Best Performing Schools in South America

2021 | VOL-06 | ISSUE-02
www.theknowledgereview.com
Best
Performing
Schools
in South
America
Changes in the last decade
ICT in South America
Steel Your Brain
Importance of Essay
Writing in Schools
Educational Throughline
Brief Overview of the
Education System
throughout South
America
CHARTWELL
INTERNATIONAL
SCHOOL HOME AWAY FROM HOME

EDITOR’S
NOTE
Until late, South America was not very well
placed on the global education map. This is,
however, a thing of the past. The continent is
now marching towards a new dawn with ambitious
academic goals and keeping pace with other countries.
It took humongous eﬀorts on part of educators,
proponents of education and governments to come out of
the problems plaguing South America that in turn
aﬀected the education and consequently the economy.
But South America has left it far behind and is rocketing
towards a robust education system that in turn will
contribute to the economy and a better society.
The continent that roughly encompasses 12 sovereign
countries is on the way to an educational transformation
combatting all the challenges.
Improving the quality of education and bridging the
digital divide have been pivotal steps taken by the
continent of late. The pandemic that demanded online
learning threw more challenges to the education system.
But the education institutes successfully conducted the
classes with online teaching or broadcasting through
radio and television.
TOWARDS A BETTER
EDUCATION SYSTEM

Where there is a will there is a way indeed. There are
many positive examples wherein attempts have been
made to bring all the students on one platform. Many
public schools provide the required facilities for
information technology to all the students. Public-private
partnerships have also aided in providing technology to
students ensuring equal opportunities for all. Private
schools and international schools are better placed with
regards to technology, and these are the schools that
stand in the global education space.
Even as the challenges continue in some parts of the
continent, the brighter side is that everyone rose to the
need of the hour during the pandemic to impart quality
education with the inclusion of latest technology. There
is a growing awareness to keep on enhancing the
education system in the continent to be in the global
competitive market.
Academic reforms, massive expansion of education and
the willingness to adapt to the present-day needs have
been the focal points of governments and academicians.
Our tribute is to those schools that rose above the
ordinary and have made a striking diﬀerence in the
continent and across the globe. Working towards
equitable learning have been one of the missions of such
schools that have shown the path to other schools in
South America.
Learn more about these schools in this edition of The
Knowledge Review, Best Performing Schools in South
America.
Have a great read! T R
Sumita Sarkar
sumita@theknowledgereview.com

C o v e r S t o r y
Chartwell
International School
Home Away from Home
Articles
Changes in the
last decade
ICT in South America
22 38
Steel Your Brain
Importance of Essay
Writing in Schools
08
C o n t e n t s

CXO
Education System
throughout South America
26
Marymount School Medellín
Creating Empowered, Empathetic,
and Socially Conscientious
Women Leaders
30
COLEGIO PERUANO
ALEMÁN ALEXANDER
VON HUMBOLDT
A Bicultural
Experimental College
16
C o n t e n t s
Developing a Minded
Leadership
36
Mindfulness in Function
Special Proﬁle

People behind this edition
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Digital Marketing Manager
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Amar, David, Robert
Jacob Smile
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URL
Name of the Institution Brief
American School
of Brasília
https://www.eabdf.br/
Escola Americana de Brasília provides a US and
Brazilian accredited pre-K through twelfth grade
curriculum. EAB is an English-language school
operated using American-style teaching.
American School of Recife https://ear.com.br/
The American School of Recife’s mission is the
commitment to molding “lifelong learners with an
international perspective”, reaching their potential,
creating “critical learners” who will be fully
equipped to be “responsible world citizens”.
Aubrick School https://aubrick.com.br/
Beacon School
https://www.beaconschool.
com.br/
Chapel School http://chapelschool.com/novo/
Chapel School was founded in 1947 initially as a
Catholic elementary school for the children of American
families living in São Paulo, and delivers early childhood
through high school grades and offer the American,
Brazilian and International Baccalaureate programs.
Chartwell International
School
https://www.chartwell.cl/
of Curitiba
https://iscbrazil.com/
Marymount School
Medellin
https://www.marymount.
edu.co/en/home/
Colegio Peruano Alemán -
German School Lima
Alexander von Humboldt
https://www.colegio-
humboldt.edu.pe/
Our Lady of Mercy
School (OLM)
https://www.olmrio.com/
Aubrick is a bilingual multicultural school that accepts
both Brazilian and foreign students. Providing them
with academic excellence in all curricular areas, as
well as bilingual prociency (Portuguese/ English),
and appreciation of culture in every aspect.
Beacon High was conceived out of a realization for
the need of an educational institution that would tap
the innate intellectual curiosity of the child and
channelize this sense of exploration to bring about an
all round development
Chartwell International School is a top tier
educational provider in Europe and South
America, which strives to provide a safe, caring,
warm and happy international setting where your
child will learn, play and grow.
Colegio Peruano Alemán promotes the scientic
and humanistic training of students, in whom it
stimulates the aptitudes for artistic, musical and
corporal expression, as well as for healthy sports
competition.
International School of Curitiba teaches and supports
the students developing essential skills and
competencies, based on what is worth learning in
progressive schools and contemporary educational
philosophies - "Teaching for the Future".
Marymount School is a catholic, independent 21st-
century learning community of the city of Medellín
which, with visionary leadership, promotes investigation,
innovation, regional, national, and international
strategic partnerships and the implementation of a
state-of-the-art pedagogical model.
OLM is a small, inclusive school, having just
two classes per grade level, and offers a warm
and safe family atmosphere, and educate
student from two to eighteen years of age.

