January 2008

If you can't view this newsletter, please click on this link: IBSC Newsletter: September 2008.

The Wonder of Teaching Boys

An inspirational pause! Joe Cox, Headmaster of The Haverford School in Philadelphia, recently put pen to The wonder of teaching boys: Get beyond the myth and enjoy it. “Sadly,” he writes, “the current dialogue about single-sex education is fraught with sociological caveats and, more often than not, gets hijacked by the left-right political noise machine. However, the wonder of boys transcends sociology and politics.” Joe goes on to identify some key aspects of “the wonder of teaching boys” – they are funny, social, ethical, competitive, active, and great leaders. A piece to be shared with faculty and parents – and boys too!

New Worlds for Boys, 15th Annual IBSC Toronto Conference, June 22-25, 2008

June is closing in fast, and the 15th annual IBSC conference is all set.

Hosted at Upper Canada College in Toronto, this year’s conference is a unique collaboration among local IBSC schools. Toronto coordinator Richard Hood reports: “the planning committee is well down the road with the final details to the conference programme. We want to give the IBSC another outstanding experience – in a great city, with great speakers ,workshops and special events.” The overarching theme is New Worlds for Boys. It invites us to lift our attention to the exciting challenges in this rapidly changing world that boys in our schools will soon lead. Our schools must help them to be Global Boys, at home in a world of fast-paced globalization and diversity. They must be inspired as Green Boys ready to tackle the challenges of climate change. They need to find themselves as Just Boys guided by integrity, caring and citizenship. And our work with them must promote Inquiring Boys who have the creativity to address the challenges of our era.

• Please note that the deadline for registration at the “early bird” rate for member schools is March 31.
• Full details of the conference programme and schedule, hotel accommodation, and registration instructions are found on our website.

Register now for Pre-Conference Extended Workshops!

Registration is also “live” for three Pre-Conference Extended Workshops on Sunday, June 22. They take place before the conference gets underway. In the first of these three-hour workshops, Abigail Norfleet James will escort us across the bridge from state-of-the-art brain research to the pedagogical repertoire that works for boys in the classroom. Those attending the second workshop will have an opportunity to work intensively with David Booth, a keynote speaker at the conference and one of North America’s leading experts on boys and literacy. In the third, Mary Gauthier and the team at Werham and West Centre for Learning at Upper Canada College will leads us through the conceptual and practical steps and strategies in putting “success for boys” at the heart of school organization and discussion.

Wisdom of Teaching in Boys’ Schools

This is an exciting new project for the IBSC, and one that will be of benefit to all member schools. Wisdom of Teaching in Boys’ Schools explores whether there are instructional practices and activities that seem to be especially effective for boys’ engagement and achievement. We know that our schools are reservoirs of expertise in boys’ education, and have a long and proven track record of developing the potential of boys.

This project is designed to tap and share the knowledge and wisdom displayed everyday in our classrooms. Up to 20 IBSC schools, representing the geographical and school-type diversity of the IBSC, will participate. In each Project School, all teachers will be asked to identify and describe an instructional activity that he or she has experienced as especially meaningful, memorable and successful in engaging boys in learning. These are “narratives” of good teaching. A series of questions will then prompt reflections about why these particular instructional examples were chosen, and how these success stories might relate specifically to boys’ approach to learning. In a parallel survey, a sample of students will likewise be asked to identify and describe what they consider to be meaningful, memorable and successful learning activities or experiences that engaged them in learning.

From these data, the research team will pull out common themes and strands in how our schools approach boys’ learning, document these, and make general observations. A special report will be distributed to IBSC member schools in late 2008, and will be published for the wider educational community. All Project schools will be selected by early February. The Project Announcement and aQ&A are posted on our website.

Breaking Gender Stereotypes: Music and Self-Expression in Boys’ Schools, IBSC Conference on Boys and Music, The Haverford School, USA, March 14-15, 2008

The arts are very much at the heart of our mission as boys' schools, and this conference is truly a "first"! The program includes addresses by a number of outstanding directors; and breakout sessions will focus on a variety of topics about boys’ musical development and their need and potential for artistic expression at all ages. For more information, and to register for the conference, go to our website, or contact conference coordinator Duane Case atdcase@haverford.org.

"Get with the Program!": Helping Boys Along the Road to College Admission, IBSC Conference on College Counseling at St. Mark’s School of Texas, Dallas, February 21-23, 2008

Leonard Sax in the United Kingdom

Following on the very successful conference at Eton College last March, the IBSC is again sponsoring a conference for boys’ schools in the United Kingdom. Dr. Leonard Sax, author of Why Gender Matters and the new Boys Adrift, will be the keynote speaker at three regional events hosted by Tonbridge School on January 23, Loughborough School on January 28 and Merchiston College School in Edinburgh on January 30. Dr. Sax will also be speaking to faculty and parents at a number of boys' schools. UK participation in the IBSC continues to grow, and we look forward to having many more schools there in the IBSC community.

Abigail Norfleet James in New Zealand

Abigail will carry the message of her Teaching the Male Brain to New Zealand in February, and will be speaking to faculty and parents at Lindisfarne College, Napier Boys’ School, Hasting Boys’ High School, Palmerston North Boys’ High School, St. Bede’s College, and Christchurch Boys’ High School. For more information, please contact office@theibsc.org.

Great Programs in Boys’ Schools

We announced this web service in September, and have received a number of wonderful submissions. These are great examples of fine programmes in IBSC schools, and the pride and enthusiasm are infectious. To meet the promise of this site, we need many more schools to contribute. Imagine if every school in the IBSC contributed two or three or four examples!

The Great Programs in Boys’ Schools submission form and the extended program descriptions are “Members Only”, and you will need your IBSC username/password to get through the door. If you have misplaced these, please contact your Head’s office or write us at office@theibsc.org.

IBSC Visits and Exchanges

So many IBSC schools have expressed an interest in forging global connections and partnerships, and this web service is designed to provide a helpful “notice board”. To post an interest in sending or receiving faculty or teachers in visits and exchanges, you will need your school’s IBSC “Members Only” username and password.

The homepage of the Visits & Exchanges programme outlines the various categories of faculty and student visits and exchanges. The on-line submission page is designed to capture a school’s intentions as a “sending” and as a “hosting” school, along with relevant information about the school itself. Once submitted, core information for each school is posted on a “notice board”, and the reader can then follow links to the full information for schools that may be of interest. Contact information for those directly responsible for faculty and student visit and exchange programmes in other schools is provided there. Our hope is that IBSC schools will now take up this opportunity, and that it will lead to some wonderful collaboration, enriching the professional lives of our teachers and the experiences of boys in our global network of boys’ schools.

New Members

The IBSC family welcomes the following schools who have recently joined:

Canada
♦ St. George's School

New Zealand
♦ New Plymouth Boys High School

United States
♦ Saint Peter's Preparatory School
♦ Septima Clark Public Charter School
♦ The Boys' Latin School of Maryland

We welcome any feedback about this e-newsletter, and welcome ideas and submissions. Please send your correspondence to:
office@theibsc.org.

The International Boys' Schools Coalition is dedicated to the education and development of boys world-wide, the professional growth of those who work with them, and the advocacy and the advancement of institutions - primarily schools for boys - that serve them.