Professional Development Resources

MPE is pleased to provide the following professional development resources to support its members’ professional growth for the benefit of themselves and their students, as research has proven that superior professional development is vital to elevated school performance.  MPE is not endorsing any provider or opportunity listed here; rather, the information is provided as a tool for MPE members in their endeavors. 

Training in the following areas is designed for administrators and/or school leadership teams:


  • A Shared Responsibility:  Leadership for Excellence in Literacy

  • Educational Leadership for Students with Disabilities

  • English Language Learners Institute

  • Executive Development Program

  • Focusing Leadership for Student Achievement

  • Instructional Leadership for Administrators

  • Instructional Leadership Institute

  • Leadership for Excellence in Science Institute

  • Students with Disabilities Institute

Teachers, as well as administrators, may attend training in the following:

  • Assessing Academic Rigor

  • Autism:  Why Twice Exceptional Children are Stuck and How to Help Them

  • Bullying in Today’s World-How Do Schools Deal With It?

  • Common Core State Standards Regional TOT Training Grades 6-8

  • Confronting the Challenges of Climate Literacy: 

    A Summer Workshop for High School Teachers

  • Conscious Discipline – Brain Smart Classroom Management

  • Demystifying IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)

  • Designing Special Events for Teaching Core Curriculum

  • Early Childhood Executive Leadership Institute (ECEL)

  • Enhancing the Development of Advanced Phonics Skills

  • Ethical Decision Making and the Newly Revised MS Educator Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct

  • Inclusion

  • Instructional Coaching Institute

  • Language Arts:  Make It and Take It Grades K-5

  • Mathematics and Economics:  Integration and Application in Everyday Life!

  • Moving from Good to Great:  What Great Schools Do Differently

  • School Board Policy and School Board Meeting:  Getting It Right

  • Strategies for Success:  Teaching the English II Framework

  • Teaching Dyslexic Students

  • The Basics of Classroom Management:  Attitudes, Techniques, Management, and Reactions

  • Transitioning for Common Core State Standards

  • What’s so Special about Special Education?

 

 

Each provider’s website is listed so that MPE members may contact individual providers for additional information or to register for these opportunities. These professional development resources will be updated monthly, so please check back for the most recent information.

 

Resources for Administrators

 

A Shared Responsibility:  Leadership for Excellence in Literacy

This course is designed to help principals and school leaders to be effective instructional leaders in this crucial area of literacy. The aim is not to turn the principal into an expert, but rather to enable the principal to recognize the key elements of best practice in the field of literacy. The course will discuss how principals play a major leadership role in ensuring that literacy is highly valued in the entire school community.  Also included in this course is instruction to enable the participant to recognize the key features of effective safety net programs in literacy, so that he or she can exercise leadership, if necessary, in the development of effective safety nets to ensure that all students are literate, no matter what level of literacy they had when they entered that principal’s school.

Students will be engaged in learning about the latest research-based literacy approaches for young children with application to struggling readers in middle and high schools. They will also be engaged in discussions of several major reading assessments to strengthen their understanding about the range of literacy expectations of students.  The deadline to apply for course credit is April 5, 2012.   You must apply and be admitted as a non-degree seeking student at the University of Mississippi. Go to the Graduate School website to apply. (University of Mississippi, Institute for Education and Workforce Development, Division of Outreach and Continuing Education and the School of Education; 2 OSLs; 20 SEMIs; 3 Hours Graduate credit; Fee varies based on credit requested)

  • May, 2012                                                     Pearl (Muse Center)

  • May, 2012                                                     Oxford

 

Educational Leadership for Students with Disabilities

This course is designed to prepare principals for exercising leadership in mobilizing staff to address the learning needs of students with disabilities, and in designing and managing continuous professional development systems for all staff in the school around supporting all students, including students with disabilities. Because of the brevity of the program, participants will be provided with resources for further investigation associated with each topic, and each principal will have the opportunity to conference with program facilitators to inquire about specific resources or strategies for their contexts. Participants with formal training in NISL will recognize several broader themes from that program, such as instructional leadership, formative assessment, standards-based instructional systems, and professional development.

