EXPLORING THE FUTURE OF DIVERSE LEARNING Expert voices from across the spectrum of diverse learning will help you gain a renewed sense of understanding and purpose: mainstream teachers can reach all students and help everyone progress in their learning journey For more information email us at symposium2018@aisj-jhb.com
David Gleason
Diane Heacox
9 - 11 February 2018 @American International School of Johannesburg
Maya Nelson
Melissa Ortega
Virginia Rojas
Will Richardson
ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH
David Gleason
Dr. David Gleason is a clinical psychologist who provides counseling and consulting services, as well as neuropsychological assessments, within public, independent and international schools. Dr. Gleason earned a B.A. in Psychology (1982) and an M.A. in Counseling Children & Adolescents from Boston College (1987), and then a Psy.D. at William James College (f.k.a. Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology) in 1993. Dr. Gleason then served as Administrative Director of Student Support Services at St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire before opening his own practice in Concord, Massachusetts in 2000. At that time, Dr. Gleason also joined Concord Academy as that school’s Consulting Psychologist. In addition, Dr. Gleason serves as Senior Neuropsychologist at Wediko Children’s Services in Boston, where he supervises pre and post-doctoral neuropsychology interns and he co-teaches a professional development seminar. Finally, Dr. Gleason has taught psychology at the secondary, undergraduate and graduate levels, and he presents workshops and seminars at schools, national conferences in the United States, and at international conferences around the world. Dr. Gleason’s new book, At What Cost? Defending Adolescent Development in Fiercely Competitive Schools, was published in January, 2017, and is available on Amazon.com. SATURDAY - SESSION 1 Neuropsychological Testing: Demystifying the Data Many educators struggle to grasp the interpretive value of comprehensive assessments. This highly interactive workshop will “demystify the data” conveyed in every neuropsychological report. Discussing how to read complex evaluations will help participants to understand their students’ needs and intervene more effectively. Participants should bring Ed/Psych reports and questions of their own. SATURDAY - SESSION 2 , SUNDAY - SESSION 2 May I Have Your Attention, Please?” Learning challenges and mental health problems frequently overlap. Consequently, students get treated for depression, anxiety, learning disabilities and even poor school fit, when too often, the true culprit is an undiagnosed attention control problem. This workshop will review these overlapping conditions and clarify how to make accurate diagnoses for effective interventions.
SATURDAY - SESSION 3 The Heart of the Matter: The Adolescent Brain All around the world, high school students are adolescents between the ages of 14-18 years, students whose neurodevelopmental status is very much still “in process.” And yet, too many of these adolescents are expected to perform every day in ways that suggest that their brains have already reached adulthood. This workshop takes a “deep dive” in five critically important neurodevelopmental discoveries – thanks to the wonders of neuroimaging – that make it increasingly inappropriate, if not irresponsible, for educators NOT to teach and coach their adolescent students in ways that respect the students’ developmental integrity. SUNDAY - SESSION 1 At What Cost? Defending Adolescent Development in Fiercely Competitive Schools Participants in this session will have the opportunity more deeply explore the issues raised in Dr. Gleason’s keynote address, and to fully engage the structured, interactive and animated interview that Dr. Gleason has used in his research in schools throughout the US and all around the world. With this direct “hands on” experience, participants will understand more about how they can change in the direction of “developmentally empathic” approaches to educating their students.
