SCOA NEWS February 2018 NCTE Standing Committee on Affiliates

SCOA News

SUPPORTING AFFILIATE MEMBERS FACING CHALLENGES TO INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM A January blog post by Millie Davis, the now retired NCTE Senior Developer for Affiliates, addresses an issue faced by affiliate members throughout the United States and most recently in Texas. In “What Do I Do? They’ve Taken the Books Away,” Davis describes the controversy in Katy ISD over The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas and offers timely advice for affiliate leaders and members as they work to support each other in the face of challenges to intellectual freedom. “What to do is the first and biggest decision you need to make when a book is challenged, whether in your own classroom, in the district, or elsewhere,” writes Davis. Contacting the NCTE Intellectual Freedom Center is one of several suggested steps for teachers who find themselves in this situation.

PLANNING AN AFFILIATE CONFERENCE In this year's annual affiliate reports, many organizations shared news of their successful conferences. In this and the next few issues of the newsletter, we’ll spotlight some of those success strategies. Among the ideas shared: Focus on a specific topic. When the Southland Council of Teachers of English focused their conference on the subject of writing with mentors, the feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive. Consider alternate formats. The West Houston Area Council of Teachers of English hosts a fall breakfast and a winter workshop each year, inviting a well-known name in literacy education as keynote speaker. The breakfast brings 200 to 300 educators together on a Saturday morning that includes updates on state literacy news and ideas for classroom application of best practice theory. Get a publisher involved. When the Wisconsin Council of Teachers of English worked with Pearson Publishing Company to bring Kelly Gallagher to their conference, Pearson arranged for the first 200 registrants to receive Gallagher’s latest book for free. So many attendees wanted to hear Gallagher that registration had to be closed earlier than expected. Follow an EdCamp model. The KATE Conference of the Kansas Association of Teachers of English is a one day “unconference” in which participants spend the first part of the morning determining the topics for four 45-minute sessions. Volunteer facilitators then take notes and help direct the conversations. For more conference ideas, see the Affiliate Spotlight below.

Continuing the Journey Last fall Leila Christenbury and Ken Lindblom published Continuing the Journey , the first book in a series aimed at veteran secondary and middle school teachers. The book offers practical advice, encouragement, cutting-edge ideas, and insights from veteran teachers throughout the country in an innovative "Ideal Teachers' Lounge." Leila and Ken are now available for speaking engagements at your affiliate meetings! Ken and Leila provide a wonderfully entertaining while also deeply practical presentation (of varying lengths) that attendees are sure to talk about long after it’s over. NCTE is here to help with planning and logistics so you can make the most of their visit. Contact Lu Ann McNabb with inquiries.

Looking to reach preservice teachers at your conference? Each year at the NCTE Annual Convention, Dr. Alan Brown of Wake Forest University and Dr. Luke Rodesiler of Purdue University Fort Wayne host “The Future Is Now: Exploring 21st-Century Teaching Ideas with the Next Generation of English Teachers,” a conference session they would be happy to present at the state level. Details and contact info are available here . On the Affiliate Resources page of the NCTE website, you’ll find a conference planning guide that includes a wealth of information. Looking for conference speakers? NCTE’s Cosponsored Speakers Program can get you connected!

This year, many states will be reviewing and implementing their ESSA plans. For more on your state’s plan, visit these websites: ESSA State Plans 50-State Landscape Analysis ESSA in the States: How Good is Your State’s Education Plan? Stay informed! Follow @Essa_Update on Twitter and sign up for ESSA Advance to receive email updates specific to your state. More information about ESSA and individual states is available here and here .

NCTE LEADERSHIP AND ADVOCACY SUMMIT   APRIL 12-13 Washington, DC Join your peers on Capitol Hill for a day and a half of learning and action. Attendees will engage in workshops focused on advocacy, discussions with education advocates, and visits to the offices of key legislators on Capitol Hill. Full schedule and more details coming soon.

AFFILIATE SPOTLIGHT

Many affiliates find conferences are more successful when they team up with another organization. Affiliates that build relationships with local colleges and universities discover the benefits of working together to further literacy education and professional development for their members.

The Colorado Language Arts Society teamed up with the Auraria Campus of the Community College of Denver for their 2016 Fall Regional Conference. Relocating the event to the Tivoli Student Union on that campus and getting a student affiliate involved resulted in a successful event.  “Our keynote speakers included Taylor Mali, Jimmy Santiago Baca, and Sarah Brown Wessling,” reported the affiliate. “In addition, we had 16 hour and 15 minute sessions on various topics related to our theme. The committee worked with the student affiliate at Metropolitan State University of Denver, and we had a significant increase in attendance at the conference.” ”Our planning for our first annual conference is exciting and inspiring,” wrote the West Virginia Council of Teachers of English in their annual report. WVCTE is partnering with the National Writing Project at West Virginia University and the NCTE student affiliate of that university. The student union at WVU is the location for the event.  Speakers will include WV poet laureate Marc Harshman; WV poet and author of Whipstitches, Randi Ward; NYT featured Looking at Appalachia photographer, Roger May; author of illustrated novel Trampoline, Robert Gipe; and Talks With Teachers podcaster, #aplitchat Twitter host, and high school advisor to the College Board Brian Sztabnik.

Information on a wide variety of affiliate projects and programs, including sample constitutions and board member notebooks, is available from NCTE. Email inquiries to affsec@ncte.org .

STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES

Educators who teach high school juniors and eighth graders are encouraged to submit student writings to the Achievement Awards in Writing and Promising Young Writers Program, respectively. The deadline is February 15. Educators who would like to judge student awards are encouraged to submit their information via this link. Questions can be directed to aa@ncte.org or pyw@ncte.org .

How has your affiliate supported opportunities for students to be recognized for their writing? The Oregon Council of Teachers of English joins forces with the Portland State University Graduate School of Education to sponsor the Oregon Writing Festival each spring. This celebration of student writing involves teachers and students from across the state, with more than 750 students participating last year. The day includes workshops for students, teachers, and parents.

IMPORTANT DATES

Join the conversation! The next NCTE Twitter chat is Sunday, February 18, at 8:00 PM ET.  Let’s share our new ideas for the new year! The topic will be diverse literature.

The David H. Russell Award for Distinguished Research in the Teaching of English recognizes published research in language, literature, rhetoric, teaching procedures, or cognitive processes that may sharpen the teaching of English at any level. Applications due March 1.

The 2018 CCCC Convention will be held March 14-17 in Kansas City, Missouri. For more information on registration and housing, go to the CCCC website .

Make plans now to apply for the  NCTE Affiliate Awards. Many affiliates assign award applications to specific board positions as part of the official duties for that position.

AFFILIATE CALENDAR

The Standing Committee on Affiliates sends this newsletter to leaders of NCTE affiliates. The representatives of the eight regions welcome content for and comments about previous and forthcoming issues. Region 1: Lawrence Butti Region 2: Margaret Ford Region 3: Julie Rucker Region 4: Cheryl Simonds Region 5: L. A. Baines Region 6: Tracy Kriese Region 7: Jeana Hrepich Region 8: Stacey Takanishi Chair: Jean Boreen The SCOA Newsletter is a member of NCTE's Information Exchange.

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