As Nord Anglia International School (NAIS) Shanghai, Pudong continues its commitment to enhancing student learning, the collaboration between the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Nord Anglia Education (NAE) has grown to be a fantastic initiative to foster a dynamic and enriching educational environment for NAIS Pudong students. This partnership, bridging together the expertise of MIT’s faculty and students with Nord Anglia’s global school network, provides our pupils with a distinctive opportunity to develop essential collaborative skills, gain exposure to real-world problems, and participate in challenging competitions.

One of the main benefits of the MIT-NAE collaboration is exposing our students to real-world problems. Curated materials, selected by top MIT faculty and further enhanced upon by MIT masters and doctoral students, provide a unique lens for students to analyse global challenges. Exploring topics such as climate change, sustainable development, and technological advancements deepens students' understanding and cultivates critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Another key advantage is the cultivation of collaborative skills among students through project-based learning. Encouraging teamwork and utilising diverse perspectives helps prepare students for the future workforce and instills in them a sense of global citizenship which may encourage them to make a positive impact on the world. The collaboration emphasises experiential learning, which allows students to acquire practical skills in coding, engineering, and design thinking. This hands-on experience enhances understanding and equips students with valued transferable skills. From developing prototypes to building models, students learn to translate ideas into reality, fostering creativity and innovation.

The MIT-NAE collaboration focuses on two primary areas: termly challenges that progressively explore different facets of global issues, and competitive challenges which determine which Nord Anglia students from around the globe get the privilege to visit MIT.

The MIT termly projects are set up in a way where our students are presented with a specific problem or query facing the world right now, and which they need to solve in a collaborative manner. The solutions are driven by student curiosity and creativity, and evolve through a series of related experiments, culminating in the students' holistic understanding of the problem. If at any point the students get stuck, they are encouraged to record their questions to MIT, to which MIT staff will respond in fun and creative ways (many videos are both informational as well as very humorous).

This year, NAIS Pudong plans to draw on one of the previous challenges, collaboratively shaping it to align with some of the topics taught within our classrooms, as well as the broader UN Sustainable Development Goals. As MIT encourages Nord Anglia schools to adapt their challenges to fit the ethos of the individual schools, and maintains a resource bank of their past challenges to use without time or deadline constraints, we have decided to revisit the "Extreme Weather" project, tweak it to add issues such as global warming, and involve subjects classes such as Science, English, Art, and Geography in a week-long activity that aims to synergistically teach students about the issue's impact on society and planet.

In contrast to the termly challenges, the competition projects are more focused, and adhere to stricter marking guidelines, ensuring that only those students who are truly invested in the creative engineering that MIT demands will be offered a chance to visit their campus and experience first-hand why it’s considered one of the best engineering universities in the world.

Last year, NAIS Pudong had successfully participated in the regional competitions: Yoshiki S and Callum L, both in Year 10, worked tirelessly for two weeks to “Hack the Tube”; a competitive challenge set by MIT for 2022/23 which would decide who had a chance to progress to the finals in Massachusetts. Their determination and hard work paid off as both students managed to win the regionals, and both were extended a prestigious MIT invitation. When asked about what it took to secure that spot, Yoshiki explained that it was grit that got them through – they sacrificed lunch times and stayed after school to be able to complete their projects to a world-class standard. “Time management was key, and we learned how to utilise our time more efficiently,” Yoshiki concluded.

As regional winners, Yoshiki and Callum flew to MIT, and while there participated in additional challenges such as the ‘1/10th challenge’ and the ‘Mass Produce challenge.’ Callum mentioned that he particularly enjoyed the former, as that was an exercise in minimising packaging dimensions, which helped him understand and gain valuable insights into the engineering and design challenges faced by the shipping industry.

Both students emphasised their appreciation for the unique experience of working and interacting with MIT professors and MIT students who were involved in the NAE collaboration. As a testament to the power of this experience, the MIT visit fueled their passion for further learning and engineering, and led both students to participate in the "F1 in Schools” initiative at NAIS Pudong.

Our school aims to again participate in the regional competition for the 2024-2025 year; many NAIS Pudong students are eagerly waiting for MIT to release this year's competitive format, and we hope to replicate past successes with an even larger number of students this time around.

The MIT-NAE collaboration at NAIS Pudong highlights the benefits of combining global expertise with a focus on practical learning, collaborative skills, and exposure to real-world challenges. It not only shapes the educational experience of participating students, but also sets a standard for innovative and globally-oriented education. The collaboration stands as an extraordinary endeavor, paving the way for students to become well-rounded individuals prepared to navigate the complexities of the future, and we’re excited to see how it continues to develop and benefit the entire NAIS Pudong community.

