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Workshops may be scheduled before the conference
for the Open Workshop Space. Open Workshop
Space is time when the attendees of the
conference have the ability to lead workshops,
make presentations, and schedule events.
Some workshops will also be scheduled by AERO
during this time, such as workshops by keynote
speakers and featured guests. We will be
pre-scheduling a maximum of 6 workshops per
timeslot and reserving 2 main spaces per timeslot
for spontaneous workshops that can be scheduled
during the conference and announced before each
day's events. While we will be posting each day's new workshops, those who
pre-schedule their workshops will have them
printed, complete with description, in the
conference program which each attendee will
receive upon arrival.
If you would like to schedule
your workshop before the conference, please e-mail
aeroconference@gmail.com.
It is asked that you write a 2-3 (no more)
paragraph description of the workshop, complete
with title, and indicate
whether the workshop will be a presentation,
interactive workshop, or something else. You
are also welcome to include a short one paragraph
bio of yourself. For examples of workshops
that have been scheduled in the past, visit our
Previous Workshops
page. All of the available workshop slots
will be filled before the conference,
so it is highly suggested that you submit your
workshop as soon as possible. Last year 90
workshops were held at the conference with over 40
workshops scheduled before the conference.
This year we have exactly 48 slots that can be
pre-scheduled with an unlimited number that can be
scheduled during the conference.
Note: If your workshop or presentation requires a
projector or sound, please notify conference
director Isaac Graves when sending your
description. We will do our best to meet
all of your presentation need. It is also
suggested that you identify the type of space
that would be ideal for your workshop.
Also Note: No matter your presentation method,
please expect and allow space for questions and
answers. Please also attempt to create a space
where multiple voices and opinions are able to
be hear and not simply the loudest and most
dominating voice. If you would like help in
creating such a welcoming and affirming space
for all beliefs, opinions, and voices please
contact me at
aeroconference@gmail.com.
Below you will find this year's
pre-scheduled workshops organized by day and time.
Friday
11:00am - 12:00pm
Schools as Living Systems
Type: Presentation/Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Ashley Nielsen
Description:
Is your curriculum holistic, but the way in
which the school operates not? This interactive
workshop will present Ecopsychology and how it
can help structure and organize holistic
schools. Principles of Ecology and Living
Systems Thinking will be introduced and explored
as ways to understand your school as a living
and open system. Participants will experience
how a school as a living system works. They will
use this experience in a guided discussion to
examine the effects of their current school
structures, and explore and share ways in which
they can help these structures evolve.
Bio:
Ashley Nielsen is currently a consultant and an
adjunct faculty member at Santa Fe Community
College. She works with schools and non-profits,
helping them to dream forward their vision of
education and develop their capacity and
capability to be a whole and living system.
Through this work she is ensuring the ongoing
evolution of the organization through
manifesting their unique dreams into reality
without getting lost in theoretical abstraction.
In addition to receiving her doctorate in
psychology, Ashley also has had extensive
organizational systems training and work
experience through the Institute for
Developmental Processes. Such experience
includes the design of leadership development
processes, the facilitation of place-based
visioning processes, the coalescing and evolving
of group critical thinking processes, and the
development and use of systemic frameworks.
Ashley is also currently working on a textbook
for Ecopsychology, a class she developed and
teaches.
"How to Grow a School" AERO's Start a School 101 (Part 1/3)
Type: Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Jerry Mintz, Pat Montgomery, Chris
Mercogliano
Description:
This 3-part Start a School workshop series is
based off of AERO's highly successful online
start a school course. More
information coming soon!
Bio:
Coming Soon!
Deschooling Ourselves: Undoing the
Unconscious Habits of School (Part 1/2)
Type: Interactive Seminar
Presenter(s): Charles Eisenstein
Description:
Many revolutions have failed when they have torn
down one system only to replace it with another
embodying the same unconscious habits and
beliefs. Horror and injustice are sure to follow
when a revolution doesn't touch deeply-held
habits of thinking, doing, and being. An
education revolution is no different. How to
avoid recreating the old within the new?
Ideological vigilance is not enough (in fact it
harks to the old system). A better way is to
uncover and release unconscious habits of
schooling that may lurk within ourselves.
Some common examples include wanting to be
recognized as right; constant self-evaluation;
laziness (a covert form of rebellion); seeking
"motivation"; denial of the body for the sake of
the mind; seeking to please authority; reflexive
antagonism toward authority, and many more. In
this two-part seminar, we will uncover habits of
schooling in ourselves that may be invisible to
us. We all have our blind spots! Through
discussion and practical exercises, we will
explore ways to develop new habits, so that we
might avoid passing on the habits of school to
our children and the institutions we create for
them.
Bio:
Charles Eisenstein is a democratic school
parent, speaker, and author. His acclaimed 2007
book, The Ascent of Humanity, describes the
gathering civilizational shift from the
perspective of a revolution in the human sense
of self.
How Montessori Tools & Methods Can
Be Effectively Introduced to Non-Montessori
Learning Environments
Type: Presentation
Presenter(s): Tim Seldin
Description:
Tim will address effective ways that Montessori
tools and methods can be introduced to
non-Montessori learning environments. He
will also speak to the fact that Montessori is a
whole systems approach and much more than small
individual exercises.
