News & Events

Scenarios at the Intersection of Diverse Teachers and Diverse Learners

At the 2013 Annual Conference for The Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE), a symposium entitled At the Intersection of Diverse Teachers and Diverse Learners will feature several scenarios that address issues related to diversity in education.

In the near future, those scenarios will be posted to pages of the Diversity in Teaching Site. The scenarios relate to aspects of diversity in teaching and include issues pertaining to the diversification of the teaching force, the impact of diverse teachers on school communities, the manner in which inclusive pedagogy is operationalized in classrooms and schools, the response of teachers to poverty, the preparation of teachers for diversity, and the experiences of diverse teachers and learners in urban schools

In the time leading up to the conference, sneak previews for each scenario will also be featured as separate blog postings that we invite your commentary upon.  We hope you will be able to interact with us about the scenarios on line before and after the conference, and of course in person at the conference.

 

Image Source and Photo Credit

Celebrating Asian Heritage Month at York University!

Check out some of the photos from our trip to York University to celebrate Asian Heritage Month last week.

More details to follow!

 

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News


OISE’s first MOOC—Massive Open Online CourseAboriginal Worldviews and Education

Jean-Paul Restoule debuts on Monday, February 25. This MOOC is one of 7 being offered by the University of Toronto this year through Coursera.

Over 20,000 people have enrolled in Jean Paul’s course to date, including me. Aboriginal Education is a priority for Aboriginal communities and Aboriginal, provincial/territorial and federal governments. It is, in my view, the most important priority for education in Canada today. As the largest and most influential faculty of education in the country OISE has a responsibility to lead in this area. Jean-Paul’s course is one excellent example of OISE’s leadership, and it has been promoted in Aboriginal communities and organisations, Ministry of Education, universities and schools across Canada.

Julia O’Sullivan, PhD
Professor and Dean
Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto

 

Exploring social justice through digital literacies

Janette Hughes of Ontario Institute of Technology gives a presentation on exploring social justice through digital literacies. This program works with Jr High students to develop both digital literacies and critical literacy through engaging in social justice issues particularly related to indigenous communities. This presentation represents an excellent program for informing learners about real social justice issues and equipping them to engage with those issues through digital and critical literacies.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/105963804430187339198/posts/W6JYsbgm9Dx

 

Anxious times for male teachers in primary

News | Published in TESS on 15 February, 2013 | By: Henry Hepburn

16 February, 2013

 Study reveals men’s role is plagued by insecurities and contradictory perceptions

Male primary teachers are always in demand – but could that be for the wrong reasons? A research project has cast doubt on common assumptions about this rare breed: that their mere presence can improve behaviour; that boys desperately need them; and that they are somehow lacking if they do not race up the career ladder.

The University of Strathclyde study also reveals some of the anxieties that bubble beneath the surface for men in primaries; some well recognised, others more surprising. They range from nervousness about public perceptions that male child abusers gravitate to schools, to discomfiture at being “mothered” by female colleagues.

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Masculinities in Primary Teaching in Scotland: Investigating Experiences of Male Primary Teachers is led by Geri Smyth, who has been intrigued by this topic since the mid-1990s when she became concerned about the number of male student primary teachers who did not complete their training.

She finds a paradox: on one hand, a “moral panic” engendered by a media fixation with stories of paedophiles working in schools, no matter how rare they might be; on the other, the view of the male teacher as a pedagogical superman – “as long as we had more men, all the problems of education would be solved”.

As Professor Smyth puts it: “Teaching in the primary classroom for males is fraught with contradictions.”

The research, by Professor Smyth and Dr Anna Piela, is drawn from a survey of 456 teachers – primary, secondary, male and female – and focus groups and interviews with 20 people ranging from students to heads.

The findings suggest that men, who make up 8 per cent of the primary teacher workforce, are often viewed in terms of their inherent “male” qualities rather than personal attributes, their ability to be a “role model” rather than their caring qualities and ability to build relationships.

Younger men were frustrated at the common assumption they were naturally better-equipped to take charge of a particularly badly behaved class, or that they could organise a school event unaided.

And they are expected to be on a trajectory towards senior management from the start – if they are still class teachers well into their career, the view is, as Professor Smyth puts it, that “there must be something wrong with you”.

An initial paper, to be followed by a full report this summer, suggests that gender stereotypes – “men as breadwinners, managers, disciplinarians and not carers” – are one reason why men seek to be promoted quickly. The stereotyping may even “attract men without appropriate skills or aptitude to teaching”, it says.

The research, which its authors acknowledge is based on “feminist research methodologies and constructivist epistemology”, reveals that traditional beliefs about the qualities of men and women are still commonly held.

Some 25 per cent of respondents said patience was usually considered to be a feminine quality, while 2 per cent said it was masculine (others deemed it gender-neutral).

In stark contrast, 33 per cent said firmness was masculine and 2 per cent feminine; 31 per cent thought sense of humour was masculine, compared with 2 per cent who said feminine.

Focus groups and interviews told a different story, with male teachers talking about their own qualities of patience and kindness. All male respondents were “troubled” by the idea that they would be promoted quickly because of their gender, and all rejected the notion that their gender made them more able to teach boys – a feeling borne out by wider research.

As the paper says: “No studies have indicated improved achievement of pupils (regardless of stage, age, ethnicity or social class) where their gender was matched with that of their teachers.”

In fact, the deliberate matching of pupils and teachers of the same gender only “obscures” social and racial or ethnic inequalities that affect boys and girls.

The research finds that male teachers object to what, on the surface, may seem like benign treatment by colleagues: “mothering”, or – in Professor Smyth’s words – the implication that men are “little boys who need to be looked after”.

What may seem like affectionate, gender-based jokes can, the report states, “create confusion in younger male teachers regarding their position in the workplace”.

In short, the report portrays a gender divide in primary teaching: explicitly and implicitly, men and women are often expected to perform different roles and bring different qualities to the job. This often jars with how male teachers view themselves as teachers – it “undermines their professionalism”, says Professor Smyth.

TESS asked a cross-section of men at various stages of their careers in education whether they agreed with the findings – its observations resonated and caused irritation in almost equal measure.

Leslie Manson, Orkney’s education director and former president of the Association of Directors of Education in Scotland, spent the early part of his career as a primary teacher and worked in a nursery in a poor part of Aberdeen.

It is true that male primary teachers often aim for senior roles at an early stage, says Mr Manson – he applied for a headship while a probationer – but it would not be hard to find counter-examples to the negative experiences reflected in the paper.

While “maybe there is a degree of stereotyping”, it should be recognised that male teachers can bring something different to primary schools, he adds.

Male role models are useful for children – boys and girls – who might not otherwise have one, Mr Manson believes. That need not mean anything as profound as a stand-in father figure, but simply the experience of being around a “capable male figure that they maybe don’t experience at home”.

Sometimes, he adds, it is a simple fact that men bring something different – for example, they are more likely to have the skills and experience to coach football.

When Greg Dempster, general secretary of primary school leaders’ union AHDS, discussed the paper with colleagues, they did not agree with some of its observations.

“They felt that they were not pushed or expected to move towards management, nor looked down upon if they didn’t pursue management roles,” he says.

They were clear, too, that some boys did respond differently – in a positive way – to them as male teachers.

The 323-pupil King’s Oak Primary, in Greenock, has three male teachers.

Teachers Murray Foulds and Craig Thomson say they have, at various times, encountered certain assumptions: that they must be aiming for management; that their pupils are scared to misbehave – rather than the teachers being credited for their skills and setting high expectations.

They feel that having a number of male staff in a school creates a healthier social climate, in the same way that women’s presence in a traditionally male-dominated workplace would.

Depute head Graeme Marshall believes it is more important to increase the number of excellent teachers than address the gender imbalance in primaries.

“Although I have occasionally noticed that pupils do respond differently to male and female members of staff – especially in the early stages of forming relationships – I believe the capacity of staff to use restorative and nurturing principles is more influential in achieving productive teacher-pupil relationships than their own gender,” he says.

All three teachers at the Inverclyde school stress that, in their experience, gender is rarely an issue which causes any stress.

James Wylie, headteacher at Kirn Primary in Argyll and Bute, would like to see more research into the implications for teaching of cognitive differences between male and female brains: it is important to consider that men may respond differently to a situation, that men may be wired in a way more attuned to boys’ needs.

“The reason that a male is good isn’t necessarily because they are providing a role model, but a different way of thinking,” says Mr Wylie, who became a headteacher at 27.

But there are important exceptions: cognitive research, for example, appeared to suggest that gay men’s brains may share traits with women’s. He sees some truth in familiar assertions about male and female traits, such as women’s predisposition to caring, but believes exceptions are not hard to find – some female colleagues of his have been particularly skilled at managing pupil behaviour.

Men, adds Mr Wylie, tend to leave a greater initial impression on primary pupils, largely because of their physical size and rarity, and children will often talk up their impact – but in the long term, he does not believe gender alone will bring about significant differences in attainment and achievement.

Paul Campbell, a North Lanarkshire probationer with a P3 class, took part in the Strathclyde research and has recent experience of some of the issues raised.

“When I was in nursery school on placement, parents certainly commented frequently that they were overjoyed with the influence I had on their children and how in some cases their attitude to coming (to nursery) had changed. But I found it sometimes frustrating when this was purely attributed to my gender, where it could have been to do with my skills as a teacher,” says Mr Campbell, whose honours-year dissertation was on gender discrimination.

