Education Leaders Attend Cambridge Schools Conference in SA

The is the second time  that the global conference has been held in South Africa. This year it took place from 29-30 March.

Focused on the theme ‘Creating the conditions for success’, the two-day conference was attended by more than 250 delegates from 132 Cambridge schools based in 31 different countries around the world.

Through a series of key note speeches, workshops and breakout sessions, delegates explored how school leaders and teachers can create the right conditions for success – starting in the classroom and achieving impact across the whole school.

Topics that were covered included how educators can deliver the best conditions for teaching in their classrooms, cognitive, neurological and psychological learning factors, and what this means when establishing a learning environment; overcoming barriers to learning and what ‘success’ looks like in an effective learning environment.

The conference offered a packed programme of keynote speeches by leading experts, workshops, breakout sessions, networking opportunities and an exhibition. Speakers included Christine Özden, Chief Executive, Cambridge International, Professor Jonathan Glazzard, Professor of Teacher Education at the Carnegie School of Education at Leeds Beckett University and Amy Burke, an educational consultant from the UK amongst other.

Juan Visser, Cambridge International’s Regional Director for Sub-Saharan Africa said: “It has been a privilege to host the global Cambridge Schools Conference here in South Africa for the second time. I am extremely pleased to see so many school leaders attend from across Sub-Saharan Africa and around the world. We had delegates come from as far afield as Australia, Belgium, Qatar, Pakistan and Burma, which made for interesting engagement and sharing of ideas. It has been a great opportunity for those attending to learn from some inspirational academic leaders and they can confidently take this learning back to their schools to further enhance the great work they are doing there for their students and colleagues.”

The take up of Cambridge programmes and qualifications in schools in Sub-Saharan Africa has steadily increased in recent years. Today, over 100 schools offer Cambridge programmes and qualifications in South Africa, and over 1000 schools in Sub-Saharan Africa, including Cambridge IGCSE and Cambridge International AS & A Level.

The Cambridge Schools Conference in Johannesburg is one of three prestigious Cambridge Schools Conferences set to be held this year – the other two will take place in the Cambridge, UK and Bali, Indonesia later in the year.