When, in her early career, Oanh Crouch left her home in Australia to teach in Finland, she says it was a 鈥減ivotal moment鈥.
Not only was she taught to ice skate by a four-year-old, but she was able to immerse herself in a system that has been almost mythologised the world over.
鈥淓veryone was going on about how great the Finnish system was, how educationally sound it was. So I wanted to find out myself,鈥 she says.
And she was stunned by what she saw. As an early years and primary specialist, she understood the importance of play, but the focus on outdoor education was taken to a new level, with everybody going out for up to four hours each day, rain, snow or shine.
鈥淚t was about putting the right clothing on and the kids just flourished and thoroughly enjoyed that chance to discover their own creative opportunities, learning how to take risks while keeping themselves physically and emotionally safe,鈥 she says.
Everyone was going on about how great the Finnish system was
A system of mixing age groups gave even young children the opportunity to help their classmates and support each other (hence Crouch鈥檚 young ice skating instructor) and ensured all pupils were ready to start formal education at age seven.
鈥淭hat really framed my understanding of education, of what makes effective teaching and learning, to understand how best to prepare learners to progress to the next level of development鈥hat was definitely a defining moment,鈥 says Crouch, who studied radiography for two years before turning to a career in education.
This experience of six months teaching in Finland has informed a career teaching and leading around the world, which, in 2019, led her to become the director of education at .
The fast-growing group has 65 international and bilingual schools in 11 countries, including Europe and North Africa, Canada and India.
After Finland, Crouch 鈥 who was born in Vietnam but raised in Australia 鈥 widened her horizons even further.
Her next job was at a 鈥渧ery formal鈥 independent girls鈥 school in the UK. But her hunger for experience soon took her to a British international school in Thailand. She taught the UK national curriculum and then led the introduction of the .
鈥淚t got its hooks into me,鈥 she says, explaining how it allowed the school to tailor itself to the needs of students of different nationalities, and provided more varied opportunities for pupils to demonstrate their learning.
鈥淗aving the autonomy to create a curriculum that was contextually relevant to our learners was paramount to its success,鈥 she says.
The IB Primary Years Programme got its hooks into me
In Thailand, she met her British husband and had three children but they eventually returned to the UK, where Crouch became an assistant head in a multi-academy trust in Blackpool, one of the most deprived areas of the country.
Charged with developing teaching and learning in literacy, she wanted to shift the trust鈥檚 schools away from reading and writing just 鈥渢o get through Sats鈥 to a more holistic approach, including motivating children to read through enjoyment.
Teachers were encouraged to be 鈥渞eading role models鈥, the library was upgraded, and children wrote for the local paper. Guest authors were invited in, talk about books and reading was encouraged in class and the Sats results also went up.
She says: 鈥淲e were just developing a rounded approach to make it real, not just something for 鈥榮mart people鈥.
鈥淚t was just making sure that I could show how accessible reading was and that it was open to anybody,鈥 she says, stressing the importance of all kinds of reading, from graphic novels to recipe books.
After that assignment, she was appointed to Globeducate, where she now works across its different 鈥渃lusters鈥 of schools of similar curriculum type, helping them develop.
We wanted to show that reading wasn’t just for ‘smart people’
Schools in the British international school cluster have just rolled out their 鈥淛ourney鈥 programme, which starts with basic outdoor learning in the Early Years and ends in Year 13 with the Duke of Edinburgh International Award. The core aims of the programme are to grow students鈥 confidence and resilience, develop skills such as collaboration and communication and instil care for the environment.
She is also focused on creating a professional learning community across the group, so teachers around the world can learn from each other.
鈥淭here was a sense of professional isolation. When I joined in 2019 I felt they were working in silos and probably feeling alone,鈥 she says.
During and following the pandemic, though, the communities have developed and staff can access support from colleagues in everything from literacy to STEAM or the Eco Schools agenda. There is also a focus on teachers taking the lead, growing their colleagues and developing leaders through online and real life meet-ups.
Crouch says that visiting schools and supporting them and helping them to develop is one of the best aspects of her job.
鈥淏eing able to see initiatives rolled out and seeing the impact of that on our students, and seeing that impact in our data, is a real highlight,鈥 she says.
Crouch is also proud of a number of group-wide events, including the 鈥淕lobeducate Debate鈥, now involving 700 children across 30 schools in an online debate with guest speakers giving oratorial tips.
The Globeducate Read event also continues to grow, she says, and is vital for cultivating a 鈥渞eading community鈥.
She says: 鈥淭his year we had over 12000 students, 950 teachers and 38 schools involved around the globe. All schools involved dedicate an hour to reading and showcasing what they did in that hour. It has really highlighted the importance and love of reading in our schools.鈥
University isn’t always students鈥 first priority nowadays
She is also focusing on developing post-18 pathways, in an age where university is not seen as the only option to become successful.
She says: 鈥淯niversity isn’t always students鈥 first priority nowadays鈥tudents don’t want to just go to university because they think that鈥檚 what they should do, because their parents say or because society says they must.
鈥淭hey’re now actively choosing what they want to do. And there are different pathways and our schools are supporting young people to make that choice and they get to where they need to get to, whether it be at a Russell Group university, performing arts or culinary school or apprenticeships.鈥
Rather like her appreciation of different education systems and curricula 鈥 hard won through teaching around the world 鈥 Crouch understands that when it comes to what students do next, there is no one-size-fits-all.
With these varied experiences behind her, it is unsurprising that Crouch is frequently called upon for advice: As a consultant, she supported in developing their programme for STEM initial teacher training.
What’s best for improving one school might not work for another
She has also advised the and is now the advisory board member for education on the British Chamber of Commerce. She is also an advisory board member for the World Literacy Foundation.
But, the question remains, does she have a favourite education system? Is she in love with any one curriculum?
Perhaps understandably, given her position, she won鈥檛 pick one.
鈥淵ou should take the good out of everything that you discover. I love the Finnish educational philosophy, but you can’t just plunk it anywhere. There are great things about each model and you can’t just discount them. It’s about being really mindful and thoughtful about the core features of what you like about it, why you like it and how it translates into the context of your learners.
鈥淲hat’s the best for improving one school might not work for another.鈥
Schools, she said, must think carefully about how a new curriculum is going to impact students, and ensure that they鈥檙e not doing it 鈥渏ust because it’s the latest craze鈥.
鈥淚f you鈥檙e doing it for the wrong reasons it becomes really unclear, murky and you’re not going to get people who want to do it. It is vital to have clarity of your thinking and be strategic in its delivery,鈥 she adds.
鈥淎t the end of the day we want our students to be successful, how we get there could be very different from one school to the next.
鈥淚t takes a savvy and courageous leader to say 鈥榯his is who we are鈥 and create your own thing.鈥欌
Something Oanh Crouch has been doing her whole career.