Bio:
Tim is the
President of The Montessori Foundation and Chair
of the International Montessori Council. His
more than thirty years of experience in
Montessori education includes twenty-two years
as Headmaster of the Barrie School in Silver
Spring, MD, his own alma mater (age two through
high school graduation). He has also served as
the Director of the Institute for Advanced
Montessori Studies and as Head of the New Gate
School in Sarasota, Florida. He earned a B.A. in
History and Philosophy from Georgetown
University, an M.Ed. in Educational
Administration and Supervision from The American
University, and his Montessori certification
from the American Montessori Society. Tim Seldin
is the author of several books on Montessori
Education, including his latest, The
Montessori Way with Dr. Paul Epstein,
Building a World-class Montessori School,
Finding the Perfect Match - Recruit and Retain
Your Ideal Enrollment, Master Teachers -
Model Programs, Starting a New Montessori School,
Celebrations of Life, and
The World in the Palm of
Her Hand.
Play and Democracy
Type: Presentation/Discussion
Presenter(s): Deborah Meier
Description:
Everyone's for play except when
there's more serious stuff to get done. Like
running a society. Let's talk together about how
the habits of heart and mind that childhood play
imbues us with can serve to protect us from the
erosion of the democratic idea, plus the energy
and initiative to fight for it. First--we
have to recall what it looks and feels like.
We'll explore that together and try to find ways
we can support it for all of us--from newborns
to 90 year olds--but especially throughout the
school years.
Bio:
Deborah Meier is currently on the
faculty of New York University’s Steinhardt
School of Education, as senior scholar and
adjunct professor as well as Board member and
director of New Ventures at Mission Hill,
director and advisor to Forum for Democracy and
Education, and on the Board of The Coalition of
Essential Schools. Click
here to read her full bio.
Soul Purpose as a Basis for Education
Type: Interactive Presentation
Presenter(s): Jaia Lee
Description:
It was the mystic Rumi who once said, "Its as if
a king has sent you to a foreign land. You could
do a hundred things, but if you don't do the
thing he sent you to do, it will be as if you
did not come."
Each of us has a special purpose. A special gift
to deliver to the world that no one else can
give in quite the way we can. No one is here by
accident, and no one is without purpose. But how
do we connect with this purpose, and how do we
encourage and foster the individual genius and
purpose in others? In this workshop we will be
exploring how to put soul into the context of
everyday learning, and look at ways to allow for
our own individual genius and purpose to flower
and continue to flower and how not to lose sight
of the bigger picture. By learning to listen
deeply to ourselves and by tapping into, and
acting from, our own genius we will naturally
inspireothers to do the same.
Bio:
Jaia Lee is a dreamer, poet,
mother, mystic, healer, artist, student and
teacher. She is the author of the book
Living Beyond Belief: How to Ditch the Life Your
Mind Created and Start Living
the One Your Soul Intended in which she
shares her transition from a lifetime of
depression and abuse to one of deep fulfillment
and joy. She has shared her songs and poems with
audiences in such places as the Bodhi Tree in
Los Angeles, Universal Hall in Findhorn,
Scotland, and Alternatives at St. James in
London and taught in many capacities including
the federal prison system. She holds a Masters
Degree in Spiritual Psychology,
is a Certified Firewalk Instructor, and has been
deeply affected by her travels to places such as
India, Africa, Europe and Peru. She began a path
of raw organic foods six years ago and loves to
prepare meals which nourish the body, mind and
soul. She is the mother of a teenage daughter
whom she homeschools. They recently sold their
home in Santa Monica, Ca. to move into an RV and
travel across the US, continuing to follow the
call of the heart.
For more information go to
www.livingbeyondbelief.com
1:15pm - 2:45pm
Alternative Education as a Social and
Political Movement
Type: Presentation/Discussion
Presenter(s): Ron Miller
Description:
Most people who become involved in educational
alternatives, as parents or educators, are
primarily concerned with providing young people
a more nurturing and responsive learning
environment than usually found in conventional
schooling; they do not necessarily intend to
become part of a radical social and political
movement. But the critique of standardized
schooling represents an educational rights
movement that has important implications beyond
the learning environment itself. We'll explore
the history of educational activism and its
relevance to current struggles in this age of
empire.
Bio:
Ron Miller, Ph.D., has been studying and writing
about the history and philosophy of educational
alternatives for more than 25 years. He has
written or edited nine books, started two
journals and an alternative school, spoken at
conferences on several continents, and been
involved in teacher education. He is editor of
AERO's magazine Education Revolution.
Childhood Labels: Fact or Fiction?
Type: Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Chris Mercogliano
Description:
Our society has made a dangerous turn toward the
biological assessment of all forms of childhood
distress and deviance from increasingly narrow
norms. Any behavior outside of those norms is
considered to be symptomatic of some kind of
pathological syndrome or disorder, usually
genetic in origin. The behaviors are assigned
medicalized labels like Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Oppositional
Defiance Disorder (ODD) and then the so-called
“symptoms” are treated according to the
drug-based protocols of the medical model, which
essentially views the human organism as a
machine.
The purpose of this workshop will be to examine
the differences between prescriptive and
descriptive approaches to understanding
children’s struggles and idiosyncrasies. A
prescriptive approach involves lumping together
masses of kids who don’t fit the socially agreed
upon model of normality in labeled categories,
while a descriptive approach involves viewing
children individually and holistically, meaning
within the context of their daily lives. We will
look at a hypothetical Johnny, who is highly
energetic, somewhat impulsive, and easily
distracted when performing left-brained mental
tasks and ask the question, “Does Johnny have
ADHD, or is he a high-energy, impulsive,
distractible boy?” We will also explore ways to
help Johnny learn and develop sufficient
self-control without resorting to labels and
drugs.
