National Social Studies Association meeting
Jill, Monica and I just returned from the NSSA meeting in Las Vegas where we presented a session on mentoring. Jill and Monica did a GREAT job!! There was lots of interest, and some really good discussion. Thanks, Monica and Jill for being great ambassadors for the grant and for the Panhandle.
I attended the National Technology and Social Science Program on April 5-7, 2006. In Las Vegas. I attended some very good session such as the “Society and Education”. I enjoyed this session very much. It took a sociological look at varies topics such as Technoloyg and Higher Education, Family Therapy with African American Families.
Other sessions included Internation Politics and Security, Should the Kyoto Protocols be Ratified North Korea: what this crisis is all About, The Threat of Nuclear Weapons in Iran and Homeland Security in the International Context. Learned a lot in these sessions and can use information in my classes.
The last series of session that I attended was Economics: National and International, Factors Influencing Agricultural Land Values in Nebraska, Implementing the European Union Common Agricultural Policy in Hungary, Pros and Cons of Globalization, The Impact of Color in Global Product Choice and Policy and the Public Impression of Laor Unions in a Right-to-Work State. I also learned many facts that will be useful in the classroom.
Our presentation was well received Danna, Jill, Dr. Anderson and Dr. Mann were very were great to work with.
The National Social Science Association conference was quite interesting. There was a wide variety of topics presented, since this association covers all the social sciences, not just history. Set on the larger-than-life Las Vegas strip, our horizons were expanded, indeed!
On Tursday morning I began with a session on Society and Education. The first speaker was a Ph.D. lawyer who has taught 5th grade this year in his children’s school. It was both humorous and insightful to hear his take on public education. Let’s just say that he has a whole new respect for teachers! He was followed by Dr. Egan, who spent 2 years researching the interactions between exotic dancers and their regular customers. The dive into sociology was eye-opening. It brought to mind relationships in some of the families we deal with- power struggles, insincerity, but a deep sense of caring at the same time.
The other 2 components of this session were Technology and Higher Education and Family Therapy with African-American Families, both very informative.
Later in the day I attended a session entitled “The Art of Teaching,” based on the book of the same name by Jay Parini. The presenter invited the audience into a discussion of teaching practices and perceptions. Hearing viewpoints from around the country was interesting, to say the least! This session was followed by one on Teaching and Learning in Today’s Schools, by Dr. Tony Manson. An analysis of instructional/learning problems in elementray classrooms gave way to many of the same conculsions that have been reached in Texas- every student must be met on his/her level. Educating kids seems to be similar anywhere you go.
Dr. Mann, Danna, Monica, and I presented our session on collaboration and mentoring. It was well-received, and we are eager to share with others.
This was a fabulous experience. I’m so glad to have been a part of it!