New Semester, New Opportunities

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New Semester, New Opportunities

Written by Mr. Robertson

Hello and welcome back to CIA! It’s 2025, Chinese New Year is behind us, and that means a new semester at CTBC International Academy. The students have moved into their dorms, are learning new course schedules, and reconnecting with old friends. There was much chatter this first week about what happened on the winter break. There was some discomfort as homework started to flow again. Overall, the atmosphere matched the weather: brisk but good. The Year of the Snake holds nothing but promise and new opportunities.

One thing the students seem to find refreshing at CIA is the creative, spontaneous lessons plans created by our instructors. We know it is not always what they expect from a class. They have to get out of their seats, move, interact, and participate in their instruction. We find this style of education to be conducive to active, energetic minds and an ability to think critically and creatively. This fosters greater problem solving skills; it also encourages them to think of the world as a dynamic and ever-changing place. It certainly doesn’t hurt that they are more active and engaged. Dare we hope, they are entertained? It is all part of the experimental education system. And can you see that excellent view in the back ground? This semester, the students in our high school level courses are adjusting to new, improved, and excellent classroom environs.

Art celebrating academics and the Year of the Snake by Mimi Sato, Hana Stone, and Chelsea Lu.
Art celebrating academics and the Year of the Snake by Mimi Sato, Hana Stone, and Chelsea Lu.

But they are not the only ones learning and adapting. In our attempt as educators to always be improving our institution, we constantly evolve our pedagogical approach and seek new opportunities. Part of this is to also seek and incorporate the most recent technology and philosophy into our educational approach. This semester, the high school is using new and improved classrooms! These classrooms do not just have great new views of the countryside. They also contain brand new touch screen boards with which to display videos, slides, presentations, and student work in addition to improved storage and new lockers for educational materials.

Students listening to Mr. James explain a concept in English language Arts – B. He really knows how to capture their attention and use the classroom.
In the background of Mr. James’ lecture is the new device displaying a venn diagram.

By incorporating this touch screen technology, we can not only improve our lectures but also give the students the ability to utilize modern technology and devices so they are familiar with them when they go out into the world. One incredible feature is the ability to use a pen to write directly onto slides or projected PDFs. This allows us to interact directly with the materials. Everyone here at CIA is excited to put the technology to use.

We are also excited to constantly keep improving the level of education that we provide at our institution. Hopefully, each semester they return we will be waiting for them with new ideas, new lessons, and new opportunities to engage. That is part of our promise to our students, to always strive to give them the best education we possibly can. That way, they will leave our campus with the skills and attitudes needed to conquer the world.