CHARTWELL
INTERNATIONAL
SCHOOL
HOME AWAY FROM HOME

With up to 15
students in class,
Chartwell offers a
personalized
approach, where,
with the help of a
teacher and
assistant, each child
is able to achieve
his/her maximum
potential in all areas
of life
multiculturality, internationalism and
academic excellence achieved in
Europe could also be developed and
sustained on the South American
continent.
From day one, Chartwell International
School has been a tremendous success
and is soon to become one of the
leaders and innovators in education in
Chile, doubling in size every year in
terms of number of students and
always maintaining the degree of
personalization and quality of
education.
Today, at the beginning of its fourth
academic year, offering the EYFS
(early year foundation stage) preschool
program and a primary school
education based on the British national
curriculum, Chartwell International
School is home to around 130 students.
C
hile has always demonstrated
a welcoming air towards
different cultures, displaying a
high degree of tolerance towards
different customs and traditions. The
flavour of local custom and tradition in
Chile is readily observable in the
numerous colourful religious festivals
that take place at various localities
throughout the country. Hundreds of
thousands of spectators are drawn to
these processions. But that is just one
of the many draws this Latin American
country has. Another one of which is
the rapidly developing education
network in the country.
Chile’s educational system is
th
structured around the lines of 19
century French and German models
and highly regarded among Latin
American countries. This can be
accredited to innovative and persever-
ant educational institutions that focus
on providing the finest quality of
education. An exemplar of such
institutions that emphasize on giving
the epitome of holistic education, is the
Chartwell International School.
Founded in the year 2017, Chartwell
International School is the daughter
school of Chartwell International
School Belgrade, Serbia, Europe,
which has been in existence for over
20 years. The school is ranked as one
of the top 10 schools in Central Europe
and acknowledged by Queen Elizabeth
II as ´world class´. The school has
been accredited by the Cambridge
University as an official Cambridge
School.
Inception
The idea of the founder was to promote
the school ethos, ‘home-away-from-
home’ personalized concept, core
values, love for learning,
COVER
STORY

School Life
Chartwell International School
Community has children and staff
members from all around the world -
over 40 different nationalities are under
the same roof, sharing the same values
and a passion for learning.
Chartwell International School is all
about happy, hardworking children
having fun while trying to reach their
own personal best achievements in all
areas of school life.
Chartwell International School is more
than an academic institution. Its
philosophy encompasses the student’s
whole personality and emphasizes
balanced development with the
following aims:
Ÿ to provide students with a strong
academic education which will
encourage them to excel within
their own capabilities, whilst at the
same time promoting active
participation in the arts, sports, and
the community.
Ÿ to foster the development of
responsible and caring future
world-citizens.
Ÿ to instill in students a strong sense
of self-discipline, justice, and
industriousness.
Ÿ to prepare students to thrive in a
rapidly changing and increasingly
technological and multicultural
society.
Ÿ to enable students to meet chal-
lenges with confidence and
enthusiasm, utilizing the whole
range of problem-solving skills.
Ÿ to provide students with a support-
ive and constructive student-
centered learning environment.
Ÿ to engage a qualified and dedicated
teaching staff, well provided with
appropriate resources, in a safe and
attractive physical environment.
all its students, an enthusiasm for
enquiry that spills over from school
into all aspects of the child’s life.
Ÿ Motivation – Encouragement and
motivation are keywords in
Chartwell’s teaching philosophy.
Ÿ Personalized approach – Class
sizes are small enough for teachers
Ÿ Teaching methods are based on:
Ÿ Encouragement – The essential
task of a school is to teach the child
to learn, to seek independently and
find the knowledge and skills that
he/she needs in all of life’s
situations. To do this, the school
must develop a love for learning in

International Curriculum which
prepares students to be global citizens
of this world. The primary language of
the school is English – all the classes
are taught in English and all communi-
cation with the students and the parents
is done in English.
However, Chartwell International
School is unique in many ways. It is a
truly international school nurturing
diversity and multiculturalism. With up
to 15 students in class, Chartwell offers
a personalized approach, where, with
the help of a teacher and assistant, each
child is able to achieve his/her
maximum potential in all areas of life.
Chartwell is a home away from home
for its students – they are not just
numbers in the e-diary or registration
book, every staff member knows each
student by name and is there to help
them through any obstacles that a
school day may set before them.
Chartwell International School is
ready to welcome any student with
open arms and embrace them. The
to tailor the curriculum to the needs
of each child. All children are
different, and all need just the right
challenges to make every day an
experience of growth and develop-
ment. This individual attention is an
essential part of Chartwell’s
approach.
Ÿ Thematic and creative approach
– Student’s ownership of the
learning process is assisted by a
thematic approach realized through
We have become so
much more than
just an international
academic
institution. We have
become a ‘Home-
Away-from-Home’
for our students,
their families and
our staff
project work that involves research
into several subjects and sets
objectives to be attained. Students
can achieve concrete results of
which they can be proud.
Academia and Fun Activities
Chartwell International School, like
many other international schools offers
the Cambridge International Education,
realized through the Cambridge
BEST PERFORMING SCHOOLS IN SOUTH AMERICA

