Amazing Opportunity for Teachers and School Leaders to enhance their knowledge through FREE Teachers Academy masterclasses from international education experts !!! For more details and registration www.teachersacademy.com
Digest August 20224 August 2022 Vol - 3 Issue - 8 GET MOBILETHEISSUE Head of Advisory Board Dr. Manoj Varghese, Ph.D Managing Editor Sarath Shyam Consultant Editors Enquiry: admin@k12digest.com Art and Design Charlie Jameson Sales & Marketing Enquiry: admin@k12digest.com Subscription www.k12digest.com InternationalAmericasRepresentation Connecta Global LLC 16192 Coastal Highway, Lewes, DE USA19958, Europe Connecta Global Ltd. 27, Old Gloucester Street, London, WC1N 3AX, UK Middle East Focus Innovation Technologies FZE P.O. Box 48299, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai, UAE Asia-Pacific Connecta Innovation Pvt. Ltd. Ramanashree Arcade, 18 MG Road, Bangalore –India560001, K12 Digest is a digital magazine published by Connecta Innovation Private Limited. All rights reserved. The opinions expressed in the content and pictures provided are those of the authors. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of the Connecta Innovation Private Limited or any of its members and we do not assume any responsibility. The publisher does not assume any responsibility for the advertisements, its content, pictures, and all representation of warranties made in such advertisements are those of the advertisers and not of the publisher. K12 Digest is a Free Subscription digital magazine strictly not for sale and has to be strictly for internal private use only. Publisher does not assume any responsibility arising out of anyone printing copy of this digital magazine in any format and in any country and all matters related to that. International Schools in the Middle East Dr. Johny JenniferAndrewAndrewsScottJosephAlexAndersonRachelRoy Naomi Wilson Stanly Lui Emma AnnaMonicaJamesDavisElza
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What Makes Middle East’s theSchoolsInternationalBestinWorld?
W
ith high remuneration and a global lifestyle, the Middle East has been attracting people all over the world to make it a home away from home. Expatriates make up more than 40 percent of the current Middle East population. However, those who wish to move their family to a new country must ponder many crucial questions. One is the choice of school to send your child to, and within this lies the all-important debate between national and international schools. The increase in the number of international schools worldwide, especially in the Middle East, shows that today’s parents prefer international schools to national schools in their city. As of July 2022, ISC Research data recorded a total of 13,180 English-Medium international schools around the world, enrolling 5.8 million students aged between 3 and 18 and employing 571,000 teaching staff. The sector emerged from the pandemic stronger than ever and continues to demonstrate defensive resilience, generating over USD 53.8 billion in annual school fees. Interestingly, UAE remains the country with the highest number of English-premium international schools, and Dubai has the world’s biggest student enrolment. According to a report prepared by ISC Research for GESS Dubai, the region’s leading education exhibition and conference, English-medium international schools’ market in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) posted a compound annual growth rate of 20 percent over a sixyear period, beginning 2015 until January of 2021. From just 1,885 six years ago, there are now 2,264 international schools throughout the region, with the UAE leading all countries with 725, followed by Saudi Arabia with 292. Egypt and Qatar each have 279 and 207 international schools, respectively. It is also worth mentioning that the UAE has the world’s highest number of students enrolled in international schools at 689,000, ahead of China with 419,000 and India with 316,000 students. Dubai also has the world’s highest concentration of international schools in a city, with 333. To help parents, students, and academicians looking to know more about the Middle East’s international school market, we have come up with a special issue featuring 10 Must-Watch International Schools in the Middle East- 2022. On the cover, we feature GEMS American Academy, Qatar (GAAQ), which has been standing true to its mission of becoming one of the best schools worldwide and producing learners who are purposeful, tenacious, innovative, and respectful leaders.
Enjoy Reading. Sarath Shyam
MANAGING EDITOR’S NOTE
K12 Digest August 20226 AMERICANGEMSACADEMYQATAR CREATING THE NEXT GENERATION OF LEADERS 10CONTENTSCONTENTS
K12 Digest August 2022 7 ACADEMIC VIEW INQUIRY-BASED LEARNING AND TEACHING SCIENCE: MY EXPERIENCES AS A TEACHER Amal Teacher,AlAbdullah,AlIttihad National Private School, UAE 36 ENCOURAGE INCLUSIVITY AND DIVERSITY Nitin S.PDeputyPatwa,Dean,JainCenter of Management, UAE 58 RESEARCH UPDATES IN INCLUSIVE EDUCATION Catherine O’Farrell, Founding Partner, Incluzun, UAE 44 WHY CTE IS A NEW OPTION FOR STUDENT SUCCESS IN TODAY’S K-12 SYSTEM? Curtis M. Clough, Superintendent of School, Hageman Municipal Schools, New Mexico, United States MENTOR’S OPINION 20
K12 Digest August 20228 CONTENTSCONTENTS ADMIN PERSPECTIVE LEARNING CRYPTO AND NFTS IN SCHOOLS - HOW WE CAN GET AHEAD OF THE CURVE Shady PerfectEducationElkassas,Consultant,Purity,UAE 24 EDUCATIONALRE-CULTURINGLEADERSHIP Dr. Sheeba Jojo, Vice Principal, GEMS Our Own English HighDubai,School,UAE 54 BEST PRACTICES FOR K12 SCHOOL OPERATIONS Sirin SeniorMohamed,SchoolOperations Specialist 32 BEST PRACTICES
K12 Digest August 2022 9 INDUSTRY VIEW THE FUTURE OF SMARTTHEEMBRACINGCLASSES:ADVANCEDTECHNOLOGY Eric Wei, Senior Sales ViewSonicDirector, 40 BESTK-12PRACTICESMARKETINGFOREDUCATION Devdeep Guha, Senior Marketing Specialist 48
AMERICANGEMSACADEMYQATAR CREATING THE NEXT GENERATION OF LEADERS COVER STORY K12 Digest August 202210
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A diverse student population from 78 nationalities is currently seeking education from GAAQ and is taught by a staff of wellqualified and experienced teachers from 15 nationalities. The minimum criterion for teacher enrolment is a graduate degree from an accredited college or university and/or teaching
Numerous Opportunities for Faculty Members
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GEMS American Academy, Qatar (GAAQ) was incepted under GEMS Education’s flagship American school in the country. Its first session began in the 2014-15 academic year. Since then, GAAQ has been standing true to its mission of becoming one of the best schools worldwide and producing learners who are purposeful, tenacious, innovative, and respectfulGAAQleaders.hasa spacious campus designed innovatively to promote dynamic and experiential learning. It also houses a BlackBox theatre, hightech music lab, a dedicated CrossFit zone for sports, café and dining areas, NAAAS aquaponic greenhouse, interactive and technology-laden science labs and classrooms, dual libraries, ICT labs at each level, and quiet workspaces.
Limited Class Size and Effective Teaching Pedagogy
Revealing the school’s class sizes and studentto-teacher ratios, Mark asserts, “From Pre-KG Mark Lentz, Head of School & CEO of GAAQ
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experience of more than 3 years from reputed educational institutions. To offer professional development opportunities, GAAQ has worked with leading international firm Erin Kent Consulting to provide custom teacher training to its lower and upper school faculty. “Additionally, our lower school has an in-house instructional coach for Pre-KG – Grade 5 that focuses on supporting teacher development, developing curriculum, and strategizing methods to improve teaching and learning,” adds Mark Lentz, Head of School & CEO of GAAQ. Moreover, the school conducts internal professional development sessions each Thursday, and GAAQ educators are encouraged to attend paid training domestically and internationally throughout the year.
Besides, reader’s and writer’s workshop literacy programs are implemented for students at the elementary level, whereas in the upper school, their math team uses adaptive technology, such as Khan Academy, to help seamlessly integrate instruction with assessment, provide personalized feedback and support students with various learning resources. The languages department also leverages adaptive technology, such as Duolingo, to help differentiate instruction in each class.
GAAQ’s teaching pedagogy includes both individualized learning and differentiated instructions. The faculty implements these approaches by creating lesson plans that address the needs of different groups according to each group’s respective abilities.
