Nov 07
Do not be misled by the title of this blog; tempting though it is to write about the American presidential election, this short reflection is instead about an independent school in Thailand, which I have known about for many years but which I visited for the first time just this morning. Bangkok Patana School was …
Oct 08
I have just returned home from the beautiful memorial service held on Saturday at Daneshill School, Hampshire, for Simon Spencer, who so suddenly and tragically died on 31 July 2016. It was packed – standing room only – and testament to Simon’s charismatic presence and the role he has played on the educational stage in …
Sep 26
Faith schools are back in the news again, with the publication of the UK government’s Education green paper proposing (amongst other things) that faith schools should be able to select students largely on religious grounds rather than with the limitations currently in place. Faith schools come in a number of different forms, however, and my …
Sep 12
Last week I participated in a highly stimulating event run by Changing the Chemistry in Edinburgh on what investors expect from boards. Reflecting on the banking crisis from an insider’s perspective, the speaker commented that from a regulatory standpoint, he had always believed in the Power of One, ie the importance of a single voice …
Aug 17
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 …
Jun 03
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 25
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
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 …
May 06
Schools are tremendous powerhouses. In and amongst everything else they do, they are also – and powerfully – socially mandated to make a positive difference in the lives of young people. Fundamentally, this is about social and global mobility, and it lies at the core of a school’s activity. Schools are not in this alone, …
Feb 19
One of my treasured childhood memories is staying with my grandfather at his house in Colchester, in England. I can still recall the pipe he used to smoke and the books he used to read; most special of all, though, was the fact that I was there by myself, and I could do things that …