Bio:
Chris was a teacher at the Albany
Free School for thirty-five years and stepped
downed as director in June, 2007 to concentrate
on writing and speaking out about issues that
affect children. His essays, commentaries and
reviews have appeared in numerous newspapers,
magazines, and journals, as well as in four
anthologies:
Challenging the Giant (Down to Earth
Books 1992), Deschooling Our Lives (New
Society Press 1996), Creating Learning
Communities (Foundation for Educational
Renewal 2000), and
Field Day: Getting Society Out of School
(New Star Books 2003). He is also the author of
Making It Up As We Go Along, the Story of the
Albany Free School (Heinemann 1998),
Teaching the Restless, One School's Remarkable
No-Ritalin Approach to Helping Children Learn
and Succeed (Beacon Press 2004),
How to Grow a School: Starting and Sustaining
Schools That Work (Oxford Village Press
2006), and
In Defense of Childhood: Protecting Kids’ Inner
Wildness (Beacon Press 2007).
Currently Chris is a regular columnist for
Encounter magazine. He has been featured on
National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered,”
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Radio's
“Ideas,” and many other nationally syndicated
radio shows. The father of two wonderful
daughters, he lives with his wife Betsy on a
one-acre farm in downtown Albany, New York.
Putting Community into The Democratic
Learning Community: The Power of Outdoor
Education
Presenter(s): Leo Fahey
Type: Interactive
Details:
In day schools we all live together for a
substantial part of each weekday; in boarding
schools it is community life 24/7. Getting along
well with each other is crucial for the health
and the happiness of everyone. Within Democratic
Education, pressure on the community to come
together to govern can create great stress on
personal relationships, beyond the usual school
conflicts. This playful, experiential workshop
will demonstrate the power of the cooperative
aspects of Outdoor Education to enhance personal
relationships and to effectively build school
community life allowing each member of the
Democratic school to live better together.
Bio:
This Democratic Education activist began
cultivating Outdoor skills as a Boy Scout when a
youth, and deepened expertise as a Boy Scout
Leader when an adult. He is trained, experienced
and specialized in Deep Winter Camping and
Survival, has led backpacking treks for the Boy
Scouts and the Appalachian Mountain Club, was an
active member of the Association For
Experiential Education-holding the post of
Co-Representative for Schools and Colleges
Interest Group for the Northeast Region. Today,
he propagates democratic and
Outdoor/Experiential Education principles and
counsels alternative start-ups in New York.
Democracy: How Do We Define a "Democratic"
School
Type: Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Deborah Meier, Jerry
Mintz
Description:
Come hear to passionate believers
in education for democracy disagree with each
other on what's essential. Who should get the
vote? How important or sumptomatic are voting
rights? If not voting, then what else lies at
the heart of democratic education.
Bio:
Deborah Meier is currently on the
faculty of New York University’s Steinhardt
School of Education, as senior scholar and
adjunct professor as well as Board member and
director of New Ventures at Mission Hill,
director and advisor to Forum for Democracy and
Education, and on the Board of The Coalition of
Essential Schools. Click
here to read her full bio.
Jerry Mintz (see
www.educationrevolution.org/abaerfounjer.html)
The World in the Palm of Her Hand: Making
Geography and History Come Alive for Young
Children (Ages 3-8)
Type: Presentation
Presenter(s): Tim Seldin
Description:
Based on Tim's book by the same name, this is an
introduction to a comprehensive primary
curriculum based on insights from both
Montessori and Piagetian traditions that goes
far beyond the 'basics'. Topics will include:
curriculum philosophy, developing the child's
concept of space and time, pre-mapping
exercises, three-dimensional mapping, map
reading, map and compass, the use of interactive
time-lines, and techniques to make history and
cultural geography come alive.
Bio:
Tim is the
President of The Montessori Foundation and Chair
of the International Montessori Council. His
more than thirty years of experience in
Montessori education includes twenty-two years
as Headmaster of the Barrie School in Silver
Spring, MD, his own alma mater (age two through
high school graduation). He has also served as
the Director of the Institute for Advanced
Montessori Studies and as Head of the New Gate
School in Sarasota, Florida. He earned a B.A. in
History and Philosophy from Georgetown
University, an M.Ed. in Educational
Administration and Supervision from The American
University, and his Montessori certification
from the American Montessori Society. Tim Seldin
is the author of several books on Montessori
Education, including his latest, The
Montessori Way with Dr. Paul Epstein,
Building a World-class Montessori School,
Finding the Perfect Match - Recruit and Retain
Your Ideal Enrollment, Master Teachers -
Model Programs, Starting a New Montessori School,
Celebrations of Life, and
The World in the Palm of
Her Hand.
Teaching Techniques
Type: Interactive/Discussion
Presenter(s): Ken Jacobson
Description:
I propose a series of discussions
with attending educators/teachers/mentors on the
topic of the relationship between allowing
students the freedom to learn what they want
when they want, and the need for a
professionally qualified mentor to guide
learning. There appear to be many approaches to
teaching within the alternative education
community: What are there strengths and
weaknesses? What problems do teacher’s
encounter? How do individuals define their own
standards for success? How non-coercive is the
educational environment? How non-coercive should
it be? What, looking out 20 years, is/should the
goal of education be?
