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A dedicated educational leader is driven by the enthusiasm to educate others. They are passionate, hardworking, and always focused on learning something new. One such enthusiastic and positive leader with the zeal to educate others and strive for excellence in every activity undertaken is none other than Liz Free, she is CEO and director of the International School Rheintal, Switzerland.  She was listed as the 33rd most influential international educator in 2021 (ICS).  Liz is a global board member for TES, a board member of SGIS, and a global strategic lead for @WomenED, with responsibility for Europe.

She has led schools across the world and also led the professional development arm of Oxford University Press and founded the International Leadership Academy in The Hague.  Liz has written extensively on school leadership and harnessing the potential of the profession. Liz is a Founding Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching and Fellow of the RSA. She is a passionate advocate for continuing professional development and learning within the education profession and in promoting education equality for all.

Past in a Glance

I always knew that I wanted to have a life of service where I would make a positive contribution to those around me. In 2000 I trained as a teacher in my home country, Wales.  I worked in a deprived area in a wonderful school.  This is where I learnt my craft.  Initially with 36 students in Grade 4, of whom a third were on the special needs register, and over half on free school lunches (a measure of economic deprivation), I learnt quickly how important a safe, consistent and high aspirations environment is for all young people.  What I learnt then has stayed with me and informed my work now. 

We need safe, caring and nurturing environments with high academic aspiration and a drive to see every student succeed. My passion for teaching then is only matched by my passion for teaching today.

Fast forward over twenty years, I have been a head teacher in three countries, head of teacher professional development at Oxford University Press, Oxford University, Founding Director of the International Leadership Academy, and, now, the CEO and Director of the International School Rheintal in Switzerland.

I have studied school improvement, leadership development for improved student outcomes and how to develop empowering environments. This work has led me to Switzerland where we are working as an international team of educators to develop a world-class IB continuum community school where we deliver the best of international mindedness and curriculum with the best of community environment and engagement.

My school was originally described to me as small but mighty, although I prefer small and mighty!  We are unapologetically small; this is our trademark, our stamp of who we are.  Our aspiration is to create a model of community international school; where we create grounded globally minded leaders of the future.

Use of Technology in the Classroom

Technology, like any other tool in the educators’ toolbox, is precisely that; a tool. At ISR we believe in the use of education technologies as a vehicle to open the world and bring the outside into learning.  We are a Google school that utilises the applications for increased collaboration and connectedness. Students have 1:1 devices and our infrastructure of learning is built around these tools and others such as ManageBac and learning tools for teachers such as BlueSky and Educare.

In 2023 we move to a new ecologically-designed campus with interactive technologies being embedded into the design of the building and the learning environment  From smart use of technologies for climate control through to interactive boards and digital security solutions that allow for zoning in the building, we embrace technology to increase access, security and safety as well as ed tech in the pedagogical toolbox.

We also believe in a life beyond technology. We activate a no mobile phone policy on campus to avoid the continuous distraction of TikTok, YouTube etc.  The day after we made this decision, we saw all the students talking, reading or playing at break times.  The noise levels and human face-to-face interaction increased.  This is good not only for developing relationships but also for connection, purpose and a sense of being present.  Since removing mobiles, we have also seen a decline in mental health concerns amongst young people.

Appropriate use of tech for life enhancement is encouraged alongside the value of the individual and person-to-person relationships and engagement.

Contribution to Institutions

This is hard.  I am entering my third year at ISR, a school that is now twenty years old and developing from a non profit start-up initially  to a high-performing and established school. I have brought the experience of growing and stabilising organisations; building infrastructure and empowering the people within the organisation to lead the charge.  In essence, my greatest contribution is to empower the contribution of others. After all, a greater leader cannot exceed the quality, impact and reach of their team.

We now have distributed leadership throughout the school; from fixed term projects where staff deep dive into an area of development to greater clarity and segmentation of roles where staff can be operational but also have their eye to the long term strategic ambition within a clear area, and driven by our underpinning guiding statements. I am building middle leadership capability and removing barriers to teaching and learning.  Unnecessary paperwork, processes, approaches that get in the way of teaching are removed and everything that we do is focussed on the students of our school.

