What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

I have just led the appointment of a new Executive Director at AISWA, concurrently overseeing a full review of the structure and services of this body to ensure that the Independent Sector in WA is strategically positioned to become the number one system provider in WA, serving our member schools and staff.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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Through a means and academic entry tested programme (Tàlantach), our original 1897 school charter has been refocussed. Capable and deserving pupils, from schools outside of our immediate catchment, can now access our high fee school. Seventy students are now enrolled who previously would have been excluded.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

I am proud that we have bridged the knowing-doing gap in ASC’s programs, practices and the successful establishment of a new model of schooling in The Studio School. We have challenged one-size-fits all assumptions, focussed on capabilities, personalisation with wellbeing, agency and human-centred co-design at the core of our practices.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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We will establish and implement the next generation of learning, teaching and credentialling systems. These new systems support all young people as resilient and creative problem-seekers and solvers who emerge from their schooling experience as empowered, skilled, and principled custodians of our planet, committed to regeneration, diversity, justice and truth.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

The introduction of an optional 4-day week for Y12 students, and a restructured innovative timetable has improved the daily educational experience of staff and students alike. A positive whole school culture continues to evolve, more closely aligned to today’s world and the individual needs of staff and students alike.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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Continued educational transformation is imperative and our educational system completely reimagined. My vision is for a personalised education that places the acquisition of skills over content, where real world application is evident through an engaging and inspiring education that redefines teaching and learning for both students and educational practitioners.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

In recent years I am most proud of the work I led at the SACE Board (South Australia’s senior secondary curriculum authority) where we maintained a focus on supporting academic excellence while making the qualification more equitable and ready for a future in which assessment will be profoundly different

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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Education should ensure that children and young people can learn and thrive. Their experience in our preschools and schools must intentionally develop their agency, wellbeing, and effectiveness as learners as well as the knowledge, skills and capabilities we can teach them. That’s the impact I want to see.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

Developing the ‘how’ of teaching and learning at Firbank was the final piece of the Strategic Intent. The 7 Principles give a roadmap for staff and students, combining wellbeing and high impact strategies. These principles ensure that students and staff have an opportunity to attain the best possible outcomes.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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I am excited about the possibilities AI is bringing to the teaching and learning space. The opportunity to provide personalised and targeted learning activities, gathering real time data which informs next steps is ground-breaking. This will allow teachers to have more time to facilitate deep learning for students.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

The new student leadership structure gives students a democratic voice in shaping their own education and amplifies and elevates the voices, gifts, aspirations, concerns, and challenges of young people and their communities. Student participation in school-level decision-making through the various committees across all operations of the school, has increased students’ sense of agency, feelings of belonging, and civic efficacy. 

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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My vision is that culture, leadership, and strategy are triumvirate and that together they will steer our school to achieve excellence and equity. Where a young person’s socioeconomic status, disability, environment and personal circumstances ceases to be a significant determinant of their educational outcomes. 

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

The introduction of micro-credential badges has had a positive impact for our students. The aim is to take the focus off a solitary grade and instead to place greater focus and attention on skills, characteristics and achievements. It has also resulted in a more personal and relevant exit statement for our graduates.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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My absolute passion is to see systemic revolution in the education. I intend to continue helping those educators who want to set up their own schools and those who want to create significant change in their current ones. The goal, to make schools a kinder place for students, staff and parents.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

I am proud to have played a central role in leading a school community that has embraced a ‘stage not age’ curriculum that has transformed the experience of school for students and staff. The unique myMAP curriculum that focuses on student agency has demonstrated that self-determination can be achieved. We have shared our journey with hundreds of educators across all sectors, states and territories with the aim of inspiring others to embrace an education to promote human flourishing.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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I would like to drive a movement that eradicates competition and comparison between students, schools and sectors. A school experience that fosters cooperation at all levels of education would be a significant step forward. I would like to continue championing progressive education where the focus shifts from standardisation to personalisation, where the school experience empowers students.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

