian and Christian educators throughout the world.
Its students are... prepared to use their God-given gits in fulfilling both the Creation Mandate1 and the Great Commission...
... A kingdom-class education educates both mind and the soul and seeks to glorify God, not man so that we obey Jesus' command to "Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." Matt.5:16
About a month later, on April 14th, one of the pioneers of the "Flipped Classroom" model of teaching and learning, visited our school to introduce the 'flipped learning' concept to our teachers. Mr. Jonathan Bergmann
encouraged the teachers to change the way they present content by "flipping" student learning, "in which direct instruction moves from the group learning space to the individual learning space, and the resulting group space is transformed into a dynamic, interactive learning environment where the educator guides students as they apply concepts and engage creatively in the subject matter," as defined by the developer himself. He then challenged teachers to answer this question: "What should be the best use of face-to-face/class time with students?" That would be reinforcement of learning through authentic, more hands-on activities. For more information on flipped learning, you may read his books on "Flipped Learning" and "Flip Your Classroom", or visit flippedlearning.org
As Kuei Shan continues to strive for excellence, we all yearn to see the school reach its mission-vision, uphold student-centered learning, and be a Kingdom-class school.