“While evaluating his success as a Head of School and educational leader, my mentor used to say, “You judge the calibre of the school by the calibre of the graduating class,” says Mark. Therefore, taking cues from his mentor, Mark himself assesses his own leadership as an educator and school administrator on the similar notes. He
Moreover, Pre-KG, KG1, KG2 and Grade 1 all have one class teacher and one teacher assistant (TA) in each classroom, making the student-to-teacher ratio 11:1.
Building a Golden Triangle Between Students, Parents, & Teachers
K12 Digest August 202214 through KG2, the maximum strength of GAAQ classrooms is 22 students per class. It then increases up to 25 students starting from Grade 1.”
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Owing to these initiatives, ‘communication’ was listed number one among GAAQ’s key strengths by the parents.
K12 Digest August 202216 further elaborates, “Each day, I ask myself, “Are the students and parents satisfied? Are they getting the calibre of education they expect? Is GAAQ the type of school students, teachers, and parents want to be a part of?” As a result, Mark and his senior management team refer and review the results of GAAQ’s biannual parent survey and then update the parent community on changes made based on this feedback via town hall meetings and social media.
Additionally, a parent relations executive is dedicated to maintaining harmony across parents, management, and the entire network of GEMS.
Nurturing Creativity and Innovative Thinking “Innovation is not just a word on our school walls or in our handbooks; it is the core value embedded in our conversations, classrooms and lessons,” shares Mark. Hence, it isn’t surprising that professional development sessions such as inquiry-based learning (IBL) & problem-based learning (PBL) are ready to be implemented at the school for the next two years.
At elementary levels, first-ever Musical Maker-Space is set up for students to create and perform musical compositions and experiment with new instruments. Similarly, level-specific Chromebook Labs are created where pupils can conduct research, engage in creative writing, complete assessments and participate invaluable learning opportunities. For GAAQ’s Upper School (Grade 6 - 12), coaching as an elective is offered to sports-savvy students who can teach classes, provide sporting activities, and lead athletic events
K12 Digest August 2022 17 under PE teachers’ supervision. Moreover, a student-led Eco Club has been established to teach students how aquaponics works and the importance of cultivating eco-alternatives for the betterment of the planet. Altogether, GAAQ offers a holistic learning environment that brings out students’ creative and innovative thinking.
A 100% College Acceptance Rate GAAQ is proud of its 100% college and university acceptance rate for each graduating class.
School Head & CEO Mark states, “Our high school guidance counsellor, in collaboration with the upper school principals, acts as an accountability partner with students and parents so that both groups understand their roles and goals and how to execute each student’s college/ university plans.”
This upper school guidance counsellor is responsible for checking-in weekly with students to inquire about their wellbeing, informing them about university and college fairs, helping them apply for admissions on Unifrog and UCAS, discussing scholarship options, registering them
Take Away Lessons from the Pandemic
K12 Digest August 202218 for SAT exams and building an upper school academic schedule that aligns with their university significant and future career plans.
At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, GAAQ worked hand-in-hand with the Ministry of Education (MOE), Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), and corresponding authorities to overcome the challenges and protect its communities during turbulent times.
“Our school’s senior leadership team helped cultivate an adaptive and solutionsoriented approach to the pandemic by embracing all available online, blended and face-to-face learning options,” shares Mark. Staying in line with the directives of the Qatari regulators, flexible school reopening and action plans were drafted. Thanks to these progressive initiatives, GAAQ was labelled as a model school for COVID-19 safety procedures by MOE and MOPH.
According to Mark, the pandemic has demonstrated that students who are independent, have tenacity, exercise innovation, foster a sense of purpose, and possess leadership skills are more adequately prepared to deal with rapid changes and technological advances. He further says, “Before COVID-19, I believed preparing students
Students and parents can approach parent relations executives for any query or updates related to college or university.
Emerging Strong during Pandemic
As the school’s Head & CEO, Mark has roadmapped a threefold approach for GAAQ’s future. He further elaborates, “Firstly, we are reevaluating and re-structuring our student support team to better meet the needs of gifted and talented students and students who are below grade level.”
K12 Digest August 2022 19 for the future was the single most important function of any school and today, I am even more convinced of this.”
Planning a Threefold Approach for the Future
Cherishing the Awards & Achievements In 2019, GAAQ received the highest level of accreditation offered by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC).
“After years of building a solid foundation, planning and executing goals, our dream finally came true,” proudly remarks Mark. GAAQ was also named among “The 10 Best International Schools in Qatar” and “Most Valuable Schools to Watch in the Middle-East” by The Knowledge Review magazine and is the only school in Qatar to offer the full Advanced Placement (AP) Capstone Diploma through College Board while offering 18 AP courses. Moreover, GAAQ provides an array of 60+ afterschool activities and a results-oriented English as a Second Language (ESL) program at no extra cost to families.
In line with his third strategy, Mark is currently brainstorming with GAAQ’s upper school principals to make an impactful differentiation between middle school and high school. For instance, in the upcoming academic session, middle and high school class schedules will be modified, and a full-time middle school guidance counsellor will be present to assist and advise students about academic and personal decisions.
In the same quest, a student support services coordinator has been appointed for the upcoming 2022-23 school academic year. “Secondly, we are excited to reintroduce sports teams, afterschool activities (ASAs), school spirit events, educational field trips, and schoolhouse challenges after a twoyear hiatus,” enthusiastically mentions Mark.
Impressively, GAAQ’s five core values— respect, innovation, leadership, purpose, and tenacity are integrated into the curriculum and weaved into the social fabric of the school’s culture. Therefore, an academic learning experience based on these principles is a pathway toward transforming young talents into future leaders.
CurtisClough,Superintendent ofHagermanMunicipalSchoolsinChavesCounty(NM),isa33-yeareducatorinfour differentstates,encompassingpublicandpost-secondaryeducationpositionsaswellasserving as the State Administrator of Career and Technical Education for Alaska. He also serves on the Executive Board of the New Mexico Association of currentlycollaboratedCareer/TechnicalEducation(NMACTE)andisthecurrentChairpersonfortheAdministrativeDivision.Inaddition,hehascloselywithWorkforceandEconomicDevelopmententitiesinhisvariouspositionsandisenthusiasticaboutaffordingstudentsopportunitiesinCareer/TechnicalEducation,sostudentsarecareerready.HehasheldpositionswiththeGrantCounty(NM)ProspectorsasPresidentandservedontheGrantCounty-SilverCityChamberofCommerce.HeservesinanadhoccapacityontheRoswell-ChavesCountyEconomicDevelopmentCorporationandispartneringwithLakeArthurSchoolsandotherentitiesonaHighSchool-CareerAcademymodelforthestudentsofthePecosValley.
Curtis M. Clough, Superintendent of School, Hageman Municipal Schools, New Mexico, United States
MENTOR’S OPINION
K12 Digest August 202220 Why CTE is a New Option for Student Success in Today’s K-12 System?
I
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Last time I checked I had to go to many college classes and pay a lot of money to get my degrees to be a teacher, coach, administrator, Superintendent or whatever job or title I have held in my career. Also, I thought teaching and administration were viable careers, so why are we lumping college and career ready in one lump sum title. Simple, most people associate career readiness with the level of education and degrees earned in one’s life, instead of the skills and abilities gained throughout life that can be utilized in one’s employment life which is the dialogue around career readiness.
Career and Technical Education (CTE) is not just a program, but an approach that builds the skills and abilities of our young people to fill the vacancies of our future job markets. This does not just start in High School but is a continuum in our educational approach of systemic actions to get kids motivated to learn as well as connect to their passions as to what they want to be when they grow up starting in early elementary school. Staring kids sooner in their educational careers on exploring their passions and desires allows for educators to tap into their potential and keep them actively engaged in project-based learning
Career and Technical Education (CTE) is not just a program, but an approach that builds the skills and abilities of our young people to fill the vacancies of our future job markets
n today’s world of K-12 education, so many options are available for students to choose their pathway in life from homeschooling to public or private school education to early college high school to Advance Placement courses to specialized charter schools to dual enrollment options to online virtual academies to whatever next trend will occur based on legislative or political will. Despite the options, state legislatures and other entities seem to focus on students advancing to two- or fouryear colleges or universities as college ready, but the shift in the last five to ten years has been to college and career ready. What exactly does that mean?