As I envision the progression, we would first
start with a workshop the result of which would
be a list of the ways in which people
teach/mentor. We could then potentially schedule
a series of meeting…even over meals or at tea
time…to continue, perhaps on a point/counter
point basis…by looking at the strengths and
drawbacks of the various methods people use. At
some point it would be nice to bring students
into the debate, maybe even from the beginning.
The main idea would be to get many different
approaches on the table; and provide a forum for
mutual frustrations as well as mutual successful
“tricks of the trade.”
For this discussion to work, I would hope that
it would attract people from as many
philosophical positions as possible (Sudbury;
home/non-schooling; “free” school; Montessori;
Waldorf; and any I’ve missed).
In fact, if people were willing I’d like to do
some interviewing to really come to understand
individual’s approaches.
Bio:
Ken Jacobson holds a PhD in Anthropology from the
University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Jacobson’s
interest in alternative educational methods and
the idea of non-coercive education was sparked
by a visit to Summerhill in 1999. His current
research focuses on power relationships between
adults and children. He is the process of
preparing a book length manuscript.
Jacobson may be contacted at:
kenjay@bu.edu.
3:00pm - 4:00pm
Deschooling Ourselves: Undoing the
Unconscious Habits of School (Part 2/2)
Type: Interactive Seminar
Presenter(s): Charles Eisenstein
Description:
Many revolutions have failed when they have torn
down one system only to replace it with another
embodying the same unconscious habits and
beliefs. Horror and injustice are sure to follow
when a revolution doesn't touch deeply-held
habits of thinking, doing, and being. An
education revolution is no different. How to
avoid recreating the old within the new?
Ideological vigilance is not enough (in fact it
harks to the old system). A better way is to
uncover and release unconscious habits of
schooling that may lurk within ourselves.
Some common examples include wanting to be
recognized as right; constant self-evaluation;
laziness (a covert form of rebellion); seeking
"motivation"; denial of the body for the sake of
the mind; seeking to please authority; reflexive
antagonism toward authority, and many more. In
this two-part seminar, we will uncover habits of
schooling in ourselves that may be invisible to
us. We all have our blind spots! Through
discussion and practical exercises, we will
explore ways to develop new habits, so that we
might avoid passing on the habits of school to
our children and the institutions we create for
them.
Bio:
Charles Eisenstein is a democratic school
parent, speaker, and author. His acclaimed 2007
book, The Ascent of Humanity, describes the
gathering civilizational shift from the
perspective of a revolution in the human sense
of self.
The Secret Revolution: A Psychologist's
Adventures in Education
Type: Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Emmanuel Bernstein
Description:
The workshop will have a beginning focus on Dr.
Bernstein's book, The Secret
Revolution, and will be an
interactive workshop where he will share
adventures, problems, and alternative ways to
handle giving students freedom to learn.
Bio:
Dr. Bernstein's life was never the
same after reading "Summerhill." He was teaching
seven to twelve-year-old emotionally disturbed
with reading problems in Boston at the time. After
staying up all night reading the book, at dawn he
decided he could no longer teach in the
conventional way. The next morning he asked his
students, "Do you think you could handle it if you
no longer had to do what you wanted, and could do
whatever you wanted?" They all cheered - so he
sat back and from then on, students only came to
him when they wanted.
He has taught or learning facilitated all ages
from pre-school to graduate levels, was an
elementary and high school guidance counselor, a
learning facilitator at a free school, a social
worker, and is now a psychologist in private
practice. His ad in the yellow pages reads, "All
problems - All ages - All species."
Democratizing Montessori Schools
Type: Presentation
Presenter(s): Tim Seldin, Jerry Mintz
Description:
Coming Soon!
Bio:
Tim is the
President of The Montessori Foundation and Chair
of the International Montessori Council. His
more than thirty years of experience in
Montessori education includes twenty-two years
as Headmaster of the Barrie School in Silver
Spring, MD, his own alma mater (age two through
high school graduation). He has also served as
the Director of the Institute for Advanced
Montessori Studies and as Head of the New Gate
School in Sarasota, Florida. He earned a B.A. in
History and Philosophy from Georgetown
University, an M.Ed. in Educational
Administration and Supervision from The American
University, and his Montessori certification
from the American Montessori Society. Tim Seldin
is the author of several books on Montessori
Education, including his latest, The
Montessori Way with Dr. Paul Epstein,
Building a World-class Montessori School,
Finding the Perfect Match - Recruit and Retain
Your Ideal Enrollment, Master Teachers -
Model Programs, Starting a New Montessori School,
Celebrations of Life, and
The World in the Palm of
Her Hand.
Legitimate Choices Denied
Type: Presentation/Discussion
Presenter(s): Pat Montgomery
Description:
People are free to learn without
using school as the forum for their learning.
People, that is, except those who are German
citizens. Their plight harkens back to the Nazis
and the SS. Youngsters are snatched from their
homes and put into mental hospitals by social
workers and police. This workshop will examine
the sordid facts. What’s going on? What can you
do about it?
Bio:
Pat is the founder of Clonlara School, an
innovative school in Ann Arbor, MI. She directed
Clonlara from its inception in 1967 for 38 years
until recently stepping down as director. In
1979 she founded Clonlara's Home Based Education
Program, a distance learning extension of the
school serving students around the world. Pat is
a founder of the National Coalition of
Alternative Community Schools (NCACS) which was
founded in 1976 and is still in operation. She
has lectured at colleges and universities all
over the world covering topics from child
development to alternative education to home
schooling. She has spoken at education
conferences, state boards of education, state
legislatures, and child study groups in nearly
every state and numerous countries. She has also
written many articles published in magazines,
newsletters, and journals nationwide and has
appeared on major television networks in the
U.S., Japan, Australia, Spain, Thailand, and
Ireland. Pat has served as an expert witness in
courts in nine states on educational issues,
especially home education. She is currently
appointed to the nonpublic advisory committee
for the U.S. Department of Education. In
addition to speaking, Pat currently serves as an
education consultant for Clonlara and is
President Emerita of the NCACS.
