Founding School Principal – Primary School/KG, native Arabic

Job Description

Are you passionate about working with 3-7 year olds? Are you ready to reimagine what learning looks like, and apply that with our dynamic learning community?<p><br></p>Are you keen on founding a learning centre where challenge and play-based learning is at the core? Then, this may be the role for you …<p><br></p>The School of Big Bravery is seeking a multi-talented Lead Guide or Head of Learning to co-create &amp; launch our first Kindergarten/primary aged program.<p><br></p>The School of Big Bravery has been provided a unique opportunity to question fundamental elements of the education system which dominates our world today. This project is being led by the Dubai Design Lab, which is part of the Dubai Future Foundation. The School of Big Bravery’s mission is to grow an inclusive learning community which puts relationships, learner agency, and a strong connection to nature at the heart of it. We bravely question what elements of education need to change in order to do this, through re-evaluating timetables and schedules, subjects, or even where learning may take place. We take time to build understanding across our community, as we consider learning to be a holistic process involving the learner, their caretakers, their community, and the environment around them. We aspire to be a lighthouse illuminating the possibilities of a brighter future through learning, and for this we welcome a team of inspired and energetic changemakers.<p><br></p>This is a startup! So we are looking for someone who is collaborative, understands the importance of strong personal relationships with learners and who thrives in a changing, innovative and agile environment.<p><br></p><strong>Tasks</strong><p><br></p><strong>Role overview:</strong><p><br></p>As a Lead Guide you belong to the Core Team of The School of Big Bravery and play a vital role as sparring partner to the Project Leader and Keeper of the Vision. Together you will grow the vision and bring it to daily practice and experience for the 30+ learner cohort joining the project from January 2024. You are instrumental to the ongoing development and structuring of the learning program within the Learning Community as it grows to 70 learners and above. You are also a coach to the learning guides, providing personal actionable feedback to the team in an effort to improve their day to day performance.<p><br></p>The ideal start date for this role is in September 2023. The doors will open in Dubai in January 2024.<p><br></p><strong>In your role, you will:</strong><p><br></p><ul><li>Work closely with a 3rd Party to design a framework on “How and What” we learn</li><li>Engage in the development of the Learning Cycle and Learning Model alongside the Keeper of the Vision and a 3rd Party.</li><li>Prototype Key Concepts and learning experiences</li><li>Collect and vet learning experiences which may be applied on an organisation wide level.</li><li>Play a critical role in the recruitment and onboarding of the Learning Guides whom you will support</li><li>Play an active and hands-on role in onboarding and supporting Learning Guides in Phase 3 soft launch and learning experiments</li><li>Lead and curate the development of the learning experiences alongside the team</li><li>Model effective strategies and approaches for Learning Guides through genuine and meaningful interaction with learners</li><li>Collaborate with Keeper of the Vision to continuously update and adapt the learning experiences to meet the evolving needs of our community</li><li>Provide 1:1 and small group coaching for Learning Guides outside of learner contact hours</li><li>Support Learning Guides in crafting and refining their personal learning plans</li><li>Communicate our learning approach to parents as and when needed<br></li></ul><p><br></p><strong>Requirements</strong><p><br></p><strong>You bring:</strong><p><br></p><ul><li>5-10 years experience working with 4-12 year olds, most of which is in innovative learning environments ideally</li><li>Bilingual in English and Arabic is a must.</li><li>Experience in developing and implementing learning experiences from ideation through implementation and analysis.</li><li>Ability to quickly connect and build trust with children.</li><li>Experience in setting up and managing primary aged programs for learners</li><li>Capacity to draw from a wide variety of learning methodologies and apply them appropriately based on the context and the learner. </li><li>Strong leadership and management skills and role modelling.</li><li>Creativity and innovation to prototype key concepts and learning experiences.</li><li>Excellent communication skills to effectively share the learning approach</li><li>Flexibility and adaptability at the same time as strong organisational skills and experience in onboarding &amp; training Learning Teams</li><li>Passion and commitment to the learning program and the community.</li><li>Empathy and understanding of the needs and perspectives of learners and Learning Guides.</li><li>Strategic thinking to recognise and target key areas for the development of the learning program.<br></li></ul><p><br></p>If this sounds attractive and you are up for your this challenge, please apply with<p><br></p><ul><li>your CV and/or portfolio,</li><li>a brief letter (no more than one typed page) that outlines your vision for a day in the life of a learner in the School of Big Bravery.</li><li>a short 1 minute video that introduces you, your interest in the position and your passion as an educator. (Please upload your video where it says “website, blog or portfolio”)<br></li></ul><p><br></p><em>We are committed to creating a community that bravely explores how, what, and where we learn. We value diversity in perspective, background, and belief. We cherish our safe, creative, and fun culture that aims no lower than evolving education to be its best self.</em>