Wellington College International Tianjin
About Us
Wellington College is committed to providing world-class educational opportunities in the city of Tianjin. We seek to recruit and develop staff members who are fully engaged with the stated vision of the school – [to] “aspire to create a caring, international community that develops well-rounded individuals with strong values and the skills to thrive within an ever-changing global society” and who are guided in their professional and personal conduct by the core Wellington values – courage, respect, integrity, kindness and responsibility. In this way, the post holder should regard the following outline of the job description not as a checklist of things to achieve, but as a starting point for their growth in the role.
Wellington College International Tianjin’s Junior School provides pupils aged 6-11 years with access to an education rooted in the strong values and progressive approach to learning synonymous with Wellington College. The school offers its pupils rigour and challenge throughout the journey from Key Stage 1 and 2, largely mirroring the national curriculum in England, reinforced with the International Primary Curriculum (IPC) and our own bespoke Mandarin programme. We aim to prepare pupils for success during and after their time at the College; the overwhelming majority of our pupils go on to the Senior School from Year 7, in which they continue their work based on the English national curriculum, followed by IGCSEs and A-Levels.
Within a culture of shared vision, mutual respect, high academic standards, open communication and a commitment to best practice, the teachers at Wellington form an integral part of a close team determined to develop and evolve in their personal and professional development.
Tianjin
China today boasts at least two of the world’s great cities on its mainland – Beijing and Shanghai. While these megacities, with populations well in excess of 20 million people, hog the limelight, so-called ‘second tier’ cities, such as Tianjin provide some light relief from the hectic pace of life. Tianjin may be the largest city most people have never heard of; it is China’s 4th largest city, with over 15 million people spread across its main urban centres. It is the former port city for Beijing, providing the capital with its access to the sea and the trade routes across the world.
Any visitor to Beijing or Shanghai cannot have failed to notice the scale of those cities, and with that vast size comes an almost inevitable compromise in terms of traffic jams, higher prices and crowds of tourists and locals alike. Tianjin, by contrast, has a rather less frenetic pace of life. Inhabitants can take long, peaceful walks along the beautiful HaiHe river or mooch around the former European concession areas in WuDaDao. It is a big city, but with the feel of a compact and connected centre – the ‘downtown’ areas of shopping, sporting and leisure facilities all sit within a few square kilometres of the CBD. Strolling, jogging or cycling around the city is remarkably easy and affords a chance to see the historic and cultural highlights whilst never being too far from a restorative coffee shop or restaurant.
The city’s traditional heart is around the Drum Tower, just a few minutes’ walk from the school. Here, arts and crafts’ shops rub shoulders with antique dealers and restaurants offering local Tianjin delicacies. Further along the river, and again within easy reach of the school, lie the former concessions, sections of the city which in the 19th Century were annexed by the major world powers, including Britain, Germany, the US and Japan. All saw in Tianjin the chance to exploit Chinese trade, and as a result, the city has developed some historic areas which reflect the architecture and ambitions of their former occupiers. A day spent wandering around WuDaDao, or the recently restored Italian concession area, makes for a fascinating journey into the city’s past. Venturing outside the city, Tianjin has its own stretch of the Great Wall, which makes for a scenic and peaceful two-hour hike: the crowded Wall sections around Beijing will seem a million mile away once you set foot on the Huangyaguan stretch of this UNESCO World Heritage site.
