Ten Trends: Educating Children for a Profoundly Different Future

While educators are dealing with a crush of important day-to-day issues, a startling number of trends and seismic shifts are changing the social and educational landscape. More are on the way. In this session, the presenter will lay out the evidence of these trends, speculate on their profound implications for both society at large and schools in particular, and suggest how education and community leaders can build understanding and support as they prepare students for life in a global knowledge and information age.

Gary Marx, Center for Public Outreach, Vienna, VA

Raising Kids in the 21st Century

As the baby boomers age and Generation Xers enter the world of parenting, what might we expect from the next generation of children? This session will provide an overview of some of Nickelodeon's best and current

Marcia E. Williams, Nickelodeon, New York

The Adolescent Brain: A Work in Progress

It doesn't take a scientist to discover that teaching (or living with) an adolescent can be a frustrating experience. However, neuroscientists are beginning to shed new light on why teens behave as they do. Research has revealed that, in addition to an influx of hormones, significant changes take place in the anatomy and neurochemistry of the adolescent brain. This session will provide an overview of these research findings and address implications for educators who work with young people going through this challenging growth phase.

Pat Wolfe, Mind Matters, Inc., Napa, CA

Words Come Alive: The Multiple Intelligences of Reading and Writing

This session will weave together multiple intelligences theory and recent brain research on reading and writing with historical, anthropological, biographical, and psychological perspectives on literacy. The presenter will show how educators can make words come alive for their students by linking literacy acquisition with imagery, logic, spoken language, physical activity, emotion, music, social involvement, and nature experiences.

Thomas Armstrong, Cloverdale, CA

The Commercial Assault on Children and the School Environment

This session will detail the nature and intensity of commercial activities directed at children in school. Practices such as exclusive soft drink agreements, corporate sponsorship of school events, and electronic marketing will be described. The impact of these practices on students, school academic standards, and professional ethics will be explored.

Alex Molnar, Arizona State University, Tempe

William Safire Introduces: Planning an Arts-Centered School

Developed in coordination with the recent Dana Press publication Planning an Arts-Centered School: A Handbook, this informal exchange will provide an overview of the issues addressed in this collection of essays by arts education experts. Discussion will center on essential elements to consider and choices to be made when planning an arts-centered school; topics include governance, funding, community involvement, curriculum, and assessment. This session will be opened by New York Times columnist William Safire, Dana Foundation chairman and author of the handbook's introduction.

Presenters: William Safire, The Dana Foundation; Janet Elber, Artistic Director, Martha Graham Resources; Carol Fineberg, Arts And Education Consultant, New York; Ronald Treanor, Woodrow Wilson Integrated Arts School, Weehauken, New Jersey; And Ellen Rudolph, Surdna Foundation, New York.

What Works in Schools: A Research-Based Approach to School Improvement

Research has begun to identify what schools and classroom teachers can do to enhance the achievement of all students regardless of their backgrounds. This session will present a model that details the actions that can be taken at the school level and by individual classroom teachers. The presenter will make the case that implementation of this model constitutes a new era of school reform that has the potential for significant improvement.

Bob Marzano, Marzano and Associates, Centennial, CO

Supporting and Retaining the Next Generation of Teachers

If public schools are to succeed in the decades ahead, they must attract, support, and retain high-quality teachers today. Yet attrition rates for new teachers continue to rise, and few schools are organized to ensure that new teachers will succeed. The next generation of teachers differs in important ways from the teachers it will replace, and schools must take note of these differences. Drawing upon work at the Project on the Next Generation of Teachers at Harvard University, the presenter will describe school-based induction programs that promote collaboration among novices and veterans, and explain how participants can sustain both groups while improving the school.

Susan Moore Johnson, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA

Sustaining Great Progressive Schools: Leadership, Courage, and Fulfilling Democratic Purpose

This presentation is an examination of powerful progressive schools that have challenged the mainstream practices of education, fought shifts in educational policies, and sustained positive efforts for students through successions of leaders for years. The presenter will draw examples from his recent investigations of and direct work with schools throughout the United States, Canada, Africa, and the Middle East and studies from the National Commission on Service Learning. Through traditions, language, symbols, and practice, these schools have become courageous places of leadership, service, and intergenerational hope for a better and more decent world.

Carl Glickman, Southwest Texas State University, San Marcos