Aligning our educational system to age-appropriate skills and knowledge that are developmentally acceptable is key to being able to achieve our goal to prepare kids for career, and not just college
K12 Digest August 202222 or inquiry that develops the necessary skills to be a productive citizen in our society. Skill development starts at birth and cannot wait until a person reaches Middle School/High School to tap their potential. Research shows that literacy gaps and math gaps develop in the adolescent years between third and fifth grade, but some students so those gaps even earlier. If the goal of education is to prepare students for what they want to do in life instead of the state testing requirements, why not create a comprehensive CTE system that builds upon skills, knowledge and abilities that keep kids motivated and passionate about their education as well as give families opportunities to explore with their student options that fit the family and personal needs of the student.
Aligning our educational system to ageappropriate skills and knowledge that are developmentally acceptable is key to being able to achieve our goal to prepare kids for career, and not just college. Gradually building skills such as decision making, problem solving, communication skills and relationship building are all key elements of a child’s education, as educators, expect students to possess and gain throughout their educational careers. The continuum of knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA’s) need to be made as a priority, instead of content matter than can be researched and gained through smart technology and embedded in the actions we take as educators to ensure our students are progressing in their education careers toward a successful life after high school graduation. Life does not end at high school but is the foundation of next steps that need to occur for a student to be a productive, active citizen.
Why not allow students to do job shadowing, internships, and pre-apprenticeship programs prior to graduation so the student knows if this is his or her path in life. Exploratory and projectbased experiences are key to skill development and will assist in avoiding making mistakes in career choice once they leave high school.
Industry has always had issues with not having a prepared workforce and with the number of students deciding to delay entry into college after sitting out two to four years after graduation from high school, our workforce is changing.
Early exposure to projected occupations or opportunities that students may not know exist is important as STEAM and medical fields become hot topics in workforce retention and development. Students do not know what they do not know so constant exposure to these opportunities through virtual field trips, actual field trips or targeted career fairs and field days at younger ages will get students more oriented to career exploration and pursuit, instead on relying on the content-driven setting that mandatory testing requirements have spawned. Education is about exploration, learning and growing and why not align that activity to content that helps in developing our workforce of the future.
CTE is an option that can serve the best interests of students in so many ways, but traditional career education that starts later in a student’s career has been an obstacle to student success. Many students have already fallen behind grade-level expectations because the learning and development is not of interest or desire. Why not focus on the passions and desires of students that assists in developing a well-rounded, careerready student earlier in the K-12 setting? CTE is the avenue that will allow students to develop necessary skills to be productive citizens and be engaged in their own learning. Our workforce of tomorrow is contingent on changes that are made in collaboration between education and industry partners being, so we have the future medics, skilled trades people or whatever our students desire that are fully prepared to perform the duties and functions necessary in their career pathway.
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Many careers require college and advanced training after high school that can come from pre-apprenticeship/apprenticeship programs, on the job training programs or even enlistment in the military if so desired so the individual can come out from active service with a skill set that is marketable and employable. Having student pursue these opportunities earlier in their educational career as well as continued exploration of other options in career readiness can only serve our communities and students better because they are better informed of what these careers need, want and are available so they do not waste money on opportunities that may be better served through workforce development and training. Kids are staring to make decisions earlier and earlier in life that disqualify them from potential opportunities in life to purse for career. As educators, we need to be able to focus on preparing students through skill development that allows them to be better citizens and what they choose to do in life—not pigeonholed because of no support or guidance through their schooling
Finally,years.with the focus on the failures of our public education system in the United States, the change of focus to a skills-based approach and immersion in key, fundamental career-ready skills are a win-win for educators and workforce.
L ast week, my 10-year-old daughter was showing me the new drawing she created on Procreate App on her iPad. This was not surprising to me especially since she always practices drawing using this app. My surprise was when she told me that she is thinking of making her own NFT collection to start selling them. I asked her if she knows what NFTs are, and she said it is digital art that can be bought in cryptocurrency. This conversation was astonishing and tackled one of the critical topics that was lurking in myBlockchainmind. and cryptocurrency have the potential to revolutionize the way we do business, finance, and how to protect and store our assets. Cryptocurrencies have already begun to have an impact on our daily lives, with the value of some coins soaring or plunging overnight. While the future of crypto-assets remains uncertain,
Learning Crypto and NFTs in Schools - How We Can Get Ahead of the Curve
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ADMIN
Shady Elkassas, Education Consultant, Perfect Purity, UAE PERSPECTIVE
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Shady is a multiple award-winning and passionate Egyptian educator working in United Arab Emirates. He is a winner of Khalifa Award of Education Excellence, and Middle East Education Influencer Award winner. Since his childhood, he had looked forward to a career in teaching, and become a committed educator providing high standards and practices in the education of young people. He believes that the capstone of education is to give every student equal opportunities to learn and for this reason, a true educator is the one who acknowledges, respects, and appreciates students’ diverse backgrounds, learning styles, intelligence, and abilities. Following this perspective, he has centred his teaching repertoire around the concept of searching for the best way to meeting students’ individual needs. Blockchain
waytohavecryptocurrencyandthepotentialrevolutionizethewedobusiness, finance, and how to protect and store our assets
At this point, it is worth taking a moment to discuss what we exactly mean when we refer to cryptocurrency education. Simply put, cryptocurrency education teaches people about cryptocurrencies and the technology that underlies them. This knowledge can be applied to a wide variety of scenarios, from using One of the most significant reasons to begin
What is the Current State of Cryptocurrency Education?
howcryptocurrencystudentsteachingaboutandNFTsistoprovidethemwithabetterunderstandingofownershipworksintheblockchainecosystem
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there is a growing number of people who are considering blockchain and crypto-assets for the future. In this article, we will explore some of the ways you can get your school on board with teaching students about crypto and digital assets, and we will explain why it is so important. We will begin by looking at the current state of cryptocurrency education and the problems facing those who are attempting to learn more about it. From there, we will explore some of the benefits of introducing cryptocurrency and NFTs (non-fungible tokens) into your school’s curriculum. We will also explore some of the best ways you can start introducing this material into your class, both now and in the future.
While cryptocurrencies have been around for quite some time, the vast majority of people still have little knowledge about them. Of those who do know about them, even fewer have taken the time to learn about the blockchain and the NFT (non-fungible token) ecosystem that cryptocurrencies have created. As cryptocurrencies increasingly become a part of everyday life, it is important that more people learn about them, and that they have a context in which to learn. As cryptocurrencies grow more popular, the need to educate the public on their benefits and risks is even more important.
Why Introduce Crypto and NFTs Into the Curriculum?
Best Practices for Introducing Cryptocurrency and NFTs Into the Curriculum
Start Small – One of the best ways to get your students interested in crypto and NFTs is to begin with a smaller lesson. This may involve breaking the lesson down into digestible chunks and allowing the students to take what they need from the lesson. For example, you could break down the difference between crypto and fiat money, or you could discuss the basic concepts of blockchain and distributed ledger technology.
– One of the most significant challenges that educators face when it comes to teaching about cryptocurrency is finding a compelling reason to do so. This may be due to the fact that most of us have heard enough about blockchain and cryptocurrencies to last a lifetime, but we don’t truly understand why it is important. This is especially true for those who are wary of new technologies and are hesitant to get on board. You can overcome this challenge by finding ways to focus on the significant benefits of introducing your students to the blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystem.
cryptocurrencies as a method of payment to investing in the technology itself. With that in mind, the following are some of the things that people should know about cryptocurrency and its surrounding ecosystem.
Another significant benefit of introducing your students to crypto and NFTs is the ability to reduce their risk of losing their money to unscrupulous individuals and organizations. By educating them on the differences between crypto assets and traditional financial assets, you can reduce the risk of them losing their funds to fraudsters and other scammers.
Focus On Why This Technology Is Important
One of the most significant reasons to begin teaching students about cryptocurrency and NFTs is to provide them with a better understanding of how ownership works in the blockchain ecosystem. This will come in handy when they begin to explore how they can use NFTs to represent ownership of assets such as digital art, real estate, or shares. A deeper understanding of ownership will also help to reduce the risk of fraud and miscommunication, two major issues that have plagued the adoption of blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies in the past.
Adding blockchain, cryptocurrency, and NFT to our curriculum is fundamental knowledge that should be introduced to our students to allow them to be ready for the diverse future market.
There are a number of ways that you can introduce your students to cryptocurrency and NFTs, both now and in the future. Let’s begin by looking at the best practices for getting started.
