The GDST goes to Philadelphia to present latest research on girls’ education

In June 2025, 20 colleagues from across the GDST travelled to Philadelphia, the city of ‘sisterly’ love, for the 2025 conference of the International Coalition of Girls’ Schools.

gdst international

Joining over 600 educators from across the world, the GDST team heard from an exciting range of speakers who explored girls’ leadership, fostering community and embracing the challenges of AI. It was exhilarating to be surrounded by allies in girls’ education and as the largest school group in attendance, to present our leading research. Over three energising days, attendees connected, collaborated, and explored the future of girls’ education through a series of inspiring talks and workshops.

GDST’s Chief Executive, Cheryl Giovannoni, shared the GDST Insights report focussing on how curriculum, culture and classroom can be optimised to support girls’ learning. Data shows that the world is far from equal and women, who make up 51% of the population, do 66% of the work but account for only 11% of the world’s pay. Our report finds GDST girls are disrupting the status quo with girls more likely to take up leadership positions when compared to girls in other educational settings. 

We explored supporting and empowering students to be ethical globally minded changemakers and heard from an exciting roster of speakers including our own 2025 fellows of the Global Action Research Collective (GARC) who presented their research findings on the theme of Student Agency. 

Holly Webb, History and Politics teacher at Wimbledon High School was awarded Researcher of the Year for her action research project entitled “History Belongs to Us: Year 9 Girls Use Historical Significance to Craft Their Curriculum“. Holly’s findings revealed that involvement in the curriculum design process and application of historical significance enhanced student agency and developed girls’ historical skills. In her acceptance speech Holly said “I’m so lucky to be part of so many communities that are unashamedly girls first”. Congratulations also to Sam Duffy, Tara Fennell,  Katie Hannah, Teifi Gale, Chris Stump and Nicky Young who presented their research findings to a global audience. 

Cathy Walter, Sophie Sissons and Zoe Steer presented on how the GDST is creating an open community across our family of schools to engage, empower, and enable evidence-informed practice, including a case study from Oxford High School. Phoebe Bradley and Helen Carrington from Putney High School led two very engaging sessions on the implementation of a study skills curriculum, based on evidence from cognitive science. 

We are already looking forward to South Hampstead High School hosting the ICGS UK Symposium in November 2025 and to contributing to the conversation in Toronto in June 2026 when our GARC fellows will be presenting on the hugely topical “Navigating the AI Frontier”.

We want to take this opportunity to thank all those who attended on behalf of the GDST and who represented our family of schools with scholarly rigour and enthusiasm.

The GDST Insights Report and Framework

Designing the Future of Girls’ Education, a GDST Insights Report and Framework was published in 2024. The aim of the report was to enhance educational practices for all girls worldwide and to emphasise the importance of creating environments where girls can learn without limits. As a shaper of modern, future-looking girls’ education, the GDST highlights the transformative power of education that is designed for girls.

Read the report