Following on from our feature on St. George’s School in Switzerland, we speak to Hazel Hogg, who lives with her husband and her daughters Morven (11), Rowan (8) and Alexa (3) in France – practically on the border with Switzerland, where they enjoy stunning views of the Alps and Lake Geneva.  Her children attend the International School of Geneva. Here Hazel talks about living overseas, and tells us more about choosing this school for her children. Read more.

Could you explain how you came to be living in France, and why you chose an international school for your children?

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“International-mindedness isn’t something that can be taught in discrete lessons on the odd Friday afternoon, it’s a ‘frame of mind’ and as such needs time to develop”, says Steven Mark, Educational Director of the International Primary Curriculum. In this follow-up to his well-received article last month for Eteach, he points to some invaluable classroom resources to help children start thinking internationally.

Defining international-mindedness

Across the world today you’ll find schools, both international and increasingly in national systems too, that seek as part of their mission to help children become internationally-minded. But what does it actually mean? As yet, there is no single commonly agreed definition. To some, it may be defined around themes such as securing peace and eradicating poverty, whilst others may see it from a more environmental perspective.

One definition that I’ve found useful is that of a growing sense of the ‘other’. Howard Gardner describes “declining ego-centrism” as the basis of human development. Therein perhaps lies the most helpful way of considering what international-mindedness might be: a journey from ‘self’ to ‘other’. If we can help our children and students to develop a strong sense not only of themselves and their own identity, which is crucial, but alongside that, a deep sense and awareness of other peoples, cultures, countries and customs, then we offer them a great chance to be truly 21st century global citizens. Living in such an interconnected world as we now do, and facing complex challenges –ranging from climate change, to terrorism, to poverty elimination – will require a generation of problem solvers and creative thinkers, who see problems not from one perspective but from many. These global challenges and problems will ultimately be faced by the children going through our schools today, and what better chance do we have to help solve them than by helping our children, from the earliest age possible, develop that strong sense of the ‘other’.

What does it look like in children?

So now we have a rough but hopefully helpful idea of what it means to be internationally-minded. But what does it look like in children? Can we really say that a six-year-old in primary school is internationally-minded? Possibly, but given what we know about how the human brain develops it seems unlikely. What we can do though is to set in place cumulative experiences and opportunities that over time – in this case many years – build on each other and hopefully help move our children along that pathway to a greater sense of the ‘other’. International-mindedness isn’t something that can be taught in discrete lessons on the odd Friday afternoon; it’s a ‘frame of mind’ and as such needs time to develop.

Back to our six-year-old then: what might international-mindedness look like in him or her? In the International Primary Curriculum and the soon to launch International Middle Years Curriculum, we’ve tried to be as explicit as possible in articulating what international-mindedness is for different age groups. So for the six-year-old, it may well be knowing that the children in his or her classroom have different home countries, and being able to work with each other and being able to respect one another’s independence and individuality. For older students, international learning outcomes might include knowing about the ways in which the lives of people in the countries they have studied affect each other, or being able to identify ways in which people work together for mutual benefit.

Having a definition of, and clear outcomes for, international learning is the best starting point for schools seeking to develop international-mindedness. If we have these outcomes in place from the outset, then designing activities and tasks to help children learn them becomes so much easier.

Getting started…

Abstract concepts such as international-mindedness can at first seem almost daunting and impractical. Questions such as ‘where do I start?’ and ‘where do I find resources?’ naturally surface. There are, however, lots of great examples from schools around the world and I’ve pencilled below just a few of my own favourites and ones I’ve used in the classroom before to help children to start thinking internationally.

• And now for the news…you come in the morning, time for register and all the other start-to-the-day duties. How on earth can you bring international learning into this? Well, whilst you’re busy with the admin, let the class listen to the daily children’s news podcast from the BBC world service. Aimed at early secondary students, although it can easily be used with older primary children as well, the 3 to 4 minute podcast covers the main stories of the day, and is bound to lead to great discussions and debates afterwards.

• Maps, maps and more maps…does your classroom environment reflect the world? Maps are a brilliant way to help children begin to ‘see’ the world and from a range of perspectives. For map anoraks like myself, Stanfords shop in London offers the best selection of maps for all uses, ranging from traditional Mercator projection maps to Pacific Centred Maps in the fantastic ‘Down Under’ Map. All available to order online.

