State Department Visitors from East Asia & Pacific Observe Teaching Methods at Flint Hill School

On Thursday, April 17, dignitaries from Samoa, Thailand, and Vietnam spent time at Flint Hill’s Upper School campus learning about the use of video lessons (vodcasts) as an approach to teaching in today’s digital age. The school was one of the first stops for the visitors—guests of the State Department—who are on a five-city tour of the United States: Washington, D.C., Pittsburgh, Boston, Salt Lake and San Francisco. 

Flint Hill School was sought out to participate in the U.S. tour because of the visitors’ interest in the “flipped classroom” and the school’s experience and reputation as a leader in this type of teaching. The group observed the application of flipped learning in two classes: chemistry and ceramics. They listened to presentations from teachers of math, economics, and biology on how they plan, produce, and implement vodcasts into their lessons. And, they engaged in informal discussions, trading questions and answers over lunch with various members of the faculty and school administration. “Sharing knowledge with colleagues from different nations enriches us as a school community,” said Headmaster John Thomas, “and we’re proud to be a part of a global effort to strengthen education.”

The overall purpose of the group’s U.S. visit is to meet with educators, researchers, and educational technology experts to get an overview of current trends in digital education and assess how new technologies are impacting teaching and democratizing learning. They also have an interest in discussing potential collaborations between U.S. education institutions and each visitor’s respective institution, which includes: the Samoan Ministry of Education, Sports, and Culture; Maehongson Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Center, in Thailand; Violet.vn Vietnamese Teacher Social Network; and Vietnam National University, Hanoi.