The deadline to apply for course credit is  April 12, 2012.  You must apply and be admitted as a non-degree seeking student at the University of Mississippi. Go to the Graduate School website to apply. (University of Mississippi, Institute for Education and Workforce Development, Division of Outreach and Continuing Education and the School of Education; 2 OSLs; 20 SEMIs; 3 Hours Graduate credit; Fee varies based on credit requested)

  • June, 2012                                     Pearl (Muse Center)

  • June, 2012                                     Oxford

 

English Language Learners Institute

 

This two-day program is designed to prepare principals for exercising leadership in creating and promoting an effective ELL program. Upon completion of this institute, participants will achieve the following goals:  promote the incorporation of instructional best practices into English Language Learning (ELL) curricula; assess their own school’s ELL population and program and develop a vision and an action plan for improved student achievement in their school; design leadership strategies to promote fair assessment for ELLs; lead educators in creating effective language and content classrooms for ELLs; and develop strategies to increase teacher capacity for the instruction of ELLs. This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

 

 

 Executive Development Program

 

The Executive Development Program was established to train school leaders to drive their schools to high performance. The program helps make struggling principals more effective and good principals great.  The program emphasizes the role of principals as strategic thinkers, instructional leaders, and creators of a just, fair, and caring culture in which all students meet high standards. It ensures that the school leaders it trains have the knowledge, skills, and tools to effectively set direction for teachers, support their staffs, and design an efficient organization.

The NISL curriculum focuses on instructional leadership within a standards-based context, helping principals:

  • Develop strategic and systemic processes for sustained school improvement;

  • Empower instructional leadership teams;

  • Build and sustain a collaborative learning culture and a shared decision-making structure in their schools;

  • Coach teachers about how to use data in order to enrich classroom instruction;

  • Increase the effectiveness of student improvement plans; and

  • Create an ethical culture of high achievement.

This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

 

Focusing Leadership for Student Achievement

The Mississippi Department of Education Office of Leadership and Development has partnered with the various regional service centers to bring the training opportunity “Focusing Leadership for Student Achievement” to Mississippi administrative educators. The Focusing Leadership for Student Achievement Module is devoted to choosing the right focus to ensure student achievement.  Through many activities, participants will discover an understanding of research-based school and classroom practices and student-level characteristics and how they relate, gain increased knowledge about research-based leadership responsibilities associated with choosing the right focus, and gain a deeper understanding of the importance of alignment.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and non-members; 10.0 SEMIs)

  • March 19, 2012 (Day 1 of 2)    Meridian

  • March 20, 2012 (Day 2 of 2)    Meridian

 

Instructional Leadership for Administrators

This course is designed to increase the capacity of school leadership teams to improve instructional practices that will lead to higher student performance. The Institute fosters critical thinking and skill development in instructional leadership within standards-based schools.

The course describes instructional leadership as the capacity to:

  • Offer a vision for instruction that will inspire the faculty;

  • Analyze student performance data and make sound judgments as to which areas of the curriculum need attention for the students to make better progress;

  • Make good judgments about the quality of the teaching in a classroom;

  • Recognize good classroom instruction in each of the core subjects in the curriculum;

  • Recognize the elements of sound, standards-based classroom organization and practice;

  • Determine the quality and fitness of instructional materials;

  • Provide strong coaching for teachers on all of the foregoing; and

  • Evaluate whether the school’s instructional systems are properly aligned and coherent.

The work focuses on what school leaders need to know and be able to do to provide guidance and direction on instructional improvement (Richard Elmore, 2000).  The deadline to apply for course credit is January 20, 2012.  You must apply and be admitted as a non-degree seeking student at the University of Mississippi. Go to the Graduate School website to apply.   (University of Mississippi, Institute for Education and Workforce Development, Division of Outreach and Continuing Education and the School of Education; 5 OSLs; 70 SEMIs; 3 Hours Graduate credit; Fee varies)

  • February 29-March 1, 2012      Oxford

  • April 17-18, 2012                      Oxford

  • June 26-29, 2012                       Oxford

 

Instructional Leadership Institute

The target audience for this course is district and school administrators. The Instructional Leadership Institute is designed to increase the capacity of school leadership teams to improve instructional practices that will lead to higher student performance. The Institute fosters critical thinking and skill development in instructional leadership within standards-based schools.

