In this edition of the CONNECTOR, we are happy to share:

• The 52nd AAIE Pre-Conferences - Trainings, Private Tours and Events in NYC

• The NEW 2018 CEESA Cohort: AAIE International School Leadership Certificate 

• The NEW AAIE Innovation Leadership Certificate 2018 AASSA Pre-Conference

• Stories from Cairo American College in this month's Member School Spotlight. Take a few minutes to catch up with Director Wayne Rutherford and see what he and his team are up to at CAC!

• The AAIE 2018 Summer Institutes and Certificate Offerings

• An Article from Dr. Stefanos Gialamas, the President of ACS Athens shares his thoughts on providing a holistic, meaningful and harmonious education for the 21st Century Student in his article titled Morfosis Educational Philosophy for the 21st Century Student.

• How data helps international schools with NWEA, this month's Affiliate Member Spotlight and celebration of a very special award they won in 2017

• An Up Close and Personal Interview with EARCOS Executive Director, and former AAIE Executive Director Dick Krajczar

• An important ICMEC Child Protection Resources Update from Laurie Tasharski

• The Regional Association Spotlight on NESA and their new Executive Director Madeleine Hewitt

Enjoy!

Yolanda 

Yolanda Murphy-Barrena

Executive Director

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52nd AAIE International Leadership Conference & Expo Update

Are you registered? The 52nd AAIE International Leadership Conference & Expo in New York will be an inspirational and memorable event designed to connect and engage you with colleagues and international thought leaders around the important challenges, conversations and innovations that are driving international education forward. Our 52nd Opening General Session and Welcome Reception being held at the United Nations will feature renowned international keynote presenters and student performances by UNIS, the 2018 AAIE Host School. Space for the UN event is limited, so please register before 1 December 2017 to take advantage of early-bird discounts and ensure your place! Please also book your specially priced hotel room early as we sold out last year on several nights, well ahead of the January cut-off date.

52nd AAIE Conference At-A-Glance Schedule Available Online 

52nd Pre-Conferences
Make the most of attending AAIE and being in dynamic New York City by taking advantage of one or more of the following AAIE Pre-Conference options. These include important trainings, exclusive private tours and specially priced Broadway shows offered in partnership with AAIE Member Providers. Please review the offerings below and reserve your seats/tickets early!

Please consider supporting a future Head of School in connecting with our global leadership family by bringing them along! Your support in introducing the next generation of leaders to AAIE colleagues is much appreciated. We look forward to seeing you in NYC at the 52d! 

Speaking of leadership development....we are looking ahead to spring and summer of 2018 when we will be collaborating with colleagues in both the CEESA Region and the AASSA Region in March to continue the support, development and diversification of our international 'leadership pipeline'. At both of these annual Conferences we will offer select Pre-Conference Leadership Certificate options and regular conference sessions designed to support emerging and current leaders in gaining the international credentials, insights, knowledge and connections to forward their international leadership careers.

We Thank This Edition's Newsletter Sponsors!

Member School Spotlight

Cairo American College

Cairo American College is a leading international school with a 71 year history of excellence. At CAC, students "Learn, Explore, and have Fun," and we are well reputed for the special community which CAC has fostered and maintained for many years. CAC prides itself on educating the whole child, and our Performing Arts, Athletics, and Activities programs are vibrant and robust as they provide students with important lessons, skills, connections and friendships. CAC has been and continues to be a leader in education, and we have enjoyed hosting several recent workshops, including our innovative "Lab Sites" sessions (March 2017) in which CAC teachers shared their expertise in areas that we feel are particular strengths for our programs. Outstanding professionals, an energized community, a wonderful neighborhood, and a life-changing community are all features that make CAC a very special international school.

AAIE will again be again offering a full menu of 2018 AAIE Summer Institutes & Certificate Programs to provide your school leadership team and counselors highly practical training on critical topics during a convenient time of the year. The following learning opportunities that will be hosted at our 'AAIE home' on the beautiful campus of Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. 

AAIE 2018 Summer Institutes & Certificate Programs

25-28 June, 2018
• AAIE International Child Protection Leadership Training & Level 1 Certificate Program (4 Day)

• AAIE - ISCA International School Counselor RECHARGE: Bullying in the Digital Age & International Model Training (Level 1 and Advanced Implementation - 4 Day)

• AAIE  Creative Leadership Certificate Program (4 Day)

• 2018 AMERICAS Cohort: International School Leadership Certificate Program (2 Day)

• AAIE - GIN Top 100 Global Citizens Leadership Challenge (8 Days / HS Students)

Note: Highlighted programs are open for registration or place reservation. Registration and hotel reservation pages for all events will be open on 13 Nov. 2017 at www.aaie.org under Learning Events

K-12 educational institutions are under extreme pressure to provide the best educational experience to an increasingly diverse and complex student population.

As educators challenge themselves with questions such as, "Are we preparing our young people for the world our parents lived in, for the world we live in today or for the world of tomorrow?, increased pressure to succeed in school and prepare for best college placement takes a toll on the well-being of the student.

Today, school systems demand that students be inquisitive thinkers who are knowledgeable, principled, open-minded, caring, balanced and reflective so that they can become the decision-makers of the future.

From the students' perspective, to meet these demands, there is a need for a new, fresh and authentic approach to K-12 teaching and learning, which must reflect today's reality. The skills needed yesterday are not the same for today, and this change must be reflected in the way they are taught. Students feel that subject matter is not relevant to their interests, talents or everyday life and that standardized teaching is a one-size-fits-all approach with few teachers able to keep students interested and excited about what they are learning.

