The 50th National Direct Instruction Conference and Institutes was held in Eugene, Oregon, July 15-19. At the opening on July 16, students Sho-un Tanaka of Eugene, Oregon, and Jackson Willis from Springfield, Australia, were presented with the Carnine/McRoberts Student Improvement Awards. Doug and Linda Carnine presented the awards. They related how these students, in partnership with dedicated instructors effectively delivering Direct Instruction programs, showed amazing growth. Click here to view their very compelling stories.
After the student award presentations, NIFDI President Kurt Engelmann introduced keynote speaker Casey Sovo. Casey is the Superintendent of several very remote Bureau of Indian Education schools in North Dakota. His inspiring keynote focused on how the school improvement efforts were guided by the seven tenets of the Turtle Mountain Band of the Chippewa Indians. He presented an amazing story of resilience and perseverance by the staff and students to implement DI with fidelity. Click here to view the story of their success.
On July 18, a reception was held to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the National Direct Instruction Conference and to present the Siegfried Engelmann Excellence in Education Awards to Kate Walsh Little from Baltimore, Maryland, Betsy Primm from Atlanta, Georgia, and Zoe Anlezark from Springfield, Australia.
The Wesley Becker Excellent School Award recognition was given to Mastery Schools Australia Springfield Academy and Hampstead Hill Academy in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Sara Tarver, a Professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, was inducted into the Direct Instruction Hall of Fame posthumously.
Click here to see the presentation and acceptance of each of these awards.
To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the conference, a panel of speakers, including Linda Carnine, Jerry Silbert, Geoff Colvin, and Doug Carnine, spoke on the relevance of Direct Instruction from its inception to the current time. Arguably, now more than ever, there is a need for the implementation of Direct Instruction programs for the benefit of all of our students. Click here to hear the panel's comments.
On July 19, Kurt Engelmann presented his closing remarks. He highlighted the key elements needed to become a successful teacher with DI. Click here to watch his presentation.
