The learning crisis in many low-income countries demands reform at scale, but how exactly can change be delivered swiftly and successfully?

Brookings Institution’s work across recent years has been trailblazing in what it takes to achieve this, and Brad Olsen is able to give key insights into how we deliver such reform in the Global South.

Brad joins us alongside EDT’s Elizabeth Ogott and Clare Buntic, as we delve into the ingredients to transformation, teacher buy-in, and togetherness.

This episode covers

• The key ingredients to successful education reform at scale
• Considering public perception around reform
• How to motivate and incentivise teachers while delivering large scale change
• Engaging teachers as partners in authentic reform
• The imperative role of good data in delivering good adaptive change

Brad Olsen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brad-olsen-0149734/
Brookings Institution: https://www.brookings.edu/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-brookings-institution/
Clare Buntic: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clare-buntic-a829b814/
Elizabeth Ogott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-ogott-03a9b25/
Tony McAleavy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tony-mcaleavy-6aa64229
Education Development Trust: https://www.linkedin.com/company/educationdevelopmenttrust/

Welcome back to the Brighter Futures podcast brought to you by Education Development Trust. 

On episode 7, host Tony McAleavy is joined by Noelle Buick, Regional Inspections and Accountability Lead, Middle East and Asia and Valerie Dunsford, Deputy Chief Inspector for BSO/ISQM to discuss school improvement through external review.

This episode includes: 

• How the inspection of British Schools Overseas works.
• How the International School Quality Mark operates.
• Areas of focus and measurement for each system.
• Collating the views of parents, students and teachers. 
• Challenges and opportunities of both systems.

An evidence-based approach to applying research in the education sector is a great grounding for improving practices, but how do we ensure its proper application?

Cat Scutt, Emma Gibbs and Dr Richard Churches join us on Brighter Futures to discuss the essential nuances of applying research evidence in the field, both domestically in the UK and internationally.

This episode covers

• Putting research at the heart of teacher professionalism
• The importance of ‘intellectual wellbeing’
• Setting desired outcomes to better make use of research
• Neuroscience’s role in relation to teachers
• International challenges with research relevance and specificity

Creating pathways for young people to bring career aspirations to life is an essential part of their educational journey, and one in which we’re seeing a positive shift.

Join us on Brighter Futures this week where we look at the growing initiatives around young people’s pathways with The Careers & Enterprise Company’s Oli de Botton, and Education Development Trust’s Mark De Backer & Wendy Phillips.

We hear their fascinating insight on careers education, from NEET-preventative measures to connecting with industry professionals and embedding careers education throughout the school journey.

This episode covers

• How The Careers & Enterprise Company’s endeavours link into Education Development Trust’s goals
• Increasing the information available for young people to make good, well-informed decisions
• Complexities of linking schools with employers in rural areas
• The remarkable value of preemptively preventing students from falling through the net through Pre-NEET initiatives
• Tailored approaches to support for more disadvantaged groups

When peer review does away with the ‘assessment’ approach and puts schools in charge of their skills growth, that’s where the power of the Schools Partnership Programme lies.

This collaborative approach to academic development is an evolving movement, with the potential to continue developing great leaders going forward. 

Join us in this episode of Brighter Futures, with fantastic insights from Maggie Farrar (Education Consultant), Lesley Coulthurst (Kyra’s Head of Alliance) and David Godfrey (Associate Professor, UCL Institute of Education).

This episode covers

• How the Schools Partnership Programme has evolved since its first iterations
• Kyra’s successful involvement in the programme
• How peer review works in practice, where the school sets the agenda
• Where the SPP can evolve in the future, with international scale and wider stakeholder involvement

If we consider the specific needs of genders in the delivery of education as we do with other factors such as disability, then the benefits of gender-responsive education can be felt by all.

In this special episode of Brighter Futures, celebrating International Women’s Day, we’re looking at some of the key gender-based issues faced globally, how we can move towards greater gender-responsive education, the progress made thus far, and the steps yet to be taken in the realm of girls’ education.

