Welcome, on behalf of the NABSS executive committee, to our 44th annual conference. This conference is already a very special event as it represents our return to normality after being obliged to hold our 43rd annual conference in an online format. We have chosen the simple title “Moving Forward Together” and we certainly want this conference to be all about moving forward and looking into the future. In particular, we would like to take advantage of the fact that the disruption over the last two years has led to a considerable amount of revision and re-thinking of methods and priorities. We have looked at different ways of delivering lessons, we have raised important questions about assessment, and we have become more aware of the need to support wellbeing among our learners and teachers. As we return to “normality” it is useful to reflect on what we would like to be the same and what we would like to be different. We may even decide to press a few “reset buttons” and introduce a few significant changes in our schools. Therefore, we hope to provide you, above all, with inspiration and ideas at this event. We are pleased to be joined by some fascinating keynote speakers, such as Beau Lotto, Linda Cruse, Aatif Hassan, Meredith Reeve and Paul Ellis. We will, once again, enjoy a broad range of workshops provided for us by Dragonfly training and TA College, and the hub of our conference will be the busy exhibition hall with many providers of educational resources or services ready to help you introduce changes and improvements in your schools. Setting up this conference has kept quite a few people busy for many months and I would like to thank my fellow executive committee members, our supporting staff in ACADE, and our agency, Hatton, for all their work leading up to the event itself. I would also like to thank the organisations that support us, year after year: The British Council, the British Embassy in Madrid, the examination boards; Cambridge Assessment International and Pearson Education and the many companies that join us each year in the exhibition hall. Finally, thanks to you for attending the conference and helping us to make it a success. I sincerely hope that you take away something from this weekend which will genuinely help you to “Move Forward”, to improve your school, or your lessons, or your own personal or professional experiences.
Keynote speakers
School representatives
Breakout workshops:
Due to the Covid-19 situation, our hotel operations have been adapted to guarantee safety for our customers and compliance with regulations. Additional cleaning and hygiene measures have been implemented and some procedures and spaces have been adjusted. These changes may affect some services. For more specific information on this hotel, please see the section on Stay Safe.
The Hotel Meliá Avenida América is a fantastic urban hotel, thanks to its excellent location in the city, just a few minutes from the IFEMA exhibition centre and the Palacio de Congresos Juan Carlos I convention centre. The Adolfo Suárez – Madrid Barajas International Airport is the perfect option for business and leisure trips.
Perfect connections with with the city centre, with a taxi and bus stop opposite the hotel and a metro station 10 minutes away.
The Hotel has a spectacular 5000 m2 Convention Centre with 32 rooms, all with natural light. They can hold up 1000 people.
You can enjoy the best gastronomy at La Cheminée Restaurant and the best drinks and cocktails at the Piano Bar & Terrace, with live music and a varied menu offering more informal food.
Free high-speed 500 MBps Wi-Fi.
INFORMATION AND RESERVATIONS
Hatton Events, S.L.L. – CALLE PRINCESA 22, 2º DCHA. 28008 MADRID
Telephone 0034 91 000 60 10 (Spanish- José Luis) – 0034 607 66 66 82 (English- Alberto de Diego)
Hugh Elliott joined the Diplomatic Service in 1989. Since August 2019, he is HM Ambassador to Spain and Andorra. Hugh joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1989. A specialist in the EU and the Hispanic world, he has served in a variety of roles in London and at British Embassies overseas. He first worked at the British Embassy in Madrid from 1991 to 1996, covering EU and economic issues. He then served from 1999 to 2002 in Buenos Aires, working on economic and political issues, and from 2002 to 2006 in Paris, working on global issues and strategic threats.
From 2006 to 2013, he worked at Anglo American plc, a diversified global mining company, where he was global Head of Government Relations, and where he worked extensively in Latin America, among other regions. He returned to the FCO in 2013 to take up the position of Director of Communication, responsible for the FCO’s internal and external communication and public diplomacy work.
From 2017 he served as Director for Europe, then Director for International Agreements in the FCO and until this year as Director of Communications and Stakeholders at the Department for Exiting the European Union. Hugh has served in a voluntary capacity as a Trustee of the British Spanish Society and as a Trustee, then Chairman of Canning House, the UK´s centre for Latin America and Iberia. Hugh read Modern and Medieval Languages at Trinity College, Cambridge. He is married to Toni. They have two children, Edward (1993) and Alba (1995).
