We all have come to expect summer blockbusters: Jaws (1975), Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983), Jurassic Park (1993), or Finding Nemo (2003) may come to mind. At Park, one of the most popular things to do during the summer months is professional learning! This summer, over 60 faculty and staff from The Park School will participate in 28 (to date) professional development events. Blockbuster events for 34 of Park School’s faculty this summer include:
- Diversity Directions Independent School Seminar
- EXPLO Critical Making Camp for Educators
- Harvard Graduate School’s Project Zero Classroom 2018
- Practices & Principles of Transformational Learning Communities with School Reform Initiative
- Responsive Classroom Course for School Educators
In the United States, 2.6 billion long-distance trips are taken per year. That is 7.2 million long-distance trips per day! (A long-distance trip includes a journey of more than 50 miles from home, and the Bureau of Transportation Statistics cites that fewer than one out of five of these trips is for business.) Park is proud to contribute to these statistics, sending five people over 1,000 miles to learn (California, Georgia, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Utah) and five people between 75 – 450 miles (New York and Washington, D.C.).
Amazing learning experiences continue to be available close to home as well. Many more faculty will take advantage of local opportunities, including:
EdTech Teacher Summit
“My use of technology in the classroom has already had a profound impact on how I teach. I would like to further advance my academic technology skills for the benefit of all of my students.”
~ Nancy Barre, Upper Division Social Studies Teacher
Multicultural Teaching Institute
“I not only want to deepen my own teaching practice in this area but also, and perhaps more importantly, want to be better prepared to support Scott Young and the leadership team in DEI work.”
~ Chris Beeson,Upper Division English & Social Studies Teacher
Family Engagement in Education: Creating Effective Home and School Partnerships for Student Success
“I’ve developed new ideas for how to better and more fully engage families in order to improve the educational experience for kids. In particular, I’m interested in better supporting families of color. I’d love to learn more about what best practices other schools are using and how to develop a more thoughtful and wholistic approach to family engagement as opposed to random acts of engagement.
~ Katie Carr, Grade I Teacher
Engaging the Whole Child
“These strategies, activities, and the instructional language from this learning will inform my work with emerging readers. I’m planning to focus on methods to increase students’ feelings of competence and ownership of their learning process.”
~ Deb Dean, Academic Support
Deeper Learning for All: From the Classroom to the System
“I want to guide my students to tackle open-ended problems in critical and creative ways while helping them to improve the necessary skills to communicate, compete, and be active and engaged citizens in all communities in which they are a part.”
~ Merrill Hawkins, Upper Division English & Social Studies Teacher
Perform Better: Functional Training Summit 2018
“The most current research on exercise performance and functional training is presented. I’m excited to participate in hands-on training, learn new exercises for specific sports, and bring all of this learning back to Park’s PE classes and Athletics.”
~ Steve Savage, PE Teacher and Coach
Middlesex Retreat For Adults
“I’m excited to deepen my personal mindfulness practice and advance my teaching facilitation. I look forward to offering mindfulness learning to faculty, administration, staff, and students. I have already begun with Pre-K and K, and that has been fantastic! Maybe I could offer this to families!”
~ Tahira Wilson-Guillermo, Academic Support
Park’s commitment to professional development is part of what makes the School so appealing to the dedicated faculty. Teachers are eager to learn more and apply these new ideas to create cutting edge initiatives, all in the spirit of contributing to a blockbuster education.
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