NCCAT Summer Seminars Offer Hot Topics for North Carolina’s Teachers
CULLOWHEE (February 16, 2010)—Keeping educators professionally proficient and passionate about teaching and learning is critical to North Carolina’s classrooms. To that end, the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) announces its summer schedule of professional development seminars taking place at its Cullowhee and Ocracoke campuses from June through August. These residential seminars explore a wide range of topics that provide educators with opportunities to deepen their academic knowledge. NCCAT’s instructional programming is designed to give teachers the support and resources they need to be highly effective and enhance student achievement. Full-time teachers (pre-kindergarten through grade 12), library media specialists, school counselors and principals who have been employed in North Carolina public schools for at least three years are eligible to attend NCCAT at no cost to the school or school system.
NCCAT positively impacts public education by providing extraordinary professional development for North Carolina teachers throughout their careers. “Connect to Your Future: Celebrating Success in the Classroom” (June 14–18, July 19–23, August 2–6 in Ocracoke and June 28–July 2 in Cullowhee) is specifically designed for full-time teachers in their second or third year of teaching. Part of NCCAT’s Beginning Teachers Model Program, this seminar provides the tools, instructional strategies and professional support new teachers need to be successful.
Other seminar offerings for teachers who have worked three or more years in North Carolina public schools include “Make Thinking Visible: Integrating Art into the Curriculum” (July 6–10 in Cullowhee) and “Best Practices for Motivating African American Students” (July 19–23 in Cullowhee). Several of the summer seminars are specifically designed to help educators develop leadership qualities. “Daring to Lead” (June 14–18 in Cullowhee) speaks to the correlation between integrity and leadership. “U.S. Coast Guard: Guardians of the Sea” (June 21–25 in Ocracoke) gives teachers a hands-on opportunity to experience levels of leadership in action. And by invitation, the state’s Teachers of the Year gather in June for “Leadership, Creativity, and Change: Positive Paths for North Carolina Schools” (June 28–July 2 in Cullowhee).
The jobs of tomorrow will require diverse skills in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). These STEM-based seminars will help ensure that North Carolina teachers have the global knowledge and essential skills to prepare today’s students for the world they will enter upon graduation: “Tapestry of Green: Botanical Wonders of the Southern Appalachians” (June 14–18 in Cullowhee); “Rivers of Sand: Exploring the Natural History of the Outer Banks” (July 12–16 in Ocracoke); “Endangered Species: Saving the Loggerhead Sea Turtle and Piping Plover” (July 26–30 in Ocracoke); “Everyone Needs a Little Mystery: CSI in Your Classroom” (August 2–6: Cullowhee); “Fearless Science: Awakening Your Inner Einstein” (June 9–13: Ocracoke); “Get the Picture: The Math, Science, and Art of Photography” (June 9–13: Cullowhee); and “Multimedia in the Classroom: Empowering Student Learning” (August 9–13: Cullowhee).
Effective professional development is a sound investment in the teachers who educate North Carolina’s 1.4 million children. NCCAT seminars not only build knowledge but also demonstrate how to develop students’ critical thinking skills. Seminars such as “Camelot: The Myth and Mystique of the Kennedy Years” (June 28–July 2 in Ocracoke); “Front Porch Swings and Onion Rings: Enduring Myths and Emerging Realities” (July 12–16 in Cullowhee); “From Biltmore to the Blue Ridge: The Vision of George W. Vanderbilt” (July 19–23 in Cullowhee and Mount Pisgah); and “Teaching Writing through Children’s Literature” (June 21–25 in Cullowhee) all bring new perspectives to North Carolina’s teachers.
NCCAT’s instructional programming also includes seminars that examine the importance of health and wellbeing. Both “Holistic Health” (June 21–25 in Cullowhee) and “Stress, Health, and Learning” (July 7–11 in Cullowhee) offer strategies for recognizing and reducing health-related obstacles to achievement.
NCCAT seminars reinforce the essential skills needed for good teaching and are carefully designed to align with the North Carolina Standard Course of Study. The center’s research-based programming allows teachers to experience intellectual growth and reignite their love of learning through a broad range of thought-provoking subjects. For more information about NCCAT’s instructional programs, visit www.nccat.org or call NCCAT Teacher Services at 800-922-0482.