Speaking over the weekend at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, the children’s author Cathy Cassidy could not have been clearer – creative daydreaming lies at the root of everything we seek to create. It has certainly worked for her, as she is a hugely successful author with fans all over the world; as she pointed …
Category: global competence
Jul 26
Celebrating the success of British International Schools across the world
As the dust settles on the Brexit debate, and the UK prepares to shift its relationship with Europe, it is worth taking time to reflect on the very positive stories of British engagement in the wider world, and this is especially true of British education in international schools across the globe. English-medium international schools educated …
Jul 19
The power of diversity in the world: the role of international educational institutions
In her inaugural speech as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford on 12 January 2016, Professor Louise Richardson spoke passionately about the tradition and the history of this great university. The ceremony took place in the Sheldonian, Sir Christopher Wren’s great ceremonial hall, completed in 1669, a stone’s throw from the University Divinity School, which …
Jun 27
Brexit and the values embedded in British education
To an extent, it doesn’t matter what the decision was. What really matters is how we deal with it. And this is where – we hope and trust – two key values embedded in British education come into their own. British education is renowned worldwide – much more so than practitioners based in the UK …
Jun 21
Diversity of thought flourishes when …
Yesterday evening saw the Annual General Meeting of Changing the Chemistry, which in its first year of operation as a Scottish-based charity committed to promoting diversity on boards has had extraordinary success. This unique peer-network has already grown to over 200 active members, and has contributed to filling 70 board positions. Yesterday, in the AGM …
Jun 13
Leonardo DiCaprio and the misnaming of ‘The Revenant’
Well, The Revenant is actually very good indeed. You probably already know this; regular readers of this blog will know that in matters cinematic, I am usually a late adopter and an opportunist; essentially, I usually wait to watch new film releases until a time and place where watching a movie is really the only …
Jun 03
‘It’s all pants’: gender equality and the school uniform debate
A mother in Melbourne has been causing a bit of stir recently, with her petition to the Education department and her local school to allow her daughter to wear trousers (pants) to school rather than the mandated school uniform dress. A media storm has been whipped up, and she has been accused of undermining the …
May 30
Speaking in public: an introvert’s perspective
I am speaking to two different audiences this week in Sydney, on two of my different specialisms; a seminar on Powerful Schools at Macquarie University School of Education on Wednesday, and a public lecture and discussion at the renowned St Mark’s Darling Point on ‘Bringing Up Girls’ on Thursday evening. As an introvert who has …
May 25
Women: disadvantaged from childhood
If you read only one PhD thesis this year, make it this one. And if you only read one chapter of this thesis, make it Chapter 7 (which you will find on pages 175-249), entitled ‘The CEO habitus’. Submitted to the University of Queensland in 2011, this thesis is the work of Dr Terrance Fitzsimmons, …
May 24
A ‘must have’ for leaders: global travel in childhood
Speaking earlier today at the AGSA conference in Brisbane, Dr Terrance Fitzsimmons of the University of Queensland Business School gave his audience a compelling insight into the journeys of CEOs. Based on his research into whether male and female CEOs differed in how they reached the top, his presentation highlighted stark gender differences in the …