Professional Learning

Learning Summit 2024

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Enduring Purpose

July 9-12, 2024 | Vancouver, BC, Canada

Join us at Learning Summit 2024: Enduring Purpose, a retreat-like event designed for individual educators, school leaders, and school-based teams, taking place at the University of British Columbia. In this era of continuous and constant change, our three-day summit focuses on what remains constant: purpose. We’ll ground ourselves and our practice in what matters as we design for our current reality, including navigating the AI landscape, prioritizing wellness, and centering the learner in all we do. This event offers a unique blend of learning from recent research, engaging in thought leadership, and developing practical strategies. With ample opportunities for collaboration and personal growth, participants can connect with each other, with teams from other schools, and participate in one-on-one coaching sessions with experienced GOA Learning Coaches.

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What to Expect

The Learning Summit is an interactive, collaborative event. Here's a glimpse of what to expect.

Inspirational Speakers

Hear from experts and thought leaders who will provide insights into the latest trends and research in education, focusing on the integration of AI, the role of wellness in learning, and methods for keeping the learner at the forefront in a changing educational landscape.

Interactive Sessions

Engage in hands-on sessions that offer practical applications and strategies. Delve into topics such as ethical AI use in the classroom, effective wellness strategies for educators and students, and designing learner-centric environments amidst ongoing changes.

Collaborative Projects

Work in groups on a variety of projects that allow for the application of concepts learned. These initiatives might focus on innovatively integrating wellness into curriculum, exploring learner-centered approaches, or examining the practical implications of AI in educational settings.

Networking Opportunities

Connect with fellow educators, school leaders, and teams from various schools for a rich exchange of ideas and experiences, fostering a community of collaborative learning.

Personal Growth

Dedicate time for individual reflection and professional development, with opportunities for one-on-one coaching sessions with experienced GOA Learning Coaches to personalize your learning journey.

Schedule of Events

Throughout the Learning Summit, there will be a variety of learning experiences. Each participant will have a coach and will spend some time with a small group of colleagues in advisory. Participants will also have a menu of sessions to choose from. None of these sessions are required: you may also use the time to meet with your coach, collaborate with colleagues, or move forward on your personal project.

While the Summit is a place where you can expect to get work done, you’ll also have ample opportunity to unwind and enjoy all that the City of Vancouver has to offer. Throughout the day, you’ll have access to the fitness center, pools, and gardens at the University of British Columbia. GOA will host a happy hour and dinner each evening, as well as optional evening activities.

Tentative Agenda

Tuesday, July 9
3pm: Check-In Opens
5pm-7:30pm: Opening reception and dinner

Wednesday, July 10
7:30am-8:30am: Breakfast
8:30am-10am: Whole Group Learning Experience
10am-10:30am: Break
10:30am-12pm: Breakout Sessions
12pm-1pm: Lunch
1pm-4pm: Breakout Sessions and Independent Work Time with coaching
3:30pm-5pm: Break
5pm-7pm: Dinner in the City (more details to come!)
7pm-9pm: Evening Activities (Optional)

Thursday, July 11
7:30am-8:30am: Breakfast
8:30am-10am: Speaker Session
10am-10:30am: Break
10:30am-12pm: Breakout Sessions
12pm-1pm: Lunch
1pm-4pm: Breakout Sessions and Independent Work Time with coaching
3:30pm-5pm: Break
5pm-7pm: Social Hour and Dinner
7pm-9pm: Evening Activities (Optional)


Friday, July 12
7:30am-8:30am: Breakfast
8:30am-10am: Whole Group Learning Experience
10am-12pm: Summit Closing
12pm: Lunch and Departure

Sessions

Sessions are explorations into topics important to the design of student and educator learning experiences. Whether you are a teacher or school leader, there is something here for you. Each session is interactive and intentionally designed to be relevant and practical. These session titles and descriptions are subject to change.

Choose from Do, Think, and Lead strands or mix and match sessions.