HIGHLY CAPABLE LEARNERS Diane Heacox Dr. Diane Heacox is a consultant and professional development trainer focusing on strategies to increase learning success for all students. She is Professor Emerita at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota. She is a national and international consultant and professional development trainer to both public and private schools on a variety of topics related to teaching and learning. Dr. Heacox has taught at both elementary and secondary school levels and has served as a gifted education teacher and administrator, as well as an instructional specialist in public education. Dr. Heacox is also the author of four books. Her first book for Free Spirit Publishers was Up From Underachievement: How Teachers, Students and Parents Can Work Together. Her second book, Differentiating Instruction in the Regular Classroom: How to Reach and Teach All Learners was updated and released in 2012. Making Differentiation a Habit earned the 2010 Association of Education Publishers Distinguished Achievement Award. Her newest book co-authored with Richard Cash, Differentiation for Gifted Learners: Going Beyond the Basics received the 2014 Legacy Book Award for Educators by the Texas Association for Gifted and Talented. Her books have been translated into Dutch, Hungarian, Korean, Arabic, and Portuguese. Her Differentiation Classroom Practices Inventory was used by the Ministry of Education in Portugal for conducting a national survey of classroom practices. Dr. Heacox serves on the Board of Directors of the Minnesota Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development (MN ASCD) and the Minnesota Department of Education Gifted Education Advisory Board. She is the past chair for the Middle Level Network and the Education committee for National Association for Gifted Children and the current facilitator of the Higher Education Division for international ASCD. Dr. Heacox was recognized by the Minnesota Educators of Gifted and Talented as a Friend of the Gifted for service to gifted education. She is also in the University of St. Thomas Educators Hall of Fame for contributions to the field of education. FRIDAY - SESSION 1 Exploring the Learning Differences of Talented Learners What is the difference between a high achiever and an academically talented student with superior aptitudes? What differentiates a “hard worker” from a talented learner? This session distinguishes the unique learning needs of and differences among talented learners that require specific teaching and learning strategies. In addition, we’ll explore and discuss how various cultural and ethnic communities sometimes associate different attributes with talent. We will also examine common personal issues of talented learners including perfectionism, fear of failure and sometimes difficulty in making friends.
SATURDAY - SESSION 1 Critical Elements in an Academically Diverse Classroom: Tiered Tasks and Flexible Instructional Groups Although there are multiple strategies that teachers utilize in meeting the needs of students in an academically diverse classroom, the most sophisticated, focused and foundational of all is the use of tiered tasks. Explore five ways to tier tasks based on specific learning needs of your students. Discover strategies to make tiered assignments “invisible” to your students. Extend your practices in managing a differentiated classroom through the use of flexible instructional grouping. Leave this session with a clear understanding that tiered tasks are not only critical but do-able in your classroom. Examples of both elementary and secondary tasks will be shared. SATURDAY - SESSION 2 (SECONDARY SCHOOL) & 3 (ELEMENTARY SCHOOL) Teaching Highly Capable Learners: Going Beyond the Basics Today’s classroom teachers focus on meeting the needs of all students. However, highly capable students have unique learning needs that are not addressed by strategies targeting only average, high achieving or struggling learners. How does the teacher’s planning go beyond the basics to address the needs of these learners? This session provides participants with a framework that supports the advanced pace, sophisticated complexity and greater depth required by highly capable and talented learners. Practical, do-able, step-by step strategies and sample tasks for secondary classrooms are highlighted. SUNDAY - SESSION 1 Motivating the Talented But Reluctant Learner Not all talented learners are productive students. Not all are “A” students. Some perform exceedingly well in a single curriculum area but appear to be average in others. Some talented students establish a perplexing pattern of doing well or doing nothing. Some are reluctant, even resistant, learners refusing to play the school game. This session explores well documented research on underlying causes of low performance and creates distinctions between non-producers, selective producers and underachievers amongst the highly capable populations. Participants are guided through a process for diagnosing specific performance issues SUNDAY - SESSION 2 Adding Complexity and Depth to Teaching for Creativity Creativity is distinguished as one of the essential skills for the 21st century. This preparation of our students for their futures requires that teachers dedicate themselves to providing learners with the skills of creative thinking. It is time to go beyond basic skills into tactics that strengthen the core of creativity. This session focuses on teaching and learning strategies that encourage students to experiment, to innovate, and to explore new avenues. Practical strategies to embed creative thinking into your curriculum and lessons that will excite and actively engage your students will be provided.