My community’s appetite and willingness to embrace a new school vision, purpose and values positioning us for growth and evolution in a time of disruption, rapid transformation and hyper-change.  Our future reflects worldwide shifts in learning while still honoring and respecting our traditions, heritage and the spirit of St Hilda’s.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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I would like to see alignment in senior years across Australian states and Territories so that we can benchmark Australian education more accurately on a global scale, a national commitment to ‘in-school’ teacher training, and positive messaging around the importance and value of teachers in our society.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

Following 12 years of research, prototyping and testing, we have found a way to teach for creativity, innovation and entrepreneurialism, answering the challenge of Sir Ken Robinson’s seminal 2007 TED talk, “Do Schools Kill Creativity?” We call this school-wide teaching and learning framework Realms of Thinking.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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We are currently building a web-based software platform with machine learning embedded to enable us to share Realms of Thinking with schools around the world. This is an end-to-end solution: teacher professional learning, planning tools, appraisal and feedback, and student reporting. Our pre-launch garnered interest from schools across the world, numbering some 30,000 students. We will be ready to launch early in 2024. The goal in the next five years is to have 100 schools running Realms of Thinking.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

I am most proud of the work I have achieved in developing a program aimed to bring together educators from across the country and across sectors as part of The Future of Education Summit. We are looking forward to our 2023 event where we will provide opportunities for many educators to showcase and share their work.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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Over the next 5 years I would like to influence a movement in education to become more focused on pathways. I believe in micro-credentialing for students and staff, which will encourage and support both groups to build meaningful and purposeful careers/lives. As part of this, I would like to see educators focus on relationship building, sharing and collaborating, on embracing creativity and on encouraging our young people to become ethical and socially responsible.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

A most exciting recent innovation is the establishment of The Studio School in Fremantle. This highly-personalised campus offers Year 10 to 12s an alternative to mainstream schooling through a studio model: students combine their studies with real-world projects in order to achieve their WACE, an ATAR (if desired) and access to tertiary institutions.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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The “new metrics” project in which we are engaged, we believe, foretells the future. The University of Melbourne and 40 “first-mover” schools (ASC is the only WA school involved since inception) have been working on a paradigm shift, reimagining schooling in Australia: educating and assessing students in new ways that prepare them for a very different future..

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

From 2019, I worked with a wonderful team to create a new school, CathWest Innovation College and specifically, a new pathway for students in Years 10, 11 and 12 called the Inquiry Pathway. This pathway allows students to explore their passions through a VET subject package; giving them qualifications and genuine learning experiences

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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I would love the opportunity to work with students to create new schools throughout Australia that focus on building upon their skills, exploring industry partnerships and creating genuine learning experiences that allow students to solve local and national issues where they can be valued by and be of value to their world.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

Introducing and designing a number of non-traditional educational pathways for students to meet their personalised needs. I have implemented new designs of learning and assessment frameworks based on real world authentic learning. I've seen many disengaged students thrive academically, socially, and emotionally by following their passions within these new structures.

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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I would like to implement a learning advisory and master class choice model where teachers act as facilitators/advisors and students have choices of bite sized key learning area master classes. I would like to provide more opportunities for students to develop independent learning skills and deepen their knowledge in areas of their passions.

What are you most proud of that has led to positive impact for a system, students and/or staff in the last 5 years?

In a world marked by technological developments and multifaceted global challenges, there is a mounting need to equip our children with the competencies and knowledge required to traverse the future successfully. As Headmaster of Brisbane Grammar School, my colleagues and I are at the forefront of STEAM Education which integrates science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics to foster critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving skills.”

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What is the next big impact that you would like to see and/or lead in education over the next 5 years?

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I am particularly interested in supporting the next generation of school leaders. Leadership across the teaching profession drives high-quality teaching. School leaders create the culture, environments, structures and systems to develop and extend high-performing, expert teaching teams which, in turn, influences student learning.

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