IOE Director debates academic selection at leading international education conference

21 March 2017

Professor Becky Francis, Director of the UCL Institute of Education (IOE), participated in two debates at the Global Education Skills Forum (GESF) this weekend (18 -19 March).

Held in Dubai, the conference was attended by over 2,000 people from across the globe. This included Italian singer-songwriter Andrea Bocelli, British adventurer Bear Grylls, and Julia Gillard, former Prime Minister of Australia.

The GESF aims to address the challenges of education, equity, and employment for all. This year's theme: 'How do we make 'real' global citizens?' asked delegates to consider what we need to teach our children and how we can move those lessons to action.

Professor Francis debated the reforms to the UK education system over the past seven years alongside Mr Nick Gibb, Minister of State for School Standards, Mr Brett Wigdortz, CEO and Founder of Teach First, and Sir Michael Wilshaw, Former Chief Inspector for Schools, Ofsted.

Professor Francis also spoke against the motion that academic selection is the best way to help poor children. She discussed this with Tony Little, Eton's former headmaster, and Geoffrey Canada, President of the Harlem Children's Zone in New York.

Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) gave a presentation that outlined five ways we can transform our schools, arguing, "If we want to get great people into teaching, we have to make the job interesting."

The conference held masterclasses with teachers from across the globe - from Pakistan to China, Brazil, Jamaica, and Australia.

Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, congratulated Canadian teacher Maggie MacDonnell on her Global Teacher Prize, thanking "every dedicated teacher around the world."