TACTics
Journal
A Publication for and by TOC
for Education Practitioners
January 10, 2003
In this week’s issue:
Connections
(1) TOCFE Training in
Yugoslavia, Zana
Borisavljevic
(2) News from the Netherlands, Eleanor May-Brenneker
(3) Student Leaders in the
Philippines, Cora
Santiago
(4) 7th International TOCFE
Conference
Editors’ Notes
(5) Kay Buckner-Seal, Cheryl A.
Edwards
CONNECTIONS
(1) TOCFE Training in Yugoslavia
From Zana Borisavljevic,
Yugoslavia
As I stood in front of a group
of educators in Belgrade saying good-bye at the end of a three day TOCFE
training which Rami had conducted, all my resistance to using the expression
“TOCFE family” evaporated.
I was born with a strong need
for individual expression and being brought up with a twin sister in Yugoslavia
in the communist time resulted in my developing a strong dislike for using
expressions like “brotherhood” and “unity” as well as for any kind of
“belonging” to groups, particularly to those that emphasized their
“togetherness”. Of course when I grew up I longed to share with people whose
ideas and visions were similar to mine, however the sensitivity to these
particular expressions was still there.
I came across TOC almost by
accident. I was living in London and Galina and I were trying to find time in
our busy schedules to meet. The only day that I could make it, Galina was
attending some kind of seminar. She invited me to come and have lunch there and
then she suggested that I join them for the day. So there I was, at the final
day of a TOC seminar, which Ephrat was conducting.
I didn’t expect much. My main
reason for going there was to talk to
Galina about the program they were running in the preschool and even if the
rest of the day wasn’t too exciting I wouldn’t have been bothered. Perhaps that’s
what made the whole experience even more important. While I was sitting there
(they were doing the PrT) and listening, I got more and more excited. At one
point I had an amazing recognition that “this” was what Life was leading me
towards, that “this” was something that would make my life and work richer and
that also there was a place for me to make “it” richer. And yet, when some
days, weeks or months after that I first heard the expression “TOCFE family” I cringed. But I decided that I valued TOC too much to be
distracted by the feeling so I let it go. I never became fond of the expression
but I kept “letting it go.”
And then, to my surprise, at
the end of the seminar in Belgrade two weeks ago the expression came to my
mind. During the course of the seminar Rami was showing examples of TOC tools
being used in schools all over the world.
We saw Linda’s preschool kids’ PrT for the wedding celebration (the one
with no “wring”!), the workbooks that Gila and other colleagues in Israel have
been producing, the photos of schools in Malaysia, examples from Mexico and
many, many more. I recognized that beside Rami and myself presenting TOCFE to
the group of people in Belgrade all of you were also taking part in it. It was
the work of all of you colleagues in different countries that made this
presentation possible. So here it goes: I do appreciate that I am a part of the
TOCFE family. And, I feel truly grateful for that!
The seminar was a total
success. The participants included some staff from the Ministry of Education,
some counselors from primary and secondary schools, and members of two NGOs who
are THE organizations who run trainings in conflict resolution in Serbia. If
they hadn’t been there and other people started using the program they would
have been “fighting against it” because they would have seen it as competition.
This way they are all going to incorporate it in what they already do. I am now
writing a proposal to the MoE for TOCFE to be an accredited program for use in
schools. The next step will be a training of the trainers, which the MoE will
organize and I will conduct in the beginning of the new year. And we’ll take it
from there. And then… hopefully one day the transparencies in a TOCFE
presentation in some other country will include the examples of Yugoslav
children using the tools.
My heartfelt thanks to you all!
(2) News from the Netherlands
From Eleanor May-Brenneker,
Netherlands
How are you ALL? Sorry you
haven't heard from me for a while. I've kept a low profile since I'm suffering
from a torn retina and I don't know yet which way my vision will go, so it's a
wait and see game. Nevertheless, TOCFE.NL has not at all been sitting still.
In Oct, we ran POOGI day in
Utrecht (NL) discussing creative writing with the MOL model. Francois’ demo at
the conference inspired me and gave me the idea to create a writing “hierarchy”
with TOC. This may enable students, especially the ones that do not know WHERE
or HOW to start, to choose the conflict diagram as a pattern to construct the
required reply to the task in the title question. Often the title question
vocabulary is confusing: justify, contrast, describe etc. At various stages
near the top of the hierarchy we could add the logic branch with specific
examples, which I've called e.g.’s in the hierarchy diagram. My colleagues in
NL were impressed and enthusiastic and want to experiment with it.
