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Academic
Paper written for MA course in Educational Technology Leadership:
Subject
EDUC 271: Education Policy
Artifact
created Spring, 2001.
Reflection written March 2002.
Artifact
'Professional
Development in an International School' [pdf]
Reflection:
Education Policy Paper
Course Description:
The course is designed to help prepare leaders of education and
training technology to be effective actors in the policy processes
of local schools, corporations, non-profit organizations. Policy
is one of the primary means by which leadership is exercised. The
course aims to help students discern the premises underlying various
policies, to participate effectively in the policy process and to
understand the potential and limitations of policy.
Focus of the course is to not only provide students with considerable
knowledge about education and training policy but to also help each
student prepare a credible education or training policy proposal.
My reflection:
The
challenges of working in international education and in Kuwait in
particular inspired me to focus completely on my current school,
The English School for Girls, for my final paper. The proposed policy
was based on the perceived need for professional development for
staff in an international teaching environment constrained by an
educational institution which is privately owned and run for profit.
The attached final paper outlines the problem and discusses two
alternative policy proposals. An opening letter addressed to the
school owner provides a summary of the paper. There is also an extensive
list of references focusing on professional development in education.
I found this course particularly difficult as I had not been in
a position of authority where I had been responsible for something
as complex as an educational policy. Also I was a little overwhelmed
by the international factor of my situation: An Australian, teaching
a British curriculum in a Kuwait English-speaking school studying
American education policy! Despite this I was very pleased to receive
a high grade for my final paper and, though it has certain imperfections,
such as the reference to the use of distance education as an alternative
means of PD (a rather irrelevant sideline you will probably agree!),
it has been based on a real situation and merits some consideration.
Julie Lindsay,
March 2002.
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