NYC Outward Bound Schools recently hosted two content-specific meet-ups for teachers across its 13 network schools to provide support and promote the sharing of resources, curriculum and best practices among educators.
Twenty-five teachers from 11 network schools attended MATHCON (Math Teacher Convening) in December, which took place at West End Secondary School, and included classroom observation, discussion and math grapple group work in addition to a keynote address by Dr. Jamaal Matthews. A former middle school math teacher in the Bronx and a current associate professor of educational psychology at Montclair State University, Dr. Matthews’s research focuses on academic belonging and how race, socio-cultural contexts and teachers shape students’ beliefs about mathematics.
“One of my biggest takeaways from the workshop was how important it is to keep equity in mind as we think about how we create and take away space in our classrooms — from instructional choices to content,” said Ishrat Ahmed, a 9th grade math teacher at Leaders High School in Brooklyn.
In January, 12 teachers from 10 network schools attended WORLDCON (World Languages Teacher Convening) at NYC Outward Bound Schools headquarters in Queens. The teachers shared high-quality student work, modeled a series of classroom language activities, examined case studies and participated in an open forum on world language issues.
Participants say they walked away feeling affirmed and challenged to incorporate new strategies into their curriculum.
“Often language teachers can feel like they are working in a vacuum,” said Amanda McNulty, a French teacher at MS 839 in Brooklyn. “It is important to create networks for sharing resources, ideas and like-minded philosophies, such as the ones we have in the NYC Outward Bound Schools network. This experience helped to reinvigorate and solidify why I am a language teacher.”
For questions about next year’s CONs, contact Hilary Rosenfield, School Designer for NYC Outward Bound Schools at hrosenfield@nycoutwardbound.