Monday, May 31, 2021

Diving into the world of IB

 




Taking up a new leadership position in a new school can be an exciting and nervous time for anyone.  When that new school is in a foreign country on the other side of the world and operates under a completely different curriculum, it understandably comes with more nervousness than usual.  I found myself moving from a position I felt comfortable and confident in, to being a complete 'newbie' again, asking a lot of questions, needing a lot of support and most of all, taking a much needed journey into the learning pit again as I immersed myself into the world of Qatar Academy Al Khor and the IB - International Baccalaureate curriculum. 
I will start by sharing a little bit about my wonderful school.  QAK is one of several PUE (pre university education) schools that are part of the Qatar Foundation organization.  Qatar Foundation  offers primary and secondary education as well as higher education programs consisting of partnerships with come of the world's top universities as well as local Qatari universities, such as Carnegie Mellow, Georgetown and Northwestern Universities. Since it's launch in 1996, Qatar Academy PUE has grown to five Qatar Academy schools and eight specialist schools around the country.

Qatar Academy schools offer various programs for Kindergarten-Grade 12 students, ranging from IB-accredited school systems to specialized schools that ensure every child gets the education they need. Their programs encompass an international English-medium education, as well as strong Arabic and Islamic Studies, designed to push students to be critical thinkers and active members of society.

Qatar Academy Al Khor was established to serve the needs of the Al Khor community in the north of Qatar. We offer a bilingual program 50% in both English and Arabic and 100% of our students are Muslim, so while our staff are quite diverse our student roll is not, so we are very clear about the community we serve. Our stunning new campus was built 3 years ago and it is mind-blowing!  Coming from a small rural school in Canterbury, NZ that was 150 years old it was a total shock to see such a huge school with every possible resource you could dream of at your fingertips.  We currently have a roll of approximately 1300 students but are built for 1800.  I am the Assistant Principal with the responsibility for leading the Early Years team.  In my team I have 16 teachers and 16 instructional assistants - 50% English and 50% Arabic, with a student roll of 390 this year.  This is just for 3 grade levels - Pre 3 (3yo), Pre 4 (4yo) and KG (5yo).  Compared to my previous role as Principal of Southbridge School where we had 150 students and just 6 classes for students aged 5-10 years old, this has been a huge change for me.

One of very first things I needed to wrap my head around was the change from the New Zealand curriculum and I started working on this long before I arrived in Qatar. In fact, it started when I was offered an interview for the position. In preparation for the interview I obviously read up about QAK and was really excited to find they were an IB school as I had heard a lot about the IB program but had never taught in an IB school before, something I shared openly with the interview panel.  I did however share that in my research (see quote below) I could see huge similarities to the New Zealand curriculum which I know extremely well and shared my views and experience leading teaching and learning under the umbrella of the NZC.  This was enough to get me the job as the panel acknowledged that this type of experience would be valuable and easily transferred to the IB model.     
"Curricular Comparison ... researchers systematically analyzed the alignment of the written content of key elements of both the PYP and the NZC.  The curricular comparison revealed a pattern of coherence between PYP and MZC. The intentions of the two curriculums set out for learners, as well as themes, concepts, attitudes and values they promote, were found to be highly compatible with one another..."         https://www.ibo.org/globalassets/publications/ib-research/pyp/summary-evaluation-of-the-pyp-in-new-zealand-en.pdf 


After I was successfully appointed, m
y admin team at QAK, consisting of the Elementary AP and Principal and the PYP coordinator were super supportive and sent me several key documents to read over in preparation for my move to QAK.  The best source of current, relevant information about IB is to head directly to their website - https://www.ibo.org/. There is plenty of information there and I found myself diving into the PYP - Primary Years Program, focusing most of my attention on learning more about the Programme standards and Practices, the IB Learner Profile and ATL (approaches to learning) Skills. 


The PYP curriculum framework begins with the premise that students are agents of their own learning and partners in the learning process. It prioritizes people and their relationships to build a strong learning community.

PYP students use their initiative to take responsibility and ownership of their learning.  By learning through inquiry and reflecting on their own learning, PYP students develop knowledge, conceptual understandings, skills and the attributes of the IB Learner profile to make a difference in their own lives, their communities, and beyond.

The framework emphasizes the central principle of agency, which underpins the three pillars of school life:



After a few months of learning on the job, observing teacher practice and viewing planning and assessment I felt like I was finally beginning to fully grasp what it meant to be an IB school.  I also knew that when you feel like you are coming out of the learning pit, it is time to challenge yourself and take on some new learning to build on what knowledge you have now gained. I am not one to take the easy road so I thought my first taste of IB professional development should be something that will support me in my role as a leader in an IB School. I enrolled in the "IB Leading the Learning", a category 1, 4 week, PD course that focuses on developing your understanding of the IB philosophy and implementation. It was super challenging but also extremely useful and I would recommend any educator new to IB to enrol in the PD courses they offer.  I have set myself the goal of enrolling in two more next academic year, working my way up to Category 3 courses in the future.  

