Welcome back to the first of our Meet our Teachers series for this academic year. This week we meet Hugh Conway, our Assistant Headteacher (Learning), to find out a bit more about him:What inspired you to pursue a career in teaching?Was there a particular moment, mentor, or experience that influenced your decision? As a young adult I was heavily interested in both Science (especially Biology), and also Theatre Work (which was a real passion). I was the Producer, Designer and Director for many Youth Theatre Companies in the UK, and was familiar with working with large numbers of children of all ages. I combined my two passions by going into teaching where I was both a Science Teacher, and the Lead Staff for the School Production. Following this first year, I was given the opportunity to set-up the Drama Department from scratch. Things moved from strength to strength - and here I am 32 years later still embracing both my passions with the wonderful students at Prep. My inspiration for all of this was my own Drama Teacher, Joan Gibb. She gave my friends and me the freedom and opportunity to explore our passion for Theatre, and also showed me the rewards teachers receive for their work with young learners. I am still deeply thankful for everything Joan did for me.What led you into a leadership role as Assistant Headteacher (Learning)?What aspects of teaching and learning are you most passionate about developing? My journey from Science and Drama Teacher led me to Middle Leadership positions including Head of Drama and Expressive Arts, and Head of Year 7. These roles allowed me to meet all the students who entered the school I was working at, and I did my best to get to know them all. Eventually I became Head of Educational Climate and this is where I began to lead large numbers of staff. I believe that a good leader works to give the tools others require to be the best they can be in whatever role they have. Seeing others blossom and bloom is remarkably satisfying. I still use this as my philosophy, and my mantra is that for all we are an excellent school, what can we do to be of even better service to our community? We need to model being curious about the world of education, and show that we are all life-long learners. The journey never reaches an end point - it leads us to the next destination, and from here the signpost onwards. I am passionate about developing our staff, and encourage them to use evidence based research to develop their pedagogical practice, and increase the opportunities available for our students and wider community.What do you enjoy most about your role at our school?This is an easy question, with a short answer: our students, every day. To expand on this, the students at Prep model what a good learner is- they are curious and respectful; also motivated, resilient, show growth-oriented mindsets, while also being organised, self-disciplined, and reflective (managing their learning effectively and learning from mistakes). They cannot do this alone, of course. Our committed staff help lead the way through their learning journey, and our parents (and wider community) show our students that we need to work as a collective to achieve our best results. We should never take this for granted, and it is something I am thankful for every day.What do you enjoy doing outside of school?Beyond school I still have a love of theatre, and also for travelling and meeting new people. I like to observe people and learn about different cultures. I am a social person, and I love to share stories over fine food. I believe we should live life to the fullest, and never hold any regrets. Every step we take, even the missteps, take us to where we are now - in this moment. Life brought me to Bangkok over eight years ago and I have enjoyed every second of it. I hope to explore even more of Asia moving forward, and meeting more people. That’s what life is all about.
