TESTIMONIALS
“Anna is one of the best workshop leaders I’ve had the opportunity to meet. Anna showed great experience, understanding and knowledge of the topic. She was patient and answered every question asked by the participants. Anna often gave very useful advice from practice of working with students. It was obvious that Anna was completely aware of the subject she was teaching. She spoke slower in clear language and her English was easy to understand for participants who were not native English speakers. It was a pleasure to be part of the team that was with Anna and from her we not only learned about IB assessments but also about the model of how to be a great leader. Thank you a lot Anna”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“So many times I’ve seen literature being murdered during university crash courses and in secondary school classrooms and although failure is a part of human experience I still do hope there is a way out of this situation. My faith in teaching literature has been reaffirmed during the workshop. Thank you so much!”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“This is the most useful CPD I have had in over twenty years of teaching. The workshop leader was knowledgeable, approachable and supportive to each individual in the group, ensuring that we were all able to gain as much as possible from this experience. I left feeling enthused and energised, with a great deal of information that I will use going forward.”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“There is always a sense of anxiety as well as anticipation when a course that a department has fostered and developed for many years, suddenly is faced with radical change. It’s rather like moving house or getting used to a new mandatory piece of software; often stress can override a positive inclination.
Sitting in a workshop environment at Cairo American College, we immediately understood that our new journey with the IB organization entailed a conflict, where certain freedoms were given with one hand and some taken away by the other. Under such circumstances, CAC, AIS and NCBIS colleagues, be they experienced or novices, really did need a strong spokesperson to encourage confidence, open-mindedness and a willingness to let go.
These qualities were certainly established when our school invited Dr. Anna Androulaki-Woodcock, IB workshop leader, to explain the new IB English A: Literature course to start next academic year. Anna’s approach was one that continually emphasised the opportunities inherent in the new course. After explaining the components, she challenged us to create a new two-year curriculum for both SL and HL by incorporating already established texts and encouraging us to choose new ones that would invigorate student learning. During this process, some old systemic cobwebs were swept away and were replaced by new liberating ideas, often ones where the students would take control of both the material and learning. Some stiff disquieted faces gradually transformed to beams of consent.
Anna would then have a peek at our curriculum designs and would challenge us again to amend them so that even further opportunities were exposed for consideration. Opening our eyes to the fresh and creative challenges of the new course, Anna allowed plenty of time for colleagues to focus, deliberate, seek possibilities and generate a sense of emergent excitement. She structured her presentation with periodic returns to our curriculum designs so that they were kept in an organic state, constantly shifting and changing to reveal multiple possibilities for its delivery.
Anna’s cathartic role was invaluable and she would be any department’s bookroom friend. We thought about the volumes that have gathered dust and began to long for brighter more exciting replacements. Over the two days, renewal was in the air and colleagues came together with a positive outlook, inspired by a new adventure. If this is the injection you need, then Anna is your highly recommended advocate, not to mention that her wicked sense of humour is enough to motivate anyone. Thank you Anna for all your helpful insights and reassurances and we wish you all the best for your new OUP Course Companion. Please come again to see how all of us are developing.”.
Jonathan Bryans 31/01/19, (Cairo American College, High School English Teacher)
“Her presentations went well beyond even a sophisticated delivery of information; it gave a nuanced and insightful view of the nature of and thinking behind the new programme.”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“Clear communication, pleasant manner and ability to engage with challenging questions.”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“Anna was wonderfully engaging, open to discussion and able to answer all our questions owing to her obvious wealth of IB experience.”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“I really appreciate Anna’s ability to differentiate the workshop to best support the varying levels of experience with the curriculum. It was beneficial to everyone.”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“Anna was great and gave good advice: I look forward to attending another course with her in the future.”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“I so appreciated her interest, enthusiasm, compassion and understanding for all participants. I really loved her teaching style and felt I was in capable, knowledgeable hands.”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop
“Thank you for the compassion, understanding, and great ideas.”
Anonymous participant at IB workshop