It was a great privilege and learning experience for 9 members of the Xavier Jesuit school staff to attend the IGNITE workshop on ‘Leadership By Discernment’ in Chiang Mai, Thailand from April 2nd-8th of this month. The workshop was facilitated by Fr.Johnny Go SJ and Ms.Jennie Hickey.
A group of nine school leaders consisting of our varied nationalities from Xavier Jesuit School attended the workshop run by the Ignatian Initiative for Teacher Excellence (IGNITE) for Ignation educators in Asia Pacific. Schools from seven regions across Asia took part in the workshop so the experience was varied and insightful.
The workshop focussed on the essential characteristic of the Ignatian school leader as a discerner. The module examined the question: What does it mean to use discernment in school decision making?
The teachers and staff participated in an intense but rewarding week of discussions and sharing about Ignation discernment and how to reflect and discern before decision making.
It was a very rich and fruitful experience for the XJS staff and helps us to closely consider ways that we can effectively lead in education with the skills and tools required to fully embroider the Ignation values into the school fabric.
We hope to implement some of the concepts and ideas shared at the workshop in order to develop the students’ and teachers’ ability to reflect and ‘be attentive’ in their daily lives.