Teaching by Example; How Doing What You
Love Will Help Them Love What They Do!
Type: Interactive Presentation
Presenter(s): Jaia Lee
Description:
The great eastern spiritual teacher Krishnamurti
once said, 'Teaching by example isn't the best
way to teach, it's the only way.' Even after
liberating ourselves and our children from
standardized testing and standardized living, we
may still fall prey to unconscious beliefs and
fear what it means to live full out and love
full out. Let this workshop inspire you to your
next level of living, engaging your true
passions and deep heartfelt desires- maybe ones
you're not even aware of yet! You will learn to
look at your own life as a great mystery,
drawing upon universal clues in a workshop
exercise, and come out with a newfound sense of
direction, purpose, and passion. This will be a
time of exploration, fun, and opening to a
greater possibility in your own life and the
lives of those around you.
Bio:
Jaia Lee is a dreamer, poet,
mother, mystic, healer, artist, student and
teacher. She is the author of the book
Living Beyond Belief: How to Ditch the Life Your
Mind Created and Start Living
the One Your Soul Intended in which she
shares her transition from a lifetime of
depression and abuse to one of deep fulfillment
and joy. She has shared her songs and poems with
audiences in such places as the Bodhi Tree in
Los Angeles, Universal Hall in Findhorn,
Scotland, and Alternatives at St. James in
London and taught in many capacities including
the federal prison system. She holds a Masters
Degree in Spiritual Psychology,
is a Certified Firewalk Instructor, and has been
deeply affected by her travels to places such as
India, Africa, Europe and Peru. She began a path
of raw organic foods six years ago and loves to
prepare meals which nourish the body, mind and
soul. She is the mother of a teenage daughter
whom she homeschools. They recently sold their
home in Santa Monica, Ca. to move into an RV and
travel across the US, continuing to follow the
call of the heart.
For more information go to
www.livingbeyondbelief.com
4:30pm - 5:30pm
A School Must Have a Heart
Type: Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Chris Mercogliano
Description:
In this workshop we will explore
together some of the themes of a book I am
currently working on by the same name. We will
begin with the idea that any school/homeschool/learning
center that hopes to address the real physical,
intellectual, emotional, and spiritual needs of
children must be regarded as a living organism
with its own set of needs that must be met in
order for it to thrive and be successful. The
primary focus will be on the needs of the heart
because it is the central organ in all higher
life forms; and because, as cutting edge
research is beginning to validate, the heart—or
“heart/brain” as some scientists are beginning
to call it—plays a key role in the learning
process.
Bio:
Chris was a teacher at the Albany
Free School for thirty-five years and stepped
downed as director in June, 2007 to concentrate
on writing and speaking out about issues that
affect children. His essays, commentaries and
reviews have appeared in numerous newspapers,
magazines, and journals, as well as in four
anthologies:
Challenging the Giant (Down to Earth
Books 1992), Deschooling Our Lives (New
Society Press 1996), Creating Learning
Communities (Foundation for Educational
Renewal 2000), and
Field Day: Getting Society Out of School
(New Star Books 2003). He is also the author of
Making It Up As We Go Along, the Story of the
Albany Free School (Heinemann 1998),
Teaching the Restless, One School's Remarkable
No-Ritalin Approach to Helping Children Learn
and Succeed (Beacon Press 2004),
How to Grow a School: Starting and Sustaining
Schools That Work (Oxford Village Press
2006), and
In Defense of Childhood: Protecting Kids’ Inner
Wildness (Beacon Press 2007).
Currently Chris is a regular columnist for
Encounter magazine. He has been featured on
National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered,”
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Radio's
“Ideas,” and many other nationally syndicated
radio shows. The father of two wonderful
daughters, he lives with his wife Betsy on a
one-acre farm in downtown Albany, New York.
Peace and Partnership Education
Type: Presentation
Presenter(s): Tim Seldin
Description:
Coming Soon!
Bio:
Tim is the
President of The Montessori Foundation and Chair
of the International Montessori Council. His
more than thirty years of experience in
Montessori education includes twenty-two years
as Headmaster of the Barrie School in Silver
Spring, MD, his own alma mater (age two through
high school graduation). He has also served as
the Director of the Institute for Advanced
Montessori Studies and as Head of the New Gate
School in Sarasota, Florida. He earned a B.A. in
History and Philosophy from Georgetown
University, an M.Ed. in Educational
Administration and Supervision from The American
University, and his Montessori certification
from the American Montessori Society. Tim Seldin
is the author of several books on Montessori
Education, including his latest, The
Montessori Way with Dr. Paul Epstein,
Building a World-class Montessori School,
Finding the Perfect Match - Recruit and Retain
Your Ideal Enrollment, Master Teachers -
Model Programs, Starting a New Montessori School,
Celebrations of Life, and
The World in the Palm of
Her Hand.
Kneading the Dough: Brainstorming Funding
Democratic Schools
Type: Interactive
Facilitator(s): Leo J. Fahey
Start-up Democratic Schools need seed money. New
Democratic Schools need money to grow.