The Benefits of adding Cryptocurrency & NFTs into the Curriculum
While there are many reasons to teach your students about crypto, one of the most significant ones is to reduce the risk of fraud. Educating your students on cryptocurrency and blockchain will go a long way toward showing them that this technology has legitimate uses, and it will help to allay their concerns about fraud and mismanagement in the system.
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K12 Digest August 202228 Location: Sharjah, United Arab Emirates Keyperson: Majd C. Hussain, Principal How to Apply: Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates Keyperson: Edward Quinlan, Chairman How to Apply: American School of Creative Science - Maliha Road Dubai College Website: Website: https://ascs.sch.ae/maliha/index www.dubaicollege.org https://ascs.sch.ae/maliha/admission-overview us/admissionshttps://www.dubaicollege.org/joinSCHOOLSINTERNATIONALMUST-WATCHINTHEMIDDLEEAST2022
K12 Digest August 2022 29 GEMS Modern Academy The American International School of Muscat GEMS American Academy Qatar GEMS Dubai American Academy Location: Al Wakrah, Qatar Keyperson: Mark Lentz, Head of School How to Location:Apply:Dubai, United Arab Emirates Keyperson: Nargish Khambatta, Principal, Vice-President Education How to Apply: Location: Muscat, Oman Keyperson: Kevin Schafer, Director How to Location:Apply:Dubai, United Arab Emirates Keyperson: Dr. Ethan Hildreth, Superintendent/CEO How to Apply:Website:Website: Website:Website:com/enhttps://www.gemsamericanacademy-qatar.www.gemsmodernacademy-dubai.com https://www.taism.com/www.gemsaa-dubai.comcom/en/Admissionshttps://www.gemsamericanacademy-qatar.https://www.gemsmodernacademy-dubai.com/Admissions https://www.taism.com/admissionshttps://www.gemsaa-dubai.com/Admissions
K12 Digest August 202230 The International School of Choueifat The American International School - Riyadh The Pearl Academy The British International School Riyadh Website: Website: https://www.aisr.org/ https://www.bisr.com.sa/ Website: https://iscmanama.sabis.net/ Website: https://www.thepearlacademy.sch.ae/ Location: Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Keyperson: Colin Boudreau, Superintendent How to Location:Apply:Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain Keyperson: Samir Zakkak, School Director How to Apply: Location: Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Keyperson: Barbara Heaton, Principal How to Location:Apply:Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Keyperson: Helen Olds, Principal How to Apply: prospective-familieshttps://iscmanama.sabis.net/admissions/https://www.aisr.org/admissions enrolment-process/https://www.thepearlacademy.sch.ae/https://www.bisr.com.sa/admission
Continue Learning with A Secure Virtual Classroom for K-12 Share files applicationsand Poll students Interact with breakout groups Chat with participantsfellow The raise hand feature ensures every student has a voice Use in andclassroomthebeyond JOIN SESSION Easy login, downloadingnoorinstallation Share and record video and audio personalizedCreateprofiles
Best Practices for K12
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Sirin Mohamed is an experienced School Operations Professional passionate about a child-centred ‘safe-learning environment’. He has been working with various schools across the UAE for over a decade and is well-versed with local Education authority statutes. As a zealous leader, Sirin is well-known for his versatile teambinding skills, strong ethics and integrity, and an empathetic and inspirational persona that drives him and those around him. He holds a Master’s in Human Resources Management; with a vision to foster teaching and learning; as a safe, stimulating and enriching experience for the teachers and students.
Sirin SeniorMohamed,SchoolOperations Specialist
BEST PRACTICES
OperationsSchool
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B est practices for K12 school operations differ for various reasons, even though some uncompromised elements surface, irrespective of the differences in operational practices. Here are some relevant points which could be considered for the best practices. Implementation of the below text might be debatable, but the understanding and awareness can never be. We are involved with an unwavering commitment to grooming the next generation because of our K12 community.
A good recording and reporting system will give ample space for all staff to share and report their concerns related to maintenance, incident or accident. An open policy of recording maintenance helps the staff members to share their concerns about what is happening in the facility and premises around them. An effective reporting system will help identify the operational risk factors early. Each staff should understand the importance of why they need to report an accident or incident on Best practices for K12 school operations differ for various reasons, even though some uncompromised elements surface, irrespective of the differences in operational practices
One key step is preparing a safe learning environment at school which is the key success of every operations manager. Effective learning will only take place in a safe and secure environment. Ensuring such in every classroom before students and teachers arrive is the prime focus of the school operations team. A safe learning environment and safeguarding are built around policy, procedure and process to reduce or eliminate risk. Principles of safeguarding should be embedded with empowerment, prevention, partnership, accountability and protection. Risk assessment is another major task that helps identify the risk in advance so that the prevention methods can also be fixed before the incident/accident occurs. Effective safeguarding will never be far away if this combination of preventive steps comes together.
Safe Learning Environment
Recording and Reporting
Communication and Relationship Building
time and how this benefits their peer or children. Through frequent workshop/training, uplift the staff about the importance of reporting; once every member shares the same page of understanding, a collective responsibility develops high operational practice. The operation manager’s monthly selfcompliance checklist should also give insight and self-realisation about the existing system. This whole process will reflect the culture of working togetherness throughout the school.
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Two effective features of a school are communication and relationship building. Best operational facts evolve around communication and relationship building among stakeholders, especially between home and school. Under any circumstance, no stakeholder should leave the operation manager’s office saying my concerns/ questions/complaints are unattended. A school is successful with strong communication links of all stakeholders working together. Feedback is the core element of a healthy relationship. If the stakeholders are getting a space to share their thoughts or views about the betterment of an existing scenario, that has to be encouraged and through that process relationship with the school starts. Ensuring everybody gets an equal opportunity to share their concerns makes the school dependable. Relationship building is one of the KPIs defining the efficiency of a school.
Operational managers’ key strategy should progress through effective communication and healthy relationship with stakeholders. School Transport A recent study shows that most parents choose the school based on the availability of school
The
sequenceawaremanageroperationsshouldbeofthelogicaloftheschoolimprovementplananditsshort-termandlong-termgoals
Budget Management and Cost control
Once the budget is finalised, adequate measures are to be placed to monitor the budget. During the post-budget scenario, value for money and accountability should be the key tool of budget management and how it impacts the school improvement plan (SIP). The operations manager should be aware of the logical sequence of the school improvement plan and its short-term and long-term goals. The school improvement plan is an agreed document with the input of governors and SLT. Keeping in mind the content of SIP will be an easy process for the operation manager to make a good decision. If it’s a long-term target, he should be flexible with the quality of the purchasing product or vice versa. Such choices are easily made only if you clearly understand the SIP. During the purchase process, value for money should be the prime factor before signing the LPO. Along with that, develop the importance of accountability for the decision-making process. If we are held accountable or assigned to, the responsible employee will take a more cautious approach while taking decisions.
Operations managers’ frequent and timely involvement in reviewing the school transport process is highly recommended to streamline towards parents and child convenience without losing the school’s financial feasibility.
K12 Digest August 2022 35 transport. 30 to 40 minutes or lesser are considered as an ideal time for one way for their ward. Good route planning will encourage parents to choose school transport above their own vehicle. Offering a discounted price for the nearby school location and through that, if we can reduce the traffic chaos, parents shouldn’t be worried about leaving the office. Parents are worried about leaving the offices twice a day for drop off/pick up and a large number of parents’ entry at the same time creates traffic chaos in front of the school. To overcome this, the school should offer at least discounted bus fees to parents at nearby locations. This scenario could improve school transport revenue and reduce traffic during peak hours.
All stakeholders’ inputs are valuable for cost control. Asking secondary students for support to supervise energy saving after class is one of the practical steps. Turning off AC and lights in the secondary section classroom is a good assignment they could collectively finish in less than 5 minutes. Besides, they could apply the same initiative at home to reduce the monthly utility bills. This will give confidence to the secondary students to place their thoughts about the future with the components of social responsibility. Moreover, a stable relationship is built between school and home, attaining one more KPI.
