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Foreword 3

Introduction to the Global Education Leaders’ Program (GELP) 4

• Aims

• A Little History

• System Transformation

• The GELP Community

The GELP Offer 8

• World-class Consultancy

• Cross Jurisdictional Program Learning

• GELP+ Options

• A Year in GELP

The GELP Commitment 12

• Governance

• Focus

• Selecting a Team

• Contribution

• Resources

• Connection

Looking Forward 15

Contents

2

In November 2011, leaders of education systems in 13 jurisdictions around the world joined influential academics and leaders of multinational corporations and foundations over a long weekend to work together to tackle one of the most challenging problems facing education systems internationally. Their focus: how to radically transform teaching, learning and assessment to reflect the changing world and learning needs of the 21st Century, at the same time as continuously improving existing provision for children and young people currently in schools.

Foreword

What made this global event even more

remarkable, was that it was the fifth such

gathering in a Program designed to facilitate an

ongoing global conversation that has sustained

over three years and convened leaders in

Toronto, Beijing, New York and Seoul. Each year

the number of jurisdictions and partners in the

Program has grown, and the GELP community

has increased in complexity and diversity, all the

time sustaining and deepening the engagement

and commitment of continuing GELP members.

This prospectus is intended to offer a window

into the work of the GELP community – where it

came from, its ambitions and challenges and the

jurisdictions taking part. You will find out about the

activities and support that comprise the Program.

There is also a section highlighting what you need

to think about if you are a system leader in a

jurisdiction considering taking part in GELP.

We hope this short prospectus answers most of

your questions. For further information visit us

online at www.GELPonline.org or contact the

Program office on gelp@innovationunit.org

Michael Stevenson

Vice President, Global Education Cisco

Co chair Global Education Leaders’ Program

Tony Mackay

Chair Innovation Unit

Co chair Global Education Leaders’ Program

3

Aims

GELP sets out to transform education,

effectively and sustainably, at local, national and

global levels. Its objectives are:

» to accelerate and sustain transformation

within GELP members’ local, regional and

national education systems for the benefit

of all learners;

» to develop the required skills, transformational

capacity and personal efficacy of key

education system leaders;

» to strengthen an interactive and growing

global community of education leaders and

change agents; and

» to advocate and continually refine a vision

of 21st Century teaching and learning and

to disseminate widely the knowledge and

learning generated through GELP.

GELP is a partnership of thought leaders and consultants from world-class organisations, collaborating in a global community with teams of key education leaders who are seriously committed to transforming education in practice and developing the personal skills they need to lead the changes required.

GELP supports teams of education leaders to drive forward system transformation to meet the challenges of globalisation, demographic shifts and technological advancements.

Introduction to the Global Education Leaders’ Program (GELP)

4

A Little History

GELP arose out of a set of key ideas which

were explored in a stream of Cisco white papers

published during 2008 and 2009. Together,

Equipping Every Learner for the 21st Century;

The Learning Society; and, in 2010, Learning

from the Extremes present a compelling

case for why the current system of schooling,

developed in the age of industrialisation, is

insufficient for the evolving and dynamic

conditions of the 21st Century.

Three drivers, taken together, are challenging

schooling systems around the world. They are:

» Globalisation

» Demographic shifts

» Technological revolution

System Transformation

There is a growing consensus that system

transformation, not just school improvement,

is the necessary response, but the implications

are not widely understood or accepted. In 2011

a fourth white paper in the series, Developing

an Innovation Ecosystem for Education began

to explore some new ways of thinking about

education systems:

A transformed system:

» aims to provide equitable access to higher

order capabilities;

» is achieved through holistic change because

the system is complex and interdependent;

» is characterised by a transfer of ownership

from teachers to learners; and

» is accelerated by collaborative learning

technologies.

The outcomes of system transformation have

been described as ‘C21st learning’, ‘Next

Generation Learning’, or in an analogy with

the development of the Web as ‘Education 3.0’

“We applaud the work of GELP insisting on a landscape change

as the way to move us to genuine learning opportunities for all.

Collaborating and leveraging across countries is a brilliant strategy to

drive this big picture.”

Ellen Koshland Ellen Koshland Family Fund

5

Jurisdictions around the world work togetherto equip every learner with the skills, expertise and knowledge

they need to survive and thrive in the 21st Century.

GELP jurisdictions GELP teamGELP partners

The GELP Community

6

The partners in GELP are:

The GELP Community

GELP has so far welcomed teams from:

Australia

Brazil

British Columbia, Canada

Chaoyang District, Beijing, China

England

Finland

India

The Innovation Lab Network (ILN/USA)

Kentucky

Maine

Ohio

West Virginia

Wisconsin

New York City, USA

New Zealand

Ontario, Canada

South Korea

Victoria, Australia

Cisco is a world leading provider of networking

solutions that transform how people connect,

communicate and collaborate.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is

a charitable foundation that is dedicated to

bringing innovations in health, development,

and learning to the global community.