The work focuses on what school leaders need to know and be able to do to provide guidance and direction on instructional improvement (Richard Elmore, 2000). The Institute pays particular attention to the vision for and the beliefs about students’ capabilities; distributed leadership; analysis and use of data to drive instructional practice; effective instructional practices in literacy and math; and promoting professional knowledge through learning communities.  This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

 

 Leadership for Excellence in Science Institute

The aim of this two-day institute is not to make the principal a science expert, but rather to enable the principal to recognize the key elements of best instructional practices in the field of science—from basic skills to problem solving to conceptual understanding. The principal must be comfortable and confident in judging whether the school has an effective science program and be able to lead continuous improvements in it. To that end, the unit brings the principal deep into science instruction in the classroom and provides video and role-playing opportunities for observations and coaching moments between the teachers and the principal. The unit also includes instruction to enable the participants to recognize excellence in safety net programs in science. The principal must know how to put such a program in place to make sure that all students have the necessary science skills and knowledge, no matter what level they had when they entered the school.  This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

 

Students with Disabilities Institute

This two-day program is designed to prepare principals for exercising leadership in mobilizing staff to address the learning needs of students with disabilities, and in designing and managing continuous professional development systems for all staff in the school around supporting all students, including students with disabilities. Because of the brevity of the program, participants will be provided with resources for further investigation associated with each topic, and each principal will have the opportunity to conference with program facilitators to inquire about specific resources or strategies for their contexts. Participants with formal training in NISL will recognize several broader themes from that program, such as instructional leadership, formative assessment, standards-based instructional systems, and professional development.  This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

 

 

Resources for Administrators and Teachers

 

Aggression Management/Gangs (Recognition and Response)

This is a one-day training event that will help educators understand how to manage aggression behaviors in the school house and campus. Activities will be discussed and demonstrated to help educators learn how to deal with aggressive behavior. In addition, gang activity will be examined concentrating on how to recognize gang activity and what to do about managing this activity on the school campus.  (Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; Free for GCEIC members and non-members; 0.6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

                           

  • March 21, 2012              Gulfport

 

Assessing Academic Rigor

 

Assessing Academic Rigor in the Classroom will deal with RIGOR in the classroom. Rigor, the level of cognitive complexity of expected learning, is one of the top indicators of a student's potential to graduate from high school ready to earn a college degree or successfully enter the workforce. It must be a part of the school curriculum, and recognized and expected by school leaders. It can be directly examined at the classroom level in lesson plans, unit plans and course content. It can be assessed in teacher assignments and student work, in rubrics, and in formative and summative assessments. It is in the tight alignment of these curriculum elements to challenging standards that evidence of high levels of rigor can be found.

This session will introduce you to two alignment tools, the Revised Bloom's Taxonomy (RBT) and Webb’s Depth of Knowledge (DOK), to determine the level of rigor and core habits of mind expected in your school and from your teachers to boost achievement in all groups of students at all grade levels. (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and $100 for non-members; .6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • February 27, 2012         Meridian

Autism:  Why Twice Exceptional Children are Stuck and How to Help Them

 

Our future is in jeopardy, and our gifted children are among our best hopes for solving the complex problems humanity faces. When one thinks of a “gifted” child, the image conjured may be quite different from one’s own child. Gifted children are typically pictured as academically successful, well behaved in class, a bit nerdy or bookish, well-organized and easy to teach, learners who will succeed regardless of the level of instruction. Perhaps the most damaging myth about gifted children is that they are able to achieve in any learning environment and that their high IQ’s insulate them from academic failure. In short, because they are bright, they are expected to achieve. In this session, we will move well beyond the traditional view of academic achievement and excellence to embrace the broad spectrum of unique abilities and talents inherit in gifted children. Additionally, children whose giftedness masks the disability, children whose disability masks the giftedness and children in whom the giftedness and the disability mask one another will be examined.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and $100 for non-members; .5 CEUs)