I strive for excellence in everything that I, and we, do.  From a website that reflects the learning environment, to how we interact with each other, to student achievement and attainment.   We model what we value.  And, at ISR, we want to offer the very best experiences for everyone in our community. We aspire to being caring, responsible people that make a difference in the world

About International School Rheintal

Students aged 3-19 in 3 divisions: Kindergarten, Primary School, Senior School.  ISR was founded in 2002 and opened with 19 students in Grades 1-7. Grade levels were added each successive year and the first Diploma class graduated in 2008. ISR has offered all three IB programmes since 2006. Almost all ISR graduates go on to study at university, and although ISR is not academically selective, the overall Diploma pass rate and average score are consistently above the world average, with the school currently ranked in the top ten in Switzerland. The school is a non-profit association partnered by Hilti, the key international employer in the area. ISR continues to grow and will move a short distance to a new, purpose-built campus in summer 2023, designed by Zurich architects of Kämpfen Zinke + Partner.

Overcoming Challenges with a Positive Attitude

At Oxford, my team supported over 120,000 teachers a year and my current role is to support a  community of over 165 students. However, whether large or small, challenges always exist and my approach has been consistent.  Communication and clarity of mission and vision is everything; especially during periods of volatility, uncertainty and change.

In 2020, I moved from the Netherlands to Switzerland, in the middle of the pandemic. I wasn’t even able to meet our students in person before the school year started. Through this we have made decisions about physically opening, closing, blended learning and at the core, how do we keep our community safe through a period of time where the world is not safe. For every decision, we consulted the experts, looked at the known information, consulted with our community and made decisions that put our community at its heart.  This rigour, honesty, and clarity of communication, helped to build trust.

In spring 2022, we were faced with the migration of refugees into our part of Switzerland as they fled the Ukraine situation. Using the same rigorous approach of being informed, sharing information and engaging with the community, we were able to set up a Scholarship programme for displaced Ukrainian students in Switzerland.  Raising over 700k CHF in our community we have been able to live our mission of being globally responsible citizens where we live the values of an International Baccalaureate approach.

Of course, leading in this way is deeply personal.  I care about every person in our community.  In order to maintain this level of attention and deep connection, I also have to look after myself, and my team also need to do this.  I monitor workload carefully, give myself and my staff time to engage with professional learning and time to think and engage with the profession. I do not work weekends unless it is a critical situation and I always take my holiday in the summer. I work hard but I also work hard at the things from which I experience joy; such as being a mother, a wife, hiking in the beautiful Swiss Alps and eating wonderful food (sometimes a little too much!).

Motivation and Goals

It is quite simple for me; making a positive difference. I hope to leave the world and the people/places I have encountered in a better way than if we had never met.

Like most teachers, it was a teacher. Mrs Kramer, an English teacher extraordinaire, saw things in me that I had never seen in myself.  She believed in me.  I now pay this forward in all that I do.

To lead ISR through to the new campus and its bold future as a world-leading community IB continuum school where every person in the community strives for better and thrives in our school.

Towards a Future of Endless Possibilities

I do a lot of voluntary work for the profession.  As a global leader with #WomendEd, it dismays me that women continue to lack representation on a global scale in terms of access to and leadership of education.  Whether we are looking at girls’ access to education, a massive continuing global issue of inequity, or the continuing discromination experienced in the profession where women make up over two thirds of the global profession and yet represent less than half of school leadership, we need to do better.  If we are to realise the potential of every person, we need to take action in our communities to ensure that there is enquiry and representation at every table, in every classroom and in every boardroom.

Message for the Emerging Students I would like every student to know that they are always enough and to celebrate their unique beautiful place in the world.  It is not perfection that we seek but the ability to make a difference, to be empowered and to empower others as leaders, thinkers, innovators and responsible citizens of the world.

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Ancient commercially important landmarks, vibrant cities, diverse flavors and cuisine-these are not the only aspects Hong Kong is known for. It is also known for maintaining outstanding education and providing opportunities for students to learn and grow. There are some of the most famous educational institutions in this country. They open the door to endless opportunities in education and professional excellence. These institutions take every step to ensure that each student achieves their goals and progresses in stages.

Brief History

Fairchild Kindergarten is an international kindergarten established in 2017 in Hong Kong by Fairchild Canadian Academy, with programs for children from age 2 to 6 years.

The school aims at cultivating curiosity, creativity and confidence in its children through use of the Reggio Emilia approach in Hong Kong. The school believes that life is a journey and not a race. Fairchild encourages children to enjoy their children through playful, interesting and age-appropriate activities.

Emphasis on Academic Excellence

Fairchild Kindergarten has 6 classrooms, a water play space, a sensory and creative arts area, a STEM lab, a shared discovery area, a cookery area, and a custom-built indoor tree house playground. Fairchild brings the outdoors inside in an urban context, providing excellent learning opportunities in natural settings that encourage children to play, ask, and learn. When you walk into a Fairchild campus, you’ll notice the warmth, calmness, and beauty that comes from the utilisation of natural components such as daylight, wood, water, sand, and soil in the architecture. Natural learning tools such as wooden blocks, shells, gemstones, and a variety of other open-ended play resources and stations are available to help children’s imaginations soar.