• Become an explorer… as the title on the webpage below says, “You don’t need a passport” to travel the world. At least not now with so many fantastic resources to explore only a mouse click away. One of the best is the National Geographic Kids site and in particular the ‘places’ part of the site. Take a different country each day or week and go exploring it!

• The local as well as the global… don’t forget what’s on your doorstep. Literally. If we’re serious about helping our students to develop an awareness of the ‘other’, then starting with learning about the host country and culture is an important part of developing international thinking.

• Play a junior version of the real thing…in David Perkins’ new book, ‘Making Learning Whole’ (have a look on Amazon as it’s a great read), he describes how children often learn through playing a ‘junior-version’ of the real thing. He gives the example of baseball but we can equally imagine it for football or indeed any other sport or game. Countries that are successful at football tend to develop children’s skills through five (or less) a side games, small pitches, small goals etc. Think of Junior Monopoly! It’s about giving children the chance to do the same as adult players but with a scaled down version.

So what better way to learn about how countries are linked and work together to solve problems than to play a junior version of the real thing and hold a Model United Nations. Mostly used with senior secondary students, but now increasingly with upper primary and middle years students too, it’s a brilliant way to develop a range of skills from communication to co-operation. Have a look at this website for a fantastic case study of how Overseas Family School in Singapore approached this.

As we’ve seen, ‘international’ needn’t only mean the many nationalities that make up a school population, but can also be something much deeper. Making the development of international-mindedness an explicit aim of our teaching may well offer the best means of making Edwin Ginn’s dream of international education a reality and give our children a great chance of success in the globalised, interconnected world they will live and work in.

Steven Mark is the educational director of the International Primary Curriculum (IPC). His education experience includes many years as a teacher and school leader in Scotland, Netherlands and Germany. He has a Masters degree in Educational Management from the University of Leicester and is about to embark on his doctorate with the University of Bath, England.
Steven has a great range of experience working with both national and international schools. He has spoken at conferences and delivered professional development for educators throughout many parts of the world. He is currently writing a book about how we can best help children and adults to develop international-mindedness, which he thinks may well become the key skill for 21st century citizens.

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Here is part two of our interview with Mary Langford, Deputy Executive Director of the European Council of International Schools (ECIS). In this piece Mary discusses what some of the main issues for ECIS members are and what prospects there are for teachers who wish to embark on an international career.

Whereabouts are your members – could you give some examples?

I tend to describe the ECIS membership as a ‘broad church’. We have small schools with under 100 students, and large schools with over 2000.  We have schools that offer the International Baccalaureate programmes, US curriculum including Advanced Placement, UK national curriculum, CIE IGCSEs and A-Levels, International Primary Curriculum, host country curricula, bilingual programmes, and a combination of any of these. Some schools are populated almost entirely by students from the host country, some are entirely international with no majority of any single nationality or culture, and anything within that spectrum. Some are ‘company’ schools set up by corporations such as Royal Dutch Shell who want to ensure quality education for the children of their expatriate employees, and ‘state funded’ schools such as the JFK School in Berlin which is largely supported by the German and US governments.

Despite the ‘E’ in our name and our European location and legacy, ECIS has member schools throughout the world. The International School of Havana, Cairo American International School, Western Academy in Beijing, French-American International School in San Francisco and Escuela Campo Alegre in Caracas, Venezuela illustrate that!

What are some of the main issues for your members, and how does ECIS help?

I think our schools generally have two ongoing challenges that are pertinent to ECIS. One is the possible threat of ‘professional and institutional isolation’. Our traditional international schools are usually quite unique and different from local schools in a given country. Therefore, access through ECIS to cutting-edge professional development that enables everyone in the school – teachers, administrators, academic leaders and board members – to keep up with best practice is often a priority.

The second challenge is the cost of maintaining and sustaining quality 21^st century education, attracting the best educators possible and maintaining and developing suitable facilities, while relying on the income generated by the school – through tuition fees, in some cases development fundraising initiatives, but also by creating alternative income streams. With the exception of a very few ‘state’ funded schools, most of our members are independent and completely self-funding, unlike the many schools that are supported by national or local public funds.

