MELBOURNE, 17 May, 2024: Ten Principles from Delhi’s top public schools were hereunder the theme ‘learning and well-being’ for the ‘Women in School Leadership (WISL) Program’ in 2023-24 under the banner – Leading schools for social change. Earlier, 12 female Victorian principals visited India, to engage in education-based and cultural activities, including shadowing at a host school.
The Indian school principles visiting Melbourne were – Mallika Preman, Tagore International School, Richa Sharma Agnihotri, Sanskriti School, Rashmi Malik, Salwan Public School, Dr. Santosh Vyas, Sadhu Vaswani International School, Dr. Jyoti Gupta, K. R. Mangalam World School, Aditi Mishra, Delhi Public School, Anju Tandon, Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, Asha Prabhakar, Bal Bharati Public School, and ASN Senior Secondary School.
I caught-up one afternoon with some of the Indian Principles in the city, and found them excited about their experience. The WISL has made them meet educators here and opened up their minds sharing experiences and problems that are common in both the countries. This led to many possible solutions and strategies to make education and schools better.
The Principals talked about the diversity in Australian schools and the connect among schools, universities, and industry. They felt they will be well equipped after their Australian experience to deal with similar situations in India. For them ,they felt, was a great learning experience as issues in schools are the same the world over.
They immersed in the vibrant educational and cultural landscape of Victoria, experiencing firsthand the innovative practices and strategies that promote learning and wellbeing in Victorian schools. The exchange of ideas and experiences was truly inspiring and the camaraderie amongst Indian and Victorian school leaders was wonderful.
The Asia Education Foundation says, “The Women in School Leadership program embodies the philosophy of the Asia Education Foundation – establishing enduring school partnerships between schools in Australia and Asia that facilitate professional development for educators, greater mutual understanding and the opportunity to provide students with global learning experiences”.
“It is exciting to see such talented women school leaders from Australia and India coming together to reinforce each other, benefit from each other’s achievements and strengthen their ability to infuse their schools with international perspectives”.
The program was developed and delivered by Asia Education Foundation (AEF) in partnership with the Australia India Institute (Opens in a new window) and the Faculty of Education at the University of Melbourne, and the National Progressive School’s Conference and O.P. Jindal Global University in India.
The project was funded by the Victorian Department of Education.