school’s selection policy is based on
their philosophy: ‘a school is success-
ful if its students are happy and
therefore if a student is happy in our
school, we are the right school for
them’.
Apart from the regular academic
curriculum offered in school, the
students also can enjoy the afterschool
activities such as drama, ballet,
dancing, music classes, Spanish
language and many more. Moreover,
throughout the year there are series of
events celebrated together as a
community, as well as diverse school
trips and excursions offered to
fortunate children of Chartwell.
Dynamic Educators
Although the Chartwell management
team (Founder, General Manager,
Headteacher, Coordinators) lead the
way, the success and the heart of the
school are the Chartwell teachers. They
a ‘Home-Away-from-Home’for our
students, their families and our staff.”
– Misa Tomasevic, General Manager
Moulding Autonomous Learners
The multi-cultural environment of
Chartwell International School allows
students to hear, share, and learn about
cultures and places that are different
from their own from a young age itself,
thus giving them a global outlook from
day one. The teachers strive to nurture
and guide students to become autono-
mous learners and this is supported by
the top tier classroom facilities
equipped in accordance with the
demands of contemporary world
education.
Challenges – Then and Now
As Chartwell International School was
in the early days after foundation, the
biggest obstacle the school had to face
was to gain the trust of the first parents.
Being a new school, and despite the
strong international background, the
school was constantly bringing in a
come from a variety of backgrounds
and experiences, but what they all have
in common is empathy for their
students, a commitment to their
education and a love for teaching. All
are well-qualified for the role they play
and are above all dedicated to what
they do.
“The essential task of a school is to
teach the child to learn, to seek
independence and find the knowledge
and skills that it needs in all of life´s
situations. To do this, it must develop a
love for learning in the child, and
enthusiasm for enquiry that spills over
from school into all aspects of the
child´s life. Encouragement and
motivation are keywords in Chartwell´s
teaching philosophy.” – Nenad
Gazikalovic, Founder.
“I have been honoured to have the
opportunity to develop our school
together with the founder and our
teams from Europe and Chile from
scratch. We have become so much
more than just an international
academic institution. We have become
A school is
successful if its
students are happy
and therefore if a
student is happy in
our school, we are
the right school for
them. This is the
philosophy of
Chartwell

new methodology and concept. It was
natural that it would take time for the
school values to be recognized and
adopted.
Nowadays, the biggest challenges
faced by Chartwell is to cope with the
ever-growing demand for the school,
and at the same time maintaining the
highest quality of education.
Weathering the Storm
Despite the very difficult situation
presented by the global pandemic, the
school focused on being able to
support their students emotionally and
to continue educating them by
maintaining daily routines through
online platforms from the very first day
that the schools had to close.
Chartwell provided top-quality online
education to its students during the
seven months Chile was in quarantine,
constantly innovating and introducing,
apart from group classes, individual
one on one online classes in order to
assure motivation and encouragement
necessary for the effective learning
process.
Finally, in October 2020 Chartwell
International School was one of the
first schools to reopen its doors and
restart the in-person classes. In order to
assure maximum safety for the
students the school reorganized itself to
become the very first outdoor school in
Chile. Tents were set up outside and all
the activities took place outdoors
where the risk of infection was at its
lowest.
Apart from being outside, groups were
organized and separated assuring no
contact between them. Measuring of
temperature at the entrance and a
stimulation of utilization of masks
were among many other measures
undertaken to reduce any risk of
potential infections.
The school has remained open ever
since and do plan to continue operating
outdoors until the weather conditions
allow, as well the pandemic situation
dictates the need for this.
Aspiring for a Holistic Future
The school anticipates the next four
years to be very crucial for the further
development and improvement of
Chartwell reaching excellence in
almost all areas. In 2022, Chartwell
International School plans to open
doors to the secondary school level for
the very first time. In 2024, the school
plans to implement a plan to integrate
all their school buildings in one
campus developed and designed for the
preschool, primary school, and
secondary school students all in one
unique place tailor made for their
entire community.
Chartwell
International
School is all about
happy,
hardworking
children having fun
while trying to
reach their own
personal best
achievements in all
areas of school life
T R

COLEGIO PERUANO
ALEMÁN ALEXANDER
VON HUMBOLDT – A Bicultural Experimental
Special Proﬁle
June | 2021 www.theknowledgereview.com
16|

College
June | 2021
www.theknowledgereview.com |17

n educational institution is considered ideal if it
Acan shape the future global citizens to respect and
practice equality across gender, class, region, race
and the like, besides offering quality education and holistic
development. Colegio Peruano Alemán Alexander von
Humboldt (German Peruvian College Alexander von
Humboldt) is one such institution that is known to impart
bilingual, bicultural education, educates for democracy and
is an experimental college.
The college attributes its success to teamwork: all
committees and individuals right from the cleaning staff to
the general director and the school board. We, at The
Knowledge Review, had the opportunity to delve deeper
into the success of the college. Read on.
Inception and Journey
The Peruvian-German Alexander von Humboldt College
(Humboldt College) was originally founded in 1872 in
Lima, Peru and is a private, bilingual, bicultural and
experimental college. The Federal Republic of Germany
financially supports the college and sends teachers from
Germany to Peru.
Humboldt College educates currently 1580 students from
Kindergarten to 11th grade and 12th grade for the Abitur.
The Alexander von Humboldt Institute of Private Higher
Education (Humboldt Institute), founded in 1983, is also
located inside the Humboldt College and offers three
Business Administration careers for graduates of the 11th
grade.
Humboldt College has two campuses with several college
courtyards, playgrounds, two gymnasiums, a modern
swimming pool, a new soccer field with tartan track, an
auditorium with a capacity of 610 seats, two libraries, two
cafeterias, several green areas, and an underground parking
lot. For student excursions, Humboldt College also has its
own recreational and sports center in the valley of
Chaclacayo, which is located about 27 km east of Lima.
Mission, Vision and Core Values
The college is named after Alexander von Humboldt, taking
his historical personality as a model for the college by
supporting holistic learning in everyday college life. The
college promotes multilingualism, educates for democracy,
and puts an emphasis on intercultural encounters as well as
cross-border exploration.
Humboldt College has developed the following goals of:
Ÿ promotion of curiosity, the desire for new knowledge,
and the joy of learning
Ÿ provision of student-oriented challenging lessons using
a variety of methodologies
Ÿ offering a modern and comprehensive curriculum, based
on both the German and the Peruvian education system,
enabling interdisciplinary learning
Ÿ encouragement of self-discipline and responsible
behaviour
Ÿ raising awareness and concern for the well-being and
dignity of each individual
Ÿ creating a sense of community and promoting
responsibility for the community
Ÿ understanding the college as a learning and living
community of students, teachers and parents
Ÿ developing a true bicultural and international
perspective
18|

