Welcome by Jonathan Hughes-D’Aeth, Senior Advisor of Carfax Education and Chair of the day for the Leaders in Education Conference. 

Language : English///Arabic

Topic : Leadership and Management

If our educational system wants to live up to what the zeitgeist asks of us now and in the future, we have to learn to respectfully treat people unequally. Our commendable quest for equality in education has taken us too far. Students, staff members and everybody involved deserves to be treated unequally, because they are. That’s what makes them happy and unique. That’s what makes them special! Rob Houben believes all the elements and knowledge are there to achieve a form of education that makes everyone excel. Now we have to dare to rearrange our organisations to make this happen. And that’s what Rob and his colleagues are doing since Agora started in 2014. Agora is a government-funded public secondary school in Roermond, The Netherlands. A school where students learn to manage their own learning process, without predefined courses, classes, timetables, or age groups.

Language : English

Topic : Innovative Methods / 21st Century Teaching

International private schools continue to sell promise, adopting many filters that shadow authenticity. School Marketers are burnt out managing the ever-growing ubiquity of channels and platforms and force the same (narrow) story (focussing on success) in every channel, at the wrong time, to the wrong audience! Every school has success across academics, arts, sports, science & humanities - but this is not a USP. Unfortunately school marketing is inefficient & continues to buy parent's limited attention through congested paid for online channels. Digital word of mouth & true advocacy cannot be bought, it needs to be earned. Does a successful symphony conductor play every instrument, all the same time, at every concert? No. School Leadership is failing to transform the teaching workforce to own their story (play their instrument in tune) and be truly fit-for-purpose/relevant to the world around us. Simon continues his disruptive" #FutureSchool thinking

Language : English

Topic : Innovative Methods / 21st Century Teaching

David will be stating the case of why the webcam will be education's best friend a decade ahead. He will talk about his journey and the mission of 8billionideas - to give every student on the planet the skills and belief to change the world, by providing a combination of virtual and hybrid services into schools. The webcam means children are no longer limited to opportunity, teacher workload is improved by outsourcing key elements, it is sustainable and cost effective.

Language : English

Topic : Leadership and Management

The clue is in Avatar, not VR.

For the last two years, Space Zero has been investigating the possibilities of the Metaverse. We have found some fascinating insights that point to the positive uses of this technology that will make education more powerful, memorable, collaborative and effective, rather than the "Digitally dystopian" future many people fear. 

In this talk, we will share what we have learned but also what we are building. 

Language : English

Topic : Digital / eLearning

Lessons learnt: the way forward for Early Years Settings

After the tumultuous past three years when early years settings have had to drastically change their practice, many early years leaders are taking stock of where they are now. Change is inevitable and we know the best settings are always looking at ways to improve on the previous best, but what happens when massive and sudden changes are imposed? Practice has been impacted in all areas of practice from the curriculum to staffing. This panel session discusses what this means for early years settings and how we can learn lessons and emerge stronger and more resilient.

Language : English

Topic : Curriculum

Accelerating education with AWS

Yazeed Sheqem
Digital Skills Program Manager MENA
Amazon Web Services

Language : English

Topic : Digital / eLearning

The past couple of years have fundamentally changed the education landscape. Schools are relying on technology in unprecedented ways, shining a light on the fact that solutions that were once “good enough” for learning, no longer meet the bar. This moment presents a unique opportunity to reimagine how we can use new technology for schools to empower educators and unlock new possibilities for all learners. Join us to explore together how we can provide each child with an opportunity for a great education—one that leads to success in career and in life.

Language : English

Topic : Digital / eLearning

If we want our students to perform highly, we need them to understand themselves and their learning. This talk looks at how the High Performance Learning (HPL) philosophy and framework, is used in HPL accredited schools to give students a language by which they can talk about their learning. The talk explores the language used, why this is important and how it enables students to become intellectually confident. Using case studies of individual students and their teachers will form an integral part of the presentation. HPL was developed by Professor Eyre and based on over 40 years of research into how the most successful learners think and learn, HPL helps schools develop a positive culture where students are confident and engaged in their learning, staff are enjoying their teaching and where existing teaching and learning approaches are strengthened so that ensure that far more students reach high performance.

Language : English

Topic : Leadership and Management

The COVID-19 pandemic which continues to engulf the world has altered the lens by which leadership in education has, and continues to be, viewed. Educational leaders have had to act with speed, creativity, flexibility and with courage for the greater good of others. To support the school community and wider stakeholders, school leaders have drawn upon a toolbox of ‘intellectual stimulation, idealized influence, and inspiration’ (Fernandez and Shaw, 2020). The coronavirus pandemic continues to present a serious and immediate adaptive challenge for educational leaders. Although leaders have a crucial role in the response of institutions to crises, in reality the role of school leaders in establishing a culture of trust, collaboration, and shared leadership prior to a crisis will have had a more significant influence on the ability of institutions to withstand, and respond efficiently, during a time of crisis (Kezar, Fries‐Britt, Kurban, McGuire & Wheaton, 2018).

Language : English

Topic : Leadership and Management

From England to the Netherlands, France to Switzerland, Qatar to Saudi Arabia – Dr Steffen Sommer talks about the leadership lessons he has learned on his extraordinary journey in education. He reflects on the ones he believes will be most relevant as he establishes himself as Director General at Misk Schools in Saudi Arabia – a school at the forefront of ambitious thinking at arguably one of the most exciting periods in the Kingdom’s history. Most particularly, he would like to share his views on the importance of perseverance, a positive mindset and knowing what you want.

Language : English

Topic : Leadership and Management

The session addresses Leadership for Education Systems from a strategic perspective. It discusses the development of an Excellence Framework for strategic leaders of education systems in MENA for both K-12 and Higher Education.

Language : English

Topic : Leadership and Management

This forward-thinking panel session, chaired by Dr Helen Wright, will challenge the participants to think about what the world of work could and should look like, and how schools need to prepare their students to respond – and shape – this vision. Areas covered will include:

·      What do children and young people really want out of work and life?

·       What are we doing in schools to lead the way?

·       How can we plan in schools for the future of the world of work?

Language : English

Topic : Leadership and Management