Monday, November 28, 2011

Topic of the Week: Professional Development Events in the School of Education


The School of Education hosts a variety of events and workshops almost every week to prepare students to enter the professional world, network, or engage in professional discussion on various topics in education.

Tell us about an event you have been to. How did it benefit you as a future educator? Why was it interesting? What did you learn? 

Some examples include:
  • Teacher Certification Workshops (Violence Prevention, Child Abuse)
  • Careers Outside the Classroom
  • E-Portfolio Workshop
  • Job Search Workshop
  • Stacey Bess Lecture
  • Kappa Delta Pi Assemblies
  • Career Fair
For a complete list of upcoming events, visit the School of Education website at http://www.stjohns.edu/academics/undergraduate/education/currentevents

8 comments:

  1. One of my favorite events hosted by the School of Education is Careers Outside the Classroom. I went both this semester and last, each time listening to the fascinating stories of successful individuals who majored in education, yet did not end up as classroom teachers. The format of the event is always relaxed yet professional, including a panel of speakers who first share their stories and later engage in a question and answer session with the audience.
    It is important for all students in the School of Education to remember that being an education major does not limit career choices to working in a school; rather, it can lead to careers in music, arts, and even sports. It was an invaluable experience being able to engage in discussion with such a variety of professionals, which this semester focused on those involved with museums and cultural institutions.

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  2. One of my favorite things about Saint John's is the fact that it allows us to develop better skills as a teacher by allowing us to participate in seminars that can really help us in the classrooms. Both the abuse and violence prevention seminars are great they have real teachers discussing different scenarios that a teacher may experience inside a classroom.

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  3. KDP Assemblies are excellent opportunities for students of all years. KDP Assemblies present hot topics in Education every month. We receive our formal education in the classroom, but KDP Assemblies allow for the informal education outside of the classroom.

    On December 5th, Dr. Pratt-Johnson will be discussing strategies for ESL instruction. I am doing my Masters in TESOL and there are a lot of great teaching opportunities in that field, so I highly recommend attending!

    My favorite professional development event in my three years has been the KDP Regional Conference. The conference offered seminars ranging from counseling, SmartBoard training, cyberbullying, and much more! It allowed for students to network with their professors as well as informed them about these topics.

    KDP-bias aside, I always enjoy the Carol Gresser Forum. While there, you are in a room with principals, administrators, and your fellow students - it is amazing how easily you can network. The forums provide so much information about what is going on in education, all given by respected figures in education. We even used what we learned at one of the forums to give a give a presentation at a conference!

    Professional development opportunities should ALWAYS be taken - you never know what you can learn to bring back to a class, or who you are sitting next to.

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  4. Throughout my three years so far at St. John's I would say my favorite event is the Carol Gresser Forum. It is really eye-opening to have such leaders and powerful educators speaking to you! We hear about problems in the department of education every day, and these people come to St. John's to speak to us and in return hear from us.
    Attending professional lectures like this can only benefit future educators. It is so significant to emerse yourself around current topics and learn about the field of education. Everyone says it, but your time as an undergrad student goes by so fast! You have to ask yourself what did you get out of the experience that will push you further with your career? For me the Carol Gressor Forums push me to be an educator and insure me that I am doing the right thing.

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  5. I was a really big fan of Careers Outside the Classroom. The event gave me a few ideas on jobs to look into that I am still able to get all the joys of teaching without being specifically at a school. As a Social Studies concentration it was very interesting to here from somebody who teaches classes at a Museum. You still get to teach but it can be to groups of children on school trips, high school students that are doing reports, and even adults who have a strong interest in a particular topic that is covered by the Museum. - Michael Fallon

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  6. This past fall semester, I particularly enjoyed the Career Center's presentation of E-Portfolios. Joni from the Career Center explained the importance of the interview process, emphasizing that an e-portfolio is a useful tool to include into your resume as well as include it in a follow up email, in order to help the interviewer to remember you better. An e-portfolio is also a great way to highlight and organize who you are and what you can offer in a professional and creative way.

    Dr. Holmes, an education professor explained how we will each have an account so that we will be ready for our interviews once we graduate. I appreciate this effort on behalf of St. John's and The School of Education to provide practical tools and resources to make us more marketable and prepared for the teaching world.

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  7. I found the Careers Outside the Classroom lecture this semester to be particularly interesting. I've never really thought about careers which deal with education but are not within a school. It was very interesting to hear about how facilities which deal with teachers and schools have employees who write curriculum and lessons. However, I do feel that the entire lecture applied more to history concentrations than anyone else. It would be very interesting to hear about similar job opportunities for other concentrations, such as English or foreign language. Could this be a possibility for a lecture next semester?

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  8. The School of Education has so much to offer its students. It is up to the students to attend these events and learn as much as they can. My favorite professional development events have to be KDP assemblies and Careers outside the classroom. Both give you the chance to learn first-hand from professionals in the educational field in various capacities. It helps you think about other possibilities in the education field. It gives you a chance to network with St. Johns professors and professionals in the outside world.

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