On his first placement, he was asked to take a class of boys who needed help with their behaviour. He recalls: “I was only 16, not quite sure what they were expecting me to achieve, or whether or not it was just the fact I was male they perceived would have a positive influence.”

He feels that he frequently has to justify his decision to become a primary teacher in a way that women would not. The researchers call on male teachers to challenge gender-based assumptions, and Mr Campbell agrees that this is important.

He does not believe gender in itself makes any difference to teaching and learning – but he does think that male primary teachers can counteract deep-rooted stereotypes before they become embedded at an early age.

Gerard Curley was first interviewed by TESS in 2005 as an ambitious 23- year-old newly qualified teacher, who aimed to become a headteacher within 10 years. He is now depute head at St Andrew’s Primary in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire.

He objects to the suggestion that, as a male primary teacher, he is driven by the prospect of quick progression, a larger salary and that he may not have the skills or aptitude for teaching.

“I made the choice to enter into management because I feel strongly that I wanted to impact positively on all learners across a school, not just the 33 that I was privileged to call my class,” he says.

“Showing our young people that male teachers have the ability and capacity to be just as nurturing as our female colleges is vital. It reinforces the message that caring for each other is important and should not be gender- dependent,” he adds.

Mr Curley believes more male role models would benefit primary children, but does not think men are better than women in handling difficult behaviour. And he describes it as “wholly inaccurate” to suggest that men avoid teaching younger children because they fear media coverage of child abuse may cast doubt on their motives.

The researchers themselves are wary of fixating on men’s experiences in primaries. Professor Smyth wants to change perceptions in order to encourage more men into primary teaching – but says that this should coincide with attempts to redress the under-representation of women in other areas of education: senior positions in schools, local authorities and government.

The guiding principle should be “creating a teaching workforce representative of the population”.

In numbers

  • Teacher numbers by sector and gender, on 1 February 2013
  • Female primary teachers: 32,861 (92%)
  • Male primary teachers: 2,698 (8%)
  • Female primary headteachers: 1,741 (86%)
  • Male primary headteachers: 288 (14%)
  • Female secondary teachers: 23,758 (64%)
  • Male secondary teachers: 13,490 (36%)
  • Female secondary headteachers: 108 (30%)
  • Male secondary headteachers 252 (70%)

Source: General Teaching Council for Scotland

Echoes from 2005

The work of Professor Geri Smyth and Dr Anna Piela frequently echoes a major piece of research published in 2005, The Gender Balance of the Teaching Workforce in Scotland: What’s the Problem?

It said the proportion of men in Scotland’s teaching workforce had fallen from about a third in 1994 to about a quarter in 2004 (February 2013 GTCS figures put it at about 22 per cent), but that decline was largely attributed to changes in secondaries.

Teaching was increasingly seen as a woman’s job demanding “soft” qualities, found University of Edinburgh researchers. Men wanting to work with young children felt that a growing emphasis on child protection meant they might be viewed with suspicion.

Gender stereotyping appeared to be a factor in the growing feminisation of the teaching workforce. Teaching had yet to re-establish itself as a high- status profession and men still saw themselves as the family breadwinner, with the associated need for a high salary; men dominated promoted posts.

The study said: “Men entering primary education training had to be particularly determined, since questions might be asked about their sexuality, they might be discouraged by family and friends, and the almost exclusively female training programme and staffroom might be off- putting.”

What participants said

Some comments from the Masculinities in Primary Teaching in Scotland research

Roy, primary teacher

“When you think about the number of male doctors, the number of male teachers, the number of male clergy, they are in caring roles and have caring functions.”

Fingal, third-year BEd student

“I think it is almost expected that you will be formed into a leadership role at some point because that’s the only way for males to go. Sometimes if there was an older male class teacher who hadn’t gone into management, some females think: ‘What has he done wrong? What’s the problem? And I think they see that as…(Another participant): ‘A weakness’.”

Margaret, headteacher

“I think boys in schools sometimes respond better to a male because it’s maybe a ‘get on with it’ kind of thing and much less flowery language and explanations.”

Darren, primary teacher

“I don’t want my kids to think that because I am a man teacher, at PE we are going to do football. We did dance last term. Some of the boys found it really strange that we were dancing in class and I was dancing.”

Jason, second-year BEd student

“I would be much more comfortable teaching an older class than an infant class because parents…might (ask) ‘Well, why?’”

Sean, primary teacher in second year of career

“Women, it seems to be OK, when children are getting changed for gym in a primary classroom, in Primary 1, 2 or 3, the children will get changed in class in front of each other and the class teacher. When it’s a male teacher, it seems to be that’s less OK and the girls should not be getting changed in front of a man and that’s something that crops up quite a lot in primary schools.”

Peter, fourth-year BEd student

“A class teacher on my placement was talking about leadership and management and I said ‘I’m quite happy to stay in the classroom’, and her comment was: ‘No, after a couple of years you’ll get bored of the class and need more of a challenge.’”

Rory, primary teacher

“There’s a lot of sympathy for young men. There’s a lot of extra help…I think it’s harder for them because they are moving into feminine quarters. But I think that goes quickly if they don’t live up to the mark.”

Pseudonyms have been used.

http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6319996

 

SCHOOLS  

Find a degree program

SCHOOLS PhD’S

Are you or someone you know considering graduate school for your own professional development? This website — Graduate-School.PhDs.org/education-index — is a comprehensive and informative resource that systematically sorts out the available undergraduate and graduate programs offered today in the U.S. This information is very valuable to today’s students and professionals who are not only dealing with the competitive nature of higher education, but also the rising costs of it. Check it out for yourself and then pass the word…

 

 Educators’ Equity Night:  Educational Activism

 Another Story Bookshop
315 Roncesvalles Avenue
, Toronto, ON

Join us in store on Wednesday February 13th at 7pm for our next Educators’ Equity Night,

Join Another Story staff members and guest speakers Gini Dickie (Teacher-Librarian, Clinton St. Jr. PS, TDSB),  Michelle Flecker  (Teacher-Librarian, Regal Rd PS, TDSB) and Tanya Senk (Coordinator, Education, Aboriginal Education Centre, TDSB) for our latest Equity Nightevent.

 Do you have questions about educational activism and how to develop critical thinking and social action in your students?

 Join us for this opportunity to discuss the challenges and resources involved in teaching with a social justice focus.

In addition,  Another Story Staff will:

  • present a book talk on picture books, novels and non-fiction resources that can be used in elementary and secondary classrooms
  • provide a comprehensive booklist of relevant resources for your library

To register for this FREE event call 416-462-1104 or email Claire at claire@anotherstory.ca

Immigration and language

Stolz, Amerikaner zu sein

 THE debate around immigration in America often touches on language. The fear of nativist Americans is that immigrants do not learn (and maybe do not want to learn) English. If many of them speak the same language (say, Spanish) and cluster geographically (in, say, Los Angeles or San Antonio) they threaten to make America de facto bilingual. If this happens, so goes the concern, they will inevitably make demands for more legal recognition of other languages, threatening English’s status as a unifying force behind America’s motto, e pluribus unum, “out of many, one”.

Americans know that this is an immigrant country. So why, in this narrative, did previous waves of immigration not threaten English, while today’s does? In the traditional story, immigrants back in the good old days wanted to, and did in fact, learn English. But this is not really so.

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Immigrant languages probably persisted longer in America a century ago than they do today. And one language in particular persisted in large, coherent pockets in America for more than half a century: German. German immigration to America peaked from around 1840 to 1880. Like most immigrants, Germans came to towns where their co-nationals had settled, so they built up big communities in cities like Milwaukee, Cincinnati and St. Louis.

So what did this immigrant community look like? Hard-working English learners who quickly dissolved in the great melting pot? Hardly. This fascinating short paper by Miranda Wilkerson and Joseph Salmons looks at just one town in southeastern Wisconsin, called Hustisford. They focus on the year 1910; German-speaking plunged fairly quickly in America after the first world war (1914-1918), for the obvious reasons. But before the war, German monolingual communities persisted for many decades after immigrants’ arrivals.

Almost a quarter of Hustisford’s population (over ten years old) was monolingual in German in 1910. Of that share, a third were born in America. Of the German monolinguals born abroad, a majority had been in America for more than 30 years, having immigrated during the height of the German wave. In other words, in small-town America a century ago, it was perfectly possible to grow up, or to live there for decades after immigrating, without learning English.

Was this because Germans were isolated, in pockets in town or perhaps on the outskirts? No; Ms Wilkerson and Mr Salmons’ map shows them interspersed among Anglo-Americans. Were they simply undissolved lumps in an Anglo-American pot, though? No again: the scholars find many mixed households, and English and Irish names among the parishioners at German churches. Perhaps the Germans still felt somehow really German, not American? Here, the story is nuanced; German-Americans were certainly proud of their German heritage, but a 1917 cover of Die Deutsche Hausfrau, a ladies’ magazine, featured prominent flags and the lyrics to the “Star-Spangled Banner”—in German translation. This was just before America’s entry into the war.

German was the single biggest and most concentrated foreign language on American soil after independence—until today. Almost five decades of immigration from Spanish-speaking countries has recreated something like the German situation. Some people, like the late Samuel Huntington, a political scientist, feel that America’s “Anglo-American core” is threatened like never before. But for many reasons (hard to rank in importance), it is nearly impossible today to grow up in America without learning English. One study of more than 5,000 children in the Miami and San Diego areas (thick with Spanish-speakers) found that 94.7% of Latino middle-schoolers who had been born in America spoke English well. The authors concluded that “knowledge of English is near universal, and preference for that language is dominant among most immigrant nationalities. On the other hand, only a minority remain fluent in the parental languages.”

