EdFest 2023: A first look at this year’s speakers

Alice Stott will share practical approaches to providing students with a high-quality oracy education; the essential speaking and listening skills every child needs to develop them; and a range of practical strategies in the classroom. 

Alice is the co-author of Transform Teaching and Learning Through Talk: The Oracy Imperative (2019) and Oracy Benchmarks (2019). She has taught at School 21 in Stratford, East London as well as other schools in London. She serves as the director of programmes at Voice 21, the UK’s national oracy education charity.  

In his talk, Dr Guo will take a deep look at the phenomenon of school refusal. This is an important transition for all young children and a certain measure of anxiety about starting school is normal and expected. Dr Guo will share tips and techniques to make this transition as smooth as possible.  

Dr Guo is currently the director of psychology at the Mindfront Clinic and is a member of the supervisory board of the Chinese Association of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, as well as a board member of the Zhejiang Neuroscience Association Autism Professional Committee. Utilising a range of therapeutic models, including CBT, person-centred therapy, solution-focused therapy and mindfulness, he provides psychological and emotional support for international and bilingual schools. 

In his presentation titled ‘Coaching for Growth with Compassion vs Coaching for Compliance’, Iain will get to the core of what coaching really is and the positive impact it can have on performance, outcomes, metacognition, self-dependency and so much more.  

Iain Henderson is Deputy Head (Educational Developments and Partnerships) at Wellington College and co-director of the Festival of Education. He is a CTI-trained coach and has developed a coaching culture at Wellington. He has now trained over 500 teachers there and at other schools to become coaches. He is a trusted member of Ascend Academy Trust and coordinates the enduring collaboration between Wellington College, The Wellington Academy, Wellington Primary Academy and Wellington Eagles Primary.  

In his presentation titled ‘Service at Your School and in the Shanghai Community’, Andrew will explore the many opportunities in Shanghai that can teach students the values of kindness and responsibility through service learning. 

Andrew Hill is the director and a founder of the Essential Learning Group (ELG). He has been actively involved in charity since he arrived in China in 1989. In 2010, he received the Charity Star of Shanghai award in recognition of his charitable contributions to society. In 2016, he was elected as the president of the Rotary Club of Shanghai, and he is the district governor of Rotary International, China. He has devoted a significant portion of his career to charity and service to others and has a passion for helping the underprivileged, especially children and young adults, in China.