Teaching Boys:
A Conference for Teachers New to Boys’ Schools

 St. Christopher’s School, Richmond, Virginia
Wednesday evening, June 16^th at 5:00 p.m. to Friday afternoon, June 18^th, 2010

The program is designed to provide teachers at the beginning of their careers in boys’ schools with a collaborative setting to share and mine effective approaches and practices in our all-boy settings. The focus is on the classroom, but a holistic approach to professional success and efficacy in boys’ schools will be emphasized.

Targeted are teachers, novice or experienced, who are just completing their first year in boys’ schools. Also welcome are teachers with more experience in boys’ schools but who might gain from the conference focus. The program is aimed at all the division levels: junior/elementary, middle, and senior/upper.

Over the conference, the program will move back and forth from large group sessions with expert presenters to smaller division team sessions led and facilitated by Master Teachers, highly experienced mentors drawn from IBSC schools. There will be at least two Master Teachers at each of the three division levels, and they will work closely with the conference organizers and our keynote presenters in the lead-up to the conference.

Above all, the conference is designed to respect and support these new teachers, to celebrate and deepen their work with boys, and to help them grow into tomorrow’s champions of the mission of our schools.

Workshop Presenters

We are very fortunate that Michael G. Thompson will present a major session on boys’ development. He will also be with us throughout the conference and will participate in division team discussions, as well as a summative session at the end of the conference. This is a unique opportunity for these new teachers to meet and work with Michael in such a close and personal setting.

Michael Thompson is a psychologist, school consultant, and author or co-author of eight books, including the New York Times bestseller, Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys, Speaking of Boys: Answers to the Most-Asked Questions about Raising Sons. His newest book, It's a Boy!: Understanding Your Son's Development from Birth to Eighteen, a comprehensive guide for the parents of boys, will be published by Ballantine Books in March of 2008.

A dedicated speaker and traveler, Dr. Thompson has spoken at or consulted to more than 500 schools in the U.S. and abroad. He has appeared on the Today Show, the Oprah Winfrey Show, ABC's 20/20, CBS's 60 Minutes, and NPR's "Morning Edition" and "Talk of the Nation". He was the co-author, host and narrator of a two-hour PBS documentary entitled Raising Cain: Focus on Boys which aired in January of 2006.

Also speaking is Abigail Norfleet James, author of Teaching the Male Brain, and a frequent presenter at IBSC events. She will share her understanding of gender differences, and explore implications for pedagogy and practice in both the large group and division team settings. Our goal here is to deepen critical “literacy” about this and other important areas of research on boys’ education.

In addition to Teaching the Male Brain (winner of the 2007 Gold Award from ForeWord Magazine), her publications include reports of research comparing the educational attitudes of male graduates of co-ed schools to male graduates of single sex schools and research describing the effects of gendered basic skills instruction. Her area of expertise is developmental and educational psychology as applied to the gendered classroom.

An enthusiastic speaker, Ms. James has presented workshops and papers at educational conferences around the world. Her professional affiliations include the American Educational Research Association, the American Psychological Association, the Gender and Education Association, the International Boys’ School Coalition, and the National Association for Single Sex Public Education (advisory board member). Prior to obtaining her doctorate from the University of Virginia, she taught general science, biology, and psychology in both boys’ and girls’ secondary schools.

Finally, IBSC staff and researchers will present the results of our report on Teaching Boys: A Global Study of Effective Practices, and share the voices of experienced teachers and boys on teaching and learning in our schools.

Conference Program & Schedule
Conference DRAFT Schedule (subject to minor revisions)     [Click here for pdf version]

Conference Location

All conference events will take place at St. Christopher’s School, 711 Saint Christopher’s Road, Richmond, VA 23226.

•  St. Christopher's Campus map
•  Directions to St. Christopher's
•  Directions to Sheraton Richmond West Hotel  

Conference Registration

The registration fee for the conference is US $285.00 for those in current IBSC member schools, and US $700.00 for non-member schools. Payment may be made by cheque or credit card (MasterCard, Visa, or Diners only). The registration fee includes the opening reception and dinner, light breakfast and lunch on Thursday and Friday, and transportation to and from the hotel on conference days. To register, click here.

Hotel Registration

We will again have a special room rate at The Sheraton Richmond West Hotel, 6624 West Broad Street, Richmond, VA (804 285 2000). Please visit the IBSC's hotel registration site to book, modify, or cancel a reservation.