The Common Room - Where the World Teaches

Leading Across Cultures — A Conversation with Chris Hoare

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0800

In this episode of The Common Room, Joshua sits down with Chris Hoare — an international school leader with experience across the UK, the Middle East, and Latin America. Chris currently serves as Head of Upper School at Colegio Peruano Británico, a Nord Anglia Education school in Lima, Peru, having previously been part of a founding leadership team in Dubai. He teaches on NPQ programmes for international school cohorts and is a Fellow of both the Royal Geographical Society and the Chartered College of Teaching. With a career built across three very different regions, Chris brings a grounded, honest perspective on what it actually takes to lead when the context keeps changing beneath your feet.

Together, we explore what leading across cultures really demands — and why the approaches that earn credibility in one place can land completely differently in another.

In this conversation, we cover:

Why asking "what do you think?" empowers a team in one culture and signals incompetence in another — and what that reveals about assumptions leaders carry without knowing it
The behaviour management example that shows how the same policy can mean something entirely different to parents depending on where in the world you are
The VAC framework — Visible, Accessible, Credible — and why Chris's father, a police training officer, gave him the best leadership advice he's ever received
Psychological safety in schools, and why Joanna Povall's Kind Leadership challenges the idea that kindness and authority can't coexist
Authenticity as the one thing that holds constant across every culture — and the parent who came back a month later to say he respected a decision he didn't agree with
Why nobody teaches you how to make decisions — and what's genuinely missing for ambitious younger leaders in international education

Whether you're navigating your first international leadership role, stepping into an established school community with its own deep-rooted culture, or simply trying to figure out what kind of leader you want to be, this is a practical and honest conversation about what the job actually asks of you.

A huge thank you to Chris for his openness, his energy, and for reminding us that admitting what you don't know is one of the greatest strengths a leader can have.

The Common Room is hosted by Joshua Sussex — Deputy Head of Secondary and EdD candidate: researching leadership in international schools.

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What Moving Countries Does To The Mind — A Conversation With Dean Wall

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 12:00:00 +0800

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In this episode of The Common Room, Joshua sits down with Dean Wall — an international educator with over a decade of experience living and teaching across Egypt, Ireland, Alaska, and Vietnam. Dean has taught subjects including ESL, Global Perspectives and Sociology, and is currently completing an MSc in Psychology and Neuroscience of Mental Health at King's College London. With a rare dual lens of lived international experience and current academic study in psychology, neuroscience, and mental health, Dean brings a genuinely reflective account of what repeated relocation actually does to identity, belonging, and the mind.

Together, we explore what moving countries really does to a person psychologically — and why the effects rarely show up when you expect them.

In this conversation, we cover:

Why culture shock often doesn't hit until months into a new country — and what that "six-month mark" actually feels like
How resilience can quietly tip into exhaustion, and why constantly "pushing through" isn't the full picture
The revolving door of the expat community, and why friendships built fast can also dissolve fast
How loneliness can exist as a hidden, almost invisible layer beneath an outwardly full and adventurous life
What sobriety taught Dean about identity, socialising, and rebuilding friendships without alcohol as the glue
Why therapy, journaling, and boundary-setting became essential tools for staying grounded across multiple moves

Whether you're an educator considering your first move abroad, someone already deep into expat life wondering why things suddenly feel harder, or simply curious about the psychology of belonging, this episode is a genuinely honest look at what the international life doesn't often get said out loud.

A huge thank you to Dean for his time, his openness, and his reminder that vulnerability — not just resilience — is often what actually builds community.

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Pastoral Care in the Middle East — A Conversation with Gavin Taylor

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 11:00:00 +0800

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In this episode of The Common Room, Joshua sits down with Gavin Taylor — Assistant Head of High School Pastoral at Emirates International School Jumeirah in Dubai, where he leads student wellbeing, behaviour, student leadership and the broader student experience across the secondary school. With over 16 years in education and eight years living and working in the Middle East, Gavin brings a rare combination of pastoral expertise and genuine lived experience of international life.

Together, they explore what it actually means to build a school community where every student feels they belong — and why that question looks very different when your classroom contains 30 nationalities, multiple faiths, and families who have rebuilt their lives thousands of miles from home.

In this conversation, we cover:

Why the core principles of pastoral care stay the same — but almost everything else changes
The biggest mistake new staff make when arriving in the Middle East
How to build genuine trust with parents from vastly different cultural backgrounds
The "customers not students" mindset shift that changed how Gavin approaches his work
What living in the UAE taught him about pastoral care that no training ever could
Why positive communication matters more than any system or policy
What it really means to create a school where students feel they belong

Whether you're a teacher considering a move to the Middle East, a pastoral leader looking to sharpen your practice, or a school leader thinking about student experience and culture, this episode is full of honest, practical insight from someone who has genuinely built something worth belonging to.

A huge thank you to Gavin for his time, his warmth, and his reminder that if years after leaving school a student can say — that school believed in me — then you've done a good job.

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Why Great Educators Stall as Leaders — A Conversation with Greg Parry

Wed, 29 Jul 2026 21:00:00 +0800

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In this episode of The Common Room, Joshua sits down with Greg Parry, founder and director of Global Services in Education — an international school development, management and advisory firm operating across more than 35 countries. Australian by background, Greg led schools as head of school and CEO before moving into the investment and development side of the sector, working with investors, developers and operators across the GCC, Southeast Asia, Africa and Europe.

