S4/E35: Rethinking Conferences and Hierarchical Professional Development with Rebecca Raab

How have recent events changed the way educators access professional development? Are the days of giant annual conferences destined to be replaced by less formal, town hall style meetings? What does this mean for professional organizations that spend so much time planning for large conferences?  We discuss these questions and share some great reading suggestions around race, equity and language learning with Rebecca Raab. Rebecca is President of Virginia TESOL and a doctoral candidate at Virginia Tech researching the induction and mentoring experiences of new ESOL and bilingual teachers in U.S. public schools. Her passion is seeking innovative ways to support teachers and reduce attrition in the ESOL/bilingual field. As a former K-12 ESOL teacher in Virginia and North Carolina, she struggled to find support as an itinerant teacher and ultimately left the field (twice). You can read about her attrition story here: A Statistic’s Five Years. These challenges led her to where she is today—supporting teachers. To contact Rebecca, email her at [email protected]. For more information about VATESOL, please visit www.vatesol.com or email [email protected]. Also, check out their blog, VATESOL Together. If you are interested in joining their Summer Book Club (they are reading The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez), sign up here: bit.ly/vatesolreads. Be sure to stay in touch with VATESOL on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to participate in their exciting upcoming events!