This episode covers

• The long-running push for greater provisions for girls’ education
• Closing the gap between education policy and practice
• Dangers of allowing interruptions to girls’ education
• Developments made up to, and since, the recent pandemic
• The need for targeted financial support and usable, accurate data

Links and references at: https://www.educationdevelopmenttrust.com/our-research-and-insights/podcast-brighter-futures

In recent years there’s been a shift in how we nurture teachers at the beginning of their career journeys, so how has a ‘golden thread’ approach to training ECTs helped solve the teacher retention equation?

Two experts driving the Early Career Framework that’s providing support to new teachers join Tony McAleavy on Brighter Futures this week: Samantha Twiselton OBE, Director of the Sheffield Institute of Education, and our own Dr Nicky Platt, Lead Education Advisor.

We break down the discourse around research that’s informing these vital frameworks, how to encourage more mentors to engage with the ECF programme, and where international schools can implement a similarly effective ‘golden thread’.

This episode covers

• The ‘Golden Thread’ that’s keeping teachers engaged throughout their entire careers
• Extended training schemes for teachers, and how they’re improving teacher retention
• How research documents are continually evolving the framework by which we induct Early Career Teachers
• The role of mentors, and how their needs must be addressed to nurture mutual professional development
• Which aspects of the English system serve as a useful learning tool for educational establishments internationally

Links and references at: https://www.educationdevelopmenttrust.com/our-research-and-insights/podcast-brighter-futures

Welcome to the premiere of ‘Brighter Futures’, the podcast brought to you by Education Development Trust.

Each month we’ll be bringing together an exciting panel of renowned experts to share their take on groundbreaking research in the education sector, and we’re kicking off with an engaging look at recent research on the Rwandan response to last year’s Covid challenges.

Joining host Tony McAleavy on this episode is EDT’s Rwanda-based Leadership for Learning Lead, Jean-Pierre Mugiraneza, and Amy Bellinger, who is currently leading the Education Workforce Initiative (EWI) for the Education Commission.

We discuss the shifting paradigm in professional development, a growing need to formalise comms strategies between head teachers & parents/guardians, and how ‘Leaders of Learning’ in Rwanda are collaboratively upskilling fellow educators in their local area.

This episode covers

• Takeaways from the recent report on school & system leadership in Rwanda during the Covid crisis
• Rwandan schools’ use of ‘Leaders of Learning’, and how their collaboration has lifted schools in their areas
• The simple tools that have helped boost parent-headteacher engagement throughout the return to regular schooling
• ‘Learning Partnerships’ as a more collaborative approach to co-creative research
• Opportunities presented by Covid to reconsider communication strategies between headteachers and parents

Links and references at: https://www.educationdevelopmenttrust.com/our-research-and-insights/podcast-brighter-futures

Hello and welcome to Brighter Futures - the podcast brought to you by Education Development Trust.

I’m Tony McAleavy from Education Development Trust and I’ll be your host throughout this series. Since starting as Education Director here I’ve had the pleasure of being involved in extensive education reform within many countries across the world, particularly those in the Uk, Middle East and Africa.

Education Development Trust are a non-for-profit organisation working towards more positive education outcomes around the world, and our aim is to improve school systems, transitions from education to the world of work.

Our recent work has involved providing teachers in England with professional development, supporting the teaching of Syrian refugees in Jordan and Lebanon, and improving teaching of numeracy & literacy in Rwandan primary schools to name just a few of our initiatives - and Brighter Futures presents another opportunity to further our impact, and transform lives through the reform of education systems globally.

This podcast is for the policy makers, government officials, and all individuals who are interested in inspiring positive changes to education policy worldwide. In each episode of Brighter Futures we’ll be bringing together a panel of international experts to discuss their passion for global education, and feature their inspiring work and research, all focused around a particular topic every month.

With every guest comes an opportunity to discover new, world-leading ways to support leaders in unlocking pathways for the next generation of students. A key element behind the success of our work is the application of evidence-based insights to policy challenges, so expect lots of practical take aways in different areas.

We're going to cover high impact professional development for teachers, girls education, transitions into work, and improving the standards of education for children around the world.

We’ll be releasing a new panel episode every month, with a bonus episode rounding up all the latest news and research from Education Development Trust. 

Be sure to follow the podcast on the platform of your choice, and find more information at https://www.educationdevelopmenttrust.com/