Teacher Spotlight: Nicolene Van Nikkelen-Kuyper
By Anastasia Yu & Eunie Jeong
Ms Nicolene Van Nikkelen-Kuyper has been a part of RCHK for over a decade. Across this period, she has taught IB MYP Science, Mathematics and Chemistry, while also teaching IB DP Biology and Environmental Systems & Societies. As her time here comes to an end, we asked her a few questions about her experience here at our school.
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What is your favourite memory/most memorable part of your career here?
I actually had a hard time coming up with an answer because I've been here for eleven years. The thing that comes to my mind is the people here. I think back to all of the different colleagues that I’ve worked with over my time here, as I’ve worked for a very long time in both the Math and Science departments. I think back about all the events that we had amongst the faculty, and when I look back on it, I have a good feeling about it all.
Of course, I also think about students that I have taught, past and present, and that also gives me good feelings about the people that I've met - the students that I’ve met, the laughs that I had, or the feelings and as a ‘family’ in the classroom. We learn together, we laugh together, and we might get irritated, but we always do it all together, and we have this sense of accomplishment.
So if you are asking me about my most favourite memory, in my opinion, that's really difficult because it's more about this feeling I get when I think about RC, and it's always a feeling of warmth.
In your opinion, how has RCHK changed over the years?
I think in some ways RC has stayed very much the same. I remember clearly the first day I showed up here, and having been here for such a long time, this place becomes part of who you are. I feel like RC gives that sense of community to people who come here. This sentiment gets affirmed when new people come to our school. They also say, relative to other ESF schools, RC is special in that way because we really do act like we are a family, we are a really tight-knit community in that sense.
RC has also now started to become more mindfulness focused, meaning we’re trying to take more care of people's well-being overall. This might be more of a response to society, and what we need, and our school changing to cater to that.
What was the most interesting science unit you taught in RCHK?
I do have some favourite courses in both math and science, but I'm gonna say Year 8 Science, because I taught it for a very long time. I really like the curriculum, it’s the most interesting.
So what is it about Year 8 Science that I love so much? There's actually nothing that I don’t like about it because we do Cooking With Chemistry, which is really fun, and after that, we go into dissections, and students love dissections, and when students love something, I love that they love it. I love it when students are very excited about what they're learning because I get really good energy from them. After that we do Arduino, and that’s pretty cool as well, so I feel like the most interesting unit might be that.
Summarize your experience here in three words
Heart, family, and growth.
What are your goals for the future going on from RCHK?
I am moving to a new school. I'm going to a Dulwich College in China. So my goals are to learn how to teach a new curriculum because I'm going to be an IGCSE teacher.
Going to the next place, I’m going to bring all the experiences that I have had here in RC, all the learning I have done, and all the amazing teachers I have worked with here, with me to my next school to hopefully pass that along, to learn more from the new school, and continue to be a lifelong learner.
Because ultimately, I have a lot to learn. I have a new curriculum to learn, I’ve got new systems to learn, and I’ve got to make new friends. I have to do all of the new things that a student coming into a new school has to do. We always tell students that it is important for students to be lifelong learners, therefore I need to lead by example myself.
Message/advice to students?
Show up fully.
For all things in life, be one hundred per cent present, and just be in the moment. I sometimes see students who come to class, and they are all sleepy, and they don’t really make the most of what the learning experience is about.
Or even outside of school, when you are hanging out with your friends and maybe your mind is on something else and you are thinking about the future, or the past, and then you miss out on this amazing thing that is happening right now and here. So my advice is to show up fully.
And use sunscreen, that's important!