Summer 2019

August 1 Institute: Developing Our Expertise for Wise Decision-Making

August 1 Check in: 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. Institute: 8:30 to 3:30

Registration: The online registration link is coming soon. 

Location: Radisson Hotel La Crosse, 200 Second Street South, La Crosse, WI 54601

Keynote Presentations by Yong Zhao and Debbie Miller

From President Deborah Cromer: Teacher expertise matters. Your decisions matter. These statements are both daunting and empowering and supported by research. Because WSRA is committed to the development of teacher expertise, this summer we are providing a powerful opportunity to better understand the critical importance that teacher decision-making has on the learning trajectories of each of our students. Clear your calendars for August 1, 2019, and join us at the Radisson Hotel in La Crosse when two exceptional educators will share insights into how our decision making impacts our students.

Yong Zhao, one of two speakers who will be presenting at the WSRA Summer Institute on August 1, 2019, in La Crosse, acknowledges the desire for panaceas and one-size-fits-all mandates in his book, What Works May Hurt.

He writes: "Policymakers are eager for solutions that work for all children, for all purposes, and under all circumstances so that they can develop policies that can be uniformly implemented in all schools. . . . When a particular solution wins the favor of policy-makers, it becomes the cure-all, prescribed for all children, like the case of Reading First. . . . Since no solution works equally well in all contexts, a given solution naturally works better for some students, some outcomes, and in some contexts, and may not work at all in others. Worse yet, it could have negative effects in other contexts. . . . even if teachers are willing and able to seek the middle ground and flexibly apply what they believe is right for their students, they typically are not allowed to do so because they must follow the approach favored by policymakers."

Debbie Miller, the other speaker to present at the August 1 Summer Institute, taught and learned from children for thirty years. She will help us develop our expertise for making wise decisions as we interact with the students in front of us as they read, write, and learn to survive and thrive in our constantly changing world.

In Teaching with Intention, Debbie writes: "It’s hard to imagine the circumstances where prepackaged programs and scripts teach children better than we do. We’re the ones in the unique and wonderful position to know where our kids have been, where they are now, and where it makes sense to take them next. Real life isn’t scripted. Neither is real teaching."

The Board of Directors meet on July 31 and the Leadership Group meets on August 2.