7 Interesting Facts
About
Sian May
Head of School, 2022 to present
Q1
What we need to know about you. I am first and foremost an educator. I believe in the concept of mastery learning in any area of interest which develops a sense of personal identity and broadens a knowledge of the world. I am a ferocious reader of educational evidence and enjoy expanding my knowledge to encounter new ideas. On a day to day level I love walking my dog, running, socialising and travelling.
Q2
A value that resonates with you. Wisdom. Wisdom is beyond skills, knowledge and experience. It is about knowing when to leverage another’s talents, skills, knowledge and experience. Real innovation and achievement is possible when we intentionally develop such collective wisdom.
Q3
Most exciting thing about moving to Malaysia. Food! In all seriousness the cuisine does enthuse me but I am also excited to learn about Malaysian culture. I look forward to exploring Malaysia.
Q4
What motivates you? I look at the world and the complexity of what is at play globally, and it is fair to say that it is a mixed picture. Then I look at the next generation of young leaders and their clear sightedness, drive and thirst for life. This motivates me to ensure young people feel valued, taken seriously and engaged in what they want to achieve in the world.
Q5
What is the biggest learning moment from a previous school? I was speaking to a young man from Burundi (East Africa) who was a refugee and he was working with some of my students as part of a service project. His father was a human rights lawyer and they had fled Burundi for their lives. He told me that he had to unlearn what had happened to him and relearn new norms in order to be accepted. From that day onwards I often consider the cycle of unlearning, learning and relearning. This was a really pivotal moment because it affected the way my students and I thought about “service” as an idea. It then changed our approach to many student driven initiatives.
Q6
Favourite film you watched this year or last year on Netflix. I really enjoyed The Queen’s Gambit. I also loved some of the documentaries on Netflix too. Definitely helpful in the last couple of years to have some distraction when there was time!
Q7
What impact you like to leave on Alice Smith School. Alice Smith is a thriving community, with wide-ranging expertise, knowledge and experience. It has benefited from Roger’s fantastic leadership. The impact I would like to achieve is the empowerment of this incredible community to innovate and provide authentic future-ready education for our students.
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