  • June 21, 2012                  Meridian

 

Bullying in Mississippi

 

Senate Bill 2015 passed during the 2010 legislative session prohibits bullying and harassing behavior in the public schools. This one-day workshop will provide information and tactics for implementing this law in the public schools. Mr. Jim Keith of Adams and Reese law firm and Mr. Don Criswell, Division Deputy Director MDE Safe and Orderly Schools, will present information on the legal implications of this new legislation. Among other topics, this workshop will discuss the statutory implications, current research on bullying, procedural implementation of the law, victim and bully profile, and intervention options. Target audience for this training is any educator in the school district who deals with students on a daily basis.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and non-members; .5 CEUs)

  • April 12, 2012                 Meridian

 

Common Core State Standards Regional TOT Training Grades 6-8

 

Select a three (3) member team comprised of educators from the district with specified (English Language Arts or Mathematics) content expertise. These individuals will become the district training team on the implementation of the Common Core State Standards and Assessments for ELA or Mathematics Grades 6-8. It is suggested that districts consider selecting only teachers and administrators comfortable with training on respective subject content.  (North Mississippi Education Consortium; www.nmec.net; East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; Free for members and non-members; .6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

     English Language Arts

  • February 22, 2012         Flowood

  • February 29, 2012         Hattiesburg

    Mathematics

  • February 23, 2012         Flowood

  • March 1, 2012               Hattiesburg

 

Confronting the Challenges of Climate Literacy: 

A Summer Workshop for High School Teachers

 

Understanding the complexity and interconnectedness of Earth’s natural cycles across various time and spatial scales has become increasingly important as the effects of human activity on those cycles become more apparent. Join the Geosciences Department at Mississippi State University for a week (June 18-22) to learn about three new high school curriculum units that address these topics and how you can incorporate them into your science classes. The new Web-based curriculum units will be freely available to you and are designed to enhance classroom learning by allowing students to explore the topics in a variety of modes, including hands-on activities, video interviews with scientists, group work, self-guided examination of scientific data, and class discussions. 

Participants receive 4 CEU’s and a stipend for completing the workshop. Accommodations and two meals daily (breakfast and lunch) will be provided at no cost to participants.  Space is limited to 25. Interested Mississippi teachers will receive first priority through January 31, 2012. After that date, unfilled spaces will be made available to teachers from other states.  (Mississippi State University; http://serc.carleton.edu/earthlabs/MSWorkshop_about; 0.4 CEUs)

  • June 18-June 22, 2012              Starkville

 

Conscious Discipline – Brain Smart Classroom Management

 

This one-day workshop will provide an overview of a unique classroom management program called Conscious Discipline, which is based on brain research, child development information and developmentally appropriate practices. The goal of the program is to provide information on systematic changes that can occur in schools by fostering the emotional intelligence of teachers first and children second. In this workshop participants will be exposed to a different way of viewing discipline and classroom management. Dr. Becky Bailey has developed a comprehensive, social and emotional intelligence classroom management program that empowers both teachers and students. Conscious Discipline (brain-based classroom management) leads teachers, schools, and programs through a process that promotes permanent behavior changes in both teachers and children. This change is from a traditional compliance model of discipline to a relationship-based, community model.  


School level administrators and superintendents are highly encouraged to participate in this new innovative approach to classroom management.   It will be crucial for administrators to understand this concept as well as teachers.   SEMI as well as CEU credit will be available for this training.  (Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; Free for GCEIC

members and $50 for non-members; 0.6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • March 10, 2012                         Gulfport

  • April 7, 2012                              Gulfport

 

Demystifying IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)

 

Demystifying IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) is a six and one-half hour training program for both veteran and new educators, central office and school level administrators, general and special educators, superintendents, school board attorneys and school board members. This training was developed because of the need expressed by Special Education directors and teachers. In this training, participants will be made aware of the history of IDEA, and the major component parts of A, B, and C of IDEA. In addition, they will learn the six basic principles of IDEA and how to implement them in the school setting. They will also develop a very strong knowledge base to support decisions about services that must be implemented under IDEA. 

