May 3, 2005
"To retain good, new teachers is very important to us," says Maria Iglesias, Principal of the Potter Road School in Framingham. "And I think social emotional learning provides them with strategies that they can develop with our children for conflict resolution and for communication. It is the glue that allows the classroom to become a community of learners. The connections that are made and the skills that the children develop are an integral part of everyday for them, and for all of their social relations."
Iglesias is one of the several dozen school administrators who will be attending Relationships & Reflection: Fostering the Success of New Teachers, a symposium for principals, district administrators, and anyone who cares about supporting new teachers which will be held Tuesday, May 3, 2005, from 8:00-10:30 a.m. at the Wellesley College Club, Wellesley, Massachusetts. Organized by Open Circle at the Wellesley Centers for Women, this symposium is supported by a generous grant from the DuBarry Foundation.
"This symposium provides an important opportunity for school administrators to explore the links between creating a positive classroom and school environment and teacher retention," notes James Vetter, Ed. M., Program Director for Open Circle. "Panelists and participants will discuss how helping new teachers can effect the meaning of their work and help develop strong relationships – among their students, between themselves and their students, and with their colleagues. And this may provide missing keys to what it takes to survive and thrive in schools."
Speakers will include:
- Susan Moore Johnson, author of Finders and Keepers: Helping New Teachers Survive and Thrive in Our Schools;
- Sam Intrator, author of Tuned In and Fired Up: How Teaching Can Inspire Genuine Learning in the Classroom;
- Chip Wood, co-founder of Responsive Classroom; principal, Sheffield Elementary School, Turners Falls, MA; and
- Sheldon H. Berman, Superintendent, Hudson Public Schools.
Open Circle works with school communities to help children become ethical people, contributing citizens and successful learners. By helping schools implement the unique Open Circle Curriculum, we foster the development of relationships that support safe, caring and respectful learning communities of children and adults. For more than 30 years, the Wellesley Centers for Women (WCW) has been a driving force, both behind the scenes and in the spotlight, promoting positive change for women, children, and families. The world's largest women's research center, WCW is the powerful alliance of the Center for Research on Women and the Stone Center at Wellesley College.
