James Aidoo’s Post

🌟 I was so disconnected from my feelings that I couldn't even name them! 🔍 Now I'm exploring the journey back to understanding my emotions. I talk about topics like this in our ACADEMIC ACCELERATOR course launching October 1. Join the Waitlist! Link in bio for details. #EmotionalIntelligence #PersonalGrowth #SelfAwareness #FeelingsJourney #CoachingWorks

Looking forward to participating this week in the 15th Biennial International Transformative Learning Conference (ITLC) https://lnkd.in/ewuDrFak. I will present with my colleagues Dr. Lawrence and Dr. Spain on  Creative Discomfort: Brave Spaces for Transformative Learning. Our presentation will center on how Creative Discomfort can use arts-based learning and creative community engagement to introduce intentional disruptions or navigate disorienting dilemmas in adult learning spaces. These disruptions, such as embodied artistic activities or discussions of positionality, often provoke discomfort, challenging participants to confront privilege, oppression, or power dynamics. While discomfort can feel overwhelming, it can also serve as a catalyst for transformative learning. We echo the reframing of discomfort as "good trouble," using it as a constructive force for growth and deeper engagement in both personal and collective learning experiences.

GETTING a great mentor helps you learn, grow, and boost your career! Guess what? BEING a mentor helps you do exactly the same thing! If you are ready to be a mentor or mentee, check out GLEAM's fall cohort. CHART members who have participated in the past give this program rave reviews. #CHARTtrainers

Do you have a community that supports your personal and professional growth day in and day out ? More than just learning for professional development, it's about how you put the knowledge into action that matters most, and who stands beside you as you do it.

What happens when you sit down with the very people who are in our classrooms working directly with young people? Over the past two weeks, we've been finding out—diving deep into conversations with schools and educators through focus groups and 1:1s about our YLAA events. The insights have been incredibly powerful. Listening to the voices of those who are shaping the future of our young leaders has been a reminder of the importance of keeping our ears to the ground with BOTH young people and educators. No point making something epic without involving those it’s for in the conversation. The question we've been asking is simple yet profound: How can we better support the young people in our communities? The answers have been as diverse as they are insightful, and they've reinforced our commitment to making sure our events are not just impactful but truly aligned with the needs of students and educators alike. By listening, we learn, and by learning, we can better support our young people. My recommendation is simple, stop making assumptions. No matter who your target market is, make sure their voices are heard. Don’t just guess at what they need—ask the question. Let’s move away from assumptions and start real conversations. Because when we include the right people in the dialogue, we can create something truly impactful.

Behind every successful event and every groundbreaking idea, there's a mentor who inspires, guides, and nurtures. This Teacher's Day, EEMA salutes the mentors who light the way for the next generation of event professionals. Your wisdom and dedication shape not just our careers but the future of the entire industry. Happy Teacher's Day! 🌟📚 . . . #EEMAGINE24 #TeachersDay #EventProfessionals #MentorshipMatters #InspiringLeaders #EventIndustry #EEMASalutes #GuidingLights #HappyTeachersDay

Today! 🏫 Join us at 12:30 pm (PST) on Zoom for our first educator community meeting and meetup 2024. Gather with educators around the world to learn about the science of courage, try a courage practice, and discover free practices for building more courageous schools and classrooms. Sign up to receive the zoom link: bit.ly/ggecourage Not sure if you can make it? Include your email in the form and we will share the recording and post-session resources. You can also learn more about how courage can boost well-being, help us navigate challenges, and stand up for our beliefs in our new course for educators: Courage in Education: Facing Challenges with Strength, Determination, and Hope, https://bit.ly/CourageinEd.

Here's a great resource to learn more about courage - a necessary trait in learning.

“When I conduct research and consult with hundreds and hundreds of schools all around the world, there’s one thing that really characterises successful teaching in today’s learning for tomorrow’s world: great teachers deliberately confront the complexity of our world by designing intentional learning relationships and personalising (both individually and collectively) how they are teaching our students the character, competency and wellness to thrive in it. This is happening despite the increasing imposition of seductively reductive and patently impersonal one-size-fits-all approaches, especially those which emphasise pedagogies of coercion and control which are masked as evidence-based scientific approaches to learning when, in fact, they’re anything but that. A playbook to scaffold science-informed and evidence-based approaches that support teacher professional judgment and the growth of adaptive expertise and self-efficacy? Yes! A scripted list of mandated rules based on “The Science of Whatever” that is imposed inflexibly with a combination of evangelical zeal and narrow-minded judgmentalism which produces, at best, knowledge-rich but submissive compliance? No. This is not today’s learning for tomorrow’s world. Instead, great teachers around the world are using evidence and emerging understandings about a wide range of sciences judiciously and in context. They’re co-creating learning processes that help students to develop the character, competency and wellness they will need to thrive in today’s and tomorrow’s world. This is exemplified in teaching and learning that amplifies the voice, agency and advocacy of every student. That’s an education that’s truly personal.” This is an extract from the notes I put together to prepare for my panel appearance at DEi 2024. You can read the rest here: https://hubs.la/Q02xlcML0 Thank you to fellow panellists Nicole Dyson, Susan Dalton & Zan Branford It was also great to listen to and catch up with #gamechangers Pasi Sahlberg Jeanette Cheah 💁🏻♀️ and Scott Millar, as well as the well-travelled Louka Parry. Thank you especially to panel facilitator Susan Brook who also led a great team of conference organisers. #alifeofpurpose #letsgo

Excited to Start a New Educational Year! 🌟 As we embark on another academic journey, I am filled with excitement and optimism for the year ahead. It’s a time for new beginnings, fresh opportunities, and growth both personally and professionally. Wishing everyone a year full of success, meaningful learning, and memorable experiences. Let’s embrace the challenges, celebrate the milestones, and support each other along the way. The below article expands our best of luck to all students, educators, and professionals gearing up for this new chapter.