Overview

Organised jointly by the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) and the Centre for the study of Education in an International Context (CEIC) at the University of Bath, on behalf of a number of different organisations with an interest in this field, the conference attracted over 200 participants from national and international schools, universities, Ministries of Education and other educational organisations around the world. Sessions were organised as a combination of plenary presentations and the opportunity for participants to divide into five concurrent theme groups for on-going discussions running throughout the conference.

Theme groups (for which abstracts and summaries may be found on this website) focused, respectively, on:

• History & Nature of International Education
• Curriculum & Assessment
• Professional Development
• Organisation of Schools & their Communities
• Governance of International Education.

Following an opening address by Professor Jeff Thompson, the conference Chair, plenary sessions which interspersed the group discussions were led by Sir John Daniel (Assistant Director-General for Education at UNESCO), Hon Greg Crafter (President of the IBO Council of Foundation) and Dr Cecilia Braslavsky (Director of the International Bureau of Education). A Conference Summary was presented in a final session led by Professor George Walker (Director General of the IBO and a visiting professor at the University of Bath) and the conference concluded with the Chair's closing remarks. The conference provided three days of stimulating ideas and opportunities for discussion, and we hope the attached summary documents will also prove of interest.