The Erudite Spearhead

Fairchild Kindergarten and Fairchild Junior Academy founder Joseph Fung got his inspiration in the great outdoors of Canada, where he grew up from the age of three. His surroundings in Vancouver – wide-open areas, untamed nature, and a wonderful school – motivated him to develop an engaging and natural environment for children in Hong Kong with hands-on experiences.

In Hong Kong, there is undoubtedly a market for play-based and progressive learning. He desired a school where kids could explore natural environments, interact with the environment, and learn at their own pace. To achieve this, he picked the Reggio Emilia framework, which has had a significant impact on Hong Kong’s early childhood education.

Beyond Traditional Curriculum

The school’s learning approach has an inquiry focus. The ‘Hundred Languages’ of Children is one aspect of the Reggio Emilia approach, and emphasizes hands-on discovery learning allowing children to use all their senses and different ‘languages’ to learn and express themselves.

Fairchild promotes collaboration, communication, and exploration among children while recognising their abilities and interests. It respects children’s right to play, with committed and skilled instructors assisting in the development of deep bonds via rich, hands-on learning. The development of the whole child in a play-based environment is at the heart of what Fairchild does. For children’s health, play has important neurological, cognitive, socio-emotional, and physiological effects.

Children are at work when they are playing, thinking out their own hypotheses about how a stone can drop in water or why the turtle swims in shallow water. Rather than being spoon-fed the answers, students develop up their own theories based on real-life examples and explore and confront for themselves. Children can be much more creative and innovative as a result of this active learning process, and they will frequently ask questions that we may not always know the answers too! We want youngsters to be curious and ask questions since this is how they learn best.

Fairchild uses the school environment as a third teacher and understands it as a central aspect of Reggio Emilia’s philosophy. The thoughtfully designed school offers a unique learning space. Not only sand, water, shells and plants, but also many natural elements such as insects, butterflies, turtles and geckos are incorporated into the classroom. With natural creatures in school, children take care of insects and animals, learn about body parts, life cycle, what to eat, and raise awareness of empathy, understanding and sustainability. Children learn to understand the relationships of the world and how the natural world affects them and others.

Courses Offered

The school provides an immersive language-rich environment for students in an International school with children come from a diverse community from countries all over the world including the U.K., the U.S.A., France, Italy, Canada, Australia, Korea, Japan, China, Hong Kong and more. At our kindergarten, we have an International Stream and a Dual Language Stream, which is in English and Mandarin. This helps us to promote Bilingualism and reflects part of our culture in Hong Kong and China. We are also respectful of different cultures and encourage children to share the festivals or traditions students celebrate at the school – this helps build knowledge and awareness between their peers!

Financial Assistance

Fairchild works hand in hand with families to ensure a happy, healthy and all-rounded development of each child. Fairchild doesn’t only provide financial flexibility to family in need, but also works closely with our Parent and Education Consultant and external providers to support diverse needs for both children and parents. Our Parent and Education Consultant is available to meet with parents to discuss any early childhood development issues or for school advisory support.

Student Wellbeing

Our kindergarten children are actively engaged in all areas of development. Rather than following a fixed schedule of learning, Fairchild’s teachers follow the interests of the children, in what is known as an emergent curriculum, so their themes in the classroom are varied. Getting a rich variety of hands-on experiences based on children’s interests, such as feeding a pet, visiting the restaurant kitchen and planting in the community garden, makes learning much more meaningful to a child. This makes the learning more interesting for the children, and they are therefore more engaged by having more ownership of the content of their learning. Children thereby become active learners, they don’t need teachers to ‘teach’, they just need teachers to support and guide their questions.

Building a Pathway to Bright Careers

Fairchild Kindergarten places great emphasis on nurturing all-round children and preparing them with life-long skills for the future. Fairchild believes that through children engaged and are exposed to meaningful life experiences at the school help build a strong foundation towards being confident and responsible citizens of the future; being involved in applying innovative and creative ways to problem solve, they will develop critical thinking skills and achieve good all-round development to prepare for any future opportunities.

Graduates from Fairchild Kindergarten are carrying on their learning path in different elite international schools and local schools befitting their individual characters and interests. Wherever they go, their strong educational foundation established at Fairchild has them prepared for any future challenges and opportunities.

