by Trisha Law Hi, my name is Trisha Law.”Patricia? Do you go by Pat?” “Wait, how do you spell that? Like Tricia?” “Hi Triksha, I hope this email finds you well.” “Lau? With a u? Are you Chinese?” Our name is the first thing we use to identify ourselves. It is what our government information […]
The Power of a Name: Culturally Responsive Leadership Read More »
by Glenn Moodie Earlier in my career, I remember sitting in Heads of Department meetings, or talking to fellow Heads of Department from other schools, and discovering they were doing things I wasn’t. No one had told me I should be doing them, but I immediately felt a powerful urge to add them to my
Will It Make the Boat Go Faster? Why Schools Need to Do Less Read More »
by Emma Louise Wheatley Often in education, we assume that if teachers know what to teach, good teaching will follow.* Experience tells us it is rarely that simple. But if a curriculum appears to prioritise content above all else, what message does that send? No matter how carefully crafted a school’s mission or values, it
by Dr Mari Simpson Building the Conditions for Students and Adults to Grow When we talk about learning-centered schools, the conversation often moves quickly to students. We speak about agency, inquiry, collaboration, voice, choice, and deeper learning. These are all important, but in my experience, a truly learning-centered environment does not begin with students alone.
Learning Centered Leadership Read More »
by Joshua Darryl Sussex There is a moment that most international school leaders recognise. You arrive in a new context, a new country, a new school, a new community, carrying approaches that worked well elsewhere. You have led staff meetings with those approaches. You have resolved the conflict with them. You have built cultures with
When the Leadership Playbook Doesn’t Work Anymore – Culturally Mediated Leadership (CML) Read More »
by Dr Ryan Persaud In international schools, safeguarding is often discussed through the lens of compliance: policies, background checks, annual training modules, and accreditation requirements. While these are all essential, I have increasingly come to believe that safeguarding is fundamentally about leadership culture. Policies matter, but culture determines whether those policies live or remain dormant
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by André Double I sat down with Nick Alchin, Head of College at UWC South East Asia, recently, at his home in Singapore. He leads one of the world’s largest international schools of 6,000 students, with two campuses in Singapore. A former IB Chief Assessor for TOK and textbook author. His new book, ‘Connection: A
Making Ourselves Available to the World – A Conversation with Nick Alchin Read More »
by Donnah Ciempka There are moments in every international school when the rhythm shifts—when classrooms empty, farewells are spoken, contracts conclude, and families quietly begin packing their lives into boxes. Transition is not a single event marked on a calendar; it is something lived, felt, and carried by an entire community. As school leaders, we
Leading Through Transition: Holding a Community Together in Times of Change Read More »
by David William Sheehan There is no blank slate in an Irish household. You inherit rooms before you inherit opinions. On my mother’s side, every house had the same object on the wall: my great-great-uncle’s Irish language certificate from 1905, issued by Coláiste na Mumhan before the Irish state existed. No one pointed at it.
The Loops That Shape Us Read More »
by David Krupski By November 2025, our school’s AI policy already felt dated. I remember looking back at our school’s AI policy, a document we had taken seriously only months earlier, and realizing that it was no longer strong enough for the moment we were in. We had tried to be thoughtful. We had set
From Possibility to Practice: Leading AI with Clarity Read More »