GCES Symposium 2012

Third Annual Gulf GCES Symposium

Global Innovation, Local Transformation: Trends & Reactions

March 24-25, 2012

Crowne Plaza Hotel

Kingdom of Bahrain

The GCES Symposium 2012 brought over 41 speakers from across academia, policy-making, education, and the world to broadly examine the use of global innovations in education in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries as well as the ways in which they are adapted (or not) to suit the needs of the environment.

The symposium explored the ways in which educators, families and the community react when faced with a slew of imported innovations and why some innovations stick while others are left by the wayside. Finally the symposium welcomed contributions on local innovations in order to further regional scholarship and programs.

Prof. David Guile, Professor of Education and Work at the Institute of Education, University of London delivered the keynote speech on “The Knowledge Economy, Creativity and “Projectification”: reconceptualising the role of, and the relation between, professional and vocational learning in the Gulf States.” Other topics covered at the conference are include education reforms in Bahrain, technology & innovation, student participation in education: trends & reactions, systems & standards in the GCC countries, transforming science curricula, teaching pathways: challenges & opportunities, trends & innovations in higher education, adapting & innovating education in the GCC, and the state of science education in Bahrain.

Speaker

David Guile

Prof. David Guile, is Professor of Education and Work, Institute of Education, University of London, where he is a founding member of the United Kingdom's Education and Social Research Council-funded Research Centre - Learning and Life-chances in Knowledge Economies and Societies (LLAKES), and Programme Leader for the MA Lifelong Learning, which has European Union Erasmus Mundus funding for scholarships for international students. David is interested in the role of professional, vocational and workplace learning in the knowledge economy.

Keynotes and Guest Speakers

Hisham bin Abdulaziz Al Khalifa

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Kevin Simpson

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Dr. Majid bin Ali Al Nuaimi

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Hisham bin Abdulaziz Al Khalifa

ولد الشيخ هشام بن عبدالعزيز آل خليفة في الخامس عشر من شهر فبراير من العام الثاني والستين في السنة التسعمائة بعد الألف الميلادي بالمنامة، ودرس في مملكة البحرين واستكمل دراسته الجامعية في جامعة سانت ادواردز في اوستن بتكساس عام 1986م، حيث حصل على البكالوريوس في إدارة الأعمال والتسويق، حيث كانت محطته الأولى في العمل الطيران المدني الذي تدرج فيه حتى وصل إلى وكيل مساعد لخدمات المطار من عام 2000م حتى عام 2003م، فبدأ برئيس للعمليات عام 1993م وترأس مجلس ترويج المطار 1994-1995م، كما عُيّن مديرًا للمطار من عام 1996م حتى عام 2000م، هذه الوظائف المتعاقبة أهلته ليكون ممثلاً لمطار البحرين الدولي في المجلس العالمي للمطارات.

وهنا لابد من الإشارة إلى أن الشيخ هشام بن عبدالعزيز آل خليفة قد مثّل وزارة التربية والتعليم في العديد من مجالس المؤسسات التربوية والتعليمية وغيرها، منها مدرسة ابن خلدون الدولية عام 2008م، وعُيّن رئيسًا لمجلس إدارة كلية البحرين للمعلمين عام 2008م، وعضوًا في مجلس أمناء جامعة البحرين عام 2008م، ومجلس إدارة مدرسة الرفاع فيوز 2008-2009م، ومجلس إدارة بيان البحرين عام 2009م، كما عُيّن رئيسًا لمجلس إدارة مدرسة الشيخة حصة عام 2009م، ورئيسًا لمجلس أمناء بوليتكنك البحرين عام 2012م، ورئيسًا لمجلس أمناء المستشفيات الحكومية عام 2012م، وعضو في المجلس الأعلى للصحة عام 2012م.

Kevin Simpson

Kevin Simpson has 14 years in education with K-16 roles ranging from teacher, specialist, lead teacher, mentor, coordinator, adjunct professor, entrepreneur and consultant. He has taught a range of grade levels and content areas. The last seven years he has focused on mathematics. He has also worked all over the United States as a teacher trainer with the United States Department of Education in addition to serving in Laos, Thailand, Lebanon, Qatar, Egypt, and Dubai with international schools, professional development providers, Ministries of Education, and accreditation organizations. In 2007 Simpson started KDSL or Know Do Serve Learn. This group partners with education organizations worldwide to increase student achievement, teacher knowledge, and leadership.

Dr. Majid bin Ali Al Nuaimi

His Excellency Majed bin Ali Al-Naimi is the head of the National Archive Center and the former Minister of Education of Bahrain. Al-Naimi holds a Doctorate of Economic History from the University of Wales, a Master of Military Science from the Saudi Armed Forces Command and Staff College, a Master of Gulf History from Ain Shams University in Egypt, and a Bachelor of Arts in History from Kuwait University.

Program & Schedule

The conference aimed to stimulate discussions on educational reform in the GCC, providing a platform for current and future research that explores achievements, challenges and pitfalls in education. As the education landscape continues to change, it is important to explore whether and how former education-related practices influence how education is practiced now as well as in the future.

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