As with most stories of “the good old days”, the stories of the “good old immigrants” who learned English in contrast to today’s layabouts are just that: stories. Their point is emotional, not educational. The purpose is to elicit fear of change, through reminiscence for an age that never existed.

(Wilkerson-Salmons paper via Mr. Verb. The headline is “Proud to be an American” in German. I’d quite like to see Lee Greenwood sing it in German.)

 

Equity, diversity, and education

Cultural competence allows us to navigate the road to academic achievement

By: Asabi A. Dean | 2013.02.04 | 11:35 AM

In the counseling profession, we know that the relationship between the counselor and the client is the key to success. Counselors are very intentional about creating an environment where this relationship can begin and grow. We call this “building rapport.”

A key component in building rapport is understanding and respecting the client’s life experience prior to beginning counseling. To prepare our students to work with diverse clients, including differences in culture, socio-economic status, education, sexual orientation, and more, counselor training programs include a heavy emphasis on becoming culturally competent, which equips counselors with the awareness, knowledge, and skills to work with clients on their own terms.

As counseling research continues to evolve and expand on the issue of multiculturalism, we have learned that there is not one profession whose clients and customers wouldn’t benefit from their service providers having received multicultural training.

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When it comes to having a diverse population to serve, I believe educators are at the top of the list of those most likely to fall into this category.

Most of us would agree that diversity in school populations benefits all, especially our children as it prepares them for entering and competing in a future global workforce. Despite this obvious advantage, many educators charged with teaching diverse populations are well-intentioned people without the tools needed to educate a diverse pool, having received little or no multicultural training.

This is an issue facing school districts nationwide as they grapple with the best ways to meet all students’ educational needs. Here in Iowa City, we have an advantage over many other districts as we address the issue of diversity in education.

Right here at home, our local educators have access to the University of Iowa’s Multicultural Education & Culturally Competent Practice (ME-CCP) certificate, which offers training and support for graduate students, educators, and community members who seek a deeper understanding of issues and concerns in a diverse community. This program, which has garnered interest from individuals from a vast array of disciplines, represents a partnership between the College of Education and the Graduate College. (Information available from the Office of Graduate Inclusion.)

This setting offers our teachers and school leaders the opportunity to come to a deeper understanding of the many outside factors that influence classroom achievement, not the least of which may be that students are performing to the level they believe their teachers expect. This is not a question that we can ignore given the widespread concern and the rapidly growing diversity in our Iowa City schools.

Myrlie Evers-Williams, the civil rights activist who delivered the invocation at President Obama’s inauguration last month, prayed that our President will, among other duties, act courageously and cautiously in the favor of all the diverse people in the land of America. I call on my fellow scholars, parents, and community members to join me in having the courage to speak on this issue that is causing division in our community, but to do so with caution so as not to stifle the discussion with pointed fingers or accusations.

Let us work together to build rapport within our community—to listen to each other with respect and commit to gaining a deeper understanding of our neighbors whose backgrounds are different from our own. In this way we can begin to create an educational environment that will truly support and benefit the beautifully diverse group of students we are proud to call our own.

Asabi A. Dean, originally from Chicago, is a graduate student in the UI College of Education seeking a doctorate in Counselor Education and Supervision. She is also an advanced doctoral graduate assistant and assistant coordinator for the Multicultural Education and Culturally Competent Practice (ME-CCP) certificate program.

Link to article

Minority languages worth saving as ‘bilingual brains are healthier

in terms of cognitive processing paths’

Feb 1, 2013 21:00 Moscow Time

There are a few languages that are spoken most often today but they are just the tip of the linguistic iceberg, merely the more popular tongues from across the Globe. Ninety six percent of the world’s languages are spoken by just 4 percent of its population. Seldom heard though and hidden in jungles, on mountain sides, and in remote villages, is a treasure trove of languages that are slowly dying out and may, one day, vanish completely. Should we make the effort to save those endangered languages or are they so obscure that we would be better off without them? Experts in linguistics from all corners of the world explained to the Voice of Russia the consequences of allowing them to be lost forever.

According to sorosoro.org, 500 languages are actively spoken by fewer than 100 people. At the heart of the problem of disappearing languages is a lack of practice and the motivation to use them, but there is also another player involved in the process of language erosion. Years ago, and even today, people on every continent began switching to their local majority language, but why did they abandon their native tongue for another with words and phrases alien to their ears?

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At least one linguist has the answer; “People believed that in order to get ahead in life, you had to speak the majority language,” explained Simon Ager, Founder of omniglot.com, to the Voice of Russia. He continued with an example from the United Kingdom and the ancient Celtic language of Wales, “…in this case, it was English, and people in Wales believed it was wrong, they came to believe that children who could only speak Welsh would have difficulty finding jobs. If they wanted to go work in England or other places, they’d have to learn English. So parents at home started speaking English as well”.

External pressure to switch from a minority language to the majority lingua franca is not the only problem; there’s also the money factor. Governments and other organisations often have a hard time handing out funds to support dying languages. Donors may not see any immediate results or rapid progress from giving cash over to help resurrect a language. Nevertheless those that do choose to contribute, could perhaps change many lives for the better.

“There’s a human rights issue here, there’s a biological issue, where it affects your health. Studies show quite clearly now that bilingual brains are healthier on various objective criteria in terms of cognitive processing paths as well as the average age for the onset of dementia,” said Dr. Gregory Anderson, director of the Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages. The Duke Talent Identification Program, a gifted education program from Duke University, even states that children who learn a second language can demonstrate raised levels of critical thinking skills, a flexible mind when young and enhanced creativity. They have also been seen to perform better in standardised tests than children who have not learned a second language.

A bigger issue is at stake here, there’s more than just losing words and phrases at stake, but the very identity of entire cultures could be in jeopardy. “I feel that languages are like pieces of art and that just as people like looking at beautiful things, people also like hearing different languages,” said Dr. Joshua Nash, Research Associate from the University of Adelaide, he continued, “If you lose your land you can get it back, but if you lose your language you can’t”.

Nearly extinct languages do offer a unique lens through which to view the world. Take for instance the Yukaghir language of Eastern Siberia, spoken by 150 people at most. The way they refer to a unit of time from a traditional standpoint would be to call an hour “the kettle boiled”. A little bit of a longer, around 90 minutes, becomes “the frozen kettle boiled”, according to the Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages.

Time is not the only factor which plays in a different way on the minds of native speakers of many dying languages. Their words are pronounced differently and take on an exotic tone with intonations and sounds that we might not normally recognise. To illustrate, in Tuvan, a Turkic language spoken in south-central Siberia as well as the Republic of Tuva, there are two words for rain: “chass” and “chashkinn” (English spelling approximated) the latter representing the diminutive form. Whatever the weather it’s always good to know the everyday basics, “ekii” means hello bajyrlyg is how you should say goodbye, if you find yourself in those parts.

Yukaghir and Tuvan are just 2 examples of the hundreds of languages that are trying to keep their heads above water and their gramma in motion. There are many languages that may disappear in a decades’ time, but they can be preserved and perhaps even revived, though that may not be quite such a straightforward task. Constant attention needs to be paid to any language which is at risk of being lost, and an ever growing measure of support will be needed for it to maintain any momentum in a world where more than 90 percent of all internet pages are written in just a dozen or so of the world’s many diverse languages.

“There are several ways you can do that but it’s not an easy thing to do. It’s very highly recommendable to parents, who speak minor languages to try to continue using their ethnic tongues with their children. It’s easy for us, who speak major languages, to recommend this, but it’s difficult for people belonging to minorities to implement this kind of practice because it’s difficult, it’s a challenge. You have to apply a lot of conscious effort with your own children but it does happen in some parts of the world,” explained Andrej Kibrik, Professor of Linguistics at Moscow State University.

Another effective way to save a language is to have both government bodies and private institutions chip in with hard cash to keep a language alive. Besides that, with the wide variety of technologies on hand today, establishing an electronic record is much easier now than it would have been before the internet age. Electronic books, virtual recordings and websites are all facilities available to groups with an interest in preserving a language. They can gather online to use and record a tongue that might have been lost, keeping it alive and well.

The key to postponing the death of a language is solid support from the community, along with motivation and practice. Letting a language die out is tantamount to allowing a whole culture to disappear. Each dying language though is an important piece of a much bigger puzzle, understanding the world we live in and perhaps even the essential human soul which our native language helps to shape in each and every one of us.

Link to article

Resources on Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

There has been a growing recognition of the rich diversity of families over the past two decades, bringing forward the need for a different approach to research, policy and practice in early learning.

The needs of children being raised in immigrant families are often the same and sometimes different than the needs of other children. Certainly the settlement issues vary by place of birth, socio-economic status, support in the new home country and language capacity. At the same time the needs of racialized children are different from children who are immigrants to Canada.