Established Democratic Schools need money to
keep on, well, keeping on. But from where can
Democratic Schools get all this money,
especially in an era when Democratic
Schools are excluded from public education?
Under the rubric that the wisdom of the crowd
beats that of the individual, this workshop will
use the wisdom of the participants to brainstorm
funding sources and methods for start-ups, newly
established and better established Democratic
Schools.
Bio:
Democratic Education activist and Democratic
school organizer Mr. Fahey began his education
career as a Communication Arts university
instructor in 1980, changed in 1991 to teaching
high school Social Studies and moved in 1999 to
Democratic Education school
development. He advised alternatives in Texas
and Massachusetts before joining a school
start-up group in New York City in 2003 which
developed The Brooklyn Free School. Today, he
continues propagating Democratic Education
principles, counseling alternative start-ups and
working on his own Democratic School start-up,
Emile’s Academy.
Title Coming Soon!
Type: Presentation/Discussion
Presenter(s): Matt Hern
Description:
Coming Soon!
Bio:
Matt Hern lives in East Vancouver with his
partner and daughters. He runs the Purple
Thistle Centre (www.purplethistle.ca).
He holds a PhD. in Urban Studies and writes and
lectures widely. His books include the
collection Deschooling Our Lives (New
Society), Field Day: Getting Society Out of
School (New Star), and the new Watch
Yourself: Why Safer Isn’t Always Better
(New Star).
Saturday
11:00am - 12:00pm
"How to Grow a School" AERO's Start a School 101 (Part 2/3)
Type: Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Jerry Mintz, Pat Montgomery, Chris
Mercogliano
Description:
This 3-part Start a School workshop series is
based off of AERO's highly successful online
start a school course. More
information coming soon!
Bio:
Coming Soon!
Internships: Making a Great Idea Real
Type: Presentation/Interactive
Presenter(s): Joan McLachlan &
Patricia Hess
Description:
Internships and work-based learning
can be exciting components of alternative
programs if planned carefully. Students value
experiential learning and so do educators but
schools often find that what seems like a great
idea can be daunting to implement. With
organization and structure, there is no need to
reinvent the wheel in developing internship
programs.
Participants in this workshop will
explore the key elements needed for sound
academic internships including:
-Reviewing the necessary elements
that need to be in place before students leave
the building
-Identifying suitable internship sites
-Structuring internships, writing curriculum and
designing school-based support
The guidelines, activities and
materials available during the workshop will
include a checklist of What Needs to be in Place
before Students Leave the Building and a variety
of other useful information and samples that
will enable participants to assess the relevance
and applicability of this curriculum-based
internship model to any school community and
decide if their school or district is ready for
internships. This model is also applicable for
Service Learning programs.
Bio:
Joan McLachlan
Ms. McLachlan’s work with internships began over
twenty years ago when she served as Project
Director and primary trainer for the
City-As-School High School Replication Project,
conducting numerous replication trainings and
presentations nationwide. She has been the
director and developer of Internship Quest for
over 5 years.
Patricia Hess
Patricia’s background includes both teaching and
international HR management. She is currently
teaching Organizational Behavior at University
of Massachusetts Dartmouth and has wide
experience in recruitment for front line
customer service roles and entry-level jobs. She
has been Associate Director and materials
developer of Internship Quest for two years.
Opening the Closet Door: Sexual
Orientation and Alternative Education
Type: Presentation/Interactive
Presenter(s): Sally Carless
Description:
It has been said that sexual orientation is the
“last frontier” of the civil rights movement.
While we have made quite a bit of progress in
terms of racial and gender equity, GLBT (gay,
lesbian, bisexual, and transgender) people are
still subject to frequent discrimination – both
direct and subtle. People say things on the
radio and TV – even from the pulpit - that they
would no longer dare to say about women or
racial minorities. All of this - the talk, the
violence, the lack of so many basic rights that
heterosexuals take for granted - takes its toll,
particularly with young people who may be
questioning their sexual orientation but not
know who they can safely talk to about it.
What is the climate like at your school? Do you
have a non-discrimination policy? If so, does it
include sexual orientation? Are people mindful
of the language they use and the jokes they
tell? Do people speak up when they hear
something offensive? Who talks about the issue,
who doesn't, and why is that? Why does the issue
still seem to be “in the closet” at so many of
our schools and conferences? Is there an
unstated “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy, and if
so, is it possible for GLBT students, staff, and
parents to truly feel safe and welcome?
Participants will have the opportunity to
discuss their thoughts, questions, and
experiences, as well as to learn about resources
(books, websites, organizations, etc.) that will
be helpful in assuring that their school and
conference climates are safe, welcoming, and
inclusive.
Bio:
Sally Carless is the founding
director of Global Village School, an
international K-12 homeschool diploma program
focused on peace, justice, diversity, and
sustainability. Also a musician and writer,
Sally makes her home in the foothills of
Southern California.
A Study of Democratic School Philosophy
Alternatives to the Typical/Traditional
Classroom: A Research Driven Potential for the
Future of Public Schools
Type: Presentation
Presenter(s): Kirk Cunningham
Description:
The workshop focus is to briefly share research
findings, followed by an open discussion
regarding the potential further integration of
democratic schooling into public schools
nationwide (U.S.).
Thanks to attendees at AERO Conference 2007 who
completed surveys & interviews for making this
research possible!
Beauty is assuredly in the eye of the beholder.
