This is an amazing question because it reflects what\u2019s been a long and meaningful journey for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After completing my research and doctorate many years ago in the UK, I unexpectedly found myself stepping into teaching. I started doing supply work, covering classes in Leicestershire, and one of my first experiences was teaching a low-ability maths class while I was still working on my PhD. I was teaching fractions, and to be honest, I couldn\u2019t even remember them properly at the time! But the students helped me out, and the whole experience was incredibly rewarding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other teachers had warned me that it was a tough class, but I absolutely loved it. I think that moment really hooked me, and that\u2019s what drew me into the world of education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From the start, my passion has always been rooted in the belief that every child has a gift and deserves an outstanding education, regardless of their background or culture. That belief has driven everything I’ve done. I\u2019ve always tried to inspire young people to reach their full potential – to help them recognise and develop their own gifts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That mindset has also shaped how I lead staff. I\u2019ve been fortunate enough to grow in my career and support many colleagues in their development. In fact, just a few minutes ago, my son called me about a job interview. He\u2019s applying for a drama position, and he told me, \u201cYou\u2019ll never guess who interviewed me – Matthew Barrett from Raffles!\u201d I was stunned. Years ago, I had mentored Matthew when I was working on quality assurance across four schools in the UAE. I spotted his potential early on and recommended him for a leadership role. I coached him for three years as Head of Department. Now he\u2019s a principal. It\u2019s incredibly fulfilling to see that kind of long-term impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These moments mean a lot. They remind you of the importance of the work you\u2019ve done, not just in the classroom, but in people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I am now working with New Generation School in Bahrain. We\u2019ve got 470 students, and we\u2019re working on implementing the IB \u2013 both the MYP and DP. Honestly, it\u2019s not about the salary, I\u2019m here because I want to give back and use my experience to make a difference. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the same time, I\u2019m thinking ahead. After such a long and fulfilling career, I\u2019m looking at what\u2019s next. I want to develop an enterprise that brings passionate professionals together to support one another and give back globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I think both my wife and I have always shared a deep love for internationalism, globalism, and, in a way, a spiritual calling – our love of God and humanity. That\u2019s been a strong, guiding force in my life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To be honest, after many years teaching in the UK, I found it uninspiring. It got to the point where I felt I was going downhill professionally. I still loved teaching, but the environment, the Ofsted inspections, the constant pressure, and the negativity was just too much. It made me seriously consider leaving the profession altogether, which was heartbreaking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So we made a bold decision. We left teaching in the UK and took a job in Cyprus. I was earning the equivalent of just \u00a3300 a month, but I didn\u2019t care – I needed a fresh start. That risk turned out to be one of the best decisions we\u2019ve ever made. Suddenly, I rediscovered my love for teaching. I realised children do<\/em> want to learn and you can<\/em> teach effectively without being suffocated by bureaucracy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though the salary was low, we learned how to live more purposefully. The quality of life and the joy of teaching far outweighed the high stress and rigid systems we\u2019d experienced in the UK. That move marked the beginning of our international journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since then, we\u2019ve moved around quite a bit. I\u2019m often asked in interviews, \u201cWhy have you changed schools every few years – two, three, five years?\u201d But honestly, I don’t see that as a negative. I still believe it’s not about how long<\/em> you stay in a school, but about the impact<\/em> you make while you’re there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you can bring value to a school, develop leaders, raise standards, leave systems in place that last, then your time there has been meaningful. In fact, when I left my role in the UAE after three years working across four schools on quality assurance, the systems and frameworks we built were so solid that they\u2019re still being used today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s what inspires me: leaving a legacy. Making a lasting difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n More recently, I\u2019ve gravitated toward the International Baccalaureate, particularly the MYP. I find it much more aligned with my values – less bureaucracy, less exam-driven pressure, and a stronger focus on collaboration, inquiry, and holistic education. It\u2019s about coaching students and working as a team to bring out the best in each individual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On a broader level, I\u2019ve been deeply affected by the way politics, especially recent discussions around immigration, have shifted in some parts of the world. That narrative goes completely against what I believe in. I believe in teaching all children, from all cultures and backgrounds. The idea that someone \u201cdoesn\u2019t belong\u201d because they\u2019re an immigrant contradicts everything I stand for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We live in a globalized world, and as educators, we have a responsibility to nurture that understanding. That belief continues to inspire me every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the things I\u2019m most proud of actually stems from my time working with a group of four schools in Dubai. There were significant challenges when I first joined in a school improvement and quality assurance role. At the time, one of the schools was rated as “Acceptable,” while the others were rated “Good” in terms of teaching and learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My role was to lead the schools towards higher inspection ratings and, ideally, to help at least one of them achieve \u201cOutstanding.