Chloe Wang By Robert Baylis
department, with her reliability ensuring there is always at least one functioning stapler and hole punch in the Mod- ern Languages office for the use of her less well-prepared colleagues! Away from Dulwich, Chloe is passionate about cross-cul- tural links between China and the UK. She was also key to the department’s ability to take boys and teachers to ex- perience China, on what were often life-changing school trips. She very carefully prepared an oversubscribed trip to China in 2020, which was unfortunately postponed owing to the pandemic, and she has taken part in many others, gaining experience and widening her linguistic and cultural horizons. Closer to home, Chloe was instrumental in steering pupils to success in the annual British Coun- cil speaking competition and was always ready to help pupils who were struggling or needed extra support. Huge thanks, too, should be expressed in recognition of her years of work guiding Chinese boarders and other native speakers through their IGCSE and A-level examinations with such care and attention. Chloe has also made a significant contribution to the wid- er life of the College. She has been instrumental over six years as President of the Union, which occupies a central role in the College’s broader co- and supra-curricular provision. Under her leadership, the number of societies has grown to 60. Chloe’s approachability has meant that pupils have felt able to come to her with ideas for new societies and speakers, and she has consistently respond- ed with characteristic helpfulness and sensitivity. The administrative component of the role is not insignificant, and Chloe has carried out her duties in this – particularly in terms of organising the finances for each society and overseeing the timetable of meetings and their publicity – calmly and efficiently. Part of Chloe’s undoubted legacy in this role will be the way in which she ensured that a full programme of Union-based activities was able to continue through the periods of lockdown; in addition to the enrichment that
these offered, they also served an important pastoral function, enabling groups of pupils (and staff) with similar interests to come together. Equally, the reinvigoration of the Union Fair, held annually in September, has been in no small measure thanks to Chloe’s care and attention to detail, and for this we are immensely indebted. In addition to her teaching and her role within the Union, Chloe has played a major part in the boarding community at the College. She introduced one of the boarders’ fa- vourite trips, an outing to a traditional hot pot restaurant, and this has carried on even after her departure from boarding. Chloe has also been involved in the develop- ment of the induction programme for new boarders and has been able to offer sound advice and guidance on
cultural and social adaptation. Always happy to help out on trips, Chloe was fully committed to ensuring that boys had the best boarding experience, and her approach gave the boys the structure and routine they needed. Chloe will be missed in the department and in the wider College community – she is a popular and very supportive colleague, who will leave behind many friends at Dulwich. Her promotion to Head of Chinese at Berkhamsted is extremely well deserved. We wish her all the best as she takes up this new post and look forward to hearing of her new life away from London. Her new department will surely become a model of Chinese inspiration and high standards. ◎
Chloe joined the Modern Languages Department in November 2011 as a Confucius Classroom Assistant. She was a naturally talented and sympathetic teacher, quickly under- standing the challenges that some pupils face when learning Chin ese, and tailoring her teaching to meet the needs of all pupils she taught. These skills, together with her commitment to Chinese teaching,
led us to appoint her to the post of teacher and assistant of Chinese, in September 2014. She honed her skills in this hybrid role as the department grew and she became a full-time classroom teacher, gaining QTS in 2018. Chloe is a highly enthusiastic and inspirational teach- er of Chinese. Her pupils are fortunate to benefit from her cooperative and encouraging style of teaching, and they enjoy her lessons, which are stimulating, engaging and differentiated, in order to cater for all abilities. She gives confidence to her pupils through her positivity and her carefully crafted lessons, which support and stretch pupils, taking their knowledge beyond the confines of the textbook. Chloe’s work in the department has made a huge impact at every level, from Year 7 classes excitedly competing in Mandarin to win prizes, to Year 13s applying for gap year scholarships. She has ensured that pupils have had both the enthusiasm and the linguistic skills to excel in their Chinese studies. Not only is Chloe a superb advocate for Chinese, she is also a reflective practitioner, who has a deep interest in pedagogy, which can be seen from her desire to further her knowledge and experience both on a personal and a wider departmental level. She is an active contributor and leader in Modern Language INSET sessions, and when I was her NQT mentor I found that she was assiduous in her approach and always receptive to new ideas, showing a real focus on developing her teaching. Chloe’s efficiency and organisational skills have always been the envy of our
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