Those who look at schools as a training ground
or civics lab will continue to be content with
the results of traditional education. Those who
look at students holistically or as future
employees of unforeseen post-industrial careers
will continue to be content with the results of
democratic education. A combination system
provides a blueprint for action that moves all
students closer to reaching society’s education
goals.
“Employers say U.S. grads don‘t
have what it takes!” The 21st century educator
is in a quandary, the future is uncertain as to
the skills and standards that will meet the job
and lifelong satisfaction requirements of
students. Educators assisting students freely
exploring their interests and aptitudes defines
democratic schools. The legacy of Summerhill
School, documentation of positive effects on the
lives of students during school, and the legacy
of Sudbury Valley School, documentation of
positive effects on the lives of graduates, laid
the groundwork for supporting literature. A
mixed methods approach of quantitative surveys
and qualitative interviews provided a two tiered
confirmation of the literature and research
conclusion that democratic schools provide
positive options for students nationwide.
Bio:
Coming Soon!
Suddenly Homeschooling: Help for Families
with Short-term or Emergency Homeschooling Needs
Type: Presentation/Q&A
Presenter: Kathy Ceceri
Details:
Do you feel you have been, or may soon be,
pushed into homeschooling? Are you looking for
ways to educate your child yourself for a
limited period of time, whether by choice or
circumstance? Kathy Ceceri, editor of Suddenly
Homeschooling, a new book by the staff and
readers of Home Education Magazine, will talk
about how to create a dynamic learning
environment for your family no matter where you
are or what’s available around you. This
presentation/Q&A will include getting started
with a minimum of preparation and materials;
making the most of the resources at hand;
keeping family life in balance; and dealing with
the school. Special attention will be paid to
families dealing with medical issues, learning
differences, suspension or expulsion, or being
away from home. Books (or order forms, depending
on the timing of publication) will be available.
Even if you have fallen into homeschooling
“accidentally,” you can make this time in your
life more positive and productive than you might
have imagined possible!
Bio:
Kathy Ceceri is the Hands-On Learning columnist
for Home Education Magazine and a freelance
journalist. She has written about family and
education for the GeekDad blog at Wired.com and
in The Albany Times Union, Metroland, Saratoga
Parent, The (Glens Falls, NY) Post Star, Family
Fun, Child and Sesame Street Parents. She also
teaches afterschool enrichment classes at
libraries and public schools. Kathy lives with
her husband and two always-homeschooled
children, ages 15 and 12, in Schuylerville, New
York. Her websites are
www.CraftsForLearning.com,
FamilyOnlineLinks.blogspot.com and
HomeChemistry.blogspot.com.
1:15pm - 2:45pm
The Ecology of Learning: Holism,
Sustainability, and Spiral Dynamics
Type: Presentation/Discussion
Presenter(s): Ron Miller
Description:
Global climate change, peak oil, massive species
extinction, depletion of resources.... It is
becoming clear that industrial culture and its
institutions (which include standardized
schooling) are becoming dangerously obsolete,
and that a new, more ecologically intelligent
worldview needs to emerge. We'll look at this
worldview, consider a theory about how and why
it is evolving now (spiral dynamics) and explore
what it means for the future of education.
(Hint: Educational alternatives are on the
cutting edge of this new culture.)
Bio:
Ron Miller, Ph.D., has been studying and writing
about the history and philosophy of educational
alternatives for more than 25 years. He has
written or edited nine books, started two
journals and an alternative school, spoken at
conferences on several continents, and been
involved in teacher education. He is editor of
AERO's magazine Education Revolution.
Comparing and Contrasting: Home Based
Education v. Democratic School Attendance
Type: Presentation/Discussion
Presenter(s): Pat Montgomery
Description:
Coming Soon!
Bio:
Pat is the founder of Clonlara School, an
innovative school in Ann Arbor, MI. She directed
Clonlara from its inception in 1967 for 38 years
until recently stepping down as director. In
1979 she founded Clonlara's Home Based Education
Program, a distance learning extension of the
school serving students around the world. Pat is
a founder of the National Coalition of
Alternative Community Schools (NCACS) which was
founded in 1976 and is still in operation. She
has lectured at colleges and universities all
over the world covering topics from child
development to alternative education to home
schooling. She has spoken at education
conferences, state boards of education, state
legislatures, and child study groups in nearly
every state and numerous countries. She has also
written many articles published in magazines,
newsletters, and journals nationwide and has
appeared on major television networks in the
U.S., Japan, Australia, Spain, Thailand, and
Ireland. Pat has served as an expert witness in
courts in nine states on educational issues,
especially home education. She is currently
appointed to the nonpublic advisory committee
for the U.S. Department of Education. In
addition to speaking, Pat currently serves as an
education consultant for Clonlara and is
President Emerita of the NCACS.
Creating Emotionally-Healthy Learning
Environments for Children
Type: Interactive/Presentation
Presenter(s): Connie Allen
Description:
Emotional well-being is the foundation of all
empowering, successful programs for children. It
creates a learning environment in which everyone
flourishes. It is essential to the positive
development of children and to their full
self-expression. Staff are happier and have more
fun. Yet this aspect of our human experience is
often ignored or neglected, and everyone
suffers. Come enjoy some lively discussion as we
explore the meaning of "emotionally-healthy" and
consider what is required to have schools that
are emotionally nurturing to everyone.
Bio:
Connie has always been passionate about helping
people find happiness and to freely express
their joyous inner spirit. She has her BA in
psychology from Boston University and her MA
from California State University. Connie
co-founded two alternative schools in the 80’s
and taught in the public schools for several
years, exploring alternative approaches to
education and working with students who were
considered "at risk.”
