An incredible week with Scottish and Malawian colleagues in Blantyre, Malawi.
We facilitated leadership training and collaborated with over 150 Senior Leaders. We facilitated collaborations, debates and shared one another’s perspectives from our own context which focused on:
- the qualities, roles and responsibilities of leaders at all levels in school improvement. Staff were able
to compare their approaches and strategies used in their role.
- reflected on our National Policies and the key aspects of effective learning and teaching.
- shared approaches to quality assurance and the importance of the rigour associated with this
- discussed and debated the most effective approaches to supporting staff development. There was an agreement that this should be of a collegiate and consultative nature.
- identified challenges associated with leading the quality assurance process and supported one another with solutions and successful strategies.
There were many similarities in the leadership and quality assurance approaches of both Malawian and Scottish colleagues. The invaluable impact of MLOL was evident from their progressive and developed thinking since we last met. Some similarities were surprisingly evident when discussing the challenges faced by leaders in ensuring this quality provision.
Unfortunately, their limited resources, social challenges and large class sizes continue to differ greatly from the Scottish system creating further complexities in their practice.
Our Malawian colleagues continue to have a drive for learning more, positive change and supporting their staff in the process. The active involvement from Senior Education Officers in the training provided reassurance and support for continued improvement and change. Almost all session evaluations requested that more training is provided.
Thank you to my wonderful colleagues for their exceptional professionalism, delivery, support and passion; Morgan, Shannon and Sophie.
Thank you to Maura and my colleagues at school for their support and to Maureen for all of the incredible opportunities over the years.
A huge privilege.
A pleasure.
