An effective educator who leads does not control

I believe the fundamental responsibility of an educational leader is to nurture and model a love for life-long learning, looking towards the future to enable students to thrive. For students to gain a sense of wonder and a love for learning. I have also been deeply impacted by both the Reggio Emilia, Kath Murdoch approaches to inquiry-based teaching and the PYP curriculum after working in an International Baccalaureate environment. To empower students to see how important action is in our world and to seek to find ways to make positive change.

My love of learning was encapsulated by the nature that I was surrounded by in growing up in the UK. The damp wood walks, collecting conkers, falling into streams after my gumboots filled with water, playing with snow and smelling the vast joys of the vastly changing seasons. A love of nature and the wonder of why began and ignited not only a passion for learning but an intrigue into the why. Navigating a growth mindset as I moved across the world to take on a new culture also enabled me to quickly evolve and adapt. I believe these experiences have shaped me into the educator that I am. I also believe that I continue to evolve as a leader- continuing to evolve, growth and learn.

I have coached and mentored staff within the teams that I have worked with to utilise these approaches to restructure classroom spaces and utilise neutral tones to create “calm and relaxing” workspaces and learning environments that create a sense of wonder and curiosity. I have worked as an educator in collaborative planning and teaching practice, upholding the values that support this pedagogical approach to form spaces within the learning environment for students to experience, explore and investigate. When students interact with well- designed learning provocations, they develop positive and powerful connections with one another as they question and explore alternative ideas and perspectives. In a classroom, it is important to value student thinking and learning by recording their learning through photos and the transcribing of thoughts and ideas. These ideas are displayed for the parents and the School community on Visual Learning Boards that show the development of thoughts and ideas as students discover new ideas and skills. Parents love to much to see their children thrive, in every capacity.

“From the moment we are born, we make sense of our world through exploring, testing and evaluating. We learn through experience and our desire to make meaning from that experience.” – Kath Murdoch