The Pandemic Dynamic

We maintain learning opportunities as much as possible.  At Fairchild, we offer daily activities shared on our communication platform, Storypark, whereby families can access stories read by teachers and hand on practical activities parents can do at home with their children – this might be a sensory exploration, or a cooking activity, maybe family yoga!  We also prepare learning packs of materials each week which we send home for children to do while at home, designed by the class teachers.  We have offered child care support, as well as an outreach service if circumstances allow, depending on the local situation. 

The key for us is to maintain routines and connections with our children and families, which we arrange through individual or small group video calls or phone calls.  We also encourage parents to share photos and videos of the children doing our home activities through our application, Storypark, so we keep engaged with our community.  The external situation keeps changing, but we are fortunate to have strong community relationships which help us continue to support children and their families during these difficult times.

Accreditations

Fairchild Kindergarten has been awarded “Top 10 Most Valuable Preschool in Hong Kong” by The Knowledge Review. Fairchild schools are also the nominees for Hong Kong Education Awards, including “Kindergarten of the Year”, “Best Student-Centered School” and “Most Socially Responsible School”. And the founder of Fairchild schools, Joseph Fung, has been awarded the “Global Education Leaders of 2021” by Education Stalwarts.

The ‘perfect place’, defined by the students of Fairchild themselves, is one where children come to school every day with a big smile. The best rewards are from the children and families themselves.

Towards a Bright Tomorrow

Fairchild’s future plan is to continuously enhancing the quality of early childhood education programs in Hong Kong with active collaborations with various educational institutions and open more schools. In the meantime, Fairchild will continue to support and engage in different innovative education technology projects to uplift the standard of early childhood education in Hong Kong.

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To attain career and academic success, students not only have to memorize and learn the educational content, but they also  have to pursue education from an institution of repute, which offers a numerous options and empowers the students. Such institutions are driven by the motive to nurture every student equally and to build them to become better professionals and humans.  

Crawford International School constantly reassesses curriculum and teaching approaches, adapting to the child’s needs and aligning with global goals and trends. Since its inception in 1993, it has established itself as one of the most renowned institutions in South Africa. It has made a name for itself on the academic front by producing some of the most successful students over the years. The school’s origin roots back to ADvTECH Group, a renowned name in South Africa. This company works with the education and recruitment industries in South Africa and the rest of Africa.

The school is known for its high academic performance and progressive outlook. It constantly keeps updating itself with the latest happenings around the world and accordingly adjusts its curricular and co-curricular offerings.

Crawford International School was established in Kenya because ADvTECH Group intended to start a school that would charge a medium fee while providing excellent educational facilities to the students. Hence, the school’s fee is about 45% of what the other schools charge. The school is driven by the idea of providing education for an emerging middle class and providing progressive educational facilities to the students. This opinion was based on the research carried out by the authorities who felt the requirement of incorporating cutting-edge technologies in education. They also realised that this would provide a firm ground for the Crawford brand to offer exceptional facilities. Hence, this is one of the reasons for establishing the school in Kenya.

Circullum for students

Crawford International School follows the Cambridge International Curriculum to ensure the academic development of the students. It trains the students at IGCSE, A-levels, or AS-levels. Apart from the mentioned academic offering, the school also runs a parallel curriculum that includes various subjects such as leadership components, cryptocurrency, philosophy, music, dance, drama, etc.

The school tries to provide tremendous opportunities to the children to grow in this rapidly changing world. The curriculum also incorporates certain 21st-century skills that can help nurture the students while preparing them for the challenges of this modern competitive world. Major skills such as communication, critical thinking, collaboration, along with IT courses, are also a part of the curriculum.

IT and Infrastructure

Crawford is completely IT-focused. It aims at strengthening its IT infrastructure to deliver better academic outcomes. When COVID was adversely affecting countries, economies, and educational institutions at large, the school was able to successfully transition to online mode of education by using different digital platforms such as Microsoft Teams. Crawford is also a part of Microsoft Showcase School.

Moreover, currently in East Africa, there are only two Microsoft Showcase Schools, out of which Crawford is one. The school constantly trains and upgrades its teachers. It endeavours to educate the children about the importance of the digital space and what it means to be a digital citizen. The school believes students should understand that technology should only be used as a tool; they should not let technology take over their entire life.

It should be used as a means to enhance learning and education. The school’s authority always aims to provide cutting-edge technology to the students and provide them with every opportunity to explore their limits and learn more. Hence, the management always looks for new procedures and learning methods to engage the students and enhance the learning outcomes.

Educational Sucess

Crawford’s priority is to make sure that the children receive outstanding education so that they are able to graduate successfully and proceed towards opting for top universities to carry on with higher education.  Accordingly, it focuses on getting the students into A-levels at least and ensuring that they can cope with new technologies and new teaching styles.

