Invitation Welcome Message Back to Home
November 14-16, 2012   Hong Kong, China
Programme Transport/Accomodation Educational Tours Encouragement Planning Committee Latest News Resources

 

 

A Message from Dave Chapman

Dear Alliance Colleagues and Friends,

As I sit here putting together this letter together, my thoughts keep turning to how quickly the 2012 IAIE Annual Conference in Hong Kong is approaching. For as long as I’ve been associated with IAIE, I can remember how exciting it was to go to the Annual Conference and Meeting to learn from the ‘experts’, network with my new friends, and to come away, renewed, re-freshed, and inspired to do more when I returned home. Being a part of the Alliance has pro-vided me with opportunities that I never would have dreamed when I first began my career in education 30 years ago! As I look back on the wonderful memories I’ve had in my chosen pro-fession, the best and the brightest focus on my accomplishments in the classroom with my stu-dents, leading my school and school district. Behind it all was my belief in what I do and how I do it…all thanks to my association with the most influential group anyone in education could be a part of…IAIE.

If you have not yet done so, I strongly encourage you to consider my personal invitation to attend this year’s conference in Hong Kong. I realize all too well the financial impact that it may create, but the benefits from this experience will be more than worth the time and effort for you. There is still time to register. One of the highlights I have treasured over the years of attending the conferences has been the relationships with our colleagues from Hong Kong. They have been very faithful in their efforts to embrace IAIE and have regularly attended the conferences in the US. I would love to see a strong contingent of delegates make the journey to Hong Kong this year. Please consider this invitation to attend.

While our membership drive coincides with our conference, this year is a bit different, as there is no membership renewal with the registration for the 2012 Conference. Our membership Committee has already begun to make plans for the 2013 membership drive. We want to make sure that we get all current members to renew their membership this fall. This is the “life blood” of the Alliance, and we need your continued support and membership. You can always utilize the IAIE website to renew your membership. While you’re at it, invite a friend/colleague to join with you!

I would be remiss not to mention our website and the efforts we are making to improve our communication with the membership. We have placed a couple of new links for “visitors”. We now have a “FAQ” link to help with questions you may have as well as who to contact for more information. Our Communication Committee is working on adding video links to the website, as well. Our first link is a YouTube video featuring the Hong Kong 2005 Leadership Institute. More will be coming in the near future. Finally, you may have already noticed “Email Blasts” via our IAIE Membership Distribution List. This is our newest attempt to provide you with relevant information from the Alliance.

We hope that you continue to support the Alliance and help us grow! Your membership and active participation in the Alliance are greatly appreciated. I hope you will accept my personal invitation to join us in Hong Kong this fall for the 2012 World Conference and Meeting.

As always, the Alliance continues to make a positive difference because of you!

Dave Chapman
IAIE Executive Director

 

* * * * * * *

 

One Hundred Days to Hong Kong

Dear IAIE Members,

The World Conference in Hong Kong in three months away, still time to register. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity promises to be the most informative, exciting, and enjoyable Conference the Alliance has ever presented.

Professionally, you will learn the latest approaches to Invitational Theory and Practice. These include social & emotional learning, dispute resolution, culturally responsive education, and how to create optimal learning environments. While learning, you will interact with scholars from countries throughout the world.

Personally, You will experience the real Asia, not look at it through the window of a tour bus. Over 150 Hong Kong schools have adopted Invitational Education as their model. These educators will be at the conference and are looking forward to the pleasure of being your hosts. Bring your spouse. Hong Kong is also a shoppers' paradise where you can find everything you fancy at outrageously competitive prices. Travel expenses are tax-exempt.

Deals on registration, air tickets and hotel reservations can be found online at www.iaiewc2012.org.hk For inquiries, Email Stephanie Chan Man-lan, Executive Secretary, at iaie.hk@creativeprisch.edu.hk. ,

"Come, my friends, it's not too late to seek a newer world."

The Odyssey

The IAIE Membership Committee

Sue Bowen, Ohio
Charles Miller, Tennessee
John Novak, Canada
Kay Phelps, Colorado
Sylvia Floris, New Mexico
Jane Allison, Tennessee
CK Fung, Hong Kong
William Purkey, North Carolina, Chair

 

 

Optimism: Hong Kong or Bust in 2012
A regular column by Allyson Schoenlein

Hong Kong, China. November 14, 2012. The IAIE World Conference opens for another year. Imagine, YOU are actually there. In fact, you already have taken a pre-conference trip to mainland China. You’ve seen the latest schools to join the IAIE network, schools where students speak Mandarin Chinese, the language spoken by 13% of the world’s 7 billion people. (Only 5% of the world’s people speak English). These schools, their teachers and their students make an indelible impression you will remember the rest of your life.