For more information: http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/atkinson/Resources/Topics/Diversity_Equity_Inclusion/index.html

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION AND EDUCATION: MOVING ON

ORGANISER: The University of Helsinki , Department of Teacher Education, Faculty of Behavioural Sciences

DATES: August 6 to 22, 2013

PRICES: 490 EUR  http://helsinkisummerschool.fi/home/prices

CREDITS: 6 ECTS

COORDINATOR: Prof. Fred Dervin, fred.dervin(at)helsinki.fi, Prof. Karen Risager (University of Roskilde, Denmark)

http://helsinkisummerschool.fi/home/courses/intercultural_communication_and_education_moving_on_

Are you confused about the many words that are used in research and practice to talk about encounters between people from different countries: intercultural, multicultural but also cross-cultural and even global? Are these concepts and notions different or similar? How can we research the phenomena they attempt to describe? Do you find it difficult to relate current criticisms of these terms, research methods and how research results are presented?

read more

In this course we will talk about intercultural communication and education from a new perspective. The course is a follow-up to a very successful summer school in Denmark in 2011, co-organised with the international research group CULTNET. We propose to take Intercultural and Identity: Research Methodseven further, moving on to the entire research process from concepts to methods and analysis.

Learn not to be confused about the ‘intercultural’!
The Helsinki Summer School course offers up-to-date lectures, discussion of research papers as well as research talks on the latest developments and advances in the fields of intercultural communication and education. Practical sessions will help the participants to improve their own work. The course is aimed at Master’s and PhD students who specialise in any aspect related to intercultural communication and education.

The following topics will be covered during the course: the ‘old’ and contested concept of culture; from identity to identification; renewing concepts; the ‘inter’ of intercultural; language and the ‘intercultural’; complexifying the analysis of intercultural phenomena; and ethical responsibilities of researchers and practitioners.

Why attend this course?
• To get up-to-date and critical knowledge about how to do research on intercultural communication and education
• To test new ways of working on intercultural communication and education
• To learn how to challenge ‘old’ and unsatisfactory ways of conceptualising and working on the ‘intercultural’
• To meet and discuss your own work with renowned researchers
• To reflect on one’s responsibility as researcher and practitioner.

The course organisers are noted scholars in the field. Fred Dervin is Professor of Multicultural Education, University of Helsinki, and holds several positions in universities across the world. His research interests include intercultural competences in academic mobility and education, and multicultural education. He has published more than 20 books on these issues. Karen Risager is Emerita Professor of Cultural Encounters at Roskilde University. She has published widely on language, culture and identity as theorised in a transnational and global perspective. Dervin and Risager co-organised the first summer school on research methods for the ‘intercultural’ at Roskilde University in 2011.

Please direct any questions about the content of this course to the course coordinator. Any questions on the general arrangements (accommodation, scholarship, etc.) should be addressed to the Summer School office at summer-school(at) helsinki.fi

please note that we are also organizing an international conference on Intercultural vs. Multicultural Education: the End of Rivalries? (29-30.8.2013)

http://blogs.helsinki.fi/intercultural-multicultural/

Invitation to follow Insted’s Blog

We invite you to follow Insted’s blog, if you don’t already do so. It’s at http://instedconsultancy.wordpress.com/. Click ‘Follow’ at the bottom right hand corner of the first page and add your email address. A message will then come to your inbox from time to time about a new publication or upcoming event, or about a topical article or discussion elsewhere on the internet.

You can see by scrolling down the blog the kind of brief item that has been posted over the last two months or so.

There are also some new materials on the main Insted site (www.insted.co.uk), including an article about the pupil premium grant, some initial information about the government’s review of the public sector equality duty (PSED) and some papers about Islamophobia.

Book Launch Invitation

Social Justice Re-Examined: dilemmas and solutions for the classroom teacher

edited by Rowena Arshad, Terry Wrigley and Lynne Pratt

…this brave attempt to bring together social theory and what happens in the classroom marks a step forward in Scottish educational thinking. – Alex Wood, educational consultant, Herald Scotland, November 2012

Friday February 1st 1- 3.30p
University of Edinburgh
Light lunch refreshments will be provided.

read more
There will be an opportunity to attend sessions with the authors (a combination of practising teachers and academics) who will provide a workshop/conversation on their topic. You can join up to two of these workshops/conversations:

Social Justice in practice in early career teaching Helen Knowles
Using ‘critical literacy’ to do gender Lynne Pratt & Yvonne Foley
Developing inclusive practices for pupils with English as an Additional Language Andy Hancock
Class and Poverty: a teacher’s response Terry Wrigley
Gypsy, Roma and Travellers: teachers making a difference Tess Watson & Gillean McCluskey
Addressing homophobia as part of learning and teaching Shereen Benjamin

To assist with catering, we would be pleased if you could register your wish to attend and to indicate which two workshop/conversations you would like to join.

Attendees can purchase copies of the book at a ‘once only’ reduced price

Normal price £22.99

Launch price £10 (if bought on the day)

Please email the CERES administrator Jo Law if you wish to attend: jo.law@ed.ac.uk
http://www.ceres.education.ed.ac.uk/

“Teachers at their best”

Public lecture by Gina Valle at York University
The lecture will be based on Gina Valle’s recently published book “Teachers at their best”. This book gives us an in depth look at what is happening in diverse classrooms in Canada, and how teachers are making a difference in their students’ lives. More than thirty powerful vignettes take us into the hearts and minds of exemplary educators, as they share their values, convictions, wisdom and knowledge in the classroom and beyond. You will not soon forget the stories found in Teachers at Their Best. Truly refreshing in scope, and inspirational to anyone who is an educator, student or parent committed to diversity in Canada.

Gina Valle has a PhD in Teacher Education and Multicultural Studies. Teachers at Their Best is her second book.
Date: February 1st, 2013
Time: 2-4pm
Place: 234 York Lanes, Faculty of Education, York University

Please register at: www.publiclecture.org

Refreshment will be served

Organizers: Intercultural Dialogue Institute (IDI) Toronto and Faculty of Education, York University

 

 

Inclusive Schools Week

December 3 – 7, 2012

2012 ISW THEME
SOCIAL INCLUSION: MORE THAN A SEAT IN THE CLASS!

Posted on November 6, 2012 by

The Theme for the 2012 Inclusive Schools Week provides a more specific focus this year. Last year’s theme “From Awareness to Action” applied to all aspects of inclusive education from changing attitudes to changing staffing and scheduling practices. For our new theme, ISN has chosen to address a significant and continuing challenge in creating and sustaining inclusive schools: building authentic friendships for students with disabilities and their non-disabled peers.

read more
Ask almost any parent of a child with disabilities and you will discover a concern for the number and characteristic of their son’s or daughter’s friends, school mates, and team mates. Observe in almost any classroom and discover that students with disabilities typically have fewer friends and interact with them in fewer settings – primarily the boundries of the school. Ask almost any teacher and discover that while social inclusion is of concern, we possess few practical skills and strategies to bridge this relationship gap.

It is well known that unless adults, teachers and parents do something purposeful, meaningful friendships for students with disabilities are more limited in number and depth. Children with disabilities are targets of bullying more often than their typical peers and this problem appears to grow worse as physical and verbal aggression in schools is being quantified and studied. Parents, students, and educators need support and skills to reverse this long-recognized exclusion from friendships and the social life of the school.

Throughout 2013, the Inclusive Schools Network will work to increase attention to this important civil and ethical right to be included fully and meaningfully in the classroom, in the school, and in shared events and sports. With our current attention on academic inclusion through access to the general education curriculum, quality instruction, core curriculum standards we must make certain that we view ‘inclusion’ in it’s broader sense as well. The wish and the right to belong is one that moves all of us on a personal level. The responsibility to expand our notion of inclusion beyond just ‘a seat in the classroom’ is our timely theme for Inclusive Schools Week, December 3-7, 2012. Until we establish social inclusion as a characteristic of every school’s culture and practice our work is not done!

 

First Nations school in B.C. passes traditional ways on to next generation

Friday November 23, 2012

Ryder Kyle looks hesitantly up at his teacher and then back down at the dead salmon in front of him. He tentatively slices a sharp knife through the salmon, but his teacher huffs with annoyance.

Read more..
“No, no, you have to put your back into it and pull the meat back all the way,” says Kenny Billy, the Grade 6 teacher at Chief Atahm School.

Nestled on Little Shuswap Lake amid the rolling hills of the Okanagan, Chief Atahm isn’t your typical elementary school.

Class was dismissed that day. It was the last day of the spring salmon run and the men from the community had brought the catch in.

So instead of teaching science in the classroom, Billy was teaching it in situ, native style.

Hands covered in blood and surrounded by the pungent smell of fish, the students have typically teenage reactions. Some of the boisterous boys try to gross out the girls by dangling salmon eggs, while other students listen seriously to Billy and the other community leaders explain the life cycle of the salmon, its importance to First Nations and the importance of respecting the traditional ways….

The article shares more of First Nation s’ preserving and passing on their knowledge and experiences in the rest of the story here: http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/1292215–first-nations-school-in-b-c-passes-traditional-ways-on-to-next-generation

 

 

 

After School Newcomer Hub

If you are a student in grades 7-10, free tutored after school homework help is available in math, science, English, French, and other subjects as needed. The Hubs also feature skills building workshops, laptops for assignments and research, electronic gaming, and more.

Sanderson Ongoing event running from: Mon Sep 17, 2012 – Wed Mar 27, 2013

Centennial Ongoing event running from: Mon Jan 07, 2013 – Wed Mar 27, 2013

 

Tougher Language Exam Proposed for Citizenship

October 14, 2011

In a Toronto Star article, we learn about the Department of Citizenship and Immigration’s plan to “[crack] down on the language competency of newcomers” with regards to the proficiency test used when applying for citizenship.

