Wednesday, April 8, 2009

5th CESTL Flyer

Long Island University C. W. Post

Proudly Presents

5th Conference of Elementary-Secondary Teaching & Learning

9am-9pm, May 2nd, 2009 (Sat)
Chapel Lounge
Long Island University, C.W. Post
OPEN to the Public!

Welcome to the CESTL! Sponsored by the Curriculum & Instruction and the School of Education, CESTL is a completely student-oriented conference on classroom teaching and learning at both the elementary and secondary school level. CESTL is organized by Professor Dengting Boyanton and all of her students currently taking her courses EDI 15A Psychological Perspective: Teaching & Learning, EDI 17 Psychology & Development of Adolescent Students, and EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education from the Curriculum & Instruction Department of the School of Education at the Long Island University (C. W. Post Campus).

The 5th CESTL will show research conducted by all of our student researchers throughout the Spring 2009 semester. Each student spent this whole semester investigating one research topic related to teaching and learning under Dr. Boyanton’s guidance and supervision. Specific research methods included classroom observations, interviews, class discussions, and self-reflections on teaching and learning.

The CESTL conference will cover a wide range of topics related to classroom teaching and learning including learning and motivation, learning environment, learning process, learning conditions, peer relationship and learning, parenting and learning, teacher characteristics and learning, learning disabilities, race and learning, culture and learning, technology and learning, and many more.

The CESTL keynote speaker will be Dr. Mark Birchette. Dr, Birchette is an Associate Professor of Biology and the Director of Teaching & Learning Initiative (TLI) program at Long Island University. Dr. Birchette will give a talk titled "Passion to Teach" and share his 16 years of teaching experiences at LIU.

The CESTL will also provide a Special Symposium on teaching and learning at the higher education level from the professors' perspective. Four LIU professors will join this symposium to share their experiences and perspectives. These four special speakers are: Dr. Arnold Dodge (Assistant Professor of Leadership & Administration), Dr. Lynn Cohen (Assistant Professor of Special Education & Literacy), Dr. Efleda Tolentino ( Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education) and Dr. Dengting Boyanton ( Assistant Professor of Educational Psychology).

The CESTL is open to the public and anyone who has interest in our students’ research is welcome to attend! Please mark your calendar and join us in this exciting and inspiring event! We would greatly appreciate if you could also help us spread the news among your students, colleagues, friends, or whoever will be interested.

We look forward to seeing you in the 5th CESTL!

To learn more about our students’ research: http://joctl.blogspot.com/
Questions/comments? 516-299-4117 or dengting.boyanton@liu.edu

Sincerely,

Dengting Boyanton Ph.D.
CESTL Faculty Advisor
Assistant Professor
Curriculum & Instruction
School of Education
Long Island University, C.W. Post

5th CESTL Committee







5th CESTL Invited Speakers

5th CESTL Invited Speakers

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Mark Birchette
Keynote Address: Passion to Teach

Dr. Mark G. Birchette, Jr. is an Associate Professor of Biology in the Brooklyn Campus Long Island University. He received his B.A. in Anthropology from Yale College in 1974 and his MA and Ph.D. in Biological Anthropology both from Harvard University in 1982. Before joining LIU in 1992, Dr. Birchette had taught at Harvard University as a Teaching Fellow, Johns Hopkins Medical School on faculty of Dept of Cell Biology and Anatomy, Yale University as a joint appointment in Anthropology and Biology.

Dr. Mark G. Birchette is a member of FAME – Faculty Advising and Mentoring Exchange – a newly formed joint committee of LIU faculty and administrators working to develop a program that will support faculty members in their teaching efforts in a manner that is completely separate from the formal faculty review process. Dr. Birchette was one of the first faculty members to participate in the Core Seminar program and have been involved with it since its inception. He is currently a member of the Core Seminar Advisory Committee. He also served as a Panelist/Facilitator for a WAC discussion on the Ken Bain book, What the Best College Teachers Do. Dr. Mark G. Birchette has won several teaching awards including the Lex Dixon Prize for excellence in Social Science teaching at Yale and the David Newton Award for Excellence in Teaching at LIU.


