I recently had the pleasure of attending the 2023 International Boys’ Schools Coalition (IBSC) Annual Conference at Westlake Boys High School in Auckland, New Zealand, in my capacity as a Team Leader in the IBSC Action Research Program. Action research is a systematic inquiry conducted by teachers in their own classroom to better understand the impact that an aspect of their practice is having on their students.
Each year, 40 teachers from IBSC member schools from around the world are accepted into the Action Research Program. They attend the annual conference to learn the action research process and plan out the ‘action’ or initiative that they would like to implement and research in their schools. Over the course of a year, these teachers will research the effect of their ‘action’ and prepare a detailed report about their findings to present in person at the next annual conference.
Having completed my own action research on The Impact of Peer Tutoring in Developing Self-efficacy in Year 11 Modern History students in 2020, I was invited to join the program as a Team Advisor and help guide ten teachers through their own research journey each year. This includes training teachers in the process of action research and workshopping potential projects to run in their own context.
The most recent cohort of action researchers, who presented their findings in Auckland, focused their projects on the theme of Shattering Stereotypes: Helping Boys to Cultivate Healthy Masculinity. Researchers within my team came from renowned boys’ schools in Australia, New Zealand, the United States of America, South Africa and Canada. There were a diverse range of projects that I had the pleasure of helping to manage, ranging from The Cultivation of Intrinsic Motivation in Boys through Creative Expression to Fostering Empathy through the Study of Human Rights Abuses.
Working closely with these teachers, and gaining an understanding for their specific contexts, has been a truly rewarding professional experience. It has exposed me to an ever-expanding professional network of teachers of boys from across the globe and allowed me to gain a greater appreciation of what the current trends are in boys’ education. It has also been satisfying in affirming that much of what we do at Toowoomba Grammar School is best practice in educating boys and developing their good character for life.
I look forward to the next annual conference, which will be held at The Harrow School in the United Kingdom, where the current cohort of researchers are exploring topics that promote healthy masculinity beyond the classroom.
- Luke Rawle, TGS Head of Teacher Development and Team Leader IBSC Action Research Program
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