Author Archives: Sue

About Sue

I work as a facilatator and consultant and am passionate about Appreciative Inquiry, education and working with other like-minded folk to help make this a better world for our children and young people.

PCC Board Meeting 1/12/10

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The board meeting, conducted via telephone conference, focused on the activities of participants in expanding the use of strengths-based approaches in the education of children and increasing the practice of Appreciative Inquiry.

Two members (Sue James and Robin Stratton-Berkessel) described in glowing terms their experience of the Appreciative Inquiry Conference that was held in Nepal in November of 2009.  High points related to location, cultural diversity of attendees and applications of AI in the community, healthcare and spiritual arenas.

For more about the conference in Nepal, please see:

The group then brainstormed recommendations to make the website more dynamic including brief interviews of board members, stories of interest highlighting education in emergent areas, and stories reflecting the power of children and links to interesting articles.

An overview of Voices of Learning in Canton, Ohio. in which 6 schools participated, was presented and overall was a success.

The meeting ended with plans to complete the Leap of Learning Manual and enroll interested teachers, school administrators in the training before publication as well as regional offices of education and education boards.

More detailed information about the meetng (PDF download)

The Importance of Inter-Generational Conversation

IntergenerationalA fascinating article appeared in the New York Times on 10 January 2010, in which Brad Stone discusses current inter-generational gaps that are being influenced and increased by light-speed advances in technology.

Entitled  The Children of Cyberspace: Old Fogies by Their 20s, the article explores how the world view of children and young people is influenced by new technologies. It mentions how researchers theorize that “the ever-accelerating pace of technological change may be minting a series of mini-generation gaps, with each group of children uniquely influenced by the tech tools available in their formative stages of development“.

Our children and young people will “think nothing of sharing the minutiae of their lives online, staying connected to their friends at all times, buying virtual goods, and owning one über-device that does it all.”

It is certainly food for thought …. and yet another reminder for us all of how vitally important it is to create the space and time for meaningful inter-generational conversations!

Read the full article online …

All My Work is Peace Education

Martha Llanos, Peru

Martha_LlanosIn my varied career, including my time as the first UNICEF Regional Advisor for Latin America and the Caribbean, I have worked for the rights of the child in Peru and around the world.

Last year I had a wonderful time sharing Peace Ambassadors workshops with women and girls from India, Nepal, and Greece.

I just completed three presentations at the International Conference on Human Development that took place in Lima.

Now I am preparing to journey to Slovenia and Croatia to work on intercultural issues and coping and resilience in emergency situations.

All my work is peace education. The heart of peace education is understanding people’s lives, dreams, cultures, and practices and appreciating them in whatever contributions they make to society.

Peace education encompasses flexibility, creativity, discovery, and finding value in every way that collectivity can be built for the common good. Values such as cooperation, trust, solidarity, and respect are essential for peace building.

As Mahatma Gandhi said:

If we want true peace in the world, we shall have to start with the children. We will not have peace in the world if we continue to violate children’s rights.

To build a global culture of peace we must build a collective vision in which the culture of peace features presented in the UNESCO Manifesto are expressed in our everyday life: Continue reading

“What Works!” 26 Oct to 14 Nov

What Works! is designed to shine a spotlight on strengths-based approaches to preschool teacher–driven change in early childhood learning environments.

The conference will be conducted entirely online, so participants may attend whenever their schedules permit.

The real-time workshops will be recorded and made available to attendees throughout the conference.

Co-sponsored by a wide range of agencies and organizations dedicated to the education and welfare of California’s youngest children, this online conference is underwritten in part by a grant from the Packard Foundation to the Institute for Teaching and in part by additional funding from the California Teachers Association.

The conference is open for registration to anyone who is interested in or passionate about early childhood education.

What_WorksThere is no conference fee for members of the sponsoring organizations or for preschool teachers and daycare providers.

For other interested people, the fee is only $79 USD for three weeks!

What_Works 02For more information and to register visit the conference website.

Dick Gale
Manager/Program Director
California Teachers Association
Institute for Teaching
(619) 683-3990

“Alphabet Meditations” by Nancy Oelklaus

Reviewed 06/27/2009 by  Rebecca Boudin

There are people out there who do not understand what the life of a teacher is like.  They’re not difficult to find.

alphabet_meditationsThey’re the ones who think teachers have an easy job, one that pays far too much for only nine months of work out of the year.

They’re the ones who might not admit it, but really think our educators are nothing more than glorified babysitters.

Only those of us who have gotten a glimpse at a teacher’s life, either by doing or purposefully observing, truly understand how much work a teacher is expected to do.

There are lessons to plan, papers to grade, parents to meet, meetings to attend, classrooms to design and decorate, fights to settle, discipline to be determined, etc.

Contrary to popular belief, a teacher’s job does not end when the final bell rings.

Nancy Oelklaus is someone who understands all the stresses and strains of an educator.  In her book, Alphabet Meditations for Teachers, she provides teachers with a way to refocus themselves and prepare for a new day in the classroom.

Continue reading

A Reflection on 9/11

Marge Schiller PhD
(PCC Director)

I avoided thinking about 9/11. Even though that day was a life altering experience for me.

I was in New York City when the World Trade Centers were hit. But going back to the shock and grief and fear of being there then was not something I wanted to do.

9-11-01candlesimplelgwhite19/11 was a defining moment in the USA. People in my country and around the world came together in shock and surprise.

It was not just the number of deaths; many more people have died in defining moments of war, famine or disaster. It was the vulnerability of our wonderful, optimistic, almost adolescent country.

We were looking at a new reality that brought us both closer together and also further apart from the post 2000 global society.

The new millennium had the USA in a different and (for us) disturbing place in the world order.

On September 11th I was working with seventy senior executives from a Manhattan based hotel chain. To provide context for the management training session I had asked the group the question “Is Then the Same as Now?”

We had just started to talk about changes in the hospitality industry and the world when we heard the news.

Outside the mid town building there was smoke, and ash covered the streets. Because communications were shut down, we even speculated that the USA was at war.

childholdinghandWhen Rachel, aged three, was brought to the corporate headquarters by her mother, I took care of the little girl so Lynette could work.

As Rachel and I walked around corporate headquarters I saw how her presence affected others.  Those who were in shock unfroze. Anyone who had been crying stopped when they heard her voice or saw her sweet face.

That was when I knew that children are the image and voice of hope — especially when we suspect things are hopeless.

That was how the Positive Change Core was initiated — to serve children and youth with strength-focused approaches to schools and learning.

But yesterday I did not want to go back to 9/11.

Yes, that day changed my life — but now what?

The answer showed up on the news and in today’s newspaper.

“We can summon once more that ordinary goodness of America — to serve our communities, to strengthen our country and to better our world.”  Barack Obama

Nine One One is a day for Service. The remembrance is in the present. In giving back. Remembrance comes best in being of service to children, youth and others in our community.

That is the greatest memorial for the dead.

That is what 9/11 means to me today.