School transport is the only defined space where students of the same school interact and socialise with different age groups and learn social standards. Constructive social platforms are much essential and helpful in boosting the mental well-being of the students. Proper awareness to the parents about additional benefits of school transport rather than a commuting solution is a sellingSchoolpoint.bus assistant also plays a crucial role here. They are the only key point of contact for most parents daily. Proper training and guidelines empower them to interact with parents confidently, and thus parents will place themselves in a comfort zone. Once the comfort zone is developed, parents will think about the continuation that helps the school achieve one of the KPIs.
ACADEMIC VIEW
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UAE
helplearningbeyondneedcompetitionsSheyears,andmaster’sAmalAlAbdullahholdsbachelor’sdegreeinphysicsanddegreeineducation.Shegraduatedwithhonorswasawardedagoldenvisa.ShehasbeenteachingscienceatAlIttihadNationalPrivateSchool,UAEfor13andmiddleschoolstudentsforthepast7years.hasparticipatedinmanynationalandinternationalandlearnedmoreabouttheeducationsystemsofdifferentcountries.Shebelievesthatstudentstobeencouragedtoexploreandresearchinformationtextbooks,usingdifferentteachingstrategieshelpsinmotivatingstudentstolearn.Amal’sgoalistoconnecttostudents’values,interests,experiences,andtothemgrowtheirthinkingandintelligence.
asMyTeachingLearningInquiry-BasedandScience:ExperiencesaTeacher
Amal Teacher,AlAbdullah,AlIttihadNational Private School,
IBL differs from the traditional model of teacherled instruction in a few key ways. First, students take the lead in both the process and the product of learning. Teachers are there to guide the process, not lead it. Second, IBL is based on openended questions. Traditional lesson plans tend to revolve around multiple-choice quizzes and tests. Third, IBL is not just a classroom concept. It can In IBL, students are expected to pose research questions, collect and analyse data, and draw their own conclusions
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What is Inquiry-Based Learning? Inquiry-based learning (IBL) is an approach to teaching that focuses on student-led inquiry and discovery. It is an excellent way to make a subject come alive as students ask their own questions and find their own answers. In IBL, students are expected to pose research questions, collect and analyse data, and draw their own conclusions.
A s a science teacher, I was often faced with the challenge of teaching concepts and ideas that were not always easy to understand. In those moments, I would have to look for ways and strategies to make my students understand what we were doing in class. To do this, I experimented with different learning and teaching methods. After much trial and error, I found a few that worked well: Inquiry-based Learning (IBL) and Teaching Science with games. Those two strategies have been key to my success as a teacher of science. In this article, you will discover what they are, how they can help you as an educator, and some resources on them if you want to learn more.
Inquiry-based Learning in Practice Inquiry-based learning is an approach to teaching that focuses on student-led inquiry and discovery. It is an excellent way to make a subject come alive as students ask their own questions and find their own answers. In IBL, students are expected to pose research questions, collect and analyse data, and draw their own conclusions. IBL differs from the traditional model of teacher-led instruction in a few key ways. First, students take the lead in both the process and the product of learning. Teachers are there to guide the process, not lead it. Second, IBL is based on open-ended questions. Traditional lesson plans tend to revolve around multiple-choice quizzes and tests. Third, IBL is
be applied to any field of study. Scientists at all levels of their profession use IBL as a research method.
Teaching science with games is not just about the game that you may have played as a child. It is about the application of game-based learning in a classroom setting. This technique includes the design, development, and implementation of games (paper, board, digital or other forms) to facilitate the process of learning science concepts. This approach is used in a variety of settings, including science museums, after-school programs, and even university or high school classrooms. The premise is that games can help learners develop critical thinking and problemsolving skills that are essential in scientific thinking. In education, the goals of game-based learning can include teaching basic concepts, demonstrating relationships between concepts, and reinforcing the application of concepts in the real world.
Teaching Science with Games
Here are a few options: - Board games: These games are most suited for upper secondary school classrooms. - Card games: These provide many options, but they are most effective in elementary school classrooms. - Role-playing games: These are suited for any age group and are appropriate for most subjects. - Simulations and computer games: These are best for upper secondary school and university students.Puzzles: These are best for younger students.Science experiments: These are the ultimate in inquiry-based learning. - Science fairs: These showcase students’ understanding of a concept in a way that no other approach can.
K12 Digest August 2022 39 not just a classroom concept. It can be applied to any field of study. Scientists at all levels of their profession use IBL as a research method.
Conclusion IBL and games-based learning, when used together, are powerful tools for teaching science. These approaches allow students to learn by posing their own questions and solving their own problems. These approaches allow educators to take a step back, creating an environment where students can explore concepts in a self-directed way. Inquiry-based learning and games-based learning are two powerful ways to make science come alive for students. If you want to make your class more engaging and interactive, these two strategies can be very helpful.
IBL and games-based learning, when used together, are powerful tools for teaching science
In order to use games for learning, you need to understand how games work. Although the rules for different types of games may differ, most games have a goal, rules, and challenges that players must overcome. For example, in a game of chess, players try to capture the other player’s king. The rules specify that each player has 16 pieces and that one player will have the king while the other will have the queen. Each player also has a board and pieces of different shapes and colours. In a classroom setting, instructors can use games to teach any science concept. For example, they can create a game to help students learn about molecules or the types of ecosystems. If you are interested in exploring game-based learning with your students, there are many different types of games you can use.
Teaching Science with Games in Practice
Eric Wei is the Sr. Sales Director of ViewSonic Asia Pacific. He has been a part of the ICT (Information and Communications Technology) industry for over 18 years. Prior to accepting the role as Sr. Sales Director of ViewSonic he was associated with BenQ for more than eight years as their SeniorManagerforMarketDevelopment.
K12 Digest August 202240
INDUSTRY VIEW
Smart Classes:
The Future of Embracing the TechnologyAdvanced
Eric SeniorWei,Sales Director, ViewSonic
igital evolution in the education sector has been making rapid strides and is anticipated to accelerate magnificently. Consequently, the teaching-learning methodology has evolved with technological advancements and has led to a tremendous transformation from teachercentred education to student-centred education.
In India, a ‘Smart Class’ is an evolving concept and a new vision in the education sector. Furthermore, the hybrid model is becoming more recognizable, leading to virtual classrooms and various innovative online tools giving the feel of a classroom-type experience.
Some essential tools to enhance the experience include Manage resources in the cloud –With smart classes and digital learning gaining traction, it is imperative to have an integrated platform to store all the resources. Furthermore, the cloud storage feature is becoming an added benefit for educators and students, allowing for easy access from anywhere, as well as efficiency in synchronising and updating.
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Game-Based Learning Methodology –Gamification is gaining new momentum in the education system. Teachers engage their students in education-based games such as quizzes and
The smart classroom is an innovative and andcomputer,classroomtechnology-equippedembeddedwithaaudio-visualequipment,asmartinteractivewhiteboard
The smart classroom is an innovative and technology-equipped classroom embedded with a computer, audio-visual equipment, and a smart interactive whiteboard. The education sector has progressed in the past five to six years. As a result, it is more inclined toward user-friendly technology or products which can strengthen and improvise the smart education system in India.
D
Video-Assisted Learning –This method has proven to be more influential in creating an interactive and dynamic learning environment. As smart classes are booming, interactive whiteboards are becoming more prevalent in enhancing engagement amongst educators and learners. Similarly, it is essential to develop education-based technology to improvise the current techniques.
Visual Experience –
It is extremely crucial to develop and modernize education in India. With each passing day, online learning is becoming better than the traditional classroom experience. To strengthen the smart classroom concept, it is necessary to create an engaging, interactive, and effective environment which is of utmost importance to enlarge the product portfolio.
Smart tools will bring quality education to students by helping them grow, develop skills and build better concepts. It will also allow teachers to continue teaching and inspiring their students to learn, regardless of their location and the current situation.
It is also important to dwell on a product which can offer features such as screen casting, throwing, & mirroring between devices and further providing an active learning environment. With evolved technologies such as virtual and augmented reality, these build an interactive learning platform which further improves teaching and learning methodology.
Some of the benefits of Smart Classes areIncreased Access to Learning
For instance, product such as digital whiteboard is imperative in creating such experience. A digital whiteboard device enables educators to connect their students via video upgrading towards more clarity. Platforms to support learning –Adopting towards new mode of learning, there are various platforms that offer ample number of tools and features to enhance the learning experience for the students. These platforms make teaching easier for the educators as well and makes learning a hassle- free process. Various collaborative software are also helping to enhance the teaching and learning experience. Embedded with efficient features such as file sharing, chat, video conferencing, easy management of documents, and managing classroom activities, it offers an intuitive and immersive experience.