\u201d To do that, I really had to dig deep into the quality of teaching and learning. I\u2019ve always believed that this is the foundation. If you understand what makes teaching and learning truly effective in the classroom, then everything else follows – leadership development, curriculum design, and ultimately, student progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We began by revising the school vision to focus on innovation and inquiry-based learning. We moved away from a rigid testing culture and instead encouraged a broader view of evidence of learning. While we still used external benchmark assessments like GL, CAT4, and NGRT to validate progress, the emphasis was placed on students demonstrating learning in more meaningful ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We also developed a model of “leaders of learning.” These were teachers who assessed themselves and their peers against clear criteria, not inspection-focused, but based on professional standards of excellence. As they grew, they mentored others, and this created a ripple effect throughout the schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The results were remarkable. At Dubai International Academy, for example, we went from 20% of teaching being rated below “Good,” to 70% of teaching rated as “Outstanding” – all within three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We implemented strategies like learning ladders, which helped map student progress in a visible, structured way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By the end of that three-year period, Dubai International Academy had reached a “Very Good” rating and was eventually rated \u201cOutstanding\u201d in the inspection just after I left. The Collegiate American School achieved \u201cGood,\u201d and all the schools in the group were rated at least \u201cGood\u201d or better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In many ways, because of my age, I didn\u2019t really choose it. I was finding it difficult to get any positions. So during that time, I spent a while in Cyprus, working on my website and career plans, setting up some consultancy work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I don\u2019t have a publicist or anything like that, but I was actually headhunted by the director here. He had seen my CV and contacted me. The first thing he said was, \u201cI know you\u2019re going to be disappointed with any kind of salary or remuneration,\u201d but he shared his vision. He told me it was a school with heart, a place that really wants to do well, and he was looking for someone to help lead it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So I discussed it with my wife. Bahrain – that’s where I started my career 30 years ago, at St. Christopher\u2019s. It was incredible: 30 years to the day since we were last at St. Christopher\u2019s, where I was Head of Biology. So, in many ways, it was an easy decision to come back. And honestly, we made the right one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019ve done a lot already, so things are moving quite quickly. We started with the vision, which we developed collaboratively: Inspire to learn, to innovate, lead to empowerment.<\/em> That\u2019s now something the students recite every day: Inspire to learn, to innovate, lead to evolve.<\/em> It\u2019s everywhere throughout the school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We then defined the educational vision: high-quality teaching and learning, with an enquiry-based approach. We included values like critical thinking and self-directed learning, and created a clear mission statement. We also identified our core values: compassion, leadership, adaptability, innovation and creativity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We did all of this together as a team. From there, we began to monitor and support our teachers, especially because we\u2019re a low-budget school, and many teachers need additional support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So in the first two months, it was almost a top-down leadership approach. We had to clearly communicate expectations. Despite being low-budget, we set high standards: clear whiteboard rules, structured lesson starts, visible objectives. We introduced daily reading time \u2018Drop Everything and Read\u2019<\/em> to help students build literacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We also emphasised collaborative learning and gave teachers practical strategies, like \u2018Think-Pair-Share\u2019<\/em>. The focus has really been on high-quality teaching and learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ve started developing our \u201cleaders of learning\u201d – teachers who\u2019ve never held leadership roles before. We introduced observations using specific criteria. It\u2019s been a tough journey, but what I\u2019ve learned is that regardless of background or experience, the teachers who are open and have a positive attitude can develop very quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ve seen real growth among those teachers, and it\u2019s encouraging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, our vision includes becoming a full IB school. Right now we have about 470 students, and over the next two to three years, I see us becoming a fully-fledged IB school, potentially competing with the likes of St. Christopher\u2019s and other leading schools in Bahrain. Even as a low-budget school with around 50 nationalities, I believe we have the potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To meet inspection standards, consistency is key. In parallel to all this, I\u2019ve just completed my inspector qualification, which allows me to inspect schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My media channel focuses heavily on supporting and developing leaders. I strongly believe that everyone has the potential to be a leader. That belief really shapes my approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My leadership style is rooted in coaching. I recently completed a course in consultative psychology and solution-based psychology, both of which align very well with how I work. I’m also currently studying NLP. So my approach is quite similar to that of a consultative psychologist – helping people build on their existing skills, empowering them to develop, and supporting their growth in self-confidence and self-esteem as they step into leadership roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A big part of that is helping people let go of past baggage so they can move forward. When teachers are able to do that, regardless of their qualifications or background, I\u2019ve seen significant personal and professional growth. Some of the best leaders I\u2019ve worked with haven\u2019t necessarily had the highest qualifications, but they\u2019ve had the right mindset and attitude. I try not to judge based on qualifications alone; my approach is far more personal and collaborative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, structure is still important. I do ask for evidence and clear documentation, which is why I might send formal emails to set expectations and establish a framework. But I always follow that up by walking around, talking to people, and offering support. That one-to-one connection is vital. I\u2019ll say, \u201cHere\u2019s what we\u2019re trying to do, and here\u2019s where we\u2019re hoping to be next week.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This approach has been especially important in our current context, where many of our teachers have limited experience in formal education settings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So yes, you need strong leadership – but more importantly, you need people<\/em> leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019re now living in an age of what I call digital distraction<\/em>. Who isn\u2019t distracted by their mobile phone, social media, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok \u2013 or Threads? It\u2019s everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And now, we have AI. I\u2019d say we\u2019ve become AI-fied<\/em>. We all know we can use AI to find out just about anything, and it\u2019s becoming embedded in our cultural mindset. I see it with people around me \u2013 my wife, for instance. Instead of having a longer conversation or working something out together, it\u2019s, \u201cLet\u2019s just look it up.