Beyond Improvement: Leadership that Responds
to the Call for Transformation

Presented by: Bonnie Laugerman & Bob Davidovich

Description:

Educational leaders in Wisconsin are increasingly aware of the need to transform the current educational system. An ongoing financial crisis has cast a light on this need, yet looming even larger is the need to prepare students for a different, rapidly changing world. No matter what ideas rise to the surface to answer the need for transformation - be they Common Core, personalized learning plans, or changes in legislative regulations – leading into the future requires a very different set of leadership skills than those of the past. This interactive workshop offers leaders the opportunity to understand what is required to lead for transformation, to assess their leadership for innovation, and to develop strategies for shaping the culture of innovative school systems.

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Presented by: Eileen Depka

Description:

Is your target aligning curriculum, instruction and assessment to standards?  Send a team to learn from the experience of WASCD leaders!  Teachers get ideas and tools that can be easily implemented and shared in schools and classrooms.  Administrators gain insight into strategies that can be communicated to staff and implemented through the curriculum.  Spend two professional days together to learn how to get reliable feedback on student progress.

Response to intervention is a regular education initiative that provides a structured approach used to respond to student needs.  The model is reliant on the use of quality assessments and accurate data.  This workshop will help participants better understand the RtI framework especially as it relates to formative assessment practices and data. Participants will learn about tools and practices that have the potential of making a difference in the classroom.

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Reading Strategies for the Content Areas

Presented by: Denise Pheifer

Description:

Learn to incorporate strategic reading strategies into your content area instruction.  This program, which meets four times over the course of the school year, is appropriate for teachers of grades 4 and up.  The purpose of the four-days, over the course of the school year, is to support Wisconsin schools and districts more effectively in the improvement of teaching and learning by providing enhanced professional development that is research-based, engaging, enduring and most effective for change as we move forward in the 21st Century.

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Technology for Learning

Presented by: Kristine Diener

Description:

Many Wisconsin districts are implementing the research-based strategies from Classroom Instruction That Works: Research-Based  Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement (Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001).

Districts are also struggling to find ways to incorporate 21st Century skills
in the classroom and to support these instructional strategies through the use of appropriate technologies.

This workshop is appropriate for curriculum directors, staff developers, principals and teacher leaders of all grade levels seeking ways to use technology more effectively in the classroom. Those who have participated in the WASCD Reading Strategies for the Content Areas program can enhance their use of classroom strategies to further improve their instruction and meet the needs of 21st Century learners.

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Using Videos to Improve Teaching: Videagogy

Presented by: Peter Jonas

Description:

The background, character, and learning styles of our students are drastically changing. Consequently, the teaching techniques need to address these changes. (Of course, the only person who likes change is a baby with a wet diaper.) In addition, technology has taken on its own life in education as schools try to address the new knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary for the 21st century. This seminar will explore the research and practical components of using technology in the form of short videos as a component of the learning process. The new teaching technique is called
videagogy = video + pedagogy. Part of the strength of videagogy is its brainfriendly
connection to learning.

The subject matter in this seminar has wide-reaching appeal for both faculty and administrators. The use of short, humorous videos, has proven to be a positive teaching tool for both students and adults. Participants will not only learn about the research behind the use of videos but will be presented with numerous practical examples. Participants will be engaged in the seminar through interactive exercises and discussions, and will have the opportunity to revise their lesson plans as part of the seminar.

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Visual Math Conversations
to Deepen Conceptual Understanding  

Presented by: Dr. Rosalynn Kiefer

Description:

Spend two professional days with colleagues learning how to create robust math understanding in your classroom.  You will get ideas and tools that can strengthen your existing program while upgrading to the increased emphasis on written and mental problem-solving found in the new Common Core State Standards for Mathematics.  Teachers will learn and apply a visual problem-solving method designed to develop deep understanding of equality, place value, fractions and mathematical problem/solution using whole numbers, decimals and fractions.

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Vocabulary Strategies for the Content Areas

Presented by: Denise Pheifer

Description:

Research has shown that a vital path to increasing students’ achievement is developing their academic vocabulary (Marzano, 2004). In this program, participants will learn the characteristics of effective vocabulary instruction, as well as a plan for teaching vocabulary. This program “walks the talk” of effective professional development and is supported by current research. It is designed for intermediate (grades 4/5), middle school and high school teachers, ELL teachers other instructional leaders, and administrators. Districts and schools will maximize their local resources to improve learning by sending a team of teacher leaders or department chairs and an administrator. This team can then take back the knowledge gained to share with colleagues and ensure implementation across the curriculum and throughout a school or district.

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