Together, they unpack the commercial layer that sits underneath every school — and why understanding it isn't a betrayal of the educational mission, but arguably the most important thing a school leader can do to protect it.

In this conversation, we cover:

The ceiling most educators hit that has nothing to do with classroom ability
Why departments get cut and good staff get lost — and how to prevent it
What investors actually assess when they look at a school
The financial literacy every school leader should have
How to speak the language of investors without losing your educational values
The colonialism problem hiding in international school expansion
Greg's own journey from teacher to global school developer — and why impact, not position, drove every decision

Whether you're a teacher curious about how schools actually work financially, a senior leader wanting to build commercial confidence, or a head of school navigating the space between education and investment, this episode will change how you think about the business of schooling.

A huge thank you to Greg for his time, his candour, and his generosity in sharing what the other side of the table actually looks like.

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Behind The Contract — A Conversation with Izyan Ronedin

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 14:00:00 +0800

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In this episode of The Common Room, Joshua sits down with Izyan, Head of Human Resources at an international school in Singapore. With thirteen years of HR experience — the last four spent in international education — Izyan brings a rare, practitioner's view of what really happens behind the closed doors of HR, and why keeping it human matters more than ever in an increasingly automated world.

Together, they unpack the realities of relocating for international teaching roles: the contract clauses candidates often skim past (and shouldn't), the hidden costs that never quite make it into the offer letter, and what genuine onboarding support looks like when someone is building a new life on the other side of the world.

In this conversation, we cover:

- The notice period clause most candidates overlook
- The hidden costs of visa applications that rarely get mentioned upfront
- What good HR communication looks like before, during, and after a contract is signed
- The biggest misconception staff have about what HR is actually there to do
- How AI is changing HR — and why it's making the role more human, not less
- The challenges expatriates face settling into a new country, and Izyan's advice for anyone considering the move

Whether you're an academic staff member curious about what goes on behind the scenes, or you're weighing up your own move into international education, this episode offers honest, practical insight from someone who has genuinely walked alongside hundreds of staff through that journey.

A huge thank you to Izyan for her time, her honesty, and her generosity in sharing what HR looks like from the inside.

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Leading Between Two Systems — A Solo Reflection

Sun, 26 Jul 2026 16:00:00 +0800

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In this solo episode of The Common Room, host Joshua Sussex steps away from the interview format to unpack what leading within a British-branded school in China actually taught him about leadership — the mistakes, frustrations, and hard lessons along the way — as well as how it ignited his passion, motivation, and curiosity to research in that space.

Joshua introduces Culturally Mediated Leadership (CML) — a framework being developed through his doctoral research at the University of Bath — built around five practical lenses: Cultural Reflexivity, Symbolic Sensitivity, Stakeholder Interpretation, Adaptive Bridging, and Strategic Mediation. Each is grounded in examples, from senior leadership decisions to everyday moments any staff member will recognise, regardless of role or country.

This framework is for anyone leading — or working — across cultural, generational, or institutional difference, which is most people in international education, most of the time.

Next episode: Joshua is joined by Izyan Ronedin, Head of HR at an international school in Singapore, for "Behind the Contract" — HR, Misconceptions, and the Human Side of AI" — covering what to look out for in a contract before signing, common misconceptions about HR, and where the human side of HR is headed as AI reshapes the profession.

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Why International Education? — A Conversation with Ian Hopkins

Sat, 25 Jul 2026 15:00:00 +0800

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In the very first episode of The Common Room, host Joshua Sussex sits down with Ian Hopkins — a school leader with almost 30 years in education and over 20 years in senior leadership across the UK, Africa, the Middle East, China, and Malaysia.

Ian has served as Headteacher, Principal, and Acting Principal in British and international schools, leading learning from Early Years to Year 13 across British, Cambridge, and IB curricula. He is currently Primary Principal at Sri KDU International School Penang and is completing an MBA at Heriot-Watt University.

Together, Joshua and Ian unpack the question: why international education? From a sports injury that accidentally led Ian into teaching, to headship in the UK, to thirteen years leading schools across Kenya, Jordan, China, and Malaysia — this conversation covers culture shock, the hidden challenges of the "trailing spouse," what it really means to live out of a suitcase, and the shift from being done to, to being done with, when it comes to leadership and accreditation.

This episode also explores the human side of international education: third culture kids, family sacrifice, and why wellbeing — not just career progression — has become the real measure of success for leaders working abroad.

Whether you're a teacher considering your first international move, or a school leader trying to build a stronger sense of belonging for your staff and families, this conversation offers an honest, grounded starting point.

Next episode: Joshua goes solo, unpacking leading in British-branded schools in China and introducing Culturally Mediated Leadership — a framework being developed through his ongoing doctoral research at the University of Bath.

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Welcome to The Common Room — Trailer

Fri, 19 Jun 2026 16:00:00 +0800

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An introduction to The Common Room — Where the World Teaches. A podcast for everyone living abroad and part of international education, hosted by Joshua Sussex.

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