Confident learners, confident teachers: new ways of looking at leadership

Confident learners, confident teachers: new ways of looking at leadership

It's widely accepted around the world that strong leadership – which drives educational excellence – must concern all educators; classroom teachers and heads alike.

Nearly 200 teachers from 40 countries gathered in Cambridge in September 2012 to debate how teachers can develop a leadership role, and share ideas on ways of overcoming the challenges in order to achieve this within existing frameworks.

The teachers visited the UK to attend a conference hosted by Cambridge International Examinations, an annual event which introduces research and theories from international education experts and enables participants to share new approaches with fellow teachers.

Dr Tristian Stobie, Director of Education for Cambridge International Examinations said: "At first impression, the word 'leadership' might suggest relevance only to school principals and administrators. One of the fundamental ideas of this conference was that leadership should be distributed. Schools who strive for excellence understand this and are constantly striving for school improvement based on everyone playing their part."

Snehal Pinto, Head of Ryan Group of Schools, India said: "The conference has definitely broadened my own understanding of leadership as a teacher. The key note speakers and workshops have been excellent. The key thing I will take away is the importance of teachers understanding their roles as leaders and how they can act as change agents within the frameworks they have."

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