{Thursday, 21 November 2013 marks the opening of the National Symposium on School Leadership and Learning Networks organized by the Ministry of Education (WDA and REB) in partnership with VVOB, the Flemish Association for Development Cooperation and Technical Assistance in the field of education.
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The two-day event will bring together leaders of the education sector and academicians from across the country and abroad to discuss new developments and approaches to School Management and School Leadership.
Effective School Management and School Leadership are essential factors towards quality education, and are a prerequisite to Rwanda reaching its goal of becoming a knowledge-based economy in line with Vision 2020 and
EDPRS II.
For the past 10 years, MINEDUC has successfully partnered with VVOB to enhance the levels of school management in primary and secondary schools nationwide.
MINEDUC has led the way in institutionalizing School Management and School Leadership. A SM&SL Unit has been created within the Rwanda Education Board (REB) as part of the Teacher Development and Management Department (TDM).
Also 30 Schools of Reference (one per District) are now operational and support peer-to-peer learning among schools of the same district.
A certification framework for head teachers has been put in place and the College of Education (ex-KIE) of the University of Rwanda (UR) will soon launch an accreditation programme for head teachers that is in line with validated professional standards.
In support of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), a
School Management and Training Unit was also created within the Workforce
Development Authority (WDA), to enhance the capacity development of leaders and trainers in the field as well as insure quality management of production units.
But now, recent academic empirical evidence has shown that the quality of school leadership is the most important school-related factor influencing pupils’ achievement, second only to the quality of teaching.
Therefore the aim of the Symposium is to bring together a wide variety of educational experts and practitioners to begin to define the best techniques adapted to the Rwandan context to develop core competencies of effective school leaders. Two concepts at the heart of the Symposium – leadership (Ubuyobozi) and Peer-to-peer learning (Itorero) – are already deeply rooted in the Rwandan culture.
{{DATES AND VENUE:}} The Symposium runs from Nov 21-22 at the Umubano Hotel, Kigali.
{{PARTICIPANTS}}: The meeting will be attended by dignitaries from MINEDUC, REB, WDA, HEC and other relevant Ministries. District and Sector level high officials, representatives of IPRCs and Head Teachers of 30 district Schools of Reference are expected to attend, as are representatives from the University of Rwanda/ College of Education and Teacher Training Colleges.
International organizations active in the education sector and members of the Rwanda Education NGO Coordination Platform (RENCP) involved in promoting School Leadership have also been invited to participate.
{{TOPICS OF PRESENTATIONS AND DISCUSSIONS:}}
• School leadership in theory and practice
• Professional standards for School Leaders
• Effective School leadership through peer to peer learning/Learning networks.
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