INCLUSION
Maya Nelson
Maya currently is in her tenth year as the Lower Primary Principal at Hong Kong International School. Prior to coming to HKIS, Maya was the Student Services Director at Taipei American School where she implemented the first ever School Within A School Program for students with more moderate level needs. Maya has served as a consultant to schools around the world. She has expertise in designing and implementing support services programs in international schools and facilitating audits for schools in the area of special education. She has presented at various Conferences in early childhood education, special education, literacy practices and leadership. Maya has experience teaching in both special education and elementary education in the United States and overseas in Japan, Indonesia, and Taiwan. Maya has degrees in Elementary Education and Special Education, as well as a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership. She has grown up around the world and considers herself a Third Culture Kid! FRIDAY - SESSION 1 Learning Disabilities Understanding and Teaching the Child with Learning Disabilities This presentation provides a comprehensive overview of students with learning disabilities. It addresses: the definition of LD, characteristics of students with learning disabilities, and educational implications of students with learning disabilities. SATURDAY - SESSION 1 & SUNDAY - SESSION 1 The ABCs and 123s of Special Education and Inclusion Learning disabilities? ADHD? Executive Functioning? Anxiety Disorders? Developmental Disorders? OT? PT? OG? IEP? 504? What are these and how can I understand? Learn about the most typical needs one sees in students/children in the international schools and the differences between the various exceptionalities. An overview of special education, learning needs/variations will be discussed, as well as the various approaches and methodologies most commonly used. In addition, further understanding of special education programs and the elements of paperwork, structure, and process will be discussed.
SATURDAY - SESSION 2 & 3 Inclusion, Special Education Programs and Next Steps What does inclusion mean? What do you need to know to implement a special education program? International schools are beginning to understand the importance of becoming more inclusive and serving diverse learners. With the move toward inclusion, schools are beginning to question ways to plan for and implement educational programs to support diverse learners or students with learning variations. Whether it is creating a self-contained special education program, expanding a learning resource/learning disabilities program or implementing the first support services program in your school, ideation, planning and implementation are needed. Learn about ways to plan for and put into action the steps you'll need to take in order to support building an inclusive or more inclusive program in your school. Discuss frameworks, develop paperwork, and think about policies that support the school and students where you work. SUNDAY - SESSION 2 Language Development Look Who Is Talking - Understanding Language Development and Language Disorders Communication development may be the best indicator of understanding and assessing students with learning needs. Understand typical language development and what atypical language development looks like. Information in regards to speech and language disorders and how to discern what is what in the world of language development will be discussed.
ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH
Melissa Ortega
Dr. Melissa Ortega has been working as a licensed psychologist in the field of clinical child psychopathology and mental health for the past 15 years. She holds a masters and doctoral degree in clinical psychology from Rutgers University. Dr. Ortega specializes in the treatment of childhood anxiety disorders and disruptive behavior disorders. She has extensive training in assessment and intervention with children and adolescents. Her expertise lies in the treatment of Selective Mutism, Social Anxiety Disorder, ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorders, OCD, Executive Functioning weaknesses, and other social, emotional and behavioral difficulties. She is the director of the Selective Mutism Program and ADHD Service at Central Health Partners Child Development Team in Hong Kong. Dr. Ortega also leads the Confident Crew Intensive Therapeutic Program, adapted from Dr. Steven Kurtz’s Brave Buddies™ program, for young children diagnosed with Selective Mutism, Social Anxiety Disorder, and Separation Anxiety Disorder, which is the first of its kind in Asia. She is an active participant and presenter at international conferences. She currently is a member of a multidisciplinary private practice in Hong Kong and works closely with families, schools and foundations in Asia, Australia, and the United States. In her free time, Dr. Ortega enjoys traveling, exercising, and spending time her husband and three small children. FRIDAY - SESSION 1 Self-Esteem and Resilience There has been much in the popular literature recently about encouraging a growth mindset and building resiliency in children and adolescents. Our children live in a time with increased stress and pressure regarding outcomes and performance. In this presentation, Dr. Ortega will discuss the factors that contribute to resiliency in children and adolescents as well as how to develop and nurture independence, increase effort, promote flexibility in thinking, and improve problem-solving. Carol Dweck’s work on the growth mindset and Angela Duckworth’s work on grit will be discussed, as well as strategies to bring forth and foster a growth mindset and encourage perseverance in children. In addition, strategies to build self-esteem and confidence in youth will be covered.
