TAS Hosts Regional Educators for Curriculum Design and Instructional Learning Exchange

Taipei American School recently welcomed educators from schools across the Taoyuan area for an afternoon of professional learning and cross-school exchange centered on curriculum design, instructional practice, and teacher collaboration. Hosted at TAS, the session brought together teachers from different high schools in the region, subject areas, and grade levels for workshops led by TAS instructional leaders.

Upper School Instructional Coach, Ms. Darby Sinclair, opened the afternoon by introducing TAS’s growing coaching culture and the role instructional coaching plays in supporting teachers’ professional practice. Ms. Sinclair explained that instructional coaching at TAS is designed to provide teachers with a confidential, supportive space to reflect on pedagogy, explore new strategies, and strengthen lesson and unit design. She also highlighted the school’s Teacher Resource Center, a space created to support collaboration, planning, and coaching conversations.

The first workshop of the afternoon focused on Understanding by Design (UbD), a framework for planning learning experiences by starting with the end goal in mind. Ms. Sinclair guided participants through the core principles of backward design, encouraging them to think beyond content delivery and consider how students demonstrate understanding, apply learning in new contexts, and transfer knowledge beyond a single lesson or unit.

Using a travel-planning metaphor to make the framework more accessible, participants were invited to reflect on goals, success criteria, and adjustments made along the way, then connect those ideas to lesson and unit planning. The activity prompted discussion around student voice, student choice, and the challenge of designing learning experiences that remain rigorous while allowing multiple ways for students to demonstrate understanding.

Our AP & IB Curriculum Coordinator, Ms. Randi Assenova, also led a session exploring creativity in the classroom. Research suggests that creativity often declines as students grow older before rising again with expertise. The workshop examined why this shift occurs and how teaching practices can help re-activate creative thinking. Through quick puzzle challenges, participants compared their responses to those of young children and explored classroom strategies and technology tools that encourage curiosity, flexible thinking, and playful problem-solving across subjects.

Throughout the session, Ms. Sinclair emphasized that effective curriculum design is not only about what students know, but what they are able to do with that knowledge. Participants explored the three stages of backward design: identifying desired results, determining acceptable evidence of learning, and planning instructional activities that align with those goals.

Ms. Assenova also spoke about the value of learning alongside visiting educators. Framing the gathering as an opportunity for mutual exchange, she noted the importance of sharing ideas across schools and creating space for professional dialogue. The session also gave participants time to connect with colleagues from other campuses, discuss their approaches to curriculum planning, and reflect on similarities and differences in practice across contexts.

By the end of the afternoon, the gathering had become more than a workshop. It was a space for educators to think together about teaching, learning, and how classroom experiences can be designed to support deeper understanding and lasting transfer.