By Owen Brine “You will never discover new oceans unless you have the courage to hoist your sails and set course into the unknown.” As a naval officer, nautical metaphors come naturally to me. And yet, they’ve taken on new meaning during my time as a volunteer hockey coach. Coaching, like commanding a ship, is...Read More

By Sally Mancy, M.A. I envision classrooms where learners lead inquiries, present ideas with confidence, solve real-world problems, and reflect on their growth. One day, a student who once feared public speaking may proudly deliver a TED-style talk on a community issue; another, who once struggled with group work, may lead a team in designing...Read More

By Jill McPherson From an early age, I knew I wanted to work with children. I was the child who loved holding babies, the teenager who relished babysitting that parents sought out because their children requested me. I engaged with them, played with them—I was the babysitter my younger self would have wanted. I pursued...Read More

By Julie Peterson, Principal, Woodford House, NZ I have always seen education as the land of opportunity. The role of teacher is narrowly typecast by those who have passed through their classrooms and people don’t realize how varied teaching positions can be. I started out as an English teacher and have had the most diverse...Read More

by Stephanie Zantingh As IB educators, we continually seek curricula that support our mission to cultivate self-awareness and empathy in students, developing attributes such as care for others, open-mindedness, reflective thinking, risk-taking, and the pursuit of balance. These attributes of the IB Learner Profile, developed in students through the explicit teaching of skills, are essential...Read More

By Mike Anderson As both an elementary school principal and a U17 Girls’ Basketball Coach, I know how important it is for youth to face challenges in positive environments, outside of the traditional school setting.  It gives young people an opportunity to be mentored in a focused way, and it expands their identity and community....Read More

by James Darling   Being the Director of Character and Leadership Development at Holy Trinity School in Richmond Hill, Ontario Canada is my dream job because I get to hang out in the classrooms and in the hallways and think about how we can develop better leadership, character, and values in our students. But the...Read More

by Pascale Drever   As Deputy Head of an all-girls school in Sydney, Australia, we tried to take some new approaches to the challenges over the past two years. There was no script and I think it’s important to acknowledge all that we have done, as educators across the globe, in whatever way, shape, or...Read More

by Katrina MacGibbon As we transition into 2022, I am feeling a renewed sense of hope, eagerness, and anticipation for the possibilities ahead. This might seem strangely optimistic as we already find our ourselves in a similar situation of flux and uncertainty as the previous year gone by. Admittedly, I am also exhausted and anxious...Read More

by Fiona Douglas-Crampton When I watched the Captains & Poets video, I thought: This is the next generation of Compassionate Leaders….and they are exactly what we need. I have been a student of leadership for a long time – having various roles, including heading up a Women’s Leadership organization.  When I took on the role...Read More