Advancing Language and Literacy for English Learners (ALL4ELs), a professional development project operated by Clarkson University’s Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Programs at its Capital Region Campus in Schenectady, NY, will hold its first Summer Symposium on June 28 to celebrate the successful completion of the project by the first cohort of TESOL Scholars.
ALL4ELs is a research and development project at Clarkson University’s Department of Education supported by a grant from the National Professional Development (NPD) program through the U.S. Department of Education, Office of English Language Acquisition. The first cohort, comprising K-12 teachers, school leaders, and Clarkson University MAT students, took TESOL courses over a 15-month time period.
This culminating event will allow them to share what they have learned through this professional development project and how they have applied it to their teaching or leadership practice, said ALL4ELs Principal Investigator and Co-Director of TESOL at Clarkson, Gretchen Oliver.
“One of our project’s goals is to build capacity in K-12 schools so that all educators see themselves as teachers of language and literacy, and therefore, everyone plays a vital role in the education of English language learners and Multilingual learners,” Oliver said. “This event will be an opportunity for everyone to come together, in-person, after 15 months of online learning.”
ALL4ELs Co-Principal Investigator and Co-Director of TESOL Karen Gregory also noted that alumni, colleagues, and school leaders have been invited to participate in a day of professional learning which will include presentations by TESOL Scholars and professors, a technology workshop, networking and a keynote speaker. Steve Sofronas, Director of Community and Events at Ellevation Education, will address attendees.
“We are so excited to celebrate the accomplishments and learning of our dedicated TESOL Scholars in the ALL4ELs program at the first-ever Summer Symposium,” Gregory said. “For the past 15 months these teachers and school leaders have been learning how to craft instruction and assessments that are accessible, relevant, and engaging for multilingual learners, and now they have much to share with the larger education community. I’m looking forward to reuniting with colleagues from near and far, as we also meet and engage with new members of our community.”
The ALL4ELs Summer Symposium will be held from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm on June 28 at the Center for Advanced Technology at Mohonasen. For more information about the ALL4ELs project, visit sites.clarkson.edu/all4els.
