April 24, 2018
The SRI Events calendar is beginning to fill with a variety of learning opportunities offered by the SRI National Staff, SRI Affiliates, and some of our partner organizations. Below are a few highlights. More events are being added regularly, so be sure to check the upcoming events page often. Many events have limited space, so register ASAP!
Looking for a specific learning opportunity and don’t see anything that fits? Email our Professional Development Specialist, Beth Graham (beth@schoolreforminitiative.org).
Dr. Jamila Lyiscott Webinar Opportunity
Dr. Jamila Lyiscott is our 2018 Fall Meeting keynote speaker. Dr. Lyiscott will be presenting a webinar exclusively for the SRI community on May 17, 2018 at 7pm Eastern. Space is limited. Read the description below then sign up to attend!
If You Think You’re Giving Students of Color a Voice, Get Over Yourself
When working with students of color, it is high time that we move away from salvation narratives that position historically marginalized communities as perpetually in need of saving. In place of this, it is time for us to acknowledge the powerful ways of knowing and being that students of color bring into our classrooms, even when those ways of knowing and being are not valued by traditional school models. Some of the most deeply problematic issues of inequity within the field of education are sustained by well-meaning teachers embracing progressive politics without intentional frameworks of self-reflection to guide their praxis in a healthy direction. In this webinar, participants will wrestle with the dominant narratives that frame our perspectives of marginalized youth, explore how these models are rooted in racist and colonial logic, and leave with tools for shifting from deficit-centered to asset-centered pedagogical approaches in their classrooms.
Pre-Service Education Retreat
SRI, in partnership with Eagle Rock School & Professional Development Center, are excited to host our third annual summer retreat for pre-service teacher educators. June 18 & 19, 2018 in Estes Pak, CO at the Eagle Rock School & Professional Development Center.
This retreat will provide an opportunity for SRI affiliates whose work includes supporting pre-service teacher candidates in both traditional and alternative certification programs. The retreat is opportunity to share how programs are utilizing SRI tools to support the learning of pre-service teacher candidates, as well as an opportunity to learn from and with others doing similar wok.
The retreat agenda will include an opportunity for networking and sharing of best practices; time for feedback on individual dilemmas or problems of practice; as well as an opportunity to partner with other pre-service educators to take up common issues and dilemmas using the Network Improvement Community model. Click here to learn more and register to attend.
Teacher Leadership: Facilitating Adult Learning Through SRI Collaborative Practices
This three-day seminar, June 18-20, 2018, will take place in Council Bluffs, IA and is designed to support participants to learn how to nurture on-going conversations designed to improve teaching and learning, with a fierce commitment to serving all students. Using research-based tools and strategies, participants will be introduced to the use of protocols as tools for building the skills and capacity necessary for collaborative, reflective dialogue among adults. Listening skills and effective question development are emphasized. As well as what it means to lead from informal authority. Multiple opportunities for practicing facilitation skills with specific, relevant, and timely feedback for improvement are included.
This seminar is ideal for teacher leaders (team leaders, department heads, instructional coaches, and others) who are often called up to facilitate meetings of their peers or deliver professional development to faculty. Special focus on meeting the needs of participants who wish to acquire new skills and strategies for leading improvement of teaching and learning within a grade-level or department team or within professional learning communities in their school. Click here to learn more and register to attend.
Many Opportunities for SRI Learning Around the Country!
The events calendar has multiple opportunities for people new to SRI work, as well as those who are looking to deepen their practice. Below are a sample of opportunities happening around the country this summer! Keep checking the website as new opportunities are continuing to be added. These events will fill quickly, be sure to register ASAP!
- Tucson, AZ – PLC Summer Institute hosted by CITY Center for Collaborative Learning
- Keene, NH – Facilitating Communities of Professional Practice
- Alpharetta, GA – Principles and Practices of SRI Critical Friendship
- Boston, MA – Designing for Adult Learning Practices that Transform
- Cambridge, MA – Practices and Principles of SRI’s Equity Focused Intentional Learning Communities (offered multiple times around MA this summer!)
- New York, NY – Facilitative Leadership Seminar
- Denver, CO – Impact Leadership
Do you have news to share? Interesting things happening in your area? Please let us know so we can share with our community! Email Chris Jones, chris@schoolreforminitiative.org.
Thank you,
Kari Thierer, Heidi Vosekas, Chris Jones, and Beth I Graham
On behalf of School Reform Initiative
