Abigail Alexis-Olubuyide - Head of Primary, The British School of Beijing, Shunyi
Tell us about yourself and your role at Nord Anglia Education?
Hello! My name is Abigail Alexis-Olubuyide, and I’m the Primary School Headteacher at
the British School of Beijing, Shunyi in China. I've been at Nord Anglia Education for well over a year now and love the organisation and my school.
What does good professional learning look like to you? How is this reflected in your school?
First, we need to know what our school priorities are and what an exceptional educational system looks like for us. It’s then our job to make sure that there is consistency in every area of the school, for every colleague, for every student, and even for our parents.
For our professional development to be impactful, I look at two pathways. There’s the whole-school pathway focused on us achieving our overall priorities, but we also have a bespoke pathway that’s about meeting the individual needs of our colleagues. Those goals might manifest from our quality assurance systems or from colleagues’ reflections, such as what they need to fill the gaps they’ve identified in their practices and in their knowledge.
How has professional learning at Nord Anglia influenced your professional practice?
I’m the definition of a lifelong learner. I'm currently doing a doctorate in organisational leadership because I believe how we show up in the world as leaders has a profound impact on the people we lead.
Nord Anglia is an organisation that really values professional growth, and having a resource like NAU is remarkable and something I’ve never seen before, with a wealth of resources you can choose from.
I’m also completing Nord Anglia’s Aspiring Principal Leadership Programme, which is an impactful programme that’s further developing my leadership prowess. I believe that “better people make better leaders”, and if we’re going to be better people, we need to learn what works and what doesn't work and then adapt our approach.
How do you prioritise your own learning and development?
Unfortunately, I only have 24 hours in the day. I wish it were double! So, I wake up extremely early and use that peace and quiet because I have two lively children. I delve into readings and then spend time reflecting on what I have read. But the secret to my development is in my application. I always look at anything I encounter in a book or face-to-face with others through the lens of my own personal context.
What’s the best advice you’ve been given that’s impacted how you approach your learning and development?
I come from a household of learners. I think I've always had an understanding that things change and—to remain current and not be left behind—you have to move with the times. You need to ask questions. One of the many quotes my dad used to say to me was, “It's better to be a fool for a minute than to be a fool for a lifetime,” so I have no shame in asking questions, because then I get clarity; I get understanding.
What’s something in education that really excites you at the moment?
The main thing I have my eyes on is leadership and how leaders can get results for their organisations but in the right way.
I believe if we lead in the right way, we will get high-performing individuals, and what we'll also get is highly engaged individuals with a sense of happiness and self-fulfilment in the workplace. With this approach, you get to feel as if you're making a difference, not just in the lives of your students but in the lives of your colleagues. I went into leadership for that.
Read more from our series on professional learning at Nord Anglia Education here.