Think

In this strand, sessions will offer participants time to reflect on, reaffirm, and renew their sense of why, their own enduring purpose. When we can be clear on that, we can navigate ambiguity, change, and disruption with greater confidence. Session topics include:

Navigating Dissonance

Have you encountered moments where your educational values seemed at odds with your institution’s? This session will provide affirming and productive strategies to navigate dissonance, managing discrepancies between personal purpose and lived experience. You'll be introduced to a framework to support bridging value gaps through journaling exercises and participation protocols in order to channel feelings to thoughts to actions. This introspective approach will empower you to reconcile differing values and perspectives, leading to a clarified sense of self and purpose to inform your next steps.

Reflecting on Personal and Professional Mission

Building upon our opening session, this follow-up reflective hour is designed to provide you with time and space to continue to refine and reaffirm your purpose. You’ll journey through a series of scenario-based exercises intended to bring clarity to both your personal and professional experiences through reflection and alignment. Participants will leave with a draft of their own mission statement that will help concretize their “why” in the future.

Workflows for Wellness

When wellness feels like another to-do on the to-do list, it seems to lose its meaning. Whether used as a buzzword or as an aspiration with no structure to support it, the pursuit of wellness can be daunting and defeating. In this session, participants will confront this tension and incorporate practical ways to prioritize wellness in their day-to-days. Through exploring concrete actions like taking back one's calendar and constructing sustainable communication practices, participants will leave this session with a menu of options to support wellness practices in the school year ahead.

Do

From practical “how to” based experiences to strategy-rich experiences, the goal for sessions in this strand is to ensure that thoughtful frameworks lead to purposeful action. Session topics include:

Empower Student Voice

Many of our professional “whys” are in support of students being known, students knowing themselves, and students taking action for their learning journeys. In this hour we’ll get clear on what it means to empower student voice and will explore strategies for inviting students to show up and participate in all stages of their learning experiences. From student driven learning proposals to engagement frameworks, participants will leave with ideas and replicable frameworks for amplifying student voice.

How to Hub

Who is looking for a low time investment, high impact new skill to incorporate into their practice? In this session, participants will rotate through and choose stations that guide them through developing a new skill and provide time for practice. Skills include: how to get started with AI, how to upgrade your AI prompting practice, how to make your own GPT and more. Please bring your headphones and your own device to participate actively in this session.

Personalized Learning with AI

As AI redefines the boundaries of what's possible in education, this session explores how AI can tailor education to individual student needs and preferences. You will learn how features of personalized learning, such as agency, depth, and relevance, can be supported with AI. You will walk away with practical strategies for embedding AI into your classroom practice, making personalized learning a sustainable part of your educator practice.

Purposeful Visual Design

Let’s redesign together! To be student-centered is to design and deliver learning experiences that meet each learner where they are. Ensuring accessible and engaging learning experiences is a critical part of this process. In this hour, we’ll explore the basics of visual design principles to redesign communications, instructional materials, and/or publications for greater access and engagement. Leveraging AI tools along with foundational design strategies, we’ll prioritize enduring knowledge and skills to upgrade the materials you share with others.

Systems and Structures for Belonging

How can we design learning environments where every student feels valued and supported? In our journey to create classrooms that cultivate belonging, this session highlights the role of clear routines and structured protocols. We'll dive into practical tips and best practices for shaping an environment of and for belonging. You’ll leave with strategies and plans to implement before day 1 of the next term.

Lead

Whether we are looking to change ingrained practices or ask new questions, sessions in this strand will help us to ensure that we are in alignment with our why. Session topics include:

AI Policies and Possibilities

What do we do about AI? The conversations and decisions to make around AI provide us with both possibilities and risks. In our schools, we have to navigate these complex and challenging times with a both-and mindset. In this session participants will incorporate the Polarity Mapping process to engage in discussion on AI policy with the hope of embracing possibilities and establishing clarity. Participants will leave with renewed perspectives, informing AI policy conversations in their own schools.