Academic curriculum
Within the framework of bicultural education, Humboldt
College teaches subjects in both Spanish and German. The
students gain deep insights into the rich cultures, social
realities, history, and geography of Germany and Peru. The
internationality of the education is very important, therefore
all students learn English as a compulsory foreign language
at a very high level (certificates KET, PET, FCE). More
than half of the students also choose French (DELF
certificate), which is also carried through to the Abitur.
Humboldt College also provides education on a high
academic level in mathematics, computer science, and the
natural sciences of biology, chemistry, and physics.
Humboldt Institute offers a two-year career for students,
who have finished 11th grade, in Professional Business
Administration Technician with a focus in Business
Management, Business Administration Professional with a
focus in Industrial Companies, and Professional
International Business Administration Technician. The
students receive dedicated preparation, both theoretical and
practical in the Humboldt Institute and a company.
Excellent Facilities
The classrooms are equipped for a maximum of 25
students. Modern collections and specialized rooms
prepared with the latest technology are available for the
students such as fully equipped laboratories for scientific
subjects, several computer rooms, a college kitchen, rooms
for art and music, as well as several libraries with
computers and material in several languages. For
performances, there is a small and a medium-sized room as
well as the auditorium for large presentations of the
different college bands. Here, several theatre and dance
performances as well as presentations of the kindergarten
classes take place throughout the college year.
Teamwork for Success
The success of Humboldt College is the merit of the
expertise and dedication of several different personalities
who make up a great team. In addition to the General
Director, Mr. Eberhard Heinzel, the college also has a
Peruvian Director, Mrs. Gizela Landa. Each division of the
college has its head, Mrs. Marion Bittrich for Kindergarten,
Mrs. Brigitte Nuyken for Primary College (grades 1 to 4),
June | 2021

Mrs. Brigitte Röllig for grades 5 to 8, and Mr. Frank Pelster
for grades 9 to Abitur. Mr. Frank Meyer is the Head of
Administration and Mr. Alf Buddecke is the Director of the
Humboldt Institute. Also, the college is supported by a non-
profit college association, headed by Mrs. Ann-Katrin
Petersen Ramírez.
Accreditations, Achievements, Accolades, Appreciation
Humboldt College is one of 140 German colleges abroad,
sponsored by the German Central Office (ZfA), and since
2012, all of these colleges have passed a rigorous
pedagogical quality inspection conducted by the ZfA. In
2015, Humboldt College was again awarded the certificate
“Excellent German College Abroad”.
The following year Humboldt College received special
recognition for its high-quality and innovative trendsetting
work with the second prize of the German College Award,
recognizing outstanding German educational practices for
top-level colleges.
Holistic Approach
To ensure a holistic education, in addition to the scientific
subjects, the students are offered a wide range of courses in
the fields of fine arts, music, dance, and theatre. Sport is a
compulsory subject for all students, and a wide range of
sports activities are also offered to help them improve their
individual skills. Humboldt College promotes the
development of artistic, musical, and physical expression
20|