Therefore, education must move forward with a teaching and learning approach that makes the students' experiences meaningful, exciting, enjoyable, challenging and authentic, preparing them to provide new answers and solutions to challenges facing their communities and the world.

The author's proposition is the "Morfosis Educational Philosophy", an educational philosophy which is holistic, meaningful and harmonious.

HOLISTIC:

A holistic approach to education successfully combines academic, emotional, physical, intellectual and ethical components of learning to provide students with the tools to successfully cope with the changes that the university experience and life beyond will bring.

MEANINGFUL:

A meaningful education unfolds within a framework of principles and values, and leads learners to define and achieve their personal, academic and professional goals. Learning is meaningful when it is connected to that which is most important in our lives; when it speaks to our dreams, strengths, desires and talents; when it leads us to fall in love with life and learning.

HARMONIOUS:

A harmonious approach to education ensures that all dimensions of the teaching and learning experience cohere. Mission, beliefs, principles, values and practices in an educational community must be consistent and mutually reinforcing if the learning experience is truly to promote the classical ideal of living a full life with ethos.*

The delivery of such an educational philosophy must be accompanied by the hybrid methodology, "i2Flex", which combines independent student learning, inquiry-based learning (guided by a mentor), and face-to-face flexible learning (online, in a classroom or in the field). **

With the "Morfosis Educational Philosophy", students acquire new skills and master existing ones as they learn to be global citizens by relating competence to society's needs and demands and expressing the understanding of complex concepts in a unique and refreshing way. Students learn to be collaborative, creative and innovative learners who are able to communicate well by being culturally and globally aware and by behaving in ethically responsible ways.

Schools need to eliminate the fear of failure in order to respond better to an exponentially increasing complex global world and prepare young learners with the relevant attributes and competencies vital for success in the 21st century.

(*)Gialamas, Pelonis, Medeiros (2014), Metamorphosis: A Collaborative Model to Promote Educational Change, Journal of Progressive Education Vol 10, Number 1

(**)Gialamas, Avgerinou (2015), Aristeia Leadership: A Catalyst for the i2Flex Methodology, Educational Policy Analysis and Strategic Research

We Thank This Edition's Newsletter Sponsors!

Affiliate Member Spotlight

NWEA

 Up Close & Personal with

EARCOS Director: Dick Krajczar

Child Protection Resources & Training Update

ICMEC Education Portal Update

By: Laurie Tasharski

One year on
- 300% growth in site traffic in same day page-view comparison (Sept 23, 2016 compared with Sept 23, 2017)
- Daily page-views peak over 200/day, daily page-views average 120/day
- Traffic to portal, page views, new users, time on page, number of pages viewed and new resources are are all increasing

New to portal
Country Specific Legal Instruments has an additional 16 countries
Recruitment FAQs added with ongoing collaboration from CIS and ISS
Risk Management Resources added and developed

New initiatives and documents under development
- Staff Meeting Minutes for Child Protection - content editor determined and three schools identified to pilot the professional development tool
- Stakeholder Needs - content expert identified for review and editing
- Adaptable community outreach framework based on public health models - leadership interviews and focus groups initiated, but dependent on funding next year
- A number of resource needs have been identified including an educator summary of the new ICMEC report on online grooming prevalence, tactics and international legislation

Terminology and trends to report
- There is less emphasis on differentiating virtual and face-to-face interactions and relationships. The term 'real' world is obviously pejorative and is replaced with 'face-to-face'.
- There is increased emphasis on identifying contexts of peer-on-peer abuse, including high risk situations and environments, both physical and virtual.
- Leading schools favor a transparent approach to child protection, such as publicizing whistleblowing protections online or requiring acknowledgement of protection policies prior to entry.
- Digital visitor system with code of conduct agreement

What are we doing?
​​- We are informing our work by collaborating with content experts in law enforcement (on reporting barriers), academia (on school culture and peer-on-peer abuse), child advocacy (on multi-disciplinary responses and trauma-informed community outreach), industry (on capturing nuance in digital security and online training), and the non-profit world (on incorporating student voice, ensuring resources reflect research and community service aligns with principles of protection for all children).
- We are asking educators what they need, how they overcome challenges and what healing and effective practice looks like for them.

What can you do?
- Forward this email to colleagues.
- Share examples of effective practice with us.
- Contact us to provide promotional materials (bookmarks, resource folders, infographics) for events and colleagues. Many thanks to those who have done this.
- Continue to keep child protection topics on the front burner in your interactions with school leadership.
- Provide virtual introductions and share our link EdPortal.ICMEC.org or the button below.
- Highlight new resources on social media feeds or request blog posts from us addressing child protection topics.
- Let us know your needs and those of your client community.

Thank you for your support. You make our schools safer every day.

Visit The Education Portal online at: EdPortal.ICMEC.org

Regional Member Spotlight:

NESA

NESA's mission: "To maximize student learning, NESA serves member schools by facilitating sustainable and systemic school improvement based on the best practices of American and international education."

Vision: NESA will create dynamic, collaborative professional relationships that transcend current barriers and boundaries in order to maximize student learning in member schools.

Beliefs: NESA, a community of schools, strives to create a sense of belonging and identity, diminish feelings of professional isolation and foster a culture of mutual support and professional engagement. Collaboration is the cornerstone of our success.

 AAIE Out on the International Trail

2017 Tri-Association Conference - Costa Rica

AAIE Association for the Advancement of International Education

3301 College Ave M-H Bldg #314

Fort Lauderdale Florida 33314

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