Articles in the ‘Management Matters’ Section
In the previous edition of the IH journal, my column looked at teacher well-being. At the end of that column, I suggested that next time, we could look at manager well-being. And now it is ‘next time’, so I guess I should do what I said I would! Overlooked? Prior to writing this column, I did a ...
Since becoming the Director of Studies at International House Bydgoszcz, over 90% of the teachers I’ve worked with have fallen into the category of novice teachers, having less than three years of experience. Most of them have recently completed the CELTA, and many are living abroad for the first time. I also have very strong memories of my own experiences of ...
How do you create a cohesive team of teachers, across a country the size of India? How do you keep them motivated, without a traditional bricks-and-mortar teaching centre, meeting them face-to-face only a few times a year? This article discusses makes practical suggestions for managing the challenges, based on our experiences in India. Over 20,000 learners ...
I grew up with Scottish parents and Irish grandparents, and a multiplicity of aunts, uncles and cousins. We were the only members of our family who had moved away from Clydebank [near Glasgow] and I had the misfortune [in my family’s eyes] of being the only one in the family who was born in England. ...
What is this article? How much do teacher educators (TEs) practise what we preach by adapting/customising programmes to suit the needs of candidates in their context/s? Here I will explore this notion to counter the danger of the ‘one size fits all’ approach. Who cares? TEs should, that’s who. In asking ourselves the question, ‘How well do I ...
I’ve had an interesting few weeks recently, watching a situation unfold in my daughter’s workplace. The fields we work in are related, in a way, which means we have some understanding of each other’s context; however, they are more different than similar, if that makes any sense. For background, part of her and her colleagues’ ...
It’s never a good idea to get too pally with people at the IHWO Academic Managers and Trainers’ Conference, is it? Had I managed to remain more aloof, I’m sure Chris Ożόg would never have contacted me asking me if I would write a management column for the IHWO Journal. Had he been less charming ...
What motivated me to write this article The idea for this article came about during the IH inspection when the inspector, Lisa Phillips from IH Malta, asked me what I did to motivate myself after having worked as a DoS for more than a decade at the same school. At first Lisa’s question took me by surprise as I ...
You’ve been teaching for a while. You’ve done the Delta or the Trinity Diploma. You want to move out of being in the classroom full-time but don’t fancy spending the rest of your life as a teacher trainer or writing materials. You’ve got a lot to offer, and you could definitely do a better job ...
Monday, 7:15am. Outside, the sun is shining beautifully. ‘Should be a nice day’, the thought just crosses my mind, when the deafening, shrill sound of fire alarm interrupts my morning routine. I run out of my room, down the stairs and to the fire panel, thankful I had at least managed to put on some ...