Hello – I’m Liz Cloke and I’m the Regional Director of Learning for International Schools Partnership (ISP) in Malaysia. The region spans from Penang in the north of the country, south to Ipoh, across KL and further south to Johor Bharu close to the border of Singapore. I collaborate with the campus principals, heads of primary and secondary in each of the fourteen international and national schools with the ultimate goal of continually improving the learning offer and outcomes for our stakeholders.
Prior to my move to the ISP regional team I was the proud Head Teacher at Tenby International Secondary school in Penang. In all my career visioning and future planning, I never thought I’d be owning up to that line.
My quest in my role as Director of Learning remains the same, and general focus of this blog, is for optimised performance – for us teachers and school leaders to be the optimal versions of ourself, the most effective and the most efficient that we can be. This is not a quest for perfectionism, there is no end to the journey, no perfect teacher [yep, we’re human too] – but there is continual improvement.
If you’re reading this you already know that education is one of the most powerful tools we can have access too. We only have nine hours in the official school day so part of my job is to seek ways, habits and technology that will help students and teachers harness their full potential – to lift the pressure and improve learning and teaching.
So far, my journey has not been perfect [my passion for basketball slammed my A Level results, one of which I consequently had to retake] but incremental progress has been fuelled by hard work, passion, team work and grit. I feel very privileged to take on a headship, having responsibility for pushing the limits of the school community to ensure they have everything they need – and some. I am thankful for being surrounded by supportive current and former colleagues, online professionals and encouraging friends – all while living on an Asian island alive with culture and opportunity.
It’s very easy to get caught up in the pressures of the day to day to-do lists and planning, exhausted by demands of the job and personal life, so it’s even more important that we maximise our time, learn from one another and make best use our resources. This is about becoming the best teachers we can be – and all within budget!
Career History
I have worked in a co-education secondary school in Portsmouth, UK and international schools in Pattaya, Thailand and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. I have gained experience across the key stages, and middle and senior leadership in a variety of roles, Deputy Head [Teaching and Learning] at Tenby International School, Kuala Lumpur and then as the Head of Secondary Tenby International School Penang.
Education
I studied Sports and Business Management at Manchester Metropolitan University.
I took a gap year and travelled the world before training as a PE teacher at the University of Chichester.
I successfully completed the NPQSL in order to support my passion of teaching and learning – I selected the leading continuing professional development and improving the quality of teaching electives.
Having been through the accreditation process twice I have now successfully gained certification as an Accreditation Team Evaluator with the Council of International Schools [CIS] and look forward to visiting schools around the region in the near future.
Contact
I’m always happy to share ideas and collaborate with other schools or relevant corporations, If there is anyway I can be of assistance please don’t hesitate to contact me.
You can connect with me through LinkedIn here and follow me on twitter here.
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