\u201d We all do it. \u201cWhat\u2019s the cause of this vitamin deficiency?\u201d – and within seconds, we have an answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So now we\u2019ve got both digital distraction and AI, and that presents real challenges for education. It used to be about \u201cbring your own device,\u201d and we welcomed that. But now, it\u2019s becoming a concern. Students know how to manipulate their devices using tools like Copilot or Gemini. They can get instant answers, have essays written for them in seconds, and that\u2019s not going away. If anything, it\u2019s only going to increase. The progress just in the last few months has been phenomenal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, if I\u2019m preparing an MYP lesson for Year 6, 7, or 8, I can ask Gemini to generate something for me and, in microseconds, it\u2019s done. If I want it slightly changed, I can request that, and it will instantly update the content. That\u2019s the reality now and it\u2019s here to stay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So the real question is: how will education adapt? The old model of teaching from the front of the classroom no longer works. Attention spans have shrunk, not just for students, but for teachers too. You start speaking, and within ten seconds, you’ve lost some of the class. It used to be that you had three to five minutes to get your point across. Now, it\u2019s seconds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That means teaching has to change. It needs to shift towards high-quality, interactive learning focused on deep questioning and engagement. For example, I walked into a Year 1 class this morning. They were discussing who was cooler: someone in shorts and a T-shirt or someone with an umbrella. Same environment, but different approaches. There was a lot of discussion, but when it came to deeper thinking, what sunlight is, how waves work, they struggled. They\u2019re so used to just looking it up<\/em> that deeper cognitive processing doesn\u2019t happen naturally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s where real learning needs to take place, when you get students to think on their feet, ask deeper questions, and keep asking. That\u2019s what fosters critical thinking and cognitive retention. Otherwise, we risk a future where students don\u2019t actually need<\/em> to think because everything is instantly available to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So the whole concept of teaching and learning has to change in a way that ensures students still learn<\/em>, not just consume<\/em> information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The best advice I ever received was when I got my first job as a principal. I was at St. Christopher\u2019s in Cyprus at the time, and there was a gentleman from Egypt who trusted me and offered me the role of leading the American Academy – my first principal position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The advice he gave me was all about expectations and standards. He told me that as a leader, you must be absolutely clear about your expectations and standards – and not compromise on them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He was particularly passionate about performing arts and school productions. I remember how he insisted that everything had to be of the highest standard – from the displays on the walls to the way students performed. Everything had to be impeccable. Everyone had to be standing tall, delivering their best. It was truly outstanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That message stayed with me: the importance of holding on to your own outstanding expectations and ensuring that others rise to meet them. I\u2019ve carried that value with me throughout my career – the belief that setting and maintaining high expectations for everyone is not just important, it\u2019s essential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have several passion projects, such as running Education Speaks<\/em>, working in recruitment consultancy, and developing leaders. You’ll see all the different areas highlighted on my website. I\u2019m also involved in inspecting CIS accreditations. I have many areas of expertise: teaching, science, biology – a bit of everything, really. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019ve worked in about 11 countries, so I bring a broad and diverse perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I’ve known Teacher Horizons since they first started, many years ago. They’ve helped me with a few jobs over the years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What really stood out to me was how personal the experience was. It was unbelievable, honestly. I had used all the major recruitment agencies, but when Teacher Horizons came along the service they provided was completely different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The advisors genuinely cared and really helped you to find the right job. It felt very unique and rare at the time, and to be honest, it still is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.teacherhorizons.com\/advice\/wp-content\/uploads\/unnamed-4-640x427.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n2. What has inspired you along the way? Whether people, places or experiences?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Tassos](\"https:\/\/www.teacherhorizons.com\/advice\/wp-content\/uploads\/unnamed-2-640x465.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n3. What are you proud to have achieved in your current school?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
4. How did you come to choose your current school? <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.teacherhorizons.com\/advice\/wp-content\/uploads\/unnamed-1-1-640x427.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n5. What is your vision for your time at your current school?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
6. What are your values and how would you describe your leadership style?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.teacherhorizons.com\/advice\/wp-content\/uploads\/unnamed-2-1-640x426.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n7. What is your vision for the future of education? <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Three](\"https:\/\/www.teacherhorizons.com\/advice\/wp-content\/uploads\/unnamed-3-640x409.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n8. What is the best and perhaps worst advice you have received?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
9. What are your areas of expertise and do you have any passion projects?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Tassos](\"https:\/\/www.teacherhorizons.com\/advice\/wp-content\/uploads\/unnamed-3-1.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n10. How has your experience been with Teacher Horizons?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n