The federal government is cracking down on the language competency of newcomers who apply for Canadian citizenship.

In a government notice released Friday, Ottawa says multiple choice tests are no longer enough to demonstrate immigrants can speak one of the two official languages.

It wants would-be citizens tested on their oral and listening skills.

read more

“The written test is an inadequate proxy for assessing language as it does not adequately assess listening and speaking skills . . . for effective communication with fellow Canadians and for effective integration,” wrote Nicole Girard, a Citizenship and Immigration Canada acting director general.

Currently, language competency is largely assessed through a multiple choice written test, which also evaluates an applicant’s knowledge of Canada, and the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship.

If an applicant fails the test, the individual must satisfy a citizenship judge through an oral interview. The changes would affect applicants between the ages of 18 and 44, representing about 134,000 individuals a year.

Last year, the Conservative government tightened up the citizenship exam — 20 multiple questions answered in 30 minutes — by raising the passing mark to 75 per cent from 60.

The failure rate immediately skyrocketed from between 4 and 8 per cent to 30 per cent.

The proposed changes would require applicants to prove they meet the Canadian Language Benchmark level 4 descriptors such as “the ability to take part in routine conversations about everyday topics, use basic grammatical structures and tenses, have sufficient vocabulary. . . follow simple instructions.”

Immigration policy analyst Richard Kurland said the proposed language test can provide a standard measure of one’s language ability, but could inconvenience those born and raised in English and French.

Since all skilled immigrants must pass mandatory language tests to qualify for permanent residency, Kurland said this group could use their old test result and be exempted from the new requirement for citizenship.

Immigrant advocate Avvy Go said she appreciates that language proficiency can be a huge advantage for newcomers to flourish in Canada.

“But the language requirement is going to be a barrier for some to fully participate in the society,” said Go. “Those who come here under family reunification or as refugees and are illiterate in their own language are going to be denied the opportunity to become full-fledged members of the society.”

Immigrant lawyer Joel Sandaluk agrees.

“What the government is trying to do here is to increase the value of citizenship by increasing the difficulty in obtaining it,” he said. “It is excluding people from the right to vote and (carry) passports based on the ability to communicate in English and French.”

Citizenship applications cost $200 for adults and $100 for minors. One must have lived here for at least three years in the past four years to qualify. Current processing time is 19 months from the moment an application is received.

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/1070388–tougher-language-exam-proposed-for-citizenship

 

Association of Teacher Educators

ATE Joins five other groups in releasing report on Teacher Diversity, A Call To Action.

The Association of Teacher Educators joined five other leading education groups, including the National Education Association, American Council on Education, American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, Community Teachers Institute, and Recruiting New Teachers to publish Assessment of Diversity in America’s Teaching Force: A Call to Action. The brochure was printed in quantity by NEA and has received widespread distribution in media outlets across the country.

To download a copy of the brochure in pdf format, click here. (Note: The brochure is about 512k in size, so it will take some time to download.) To download a press release with additional information, click here.

 

Immigrants’ Language Gains Tied to Better Health

October 19, 2011

A CBC article reports on studies that suggest a correlation between English language proficiency and immigrant health.

Immigrants to Canada who continued to struggle to speak English or French after four years tended to report poorer health, but gaining language proficiency seemed to help, a new report suggests.

Statistics Canada released its report on official language proficiency and self-reported health among immigrants on Wednesday. The report was based on a survey of about 21,000 immigrants who settled in the country in 2000 and 2001 who were tracked until 48 months after arrival.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2011/10/19/immigrant-health-language.html

 

Upcoming Conferences 2013/2014

April 2013
13th                 Missouri NAME Conference 2013
19th – 20th    Texas NAME Conference 2013
19th – 20th    Diversity and Graduate Education 2013

May 2013
1st – 2 nd       Prepárate: Educating Latinos for the Future of America
2nd – 3rd        A Dream Deferred:The Future of African America Education
9th – 11th      Korean AME Conference 2013
15th – 17th    Immigration and Settlement
22nd               2013 Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners
30th – 31st    NASAI Conference 2013

August 2013
6th – 22nd     Intercultural Communication 2013
29th – 30th   Intercultural or Multicultural Ed

September 2013
9th – 13th    Metropolis International 2013

October 2013
16th             NECME Conf 2013

November 2013
6th – 10th   Name’s 23rd Annual Intn’l Conf

Archives

February 2013
15th – 19th    ATE 2013 Meeting
2oth – 22nd   Gobalization, Diversity and Education 2013
2oth – 22nd   TESOL 2013 Conference

March 2013
14th – 16th   Metropolis National 2013

2012 Conferences   2012 Conferences

October 2012
18th – 20th     Modeling Equity, Engaging Difference

November 2012
12 – 13   Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners
28 – Dec 1   NAME Conference 2012

 

NAME’s 23rd Annual Intn’l Conf

Announcing NAME’s 23rd Annual International Conference

Conference Theme: Erasing the Shadows, Embracing the Light:
Re/visioning Multicultural Education

Nov. 6-10, 2013
Oakland City Center Marriott,
Oakland CA

Call for proposals Deadline: May 8.

In the light – no closets, no basements, no margins, no shadows – a vocal and activist-oriented majority, is demanding attention and justice.  Our communities challenge those in power, calling on all to reconsider who belongs, whose voices count, how to engage in teaching and learning, and how to embrace a multicultural democratic society: Who are we? How did we get here? Where are we going? What constitutes “the public?”  Today individuals and communities critique those systems of power that dismiss their rights and offer a vision and a powerful hope for the future. A better world, better schools, and better classrooms are possible.

Multicultural social justice-oriented educators and community activists foster diversity in education — incurriculum, pedagogy, assessment, and stewardship of schools and communities. We especially encourage the submission of proposals that explore creative and culturally responsive practices for multicultural education. Teachers and students are reframing the purposes of education to better serve the needs of students, families, caregivers, community activists, and advocates.

CLICK for complete  CALL FOR PROPOSALS information

 

Intercultural Communication 2013

Intercultural Communication and Education:
Moving On

ORGANISER: The University of Helsinki , Department of Teacher Education, Faculty of Behavioural Sciences

DATES: August 6 to 22, 2013

PRICES: 490 EUR  http://helsinkisummerschool.fi/home/prices
CREDITS: 6 ECTS
COORDINATOR: Prof. Fred Dervin, fred.dervin(at)helsinki.fi, Prof. Karen Risager (University of Roskilde, Denmark)

http://helsinkisummerschool.fi/home/courses/intercultural_communication_and_education_moving_on_

Are you confused about the many words that are used in research and practice to talk about encounters between people from different countries: intercultural, multicultural but also cross-cultural and even global? Are these concepts and notions different or similar? How can we research the phenomena they attempt to describe? Do you find it difficult to relate current criticisms of these terms, research methods and how research results are presented?

read more

In this course we will talk about intercultural communication and education from a new perspective. The course is a follow-up to a very successful summer school in Denmark in 2011, co-organised with the international research group CULTNET. We propose to take Intercultural and Identity: Research Methodseven further, moving on to the entire research process from concepts to methods and analysis.

Learn not to be confused about the ‘intercultural’!
The Helsinki Summer School course offers up-to-date lectures, discussion of research papers as well as research talks on the latest developments and advances in the fields of intercultural communication and education. Practical sessions will help the participants to improve their own work. The course is aimed at Master’s and PhD students who specialise in any aspect related to intercultural communication and education.

The following topics will be covered during the course: the ‘old’ and contested concept of culture; from identity to identification; renewing concepts; the ‘inter’ of intercultural; language and the ‘intercultural’; complexifying the analysis of intercultural phenomena; and ethical responsibilities of researchers and practitioners.

Why attend this course?
• To get up-to-date and critical knowledge about how to do research on intercultural communication and education
• To test new ways of working on intercultural communication and education
• To learn how to challenge ‘old’ and unsatisfactory ways of conceptualising and working on the ‘intercultural’
• To meet and discuss your own work with renowned researchers
• To reflect on one’s responsibility as researcher and practitioner.

The course organisers are noted scholars in the field. Fred Dervin is Professor of Multicultural Education, University of Helsinki, and holds several positions in universities across the world. His research interests include intercultural competences in academic mobility and education, and multicultural education. He has published more than 20 books on these issues. Karen Risager is Emerita Professor of Cultural Encounters at Roskilde University. She has published widely on language, culture and identity as theorised in a transnational and global perspective. Dervin and Risager co-organised the first summer school on research methods for the ‘intercultural’ at Roskilde University in 2011.

Please direct any questions about the content of this course to the course coordinator. Any questions on the general arrangements (accommodation, scholarship, etc.) should be addressed to the Summer School office at summer-school(at) helsinki.fi

 Please note that we are also organizing an international conference on Intercultural vs. Multicultural Education: the End of Rivalries? (29-30.8.2013)

http://blogs.helsinki.fi/intercultural-multicultural/

2013 Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners

Second and Final Call for Papers

Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners

22nd May 2013
Hedmark University College, Norway
Proposal deadline: March 1, 2013

To this international conference Hedmark University College and the Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners network* invite scholars to share research and critically debate how teacher education should take into account increasing cultural, linguistic and religious diversity among teachers and students. Following an opening plenary speech on Post-Intercultural Education, the conference is organized around three parallel symposia focusing on racism, bilingual teachers and pedagogical differentiation, respectively. In addition, abstracts of papers on these or related topics, to be read in parallel paper sessions, are also welcome. People who want to participate without presenting a paper are invited to register for the conference as well.