and fair sportsmanship. Furthermore, the college educates
students to be sensitive to ecological issues and focus their
attention on global connections. Moreover, it ensures the
permeability of different subjects for each other through
interdisciplinary teamwork of the teaching staff and enables
cross-curricular learning through projects in the classroom,
through a wide range of study groups, and the
implementation of project weeks.
Being Different
The success of Humboldt College is based on the
achievements and commitment of individuals. Since more
than 50 years, Humboldt College also grants students with
low economic resources a partial and/or complete
scholarship. This program benefits around 25 new students
every year and the award also depends on the achievements
and conduct of the student.
In the classroom, the students are trained to learn
independently and to think critically. Their personal and
social development is equally encouraged. A strong sense of
belonging to the Humboldt family and the openness and
willingness to integrate new students into the community
create a pleasant and attractive living environment far
beyond the classroom.
A wide range of study groups and a variety of events
provide an incentive to develop one's talents and to let the
Humboldt Family share in the success and joy of one's
activities.
A highly qualified teaching staff, helpful and supportive
parents, a committed and imaginative student council, an
active alumni association, professional administration
oriented towards the "customer", namely the students and
parents, and highly motivated staff for the care and
maintenance of the facilities ensure a lively Humboldt
College and a pleasant living environment in the college.
Counselling for Overall Betterment
Humboldt College offers career counselling to the students
by informing them about the possibilities of studying in
Peru and Germany and offering all-year-round individual
counselling by the career and study advisor. Besides,
Humboldt College organizes once a year, a university fair
where selected German universities participate in Lima.
Furthermore, throughout the year, former students report
online to interested students about their work or study
experiences.
For personal students counselling Humboldt College offers
a “guidance and support system” which is made up of six
teams: psychology, individual support, mediation,
vocational orientation, and coordination of secondary
school. The goal of this guidance and support system is to
accompany and support the students during complicated
situations of college life. For example, these situations
could be conflicts with other classmates or bullying,
difficulties in learning, situations in which they feel the
need for personal guidance, among others.
Career Prospects
As graduates of Humboldt College, the students have very
good chances in their professional life, as the excellent and
diversified education in the different areas provide a solid
basis for their future.
The graduates of Abitur, in addition to applying to a
Peruvian university, can apply to German universities.
Humboldt College has currently agreements with 13
Peruvian both public and private universities, enabling
students to be placed in the university of their choice
without taking an entrance exam. The passing grade from
the Abitur allows them to enter the desired faculty.
Graduates from Humboldt Institute can choose the diploma
required for admission to Universities of Applied Sciences
in Germany.
Future Plans
In the future, the college plans to maintain its high
educational standards in a strong bicultural context. One of
its main characteristics is that the college is a meeting place
of two cultures, which is also facilitated by the German
Peruvian staff and curriculum. This makes Humboldt
College a motivating place for learning and personal
development, always with the focus on the individuality of
its students. In accordance with the trends of our times,
Humboldt College is further integrating technology tools
into the classrooms, increasing student’s engagement but at
the same time offering the opportunity of a critical approach
to it.T R
June | 2021

22|

Changes in the last decade
Despite measurably impressive progress, education
remains a challenge in South America. The region
has made signiﬁcant progress in educational
coverage; almost all children avail primary schooling, and
access to secondary education has increased considerably.
Studies show that students are attending on an average two
years more schooling than their parents' generation.
The last two decades have seen considerable strides in
terms of new information and communications technology
(ICT) being incorporated into the education systems around
the world as a means to enhance the engagement and
learning experience. The South American countries have
also remained abreast with this global trend – the
transformation of the education system with the help of
ICT.
ICT
in South
America
June | 2021

The Covid-19 pandemic threw a wrench amongst the cycles
of many industries, lifestyles, jobs, business dynamics,
among others. With no precedent for interruption on such a
large scale, education leaders in South American countries
are proactively learning the region’s significant experience
of mass media education broadcasting. Even so, countries
in the region are adopting innovative and flexible ways
during the crisis, course-correcting in order to find the best
possible way ahead for the next generation growing in the
countries.
Nenad Gazikalovic, the Founder of Chartwell International
School, said in an interview with The Knowledge Review,
“Over the past few decades, ICT (information and
communications technology) has been integrated into
classrooms all over the world and South America is no
exception. The way knowledge is being imparted through
ICT has drastically changed the face of education. ICT has
made a very big impact making the learning process more
interesting and fun for students.”
The region has had its share of launched initiatives and bad
implementation strategies, though some of the valuable
lessons that have been learned so far are:
ž To extend the use of the existing technologies and
resources to provide a rapid response, whilst keeping the
focus pedagogical.
ž To collate educational resources in one place in order to
implement a multi-channel strategy
ž To make sure that all (or most) educational content and
reference material can be used online.
ž Include television and radio as valuable resources.
ž To use WhatsApp and implement a hotline to provide
guidance and pedagogical assistance.
ž To adopt national channels to provide social-emotional
support to parents and educators.
ž To offer downloaded textbooks.
ž To create call centres to support parents.
ž To explore partnerships with local mobile and telecom
operators for reduced costs access.
It goes without saying that some countries are more
advanced than others. But the challenge remains of
ensuring that these technological solutions can effectively
minimize the disruptions that the Covid-19 pandemic is
producing. Digital technologies are not a Panacea, but they
can offer scalable solutions necessary, especially in a time
when the current crisis risks amplifying the existing
inequalities.
“The goal of ICT is to improve the learning process and
make it more accessible to both instructors and students,
giving them the chance to widen their horizons and increase
their creativity,” said the General Manager of Chartwell
International School – Misa Tomasevic. “As a result, it is
critical to emphasise that the precondition for this is to
instil in our students a sense of responsible internet usage,
thereby creating conditions in which ICT can be what it is –
a valuable tool for education that provides a new
perspective on the process of transmitting knowledge,” he
concluded.
-Aditya Umale
24|