Demystifying IDEA training is being arranged by the Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium for the member districts. This training is presented by Dr. Sherry M. Ponder of the Excellence Group.  (Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; $100 for GCEIC members and non-members; 0.6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • January 26, 2012           Pascagoula

 

Designing Special Events for Teaching Core Curriculum

 

This workshop, part of the Think Beyond program at The University of Southern Mississippi, is guided by practitioners in the Pascagoula School District in partnership with the Pascagoula River Audubon Center who have successfully engaged students every year in a school-day environmental exposition. During the event, students meet field experts who introduce them to the science and art of their local environment. They explore plant materials, examine various species, create art works, and describe their experiences in journals as they are guided by scientists, engineers, and artists from NASA, NOAA, Audubon and other agencies. At the end of this workshop, teachers will take away a ready-to-go plan to organize an out of class activity aligned with common core standards and state content framework used in daily lesson plans. All workshop materials and meals are included in the fee.  (Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; $75 for GCEIC members and non-members; 0.6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • March 24, 2012                           Pascagoula

 

Early Childhood Executive Leadership Institute (ECEL)

 

NISL’s Early Childhood Executive Leadership (ECEL) Institute bridges the gaps between early learning programs and K-12 schools. Leaders of programs serving children from birth through age 8 learn together as part of a powerful professional development experience including:

  • application of the latest brain development research

  • effective program design and strategies

  • family engagement and multi-generational services

  • action learning projects that improve classroom quality, strengthen family engagement, and integrate birth through third grade systems

 

The Institute is designed to increase the capacity of leaders in early childhood education programs to understand and connect the many public and private systems that are focused on the growth, development, and education of our children from birth through age 8. The work that participants will engage in concentrates on what early childhood leaders need to know and be able to do in order to provide guidance and direction on sustained instructional improvement. The improved practices in turn will lead to the desired outcomes in physical, emotional, social, cognitive, aesthetic, and attentional areas.  An important outcome for all participants is to emerge from the course fully energized and ready to collaborate with their counterparts in other early childhood environments.  This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

 

 

Enhancing the Development of Advanced Phonics Skills

 

This new, one-day session will focus on the advanced phonics skills that impact readers in kindergarten through third grade. Participants will receive a foundational knowledge of the various phonics skills within a continuum. Each advanced skill will be discussed and modeled using explicit methods for instruction. Participants will need to bring a copy of a teacher's edition from his/her district's core reading program to this session.  (Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; Free for GCEIC members and $50 for non-members; 0.6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • March 3, 2012                 Gulfport

 

Ethical Decision Making and the Newly Revised MS Educator Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct

 

The objectives of this course include:  1) knowledge of the MS Educator Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct; 2) analysis of ethical situations and professional issues in education; and 3) implementation of sound decision-making skills when confronted with professional, ethical, and legal dilemmas.  Some of the topics to be discussed include how violations will be addressed, defining and recognizing “Slippery Slopes,” and checklists for avoiding common mistakes of beginning educators.

This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

      

 

Inclusion

 

This session focuses on teaching strategies that foster greater learning opportunities for Special Education students in inclusion settings. It examines a differentiated learning approach and examines the roles that all stakeholders play in creating success. The following areas are addressed:

* What inclusion is…
* What inclusion is not…..
* What roles do regular education teachers have?
* What roles do special education or co-teachers have?
* What roles do administrators have?
* What roles do parents have?
* What roles do colleagues have?
* What are the strategies that support student learning?