Promethean Ltd creates, develops, supplies and

supports interactive solutions that span all ages

and market sectors from traditional education to

business and government.

Ellen Koshland Family Fund is a charitable

foundation that seeks to stimulate new

thinking about public education. It works with

other charitable foundations, businesses and

individuals to fund programmes that actively

support students to develop their talents and

foster a love of learning.

The Innovation Unit for public services is a

not-for-profit social enterprise committed to

using the power of innovation to solve social

challenges. Innovation Unit supports leaders

and organisations delivering public services to

see and do things differently. Innovation Unit

coordinates the GELP Program and runs the

GELP Office on behalf of jurisdictions and

their partners.

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The GELP Offer

Participating teams benefit from:

1. World-class Consultancy support for

developing and implementing their plans,

called road maps, for system transformation

towards Education 3.0 and the Learning

Society.

2. Cross Jurisdictional Program Learning

in the form of global events, GELP Insights

seminars, and a website and e-newsletter

providing access to relevant information

and resources.

3. GELP+ Options for additional support

brought in occasionally to tackle a specific

aspect of the GELP agenda in the jurisdiction.

Consultancy Support

Jurisdictions work with a named consultant to

refine, strategise, and address their challenge.

Consultancy support is tailored to the needs

of the team, but principally takes the form of:

» induction into the Program;

» support and facilitation at each global event;

» a consultancy visit after the first global event;

» three planned and debriefed TelePresence1

meetings.

1. TelePresence is a video conferencing facility provided by Cisco, which

brings people together virtually with the appearance of being ‘in the same

room’. For more details visit http://www.cisco.com/en/US/solutions/

ns669/public_telepresence.html

Each jurisdiction identifies a Local Lead Member

who works closely with the GELP consultancy

team between visits via regular TelePresence

meetings. All the Local Lead Members in a

geographical area join the same TelePresence

meeting, so there is an opportunity to hear about

and learn from challenges and progress in other

jurisdictions too.

Individual support to the Local Lead Member is

provided via scheduled monthly telephone calls

with their named consultant.

“Promethean is proud to be supporting education leaders

around the world in their work towards transforming their education

systems through GELP.”

Jim Wynn Chief Education Officer

Promethean8

Global Learning Events

Members gather every six months to share

practices, goals and challenges as they work

through the process of leading transformation

in their systems. Global events are hosted

in participating countries and cities, creating

opportunities to make connections with local

systems through wider stakeholder meetings and

visits to schools. Partner organisations, invited

specialists, and the consultancy team lead high

quality sessions at the events to facilitate learning

experiences that help leaders shape thinking and

practices on system transformation.

GELP Insights

GELP Insights stimulate debate within and

beyond the GELP community on issues central

to jurisdictions’ work towards Education 3.0

and the Learning Society, and offer a window

into what is being tackled and learned by GELP

members. There are three stages in the GELP

Insights ‘process’:

» Stage 1: a provocation paper or presentation,

setting out a bold and challenging proposition

at the leading edge of thinking and/or practice

» Stage 2: an online seminar via WebEx or

face to face at global events to debate

the issues raised

» Stage 3: a final proposition paper, which sets

out the range of views and evidence explored.

GELPonline

GELPonline is a website comprising a public

space providing general information about GELP

and a secure area for registered users. The

registered area houses bespoke resources being

developed and tested by GELP members such

as an interactive tool to support the development

of road maps for system transformation.

Detailed information about jurisdictions’ teams,

their plans and contexts are also shared to

support cross jurisdictional learning. You can visit

the website at www.GELPonline.org

GELP E-news

GELP E-news is a monthly e-newsletter that

makes leading edge thinking and practice

available to the GELP community, before it

becomes more generally available. Reviews of

forthcoming articles, technology scans, advance

notification of conferences and events sit

alongside news from jurisdictions and updates

on Program opportunities.

“Being part of GELP enables us to share problems and solutions as

we work together in an international community of system leaders

to transform education for all our young people.”

Vicki Phillips Director, College Ready Education,

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation9

GELP Stakeholder conferences

Participating teams may elect to host GELP

conferences for a wider group of stakeholders.

Conferences can draw upon and build on themes

explored by the teams in the GELP global events

and help them advance their GELP work in their

context. Planning, presentation, facilitation and

evaluation of GELP conferences are available.

In addition to the core GELP offer, members

can purchase a range of optional services:

Additional consultancy visits

Supplementary consultancy visits can be

provided. For example, jurisdictions may need

support to engage a wider group of stakeholders

or make connections between GELP and other

development work.

