Yale Bulletin and Calendar

October 8, 2004|Volume 33, Number 6

Program marks 35 years of helping
youngsters succeed in school

Linking brain research and child development is the theme of the Comer School Development Program (SDP) 35th anniversary celebration banquet and symposium on Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 11-12, at the Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale, 155 Temple St.

Keynote speakers include Arthur Levine, president of Columbia Teachers College; Kenneth Kosik, professor of neurology and neuroscience at Harvard Medical School; and Mariale Hardiman, educator and author of "Connecting Brain Research with Effective Teaching."

The SDP was founded in 1968 in two underachieving public schools in New Haven by Dr. James P. Comer, the Maurice Falk Professor of Child Psychiatry at the Yale Child Study Center. Thirty-five years later, the SDP has evolved into what many call the "godfather" of school reform. SDP is based on the premise that all youngsters -- regardless of race, geography or cultural and economic background -- can learn at high levels. The programs and services that fall under the SDP umbrella help schools ensure that students achieve their highest academic potential.

The symposium/celebration focuses on the implications of brain research for child development, schooling and teacher preparation. The symposium will also address the question of how students are prepared to protect and promote our democratic institutions.

"These are fundamental issues for high academic achievement and responsible student behavior that are being neglected in our national rush to raise test scores," says Comer, who is also associate dean at the Child Study Center, associate dean for student affairs at the School of Medicine and professor of psychiatry.

"This is an unparalleled opportunity for educational practitioners, researchers and policy makers to explore what it will take to prepare students to be successful in school and in life," Comer adds.

The conference sessions begin at 4 p.m. on Monday with an awards dinner celebrating the 35th anniversary of the Yale School Development Program. The keynote discussion will address the challenges facing the national teacher preparation system, especially the readiness of the system to integrate and transmit knowledge gained from brain and development studies to the
present and future education work force.

Tuesday's sessions run 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Three presentations will address aspects of what is now known about brain and mind functioning and how this knowledge can be used in school organization and management, and in classroom teaching and assessment. The presentations will also link the role of brain functioning in the creation of a school context that supports student learning and development along with the following six pathways: physical, social-emotional, psychological, ethical, linguistic and cognitive intellectual. Breakout forums will allow participants to engage each other in exploring these topics.

There is a fee for the conference. For information, contact Yesenia Diaz at (203) 737-1553. Information on SDP is available at http://info.med.yale.edu/comer/news_events/index.html.

Book signing and reception

Also during the anniversary celebration, there will be a reception and book signing for Comer's newest book, "Leave No Child Behind: Preparing Today's Youth for Tomorrow's World."

The book signing will take place 5-7 p.m. on Monday at the Omni New Haven Hotel. It is free and open to the public.

In his book, Comer contends that an education without a focus on test scores that promotes development of the whole child -- psychologically, socially and environmentally -- will prepare children for successful adult lives. These principles are the basis of SDP.

"We must do a better job of rearing all our children well in our formative institutions, in preparing them to meet adult responsibilities in this complex age," Comer writes in the book. "Neither the farm nor the factory is available to save them as in past eras. Down the road we will pay the ultimate price -- loss of our open and democratic society -- unless we pay now to better prepare families, schools and other resources."

T H I SW E E K ' SS T O R I E S

Andrew Hamilton named Yale Provost

Yale rated tops in Fulbright grant winners

Program marks 35 years of helping youngsters succeed in school

Interest in community building, world of theater . . .

Story of a 'solitary yellow in a white world' is tale of hope, says Koh

Yale Employee Day at the Bowl will feature free giveaways

This year's Divinity School Convocation features concert . . .

Event explores the future of Judaism

Design icon William Morris is focus of new exhibit

Event celebrates law professor's scholarly work

Physical basis of hereditary pain syndrome identified

Study reveals crucial role of lipid in synaptic transmission

Model shows most recent common ancestor of today's humans . . .

Researchers discover VEGF molecule plays key role in asthma

Dr. Martin Gordon wins medical school honor

Engineer T.P. Ma recognized for his scientific accomplishments

Martin Saunders is cited by the American Chemical Society

Sherwin receives award for efforts in diabetes treatment, research

Memorial service for Dr. Frederick Redlich

Campus Notes