Director's Notebook
Maya Angelou famously said, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” This quote resonates deeply at the end of every school...
I do, we do, you do: Deep learning by design
I have been privileged to spend the past week working with GEMS Education in Dubai, one of the world's largest private K–12 education providers, serving more than 200,000 students across a global network...
When a school's walls tell a story
The images on this page come from a visit to Dubai World Academy, where I spent today working with a cluster of GEMS IB programme coordinators representing all four IB programmes. I always enjoy visiting...
What does it take to design academic success?
It is a simple question, but one that increasingly separates schools where outcomes are consistent and sustained from those where success depends too heavily on individual teachers or departments. An...
Beyond the binary: Integrating explicit instruction and inquiry
I work with many schools that offer both International Baccalaureate programmes and national curricula, and it’s not unusual to hear a kind of tension emerge in conversations about teaching. On one side,...
How to plan for leadership changes
When leading IB evaluations it is clear what the impact of change in IB coordinators or Head of School can be. A programme which has previously been strong can face unexpected challenges. This is the...
Leading in the shadow of ownership: the unique terrain of proprietor-led schools
Over the past six months I have been working alongside a headteacher in a proprietor-owned school, and it has reinforced how different this leadership context can be. If you are thinking of applying for...
How are we making the IB mission real?
As educators inspired by the IB mission to create a better and more peaceful world, we must ask ourselves: how are we using our schools, our teaching, and our leadership to make that mission real? Over...
How do you design professional development for all your staff that truly meets IB requirements?
For IB World Schools, this means creating professional learning that is collaborative, ongoing, and impactful—not just a series of one-off sessions. These pages offer practical guidance to help you design...
When 1 person protects a reputation
As I write this, I’m sitting in a hotel in Frankfurt after our Lufthansa flight was delayed and our final leg cancelled, leaving us rebooked onto a morning flight. After two days of strikes on the way...