Interactive displays available in various sizes is adopted in schools and institutes. The product drives a concrete methodology for learning, from being compatible with multiple users in one go-to logging in from anywhere and accessing and sharing files.
Help students understand the topic better Teachers in the age of smart classes help students understand concepts more clearly by assimilating audio-visual information and using tools such as PowerPoint presentations, word documents, audio sessions, video screenings, and images.
K12 Digest August 202242 puzzles to promote critical thinking skills and augment interactive sessions, making learning fun.
People respond quickly and remember things through pictures, therefore, increasing engagement and retention. To make the experience more productive, tech-enabled products become an integral part of the education ecosystem.
Various smart classroom products and solutions, imply that easy access to learning attracts more students from a wider range of locations. Additionally, technology video sharing option for an active learning environment, screen-casting, throwing, & mirroring between devices upgrades the learning methods.
Other Smart Class Products –
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Improves student and academic performance. Increases participation in classes, improves study habits and increases the learning routine. Educational platform available 24/7. Luca is always present in the study routine and allows access from anywhere and at any time. Increases the level of attention in class. Luca helps students by providing learning tools that allow them to be attentive in classes.withlearningstudentsImprovingwww.lucaedu.comLuca /Lucaeducacion /Lucaeducacion /Lucaeducacion
The educationalmicrolearningplatform with key learnings and official lessons available to everyone.
Now operating in LATAM and developed by experts in pedagogy, with previous experience in leading educational publishers such as Santillana, and tech companies such as Crehana, Netflix and Uber. To know more about Luca, follow us on social media
Benefits of studying with Luca educational platform
Students can use Luca to reinforce what they’ve learned in school, do homework, review, study for tests and learn new concepts for the first time.
Catherine O’Farrell, Founding Partner, Incluzun, UAE
K12 Digest August 202244
Catherine has been working in education and inclusion for almost 20 years and is passionate about developing opportunities under UN SDGs 4 and 8. She has worked with international and national committees from the Global
Research Updates in EducationInclusive
speakertoSustainabilityNetworktotheMinistryofEducationintheUAEpushforamoresustainableandinclusiveworld.SheisthefounderofIncluzunandsheisaregularconferenceandmediacontributorandhostsanInternationalForumonInclusion&Wellbeing.
ACADEMIC VIEW
The paper stimulates inward reflection at all levels in a school - senior leadership, middle leaders cascading down through all levels to administrative and support staff like maintenance and bus drivers. Seeking to reveal the true, common ethos in the schools under investigation. It suggests that true inclusivity can only be present if ALL stakeholders are committed to an inclusive vision.
The paper found that “certain structures are needed when planning how to develop mutual values when organising an inclusive school”. This paper demonstrates that inclusivity (like any core value) takes a targeted and structured approach to ensure that it is not only embedded but practiced in the school. This paper addresses the need to engage and encourage all stakeholders to commit and carry out the necessary changes to consecrate an inclusive repertoire in the school. An integral ingredient for this recipe, the paper suggests, is building concrete, lasting change. This, it states, can be achieved by building, driving and maintaining firm stakeholder buy - in. Concrete, lasting change is not an easy thing to achieve. Any manager who has overseen any project, staff overview or any type of reform knows how challenging it can be to embed change well. John Kotter, Harvard professor and Change management in a school can lead to many complexities, particularly when people are resistant to that change
T he Journal of Educational Administration recently released an article investigating Principals’ perspectives of inclusive education. The researchers sought to investigate inclusivity from a phenomenological perspectiveasking the question: “how can we develop and embed a true ethos of inclusivity that is no longer a task, separate to the mechanics of the educational machine, but rather, an integrated feature that flows like the life blood of academics and learning?”
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K12 Digest August 202246 change management expert, created a theory of change management focused primarily on the people involved in the organisation and their psychology. With schools being such complex structures, a focus on people is paramount.
2. Build your change team with leaders and change agents of various skills and departments
8. Maintain the changes after the initial project is Changecompletemanagement in a school can lead to many complexities, particularly when people are resistant to that change. Leaders are very often isolated from the general staff and report heavy burdens on their wellbeing. School management is reported widely as being one of the top most stressful jobs. This is reflected in research too. When implementing change in schools, Principals reported “a sense of loneliness in relation to their superiors and decisionmakers” (Östlund, 2021). This takes a toll on wellbeing and a sense of belonging. In a job that is highly stressful anyway- adding to this stress does not help.
3. Define your strategic vision for what you want to accomplish
4. Communicate with everyone involved in the change management process to get them on board and make sure they know their role
So how can we avoid this kind of stress when implementing a new programme or change in a school?
By implementing a structured approach, one that is people focused (like Kotters) it was found that all stakeholders were strategically engaged at every level and inclusive practice was greatly improved. This engagement effect is reflected further in a case study of change management in the NHS (National Health Service, UK) (Bamfod & Daniel, 2007). Health Care workers managers similar profiles to educational managers. Both experience high levels of stress, both report a sense of huge responsibility in their roles and both report a sense of worth and purpose that is higher than most Research suggests that schools, like many
bottomorganisations,complexneedbothtopdownandupsupportindrivingchange
5. Identify roadblocks and address anything causing friction
7. Keep up the momentum throughout the process of implementation
6. Create short-term goals to break your change management plan into achievable steps
1. Create a sense of urgency to motivate people
Kotter’s change management theory involves 8 steps to creating meaningful and long lasting change in any organisation:
Success is not an accident, it comes from hard work and effort but we do not need to reinvent the wheel every time we tackle a messy problem. By looking to the research, tried and tested methodologies, we can have a much greater chance of success.
● Begin by assessing the alignment between the school’s strategy and structure to motivate for change.
So how can we take all of this research and convert it into something meaningful and useful for a school?
K12 Digest August 2022 47 other jobs. Taking this healthcare case studywe can apply some of the same practices in our similar field of education. Kotters model proved effective in building a shared ethos and core value system. This was initially driven top down but became embedded and practiced from the bottom up. Research suggests that schools, like many complex organisations, need both top down and bottom up support in driving change. As da Vinci said- “we need to learn how to see that everything connects to everything else”.
● As the project unfolds, iterations and developments may call for slight adjustments and calibration.
To make change manageable we can emulate the research. Focus on a single tool, like the IEP and build a whole school plan of action around it. Focus on improving one key feature of practice that can impact all academics. This helps to narrow the lens and zoom in on a single manageable set of actions. These actions are streamlined, clear cut, measurable and, hopefully, easier to manage than a more complex, large scale approach.
In April 2020 an article in the Journal of Inclusive Education delved into the bottom up drive of inclusive education. Focusing on how instructional leadership affected teachers ability to operate in a fully inclusive manner. This research focuses on developing an isolated single practice or tool which has ripple effects to drive momentum for changes in inclusive practice.
● Evaluate whether the school’s social networks (including all stakeholders) are fostering execution and innovation of this focused change.
● Constantly implement tactics to increase strategic agility and estimate any resilience encountered.
● Assess each speed bump as it arises and address them incrementally.
As principals, we get caught up in the day to day running of a school and rarely have time to step back and implement large scale structured programmes BUT taking the time to design and deliver an evidence based programme can change the whole trajectory of a school for the better.
In this paper, principals took the Individual Education Plan IEP as a tool to lever changes aroundUsinginclusion.atargeted approach, they engaged all stakeholders and upskilled the whole staff, external practitioners and parents around the effective use of this single tool. This approach was found to have a significant impact on perceptions of inclusive practice and ultimately on student participation and success in class. The Kellogg school of change management adds clear steps to achieving success through this type of focused project.
● Balance different organisational structures and allow for both execution and innovation.
● Gradually build sustainable change.
K12 Digest August 202248 Best K-12PracticesMarketingforEducation Devdeep Guha, Senior Marketing Specialist INDUSTRY VIEW
endHesuccessfullyUAEDevdeepGuhaisaseniormarketingprofessionalbasedinDubai,havingstrongexperienceinK-12InternationalSchoolsector.Hehasleadbrandre-positioning,advertisingandcommunicationfunctionsinleadingK-12internationaleducationalorganizationsinDubai.isrecognisedforimplementingdigitalmarketingstrategyandrunningendtodigitalcampaignsalongsideofflinemarketingfunctionstocreatewinningstrategies.