Alejandro Tiana Ferrer is Professor of Theory and History of Education and Secretary of State for Education. He has served as rector of UNED (2013-2018) and Secretary General of Education (2004-2008), among other responsibilities. He has authored 25 books and more than 200 chapters or articles about the history of education systems, educational policy, comparative education and the evaluation of education systems.
Aatif founded Dukes Education in 2015. He is also Chairman of Cavendish Education, a group of schools for pupils with dyslexia and autism; and a trustee of St James Independent Schools. Aatif is also on the board of CReSTeD. Aatif has a first-class degree in Mathematics and Economics and also had a British Army commission. In 2020, he was awarded the Freedom of City of London for services to education.
D. Beau Lotto is a globally renowned neuroscientist whose studies in human perception have taken him beyond the scientific domain into the fields of business, education, and the arts. He is equally at home creating scientific experiments, running his two start-ups, giving talks, delivering workshops designed for corporate leaders or making TV programs (for BBC, the National Geographic Channel and PBS). Beau has given two main-stage TED talks and has spoken at the Google Zeitgeist event, WIRED and at the G8 Summit in 2013.
Beau Lotto seeks to pull aside the curtain of why we see what we do in order to create the possibility and agency in deciding what to perceive next.
Linda Cruse is a frontline humanitarian and leadership expert who has spent over two decades of boots-on-the-ground leadership working in some of the most extreme places on earth helping families re-establish their lives in the aftermath of tsunami, earthquakes, floods, and typhoons, or working with survivors in refugee camps and war zones. A life of adventure and misadventure includes escape from a rebel army, being held at gunpoint, surviving severe hypothermia and suturing up her own face.
She’s also a network weaver, inspiring the support of people such as the Dalai Lama, HRH The Prince of Wales and Sir Richard Branson, and mobilising their influence to help solve the world’s most critical social, environmental and humanitarian problems.
Based on her knowledge and insights gained through a life on the frontline Linda’s passion is to create dynamic platforms for students to engage in real life high impact service whilst learning essential leadership skills. Living out of just one suitcase for 21 years hear how Linda has translated her life on the frontline into being one of the most powerful leadership experts with a goal to help shape students into happy, healthy young people who lead purposeful, fulfilling lives with an empowered zest for life.
“It’s up to each of us to be the change we want to see in the world.” is Linda’s mantra..
Sonja Uhlmann is working for the British Council Spain as Child Protection Manager. Sonja’s main responsibility is to put in place corporate requirements in order to prevent and reduce the risk for children to suffer from any type of abuse including bullying. She has also to ensure compliance with Spanish and British Law concerning Child Protection and has to train the team about how to deal with an incident if it finally takes place. Finally, she is the point of contact in Spain with the Global Child Protection Team of the British Council and has to ensure that policies and procedures are implemented.
Meredith Reeve is Head of Next Generation Assessment for Pearson’s UK and International secondary school markets. Meredith has held a number of key leadership roles in education, beginning over 15 years ago as a senior secondary teacher and Chief Examiner in her native country of Australia.
Meredith has a wealth of experience in qualifications and assessment delivery, including having led the launch of the first onscreen, on-demand tests in the 14-19 Vocational Market in the UK. In her previous role as Head of Standards, she represented Pearson on Ofqual’s Standards and Technical Issues Group, advising on the implementation of awarding regulation and quality assurance.
Meredith holds a post-graduate certificate in Educational Assessment and Examinations from Cambridge University and now leads teams across the Pearson business in strategy, research and development and innovation in assessment, with a specific focus on the role of onscreen technologies.
Paul Ellis has been Head of Teaching and Learning at Cambridge International since 2010. In his role he works with teachers and school leaders worldwide to advise and support them in their professional learning. He broadcasts widely on aspects of education at conferences, through workshops, podcasts and blogs. He has co-authored or edited more than a dozen education books including, most recently, The What, Why & How of Assessment (Corwin, 2021).
