Morgan Huang, Ed.M.’04: The Earlier the Better
by Debbie Galante Block
Wanted: Adventurous, American early childhood
teachers to work with preschoolers in China for the
next year or two.
This could be the ad copy used by Morgan Huang, Ed.M.’04, as he recruits new teachers from the United States for the preschool he started in Shanghai. In each classroom at the Morgan Rothschild Academy (MRA), there are three teachers, one American and two Chinese, giving the students the advantage of being taught in English as well as in Chinese.
“China is a communist country that is transforming into a global player each day,” Huang explains. “The Chinese middle class is very eager to prepare their children for the ongoing global integration. Learning English and the American culture is their top priority. In addition, the rising China also attracts many expatriates from all over the world to come and work. Therefore, by offering classes both in Chinese and English, MRA gives parents [of both] local and foreign cultures double advantages.”
Huang developed his school’s mission early. In fact, he started his university studies knowing exactly what he aimed to achieve once he received his degrees. “I went to China in 2001 and found that the need [for] quality early childhood education was enormous, but there were simply not enough educators to cater to those needs,” he says. That is when building an early education program in China became his goal.
After receiving his bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan, the Taiwan-born Huang came to the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where he was introduced to different pedagogies and schools of child psychology. “I found the methods and materials to formulate the foundation of my education philosophy,” he says. In particular, Professor Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences deeply affected him.
Once finished with his Ed School studies, Huang returned to Michigan for the high-scope curriculum training that had been developed at their school of education, known for its research on the lasting effects of preschool education and its preschool curriculum approach.
His formal studies complete, Huang began his search for “angel investors” for his school which, at the time, was only a concept and a name. The “Rothschild” part of the school’s name is in honor of the American merchant banker family. “Chinese people believe that the sons and daughters of a wealthy family will eventually be corrupted by their family’s glory and wealth,” he explains. “Therefore, I find the legacy of the Rothschild house extremely fascinating, as the family has been very successful for 200 years. As a teacher, I hope the students from my school can be every bit as successful as a Rothschild. I must admit though, I am still researching the secret of their success.”
In China, parents are concerned about results and academic learning in an early childhood program, Huang says. To address these concerns, MRA, he says, makes its educational results more evident to parents and at the same time helps parents understand the school’s expectations for their children. For example, MRA teachers make up monthly curriculums for their students, detailing every lesson under different subject areas.
Perhaps the greatest gift of MRA, he says, is that its teachers treat every child as a unique individual and try in earnest to make sure each child’s own needs are met. “MRA should be a garden where different flowers can flourish rather than a place educating a homogeneous breed,” says Huang.
The MRA model seems to be a success. The majority of the academy’s students have continued their schooling at Shanghai American School and the British International School. A few have gone to local private schools.
“[Our students] have all thrived,” says Huang. “This is because a good character education will make children successful in any environment. In 2004, I went to HGSE to prepare for my dream of building my own school, and I left with a treasure that I will never exhaust.”
— Debbie Galante Block is a freelance writer based in Mahopac, N.Y.
About the Article
A version of this article originally appeared in the Winter 2008 issue of Ed., the magazine of the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
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