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.
"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
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!