SATURDAY- SESSION 1 ADHD ADHD is a common neurodevelopmental diagnosis, impacting 5% of students of school age. There are a broad array of manifestations, which are often inconsistently apparent. As academic demands change over time, consequences of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity can become severe. In this presentation, Dr. Ortega will discuss the neurobiology of ADHD, explain how it is diagnosed and differentiated from other disorders, and how is can be effectively managed in mainstream classroom settings. SATURDAY - SESSION 1, SUNDAY - SESSION 2 Quirky Kids We are all aware of the startling increase in children diagnosed, worldwide, with Autism. In this workshop Dr. Ortega will present information on the underpinnings of the social, emotional and academic challenges of children and adolescents who are ‘quirky’, whether or not they have a diagnosis, and describe approaches to being supportive of these students as they learn and grow. SATURDAY - SESSION 3, SUNDAY - SESSION 1 Anxiety in Children 15% of children and 25% of adolescents experience significant anxiety. Yet, the presentation of anxiety in children and adolescents is often complex, and thus it may be mislabelled or misunderstood. In this talk Dr. Ortega will discuss how anxiety develops, key neurological understandings, how to recognize anxiety and how parents and teachers can address these issues.
ENGLISH AS AN ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE Virginia Rojas Dr. Rojas conducts professional training on effective programs and strategies for English learners from pre-school through grade 12 for ESL (EAL) and classroom teachers. She has worked with over 300 international schools on language education policies, programs, and professional development. Dr. Rojas specializes in developing academic English as an Additional Language (EAL) and in providing access for English-proficient bilinguals through differentiated instruction and progressive scaffolding. She provides professional development sessions, job-embedded coaching, demonstration lessons, and conducts linguistic audits of ESL/ EAL programs. Dr. Rojas is a faculty member and author with ASCD (www.ascd.org) and teaches EAL for Mainstream Teachers for the Teacher's Training Center in Miami or London (http://www.theptc.org). Dr. Rojas was inducted into the AAIE (Association for Advancement of International Education) in February 2016 and will be retiring as of 2017. She will continue to work with the TTC EAL certificate on a part-time basis and has agreed to consult with selected schools and conferences. FRIDAY - SESSION 1 A Deep Dive Session for Leaders and Administrators of International Schools: Navigating the Unchartered Waters of Immersion Language Education One of the most effective language-in-education programs is ‘immersion,’ a program or method of learning in a second language by being taught almost entirely in that language. Its opposite ‘submersion’ refers to a program or method whereby language learners are left to ‘sink or swim’ in part due to the fact that teachers are untrained in second language immersion strategies; in fact, the reality of ‘submersion’ often led to the traditional EAL pull out program. With the continued demographic changes in international schools (i.e. more students from diverse-language backgrounds), educators face a watershed moment as they decide which direction to take: - strategically plan for the sustainability of school-wide ‘immersion’ where every teacher is a teacher of academic language and of English learners; OR - continue to tread water in order to keep past EAL policies, programs, and practices intact (i.e. disconnected pull out programs, confusing ‘inclusion’ with ‘immersion,’ etc.)
SATURDAY - SESSION 1 (UPPER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL) & 2 (SECONDARY SCHOOL), SUNDAY - SESSION 1 (EARLY CHILDHOOD) Effective Classroom Instruction for English Learners This session uses a mentor lesson co-taught by the presenter as an exemplar of effective instruction for secondary English learners in a mainstream classroom. The focus is on engaging in collaborative planning using grade-level standards and assessment tasks, a repertoire of effective instructional strategies and co-teaching models, and reflective practice. Participants will have time to explore the effective instructional strategies and co-teaching models. SATURDAY - SESSION 3 From ‘Fixers’ to ‘Coaches”: EAL Specialists As Teacher Leaders As the demography of international schools continues to change with the result that every classroom has more English learners than ever before, it is necessary to turn the often-heard mantra, ‘every teacher is a language teacher’ into actual classroom practice. These immersion classrooms differ from past programs and practices and, as such, require ‘coaching-mindsets’. First and foremost is the changing role of EAL specialists from ‘fixers’ of learners to ‘coaches’ of teachers in order to build and sustain asset-based, language-immersion classrooms to teach English learners alongside their peers. SUNDAY - SESSION 2 Proficiency-Based Teaching and Learning in Multi-Level World Language Classrooms The reality of many world-language classrooms in international schools is that there is a range of students with differing ‘levels’ of language knowledge and skills if not at the beginning of the school year certainly by the end. This workshop sets the stage for designing learning experiences for varying levels amongst students using the principles of proficiency-based language instruction and differentiation.
