Pitt to Host Institute on Childhood Education July 17-19

The University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Psychology in Education in the School of Education will explore a wide range of methods towards advancing the field of childhood education during its 2008 Summer Institute to be held July 17-19 in Room 5604 Posvar Hall.

The institute, titled Make Practice Perfect! Training for Trainers, is targeted toward practitioners in early and middle childhood education, after-school care, child and youth work, and areas of special education. Through a series of speakers, presentations, and exercises, attendees will examine teaching techniques that can be incorporated into their classroom settings.

A highlight of the institute will be addresses by such education experts as Andrew Schneider-Munoz, vice president and director of the Center for Youth Development and Policy Research, a nonprofit organization working to improve the development of education, health, civil society, and economics worldwide, who will give a keynote address on the significance of training and professional development in human services. Dale Curry, associate professor at Kent State University’s College of Education, Health, and Human Services, will deliver a keynote address on the importance of educators being able to change their on-job performance. In addition, Frank Eckles, president of the National Child and Youth Care Certification Board, a new organization offering full professional certification, will deliver a lecture on creating engaging teaching environments supportive of optimal learning.

Institute presentations will include an overview of the Association for Child and Youth Care Practice (ACYCP) Certification Program, as well as the administration of the ACYCP examination. There also will be workshops covering such topics as the creative uses of power point and other technologies in training as well as understanding various learning styles and appropriate pedagogies for adult learners. In addition, networking and social activities will be available to attendees.

The 2008 Summer Institute is cosponsored by Pitt’s School of Social Work, Office of Child Development, ACYCP, the Academy for Educational Development, the Pittsburgh Association for the Education of Young Children, the Holy Family Institute, and Kent State University’s Human Development and Family Studies Program.

For more information, contact Karen VanderVen, Pitt professor and conference director, at 412-624-6945 or kvander@pitt.edu. For a full schedule of institute events, visit the School of Education Web site at www.education.pitt.edu/news/newsdetails.aspx?id=326.