In his previous coordinatedprofessionalincludemarketingrolewithaleadingK-12schoolorganizationinDubai,heiscreditedwithsuccessfulset-upofofflineandonlinefunctionsfromscratchandevolvingtheinstitutionintoasoughtafterbrand.Hisothercompetenciesinspiringandmentoringmulticulturalteammembersintodeliveringexceptionaloutcomes.Inhisjourney,whileworkingwithadvertisingcompanies,DevdeephasbeenfortunatetobeassociatedwithiconicbrandsinUAE.Inthisarticle,heshareshisinsightsonabroadrangeofmarketingtasks,whichwithplanningcanbringabouttransformationalchangesinanorganisation.
Schools with well-established marketing strategies have a monopoly which might seem insurmountable for institutions that have not adapted to the growing need for better marketing.
Creating a Marketing Plan: It all starts with a marketing plan. Although, there might be a generational difference in students and parents being targeted today, and technology has opened up new marketing channels, the essence of education marketing has remained, more or less, the same. Education marketing is all about community engagement, student enrollment, and sharing your brand values with your audience. How you engage with the community, what you offer your students, and the values that permeate the academic environment you provide are all part of brand experience and brand positioning.
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T
How you engage with the community, what you offer your students, and the values that permeate the academic environment you provide are all part of brand experience and brand positioning
Before going onto the specifics, you need to establish some marketing objectives on which you will build your brand.
The first thing you need to ascertain is towards whom this marketing strategy is aimed. Is it the educators, administrators, the parents, or the students? If you are a public institution, you would want to appeal to administrators, while also focusing on the students and parents because ultimately the number of enrollments will drive your funding.
echnology today has revamped and introduced fresh opportunities in business as well as education. With competition soaring high in the academic field, many charter schools as well as for-profit institutions are strategizing marketing plans to build awareness for their school.
A study by RNL found that the median cost of recruiting an undergraduate student in a private institution was $2,114 in 2020. With a successful marketing plan, academic institutions can become competitive with the best in the business.
The study done by RNL indicated a predicted 65% increase in activity allocation of web services and digital advertising in private institutions and 48% increase in public institutions. Meanwhile, respondents predicted a 26% decrease in the activity of traditional advertising. Whatever niche you choose in the education market, your brand will always have competitors. You need to position your brand as a leader amongst your chosen niche so as to entice students and parents to choose your institute over another. There are a host of things
From there on, the most obvious goal is to set a target as to the number of student enrollments you want to achieve. However, the marketing objectives will typically contend with more than merely an increase in enrollment. You will position your brand in such a way as to achieve those goals.
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Brand Positioning: You will need to target a niche or target a specific audience in order for your brand to stand out. Your brand can, for instance, target expats and offer exceptional language courses to help bilingual students. K-12 education precludes some marketing opportunities that are more prevalent in marketing for higher education programs. In higher education programs, the students have a lot more say and setting up students for high-paying careers through partnerships and internship programs have a significant role. By comparison, K-12 education is targeted more towards parents, while also keeping students in mind. When creating a marketing plan targeting parents, we need to keep in mind the demographic. The new generation of parents looking to enroll their children in K-12 programs have grown up with an ever-increasing influence of technology. Millennial parents rely much more on technology to inform their decisions than the more traditional means in the past, meaning that digital marketing has an integral role in any marketing strategy.
K12 Digest August 2022 51 you can be a leader from price to extracurricular programs to technological facilities.
Call to action conversion rates will inform you about the number of website visitors and how they are funneled into conversions. If the former number is low, you can try to improve the SEO of your website to increase organic visitors, if the latter is low, you will need to create a more effective call to action strategy. Therefore, KPIs give you a more actionable metric to put your effortsSocialinto.media engagement can be affected in various ways. Some universities have created individual pages for each department. However, in K-12 education marketing, this might not be viable, and social media marketing, in general, might play less of a role.
Brand Experience: The brand experience is built on a number of marketing factors such as brand playbook, digital and social media management, public relations and influencer marketing, events, and direct marketing and tactical campaigns.
Create Relevant KPIs:
Create Appropriate Personas: You will need to create personas for the parents and students you are targeting. An educational institution does not cater to one specific kind of parent. You will need different personas for different sections of the target demographic. For instance, you might need to have a separate persona for an international family and another one for a local family. You can use polling and surveying to get a better sense of your target audience in order to create realistic personas that yield positive results. Your marketing efforts will always keep these personas in mind, for instance, if you are creating text content, you will need to consider how the parent personas will receive the content.
Brand Playbook: When you are creating content for your target audience, you need to maintain a consistent brand image. This is not only true for branding on correspondence and letterheads but is also true for the type of language you use in any online Public relations play a vital role in determining how your brand is viewed publicly and can be used to advise you on how to
interactionsapproachwiththecommunity
Increasing enrollment numbers is a very general goal. In order to facilitate growth, you need to consider some KPIs that can be addressed in a more actionable way. These KPIs include CTA conversion rates, the contribution of traffic sources, and social media engagement. The traffic sources can vary and will give you a clear idea of what is working and what is not.
Digital and Social Media Marketing: You might want to start with rebuilding your website to be consistent with your brand experience. General marketing strategies are, needless to say, still pertinent. If your website is not mobile-friendly, for instance, it will have as negative an impact as if it is not consistent with your Speakingbranding.ofconsistency, you might want to improve your search engine strategy to have a strong online presence. You might focus on strong local SEO with consistent structured data and positive reviews for rich results. You might also want to explore the PPC ad pipeline and crunch the numbers to create an effective digital ad campaign.
K12 Digest August 202252 social media post. The content should always reflect your brand image. This can even include color schemes such as those used consistently by major social media networks. These brand traits are what we call the brand playbook.
Through lead generation or otherwise, direct marketing strategies can be employed to engage the audience directly
Keeping your target audience in mind, you can also expand your online presence to include social media management. The posts and engagements will also be reflective of your brand experience. Social media engagement is more prevalent among Gen Z and can be used to share academic experiences relevant to them in order to let them know what to expect.
Public Relations and Influencer Marketing: Public relations play a vital role in determining how your brand is viewed publicly and can be used to advise you on how to approach interactions with the community. The advice of a PR team can be taken and put into actionable objectives such as arranging community events, giving press releases, and arranging for promotional content to be produced. This can also inform an institution on the type of influencers to associate with. Influencer marketing brings to mind popular content creators, social media figures, and streamers. However, students, alumni, and professors can act as influencers for your institution. Your current students can be encouraged to share their experiences and these can be recorded online, published in student blogs, or even used in school newsletters. Similarly, alumni can be inspirational and share how the institution shaped them into successful individuals later on in life.
Events: School events are an excellent way to interact with the community and showcase your brand experience. Events can be wide-ranging and serve a variety of purposes. Open houses can offer parents an opportunity to witness firsthand the values and principles embodied in your scheduled academic activities. Workshops can showcase what students can learn from your institution in both academic as well as non-academic settings. This can be appealing to both students and parents alike. Inter-school competitions and events can highlight the capabilities of your institution and can bring a lot of public attention.
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Direct Marketing or Tactical Campaigns: Through lead generation or otherwise, direct marketing strategies can be employed to engage the audience directly. This can be through advertisements through digital or traditional means, email correspondence, text messages, and any number of ways. In addition, you can put tactical campaigns into effect to bolster any weak areas in your marketing strategy or to keep your marketing efforts going in the right direction.
Reporting: While executing marketing strategies is well and good, you also need to keep track of the efficacy of your marketing campaigns. Of course, you can do this by surveying or polling the target audience but modern methods can give you exact numbers. By employing digital tools, you can track your lead through impression, conversion, and finally, enrollment. Having exact numbers before you can give you a good idea of exactly what needs attention. It will also be highly valuable to centralize your marketing reporting so that resources can be allocated where needed without the institution becoming complacent.
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Dr. Sheeba Jojo, Vice Principal, GEMS Our Own English High School, Dubai, UAE
Re-culturingEducationalLeadership
ADMIN PERSPECTIVE
T
he landscape of education today is dynamic and susceptible to a plethora of systemic changes. Educational leaders too must be dynamic and ready to embrace change with open arms. Educational organisations typically operate on deep seated cultural norms and traditions that define behaviours and decisions. This poses enormous challenge to new leaders who may have to grapple with hostility and indifference for a while before they can make a difference.