As Principal of The Teaching Assistant College, Eva has led a team of trainers, tutors and consultants delivering in schools and early years settings in over 50 countries. She has worked closely with the awarding body CACHE (Council for Awards in Care, Health and Education) to write and consult on qualifications and has great pleasure in being able to share a programme specifically designed for Early Years practitioners in NABSS schools at the conference.
Melody is passionate about nurturing a lifelong love of learning in both children and adults, developing leadership potential and creating an educational climate that offers opportunities to improve outcomes for all. She believes that education is the key to unlocking potential and addressing inequality. Her training is fun, engaging, practical and stimulating, encouraging a growth mindset. She is a qualified teacher, senior leader, head teacher and improvement advisor who has worked both in the independent and state sectors with extensive experience of EYFS, KS1, KS2 and KS3. This experience enables Melody to work with a diverse range of settings on improving the quality of teaching, unlocking the potential of your school and developing the capacity from within.
Her post graduate studies ensure that Melody’s training is backed by strong research skills which then translate into practical talk-led collaborative activities that lead to transformational change. She travels both in the UK and internationally supporting schools to develop innovation, both in leadership and curriculum, and evolve into a flagship 21st century school.
Steve Garnett has been a teacher for 29 years and over the past ten years, has delivered training to more than 12,000 teachers across the UK, Europe, Asia, The Middle East and South America. In addition to his regular appearance at the NABSS Conferences, Steve has provided highly successful workshops at conferences for COBIS, TES, The Society of Heads, IAPS, The Girls’ Day School Trust, ISHRAQ and BSME. Steve is an award-nominated author of ‘The Subject Leader’, ‘Using Brain Power in the Classroom’ and co-author of ‘Spoon Feed No More: Improving Classroom Performance’ – which is a definitive guide to the philosophy and practice of Dragonfly Training. His latest book ‘Cognitive Load Theory: A Handbook for Teachers’ was published in 2020.
Delegate feedback is always very positive, with delegates regularly describing his courses as ‘inspirational’, ‘grounded in reality’ and ‘very relevant’
Duncan spent nearly 20 years as a Headteacher and senior leader in international schools in the UK, Argentina, Peru, Italy and Lesotho. Duncan also held the position of Director of Education at both The Skills Builder Partnership and The English-Speaking Union. Duncan has an MA in International School Education and Leadership and is a qualified coach and Voice Print practitioner. Duncan is also CEO of EDUCE Mentoring and Coaching, in association with Dragonfly Training, which provides services to school leaders around the world. His first book, ‘Creating Cultures of Coaching in Schools: Unlocking Potential, Increasing Impact’, will be published later this year by McGraw Hill/Open University Press.
Alessio works for the Institute of Physics (IOP) as a Professional Practice Coach across the UK and Ireland. He has also developed a number of national and international programmes to enhance STEM and STEAM skills. In Malaysia, Alessio worked with the Ministry of Education to develop and roll out a programme of innovative STEM resource packs and training for schools at national level, including developing train the trainer courses. Alessio has won a number of national and international teaching awards for his innovative and creative use of technology in education (particularly in STEM subjects), including an award at the Worldwide Innovative Education Forum 2007. He has also worked with partners like Microsoft Education, Google, the BBC, the Times Educational Supplement (TES), Welsh Government, Oxford University Press, Nelson Thornes, Open University, BrainPOP, Twig World, etc…
Alessio is a published author with Scholastic and Hodder Education. In 2014 he created the highly effective Numerical Reasoning Resource Pack as an intelligent response to the introduction of the Literacy and Numeracy Framework (LNF) in Wales. The methodologies in the resource pack and associated training have directly contributed to significantly raising standards in numerical reasoning in all the schools that embedded these resources in their curriculum, with some schools reporting an increase in their national numerical reasoning test results of over 20% in all year groups since using Alessio’s strategies.
Alan Jervis is one of Dragonfly’s senior trainers and has delivered over 2,500 courses to more than 25,000 teachers. With over 30 years of teaching experience – including seven as an Assistant Headteacher responsible for teaching, learning and assessment – Alan has extensive experience of employing new teaching and learning strategies. During his time as Assistant Head, Alan was also tasked with targeting student under-achievement which he did very successfully, by overseeing an impressive 36% upturn in GCSE and A level exam results.