ECIS provides this support through conferences and our more sustainable training programmes, publications and web-based resources as well as through ECIS Consultancy Services. Our members can be assured that ECIS attention to cost efficiency and quality control means they are receiving value for money.

What’s the significance of ECIS for those thinking about working overseas as teachers?

Although international schools provide a truly invigorating, enriching and exciting professional context in which to work, the points I made in the previous answer mean that teachers can find they become out of touch and disconnected from what is going on in their field. This is particularly the case when a teacher or specialist finds he or she is the only one in the school with the particular area of responsibility.

International schools come in all sizes, and it is not unusual to be the only teacher per year group if there is single stream entry, or the only subject teacher (such as art, music, chemistry, librarian) teaching children ages 5-18. There may not be any similar schools nearby, and so it can be a lonely job with no ‘job alike’ colleagues to share ideas with or with whom to discuss curricular matters. The ECIS links and networks can prove to be vital in such cases.

Also, I am sure Eteach would agree, teachers need to carefully vet the overseas schools they are considering. Some schools are increasingly aware of the value that prospective teachers place on the school’s support of professional development as part of the benefits offered. Schools which are members of ECIS are more likely to ensure that their staff are aware of those opportunities and experiences. It is important to ask those questions at interview.

If ongoing professional development is a concern for the teacher (and it should be!), by working at an ECIS-member school, the ECIS conferences and certificate programmes are available at a reduced rate. ECIS is no longer an accrediting association, but schools that are members either must be accredited (for example by CIS or COBIS), or they will have had a visit from someone from ECIS to ensure they are complying with the ECIS Ethical Guidelines. So it is a form of quality control.

What are the prospects for the future for those wanting to embark upon an ‘international career’, and how can they best prepare?

The data about the increase in the number of international schools is staggering. There will continue to be growth in the numbers of teachers and senior leaders required for these schools, and it is a wonderful career path for any curious, adventurous and open-minded educator who is internationally-minded. As Mark Twain said, ‘travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness’.

We believe the ITC and the ILMP make good nationally-trained educators even more attractive candidates for positions in international schools, and welcome any interested educators to find out more on www.ecis.org. They may choose to do this even before they leave Britain while still in their host country school, provided there is an international context within which they can do their school-based course-related assignments.

This may be a school with an international/intercultural student population, a school with a mission or curriculum that embraces global studies or an international dimension, or schools such as those affiliated with the British Council international schools. It is a great way to enhance ones CV, but also to gain insights into the life of the international school before making that significant life-changing journey along what Robert Frost described as ‘the road not taken’.

Many thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with Eteach.

Mary Langford is Deputy Executive Director of the European Council of International Schools, and Instructor for the ITC. She’s worked in almost every facet of school life: administration and personnel, admissions, alumni, public relations, marketing and communications, teaching (ESL and Spanish), and as head of school in both the European-based schools offering a combination of US, UK and IB curricula. She has also been a consultant advising expatriate families seeking school placements in the UK and abroad, and in her early years worked in diplomatic and political positions in Washington. Mary’s graduate research published in 1997, focused on global nomads and international schools. Many of the conclusions and recommendations resulting from her quantitative research and published in her dissertation are now incorporated into the ITC syllabus, and Mary’s articles have been published around the world.

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Eteach caught up with Mary Langford, Deputy Executive Director of the European Council of International Schools (ECIS), to find out why the organisation is such a leading player in the world of international education and to learn more about its events, professional development programmes and its significance for anyone considering a career working overseas.

Firstly, could you explain what ECIS is and what it actually does?

To paraphrase our mission statement, ECIS is the leading collaborative global membership organisation that promotes and supports the ideals and best practices of international education.

ECIS is unique in that it has over 30 professional committees, consisting of volunteers from member schools who are at the coal face of current practice and pedagogical development.

They keep us informed and recommend important innovations in their particular area that we should highlight, such as potential topics, speakers and workshop trainers. They also source and supply articles for our publications. ECIS school membership supports everyone in the school; senior leaders (heads and directors, board members and proprietors, business managers, advancement directors); class, subject and specialist teachers (for example, ESL/Mother Tongue, ICT, Librarians, SEN, Science) and support staff such as Administrative Assistants, ICT Technology Directors, etc. The range of professional development activities is comprehensive.

