[2008 Conference Report by Sylvia Helmer, co-chair]
On Friday, October 24, over 300 delegates, including representatives from 29 BC school districts, several independent schools and local universities, flocked to David Thompson Secondary School in Vancouver for the ESL PSA’s 18th Annual Conference.
All elements of a conference combine to make an event that people will talk about and that will or won’t encourage them to return in subsequent years. The hard work of those who, despite full time jobs, work countless hours to bring such an event to fruition is a labour of love that asks for little reward beyond the satisfaction of a job well done. However, we all do look for feedback - participation, comments, smiles and, of course, taking the time to complete the conference evaluations. Many thanks go to those that took the time to provide us with written feedback. We even had some individuals leave their contact information for further follow-up and potential help with future conferences. We look forward to having you ‘on our team’!
It is my great pleasure to report that the overall rating of the conference was very high – a rating of excellent to very good from 86% of delegates who responded. Further, a key attraction to a conference lies in the quality of its speakers – whether presenters or choice of keynote address. This year seems to have been ‘a winner’ on all counts. In terms of workshop presentations, ratings of excellent to very good were received from 84%. Specific names were mentioned – meaning we have a stellar starting point for tendering invitations to present next time!
In addition, the keynote, Dr. de Andrade, won rave reviews from many delegates. The only complaint in that regard was that she was not given enough time to speak!! More about her presentation can be found elsewhere in this newsletter. Her presentation was extremely well received and a repeated recommendation made was to consider asking the chosen keynote to do a follow-up session the same afternoon. That is definitely something for the planning committee to consider.
Planning for 2009 is already underway. We welcome your ideas and suggestions and look forward to seeing and hearing from you. If you would like to help or have some suggestions, please contact the Conference 2009 co-chair, Leah Moe by email: leah.moe@sd27.bc.ca
One sample response:
“Thank you for organizing this for ESL teachers. Every year I come, I am re-energized and thankful for the opportunity to come together with other ESL Specialists. You make a difference!”
This quote aptly captures the theme of Dr. Yaya de Andrade’s keynote address at the ESL PSA Conference this past October. A well-respected and knowledgeable expert on trauma issues, Dr. de Andrade presented elements of her research and vast experience to help us in our efforts to support refugee learners – a very special group of ESL students. While exhorting us to remember that these children must not be told to ‘forget it, you are safe now, time to move forward’, she concurrently noted that helping them deal with the trauma of their lives to date is no easy matter for us either.
Aside from considering the source of the trauma with which these children come to our classrooms and schools, she spoke at length of the realities with which they must try to come to terms. In this context she noted that there are elements of fear, grief, anger and despair that lurk beneath the surface of the most resilient of children. Innocuous and routine school events can become triggers that cause great distress. Teachers being aware and being caring and observant advocates for their learners can ameliorate such seemingly normal routines as school bells, fire bells, earthquake drills, and even the ‘noisy and scary’ aspects of Hallowe’en.
Dr. de Andrade suggested five intervention strategies for us to make part of how we work with refugee students. They seem self-explanatory and manageable – though nothing is ever as easy as it looks. They are most certainly embedded in the mandate we have to support all our learners. The five strategies are:
Near the conclusion of her presentation, Dr. de Andrade allowed the children to tell us their stories themselves. This took the form of a nine-minute video/dvd called “Of Lives Uprooted’ [from NFB]. In it children from the war zones of Central America talk about the pictures they drew - depictions of the events in their lives there. This way of bringing forward their fear and distress in drawing had been a critical part of their healing process. Speaking frankly of the terror and trauma of their lives, these children taught us all the truth of the title of this brief review: “children’s wording of their world is always relevant”.
Respectfully submitted by Sylvia Helmer and vetted by Dr. de Andrade.