Improving education is an economic and social priority. Higher levels of education lead to more prosocial behaviour, reduced health care costs, reduced criminal justice costs and increased economic growth. It is therefore not surprising that most jurisdictions have looked for ways to improve the effectiveness of their schools. Unfortunately most of these efforts have had limited success.

In this keynote presentation, Dylan Wiliam will suggest that the main reason that these well-meaning attempts to improve education have failed to improve educational outcomes is because they did not focus on the the most important variable in education—the quality of the teaching in schools.

The talk will conclude by suggesting that there are two “best bets” for improving education at scale—a knowledge-rich curriculum, and supporting teachers in making greater use of classroom formative assessment, each of which can be implemented at little or no cost, and will have a substantial impact on educational achievement.

• Understanding how to create a learning environment that fosters curiosity, creativity, and autonomy, in which all students can thrive based on their individual and unique strengths
• Considering when and how to re-evaluate your school’s teaching and learning style in order to maximise pupil progress, wellbeing and the overall school environment
• Highlighting the side-effects of ranking students based on grades and academic outcomes, and making the case for an education system that meets the needs of all learners and one which celebrates both success and failure alike

• Explore the key principles of the science of learning and its impact on teaching: how to get children to love and engage in education through simple yet powerful teaching methods that can be implemented in the classroom
• Learn how to use evidence and knowledge for curriculum planning and instruction to make learning meaningful and foster student’s application of knowledge in a variety of academic settings
• Understand how the top performing students learn: how is modern cognitive psychology improving teaching and learning, and how can school leaders create environments in which teachers can think critically about their instruction?

Delegates are invited to attend the following roundtable discussion. This roundtable will be camera-on and delegate-led, to ensure all participants have the opportunity to share their experiences with one another, provide peer-to-peer support and guidance, and reflect on their current challenges and opportunities on the below topic topic.  

• Roundtable A: Home-School Partnership: How to Effectively Engage Parents in the Education of Their Children to Improve Learning Outcomes 

FACILITATOR: Rachel Arnold, Assistant Principal, Korea Foreign School, South Korea

• Discussing the principles of standards-based and performance-based learning: are we teaching students the skills and knowledge they need to succeed and how do we effectively measure competency and critical thinking?
• Exploring viable, authentic, and responsive assessment approaches to monitor the progress and review learning outcomes of all pupils, in order to equip them with the necessary skills to thrive in tertiary education and in the workplace
• Nurturing student agency and self-directed learning through forward-focused feedback and reporting, and enabling deeper and more meaningful learning to take place through the right challenge, pace and depth

• Sharing WAB’s experience in creating a community-wide journey that maximises learning for each individual student by putting them at the centre of their education
• Highlighting how, by taking this innovative and flexible student-centred approach, WAB created a stronger culture of enquiry-driven and self-directed learning, with a focus on real-world, practical engagement
• Considering how student agency fits into an established curriculum, how to nurture its growth among students to ensure high-quality and academically rigorous learning continues to take place

• Exploring solutions and strategies to maximise the outcomes of differentiated teaching, and optimise personalised learning programmes
• Taking a data-informed approach to learning and providing personalised pathways, enabling self-directed learning, and allowing teachers to challenge and intervene as and when appropriate
• Considering the use of personalised learning materials which can be manipulated by the student or teachers to support different learning needs and ensure progress is being made

Delegates are invited to attend the following roundtable discussions. This roundtable will be camera-on and delegate-led, to ensure all participants have the opportunity to share their experiences with one another, provide peer-to-peer support and guidance, and reflect on their current challenges and opportunities on the below topic topic.  

• Roundtable B: Discussing Successful Strategies to Nurture Bilingual Students and Maintain High Expectations and Outcomes for EAL Students

FACILITATOR: Dr Yu-Chiao Chung, Visiting Research Fellow – Educational Studies, Goldsmith University

• Putting wellbeing first: highlighting the necessary requirements and tools for schools to prioritise, uphold, and embed wellbeing and happiness across the whole-school strategy
• Discussing how character education effectively feeds into traditional whole-school aims around progression, attainment and behaviour standards
• Exploring how becoming a values-driven school will lead to higher expectations and strong academic, professional and social success

• Providing an overview of what matters in effective student learning in the current context
• Equipping teachers with the tools to deliver an outstanding education, with a particular focus on the importance of providing clear and efficient feedback to teachers
• Sharing practical tools and guidance to help teachers take ownership of their professional learning and to help them enhance their practice for the benefit of students

*Programme subject to change