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In the midst of the new normal, AISG has started the 2021-22 school year off with a flourish. As we settle down and rebuild connections, let’s also reach out to the newest faculty members to learn a little more about them and who they are!
(1) Mr. Hegge: Secondary School Design and Health Physical Education Teacher
Mr. Hegge has been all over the world for work: from his home in Canada, he’s traveled to Dubai, Malaysia and Switzerland. Next stop is China! In his travels, he hasn’t missed the cold and snow of Canada, but really misses Kraft peanut butter and Hawkins Cheezies… So, let him know if you know where to get some in Guangzhou.
Mr. Hegge is excited about golfing at China’s many golf courses when he finally gets to Guangzhou. In his free time, he is an avid golfer. Although he also enjoys baseball, swimming, and working out, golf is his favorite sport by far, because it’s a difficult sport where he is constantly competing against himself and challenging his own abilities.
As a teacher, Mr. Hegge loves teaching PE and robotics because these are classes where there are lots of moments of excitement. He fondly remembers seeing watching a student scream with excitement when they finally understood how the parts worked in a robotics assignment, and then seeing the student eventually become an invested robotics student. He finds similar moments in PE, when athletes finally pick up a skill they’ve been practicing. Even though he is still online, he’s already seen this learning potential in our school community. Mr. Hegge says that he’s even learned from AISG students already, because his students were able to come up with fun learning activities that he looks to incorporate into future classes.
Mr. Hegge believes that high school is a time to find yourself. He remembers that as a high school student, he never quite fit “the jock mould”, and often anticipated when he would “start life” after school—but in hindsight, he sees that the foundation of life is school, so students should live in the moment. “Enjoy the ride,” he advised. If he could give his past self a tip, it would be to connect with the people around him, including friends and family, as much as he possibly can.
(2) Ms. McCoskey: Secondary School Social Studies and IB Psychology Teacher
Social Studies and IB Psychology teacher, Ms McCoskey, just checked into her Guangzhou quarantine hotel on Monday, August 23. She will be coming to campus soon! For now, she is in quarantine, craving ice cream and excited to actually look her de-pixelated students in the eye once she returns.
Ms. McCoskey has always been really excited about school. As a high schooler at a small international school, she enjoyed being involved in the school community, helping out in roles from leading StuCo to supporting school musicals and sports games. “Don’t get me wrong,” she said. “I like being in charge, but just don’t mind if others are in the spotlight.”
After high school, Ms. McCoskey actually studied to be a counselor. She was (and still is) intrigued by how psychology can help people figure out how and why people work the way they do. However, she became a teacher after falling in love with teaching during a part-time job as a sub in college. Now, she has 20 years of teaching experience!
Overall, Ms. McCoskey is a very optimistic person: when she has bad days, she tells herself to focus on the good things and count her blessings. But when she returns to campus soon, keep an eye out for her pet peeve: crowds that leave one out of two doors unopened despite overcrowding!
(3) Mr. Pearton: Secondary School Drama Teacher
Fans of 90s TV shows may find something in common with AISG’s newest drama teacher, Mr. Pearton. At his last school in Thailand, Mr. Pearton was stuck in lockdown for separate periods of six and seven months, where 90s TV shows got him through the countless hours. In this time, he also found time to reconnect with family and friends back in Australia through the phone.
Pictured below is Mr. Pearton with his terrier, Panpan, at the Great Wall a few years ago. Mr. Pearton has had Panpan with him since his days teaching in Tianjing, and is very excited to be reunited with Panpan soon once all the travel paperwork is done.
10 years ago, Mr. Pearton was traveling to meet friends in Tianjin when he saw and became interested in the experiences and facilities available to international teachers. After 8 years teaching in different schools across Australia, Mr. Pearton decided to switch to international teaching. In his own high school experience, his favorite memories are all from being in band, his local amateur theater company, and school productions. He plays the trumpet, and has loved and participated in plays and musicals throughout his life. Mr. Pearton is a trained music teacher!
On AISG’s campus, Mr. Pearton’s favorite space is his classroom and the Blackbox, where the lighting and space are ideal for teaching drama. But he also enjoys walking around to meet new people, so make sure to say hi when you see him around!
(5) Ms. Kemirembe: Secondary School PE/Health Teacher
You may know Ms. Kemirembe as Ms. K, the new PE/Health teacher. If she could bring one thing with her wherever she went, she would choose to bring her character. To her, maintaining authenticity is very important, because she believes that she is the only thing in her life that she has control over.
Coaching is another important aspect of Ms. Kemirembe’s life. Coaching is all about building relationships with athletes and watching them grow over seasons, something that has really inspired Ms. Kemirembe over the years. At AISG, Ms. Kemirembe will be coaching LS Soccer, volleyball, and swimming. As seen below, swimming holds a special place in Ms. Kemirembe’s heart, as she was a swimmer in college.
True to the career she’s chosen, sports really has been a driving force in Ms. Kemirembe’s life. As a middle school student, Ms. Kemirembe started running track, and eventually took up netball as well. In sports, thriving outside the classroom, Ms. Kemirembe found confidence and learned the best of her life lessons: to this day, she refers to sports as her “safe haven” and “getaway”. Her sports education helped her learn to control her anxiousness, make friends, and communicate. This is a supportive environment she hopes to recreate for her students at AISG.
Other than to taking up a sport, Ms. Kemirembe’s advice to her students is to be kind to everyone: who knows who these people may become in the future? So far, the only thing that seems to trouble Ms. Kemirembe’s positive attitude is Guangzhou’s unbearably hot and humid weather. She loves the variety of food options available here though!
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With all this information, you can now reach out to our new teachers and build some new connections. Welcome to AISG, teachers!
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