Due to historical, geographical, economic, and
political reasons, compared to the European and
the United States educational systems, the South
American one is still “very young” and is a hybrid system
composed of elements from both.
It has been estimated that the educational system of South
American countries is 2 years on average behind than
educational systems of OECD (Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development) countries and, despite the
recent great progress which has been made, education
remains a big challenge for most of the South American
countries.
This hybrid system varies greatly from country to country.
While some countries are more advanced and have
achieved some elements of excellence, others have still a
long way to go. For example, Chile and Uruguay continue
to lead as the best educational systems in South America
and are, on average, 3 years ahead of Bolivia. These
differences are the reason why talking about a South
American educational system as a whole presents a
challenge. Talking about average one cannot be any more
wrong and right at the same time.
The educational system is very much characterized by
inconsistencies and largely correlates to the economy of the
countries in South America.
Namely, while in the capitals of South American countries,
big cities not any less developed than any other metropolis
worldwide, school and educations systems are appropriately
developed, the situation tends to be very different in
undeveloped rural areas. Education and economy are
chicken and egg for South American countries and go in
line one with another.
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South America is the world region where education
privatization has experienced the greatest and most
consistent growth over the last two decades, exhibiting the
highest rate of enrolment in private primary education.
However, the discrepancies are great. While, on one hand,
there are premium top tier schools present in some areas,
with swimming pools and science labs, implementing the
most advanced curriculums, there are also schools in other
areas that are still struggling. Due to financial obstacles that
they face, they often have a problem with providing even
the basics, such as a direct water supply, to their students.
While there are schools that have 35 students per class there
are schools with only 15 students per class within the same
educational system within the same country and the same
city.
Although, education coverage, highly dependent on the
financial constraints, is an important factor and the
responsibility of the government, the quality of education in
South America is an issue which also needs to be addressed
and developed.
My own experience has shown that even the most advanced
schools of the region fail is to instil in children the
appropriate mindset and fundamentals such as:
1. Encouragement – We need to teach our children to
Education System
throughout South America
26|

learn, to seek independently and find the
knowledge and skills that they need in all of
life's situations rather than insist on filling their
heads with facts that will be long outdated when
they come to make use of them. To do this, children must
develop a love of learning, an enthusiasm for enquiry that
spills over from school into all aspects of their lives.
2. Motivation - We need to teach our children to work on
tasks until perfection is attained and to do always more
than is expected rather than wanting to be the best and get
the top grades.
3. Growth – We need to teach our children that they can
succeed if they work hard and not to believe that their
capabilities are static.
4. Positive relations – We need to teach our children about
the importance of friendship and sharing, respect for all
and tolerance for the differences present in each of us.
Last year has been a very different and challenging year for
the whole world, South America included. Currently, South
America is struggling in combatting the coronavirus
pandemic and this has widened the existing gaps in the
educational system even more. With the closures of schools,
Misa Tomasevic
General Manager
Chartwell
the already existing differences in different countries of
South America – ranging from the preparedness of schools to
go digital, to the availability of steady internet connections in
households, and the reliable support provided by the parents,
have been exacerbated.
South American countries need to urgently address these
issues and implement a set of actions to prevent further
widening of the present gap, an obstacle to long-term
sustainable development.
By Misa Tomasevic, General Manager, Chartwell
June | 2021

June | 2021

Ethics and morality are the foundation for victory in
any walk of life. The importance of the schools that
nurtures value-based education and prepares them
to face the world with conﬁdence, competence, knowledge,
and understanding cannot be underestimated. The schools
that promote values such as respect, honesty, solidarity,
responsibility, ethics, morality and spirituality in the
students are able to create empowered, empathetic, and
socially conscious leaders in the future.
Today’s youth are the future leaders of tomorrow. Schools
need to inculcate the positive values in students from
childhood so that they grow up as genuinely exemplary
people and become responsible citizens. Marymount
School Medellin is one such school that promotes all these
wonderful values in the students from childhood itself to
create dynamic future leaders. Catalina Guzmán Urrea is
the School Head of Marymount School Medellin.
Marymount School Medellin is an international, private,
Catholic oriented school with 65+ years of experience
educating well-grounded women. The school is organized
into four academic sections, Preschool, Elementary, Middle
and High School and currently has over one thousand
Marymount
School Medellín
Creating Empowered, Empathetic, and Socially Conscientious Women Leaders
30|

students enrolled. The school is an active member of the
RSHM (Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary) Network of
Schools promoting exchange programs for students and staﬀ
and sharing activities and experiences.
Philosophy and Objectives based on UNDHR
Since 2012, the school´s students participate in exchange
programs to the Global Network schools in New York and
Brazil, and the students have been participating annually in
the RSHM Network of School sports festival in Europe. The
school´s philosophy and objectives are based on respect,
equality and freedom of the students, pillars associated with
the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The Handbook incorporates the UN Declaration. These
statements are implemented in practice and well-known by
all school´s stakeholders.
Marymount strives to educate well-grounded women, and
although it strives for excellence, the school respects skills,
abilities and struggles of each student. The school is true to
its philosophy and objectives. It encourages its students to
pursue their dreams and ﬁght for decisions, no matter the
struggle or challenges they may face.
Developing Abilities and Competencies
Superior purpose of the school is vocation to serve through
Marymount strives
to educate well-grounded
women, and
although it strives
for excellence,
school respects the
skills, abilities and
struggles
of each student
“
“
June | 2021

education to transform lives. The school is a catholic,
independent XXI century learning community of the city of
Medellín, with a commitment to service. It contributes to the
transformation and innovation of education from participating
in the integral formation processes that allow its members to
develop their abilities and competencies to their full potential.
With a visionary leadership that promotes investigation,
innovation, regional, national and international strategic
partnerships and the implementation of a state-of-the art
pedagogical model.
Creating Responsible Global Citizens
As a school it sets an example delivering to society happy,
ethical, socially aware human beings, with the necessary tools
to transform the society and face the challenges of the
changing world.
Authorities in the school envision that in 2024, it will be
recognized as a 21st century learning community, comprised
of critical, autonomous, global citizens, responsible and
ethical human beings. It will be a school with strong
partnerships, international cooperation, innovation and
investigation projects with diﬀerent institutions. The school
will be model in educational innovation around the world. It
inspires, empowers and accompanies its community.
The school’s Core Values are: Respect, Honesty, Solidarity,
Responsibility and Spirituality, having Ethics as the
school’s guiding principle.
Variety of Learning Opportunities
The school complies and follows the Ministry of Education
– MEN curriculum standards and endorses international
standards provided for by the University of Cambridge. The
school oﬀers a bilingual program, with more than 50% of
the curriculum delivered in English, and starting from 5th
grade, four weekly hours are taught in French to foster a
multilingual policy and enable the students to be competent
in three languages by the time they graduate.
The school promotes global citizenship, social emotional
learning, innovation and creativity through projects
included in the school´s curriculum and scope and
sequence.
Catalina Guzmán
School Head
32|

