Teachers as the first pillar of success
Based on the experience of many generations of educationalists in the United Kingdom, the traditional mantra of 'a school is only as good as its teachers' continues to hold true. Dr Murray Tod
THE success of Epsom College in Malaysia (ECiM) is based not only on the exceptional pupils that we attract to the school, pivotal though that is, but also on the outstanding abilities of our teaching staff.
Based on the experience of many generations of educationalists in the United Kingdom, the traditional mantra of “a school is only as good as its teachers” continues to hold true.
ECiM has staff and headmasters who have taught at elite independent UK schools. The diverse experience of our staff is encapsulated by the range of countries or cities in which they have worked – Australia, Cambodia, Canada, Dubai, England, New Zealand, Vietnam, Wales – the list is endless, and the ECiM community is all the better for it, allowing us to more fully appreciate the backgrounds of our students who hail from 25 different nations.
Furthermore, we encourage Malaysian applicants to pursue our teaching posts as we seek to mesh the best local teachers with our keen international profile.
Shared foundation in excellence
A common unifier for many of our teachers is their education in the UK – initially at Russell Group universities and subsequently in their teacher training.
This staff quality is evident from our prep school through senior school and a hallmark of all that makes ECiM’s education so rich and vibrant. In addition to several people with doctorates on the staff list, we have first-class graduates, university prize winners and colleagues who began their teaching career in hallowed university cloisters.
Pupils’ progress as a point of reference
The key determinant, of course, is the impact that a talented set of teachers can have on a gifted pupil cohort. Ultimately, it is pupil outcomes (both attainment and welfare) that count and serve as a benchmark to evaluate progression.
At ECiM, our teachers strive for excellence, are unforgiving of mediocrity and insist on exemplary behaviour.
Facilitating quality pupil-teacher relationships
We need our teachers to imbue subject knowledge into classes, reflecting their own earlier training, to push students to find ever deeper levels of meaning in their courses.
In this manner, our pupils will become inquisitive, independent learners, and they too can continue their quests to delve for greater knowledge on their areas of interest.
Therefore, this year, perhaps a more enlightening college motto should be “a school is only as good as the quality of the relationship that exists between teachers and pupils”, for it is that diversity of approach, based on sound educational principles, that truly determines the greatness of a school. – By Dr Murray Tod, second master of ECiM
nFor more information, e-mail enquiries@epsomcollege.edu.my or visit www.epsomcollege.edu.my