Further Dutch news: (contrary
to many expressions in English with the adjective “Dutch,” this news is not
fake, nor is it double Dutch!) Petra Pouw is admirably training more teachers
in all 5 sessions. Nel Hofmeester has enthusiastically run Session One for
teachers and plans to facilitate more.
Philip Bakker has revised some sessions with a colleague who could not
fully attend all 5 earlier. He has also written a chapter in a book on National
Healthcare Policies in which TOC strategies feature brilliantly. Geerte van de
Groep is successfully using TOC in her new career of designing good teaching
practises and Carl applies TOC regularly at her school and is organising
another 1-day/ Session-1 training for teachers new to TOC and a
revision course for earlier
trained ones.
Our next POOGI will be held in
Amsterdam, 12TH DEC ‘02, to see and discuss relevant creative writing examples
from the work/education environment of our team of colleagues using the MOL
model and the MAY Hierarchy. We have more or less fully designed a diagram for
teaching specific Dutch (not fake!) grammar rules. If that diagram works, I
want to work out a generic one that can be applied to teach German and French
or Spanish grammar rules as well. I wonder how well we'll be doing…
My best wishes and love to you
all!
(3) Student Leaders in the Philippines
From Cora Santiago, Philippines
We are happy to inform you that
the 158 student leaders, all presidents of Student Councils of secondary
schools finished the TOCFE two-day course with their advisers. They have
organized themselves.
Also, 58 private school
administrators in Mindanao finished a three-day TOCFE course in Davao City with
the sponsorship of Mrs. Erlinda Herrera, of Our Lady of Monserrate, Davao City.
In Quezon City, TOC was introduced to 240 non-teaching personnel as an update
for a seminar workshop on Decision Making and Communication.
To the Goldratts, Kathy, Kay,
Cheryl and the TOCFE clan, we send you our warmest greetings for the holiday
season.
Cora Santiago
(4) 7th International TOCFE Conference
May 16-19, 2003
Ramada Plaza Beach Resort
1500 Miracle Strip Parkway
Ft Walton Beach, Florida, USA
Hotel:
• For reservations, USA toll free:
800.874.8962.
• Please reserve your room
under the TOCFE Conference block of rooms.
• Boxed continental
breakfast-up to two per room included.
• Blocked rooms will be held
until April 24, 2003 (afterward, reservations
only if space available).
• The following prices are for
maximum of 2 people per room (additional
person is $10/person per night
up to maximum of 4 per room)..Standard: $120 (plus tax) per night.
Courtyard: $135 (plus tax) per
night
Poolside: $155 (plus tax) per
night
Beach Front: $175 (plus tax)
per night
Airport:
• Fort Walton Beach, Florida
(VPS is the airport code).
• Cab/shuttle service from
airport to hotel is about $15.
• Driving information will be
shared in a future TACTics.
Conference Fees:
• Daily Rate: $25 includes
lunch, coffee breaks and all materials.
• Full conference rate: $125
includes 4 lunches, all coffee breaks, all
materials and Special
Dinner/Entertainment Event on Sunday, May 18. A
Special Event is still being
planned for Saturday, May 17!
• 10% discount if registration
fees are paid by April 1, 2003
EDITORS’ NOTES
(5) Kay Buckner-Seal, Cheryl A.
Edwards
Looking Ahead…The E-Learning
Series will continue next week with a lesson
using the Ambitious Target
process of recognizing obstacles and
intermediate objectives (from
text) to guide students to a deeper
understanding of content.
Thanks to all for sharing with
us. Cora, though your season's greetings have
been published after the
holidays, we sincerely appreciate your warm wishes.
To all of our TOCFE family, we
will continue to strive to publish your
responses, applications of the
thinking processes, lessons, announcements,
and etc. in a timely manner.
So, share with us! Send by mail
to: Cheryl A. Edwards, 2253 S. Hill Island
Rd., Cedarville, Michigan
49719, USA. Or send hyperlink to
cedwards@cedarville.net or
bucknek@earthlink.net.
To view TACTics in its intended
formatting, visit our web site at
www.tocforeducation.com and click on “What’s New.”