Since then, Alan has become not only an expert teacher trainer, but also a qualified NLP consultant and an author. Alan’s publications include co-writing the critically-acclaimed ‘Improving Classroom Performance: Spoon Feed No More’ among others. With this incredibly vast experience and expertise, it is no surprise Alan’s Dragonfly courses receive our top 97% 5 star feedback from all past delegates. Over the past 16 years, Alan has delivered courses in schools for Dragonfly Training across the UK, Europe, South America and Asia and has regularlydelivered workshops at conferences for NABSS, BSME, IAPS, ISHRAQ, King’s Group and COGNITA.
Inspirational head teacher at three leading Independent UK schools, most recently Bedales, with a proven track record in creating outstanding learning environments for children and a culture of high performance among staff. Victoria has over 25 years’ experience in teaching, management, training and educational consultancy, and is well placed to support schools and empower teachers to deliver excellence in teaching EYFS, KS1 and KS2. She has taught the entire primary age-range but is particularly passionate and involved in the teaching of children aged two to seven.
Justo Orgaz and Ignacio Capapé are founding architects of the design, architecture and engineering company trasbordo.
Their aim is to devise and create spaces that inspire the values that motivate them and enhance the meaning of the activistas that take place in them. They specialise in finding practical ways to achieve the objectives of sustainable development.
During the last 2 decades, they have planned and developed important growth and transformation projects of some well-known educational Campuses in our country, such as: British Council School, Oak House School, San Patricio, ESB, among others.
During the last few years trasbordo has received several national and international awards for the quality and sustainability of some of its educational spaces.
Justo Orgaz is currently chair of GBCe(Green Building Council España) National Chapter of WGBC (World Green Building Council), the main international association of experts in building sustainability.
Adrian Bethune is a part-time teacher a primary school in Aylesbury, Deputy Chair of the Well Schools strategic board and the founder of Teachappy. In 2012, he was awarded a ‘Happy Hero’ modal by Lord Richard Layard at the House of Lords for his work on developing wellbeing in schools. In 2015, he was invited to speak at the Action For Happiness event, Creating A Happier World, on stage with the Dalai Lama. Adrian is author of the award-winning Wellbeing In The Primary Classroom – A Practical Guide To Teaching Happiness (Bloomsbury, 2018), co-author with Dr Emma Kell of A Little Guide to Teacher Wellbeing and Self-care (Sage, 2020) and lead author for the Oxford International Curriculum for Wellbeing (Oxford University Press, 2021).
Sonja Uhlmann is working for the British Council Spain as Child Protection Manager. Sonja’s main responsibility is to put in place corporate requirements in order to prevent and reduce the risk for children to suffer from any type of abuse including bullying. She has also to ensure compliance with Spanish and British Law concerning Child Protection and has to train the team about how to deal with an incident if it finally takes place. Finally, she is the point of contact in Spain with the Global Child Protection Team of the British Council and has to ensure that policies and procedures are implemented.
Anna Mears is currently the academic manager responsible for Early Years and Primary classes at the British Council Barcelona. She is particularly interested in the well-being and emotional development of children and young people, as well as gender issues in the classroom.
She has a Diploma in Teaching English, a BA in English Literature and a Master´s degree in Education from the University of Nottingham in the UK.
Olga Alonso Martinez is a fourth-year student of Psychology and Criminology at Comillas Pontifical University. She is currently undertaking an internship at the British Council supporting the Safeguarding Team.
As Principal of The Teaching Assistant College, Eva has led a team of trainers, tutors and consultants delivering in schools and early years settings in over 50 countries. She has worked closely with the awarding body CACHE (Council for Awards in Care, Health and Education) to write and consult on qualifications and has great pleasure in being able to share a programme specifically designed for Early Years practitioners in NABSS schools at the conference.
Future Learning Through AI This session, aimed at school leaders and managers, will look at the role adaptive technology can play in our schools. It will consider how cloud based platforms, using artificial intelligence (AI) technology, cognitive neuroscience and big data insights can be used to make teachers’ lives easier and to engage students through a personalised learning experience. Since graduating from Cambridge University with a Geography degree, Jonathan has worked in four secondary schools and was Deputy Head Teacher in two highly successful London schools. He joined Hastings School as Head of Secondary in September 2019.