MODERN LEARNING
Will Richardson
Living in rural New Jersey with his wife, Wendy, and his two teen-agers, Tess and Tucker, Will Richardson has spent the last dozen years developing an international reputation as a leading thinker and writer about the intersection of social online learning networks and education. He was one of a handful of original education bloggers (willrichardson.com) and his work has appeared in numerous journals, newspapers, and magazines such as Ed Leadership, District Administration, Education Week, The New York Times and English Journal. He is an outspoken advocate for change in schools and classrooms in the context of the diverse new learning opportunities that the Web and other technologies now offer, and has worked with educators in over 20 countries to understand the opportunities and challenges of learning in the modern world. In 2017, he was named one of 100 global "Changemakers in Education" by the Finnish site HundrED. Will has authored five books, most recently From Master Teacher to Master Learner (2015, Solution Tree Press). In total, his books have sold over 150,000 copies worldwide. A former public school educator of 22 years, Will is a co-founder of Modern Learner Media and co-publisher of ModernLearners.com which is a site dedicated to helping educational leaders and policy makers develop new contexts for new conversations around education. Over the past eight years, he has spoken to tens of thousands of educators in over a dozen countries about the merits of online learning networks for personal and professional growth. FRIDAY - SESSION 1, SATURDAY - SESSION 1 Exploring New Literacies for a World of Networked, Self-Directed Learners and Makers While it may seem like it, the biggest advance of the last 15 years has not been the Web and hundreds of technologies that connect us to it. No, the biggest shift is what that connectedness brings us, the new reality that each one of us can now stand as the central organizing force in our own learning, education, and work. With our growing access to the sum of human knowledge and billions of people around the world, we decide what we need to learn, when we need to learn it. We develop our own pathways to an “education.” And we as individuals have the power to create and share and bring beautiful, meaningful, important work into the world. The institutions that used to mediate those interactions, schools, publishing houses and corporations among them, are all now struggling to maintain relevance. In this moment, those who understand the powerful affordances of the Internet to learn and create will flourish, and those who understand how to leverage those affordances for the greater good will lead. That requires a whole set of new literacies, ones that deal with not just reading and writing but collecting, creating, connecting, sharing, and sense making. In this institute, we’ll explore these shifts, and we’ll begin to develop a context and a practical framework for helping our students become literate, self-directed masters of learning and making in this new, interconnected world.