Keynote Speaker
Professor Fred Dervin, University of Helsinki: Towards Post-intercultural Education? Putting an end to certain ‘hoaxes’

read more

Fred Dervin is Professor of Multicultural Education at the University of Helsinki (Finland). He specializes in language and intercultural education, the sociology of multiculturalism and linguistics for intercultural communication and education. Dervin has published extensively on identity, the ‘intercultural’ and mobility/migration. He has published over 20 books: Politics of Interculturality (co-edited with Anne Lavanchy and Anahy Gajardo, Newcastle: CSP, 2011), Impostures Interculturelles (Paris: L’Harmattan, 2012), Linguistics for Intercultural Education (co-edited with Tony Liddicoat, New York: Benjamins, 2013) and Identity and Interculturality: Research Methods (with Karen Risager, Routledge, 2013). He is the series editor of Education beyond borders (Peter Lang) and Post-intercultural communication and education (CSP). His website is: http://blogs.helsinki.fi/dervin/

Conference symposia

Symposium 1: Racism(s) and “race” in education
This symposium attempts to put racism(s) and “race” back into the dialogue on educational inclusion and social justice. It addresses the silencing of “race” in the dominant work on inclusive and anti-discriminatory education, where the focus has largely been on culture and ethnicity rather than e.g. legacies of scientific racism and colonialism.
Introductions:
Professor Geri Smyth, University of Strathclyde, UK
Associate Professor Camilla Eline Andersen, Hedmark University College, Norway

Symposium 2: Teachers from linguistic minority backgrounds
The focus of the symposium is on some of the challenges teachers from linguistic minority backgrounds face in the mainstream. The theme will be approached from a policy analysis and an in-service perspective.
Introductions:
Associate Professor Clea A. Schmidt, Ph.D., University of Manitoba, Canada
PhD candidate Joke Dewilde, Hedmark University College, Norway

Symposium 3: Differentiated instruction within mainstream
Today, there is an increasing tendency to prioritize inclusion into the mainstream at the expense of bilingual instruction. Through the presentation and conceptual analysis of empirical examples from classrooms, this symposium will discuss how this challenge can be met by schools and researchers.
Introductions:
Maria Johanson, Globala Gymnasiet, Stockholm, Sweden
Professor Sidsel Karlsen, Hedmark University College, Norway
Professor Sidsel Lied and Professor Thor Ola Engen, Hedmark University College, Norway

Abstract Submission
Abstracts of no more than 300 words for papers to be presented in parallel sessions should be sent by e-mail to marte.monsen@hihm.no by 1st March 2013. Please state the title of the proposed paper, the name(s) of the author(s), affiliation and full contact details. You will be informed by 15th March 2013 whether your paper has been selected for the conference.

Practical information
Deadline for registering to the conference is 22nd April 2013. For information regarding conference program, accommodation etc., please visit the conference website: http://www.hihm.no/Prosjektsider/Utdanning-og-diversitet/DTDL-Conference
General enquiries should be addressed to marte.monsen@hihm.no.

 

Globalization, Diversity and Education

9th Annual International Globalization, Diversity and Education Conference

Visualizing global problems and possibilities:
Imagining pedagogies of transformation

February 20-22, 2013
Heathman LodgeVancouver, Washington 

Call for proposals
Proposal deadline: December 3, 2012

We are pleased to announce the call for proposals for the 9th Annual International Globalization, Diversity and Education Conference to be held at the Heathman Lodge, Vancouver Washington. This is an interdisciplinary conference focusing on the issues of education, diversity and social justice in a global society.

read more
We have had participations from fields as diverse as Nursing, Political Science, Communication, Women’s Studies, University Extension and many others. We conceive of education and pedagogy broadly to include media, community action, political activism, aesthetics and myriad forms of alternative educations. The conference provides a forum for presenting ideas and engaging in conversation on the interrelationships among cultural pedagogies, ecopedagogies, contemporary identity shaping, global consciousness, indigeneity, cosmopolitanism, media literacy, social theory, social justice and activism. We welcome participation of researchers, educators, students, teachers, activists and community members. Proposals may address the theme of the conference from a range of intellectual, practical and activist perspectives. Individual papers, panels and alternative sessions that may include film/documentary screenings, workshops, exhibitions, poster sessions, and other creative endeavors are invited.
We strongly encourage submissions in alternative and aesthetic formats. The goal of the conference organizers is to have sessions that encourage conversation among the participants and the audience.

Find more information here: http://education.wsu.edu/globalization

 

ATE’s 2013 Annual Meeting

ATE’s 2013 Annual Meeting in Atlanta

Living and Learning across a Lifetime

Hyatt Regency Atlanta

February 15-19, 2013
Hyatt Regency Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia

The 2013 Annual Meeting of the Association of Teacher Educators will be held in Atlanta, Georgia, at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta. The theme selected by President Ann Shelly is Living and Learning across a Lifetime.

read more

For planning purposes, registration fee for the 2013 Annual Meeting will be $255 for members (early bird) and $330 for non-members (early bird).

Register early and save! Early bird rates end January 15, 2013.

Click here to go to the online secure registration site. Click here to download a pdf of the registration form which you can fax or mail with payment information.


Sunday Clinics

A number of clinics will be available on Saturday, February 16, at no additional charge to Annual Meeting registrants. More information will be available soon.

Workshops

Pre-Conference Workshops will be offered in Atlanta on Friday, February 15, and Saturday, February 16. Click here for complete descriptions.Workshops are numbered according to the registration form .

For more information: http://www.ate1.org/pubs/2013_Annual_Meetin_1.cfm

 

 

TESOL Conf

TESOL Conference

Feb 20-22, 2013
Westin Nova Scotian, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Languages Canada’s 6th annual conference will be held at the Westin Nova Scotian Hotel in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Kicking off the conference will be a welcome reception on Wednesday, February 20th, followed by plenary and break-out sessions all day February 21 and 22 and finishing with the Annual General Meeting (members only) on Saturday, February 23, 2013.

read more

Languages Canada will recognize the association’s accomplishments during these early years and will continue to enhance and develop long term plans to promote and advocate Canada’s language education sector nationally and internationally. There will be both plenary sessions and professional development workshops involving international presenters in 3 streams: Marketing, Student Experience, and Leadership . Please check the conference website page for more details as they are confirmed.

Languages Canada is Canada’s premier language organization representing its two official languages: English and French. Membership is limited to schools which meet the rigorous standards of the association and who are committed to upholding them. Languages Canada is recognized by the Canadian government and internationally.

 

15th National Metropolis Conf

15th National Metropolis Conference

Building an Integrated Society

March 14-16, 2013
Ottawa Convention Center

CERIS – The Ontario Metropolis Centre is pleased to announce that the Annual Metropolis Conference will once again take place in 2013. Building upon the success of past conferences, including the last one hosted by CERIS this year, the 15th National Metropolis Conference will take place in Ottawa from March 14-16, 2013.

read more

The theme of this conference is Building an Integrated Society and remains the principal national forum for interdisciplinary dialogue on immigration among researchers, government, and non-government sector partners.  Proposals for workshops, roundtables, and posters are now being accepted until December 20, 2012. See proposal instructions here.

CERIS is proud to continue to support the 2013 National Metropolis Conference. More information can be found on the 15th National Metropolis Conference website.

 

Missouri NAME Conf

NAME Region 7 Conference

Closing the Learning Gap:
Language, Culture & Multicultural Teaching

April 13, 2013

University of Kansas City-Missouri

Conference Theme: Closing the Learning Gap: Language, Culture & Multicultural Teaching

Keynote Speaker: Sonia Nieto
Professor Emerita of Language, Literacy, and Culture, University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Rethinking the Gap: An Agenda to Equalize Education

Visit MO-NAME’s website to register: http://www.moname.org/name-region-7.html

 

Texas NAME Conf

NAME Region 6 Conference

A Global Odyssey: Exploring Multicultural
Education
in our Changing World
April 19 – 20, 2013
Texas State University, San Marcos, TX
L.B.J. Student Center

Complete information at: www.txname.org 

 

Diversity and Graduate Education 2013

Tenth Annual Yale Bouchet Conference on Diversity and Graduate Education

Then and Now: Historicizing the Contemporary State of
Diversity in Higher Education

April 19-20, 2013

Yale Graduate School of Arts & Sciences

The “Annual Yale Bouchet Conference on Diversity and Graduate Education” finds its origins in our treasured collaboration with Howard University. It has become a dynamic and increasingly recognized academic conference, drawing New Haven community residents, scholars, administrators, and graduate and undergraduate students from across the nation.

Yale, the first institution in the country to award graduate degrees, is Dr. Edward A. Bouchet’s alma mater. Dr. Bouchet is the first self identified African American ever to receive the PhD in any discipline and the 6th person in the Western Hemisphere to be awarded the PhD in physics.

read more

Whether you are engaged in research, teaching, or any of the many facets of administration, this conference is for you! We invite you to participate in vigorous discussions on diversity in graduate education and ongoing research across disciplines in universities located in all parts of the Nation. You won’t want to miss this extraordinary opportunity to network with graduate and undergraduate students, faculty, and administrators from across the country on April 19-20, 2013 at the Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences campus.

Save the date and bring along a colleague. This distinguished event is sure to be informative, enlightening, thought-provoking, and fun.

For further information, please e-mail Michelle Nearon or view the topics in the Resources box at right above.