We also have Affiliate Members representing other organisations and NGOs (such as the International Award Association, University of Cambridge International Examinations and Eteach International) involved in the delivery of international education or training and supporting members who are suppliers of other services to international schools (such as Follett International, Pearson Education and Sodexo). Individuals may also join ECIS and use many of these services.

While access to the professional development programmes is the focus of membership, we always hear from our members that it is the fantastic ECIS network of like-minded professionals that they most appreciate. When conferences are planned, the location and the cultural amenities that international educators may experience are part of the equation. The collective wisdom and experience of the ECIS membership is impressive.

What are the main benefits of membership for schools, organisations and individuals?

The main benefit is access to ECIS conferences, certificate programmes, benchmarking statistical survey and the opportunity to benefit from our strategic partnerships through our Affiliate and Supporting Memberships. An example of this is the newly launched ECIS iTunes U with Apple Computer, which enables members to access and interact with online courses and presentations.

ECIS also publishes IS Magazine, the International Schools Journal (ISJ) – now in its 30th year and highly regarded by researchers in the field of international education – and the Effective Series with books on a range of topics relevant to international schools.

ECIS Fellowships make financial grants available to educators doing research. The most recent project was the design of a generic International Individual Education Plan (IIEP) for international schools with students with special needs, that can be downloaded for free from our website.

There is an ECIS Outreach Grant for students working in worthy projects promoting community service learning, and the Peter Ustinov Fellowship granted through ECIS similarly is awarded to students working in projects that break down barriers of prejudice. We also offer international awards for adults and students to honour their ‘international mindedness’ and contributions to international education and international schools.

Could you tell us about some of the events you organise?

Our major conferences are the first that come to mind. The November conference is aimed at teachers and administrators and held in a different European city each year. They attract up to 2000 participants from all over the world and feature inspiring keynote speakers such as Professor Sugata Mitra. He’s an Indian professor, now at Newcastle University, whose famous ‘Hole in the wall’ longitudinal research project, installed computers in the slums and villages of India and other impoverished settings and sheds light on how students evolve as independent learners. Professor Mitra was the inspiration for the story behind Slumdog Millionaire. In addition to keynote speakers, there are approximately 240 workshops offered over the course of the three days.

Our April conference is for the senior leadership of our schools and attracts about 600 participants. This is for heads, boards and governors, business managers, development directors and even spouses (a sometimes lonely and challenging role in the school community). This year we had several keynote speakers, including Dr Kyung Hee Kim, a Korean professor of education at The College of William and Mary in Virginia. Her ground-breaking empirical research has changed what we know about diagnosing and nurturing creativity in children and was the feature cover story for Newsweek Magazine last summer. Dr. Kim told us she had turned down invitations to appear on CNN and Oprah Winfrey’s show, but was keen to come to ECIS to speak to international educational leaders!

These major ECIS conferences feature pre-conference workshops offered by organisations such as the Global Issues Network, Martin Skelton and his team at Fieldwork Education, amongst other major players in the field of international education.

Our subject committees also organise their own specific conferences that attract up to 400-500 participants. Especially popular are Librarians, or ESL/Mother Tongue that feature top speakers and workshop leaders, such as the ever-popular Jim Cummins from University of Toronto at ESL or the English Poet Laureate Children’s Poet Michael Rosen at the Early Childhood Conference.

Please tell us about some of your certificate programmes, and in particular your International Teaching Certificate, which is currently open for enrolments.

ECIS has responded in recent years to recommendations from our members to develop more sustained ongoing professional development opportunities, and here we have been strengthened by our collaborative partnerships. With Fieldwork Education and the National Association of Head teachers, we have developed the International Leadership and Management Program (ILMP) for senior school leaders. The Sustainable International Governance Diploma Program (SISG) is a fresh and dynamic approach for training those people responsible for the strategic oversight of the school. Unlike previous programmes that have tended to draw heavily on ‘national’ governance models, the SISG reflects the diversity that characterises our member schools.