Students are encouraged to participate in different academic
projects designed and put into practice by all the academic
departments, such as Model UN, science fair, celebration of
pi-day, participation in spelling bees, storytelling and
debate contests, literary contests, interdisciplinary projects
and national and international celebrations.
Arts, music and dance are mandatory subjects included in
the curriculum, to strengthen artistic and cultural abilities in
the students. There is a Learning Center in charge to lead
and set guidelines address the needs and differences of all
the students enrolled.
Resourceful and Goal-driven Head
Catalina Guzmán Urrea has 20 years of work experience in
education as Teacher, Assistant Principal, Principal and
Head of Marymount School. Catalina is a wife, daughter
and sister. She is dedicated, resourceful and goal-driven
educator with a solid commitment to the social and
academic growth and development of every child. With
interpersonal and communication skills she prioritizes to
foster meaningful relationships with students, staff and
parents. She is committed to professional ethics, standards
of practice and the care and education of young children
and teenagers.
Catalina’s Professional Profile
PhD in Educational Sciences Candidate at the University of
San Buenaventura-Medellín,
Master’s in education of the University of San
Buenaventura-Medellín.
Specialist in Educational Management of the University of
San Buenaventura-Medellín.
Graduate in Early Childhood Education with an emphasis in
Mathematics of La Salle University – Medellín.
Well-recognized School
Marymount School Medellin is consistently awarded
AAA++ based on the annual ColSapiens Research firm
rankings. Results are based on three things – category,
according to the ICFES national leaving exams results;
quality, as recognized by the Ministry of Education; and
international academic accreditation and recognition.
The school has been awarded by the City of Medellín with
the “Escuela Gestión Ejemplar 2020” (The City of Medellin
Exemplary School Management Award), and with the Most
Successful Experience award given to InnovaT, the school
department devoted to instil innovative practices in the
school. The school had previously been awarded the City of
Medellín’s Most Socially Minded School Award.
Array of Extracurricular Activities
The school has an ample campus of 50,000 sq. mt. with
soccer fields, two coliseums, a chapel, an auditorium,
offices for all the academic departments, green areas, and a
forest. The school offers an array of extracurricular
activities, that can be accessed by all the students without
extra charge: soccer, basketball, ultimate, skating, dance,
cheerleading, choir, drama, piano, school band, ecology
club, MUN club, Robotics, among others. They all take
place at 3:00 pm after school day is over.
Transforming Society by Exemplary Leaders
The future plan of the school is to continue working on the
education of its students to become women who transform
society by being empowered, leaders, empathetic, and with
social conscience. T R
Best Performing Schools in South America
June | 2021

DEVELOPING
a Minded
Leadership
A senior professional
with 36+ years of
unblemished service as
an officer with India
Army, he has a rich
experience in academics
and HR management. He
teaches HR related
subjects at JK Business
School, Gurugram.
Brig. (Dr) Ajay Mehta,
MMS (Osmania), PhD
Professor and HOD-HR,
JK Business School,
Gurugram
About the Author
36|

