Cultivating "Soft Power" Outside the Classroom: Whittle School & Studios Holds Signing Ceremony with New Studios Partner and Expert

SHENZHEN, China, July 1, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- On June 21, a signing ceremony took place at the Shenzhen Whittle Information Center, marking Studios' formal partnership with the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra, and the appointment of Wu Zhiyou, head curator of the Confucius Temple and Imperial College, as a special guest expert.

Together with the Studios' R&D team, Wu Zhiyou and the orchestra will work to create engaging, intellectual extracurricular and humanities courses for Whittle students and members of the greater community.

In attendance were Chairman and CEO of Whittle School & Studios Chris Whittle; Vice-Chairman and Chancellor Nicholas Dirks; Global Head of Enrollment, Marketing, and Communications, and President of Studios Li Jing; Shenzhen Campus Executive Chairman Shen Xianzhang; Shenzhen Campus Interim Head of School Donald Wilkinson; and Head of Cities Experience Program Li Yin.

Whittle leadership and the Studios team signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra.

The partnership with the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra will equip Whittle Schools & Studios with unique musical-education resources in order to jointly promote the construction of the arts-training platform in Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao. As the sole partner of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra in Shenzhen, Whittle School & Studios will provide its students with rich arts courses, including extracurricular music classes, master classes, and parent-child classes. The Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra will also provide guidance and support in the design of the school's music curriculum, student-orchestra management, music-festival planning, and other areas.

Head curator of the Confucius Temple and Imperial College, Wu Zhiyou, was officially invited to become a special guest expert.

As the head curator of the Confucius Temple and the Imperial College, Director Wu Zhiyou has devoted himself to the research and promotion of Confucius and Confucianism for more than 20 years. He is recognized for his high degree of accomplishment in Chinese traditional culture. As a modern school with local roots and a global outlook, Whittle School & Studios is investing in resources that will help deepen children's understanding and perception of traditional Chinese culture. As a special guest expert of the school, Director Wu will provide guidance on the design of courses and projects covering this complex subject matter.

Whittle School & Studios focuses on cultivating graduates with an international perspective, bilingual ability, and a deep understanding of their traditional culture, as well as of their own country and city. The school hopes that all students who join its global community will establish a firm foundation from which to understand the history of China, the essence of Chinese culture, and the profundities of Chinese civilization, and especially that students visiting on exchange programs from overseas campuses will learn the Chinese language, literature, history, folk customs, and more.

About Studios

Studios is an essential component of the Whittle School & Studios education model, engaging the community with a wide range of extracurricular elective courses and activities, with the core principles of quality education, personality development, and building outstanding skills and abilities. According to the requirements of different school grades, Studios aims to cultivate students' "soft power" outside the traditional classroom. Studios selects partners who are leaders in their respective fields, and develops excellent curriculum modules on a global scale.

Through the combination of StudioCare, StudioEnrichment, and StudioSummer programming, Studios helps students improve their skills and character year-round, in order to become ideal global citizens. Students will graduate with the ability to communicate and express themselves in an international and multicultural context, the ability to apply scientific and cutting-edge knowledge, the appreciation and critical assessment of humanities, athletic fortitude, and an understanding of the value of teamwork, and the skills and understanding required to create and appreciate music, drama, and art.

SOURCE Whittle School & Studios