Wish me luck! 



Tuesday, February 23, 2021

LIFE IN QATAR! Becoming a global citizen - walking the talk...


As-Salam-u-Alaikum, Marhaba! 

A lot has happened since my last blogpost.  I loved every minute of being the Principal of Southbridge School but all good things must come to an end.  I had clear goals of what I hoped to achieve in my time there as principal and the position I wanted to leave the school in and I after nearly 4 years there working to achieve those goals, I knew I was ready for the next challenge, so in December 2019, when I was offered the opportunity to become the Assistant Principal at Qatar Academy Al Khor, in the Middle East the risk taker, traveller and lifelong learner in me jumped at the chance. It felt like it had all lined up perfectly, the timing couldn't be better...and then 2020 rolled around and with that - Covid-19 aka Coronavirus!

No-one could have predicted the enormous and devastating impact that would have on the entire world. And continues to have - as I sit here now it is February 22nd 2021 and Qatar is in the midst of a second wave, experiencing over 450 positive cases a day with nearly 10,000 active positive cases in the country! It is hard to wrap your head around but it is our day to day reality.  It is also very hard for people I know to wrap their heads around how I would leave New Zealand, which is effectively Covid free and people are back living life as normal, to move halfway across the world, as a family of 5, to a country experiencing high numbers of positive cases.  I have to admit I had plenty of worrying and stressful moments but I had made a commitment to QAK and also knew that this was an opportunity we couldn't miss out on.  

Has it been hard - absolutely.  Has it been worth it - ABSOLUTELY!  And I am confident the best is yet to come once the health and safety restrictions start to lift.  Qatar is a wealthy country with the intent and ability to mass vaccinate all citizens and residents.  This week all teachers have started to be vaccinated and I am ready and waiting to join that list.  Once fully vaccinated in Qatar, we can travel again with no quarantine on return back into the country and more importantly are protected from the chance of getting Covid-19.  When that happens my family and I will get to experience Qatar in a new way - no more masks, no more social distancing, no more maximum capacity at events and in buildings!  Playgrounds will open up, children will return to school again, I will see my colleagues faces for the first time since meeting them without a mask on, we can meet in person and hold social events that build community. I cannot wait!  

In the meantime I thought I would start blogging again to try and capture this once in a lifetime experience while living through it.  I will share my experiences of education and life in Qatar and welcome your comments and questions as well. 

About to board my flight to Doha

Our new 'normal' started on the plane and has yet to end
Adapting to our new life in Doha

While very different to NZ, we love our new home Qatar!



Monday, August 3, 2020

Springboard Trust - such an awesome opportunity to grow your strategic leadership skills



Thrilled to see this write up go public from Springboard Trust sharing the journey and positive outcomes that we experienced after I had the opportunity to participate in the SLPP - Strategic Leadership Programme for Principals.

 I would highly recommend this professional development opportunity to all school principal's out there wanting to grow their understanding, knowledge and skills in strategic planning.

https://www.springboardtrust.org.nz/news/a-golden-plan-tamara-bell-on-how-slpp-helped-southbridge-school

Sunday, May 6, 2018

Strategic Leadership for Principals Programme 2018


I am a self confessed 'learning junkie'.  I love learning - I constantly seek out new opportunities and challenges that will push me and help me to grow.  I won't lie, there have been MANY times when I get pushed so hard that I swear I will just chill and take things easy for awhile but it is never long before I start getting the urge to dive into something new.
At the end of 2017, a principal colleague told me about a possible opportunity coming to Canterbury in 2018 - The 'Strategic Leadership for Principals Programme - SLPP' .  I had heard lot's of great feedback about the Strategic Leadership for Principals’ Programme but had thought it was only available in Auckland.  SLPP is a 10-month, free programme that leverages cross-sector expertise to provide strategic leadership development and support for New Zealand principals. Needless to say - this immediately interested me and so I submitted an application to be considered in the first group of principals selected for Canterbury.
Last term, I was selected for the Canterbury intake for 2018, alongside 5 other fantastic Canterbury principals: Blair Dravitski - Linwood Avenue School, Anthony Faitaua - Rowley Primary School, Denise Torrey - Somerfield School, Andrew Leverton - Geraldine Primary School and Shane Buckner - Wairakei Primary School.  

So what is SLPP all about?  
International research shows the pivotal importance of good strategic leadership for both improved school performance and student outcomes. 
The Strategic Leadership for Principals’ Programme is an action-orientated curriculum which helps principals build robust strategic plans for their school. 
Facilitated by senior business leaders and supported by skilled capacity partners, the programme is also designed to support each principal in their leadership development. Programme content is frequently updated by subject matter experts and tailored to meet the needs of individual participants by skilled facilitators.
In the Strategic Leadership for Principals’ Programme, we work intensively with cohorts of six principals over 10 months to develop strategic plans for their schools.
Senior business leaders facilitate a series of workshops in which principals learn about strategic planning in an education setting.
Peer collaboration encourages the development of problem-solving capabilities and the acquisition of new skills in an environment in which principals can speak frankly and openly.

