Future of Education Conference: Speakers and Agenda Unveiled!

If so, we invite you to join the Future of Education Conference, jointly organized by Dulwich College Shanghai and Shanghai Dehong School.

You will have the opportunity to meet guests from these esteemed institutions in person, and hear about their experiences as teachers, staff members, students, or alumni. Through their perspectives, you will gain a multi-dimensional understanding of what creates an authentic university life, helping you explore and envision the past, present and future of college experiences.

Scan the QR code to register

In addition, you will have the chance to participate in various workshops where you can delve into the decision-making process behind university admissions, from the perspective of both applicants and interviewers. Our college counselling team from Dulwich College Shanghai will also attend the event to provide guidance and support on navigating the often-confusing realm of university applications, while shedding light on helpful information and dispelling myths around the application process.

Professor Kim Plunkett
Emeritus Professor of Cognitive Psychology
University of Oxford

Prof. Kim Plunkett obtained a BSc in Physics from Imperial College before switching to Experimental Psychology at Sussex University, where he earned a D.Phil. degree in 1979. After brief stints at Nottingham University and the Open University, he moved to the Institute of Psychology at Aarhus University in Denmark to study children's acquisition of Scandinavian languages. Starting in 1986, he dedicated a significant amount of time to the University of California, San Diego, where he studied the application of neural networks in modeling linguistic and cognitive development in young children.

Since 1991, Prof. Plunkett has been a member of the faculty in the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of St. Hugh's College, Oxford. In 1992, he established the Oxford BabyLab, a research facility focused on experimentally investigating linguistic and cognitive development in babies and young children. Prof. Plunkett maintains an active interest in Scandinavian languages and neural network modeling.

Andrew Heald
Director of Global Brown Center
Brown University

Andrew Heald is an international educator with more than ten years of experience in building student communities in global contexts. Currently the Director of the Global Brown Center for International Students at Brown University, Andrew has experience at both large, prestigious institutions and smaller liberal arts colleges in designing international orientation programs, developing student mentorship programs, and building a sense of belonging for international students on US college campuses. Throughout his tenure, Mr. Heald has won multiple awards for his work, including two excellence awards at Brown University for his support of the international student experience.

Fredric Kong
PhD and Dulwich College Shanghai Alumni
MIT

Fredric Kong is a second-year PhD candidate and Carl Shapiro (1976) fellow in the Department of Economics at MIT. By age 18, he had already completed his Master of Applied Science at MIT, concurrently concluding his International Baccalaureate diploma at Dulwich College Shanghai. At Dulwich, Fredric was the first student organiser of the annual College-wide academic symposium Dulwich Talks, where he brought together distinguished thinkers for discussions on thought-provoking topics and established multiple student publications while engaging with four Higher Level courses. Following his master’s degree, he served two years of National Service as a senior officer in the Singapore Police Force, with over 500 trainees under his care. His academic pursuits and research interests position him as an emerging voice in economic research that will influence both academic understanding and policymaking.

Jason Shi
Acting Secretary General and VP of Harvard Club of South China
Harvard

Jason Shi is the acting Secretary General & VP of Harvard Club of South China, and was formerly Co-Chair of China Education Symposium at Harvard GSE. Shi holds an MEd from Harvard University, and a BA from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Shi spent one academic year as an exchange student at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece. Shi was also formerly the Executive Director of Peking University Shenzhen Institute Innovation Center, and founded multiple innovative education programs. Shi is a verified Career Development Practitioner by NCDA.

Garry Russell
Head of College
Dulwich College Shanghai Pudong

Garry Russell has spent the last 30 years working in and leading outstanding schools across the globe. Following nearly 10 years as a Geography teacher and Middle Leader in a leading secondary school in the UK, Mr Russell moved to Bahrain to join St Christopher‘s School. A move further east saw Mr Russell take up Headships in Thailand and China before being appointed Vice Principal at The British School of Guangzhou. In 2022 he joined Dulwich College Shanghai Pudong as Head of College.

David Ingram
Head of College
Dulwich College Shanghai Puxi

David graduated from the University of Swansea and went on to complete his MA in the history of childhood. David began his teaching career in Northamptonshire, in the United Kingdom, before moving to Asia in 2000. Prior to joining the Dulwich family, David taught in three of the region’s top schools: The Alice Smith School in Kuala Lumpur, Kellett School in Hong Kong and Tanglin Trust School in Singapore. 

He believes in the value of professional reflection and values teachers who learn and learners who teach. David is a great advocate of sustainability and public speaking and these are important features of College life. David believes in the importance of making a difference and is a member of the British Shanghai Chamber of Commerce CSR Committee and a keen supporter of Save the Rhino. 

Min (Caroline) Xu
Executive Principal
Dehong International ChineseSchool Shanghai

Caroline Xu has been a school-based educator for more than 20 years and an IB educator for over 10 years. She has worked in national and international (IB, CIS/WASC accredited) schools in Shanghai and Hong Kong. As an IB-MYP and Cross-Programme educator, she has been a moderator/examiner, workshop leader, school visit team member/leader, school consultant, Programme Leader and Evaluation Leader. She currently serves as the Executive Principal of Dehong International Chinese School Shanghai.

Stay tuned for updates on the "Future of Education Conference" in our next issue, where we will share more details on workshop topics hosted by our guests. To register for the conference, please scan the QR code below. Please note that seating at the event is limited and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.