Today Connie teaches the ingredients of creating
truly joyous relationships with children of all
ages and how to help all children flourish as
happy, successful people. She delights in
teaching parents and educators how to read the
manual their child came with and to find the joy
and ease in relating with children.
4:30pm - 5:30pm
The Big Picture
Type: Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Chris Mercogliano
Description:
A new concern of mine is how our
hyper-focus on education is keeping many of us
from noticing and addressing the bigger picture,
which is the ever-diminishing culture of
contemporary childhood. In this workshop we will
revisit childhood’s primary stages and
dimensions—birth, early development, play, work,
of course school/homeschool, interaction with
nature, electronic media, adolescence—in order
to identify the ways in which childhood is being
stripped of the kinds of undomesticated
experience that enable kids to develop whole,
autonomous, authentic, and creative selves. Then
we will brainstorm ways to reverse the trend and
revitalize the lives of children.
Bio:
Chris was a teacher at the Albany
Free School for thirty-five years and stepped
downed as director in June, 2007 to concentrate
on writing and speaking out about issues that
affect children. His essays, commentaries and
reviews have appeared in numerous newspapers,
magazines, and journals, as well as in four
anthologies:
Challenging the Giant (Down to Earth
Books 1992), Deschooling Our Lives (New
Society Press 1996), Creating Learning
Communities (Foundation for Educational
Renewal 2000), and
Field Day: Getting Society Out of School
(New Star Books 2003). He is also the author of
Making It Up As We Go Along, the Story of the
Albany Free School (Heinemann 1998),
Teaching the Restless, One School's Remarkable
No-Ritalin Approach to Helping Children Learn
and Succeed (Beacon Press 2004),
How to Grow a School: Starting and Sustaining
Schools That Work (Oxford Village Press
2006), and
In Defense of Childhood: Protecting Kids’ Inner
Wildness (Beacon Press 2007).
Currently Chris is a regular columnist for
Encounter magazine. He has been featured on
National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered,”
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Radio's
“Ideas,” and many other nationally syndicated
radio shows. The father of two wonderful
daughters, he lives with his wife Betsy on a
one-acre farm in downtown Albany, New York.
The School of Living: Past, Present, and
Future
Type: Presentation
Presenter(s): John Mangan, John
Fox, and Kelle Kersten
Description:
In the 1920's Ralph Borsodi became
concerned with the problems of urbanized society
and left the city to build his first homestead.
He founded the School of Living in 1934 to
empower others to achieve a more fulfilling and
self sufficient life. He was soon joined by
Mildred Loomis who continued and expanded the
work until her death. Our current decentralized
collective continues to work actively for the
fulfillment of many of the ideals to which we
have been dedicated for many years.
Today SoL is actively engaged in: community land
trust, intentional community support,
permaculture, ecological use of resources, human
scale and local self reliance, appropriate
technology, alternative education, consensus
decision making, and non-exploitive banking.
This interactive workshop will introduce
attendees to the concept of community land trust
and the work of the School of Living.
Bio(s):
John Mangan- School of Living President,
resident of Julian Woods Community
John Fox- School of Living Board Member,
resident of Heathcote Community
Kelle Kersten-School of Living Board Member,
resident of Ahimsa Village Community
How to Bring Democratic Education to the
Mainstream
Type: Interactive
Presenter(s): Jerry Mintz, Pat Montgomery, and
Others
Description:
While alternative medicine and
organic and whole foods have become mainstream,
alternative education has become marginalized.
How do we bring alternative to the mainstream as
a choice for every child?
Sunday
9:00am - 10:00am
"How to Grow a School" AERO's Start a School 101 (Part 3/3)
Type: Interactive Workshop
Presenter(s): Jerry Mintz, Pat Montgomery, Chris
Mercogliano
Description:
This 3-part Start a School workshop series is
based off of AERO's highly successful online
start a school course. More
information coming soon!
Bio:
Coming Soon!
Educating for a Better World
Type: Presentation with Q & A
Presenter(s): Ron Miller, Sally Carless, and
Khalif Williams
Description:
What responsibility do alternative
educators have to address the challenges facing
our planet and society? Current struggles are
numerous: everything from human oppression and
violence to animal exploitation to materialism
and ecological degradation. Do we believe that
young people deserve to be truly prepared for
the challenges their generation will face? If
so, how can educators inspire learners to become
engaged agents of positive and abiding change?
There are positive, age-appropriate,
non-coercive, and inspiring ways to offer
empowering and transformative learning
experiences about important global issues like
human rights, peace, animal protection,
environmental preservation, media, and
consumerism. This workshop will invite educators
and learners to explore some of the
possibilities that can help us all shape a
better world through education.
Bios:
Sally Carless is the founding director of Global
Village School, an international K-12 homeschool
diploma program focused on peace, justice,
diversity, and sustainability. Passionately
committed to a vision of a more just and
peaceful world, Sally believes that education is
a key component of progressive social change.
Ron Miller, Ph.D., has been studying and writing
about the history and philosophy of educational
alternatives for more than 25 years. He has
written or edited nine books, started two
journals and an alternative school, spoken at
conferences on several continents, and been
involved in teacher education. He is editor of
AERO's magazine Education Revolution.
Khalif Williams is the executive director of the
Institute for Humane Education which operates a
variety of humane education training programs
and offers teaching resources and consulting for
educators and activists world-wide.
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