Educational Management and School Leadership / Erasmus+

Matthew McGeever, Assistant Director of Studies of English at International House Bratislava language school, recently went to Areadne Lifelong Learning Centre in Kalamata, Greece, to take part in a course on Educational Management and School Leadership.



During the past year, I’ve often felt like a fish out of water. The transition from teacher to Assistant Director of Studies has been challenging in many ways: dealing with administration systems, being responsible for groups of teachers, taking on behind-the-scenes roles which are essential to the smooth running of the school. Despite excellent support from my Director of Studies and other admin staff, I felt it was necessary to attend a course to really understand how Educational Management (my new role) differed from Educational Provision (my previous role).

My course in Kalamata ran for one week in May 2021 with two tutors from Greece and a multinational group of course participants (from Sweden, Estonia, Spain, Portugal and Romania). During each session there was a mixture of theoretical input, practical case studies and workshop sessions which encouraged the sharing of best practice between the course participants.

By the end of the course, I had gained knowledge about educational planning, team leadership and effective conflict resolution. Particularly valuable was the sharing of experiences with colleagues from a number of countries, as well as making professional contacts for possible future collaborations. Whilst it would be premature to state that I am now fully confident in my new role within Educational Management, I at least feel like a fish in water who is learning to swim and enjoy his new environment.

Erasmus+ info