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Whose perspectives does this overview
represent?
Visitors to this web site may question having the conference chair write an overview, but because the full Board, our consultants and headquarters staff contribute to the event, I can be totally honest in describing the highlights and the area which needs “further improvement.”
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Attendees at the 53rd Annual Conference repeated that this conference was stellar, “the best in 25 years,” “the most exciting professional event I’ve attended,” or “the best registration volunteers ever,” etc. Our valued exhibitors were pleased with the continued flow and traffic in the exhibit areas. Our wonderful Local Committee took care of hospitality and evaluations.
Members of the Local Hospitality Committee keep the Conference running smoothly |
What exactly prompted these remarks?
When NECTFL puts on a conference, a major highlight is the opportunity to recognize individuals who have contributed to our profession and to the cause of language learning. My first thought was the amazing performance by the great bluesman Taj Mahal, who was recently named the official Massachusetts Blues Musician. His persona, musical ability, and complete ease at speaking and singing in foreign languages come naturally to him as a world class international man of music. The audience sensed this as they listened to his piano and guitar finesse. The presence of his sister Connie, accepting the Dodge Award in honor of Taj and their late sister Carole Denise Fredericks, was inspiring. The Nelson Brooks Award winner, Kathleen Riordan, is nationally recognized in the country. The article of the Freeman Award winners, Kimmarie Murday and N. Ann Chenoweth will continue to enlighten readers long after the Conference.
| Taj Mahal & Carole Fredericks  |
Kathleen Riordan |
Kimmarie Murday |
N. Ann Chenoweth |
Christi Moraga |
Our Mead Fellows, Stephanie Keebler (PA), Sandra Raab (NJ), Evan Thomas Smith (DC) and Francis Troyan (ME), worked with the NECTFL Professional Development Committee and their designated mentors to elaborate their leadership projects. We look forward to hearing from them in the very near future and beyond!
The NECTFL region's Teacher of the Year for 2006 was Christi Moraga of Connecticut. Christi will take her considerable talents and qualities forward to competition at the national level, as she is one of five candidates for the ACTFL National Teacher of the Year Award to be presented in Nashville this coming November.
Former NECTFL intern and middle school Spanish teacher Michael Donnelly received the prestigious Spanish Embassy Award to spend a month in Spain enjoying outstanding professional development opportunities both inside and outside the classroom!
But the awards were presented on Friday… let’s backtrack a bit:
Thursday's schedule was dominated by over twenty well-received preconference workshops, including one which featured among its presenters a popular writing consultant and the urban principal who selected him as a coach to unite all disciplines in the skill of writing across the curriculum at her school.
AP workshops, always well-attended, focused on multiple languages, including Japanese and Chinese. The Spanish AP workshop filled immediately, and a repeat session was quickly scheduled for Thursday afternoon! The Pre-AP vertical teaming session was popular. In addition, K-20 educators and Embassy representatives presented a wide variety of topics of interest to the foreign language profession. We were fortunate that the 2005 "Best of NECTFL" session presenter agreed to conduct a workshop at the 2006 conference.
Thursday is also always the "Meeting with the States" day at NECTFL! Each of our fourteen state associations sends up to three representatives who enjoy lunch provided by one of our sponsors and share ideas and concerns over the course of the afternoon.
But Thursday will be especially remembered for a NECTFL first as we provided six hours of customized, professional development training for 500 middle school teachers from New York City. This vision has been several years in the planning thanks to the perseverance of headquarters staff and the Board's commitment to the professional needs of urban teachers. Presenters specializing in thematic units, assessment, cooperative learning strategies and effective film in the classroom interacted with the audience. It was my privilege to be a participant in this important endeavor, which the NYC teachers welcomed warmly and praised effusively.
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Was
the rest of the conference just sessions?
Poster sessions were encouraged, and favorable comments were heard again this year. Due to previous popularity, the "Discover New Languages" program was continued and this year, Tamil, Dutch, Turkish, Chinese, ASL, Arabic and Mbang drew determined audiences of "teacher-learners." The latter language featured the presence of the Cameroonian Ambassador twice on Friday.