“This was the first time we’ve participated in GELP and it has

been a wonderful experience. Ideas for innovation have been

unleashed in us in conversations about 21st Century skills with

other countries.”

GELP India

Leadership development

Individual and/or team coaching is available for

members. Individual coaching is offered through

a virtual process. Coaches support individual

team members and liaise with consultants

to make sure the team can benefit from the

individual member’s work. However, coaching

insights are not shared and remain confidential

between the individual member and their coach.

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A Year in GELP

GELP Online

Six-monthly global event

Six-monthly global event

GELP E-news

Additional consultancy

support

Optional local event

Leadership Development

GELP Stakeholders Conferences

Induction

JoinGELP

Re-subscribe

Consultancy Support

Consultancy Support

Consultancy Support

Consultancy Support

Consultancy Support

GELP Insights

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The GELP Commitment

Participation in GELP requires a considerable commitment from teams to: 1. Develop

governance arrangements appropriate

for leading system transformation

2. Identify a focus that will challenge

and sustain their work towards Education 3.0

3. Select a team with the right mix of

skills and influence to drive the work

4. Make an active and sustained

contribution, especially when things

get tough

5. Provide suitable resources,

sufficient to support the team’s plans

6. Nominate a local lead member to maintain

a connection with the GELP team

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1. Governance

Teams agree a defined governance model

at the beginning of the Program. The model

includes an Executive Sponsor who ensures

there is appropriate awareness of and support

for team members’ participation and goals for

their Program experience.

2. Focus

Teams identify a focus or priority for their

reform agenda for which they wish to leverage

GELP resources. Plans for this will be stretched

and challenged through the GELP process

and support, and will also be progressed and

accelerated through the work of the team

during the year.

3. Team

Jurisdiction teams comprise of four or five

members. Selecting the right team is critical.

Members must demonstrate a high level of

commitment and have the ability to drive their

GELP work forward.

Teams are selected by an Executive Sponsor,

usually the person negotiating participation in

GELP, and the Program team.

4. Contribution

In their first year, each individual team member

will fully participate in the Program through:

» induction completed through one to one

meetings, telephone calls and a local team

workshop;

» attendance of two global events at

six-monthly intervals;

» developing and implementing their roadmap

towards Education 3.0; and

» contributions to Program learning, for

instance through participation in online

seminars and sharing experiences of leading

transformation for Program publications.

“Our major focus is building the capacity of the capacity builders

in our system in a very systematic and concentrated way, to move

this agenda forward.”

GELP British Columbia, Canada

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5. Resources

The Program development and delivery costs

for the first year of participation in GELP are

provided by funding partners. Teams need to

cover the costs of their expenses such as:

» travel and accommodation to attend two

global events;

» travel incurred while working together

between events, if the team is geographically

dispersed;

» the time to attend global and other local events;

» time and any other resource required to

support their day-to-day work towards

achieving the aims identified in their GELP

foci or priorities.

In addition, teams may request to co-host a

global event which involves providing:

» an appropriate venue and catering for up to

50 delegates over 3.5 days; and

» a contact to work with the GELP

Management Team to plan the agenda and

logistics of the event including half a day

spent visiting local schools.

Hosting an event is proving to be an attractive

option for teams. Other than travel savings,

the real benefit is the opportunity to include

additional, local education leaders for part of

the event to both showcase leading practices

and create further awareness of their vision

and plans for Education 3.0.

6. Connection

The Local Lead Member agrees to set aside

some time each week for GELP related work.

In most cases this will be coherent with and add

value to their system leadership role within the

jurisdiction. But this may require an explicit and

additional commitment in order to:

» work closely with a named GELP Consultant

to support progress in the development and

implementation of their roadmap; and

» join regular TelePresence meetings which

will also be attended by other Local Lead

Members and the GELP Program Team to

work together on joint GELP projects, for

example the design of GELP global events

and contributions to the learning strand of

the GELP Program.

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Teams take part in the Program for one year in the first instance. At the end of their first year, members wishing to continue in the Program can choose to subscribe to GELP as an individual or as a group.

Subscribers can expect to:

» attend the GELP global events;

» take part in formal and informal

online activity

» receive updates via the news alerting

service and other GELP communiqués;

» access GELP+ optional services

at GELP rates; and

» continue to influence the direction

of GELP through their participation.

“These meetings help us re-think every time we come to them. And it’s not just the formal sessions but also the informal conversations

that get into considerable depth.”

GELP New Zealand

Looking forward

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GELP is led and managed by Innovation Unit, a not-for-profit organisation based in London (England).

You can contact the Program Management Team on:

+44 020 7250 8092 GELP@innovationunit.org

Or visit:

www.GELPonline.org

Further information“It’s been a privilege and great

opportunity for Chaoyang to join the GELP journey over the last 12 months

- and the journey must go on.”

GELP Chaoyang District,

Beijing, China