Mindfulness in Function
Leadership is the most spoken word in any
conversation and least understood by many. The
debate of its taxonomy whether it is a science, or an
art is ad-nauseum and remains a moot issue for prognostics
and discussion. The emphasis has always been how Leaders
should lead.
The matter of fact is that Leadership over the centuries have
been evolving, moving deftly between the maze of theories,
be it the Trait theory, Transformational, Situational,
Contingency et al, all only emphasizing one aspect of how
to lead.
Cataclysmic changes have taken place in this last century,
with pronounced technological developments being given a
disproportionate edge with the sinister efforts of
marginalizing the role of a leader, who remains a person in
flesh and bones, with a thinking mind and an emotional
heart. Machines and technology are mere tools, severely
limited to their designed functions operating in finite
parameters, while the human mind has infinite capacity to
postulate, appreciate various human angles before a
decision is taken, a unique quality which a machine
seriously lacks. Machines at best collate a plethora of
information, but the decision to act on an option still
remains with the mortal human.
Decisions are taken with heads and hearts working in close
synthesis. Machines fail to empathize, a quintessential facet
in decision making. While the emphasis has largely been on
leadership, which is a process, the man undertaking the
process has not been given the due focus. Who is heading
the herd is important? Is it a lion heading the herd of sheep
or the vice versa? History is replete with hair-raising
examples of superb bravery and sterling leadership, where a
handful of brave men led by a fearless motivated leader
warded off repeated assaults by outnumbered hordes of
pillagers. On a deeper study it was not the brawn alone, but
an exceptionally strong mind, calm and unruffled.
This brings us to ruminate the importance of working on the
Leader more than his styles. An evolved leader, in this
context is one who is mentally at peace, emotionally stable
and composed. For too long we have rolled out reams
gloating over the (IQ) Intelligence Quotient, and (PQ)
Physical Quotient, of a leader. Santa Clara University and
the Tom Peters group have outlined the following
Leadership qualities, some of which are, Honesty,
Competency, Inspiring, Intelligence, Fair and Broad minded
etc. EQ (Emotional Quotient) and SQ (Spiritual /Social
Quotient), have obviously been considered less essential or
assumed to be incorporated in the qualities above.
Educational institutes are busy deliberating on the young
minds how to manage wealth, businesses, funds etc. The
important link of how to manage your mind is seriously
missing. Confucius said, “Wars are won or lost in the minds
of the warring factions; weapons only kill the mentally
dead.” It very clearly highlights the importance of making
our business leaders mentally tenacious. A Leader who is
strong at heart and head can exhort his team to do wonders.
Elton Mayo, in his Hawthorne studies amply highlighted
the importance of strong and willing minds as the great
motivating factor over the hygiene factors. This is only
possible if a leader has a balanced and composed mind. It
will not only improve self-awareness but will also result in
better understanding and managing social relationships with
the followers and colleagues.
Mind, Ego and Intellect are important facets of the human
body. Interestingly, as Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji says that “it is
not the mind, which is inside the body, but the other way
round. The body is like the wick of the candle and the mind
is the glow”. This revelation supports the fact that the mind
which is a traffic of thoughts has to be controlled well for
good decision making. As Nityapragya ji from Art of Living
in his book Celebrating Life, says “In a ruffled, restless
scattered mind, cluttered with emotions and impressions,
deeper realizations cannot happen.” A meditative mind
experiences freedom from negative emotions, experiences
instantaneous energy, profound peace at mental and
emotional levels. As sleep is essential for resting the tired
limbs, meditation (Dhyan) is the elixir for a fatigued mind.
It helps in balancing the various energies flowing inside the
body. Pranayam (skilful breathing), brings instant relief to
the stirred-up emotions, placates a restive mind, besides
energizing (raising the sattva) inside the body.
Hence, while professional skills in handling business affairs
are essential, a tacit handling of mind in unison with breath,
will enhance the decision-making ability, without being too
influenced by situations and emotions. Such leaders will
maintain an enviable posture of unnerving calm, essential in
crisis, which has become a rule rather than an exception.
The age-old adage of the Army rings loud and clear “it's the
man behind the gun that matters, and not the gun per-se.”
Training young leaders to handle the mind with the same
professional ease, as well, will result in a win-win situation
for all.
June | 2021

Importance ofEssay
WRITING
in Schools
38|

riting has always been one of the building
Wblocks for students. It comprises of a whole
experience. A student needs to understand and
imbibe the essentials of writing so that when the time
comes, he/she should not lack one of the major skills of
communication as a functioning member of the society.
Writing has evolved in many ways, but its essence has not
been lost till date. The best way to develop writing skills for
students is to write essays. Not only it includes the
academic angle, but writing helps in developing the
cognitive thinking in children. The learning experience of
students is enhanced multi-fold when essay writing is
incorporated in their curriculum. Many educational
facilities have glorified essay writing because the studies
have shown that writing helps in remembering better. This
evidently assists in the development of the brain by
enhancing thought process and retaining information in an
inclusive way.
As mentioned earlier, being one of the building blocks for
students, essay writing opens-up bridges to fill the gap of
communication and creates different career opportunities
for them as well. Academically speaking, writing different
assignments as per the plethora of topics to choose from
becomes more streamlined if a student already knows what
style of writing he/she wants to do. This is only possible
when students have a knack of writing essays in a
comprehensive way.
Dynamics of writing essays
Essay writing is a crucial part of a student’s educational
journey. Brainstorming ideas, conducting research, noting
down interesting and important points, comparing facts, and
streamlining the information acquired are just few steps that
helps in curating an ideal essay. Its not just about facts and
figures, an essay has all the necessary elements that portray
the essentials of the ‘topic’ in a constructive way. It
becomes easy for the reader to grasp the content if the essay
is written in a prescribed format.
Writing essays also assists in visualizing. That is how new
ideas are shaped into concepts that can be executed well.
Most importantly, essay writing directly affects the
student’s capacity to comprehend language that inversely
affects elements of communication like speaking and
debating among many others. Developing the language
comprehension skills is important for an individual and the
early it happens, the better for students to transition into the
workforce.
Schools are an ideal place to develop advanced writing
skills. It is a place where students have maximum exposure
when it comes to diversified topics and continuous language
upskilling scenarios. When a student is learning in school,
he/she receives the right kind of guidance; learning about
writing requires the same kind of guidance.
Communication is the key
Essays are one of the quickest ways to determine a student’s
capacity to communicate. Counsellors and teachers find it
easy to quantify students’ abilities to grasp subjective
insights and their communication of the same amongst their
peers or other people by reviewing essays written by them.
Not only limited to being subjective, students get to have a
hold of their academic inclinations and understanding of the
course also via writing essays, topics of which are
generated or related to their study material. One of the
crucial elements of essay writing is students gaining the
knowledge of core subject matter and convey its essence in
a comprehensive way. Structuring and organizing an
argument in the essay help in building conversational skills
that are important for the holistic development of a student.
Schools are an ideal environment to hold debates and
extempore.
A student needs to dive into the subject matter by choosing
a title, analyse it, and share his/her opinion in the most
descriptive format. It should be done by backing their
perspective with solid facts and figures. The delivery of the
essay is paramount as the readability and the proper
message is supposed to be communicated through it in an
effective way. That is why, essay writing in schools plays a
crucial role in the overall development of the student.
Steel Your Brain
- Aditya Umale
- Darshan Parmar
June | 2021

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