A NECTFL Poster Session |
Yu-Lan Lin teaches a "Give Chinese a Try" class |
The interest in community college sessions was stronger than ever before, and this year's working breakfast and breakout sessions highlighting the community college learner were well attended. The fact that two of our current Board members are national leaders in the college community realm was not a coincidence.
Many different associations also enjoyed NECTFL hospitality: ACTFL, the AATSP, NADSFL, and others held meetings at our conference. A number of countries had receptions at their consulates, and the Italian Consulate General and Cultural Institute hosted a packed event in the Marriott Marquis Friday evening.
Of course, the exhibit areas were a major attraction for attendees. Tabletops on the 7th floor and booths on the 5th floor were staffed by companies ranging from publishers to tour operators to universities to learning center developers - and on and on! Attendees were treated to continental breakfast on both Friday and Saturday mornings, thanks to our sponsors. Some companies made coffee available at their booths or during their exhibitor sessions. Visitors to the hall enjoyed hearing myriad languages, enjoying music, sipping an espresso, picking up free posters, placing orders for textbooks, discussing technology with company representatives, and running into old friends!
Everyone loved the exhibit areas |
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Our Advisory Council met for a sponsored lunch, a business meeting, and the all-important Board elections on Saturday. The election winners, Francesco Fratto (NY), Jessica Haxhi (CT), and Jennie Steeley (PA), all joined the Board at the first meeting of the 2007 conference year on Sunday, April 2.
Finally, we were in New York City! Attendees told us that they took advantage of all this great metropolis has to offer by going to the theater, visiting museum exhibits, eating at great restaurants, going to mass at St. Patrick's, attending concerts, shopping, walking, going up the Empire State Building, and visiting embassies.
How
was the articulation theme… articulated?!?
Friday's program drew many attendees and the day featured an articulation panel plenary session. The noontime event included leaders from K-20 and also one CEO from the College Board. The seven panelists had prepared brief statements on issues pertinent to the articulation theme, and these statements were distributed to preregistrants prior to the conference to facilitate discussion at the plenary. The interaction of the audience with the seven panelists was crucial to the conference theme, and this discussion will continue at further conferences.
My first task as chair of a conference devoted to articulation was to help open the doors to the professional lives of all colleagues in order for our foreign language community to observe, learn, and grow as educators through understanding of what is "common ground" as well as what tends to divide us. I thus garnered names of friends and colleagues who would agree to write diary entries about their lives as teachers, in response to several prompts designed for key points in a teacher's year, such as the first day of school. Those journalists' entries, collated and distributed to all attendees at the conference, exemplify the reality of the profession and describe the daily challenges (and delights) therein.
I am grateful to all of the above for their involvement to make the Northeast Conference the finest regional in the country.
So
are you claiming this was a perfect conference?
Trying to satisfy the educational needs of all attendees and personally assure a smooth professional event is our biggest challenge. With patience and fortitude, the Board reviews all comments, negative, positive and neutral, and vows to do better the next year.
In the "needs improvement" area, seating availability in the exhibit areas remains a challenge, as do the elevators, which almost all attendees had indicated as improved from previous years. We at NECTFL are working with the friendly people at the Marriott to ensure that there are ample tables and chairs available in 2007. And the elevator renovations have been completed!!
What
did attendees say about the conference?
With Marjorie Hall Haley from George Mason University (Go Patriots!) at the helm next year, I have no doubt that our conference will be even more successful, and that attendees will continue to write on their evaluations: "This conference must be attended by all foreign language teachers!"; "Thank you for another great professional gathering!"; "The event was well organized; location was great."; "Continue the great work."; and "I am so happy I was able to attend this conference!". To that last individual and all our attendees - we're happy you were with us, too!
Please continue to send in feedback and know that your comments are read and addressed to the best of our human ability.
Thanks to all who contributed to the 2006 Conference.
Gratefully,
Nancy Gadbois
H.S. of Science & Technology room 319
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