As the conference opens in Hong Kong, you are swept into a world of difference where East meets West. Many business signs appear in both Cantonese and English. When you need help, it’s easy to find an English speaker. And you are staying at the YMCA. The name sounded suspect, but it’s a terrific hotel next to Victoria Harbor (Google it!) Yours is one of over 350 rooms housing World Conference guests and many other internationals in Hong Kong for work and pleasure. The YMCA’s dining room, cafe, gift shop, lobby and currency exchange agents identify this as a fine hotel. In the evening, you step outside to see the world’s most spectacular sound and light show playing amidst the tall buildings surrounding Victoria Harbor. (Google it!)


Feeling hungry mid-afternoon? Hong Kong has the widest range of cuisines in the world, including Thai, European, Indian, Mexican and of course, the immensely popular golden arches of McDonalds. On your first day, you stopped for a Big Mac, Coke and apple pie at ‘Mak dong lou,’ as it is pronounced in Cantonese. Now you feel more adventurous. You’re ready to try the local fare at a tea house or a noodle shop. But you don’t eat too much when you are snacking, because dinner will be memorable: Peking duck, roast pork, stuffed chicken baked in clay, fresh seafood, steamed dumplings (dim sum), century egg, Buddha’s vegetarian delight, wife’s cake or moon cake. It’s a good thing you brought your appetite with you to Hong Kong.


The school visits in Hong Kong are different from those on the mainland, but equally amazing. You see how Invitational Theory and Practices keep improving these Hong Kong schools. Teachers, principals, students, buildings and grounds are full of surprises. The emphasis on ‘green’ projects in the middle of the city is unexpected. The students demonstrate care and respect for their school and peers by cleaning their own classrooms and serving lunch to each other.


There’s still so much to see before returning home. A tram ride to The Peak gives a spectacular view as it rises 1200 feet above the city (Google it!) For another breathtaking view, The Giant Buddha statue seated on Lantau Island looks out over a panorama of mountain scenery (Google it, too!) And there must be time to bargain for souveniers at the Ladies Market or Temple Street. So much to do. So much to learn. So much to experience.


Traveling to China for professional development seemed to some back home like you had champagne taste and a beer budget. But even when money was tight, you found creative ways to finance your trip. Selling doughnuts every morning paid off well and so did that school wide yard sale. Were the wait and the work worthwhile? Absolutely. Coming to the IAIE World Conference in Hong Kong was the opportunity of a lifetime and you made it happen.


Can you dream it? Don’t just Google it. Get your passport ready and GO.

 

__________________________________________________________________________

 

Hotel YMCA is ideally located, reasonably priced and comfortably designed
Opulent views of Victoria Harbor for the city’s light show exist near the hotel
Nanjing preconference opportunity provides visits to schools on mainland China
Gastronomic paradise offers everything from noodle shops to world class restaurants

Knowledge of Invitational Theory and Practice shared by international experts
Once in a life-time cultural experiences exist where East meetsWest
Night tours explore Hong Kong by boat, by tram, by bus or on foot
Global friendships to last a lifetime link inviting people who meet through IAIE

Optimism is practiced by those determined to overcome travel barriers
Registration for the World Conference is easy online and remarkably priced

Bargaining for souvenirs challenges tourists at the Ladies Market and Temple Street
Unusual sights beckon like the Giant Buddha statue or the city view at The Peak
School visits share strategies used by recipients of Inviting School Awards
Tickets to fly from US to Hong Kong are available at low prices on Cathay Pacific

 

__________________________________________________________________________

 

Buyer’s Remorse. You’ve felt it. Somewhere, sometime, you’ve seen that perfect SOMETHING. You wanted to make it yours in the worst way. It called your name, but you resisted, believing you could go back and get it later. But when the oppor-tunity passed, that special something was lost forever.


I learned about Buyer’s Remorse at an early age. I can still conjure up the vision of a perfect jacket that I didn’t buy over 40 years ago. It was crafted from a floral tapes-try fabric, and it fit like it had been tailored for me. A rainbow of soft colors made it versatile and appealing. But the price tag also made it a major purchase. Buying that jacket would have meant scrimping in other areas of my budget. I went home to think about it. By the time I convinced myself that the jacket was worth the invest-ment, it had been sold to some other lucky girl. Forty years later, I still recall my deep disappointment.


Beware. Buyer’s Remorse may be creeping up on some of us right now. We can’t let it grab our dreams. Resist it, friends!


As members of IAIE, we want to attend the 2012 World Conference in Hong Kong, China. We’ve talked about it all year. We know this conference offers a golden op-portunity for professional development on a world stage. The panorama of Hong Kong’s vibrant culture looms as the backdrop for our adventure. Preconference and post conference travel options beckon us to mainland China and to Thailand.


This time next year, we don’t want to regret what could have been. Act now. Register for the IAIE World Conference today. Reserve a plane ticket. Book a hotel room at the YMCA.


Finally, repeat after me: “Hong Kong or Bust! Hong Kong or Bust! HONG KONG OR BUST!” We’ll meet amazing people and make lasting memories. No Buyer’s Remorse allowed. I’m looking forward to seeing you there!