I am convinced that the single most important factor to ensure student learning for life is learner empowerment.Read more
Posts tagged: #School change
The Nature of Nurture
I was recently invited to write an article for the RSA Journal on the topic of school change, innovation and creativity. The resulting article, The Nature of Nurture (RSA Journal, Issue 1, 2016) talks about the importance of bringing all stakeholders; teachers, students, parents and the broader community, into the school change process as well as present some of the concrete steps ISP is taking to move the school closer to its mission of Inspiring, Engaging and Empowering Learners for Life. “A key step towards meaningful schoolRead more
The Power of Mindset
How we learn, think, are motivated, are creative, and how we as human beings develop and innovate, has been heavily researched at an accelerating pace over the past decade. The body of evidence about learning and motivation not only informs educators and parents about human behavior and development, but it also helps us reshape our approach to parenting and education. For example, praise to a child about something they achieved, it was assumed, built confidence. In fact, we now knowRead more
Empowering Learners
One of the central tenets of the ISP mission is to Empower Learners, to give students the opportunity to construct their own understanding about a concept or idea, and to provide opportunities for them to engage in authentic or real world problem solving. ISP Empowers Learners to – Think Critically and Creatively – Work Cooperatively and Independently – Listen and Communicate Effectively The above learning habits were on display in our middle school today, as middle school students participated inRead more
The “Edge” in Education
At the International School of Prague, we believe that a great school is one that is committed to bringing to life, an ambitious and forward thinking mission and vision. In order to continue to remain relevant to twenty-first century learners, it is crucial that all members of the school community have the opportunity to provide perspective and ideas in furthering the mission. With the goal of thinking out of the box and generating innovative ideas, ISP teachers have formed themselvesRead more
A Labor of Love
What a great feeling, getting school ready for the start of the new year at the International School of Prague! The campus is a busy beehive of activity; polishing floors, moving furniture, trimming hedges and unpacking boxes. The new faculty are learning the ropes of their newly adopted school and country, and returning teachers, most of whom have been on vacation either visiting their home countries or enjoying exotic locations, or both are getting back into the swing of things.Read more
The Intuitive Mind is a Sacred Gift
There has been much talk in the past few years about creativity and innovation and its place in business and other organizations including schools. A wide array of books, articles, blogs and videos on creativity have appeared: Whole New Mind: Why Right-brainers Will Rule the Future by Dan Pink Creating Innovators: The Making of Young People Who Will Change The World by Tony Wagner Do Schools Kill Creativity? by Sir Ken Robinson Out of our Minds: Learning to be CreativeRead more
Assessment to Support Learning
Educators have known for many years that the traditional assessment model of letter or percentage grades, is imperfect to say the least. This is why many schools are going through a process to bring our assessment practices in line with research based best practices. As our school recently engaged the middle school parent community on this topic, we had an opportunity to clarify our objectives when it comes to meaningful student assessment. Below are some of the concepts which wereRead more
“The only reason for time is so that everything doesn’t happen at once.” Albert Einstein
I recently attended the European Council of International Schools‘ annual teachers’ conference in my role as Chair of the ECIS Board of Trustees. This is a conference attended by over 1500 international educators from around the world. On the first day, I had the honor of making the opening address to conference participants and share some thoughts about school change, which I excerpt and elaborate on below. The ECIS mission is to be the leading collaborative global network promoting andRead more
Developing future focused schools
Once per month at ISP we set aside time in the teacher’s busy schedule to think out of the box and focus on our school’s future development. Instead of simply holding the traditional informational all-faculty meetings where teachers sit passively and listen to presentations, we have created a dynamic structure in which teachers have formed themselves into Professional Focus Groups. The purpose of these groups is to create an ongoing process where faculty involvement will impact on individual professional growth,Read more