(East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and $100 for non-members; .5 CEUs)

  • April 16, 2012   Meridian

 

Instructional Coaching Institute

 

The Instructional Coaching Institute is designed to help principals and school leaders learn to coach faculty members to embed standards-based education deeply into the systems and practices of their schools. As part of a state's or a district’s reform strategy and professional development plan, coaching on instruction is one of the most effective means of fostering improvements and realizing results.  Participants practice how to coach others in “learning how to learn” through relationships, collaboration, and commitment, with a focus on increasing the quality and effectiveness of classroom teaching.

The Institute includes three days of classroom activities, supplemented by two hours of online learning, as well as three hours of independent reading in preparation for class and an hour of journaling personal thoughts and reflections.

As a result of the Coaching Institute, participants will understand the effects of instructional coaching on teaching and learning, implement the five steps of instructional coaching in a variety of coaching situations, practice using effective coaching skills and tools, and generate ideas and action steps for incorporating a coaching culture in their schools.  This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

 

Language Arts:  Make It and Take It Grades K-5

 

Participants will make teaching aids and examples of student activities that will be ready to use in the classroom.  Topics to be addressed will be characterization, comprehension, writing and spelling.  Participants will construct teaching aids and activity examples to use in their classrooms.  Participants will obtain new ideas that can be adapted to the grade level they teach.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and $100 for non-members; .5 CEUs)

  • March 6, 2012   Meridian

  • July 10, 2012     Meridian

 

Mathematics and Economics:  Integration and Application in Everyday Life!

 

This training opportunity is another workshop created by educational consultants for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta: New Orleans Branch to provide educational resources for educators. This particular workshop provides participants an overview of fundamental concepts in economics and an opportunity to discover and explore ways to integrate and apply mathematics concepts in the instruction of economics and personal finance. The program’s goals are to discover, address, and prepare to teach the economics and mathematical concepts that apply to everyday economic living. Participants will receive educational resources to integrate and apply these concepts in their classrooms. This is a free workshop to interested educators in the GCEIC service area and other areas of Mississippi. Lunch will be provided to participants.  (Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; Free for GCEIC members and non-members;

.6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • February 16, 2012         Gulfport

 

Moving from Good to Great:  What Great Schools Do Differently

 

From Good to Great: What GREAT schools do differently will show participants how to transform the school’s culture for the betterment of student achievement. In order to impact schools, educators must engage in effective professional development daily. The school’s culture will be required to change and transform the thinking of others.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and for non-members; .5 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • April 23, 2012   Meridian

 

School Board Policy and School Board Meeting:  Getting It Right

 

This one-day training has been developed utilizing materials and research by the Mississippi School Board Association to help superintendents and aspiring administrators who want to be superintendents understand the importance of proper formulation of school board policy in helping improve student achievement and successfully running a school district. This training will also provide important information and strategies on conducting effective school board meetings. Building public support for education involves conducting meetings of the Board of Education in an orderly and professional way that will assure constituencies that efficiency rather than bedlam characterizes board meetings. This training will carry 5 SEMI credit.  (Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; $105 for GCEIC members and non-members; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • January 27, 2012           Gulfport

 

Strategies for Success:  Teaching the English II Framework

 

This session will help prepare teachers for the new English II test by demonstrating practical tips for helping students understand the test format and terminology. Tips for daily short activities will be included in the session as well as tips for constructing teacher-made test items in the format of the new test.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and $100 for non-members; .5 CEUs)

  • June 11, 2012                  Meridian

  • July 9, 2012                     Meridian

 

Teaching Dyslexic Students

 

According to the International Dyslexia Association, many people, perhaps as many as 15-20% of the population as a whole, have some of the symptoms of dyslexia, including slow or inaccurate reading, poor spelling, poor writing, or mixing up similar words. Not all of these will qualify for special education, but they are likely to struggle with many aspects of academic learning and are likely to benefit from systematic, explicit, instruction in reading, writing, and language.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau in 2008, Mississippi’s estimated population is 2,938,618. If only 15% of the population of Mississippi is dyslexic approximately 440,792 people are affected by dyslexia in our state alone. According to the Mississippi Assessment and Accountability Reporting System, 491,194 students were enrolled in Mississippi public schools during the 2008-2009 school year. If only 15% of this population is dyslexic approximately 73,679 students in Mississippi are affected by dyslexic. These statistics are staggering.

