Educators Conference
Exploring Best Practices in Experiential Education
Every summer we turn our Island School campus into a learning laboratory for educators and school administrators interested in probing best practices in experiential education. Our annual weeklong Educators Conference provides a unique opportunity for educators to challenge themselves to become students engaged in sustainable community living and place-based learning.
The conference is an opportunity for classroom teachers, administrators, counselors, program leaders, and others in the education field to learn about our program and collaborate with other professionals. Our participants come from our sending schools, as well as other schools from all around the world.
Conference Goals & Highlights
- Gain exposure to models of place-based learning
- Learn about experiential education and curriculum
- Share ideas on student assessment in experiential education
- Re-energize and connect to the sense of wonder that comes from hands-on learning
- Meet The Island School community and learn about curriculum by participating in classes and research activities
- Get immersed in the local environment
- Explore the geology and geography of Cape Eleuthera
- Understand the model for sustainable systems and marine research programs at The Island School
- Understand the curriculum and teaching methods at The Island School and gain ideas for transferring them back to your home schools
- Understand how a sense of place builds curriculum mastery, community, confidence, and capacity for change
- Participate in morning exercise
- Kayak, SCUBA dive, and snorkel
- Become part of a network of like-minded educators with resources for future curriculum development and education change
Topics
- The Island School history, vision, and academic overview
- Sustainability systems and campus tour
- Seminar topics and teaching styles
- Assessment models
- Authentic research and scientific presentations
- Subject-specific work teams
- Experiential education primer
- Place-based education resources
- Culture and worldviews in service learning and place-based education
- Transferring your learning back home and transforming your teaching
- Community excursions
Conference Dates
We are eagerly preparing for our annual Conference, which typically takes place during the last week of July. While we are finalizing the exact dates for next year’s event, we will update this page as soon as the details are confirmed. For more information, please submit an inquiry by completing the form below.
The Island School Stories
A program like this revitalizes and re-energizes teachers, making them excited to return to their schools with new ideas that will positively impact their community.
Schedule
A typical daily schedule might include:
| 7:00 – 8:00am | Morning exercise |
| 8:15 – 9:15am | Breakfast |
| 9:15 – 12:15pm | Classroom discussion, teaching models |
| 12:15 – 1:15pm | Lunch |
| 1:15 – 4:15pm | SCUBA or kayak expedition, science lesson |
| 6:00 – 7:15pm | Dinner Circle |
| 7:15pm | Evening debrief of the day |
Tuition, Room, and Board
Costs have not been set for the 2025 Educators Conference.
Tuition, room, and board for the 2024 Educators Conference was $1,800; tuition does not include travel to and from Eleuthera as well as incidentals. We recommend that participants budget for an additional $1,000 in associated costs. Transportation will be provided from the Rock Sound Airport (RSD) on Eleuthera to The Island School campus on the designated arrival and departure dates.
All conference participants will live together in Island School dormitories and eat meals at the dining hall. Learn more about our seaside, sustainable campus and residential facilities.
Thank you for your interest in the Educator’s Conference. Registration for the 2025 Educators Conference will open in February. We will announce the dates for the 2025 Educators Conference this Fall.
To receive updates about the 2025 Educators Conference, please click below:
Share this flyer with your colleagues! For more information about our Educators Conference, contact visitingprograms@islandschool.org.
