• Examine the reasons why it is necessary to rethink current assessment practices
• Practice with some of the key learnings of the last decade regarding assessment
• Identify and work with the four major categories of assessment in international schools including both internal and external
• Practice developing an assessment policy
• Practice designing a results-driven decision-making model, based on four types of data
• Explore the key leadership strategies leading to an effective school-wide assessment plan

• Identify the elements of an effective school using a model of continuous improvement
• Develop strategies for bridging from vision to day-to-day practice
• Practice using data to evaluate student learning results and school improvement initiatives
• Analyze elements which lead to a positive school culture and climate
• Explore the notion of how we can best plan and lead for change
• Develop skill in the critical role of recruiting, selecting and orienting new staff as well as optimizing staff and structures to improve learning
• Explore models of human resource organization and development
• Develop a school improvement plan for improved student learning utilizing this skill set

• How current research about teaching and learning should influence international school curriculum design
• Defining what students should learn, who should determine this and how we can ensure the ‘right’ learning intentions
• Alignment of intended learning, instructional and assessment practices
• Process for getting curriculum written in your school
• The structures and systems available for getting curriculum implemented
• Effective curriculum monitoring process

The content and skills of the course have been modified to better address a wider range of needs, beyond the practicing and aspiring principal. While those needs are still the centerpiece, the course will now be more attractive to business managers, school heads, human resources, admissions and marketing directors, encouraged to attend to hone their skills. This opportunity for school principals to work along side other school leaders, practicing with the realities of the financial underpinnings and infrastructure, should provide a much improved dialogue and working relationship across leadership teams in international schools.

Participants are required to bring a laptop computer to this course. Please ensure you have the proper power adaptors.

Keeping an international school true to its mission and financially viable is becoming increasingly challenging. This unique climate in which international schools operate demands an equally unique set of leadership skills. Through a series of case studies and common financial scenarios in international schools, this course will focus on practical skills and understandings including:

• How to keep learning at the center of financial decisions
• How to distinguish between board and administrative responsibilities with regard to finance
• How to put in practices which ensure that financial decisions follow what is best for students
• Basic accounting principles in the international arena
• Best practices in budgeting, monitoring and control
• Long range financial planning, with student learning as the centerpiece
• Key financed-related personnel policies, including performance pay
• Basic use of spreadsheets as a key tool

• How to develop a “Professional Learning Community” focused on student learning results
• How to supervise and evaluate through the review of planning processes and assessment tools
• How to supervise through the analysis of student results and how new models of teacher evaluation are using those results
• How to apply strategies that will encourage teachers to reflect on their practice
• How to differentiate between supervision and evaluation, and how to design effective models and processes
• How to differentiate supervision, evaluation and professional development processes for struggling and proficient teachers
• Essential skills for effective supervision, evaluation and professional development by school leaders

• How to design a supervision, evaluation and professional development program which promotes growth for both teachers and students
• What researchers say about effective teaching, and how to use that knowledge to guide supervision and evaluation
• Observation and conferencing strategies that will best strengthen the link between teaching and learning
• How to apply a wide variety of pre and post observation conferencing strategies that promote effective teaching
• Strategies and practices that will encourage teachers to reflect on their practice
• How to differentiate supervision and evaluation for struggling and proficient teachers
• Communication skills to give and receive effective feedback
• How to use the school learning community as an on-going and on-site professional development program
• How to efficiently manage the supervision/evaluation/professional development processes

• Explore the distribution of powers and responsibilities in international school settings, with emphasis on the role of the principal
• Examine major areas of law and legal issues related to conducting an international school including tort, contracts, conflicts of law, negotiations, and agency (liability).
• Examine and practice with school policies and their relationship to potential legal issues
• Examine the emerging field of internet law – cyber-schools, cyber-misconduct and intellectual property use/misuse.
• Practice thinking, writing and negotiating using common law cases to illustrate how a legal system can impact an international school
• Examine the role of ethical leadership as it relates to law

• Essential elements of situational leadership and other prominent leadership models
• Crisis management in the international school
• Effective means of staff motivation
• Principles and practices of group dynamics for all types of school teams
• Skills of effective communication
• How to lead change and improvement processes, including conflict management
• How to assess their own leadership strengths, weaknesses and approaches

Through practical online and offline activities, multimedia projects, and current case study exemplars of information technology systems, infrastructure, pedagogy and tools, participants will explore and practice:

• How can an international school principal best harness technology to improve student learning?
• What kind of learning does "digital citizenship" encompass? How should it impact the curriculum?
• How has Web 2.0 changed the way in which students study, learn, collaborate, and communicate? What are the implications on instructional programs?
• How do principals effectively manage change in a digital age?
• What are the key leadership strategies for implementing an ongoing and sustainable strategic technology plan?
• How can digital tools be utilized to create sustainable and vibrant learning communities?
• How can digital tools be employed for effective data-based decision making?
• What skills do teachers require in order to maximize digital learning?
• How does a principal juggle the demands of digital communication in a school setting?

Participants are required to bring a laptop computer with wireless internet capability to this course. Please ensure you have the proper power adaptors.

• Analyze data and set related goals
• Develop the skills required to build leadership capacity in others
• Practice recruiting teachers
• Practice leading teams, and managing conflict and crises
• Develop pro-active plans for curricular improvement
• Focus on time management, communication, decision making, and the management of scarce resources
• Practice self-analysis and reflective leadership