Diversity means in terms of nationality and culture of the governing body, diversity in ownership models such as state-funded, not-for-profit, and for-profit schools (the biggest growth sector in the international schools market), diversity in terms of size and student population, or new schools and well-established schools. Our collaboration here has been with the London Business School and IMD in Switzerland, top business schools that provide speakers for our SISG modules who help to attract key international school governance stakeholders to our programme.

The International Teacher Certificate is a blended professional development programme that ECIS has developed in partnership with University of Cambridge International Examinations, who are the independent examiners. It seeks to take experienced teachers and challenges them to become more internationally-minded, reflective practitioners. The ITC’s merit is being recognised by universities in the UK, USA and Australia which offer master’s credit for the ITC, by AdvancED – a US accrediting agency that regards the ITC as teacher certification for their overseas teachers, and most recently by the International Baccalaureate who have made it a pathway to the IB Level 1 Teacher Award. The ITC is the only non-university pathway to the IBL1, and is one of four institutions in the world authorised to prepare teachers for the IB Primary Years Programme, IB Middle Years Programme. There are still places available for the next ITC – there’s more information and an application form on our website here.

To read the rest of Mary’s interview, come back in a few days when we will be posting part two …

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Eteach had the pleasure of attending the 30th Annual COBIS conference from the 7th – 9th May 2011. ‘Stakeholders for Successful International Schools’ was held at the very impressive Royal Horseguards Hotel in Central London and we were very excited to be exhibiting in such beautiful Victorian surroundings.

The COBIS conference gave us the opportunity to talk to head teachers of British International schools about their current recruitment strategies and needs. Many of the schools that we spoke to were in agreement that their ideal International teacher would be one who has trained in the UK and has a minimum of 2 years classroom experience. A positive international attitude to life, a passion for travel and teachers who could offer more than just their subject to the school were also high up on the list.

International Account Manager at Eteach, Gerry Manolas, was extremely fortunate to be able to attend several of the keynote speeches and seminars whilst at the conference. She found all of the talks to be highly informative and gave head teachers the latest up to-date developments in the UK education system.

The main issue that dominated the conference was the discussion around school inspection and which teams have now been, or are in the process of being accredited by the government. Only schools that have passed a recognised inspection are allowed to be fully fledged members of COBIS, thus ensuring a quality mark that parents can trust when choosing a school abroad for their children.

This mark is also something that prospective teachers should look for when deciding where to teach as it gives them the confidence that the school they may eventually join follows strict COBIS guidelines for quality assurance.

Howard Kennedy, Non-Executive Director of the Foundation, Aided Schools and Academies National Association was the first speaker and he outlined the current government’s plans for raising standards in State schools and trying to close the gap between deprivation and attainment.

The talk focussed around the fact that, unfortunately, there is still a link between postcode and what a child’s educational outcome will be. The association wants to make a curriculum which is ‘Fit for Purpose’ where children can achieve regardless of their background and where only the best graduates are recruited to become teachers.

The hot topic was the developing idea of student teachers completing the majority of their degree courses in Teaching Schools. The teaching schools would be selected from those who have received outstanding results across the board in their Ofsted inspections. It is hoped that a network of these schools will be created which will provide professional development to teachers as well.

Do you as teachers and current student teachers agree with this or do you feel the courses you have experienced through university prepared you for life in the classroom?

This was all backed up by Nick Gibb, Minister for Education who in his session said that one of the greatest exports we have in the UK is the Independent Education System with £12 billion being brought into this country by overseas students studying here in the UK. Mr Gibb wants to give the state sector more independence to do what is best for their schools and children in order for them to raise standards and he also believes that the Academies and Free Schools programme is the way forward.

Are you teaching in one of these schools? Can you see a difference and do you feel it is the way forward for your pupil’s attainment?

Over the coming weeks we will be bringing you other highlights from the COBIS Conference including information about SEN and Gifted and Talented, Safeguarding Children, Developing Leadership Skills through Sport and Safe Student Broadcasting, which was a new initiative about making children aware of how to keep themselves safe when using Social networking sites.

What were Gerry’s personal highlights? Having the opportunity to have coffee with the England Rugby World Cup scrum half Andy Gomarsall and listen to his plans for life after his testimonial year and saying a brief hello to HRH Princess Alexandra KG GCVO as she left the reception.

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