Unraveling the Concept of Identity in Schools
What makes someone “truly” part of a culture?
Reflecting on mixed-race identity, international schooling, and the story of Japanese-American baseball player Lars Nootbaar, I explore how assumptions about authenticity can shape the way we see our students, and ourselves.
4 Things to Consider When Starting a New Model UN Conference:
Part 1 - Committee Size
What makes a great MUN conference? After years of coaching students across the globe, I saw the same problems repeating, especially oversized committees. In this series for Best Delegate, I write about how to design conferences that put students, not organizers, at the center of the experience.
4 Things to Consider When Starting a New Model UN Conference:
Part 2 - Scheduling
Conferences don’t need to run from sunrise to sunset to be effective. In Part 2 of my series for Best Delegate, I explore why overly long MUN schedules often lead to lower-quality debate, and how designing a more realistic day can actually lead to stronger engagement.
4 Things to Consider When Starting a New Model UN Conference:
Part 3 - Awards
Awards should motivate students, not confuse or discourage them.
I’ve seen how inconsistent criteria can leave even the most prepared delegates feeling frustrated. In pt 3 of my series, I explore why transparent evaluation matters and how conferences can build trust by clearly defining what success looks like.
4 Things to Consider When Starting a New Model UN Conference
Part 4 - Keynote Speakers
Students attend MUN conferences to grow, collaborate, and be inspired, not to sit through hour-long ceremonies or vague keynote speeches. In the final part of my series, I explore how opening and closing ceremonies can be made more meaningful by keeping things focused, time-conscious, and centered on the students.
Lessons in Asynchronous Collaboration from Zoomers
In this reflection on running an online MUN conference, I share how high school students from around the world taught me the power of asynchronous collaboration. From Discord channels to digital avatars, their flexible, tech-savvy approach offers valuable lessons for the future of learning and leadership.
What Soccer Teaches Beyond the Game
Soccer is more than a game, it’s a global classroom.
Whether your child is chasing trophies or just loves the sport, soccer teaches resilience, teamwork, and empathy. This piece explores how the beautiful game shapes character in ways that last a lifetime.
MUN: From KISJ to the World
This reflection tells the origin story of GECMUN, which began in 2014 with just five schools on Jeju Island and has since grown into one of Korea’s most respected MUN conferences. It emphasizes how the focus shifted from resume-building to real learning through crisis committees and innovation, and how GECMUN helped reshape the MUN culture across South Korea and beyond.
Zoom MUN in Times of COVID-19
When the pandemic disrupted everything, students didn’t give up, they adapted. What began as a last-minute shift to online MUN became a powerful lesson in resilience, leadership, and the future of global collaboration. This article explores how a virtual conference helped students grow—even in isolation.
Better Online: Lessons from GEC Business Competition
Running a competition online used to sound like a backup plan, but after leading the GEC Business Competition virtually, I’m convinced it’s the future. It made me realize that for many years I may have been overvaluing the in-person experience. By the competition being online, we were able to invite three judges from three different countries, something we would have had difficulty doing in person.
Teachable Moments Outside of the Classroom
We hadn’t won a single match, and yet the tournament ended in triumph. This is the story of how a bold formation change, shared leadership, and trust turned a team around in just 24 hours.
Beyond the Classroom: Global Views on AI
What if the biggest insights about AI in education aren’t coming from schools at all? In this reflection, I connect conversations from Tokyo, Seoul, and international classrooms to explore how educators can learn from the way society at large is reacting to AI, and why fear shouldn’t be our first response.
Three Things Teachers Still Do Better Than AI
AI can now explain complex ideas faster and more personally than teachers ever could, but it still can’t replace the human power of presence, trust, and adaptability. Great educators create emotional connections, guide ethical discussions, and model humility in real time. As AI transforms education, our role isn’t to compete with machines, but to double down on what makes us irreplaceably human.
Playing with Integrity: The Hidden Curriculum of Soccer
As both a teacher and a coach, I’ve learned that some of the most lasting lessons happen off the scoreboard. In this article, I reflect on how soccer has shaped my understanding of integrity—and why, when working with students, I’ll always prioritize character, humility, and teamwork over wins alone.
Why Do You Have to Hate What You Don’t Understand?
A moment from King of the Hill sparks a deeper look into how we react to AI in education, and why our fear of innovation is nothing new. From Google to ChatGPT, the instinct to resist what’s unfamiliar has always been there. But if we want to prepare students for the world ahead, we need to choose curiosity over criticism.
ChatGPT: Exposing the Need to Re-Evaluate Our Assessment Strategies
As ChatGPT reshapes how students approach assignments, educators face a critical question: are our assessments truly measuring deep thinking, or just surface level recall? This article explores the impact of AI on academic integrity and calls for a bold rethinking of how we evaluate student learning in the AI era.