Sponsored by the Yale Graduate School’s Office for Diversity & Equal Opportunity
http://www.yale.edu/graduateschool/diversity/bouchet_conf.html
More information can be found on the 15th Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences website.

 

Prepárate:Educating Latinos for the Future of America

PrepárateTM :
Educating Latinos for the Future of America

May 1-2, 2013
Palmer House Hilton, Chicago, Illinois

Be a Part of the Solution!

The future is today! The need to help prepare all students for access and success in education is now! Prepárate: Educating Latinos for the Future of America brings together professionals from middle schools, secondary schools, higher education, and community-based organizations to discuss solutions, share best-practices, and address crucial topics in education.

Who should attend?

read more

  • School counselors
  • Teachers
  • College admission and outreach officers
  • Financial aid administrators
  • Community organization leaders
  • Researchers
  • Legislators and policymakers
  • Industry leaders supporting education
  • Parents and parent engagement coordinators
  • K-12 and higher education administrators

Registration

Registration for the 2013 conference is open.

Call for Proposal – Deadline Passed

Sponsoring Prepárate

If your organization would like to sponsor or exhibit at Prepárate 2013, please review our prospectus or email preparate@collegeboard.org for additional information.

Also Join Us for…

A Dream Deferred™: The Future of African American Education is being held in conjunction with and following the 2013 Prepárate conference. Some events during the three days will be held jointly to encourage networking and collegial support and sharing of best practices serving underrepresented and minority students in educational success. Others events will pertain and be open to attendees registered for a single conference (Prepárate) or dual registration for both conferences. Please visit the 2013 A Dream Deferred website for more information.

 

A Dream Deferred: The Future of African American Education

A Dream Deferred™: The Future of African American Education

May 2-3, 2013
Palmer House Hilton, Chicago, Illinois

Be a part of the solution!

The future is today! The need to help prepare all students for access and success in education is now! A Dream Deferred: The Future of African American Education brings together professionals from middle schools, secondary schools, higher education, and community-based organizations to discuss solutions, share best-practices, and address crucial topics in education.

Who should attend?

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  • School counselors
  • Teachers
  • College admission and outreach officers
  • Financial aid administrators
  • Community organization leaders
  • Researchers
  • Legislators and policymakers
  • Industry leaders supporting education
  • Parent engagement coordinators
  • K-12 and higher education administrators

Registration

Registration for the 2013 conference is open.

Call for Proposals – Deadline Passed

Sponsoring A Dream Deferred

If your organization would like to sponsor or exhibit at A Dream Deferred 2013, please review our prospectus or email dreamdeferred@collegeboard.org for additional information.

 

Korean AME Conf 2013

Korean Association for Multicultural Education 2013 International Conference

Reconstructing Education, Culture and Identity in a Global Age

hosted by the Korean Association for Multicultural Education (KAME)

 May 9th-11th, 2013
Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea

Theme: Reconstructing Education, Culture and Identity in a Global Age

The conference will provide a platform for researchers, policy makers and practitioners in the field of multicultural education from home and abroad to share ideas and research findings, and build up a worldwide network of scholarly discussions and friendship.

The 2013 international conference of the Korean Association for Multicultural Education (KAME) will be held on May 9th-11th, 2013 at Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea. Under the theme of Reconstructing Education, Culture, and Identity in a Global Age, the conference will provide a platform for educational researchers, policy makers, and practitioners from around the world to share ideas and research findings, and to build up a worldwide network of scholarly discussions and friendship.

KAME has established international collaborative partnerships with the National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME) in the United States and the International Association for Intercultural Education (IAIE) in Europe, as encapsulated in Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) signed with these organizations. The headquarters of KAME are currently located in Seoul, Korea.The 2013 KAME international conference will be the first conference to be held by KAME after it has completed signing MOUs with both NAME and IAIE.

Keynote speakers of the 2013 KAME international conference include:

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James A. Banks (University of Washington, USA)

Gerald W. Fry (University of Minnesota, USA)

Paul C. Gorski (George Mason University, USA)

Jagdish Gundara (University of London, UK; President of IAIE)

Kevin Kumashiro (University of Illinois at Chicago, USA; President of NAME)

Fabio L. Rocca (Universite 3 de Montpellier, France)

For further information, please visit the official website of KAME (http://kame.or.kr) or send an email to the managing assistant (kame2008@naver.com).

The conference will provide a platform for researchers, policy makers and practitioners in the field of multicultural education from home and abroad to share ideas and research findings, and build up a worldwide network of scholarly discussions and friendship.

KAME invites submissions of manuscripts (or extended abstracts which are detailed enough for the organizers to judge the merits of the paper). Any presentation pertaining to the conference theme or related topics dealing with research agendas and policy issues in the field of multicultural education are welcome. Please submit the manuscript or extended abstract electronically with a short curricular vitae to kame2008@naver.com (orsakim22@hanyang.ac.kr or yunkyung@hanyang.ac.kr ) by November 20, 2012. KAME will inform the authors of whether the submitted paper is accepted by December 20, 2012.

Please send any inquiry to the following addresses:

Professor Yun-Kyung Cha, President

Korean Association for Multicultural Education (yunkyung@hanyang.ac.kr). or

Professor Sunah Kim, sakim22@hanyang.ac.kr.

 

Immigration and Settlement

Immigration and Settlement: Precarious Issues?

May 15-17 2013 at
Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada

Call for papers, presentations and posters extended until December 14, 2012

The 2013 RCIS conference “Immigration and Settlement: Precarious Futures?” is dedicated to advancing innovative and interdisciplinary research from diverse critical and institutional perspectives in the areas of international migration, immigration, settlement, and diaspora and refugee studies. It aims to integrate theory with practice on aspects of international migration based on values of inclusion and respect for cultural diversity.

The conference will connect international and national research networks with Ontario and especially Toronto, one of the world’s most diverse communities. Furthermore, it will bring together immigration and settlement scholars, graduate students, national, provincial and municipal policy makers, non-government agencies and community representatives.

 Keynote Speaker

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Bridget Anderson, Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS), Oxford University

 Conference Themes

Within the overarching topic of “Immigration and Settlement: Precarious Futures?”, the conference will address and theorize several subthemes, including (but not limited to):

  • Arts and Culture
  • Citizenship
  • Critical Migration and Border Studies
  • Families, Children and Youth
  • Health
  • Moral Panic, Securitization and Crimilization
  • State, Governance, Politics and Policy
  • Precarious and Temporary Migration
  • Racialization, Gender, Sexuality, Religion
  • Settlement Services
  • Transnationalisms
  • Urban Patterns and Housing
  • Work and Labour

 Registration

Fees (in Cdn $):

Early Bird(before or on Feb 28, 2013) Regular(before or on May 12, 2013) On-site
Student $50 $80 $150
NGO $80 $110 $200
All others $150 $250 $350

Deadlines:

Abstract submission: Dec. 14, 2012
Abstract acceptance: Feb. 15, 2013
Early-bird registration: Feb. 28, 2013
Refund policy: 50% until April 30, 2013. Thereafter, unfortunately, no refunds are possible.

Paper Abstract Submission:

A paper presentation is 20 minutes long or less and describes a research project and its findings, or a well-documented theoretical/practical perspective.To register a paper presentation, please send us an abstract with your name, institutional affiliation, presentation title, 150-word description, and up to five (5) keywords. Also, please identify the conference theme(s) (see above) and send this material: RCIS@ryerson.ca; Deadline extended until Dec. 14, 2012.

Special Panel Proposals:

Special panels are 90 minutes long and typically consist of 3-4 presentations (or 3 papers and a discussant). If you wish to propose and organize a panel, please collect all information (i.e. panel title, names of presenters, presentation titles, presentation abstracts of up to 150 words each, and keywords) and send it as a package to: RCIS@ryerson.ca; Deadline extended until Dec. 14, 2012.

Roundtable Proposals:

Roundtables are 90 minutes long and are less structured than paper panels. A roundtable can contain 3-6 discussants exchanging ideas and/or demonstrating methods of practical relevance. If you wish to propose and organize a roundtable, please collect all information (i.e. roundtable title, names of presenters, a 150 word abstract describing the theme of the roundtable, and keywords) and send it as a package to: RCIS@ryerson.ca; Deadline extended until Dec. 14, 2012.

Poster:

A poster is an exhibit of research or techniques, activities or methods presented on a display board that includes a title, the name of the presenter, and a brief display of graphics, text, photos, illustrations, summaries, charts, realia, etc.  Presenters must be available for discussion during the time designated for one-on-one discussion. No AV equipment or electrical access is available. Abstracts of 150 words or less should include the main premise of the poster, a summary of supporting evidence and the conclusion. Please also identify potential conference theme(s) and send the poster abstract as an email to: RCIS@ryerson.ca; Deadline extended until Dec. 14, 2012.

http://www.ryerson.ca/rcis2013conference/index.html 

 

NASAI Conf 2013

The Native American Student Advocacy Institute

May 30-31, 2013
The University of Montana and Salish Kootenai College, Montana

The integration of education, culture and community is the key to making a difference in the lives of our Native American students. The Native American Student Advocacy Institute (NASAI) brings together K–12 and higher education professionals as well as other academic and community leaders for the College Board’s annual conference addressing the educational experience of Native American students. Please lend your voice, experience and ideas to these important conversations by joining us in Montana.

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Who should attend?