98% of principals on the Strategic Leadership for Principals' Programme have indicated that they learnt a lot by sharing with other principals in their cohort.


2017 Programme Impact Report
A capacity partner is assigned to each individual principal through a careful matching process to further support them in the process of developing useful strategic planning skills. The capacity partner coaches the principal outside of the workshops to help them produce their own strategic vision, plan and goals that will address the unique issues they face in their school.
Capacity partners are drawn from a pool of knowledgeable skills volunteers with successful business or public sector leadership experience.
At the end of the programme, each principal has developed a three-year strategic plan for his or her school, a one-year action plan, and has gained an enhanced support network of peers and business people.
For more information, check out their website: 

Capacity Partner 
I am thrilled that my mentor on this journey is Sarina Finucane, the CVP Manager (customer values proposition) for IAG.  We have lots in common but lots to learn from each other too. I am excited about participating in this awesome programme so early on in my principal career and all the learning and opportunties that may come from it! 

Tuesday, September 12, 2017

My latest EdTalks: Developing cultural responsiveness in schools

Developing cultural responsiveness at Cobham Intermediate from EDtalks on Vimeo.


Last year when I was the Deputy Principal at Cobham Intermediate, I was asked to be filmed for an EdTalks special on cultural responsive practice and what this can look like in action in a school setting and how we were going about developing a culturally responsive environment. 

I focused my discussion on the way this happens from a relational position and how the staff at Cobham Intermediate began this journey together working on their practice, and then spread that learning to their classrooms. I tried to outline how important it has been for staff to consider the tikanga in the school and that the values they are developing around this practice will be beneficial for all, while reminding us all that the kaupapa of a school is developed as part of a school’s obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi and being part of a bicultural nation, and that this is an important position for all schools.


Thursday, July 20, 2017

Digital apps to support teaching and learning


Even though I have moved back into school life and am no longer a digital technologies advisor, I still have the absolute pleasure of being asked to co-facilitate the Ako Panuku 'Technology for teachers' hui each year with my good friend and co-facilitator Dee Reid.

Naturally at these types of hui, we get asked about what the 'best' apps/websites are for the classroom.  And Dee and I always respond with the same answer - the technology is just a waka/vehicle or tool, you need to firstly understand what you trying to achieve, what is the learning task?

Ako Panuku created this very cool resource for teachers showcasing some possible apps that can be used as the waka/vehicle for different learning tasks e.g. researching, summarising, presenting etc.  This was created in Thinglink - a powerful tool in itself!

https://www.thinglink.com/scene/806367909889703936%20

If you hover over the app, a description will pop up.  You can also hover over the different strategies and get a pop up description and if you click on the down arrow you can even download a word doc copy of the description and step by step how it can be used, including a link to a template.

Ngā mihi nui ki a Ako Panuku!!!

And if those apps don't satisfy your thirst for new and engaging ways to integrate tech tools into your classroom, then I am sure these will...




Tuesday, June 6, 2017

Coaching Leadership

Beginning Principals Regional Hui #1



Coaching Leadership - Jan Robertson
http://www.nzcer.org.nz/nzcerpress/coachingleadership

Group coaching can be self-sustaining.  Follow the G.R.O.W model...


G - What do you want? What are you aiming to achieve? What would the ideal look like? Why is it important? What would happen if you did not focus on this?

R - What is happening now? What are you doing now? What obstacles have you encountered? What works?

0 - What alternatives are there? Which options interest you? Have you thought of...?

W - What are the next steps? What might get in the way? What support/planning is required? Is the goal still important? What are the barriers, enablers, time frame?



What does Stephen Covey have to say about active listening?
https://www.stephencovey.com/7habits/7habits.php

"Seek first to understand, then be understood"

If communication is the most important skill in life, how much training have you had in effective communication?

Most people seek first to be understood, wanting to put their opinion across, share their story. Most people listen with the intent of replying, not to listen and understand the other person.  You are filtering their story through your own paradigm.  We decide prematurely what the other person means, often before they have even finished speaking.

Empathetic listening - invest in their story, listen for their details, not applying it to your own experiences.  What happens when you truly listen to another person? The whole relationship changes.  You don't agree or disagree - you try to see it through their eyes/perspective.  You make that person feel valued.

The root cause of almost all human problems is poor communication. People do not listen with empathy. What does this look like...

Give the person your full attention
Don't ask questions or give advice
Don't share your own 'war stories'
Focus on what is said
Listen for what is not said and for what is important to the speaker