As educators, we must do everything in our power to educate ourselves about this specific learning disability, so we can better educate this population and prevent them from becoming hopeless and dropping out of school. With the right interventions and accommodations, dyslexic students can become very successful in the classroom and in turn become productive and outstanding members of society.

The dyslexia workshop will cover a variety of topics of interest for educators working with this population of students. Come learn about the basics of dyslexia, the latest scientific research, the right remediation programs to use for reading and spelling, creative scheduling and using staff to implement the program, classroom accommodations, the latest technology, dyslexia in the RtI and how to address it in each of the three tiers, and helping dyslexic students struggling with math.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and $100 non-members; Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium; www.gceic.org; $75 for GCEIC members and non-members; .6 CEUs; 5.0 SEMIs)

  • February 28, 2012            Gulfport

  • June 19, 2012                  Meridian

 

The Basics of Classroom Management:  Attitudes, Techniques, Management, and Reactions

 

This will be two presentations modified into one. The first half of the day will be spent discussing strategies & methods to help in creating an effective inclusive learning environment. The second half of the day will be spent on basic classroom management techniques.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and non-members)

  • January 26, 2012           Meridian

 

Transitioning for Common Core State Standards

 

The Institute for Education and Workforce Development located at the University of Mississippi will conduct comprehensive Common Core professional development sessions and onsite technical assistance in CCSS.  The following objectives will be covered but will not be limited to in this session:

Participants will:

  • Know and understand the underlying design principles of the CCSS and the new standards in ELA and mathematics—particularly the structure of the standards from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade.

  • Deepen their understanding of how the elements of a standards-based instructional system—knowledge that many participants may have already acquired through alignment and coherence with the implementation of the new CCSS.

  • Understand what to look for when observing and supporting curriculum, instruction, and assessment in classrooms that support CCSS.

  • Understand how to leverage the CCSS to support students with diverse learning needs, including English language learners and students with disabilities.

  • Plan for implementation of the CCSS and the new assessment as part of a larger school and district strategy for systemic instructional improvement.

  • Develop a transition plan utilizing the cross walk between the current curriculum and the new common core.

This course is offered by the University of Mississippi Institute for Education and Workforce Development.  For additional information (i.e, dates, SEMIs, CEUs), please contact Dr. Susan Rucker at 662-915-2707 or srucker@nislonline.org.

 

 

What’s so Special about Special Education?

 

This training will provide a review of state and federal mandates and their impact on current special education practices.  (East Mississippi Center for Educational Development, Inc.; www.emced.org; Free for EMCED members and $100 for non-members; .5 CEUs)

  • March 7, 2012   Meridian

 

Additional Resources

 

Mississippi Public Broadcasting offers PBS TeacherLine, the premier provider of online professional development for educators. PBS TeacherLine offers more than 130 graduate level facilitated, online courses for teachers that span the entire curriculum: Reading/Language Arts, Mathematics, Instructional Technology, Instructional Strategies, and Science. PBS TeacherLine is committed to helping educators acquire the skills they need to become—and stay—the highly qualified teachers needed to prepare students for a successful future. For more information, contact Nancy Pearson at Nancy.Pearson@mpbonline.org or 601-432-6254.

Mississippi e-Learning for Educators is a partnership between Mississippi Public Broadcasting and the Mississippi Department of Education which uses an online delivery model to provide effective professional development, leading to gains in educators’ content knowledge, improvements in teaching practices and increased student achievement.  Participants learn and share best practices and instructional resources through interactive communities.  For additional information, please visit www.mde.k12.ms.us/elearn/index.html or contact Jill Boteler at Jill.Boteler@mpbonline.org or 601-432-6203.

The Southern-Regional Educational Service Agency offers online professional development classes for K-12 educators.  CEUs are offered.  To view a listing of upcoming workshops, please visit www.s-resa.org.  For additional information, please contact Dr. Mary Walters at 601-266-6777.