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Guest: Juliëtte van Eerdewijk - Educational Consultant and School Leader

Overview

In this episode, we sit down with Juliëtte to explore how language development can transform international school leadership and student success.

Key Discussion Points

• Personal Journey and Perspective

Juliëtte brings a unique perspective as a native Dutch speaker who mastered English for her professional career. Her personal experience navigating language acquisition informs her entire approach to educational leadership, giving her authentic empathy for language learners and their challenges.

• Language as Core School Strategy

Rather than treating language support as a supplementary programme, Juliëtte advocates for positioning language development as the central pillar of school improvement. She argues that curriculum design, assessment practices, and pedagogical approaches should all be built with language development at their core—benefiting not just multilingual learners, but all students.

• Practical Tools for Educators

Drawing from her lived experience, Juliëtte equips teachers and school leaders with concrete strategies and techniques to support language learners effectively. Her approach combines empathy with actionable methods that can be implemented across different educational contexts.

• Challenging Traditional Models

Juliëtte questions conventional leadership structures in British International Schools, pushing for more inclusive environments where students, parents, and staff members are genuinely heard and valued—regardless of their English proficiency or native language background.

The Multilingual Reality

The conversation raises a critical question for international schools: Are our institutions truly designed to serve the multilingual reality of modern international education? As linguistic competence becomes increasingly valuable in our globalised world, Juliëtte's perspective offers essential insights for school transformation.

Why It Matters

This conversation challenges international educators to reconsider how language shapes every aspect of school life—from curriculum to culture—and offers a roadmap for creating more inclusive, effective learning environments for diverse communities worldwide.