Dear Avenues Families,

When we think about technology in education, we do not picture screens or devices first. We think about the small moments when curiosity turns into discovery, when a student’s eyes light up because something suddenly makes sense. Those are the moments that remind us why we love what we do. As technology integrators, we see these moments across our campus.

An amazing chapter unfolded this week as our primary students celebrated Digital Citizenship week! Imagine the sweet wonder in kindergarten as our young learners took their very first steps learning how Digital Citizens use technology safely and with kindness. Right behind them, our Grade 1 classes became careful explorers, tracing the invisible trail we all leave behind. They learned about their Digital Footprint, the lasting impression left by every click and post, understanding that they get to choose which positive, happy marks they leave on the internet's path. And our Grade 3 students transformed into Super Digital Citizens, developing the powerful habits of being respectful, responsible, and smart when navigating the digital world. This week, we laid the foundation for a lifetime of positive tech wisdom!

We saw that same spirit in the Grade 9 Chinese project, where students explored the idea of life after AI. Together with their teacher, we co-designed a creative process that helped them transform their short stories into short films using four advanced AI tools, from DeepSeek to Keling. As they worked, the students began to wonder about the nature of creation itself. One student compared it to the legend of Ma Liang and his magic brush, asking, “Was it the brush that painted, or the hand that guided it?” Together, we found ourselves returning to a question posed in the short story Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? If AI can dream, perhaps it is dreaming through us. During class that day I think we all, teachers and students alike, realized that technology had become something deeper and more so a way to explore imagination, authorship, and what it truly means to create.

Moments like these remind us that technology evolves faster than any generation can fully predict, but the essence of learning remains the same. Our goal is not to have students master every tool, but to help them stay curious, think critically, and express their creativity with confidence. We want them to see technology as a language for innovation that helps them shape their own ideas and build their own futures.

John Dewey, in his seminal work Democracy and Education (1916), wrote that “Education is a process of living, not a preparation for future living.” We witness that truth every day at Avenues. When students code, build, design, or film, they are not rehearsing for the future; they are actively living it. Technology offers them new ways to see, to imagine, and to create meaning in the world around them.

At Avenues, innovation is not about having the latest gadgets and software or AI model. It is about the courage to explore, the creativity to try something new, and the joy of learning together. Each time we walk out of a classroom, we are reminded that our students are not just using technology. They are using their curiosity, their empathy, and their imagination to bring learning to life.

That, to us, is what technology means at Avenues Shenzhen.

Barbara Amador & Tim Lu
Technology Integrators
Curriculum Innovation Team