The school wants to transform the students into 21st-century learners. It believes that each student needs to possess critical thinking and analytical abilities. They should be able to communicate effectively and collaborate efficiently to bring about impactful changes in society. The authority inculcates an international mindset among the students; this ensures that the students learn to prepare themselves not only to contribute dedicatedly in Kenya but also beyond national boundaries. Accordingly, the students will also prepare themselves to go abroad and study hard. The school believes it is essential that the students receive a good academic grounding for their overall development.

The Leading Light

Crawford International School has achieved tremendous success under the astute leadership of Ms. Jenny Coetzee, the Managing Director. With over 42 years of teaching experience, she has made a major impact in the education sector. She has been associated with ADvTECH Group for 23 years, throughout which she always has focused on uplifting education and providing better opportunities to every student. During her illustrious career, Ms. Jenny served across many educational institutions such as Crawford La Lucia (15 years). She has also played an important part in starting Crawford’s Greenfield site.

Under the leadership of Ms. Jenny, the school has reached many noteworthy landmarks. She aims to take Crawford to newer heights while achieving more accolades along the way. Her leadership enabled the school to carry out various exchange programs, which further enhanced educational initiatives.

Attaining Extra-Curricular Excellence

Crawford is dedicated to not only the academic development of the students but also provides ample scope for the students to excel in various extra-curricular activities. It has various clubs and sports which provide students with the opportunity to learn and grow dynamically. Different clubs ranging from crafts like crocheting, knitting to aviation allow students to thrive. It also has an innovators club and a chess club. Crawford promotes different varieties of sport. The school emphasizes the sport of swimming. It has a dedicated heated pool of Olympic standards.

The school has a dedicated coach for swimming. It is also training the students to be brilliant rugby players to create a strong rugby team that would be able to succeed in different championships and tournaments. Crawford also emphasizes training the students in hockey and soccer. It has hired the captain of the national hockey team to provide professional training to the students. Moreover, the school also provides excellent training in netball, basketball, and much more. It is also making arrangements to introduce cricket so that interested students can also get exposure to that sport.

Crawford is planning to build four tennis courts and basketball courts next year, for which the arrangements will be made very soon. It also houses a multi-purpose hall where students can play different games such as badminton. Furthermore, the school focuses on other sports such as golf and table tennis.

It constantly works with the students and remains open for suggestions so that it can carry out different developmental activities in the extra-curricular arena. The school works very closely with the students through the leadership program and responds dynamically to all their queries. Along with sports offerings, Crawford International School also offers in-depth dance, drama, music production, and much more sessions.

Flexible Learning Opportunities

Crawford International School offers an all-around, holistic education to the students. It follows an adaptable educational approach. The timetable is flexible and is prepared in such a way that the students can avail of the classroom sessions from any place and at any time. For example, if students are travelling elsewhere in order to participate in any national or international event, they can easily participate in online classes on the go.

Alternatively, the school’s timetable works on a cycle. It does not follow a Monday to Friday schedule. It is a nine-day cycle, which means that if children have to be out playing sport for various terms, they will not miss all their lessons. This is because the school follows a cyclic timetable.

The management believes in the whole motto, “Every child is a masterpiece,” and it tries and makes it work for each child. The school does not tie students to rigid subject packages; rather, it gives them the opportunity to choose the subjects of their interest. Once the choice is made, the school authorities make a certain timetable around the same. Crawford International School streamlines everything related to the course offered to the student to ensure that everything is financially and structurally viable.

Preparing the students for the future

With the vision of providing students with the opportunity to sculpt bright careers for themselves, Crawford International takes many necessary steps. It has a complete careers department that works with the various universities. It also conducts a career week every year, where every student gets an equal opportunity to experience and gather in-depth information about careers in different industries.

It also has a program, which enables the students to go out and gather hands-on physical workplace experience. The school also provides the students with access to various career fairs. Additionally, it has introduced life coaching sessions, which improve the students’ confidence and give them a new perspective about life and careers.

The school overcame the challenges imposed by COVID-19 and allowed students to pursue digital internships. It has developed strong connections with universities and is also registered with the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.

Many guest speakers have visited the school and have shared their opinions with the students. It also maintains strong relations with the parents and shares information about various career opportunities for the children. Before Crawford International allows the students to choose any subject, it conducts an aptitude test via a full-time psychologist. The psychologist also conducts private interviews with every child and their parents. Hence, as far as careers are concerned, the careers department takes every necessary step to ensure that every student shines in the career path they opt for.

Growth

Crawford International School have grown in 4 years from 2018  to have over 600 students in 2022.