SATURDAY - SESSION 2 & 3 This is Personal: Modern Learning in Self-Determined Classrooms In our fervor to create “personalized learning” experiences for students, we miss the most important affordance of this new, content and teacher rich networked world. The real transformation that the Web creates is the license it gives us to learn whatever we want or need, when we need to, with whomever we deem helpful in learning it. While “personalization” helps teachers deliver curricular outcomes to students in potentially more engaging ways, the “personal” learning opportunities we now have allow students (and we ourselves) to create their own curriculum, their own classrooms, find their own teachers, and contribute new, unique knowledge to the world on their own. In other words, students who have mastered personal learning using the web and the many tools now connected to it are empowered to learn without us. Despite the huge challenges that come with that line of thought, that now must be our primary goal as educators in a world abundant with knowledge and content. If we neglect to develop in our children the dispositions and attitudes to take full advantage of this modern learning world, and if we deny them opportunities in school to let them learn personally around those subjects they have a passion for, we will not be sending them out in the world “learning ready.” This session will be built around a conversation focused on what changes as we move to a world filled with opportunities for “personal learning.” We’ll develop a lens for questions around literacy, the role of teachers and schools, access, shifting cultures and more. SUNDAY - SESSION 1 - CONTINUES IN SESSION 2 Change Schools Today, anyone with the need or the desire can learn with people half a world away. Any of us can create things with the phone in our pockets that were unimaginable just a few years ago, publishing to audiences that number in the billions. In other words, real life and real school are moving further and further apart each day. Learners of all ages are now more fully in control of the what, the when, the where, and the how of learning than ever before. This new reality means the traditional narrative about learning and schooling is breaking down. In no uncertain terms, learning in the traditional sense is leaving the building. Technologies and “innovations” and adjectives about learning come and go as quickly as the seasons. All around the world well-intentioned, time-stressed educational leaders are trying their best to keep up and “change” schools in some way. But most of these efforts fall short. The change modern schools need is more than “flipped” or “blended” or “competency-based” learning. It's more than iPads or Chromebooks. And it's more than “Genius Hour” or “Makerspaces” or “Hours of Code.” Long-term, relevant, sustainable change requires you to thoroughly reimagine what schools are and what they must become, not just tinker on the edges. And it requires you to reimagine your role as a leader and raise the bar on your current definition of “change” in schools. Change School is not a class. It's not a curriculum or a step-by-step recipe. Instead, it's an inquiry driven immersion into creating relevant, sustainable change and a deep culture of collaborative learning.
SCHEDULE FRIDAY DAVID SESSION 1
DIANE
MAYA
MELISSA
VIRGINIA
WILL
Exploring the learning differences of talented learners.
Understanding and teaching a child with learning disabilities
Self-esteem and resilience
Navigating the uncharted waters of immersion language education: a deep dive for leaders of international schools
Exploring new literacies for a new world of a networked, self-directed learners and makers
SATURDAY SESSION 1
Neuropsychological Testing: demystifying the data
Critical elements in an academically diverse classroom
ABC's and 123's of special education and inclusion
ADHD
Effective classroom instruction for upper elementary English learners
Exploring new literacies for a new world of a networked, self-directed learners and makers
SESSION 2
May I have your attention, please
Teaching highly-capable learners in secondary classrooms
Inclusion, special education programs, and next steps
Quirky Kids
Effective classroom instruction for secondary English learners
This is personal: modern learning in self-directed classroom
SESSION 3
The heart of the matter: The adolescent brain
Teaching highly-capable learners in elementary classrooms
Inclusion, special education programs, and next steps
Anxiety in Children
From "fixers" to "coaches" EAL specialists as teacher leaders
This is personal: modern learning in self-directed classroom
SESSION 1
At what cost? Defending adolescent development in fiercely competitive schools
Motivating the talented but reluctant learner
ABC's and 123's of special education and inclusion
Anxiety in Children
Effective classroom instruction for younger English learners
Change Schools - for school leaders - Part 1
SESSION 2
May i have your attention, please
Adding complexity and depth to teaching for creativity
Look who's talking language development
Quirky Kids
Proficiency-based teaching and learning in multi-level world language classrooms
Change Schools - for school leaders - Part 2
SUNDAY
REGISTRATION DETAILS & LOGISTICS FEES FULL MEMBERS FULL REGISTRATION
$575
AFFILIATE MEMBERS $595
INDIVIDUAL MEMBER $595
CANCELATIONS Any Cancellation received in writing before 9th January 2018 is eligible for a refund, less a $25 administration fee View the cancellation policy
VISA & HEALTH See the South Africa VISA Information and Exemptions website for information.
ACCOMMODATION Hotel Name: City Lodge Physical Address: Cnr Montecasino Boulevard & Witkoppen Roads Fourways, Johannesburg Phone No: +27 11 244 6000 Single Occupancy Rate (Bed & Breakfast per night):
ZAR 882.25
US$67
BOOKING To make a booking, fill in the Booking Form and send it the Reservations Team at clfourways.resv@clhg.com with your check in/out details.
TRANSFERS To arrange for airport transfers, send an email to Marco at Avala Transport (avalatransport@live.com) with your itinerary details. Marco can also be reached at +27 827715885