TES Annual Report

German Section In collaboration with GS classroom teachers, STEAM is moving forward well. With the expectation of immediate results becoming more prevalent in society, gone are the yesteryears when following instructions was a fundamental, simple process. Therefore, we want to stress adhering to step-by-step instructions in each and every project. Lego Education is a good example and a great learning resource to cultivate this attribute. Children have structured lessons on building instructions. During this phase, they also learn coding and the understanding of some engineering principles, such as gears, rotations, gyroscopic and light sensors. Once they are familiar with the possibilities and the limitations of Lego, they are provided with miniature wooden catapult and ballista kits to assemble. During this process, they paid close attention to the mechanical operations of the machines. Their creativity ensues as they are given the opportunity to use Lego to build similar designs with extension lessons to add sensors and gears, depending on their own interpretation and conceptualisation. We also devised other lessons to promote instructional learning that use both traditional and high-tech methods. Some such lessons are our Lichtkasten als Nachtlicht (light box) and key hanger projects. Not only are children introduced to hand drills, Jr. hack saws and files to learn basic woodworking skills, but in the light box project for example, we also integrated multidisciplinary STEAM skills in the lesson to include learning of electric circuits and 3D designs. British Secondary and High School Section This year, all Year 7, 8, and 9 students have subscriptions to Adobe Creative Cloud. This gives them access to software used by professional designers such as Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and Premiere Pro. The Design Department now has a class set of iPads, and students frequently use them to quickly sketch ideas. They bring their best sketches into Photoshop and Illustrator to refine them and send them to be engraved or cut on the laser cutter or vinyl cutter.

Year 7 students set up files in Illustrator that were then laser cut and engraved on cardboard.

With our newly purchased sewing machines, Year 9 students learn how to make bags. They then used Procreate, Photoshop and Illustrator to create logos and designs which are sublimation printed and heat pressed onto their bags.

Year 8 and 9 students built VEX robots and programmed them to solve basic problems like detecting and picking up items.

IGCSE Computer Science students learned to programme using different algorithms and exploring networks, databases and AI. IB DP Computer Science students looked at computational problem-solving, computer organisation, abstract data structures and control systems. Beyond the classroom, in the Vex Robotics CCA, this year’s cohort competed at the Formosa VEX Robotics competition held at Pacific American School in Hsinchu. Although our teams earned some fine victories, a place in the finals eluded them on this occasion. With AI, teachers continue to look for balance and clarity when giving assignments. Students are encouraged to use AI in meaningful ways and to double-check responses. 3D printing is becoming much more prolific, and many teachers came to a session run by John Chin on 3D printing to find out how it is currently being used and how it will be used in the future.

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