Chancellor Chou joins the Shark Tank
This year, besides facility reconstructions, SMIC-I also underwent major changes within the school faculty, including the retirement of Dr. Shu-Kuang Hu, and Dr. Jack Chou’s succession as “Chancellor and Executive Director”. Coming from Beijing SMIC Private School as the Executive Director, Dr. Chou lays out his visions, expectations, and long-term concerns that are relatable for both schools.
Born in Taipei, Dr. Jack Chou graduated Michigan State University to start his Masters’ degree in Chemistry. Afterward, he changed his major to Material Science and began his new research life in Drexel University, studying about space wars. Then, he transferred to Biomaterials, building artificial bones and teeth. In 1992, he became a school principal in a Taiwan international school in Jakarta, Indonesia. After five years, he was then invited to Bangkok to be the principal. Finally, in 2008, he became the Executive Director of SMIC Private School in Beijing. And now, he is the Chancellor of SMIC Private School in Shanghai. Chancellor Chou hopes to brighten the students’ future by inviting them to stop by and talk to him about their hopes and concerns, and share how he has developed through a diversity of educational experiences.
In order to constantly develop oneself, Chancellor Chou articulates that time management is one part. Self-motivation is another part. Chancellor Chou encourages students to use given time wisely and keep in mind their motivation at all times. Of the several policies Chancellor Chou hopes to introduce to SMIC-I in Shanghai, he has already started a new music system for the morning, hoping students and teachers would start their day with a big smile. Although Beijing SMIC is greatly different from SMIC-I in Shanghai, appearance-wise and policy-wise, Chancellor Chou hopes that students in both schools will study with a clear purpose and follow the ESLRs of the school.
Of all of the ESLR’s in SMIC, Chancellor Chou strongly asserts that each student should become a motivated learner, which will prepare them for what is beyond the school’s reach. When you push an object forward, it will move. However, when there is no force placed against the object, it will not. Chancellor Chou claims students to be the same. When they are pushed by an external force, such as teachers and parents, they will move forward, but when no pushing force is given, this will become a tragedy for them. Most importantly, he believes that “the pushing force should always come from within the students”. In his view, all in all, ESLR’s are after all what enables the students to constantly challenge themselves in the bigger world.
In line with these challenges, Chancellor Chou also expressed his concerns about an overlooked but nevertheless serious problem facing the younger generation. With machines capable of taking over reception and security matters, he worries about the types of jobs that can be easily replaced, such as bankers and service providers. With the Hong Kong banks laying off more than 6,000 workers and the Chinese government promoting robotic services such as the unman vehicle, Chancellor Chou expresses that students should “not only learn to understand content, but also to pay attention to strategy, leadership, and problem solving techniques”. Chancellor Chou encourages students to think positively of this change and suggests seeking for ways to coexist with machines without fretting about being replaced.
As the new chancellor of SMIC-I, Dr. Jack Chou hopes to better prepare the students for the bigger world outside. Besides continuing to grow the school, he aims for students to build a better understanding of the overarching school purpose and figure out themselves that “education is also self-education”. Having past experiences with both education and children, he believes that SMIC-I can become a great platform for the learners and looks forward to the cooperative years in this school.