Category: Professional Development

‘Remembering Father Oleksa, Teacher of Teachers’ by ASDN Staff

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Upon the news of his passing on November 29, Alaskan’s across the state remembered Father Michael Oleksa’s service as a priest, scholar, teacher, historian, and author. The Anchorage Daily News memorialized Father Oleksa as one of Alaska’s great communicators and “one of the state’s foremost proponents and teachers of cross-cultural communication, working to help build bridges of understanding between Alaska’s white and Native communities, between his church and the lay people, and between youth, adults and elders of all kinds.”

Continue reading ‘Remembering Father Oleksa, Teacher of Teachers’ by ASDN Staff

‘Ayagyuaput Pitekluki Caliukut / WE WORK FOR THE SAKE OF OUR YOUNG PEOPLE’ by Natasha Haycock-Chavez at ELOKA

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When Mark John, Cultural Advisor of Calista Education and Culture (CEC) and Elder from Toksook Bay, talks about his work with CEC, he stresses the importance of engaging youth and documenting knowledge and place names for future generations. Mark John has been working with colleagues at CEC to document Yup’ik place names for decades. The Yup’ik Elders he works with believe that sharing knowledge freely across generations is an important part of Yup’ik culture. Yup’ik Elders are eager to teach young people the rich history and names of places of their homeland, including camp and settlement sites, rivers, sloughs, rocks, and ponds. Place names hold stories and knowledge important for language and cultural retention.

Mark John shares the place name documentation he has done with Calista Education Council (CEC) at the Exchange for Local Observations and Knowledge of the Arctic (ELOKA) meeting held in Fairbanks, Alaska (2023).

Continue reading ‘Ayagyuaput Pitekluki Caliukut / WE WORK FOR THE SAKE OF OUR YOUNG PEOPLE’ by Natasha Haycock-Chavez at ELOKA

‘Cultural Exchange at the Heart of Teaching Success’ by Juvy Pamunag

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Uvlaalluataq! (Good morning in Iñupiaq)

Maayong Buntag! (Good morning in Bisaya)

Shungnak School is a culturally responsive institution where Iñupiaq language is present in everyday instruction.

Hi! My name is Juvy Magsanay Pamunag, a J1 teacher from the Philippines. I am from Mindanao region, and I speak Cebuano colloquially known as “Bisaya”. This is my 2nd year teaching in the Northwest Arctic Borough School District, and I teach ELA and Social Studies to grades 6 to 12 learners in Shungnak School. Continue reading ‘Cultural Exchange at the Heart of Teaching Success’ by Juvy Pamunag

‘A Focus On Visible Learning Practice: Two Teacher Perspectives from Shungnak School’ by Sam Jordan

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Shungnak School students and staff start the school day with movement to energize learning.

This spring, a cohort of educators from four partner school districts  participated in an online professional learning class focused on the implementation of Visible Learning practices in their classrooms. This class was formed as part of a multiyear effort to deepen the use of researched-based practices in classroom instruction through the Increasing Performance and Retention in Alaska’s Rural Schools (IPRARS) initiative, a federal grant managed by the Alaska Council of School Administrators (ACSA). Continue reading ‘A Focus On Visible Learning Practice: Two Teacher Perspectives from Shungnak School’ by Sam Jordan

‘The 2023 RTI/MTSS Effective Instruction Conference’ by Sam Jordan

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Over two weekends in January, over one thousand educators from across Alaska gathered online and in-person for the 2023 RTI MTSS / Effective Instruction Conference. Hosted and lead by the Alaska Staff Development Network (ASDN), this annual professional development gathering is the largest K-12 education conference in the State of Alaska and brings national caliber presenters and education experts from across the curriculum together with Alaska’s education community. Continue reading ‘The 2023 RTI/MTSS Effective Instruction Conference’ by Sam Jordan

‘Kuspuk Remote Culture Camp’ by the Kuspuk School District Staff

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Blending cultural studies, education curriculum, and summer camp may seem difficult. However, the team at Kuspuk School District has found a way to do all three and continue to grow their Remote Culture Camp which began in 2021.

Continue reading ‘Kuspuk Remote Culture Camp’ by the Kuspuk School District Staff

‘Making Learning Visible in Alaska’ by Sam Jordan at ACSA

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For the past two years, four Alaskan school districts involved in a federal Teacher and School Leader (TSL) grant have been working to implement Visible Learning strategies. Visible Learning refers to a body of education research led by Dr. John Hattie that reflects data on what truly works to elevate student learning. The core message of Visible Learning is that teachers are at their best when they are reflecting on the impact of their instructional practices. This is perhaps most effectively summarized in Dr. Hattie’s often-quoted statement, “Know Thy Impact!”

Continue reading ‘Making Learning Visible in Alaska’ by Sam Jordan at ACSA

‘The 2022 Alaska RTI/MTSS Effective Instruction Conference’ by the Staff at ACSA/ASDN

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Alaska’s teachers are some of the most devoted professionals in the country. Almost 1,000 educators from across the state of Alaska chose to spend two or three weekend days in January learning, collaborating, and reinvigorating their practice at the RTI/MTSS Effective Instruction Conference 2022 (and RTI Rural Schools Pre-Conference).  

 What educators took away from the conference was tremendous, and what we heard from them was worth sharing out.  Continue reading ‘The 2022 Alaska RTI/MTSS Effective Instruction Conference’ by the Staff at ACSA/ASDN

‘The 2021 Alaska School Leadership Institute (ASLI)’ by Sam Jordan at ASDN

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During the first week of June 2021, over 180 education leaders from 31 school districts across Alaska came together virtually for the 13th annual Alaska School Leadership Institute (ASLI).  Designed as an opportunity for Alaska’s rural school leaders to connect, reflect and plan for the next school year, the 2021 ASLI hosted a dynamic lineup of nationally and internationally recognized speakers that challenged conference attendees to reflect on the experience of leading through the pandemic and to plan for the next school year in a way that embraces lessons learned. The ASLI conference is organized each year by the Alaska Staff Development Network (ASDN). Continue reading ‘The 2021 Alaska School Leadership Institute (ASLI)’ by Sam Jordan at ASDN

‘Educators Carry Inspiration Back to Classrooms after the 10th Annual 2021 Alaska Effective Instruction Conference’ by Seanna O’Sullivan

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Educators gathered virtually over the weekend of January 22-24 for the 10th Annual Alaska Staff Development Network (ASDN) 2021 Alaska Effective Instruction Conference, bridging the distance between school districts despite a challenging year.  

Topics ranged from building a positive school culture, supporting schoolwide literacy efforts, using data science in the classroom, positive ways to incorporate technology in teaching, how to authentically assess students during distance or blended learning, and social and emotional supports.  Continue reading ‘Educators Carry Inspiration Back to Classrooms after the 10th Annual 2021 Alaska Effective Instruction Conference’ by Seanna O’Sullivan