Droves of Educators Converge to Take Part in the Cotsen Foundation for the ART of TEACHING 11th Annual Conference
Photos by Roy Persinko
Story by Isaac Cox
For most educators Saturday is a much-needed day of rest from the weeks’ work. Yet on Saturday, Sept. 24, over 500 educators sacrificed their day-off to attend a conference focused on building instructional excellence, which was sponsored by the Cotsen Foundation for the ART of TEACHING at the Hyatt Regency in Long Beach.
As the event kicked off inside the conference halls, the energy level began to build with the rising sounds of excited teacher chatter. Cotsen alumni reuniting with each other, principals shaking hands with long lost faculty, Cotsen fellows embracing their colleagues, everyone was eager to meet and greet, sign in, grab some coffee, and learn from leading educational experts and authors.
During the opening session, Jerry Harris, the ART of TEACHING’s executive director, welcomed the group, and spoke to the heart of building educational excellence. “We know that the environment that students experience in the classroom is composed of everything that they see, smell, touch, hear and feel. All of these clues children receive—spoken and unspoken, seen and even sensed—creates the air that gives life to their intellectual, social, and emotional growth and well-being. And yet lives are more and more rushed today, filled with more and more demands, and in some instances high-tech environments sometimes run the risk of being low touch environments,” said Harris. 
“This is something we should never forget,” he continued. “Technology is a tool, it’s something that should aid us, but
you teachers are the ones making those countless decisions that bring magic into the classrooms.”
After the opening session, conference goers had the opportunity to attend their choice of 90-minute workshops
conducted by renowned educational practitioners. This year’s presenters included:
- Carl Anderson (Author of Assessing Writers and the series Strategic Writing Conferences: Smart Conversations that Move Young Writers Forward Grades 3-6)
- Conference Workshops: on “Conferring with Student Writers” and “Using Mentor Texts to Teach Writing: Five Steps”
- Kristine Mraz (Co-author of Purposeful Play and A Mindset for Learning)
- Conference Workshops: “Powerful Play: A Teacher’s Guide to Igniting Deep and Joyful Learning Across the Day (K-3)”, “Charts as Pathways of Thinking (K-5)”, and “A Mindset for Learning: Teaching Strategies for Joyful, Independent Growth (K-5)”
- Frank Serafini (Professor of Literacy Education and Children’s Literature at Arizona State University, author of multiple professional books about reading instruction, and award winning children’s author and illustrator)
- Conference Workshops: “Using Picture Books to Teach Comprehension (K-5)”, “The Role of Informational Text in the Reading Workshop (3-5)” and “Reading Workshop 2.0: Supporting Readers in the Digital Age (K-5)”
- Teri Malpass (CGI math coach/trainer and assistant principal at McGaugh Elementary School)
- Conference Workshop: “How Children Learn Mathematics: An Introduction to Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI) (All Grades)”
- Linda Levi (Co-author of Children’s Mathematics: Cognitively Guided Instruction, and Thinking Mathematically: Integrating Arithmetic and Algebra in Elementary School)
- Conference Workshops: “The Natural Progression of Students’ Understanding of Base Ten Number Concepts and Multiplication (K-5)”
- Peter Johnston (Author of Choice Words and Opening Minds: Using Language to Change Lives)
- Conference Workshops: “Building Caring Learning Communities (All Grades)” and “Classroom Talk and Children’s Learning (All Grades)”
After three hours of inspiring workshops, attendees gathered in the ballroom for lunch and the keynote address presented by former math teacher and current Desmos Chief Academic Officer, Dan Meyer. Meyer is a much sought after international speaker, who is known for his compelling advocacy for mproving math curriculum and instruction. His presentation was deeply engaging, and provoked the audience to think more deeply and differently about math instruction.
Of the day, alumni mentor Kyle Myers from Fullerton School District noted, “Empowering the students is probably the biggest thing that I’ve taken away, and being able to show them instead of tell them, and guide them along their journey. Every time you come here, it’s reinforced to really empower your students and let them be the leaders.”
Superintendent of Wiseburn Unified School District, Dr. Tom Johnstone commented, “We started (with) the ART of TEACHING at one elementary school last year, and this year we were able to add the other two elementary schools…The level of excitement at the first school really was contagious and has caught on at the other two… We’re …very excited about using Cognitively Guided Instruction and just learning as much as we possibly can.”
Reflecting on the purpose of the day, Jerry Harris observed, “It is clear that if we are to truly make magic for our students, we must master and implement effective and instructional practices that press students for quality, provide support for them to achieve that quality, and inspire boys and girls in the belief that they can accomplish much more than they could ever imagine. The Foundation is pleased to have been able to provide attendees with tools to help in that work.”