Anticipating the Unseen | A Leadership Framework for Navigating Uncertainty

In a landscape where the only constant is change, leaders are often faced with the challenge of responding to unexpected events with agility and insight. This session will introduce a framework designed to empower leaders to navigate uncertainty with confidence. Through case studies and discussions, you will leave with both proactive and reactive strategies, ensuring you are prepared to address challenges swiftly and effectively.

Purposeful Action | Decoding Strategic Planning

This session offers participants a “strategic plan decoder” that helps to translate and organize strategic plans into initiatives that will result in effective implementation. Whether you set the vision, develop the plan, or execute the initiatives, this session will offer a framework for aligning vision to purpose and translating vision to action. Participants will engage in the process collaboratively during the session and will leave equipped to lead it in their own school communities.

Using AI from Data to Decisions

This session is designed for anyone who is looking to harness the power of AI for data-driven decision making. Learn how AI can be responsibly utilized to analyze complex datasets, uncover insights, and inform strategic planning. Through a hands-on session, engaging with example sets and collaborating on processes, participants will leave this session with a roadmap for implementing AI in your data-analysis practice, from beginning to end.

University of British Columbia

The Learning Summit 2024 will take place at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, a serene setting that complements our mission to ground ourselves in what truly matters. In this environment, we'll delve into designing our practices for the current reality, which includes navigating the complexities of the AI landscape, prioritizing wellness, and centering the learner in all we do. Additionally, participants can take advantage of UBC's exceptional facilities, including the fitness center, pool, gardens, renting a bike for campus tours, or visiting the nearby beaches.

City of Vancouver

Stanley Park
Vancouver's renowned Stanley Park offers a rich experience with its lush landscape, scenic seawall, and indigenous art displays.

Granville Island
This vibrant arts and culture hub features a public market, artisan shops, and performance spaces, all surrounded by picturesque waterfront views.

Vancouver Aquarium
Located in Stanley Park, the Vancouver Aquarium showcases diverse marine life from the Pacific Northwest and around the world.

Registration Cost

Registration

Member

Non-Member

Individual

$1600

$1850

Group (5+) Rate

$1500/participant

$1750/participant

Pricing includes three nights in a single-occupancy room with a private restroom at the University of British Columbia and all meals.


*For those interested in a group pricing, please reach out to us at hello@globalonlineacademy.org.

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Hear From Past Attendees

  • I’m delayed in thank­ing you for what was an amaz­ing expe­ri­ence in Alexan­dria and for con­ver­sa­tions that still weave into my dai­ly thoughts. To say that our time spent togeth­er and that the fab­ric of our school com­mu­ni­ty was sig­nif­i­cant­ly enhanced does­n’t do jus­tice to real­i­ty. I’m so look­ing for­ward to what will come from our time spent delv­ing into for­ward think­ing together. Stephanie Morgan Assistant Head of Lower School, PYP Coordinator, Christ Church Episcopal School
  • The joy and ener­gy of the Learn­ing Sum­mit has been with me all sum­mer. It’s rare to find an immer­sive pro­fes­sion­al learn­ing expe­ri­ence that hits the just right” of an intel­lec­tu­al* reboot– where you are free to engage from both your posi­tion of pro­fes­sion­al mas­tery and your inner curi­ous stu­dent– and to do it with laugh­ter, cama­raderie and the res­o­nance of con­ver­sa­tions that con­tin­ue well after the clos­ing session. Erin O'Grady History & Global Studies Chair, Greens Farms Academy
  • This was an incred­i­ble pro­fes­sion­al devel­op­ment expe­ri­ence. I have learned so much and it has been amaz­ing to be sur­round­ed by such a delight­ful group of peo­ple. The sched­ul­ing was skill­ful­ly and tact­ful­ly laid out, and fos­tered a com­mu­ni­ty of real learn­ing and connection. 2023 Learning Summit Attendee

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