On a pleasant spring morning, filled with anticipation, I waited for my turn to be interviewed. As I was called in, I entered the room facing the interview panel of three members. Anxiously waiting for the questions, they tasked me with creating a project workflow. I couldn’t control my curiosity, but wondered why they were asking me to tackle such an advanced project which has complexity equivalent to college level.
Intrigued by this, I curiously inquired to them about their curriculum, and that’s when I realized it was far beyond anything I had ever encountered. In our school days, I remember that we exclusively depended on external sources to complete our projects. I was amazed to find that learners at WWIS were doing similar projects all by themselves. WWIS wasn’t a regular school; it was a lively place full of artists, scientists, singers, storytellers, mathematicians, and young businesspeople.
While I was amazed by what I learned about the school, they offered me the job of project coordinator. I accepted without thinking twice, feeling excited and curious. Time flew by, we worked on some unique projects like Happy Mother, Plant, and Me, Is Spider a Good Guy or a Bad Guy? and Single-Mindedness. In the past two years, we did 6 to 8 projects every year, on topics I never imagined. The word ‘projects,’ which usually makes both students and parents feel worried, had a completely different meaning here. At WWIS, learners embraced projects with the same enthusiasm they had for sports and fun activities. The school has a special curriculum where students work on real-life problems, making projects to help solve them. Each project begins with a driving question that helps students research, identify the problem, and fix it for their community. Cognitive and metacognitive skills are developed by exploring different subjects like psychology, humanities, science, and STEM.
The projects don’t just cover a wide range of topics; they also connect with the emotions of our students and their parents. One project in particular touched my heart and I’ll never forget it: The Birthday Gift. This project for third-graders asked learners to pick a family member and make a special gift for them. As the time to finish the project came closer, we invited parents to watch their children give the gifts, and we took pictures of their reactions.
I’ll never forget the moment when one mother cried when she received a handmade gift from her son. She later said that she had never received a gift from anyone before—she was 35 years old. The gift wasn’t made of gold, but the tears she cried were very precious to both her and her son. It was a special moment that made everyone feel good. Everyone left that day feeling happy and full of joy.
I still feel amazed about our special curriculum the same way as I felt on my interview day and proud to work here.