  • School counselors
  • Teachers
  • College admission and outreach officers
  • Financial aid administrators
  • Community organization leaders
  • Industry leaders supporting education
  • Tribal education leaders
  • Researchers
  • Legislators and policymakers
  • Parent engagement coordinators
  • K-12 and higher education administrators

Registration

Registration for the 2013 conference will open in Fall 2012.

Call for Proposals – Deadline Extension

In order to create the best possible conference, we have extended the proposal deadline. All proposal submissions are due by December 14, 2012. Submit your session proposals today! We encourage you to share your knowledge by submitting a session proposal for NASAI 2013.

Sponsoring NASAI

If your organization would like to sponsor or exhibit at NASAI 2013, please review our prospectus or email nasai@collegeboard.org for additional information.

 

Intercultural or Multicultural Ed

Intercultural vs. Multicultural Education:

The End of Rivalries?

Department of Teacher Education,
University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland (Europe):
August 29-30, 2013

Please note that the Helsinki conference is preceded by a Summer School course (6-22.8.2013) entitled

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION AND EDUCATION: MOVING ON

(click on links for the conferences in Canada and Malaysia)

Western University, London, Ontario (Canada): 8.-9.11.2013

Taylor’s University, Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia): 1-2.10.2013


 

Metropolis International Conference

Metropolis International Conference, Finland

Watch for this 2013 conference to be held in Tampere, Finland, September 9-13, 2013. Check here: http://www.international.metropolis.net/ for updates as they become available.

 

NECME Conf 2013

18th Annual New England Conference on

Multicultural Education (NECME)

October 16, 2013
8:30 am to 4:00 pm
Central Connecticut State University
New Britain, CT

This is a FREE & Very Popular Event!
Watch for details at www.necme.org

 

2012 Conferences
2012 Conferences

Modeling Equity

Modeling Equity, Engaging Difference:

New Frameworks for Diversity and Learning

An online conference evaluation form is available at www.aacu.org/meetings/diversityandlearning/DL2012/evaluation.cfm. Your feedback is important to us and we hope that you will take a few minutes to tell us about your conference experience and recommendations for future Network events.

October 18-20, 2012
Sheraton Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD

Whether one enjoys the fruits of our democracy or suffers its pains has everything to do with one’s social location.
Ramón Gutiérrez, Foreword to Second Edition, The Drama of Diversity and Democracy: Higher Education and American Commitments (AAC&U 2011)

What we can see depends heavily on what our culture has trained us to look for.
Nell Irvin Painter, The History of White People (W.W. Norton & Company, Inc. 2010)

Conference Overview

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For the past twenty years, AAC&U has gathered together national leaders of the diversity movement to articulate a shared vision of the complex connections between societal diversity, liberal education, and democratic aspirations.  It is now understood that without a fully inclusive vision of democratic justice and voice—and the creation of significant new knowledge that accompanies that recognition—there is no genuine academic excellence; without high expectations for excellence for all, there is no genuine inclusiveness. But unfortunately, “being aware that we are still divided along racial/ethnic, and cultural lines . . . is not the same thing as embracing the task of truly confronting our racial legacies and working to remedy continuing inequities and injustices” (Gutiérrez, Foreword, The Drama of Diversity and Democracy, xiv).

For more information visit: http://www.aacu.org/meetings/diversityandlearning/DL2012/index.cfm

 

Economic and Social Research

The final seminar in the ESRC Seminar Series: Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners will be held on Monday and Tuesday, 12 and 13 November 2012 at the University of Oxford, England. The  focus will be ‘Teacher Diversity:  What have we learned and what of the future?’

 

Economic and Social Research Council Seminar Series:

Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners
Research and Perspectives

November 12 & 13, 2012
Oxford, England

In each of the jurisdictions of the UK and in the other countries participating in this seminar series (including Canada, Iceland, Norway and Australia) there is increasing ethnic, cultural and linguistic diversity amongst the populations due to a range of political and economic factors.  This diversity is reflected in learner populations in schools.  Yet in the countries under consideration the teaching profession is predominantly white, female and (with the exceptions of Gaelic medium education in Scotland, Welsh medium education in Wales and French immersion in Canada) Anglophone.  Ethnic, cultural and linguistic diversity is not reflected in the teaching profession and where teachers diversifying from this ‘norm’ are employed they have often experienced discrimination in the workforce and there are high rates of attrition.

read more

As the diversity of the student population of schools increases it is essential that the linguistic and cultural needs of all pupils are met.  Many teachers from backgrounds other than the dominant one, bring the potential of linguistic and cultural capital to enhance the teaching profession and the learning of students.  This seminar series has involved employers in addition to academics, teachers and learners and aimed to encourage those with responsibility throughout the UK jurisdictions to view diverse teachers as a resource rather than a deficit and to be able to capitalize on the particular skill sets brought to the profession by diverse teachers.

The series has sought to explore the nature of the existing diversity in the teaching profession and to consider diversity in the life cycle of teachers as professionals from the decision to become a teacher through to leaving the profession, including the continuing professional development and career progression of such teachers.

This final seminar will bring together participants from Seminars 1,2 and 4 along with the evidence from Seminars 3 (teachers) and 5 (school students) and will investigate via a SWOT analysis how to move forward and disrupt the inertia which results in teacher homogeneity.   This seminar will identify the major research questions that now need investigation in order to ensure the programme leads to theoretical and research developments.

Geri Smyth was interviewed  by the  General Teachers Council of Scotland regarding the ESRC Diverse Teachers/Diverse Learners Seminar Series.   The interview is now available as a podcast on the Teaching Scotland website.  Here is the link:

www.teachingscotland.org.uk/podcasts/podcast-diverse-teachers-for-diverse-learners-1012.aspx

 

NAME Conf 2012

National Association for Multicultural Education
22nd Annual Conference

Nov 28-Dec 1, 2012
Philadelphia, PA

Conference Theme: Realizing the Power of Movements through Multicultural Education

2011 was a year when mass public mobilizations rattled the foundations of societies, from the revolutions in the Middle East, to the sit-ins in cities across the United States, to the teacher strikes around the world.  Some led to victories, others to short-term defeat, but all constituted larger movements toward greater equity and social justice. Movements have the power to change our lives, from how we govern and interact, to what we value and believe about who we are and the world that is yet to be.  Movements can push leaders to do the right thing, and/or can resist and intervene and transform.  Perhaps nowhere are movements more significant than in education, where the futures of our next generation and our societies take shape.  And perhaps like no other time is the very enterprise of public education under attack.

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The 22nd Annual International Conference of the National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME) will explore
the role of multicultural education in movements toward equity and social justice at the local, national, and global levels.

From pre-K to higher education, from classroom teaching to student support to school leadership to community advocacy to educational research, advocates and practitioners of multicultural education have long played and continue to play critical roles in movements to make our schools and societies better places for all.
NAME’s 2012 Conference provides a rare and unique opportunity to share resources, build networks, confront challenges, and renew our senses of possibility and hope.

Conference web site: http://nameorg.org/name-2012-conference/

Brochure and registration form: http://nameorg.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/24/2012/N%202012%20Philly%20Conf%20Reg%20Brochure.pdf

 

 

DTDL – Final Seminar

The final seminar in the ESRC Seminar Series: Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners will be held on Monday and Tuesday, 12 and 13 November 2012 at the University of Oxford, England. The  focus will be ‘Teacher Diversity:  What have we learned and what of the future?’

 

Economic and Social Research Council Seminar Series:

Diverse Teachers for Diverse Learners

Research and Perspectives

In each of the jurisdictions of the UK and in the other countries participating in this seminar series (including Canada, Iceland, Norway and Australia) there is increasing ethnic, cultural and linguistic diversity amongst the populations due to a range of political and economic factors.  This diversity is reflected in learner populations in schools.  Yet in the countries under consideration the teaching profession is predominantly white, female and (with the exceptions of Gaelic medium education in Scotland, Welsh medium education in Wales and French immersion in Canada) Anglophone.  Ethnic, cultural and linguistic diversity is not reflected in the teaching profession and where teachers diversifying from this ‘norm’ are employed they have often experienced discrimination in the workforce and there are high rates of attrition.

As the diversity of the student population of schools increases it is essential that the linguistic and cultural needs of all pupils are met.  Many teachers from backgrounds other than the dominant one, bring the potential of linguistic and cultural capital to enhance the teaching profession and the learning of students.  This seminar series has involved employers in addition to academics, teachers and learners and aimed to encourage those with responsibility throughout the UK jurisdictions to view diverse teachers as a resource rather than a deficit and to be able to capitalize on the particular skill sets brought to the profession by diverse teachers.

The series has sought to explore the nature of the existing diversity in the teaching profession and to consider diversity in the life cycle of teachers as professionals from the decision to become a teacher through to leaving the profession, including the continuing professional development and career progression of such teachers.

This final seminar will bring together participants from Seminars 1,2 and 4 along with the evidence from Seminars 3 (teachers) and 5 (school students) and will investigate via a SWOT analysis how to move forward and disrupt the inertia which results in teacher homogeneity.   This seminar will identify the major research questions that now need investigation in order to ensure the programme leads to theoretical and research developments.

Geri Smyth was interviewed  by the  General Teachers Council of Scotland regarding the ESRC Diverse Teachers/Diverse Learners Seminar Series.   The interview is now available as a podcast on the Teaching Scotland website.  Here is the link:

www.teachingscotland.org.uk/podcasts/podcast-diverse-teachers-for-diverse-learners-1012.aspx