THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, April 8, 1995 TAG: 9504080225
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TONYA WOODS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 58 lines
Public schoolteachers can mold productive citizens if they use their teaching skills to their fullest potential. That was the message of the Eighth Annual African-American Students in Today's Schools conference Friday at Norfolk State University.
``We need educators who are sensitive to students' needs, educators who can bring variety to the classroom,'' said keynote speaker Roderick R. Paige, superintendent of the Houston Independent School District in Texas.
Paige spoke to nearly 400 teachers, administrators and students from Hampton Roads - nearly double the attendance expected.
The daylong conference, co-sponsored by NSU, the University of Virginia and George Mason University, examined ``Partnerships Focusing on School, Family and Community.'' There were 15 workshops scheduled throughout the day.
The conference also featured Gwendolyn Everett, collections research coordinator of the National Museum of American Art in Washington.
Bringing an artistic twist to the conference, Everett presented an art education unit titled ``African-American Artists: Affirmation Today.'' The series of educational videos and books provides an in-depth look at black artists for middle and high school students.
Sarah Lang, chairwoman of the NSU Gifted Education Department, stressed the importance of teachers' incorporating different methods for teaching minority students, especially blacks.
``All techniques don't work for all people,'' she said. ``Teachers need a variety of techniques because students learn when teachers are ready to teach them.''
Preparation, motivation and creativity were some of the key areas discussed. For some, the conference opened doors to new ideas while reviving some old ones.
Justina Wilson, a 24-year teacher at Madison Career Center in Norfolk, said returning to some past concepts of motivating students could improve the atmosphere in today's classrooms.
``A long time ago, parents volunteered to help teachers in the classroom and that gave students a sense of pride and a desire to do well when they saw their parent or even someone else's parent in the classroom,'' Wilson said.
Houston Superintendent Paige said the obstacles children face outside the classroom are important to consider within the public school system.
``If teachers can get an idea of what a student deals with when he goes home, they can definitely make a difference in their response to that child's behavior,'' he said.
Juanita Praileau, who was a substitute teacher in Norfolk at Jacox and Poplar Halls elementary schools, now works with emotionally disturbed children at the Madison Career School. She said that, as a teacher, she cannot dismiss a child's potential because of ill behavior.
``He may be irritable because he listened to his parents fight all night or because he heard gunshots in his neighborhood the night before,'' she said. by CNB