Today, success as an educational leader is about perspectives and strategies suited to a culture of change. The need of the hour is smart, young individuals with a clear vision, equipped with grit, passion and resilience to percolate their vision effectively. One must be high on emotional intelligence to be able to catch subtle nuances
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Dr. Sheeba Jojo likes to call herself an ‘educational evangelist’ who loves to inspire both the teaching and the learning community. Having grown up with tremendous support from her parents in nurturing her spirit of learning, innovation, and creativity, Dr. Sheeba Jojo had plenty of opportunities in her school life and after, that helped the teacher inside her to grow and realize her aspirations as an educator. Dr. Sheeba Jojo is a proud alumnus of GEMS Our Own English High School - Dubai (OOD) and she believes that she is one of the luckiest people ever to come back to work in her dear Alma Mater. She joined OOD as the Assistant Headmistress in 2019 and today dons the role of the Vice Principal.
Use every opportunity to share what you have learnt or read lately, thus, promoting a culture of engagement and action research; nurturing inquiry groups among students and staff alike
of indifference, hostility and displeasure to be able to react in a timely and appropriate manner. Avoid every instance of damaging news going viral as people’s sensibilities lean towards sensationalizing the most trivial of issues first before attempting to engage in dialogue to address a Summarisedredressal.below are a few key ideas to guide any new educational leader to a successful tenure in education.
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Value relationships Leaders must consciously establish a culture of valuing relationships within an institution. An educational leader must understand that there is a strong connection between your relationship with all your stakeholders and your success as a leader through sustained school improvement.
Connecting virtually for ease and comfort has hurled the importance and essence of real time connections away from our lives. However,
Be a leader that everybody looks up to for inspiration and motivation. Gone are the days when one could inspire with credentials drawn during one’s youth, topped with years of experience landing you a leadership position. We are living in an era that values talent more than experience. We come across inspiring stories of young leaders like Elon Musk. Demonstrate the virtues of life long learning by embarking on new courses of learning to improve your craft. Also, use every opportunity to share what you have learnt or read lately, thus, promoting a culture of engagement and action research; nurturing inquiry groups among students and staff alike.
Life-long learning and trend-setting
Establishing meaningful partnerships Schools must strengthen partnerships with local and global institutions to prepare students for life and careers after school. The needs of the job market are changing exponentially and schools can stay abreast of market needs, only by working closely with them. Hands on learning and field trips must infuse meaningful engagement into school routines. Student engagement and interest can only be sustained through a dynamic, novel and innovative school program that beats the monotony of routine, regime and tradition. Internships should be an integral part of the school system. Experts in various fields must visit to engage students to share a clear understanding of the expectations and challenges of roles and careers.
Contemporary leaders must think beyond physical classrooms and established norms of learning. Students must be allowed greater flexibility and choices where learning is concerned. Diagnostic tests like CAT4 and other benchmark examinations have indeed helped in educating the teaching community with detailed student learning profiles, highlighting learner strengths and weaknesses.
Teaching and Learning
Redefining learning spaces
The true success of any institution depends on the quality of teaching and learning. Do not compromise on this. Hire the best people that you can and provide them with the training and resources to produce desired student outcome.
However, all the data that is available to schools is not being fully utilized to provide the best learning path to each student and this is what successful school leaders must drive. Education ought to be more than acing examinations; it should also be about understanding the needs and challenges of the world. It ought to be about nurturing critical and problem-solving skills of students to be able to identify problems on their own and discover workable solutions. Students must be given opportunities to exercise their creativity freely and communicate without inhibitions.
nobody can undermine the value of a face to face meeting, be it with staff or students. The impact of real time human engagement is phenomenal and invaluable. Leaders must make the effort to connect directly with staff and students by making themselves visible and approachable. It is a great idea to facilitate opportunities to interact with all stakeholders as often as possible to catch their pulse and modify plans and actions across school.
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Personalisation and inclusion are the buzzwords today and educational leaders must have a clear vision to fulfil the expectations of both, to ensure that every child reaches his or her full potential and is provided with equal opportunities to do so. Harness the power of technology to the maximum for this purpose. Implement tools and programs that don’t simply integrate technology for the sake of doing so; rather enhance teaching and learning by being able to monitor individual learning and progress and thus contribute to impactful learning for every student.
Transformation in learning cultures and educational spaces is driven predominantly by conscientious and passionate educational leaders. Re-culturing is definitely the way forward. Change ought to more than structural and superficial. Real change must be about what people in an organization value and how they work towards accomplishing it.
K12 Digest August 202258 Nitin DeputyPatwa,Dean, S.P Jain Center of Management, UAE InclusivityEncourage and Diversity
ACADEMIC VIEW
approximatelyDubai,whichprogramProfessorNitinPatwaisdeputydeanoftheundergraduateatSPJainSchoolofGlobalManagementinDubaioffersauniquetrycityundergraduateprograminMumbai,Singapore,andSydneywithadiversityoftwentydifferentnationalities.
Resilient employees are more productive, durable, and reliable during times of ambiguity. They have a strong sense of purpose and perseverance; thus, they cooperate and collaborate for their survival and the company’s benefit. Organizations need to help employees become more resilient, deal with problems effectively, and take more responsibility for their progress. They should help build inner and outer resilience to address global challenges.
Resilience has been identified as one of six critical job skills in employees in the most successful, innovative companies.
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Amulticultural education environment is more about learning from people with a lot to share, teach, and exchange ideas & experiences.Theenvironment at the workplace is very different from what it was a few years ago, characterized by an increase in competitive pressure, more customer-focused, and a rapid pace of technological development. These factors lead to frequent changes in business models that require employees to be “cognitively complex, team-based and collaborative. Also dependent on social skills, technological competence, time-pressured, more mobile and less dependent on geography,” resulting in the need for employees to become more agile and resilient. Organizations need to create a culture that supports and values self-development. In addition, economic globalization has integrated different markets and pushed organizations to improve their efficiencies by addressing the influence of culture on ethical sensitivity.
Resilience is a key to business success in the current era of rapid change and complex ambiguity as consumers’ desires change along Organizations need to help employees become more resilient, deal with problems effectively, and take more responsibility for their progress
Awareness of cultural differences and similarities exists and influences values, learning, and behaviour. Conflicts in multicultural settings can arise when people fail to understand cultural nuances. A multicultural learning environment can enable a person to develop an understanding of these components if the teaching methods, courses, and multicultural environment are conducive and responsive to the increasing diversity. Multicultural learning environments can promote the use of culturally sensitive communication skills, and results showed a definite improvement in the intercultural communication skills of students who had spent time abroad in a multicultural and diverse learning environment. Multicultural learning environments help to inculcate resilience within their members and could significantly benefit organizations and academic institutions.
Awarenessofcultural differences and similarities exists and influences values, learning, and behaviour
with the business environment. What truly defines an excellent company in these times is its ability to foresee these changes and adapt to the new market requirements faster than its competitors, without compromising the quality of service to its customers. Responsive reactions subsequently lead to a firm’s competitive advantage, chiefly driven by the firm’s employees. Being high on adaptability suggests that a person can adjust to changes both within the environment and internally. For example, suppose an employee is said to be adaptable. In that case, they can adapt to conflicts of interest and disagreements arising in the workplace and progress through constructive collaboration. Those who are low on adaptability are more likely to participate in destructive arguments that hinder progress
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K12 Digest August 2022 61 international@edmentum.com How do you prepare your students for assessments? learningresults-drivenAutomatic,adaptablepathways Targeted gap analysis to opportunitiesinterventionidentify Translate NWEA® MAP® Growth™ results intooutcomesactionable Visualization of learners’ next steps for the whole academic year Edmentum can make assessment preparation easier, enabling more time for informed decision-making and intervention. Join the many schools across the Middle East that trust Edmentum to support them with their assessment acceleration. +44 (0)1572 www.edmentuminternational.com492576 @Edmentum_INT We use Exact Path to manage the students’ gaps, whether they are below or above grade, and it’s worked fantastically for us thus far. Lee Dabagia, Principal, Summit International School, Abu Dhabi