Written by Mr. Pawel Fulmyk

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上海英国学校浦东校区致力于提高学生的学习能力，麻省理工学院（MIT）与诺德安达教育集团（NAE）之间的合作已发展成为为NAIS Pudong的学生营造一个充满活力、丰富多彩的教育环境的举措。这一合作将麻省理工学院师生的专业知识与教育集团的全球学校网络紧密联系在一起，为我们的学生提供了一个独特的机会，使他们能够发展基本的协作技能，接触现实世界中的问题，并参加具有挑战性的竞赛。

MIT与NAE合作的其中一个主要优势是让我们的学生接触现实世界中的问题。由麻省理工学院教师精选并由麻省理工学院硕士和博士研究生进一步完善的策划材料为学生分析全球挑战提供了一个独特的视角。对气候变化、可持续发展和技术进步等主题的探讨加深了学生的理解，培养了批判性思维和解决问题的能力。

另一个主要优势是通过项目式学习培养学生的协作能力。鼓励团队合作和利用不同的视角，有助于学生为未来就业做好准备，并培养他们的全球公民意识，从而鼓励他们对世界产生积极的影响。合作强调体验式学习，让学生掌握编码、工程和设计思维方面的实用技能。这种亲身体验可以加深学生对知识的理解，使他们掌握有价值的可迁移技能。从开发原型到构建模型，学生们学会了将想法转化为现实，培养了创造力和创新能力。

MIT与NAE的合作主要集中在两个方面：一是逐步探索全球问题不同层面的学期挑战，二是决定全球哪些NAE学生有幸参与麻省理工学院的竞争性挑战。

麻省理工学院学期项目的设置方式是，向我们的学生提出一个当前世界面临的具体问题或疑问，他们需要以合作的方式解决这些问题或疑问。解决方案由学生的好奇心和创造力驱动，并通过一系列相关实验不断发展，最终形成学生对问题的整体理解。如果学生在任何时候遇到困难，我们鼓励他们录制自己向麻省理工学院提出的问题，麻省理工学院的员工将以有趣和创造性的方式作出回应（许多视频既有能学到知识，又非常有趣幽默）。

今年，NAIS Pudong计划借鉴以往的一项挑战，根据我们课堂教学中的一些主题以及更广泛的联合国可持续发展目标，对其进行合作塑造。麻省理工学院鼓励学校根据自身情况调整挑战项目，并建立了一个过去挑战项目的资源库，供学校在没有时间和期限限制的情况下使用，因此我们决定重新审视 "极端天气 "项目，并对其进行调整，增加诸如全球变暖等问题，让科学、英语、艺术和地理等学科的学生参与到为期一周的活动中来，以协同的方式让学生了解这一问题对社会和地球的影响。

与学期挑战赛相比，竞赛项目更有针对性，并遵守更严格的评分准则，确保只有那些真正投入到麻省理工学院所要求的创造性工程中的学生，才有机会参观校园，亲身体验麻省理工学院被誉为世界上最好的工程大学之一的原因。

去年，NAIS浦东成功参加了地区比赛：10年级的Yoshiki S和Callum L，他们为 "Hack the Tube"（Hack the Tube是麻省理工学院为2022/23年度设定的一项竞争性挑战）不懈努力了两周，最终有机会晋级麻省决赛。他们的决心和努力得到了回报，两名学生都赢得了地区赛的冠军，并获得了麻省理工学院的邀请。当被问及如何才能获得这一席位时，Yoshiki 解释说，是勇气让他们坚持了下来--他们牺牲了午餐时间，并在放学后留在学校，以便能够以世界一流的标准完成他们的项目。“时间管理是关键，我们学会了如何更有效地利用时间。”

作为地区优胜者，Yoshiki 和 Callum 飞往麻省理工学院，并在那里参加了 "1/10 挑战 "和 "批量生产挑战 "等其他挑战。Callum说他特别喜欢前者，因为这是一项将包装尺寸最小化的练习，有助于他了解航运业所面临的工程和设计挑战，并从中获得宝贵的见解。

两位学生都对与麻省理工学院教授和参与NAE合作的麻省理工学院学生一起工作和交流的独特经历表示赞赏。麻省理工学院之行激发了他们对进一步学习和工程学的热情，并促使这两名学生参加了在NAIS浦东开展的 "F1进校园 "活动。

我们学校的目标是再次参加2024-2025年度的地区竞赛；许多NAIS浦东的学生都在翘首期盼麻省理工学院公布今年的竞赛形式，我们希望这次能有更多的学生参加，复制过去的成功经验。

MIT与NAE在NAIS Pudong校区的合作，凸显了将全球专业知识与注重实践学习、协作技能和接触现实世界挑战相结合的益处。它不仅塑造了参与学生的教育体验，还为创新和面向全球的教育树立了标准。我们很高兴地看到，这项合作将继续发展，并惠及整个浦东新区。

作者：Mr. Pawel Fulmyk