Professors' Panel
Teaching & Learning: Perspectives from LIU Professors


This Special Invited Panel will be given by our own LIU professors. This Panel will provide our students with a different perspective on teaching and learning at the higher education level from the professors' perspective. Students will have many opportunities to ask these professors ANY questions.

Panelists:
Dr. Arnold Dodge
(Assistant Professor of Leadership & Administration)
Dr. Lynn Cohen
(Assistant Professor of Special Education & Literacy)
Dr. Efleda Tolentino
(Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education)
Dr. Dengting Boyanton
(Assistant Professor of Educational Psychology)




K-12 Students' Panel
Teaching & Learning: Perspectives from K-12 Students


This Special Invited Panel will be given by K-12 students from local elementary/high schools in New York. This Panel will provide our students with a different perspective on teaching and learning from the K-12 students' perspective. Students will have many opportunities to ask these student panelists ANY questions.


K-12 Student Panelists:

Angelo Brussich (12th Grade High School Student)
Joanne Garcia (12th Grade High School Student)
Alexandra Rossland (11th Grade High School Student)
Christiana Dobra (11th Grade High School Student)
Joshua Tolentino (6th Grade Middle School Student)







5th CESTL Cultural Events

5th CESTL Cultural Events

In addition to student presentations, CESTL also serves as a forum for cultural events, such as music or dance, performed by the students themselves. These cultural events not only expose students to different cultures, but also provide a stage for students to express their talents or share their culture with others. These cultural events will be provided during the breaks.


5th CESTL pictures & videos

To view 5th CESTL Presentation pictures, click here:


To view 5th CESTL Presentation videos
, click here.

5th CESTL Program

5th CESTL Tentative Program
May 2, 2009 (Sat)
Chapel Lounge,
Long Island University, C.W.Post



9:00am-9:10am Poster set-up Poster presenters

9:10am-9:20am Welcome address Dr. Kathryn Lusteg
Associate Dean, School of Education

9:20am-9:30am Introduction of CESTL Dr. Dengting Boyanton

9:30am-10:20am Keynote Address:
Passion to teach Dr. Mark Birchette, LIU, Brooklyn

10:20am-10:30am Break

PowerPoint Presentations

1 Behavior modifications for student’s with Asberger Syndrome in the classroom Cassie Ann Dunn

2 How does school environment affect students’ behavior in the classroom? Yun Lee

3 “It was just a joke”: Impact of bullying on adolescents Andrea Garcia

4 Understanding the impact of the media and technology on adolescent behavior Eric Morris

5 What are the motivators and de-motivators of today's adolescents? Shannon Lehosky

6 Strategies for handling misbehavior effectively in an inclusion classroom Colette Squillante

7 Misbehavior: Why do children misbehave and how do parents influence the behavior? Scott Fialkoff

11:40am-12:00pm Break

12:00pm-12:50pm Invited panel: Teaching & learning from professors’ perspective
Panelists:
Dr. Arnold Dodge
(Assistant Professor of Leadership & Administration)
Dr. Lynn Cohen
(Assistant Professor of Special Education & Literacy)
Dr. Efleda Tolentino
(Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education)
Dr. Dengting Boyanton
(Assistant Professor of Educational Psychology)

12:50pm-2:00pm Poster Presentation
& Lunch Break Poster presenters

2:00pm-2:50pm Invited panel: Teaching & learning from K-12 students’ Perspective
Panelists:
Angelo Brussich (12th Grade)
Joanne Garcia (12th Grade)
Alexandra Rossland (11th Grade)
Christiana Dobra (11th Grade)
Joshua Tolentino (6th Grade)

2:50am-3:00pm Break & Entertainment: Irish Dance☺ Colette Squillante

8 Introducing three classroom behavior management approaches Donna Brody

9 The importance of behavior management in the classroom Cindy Sexton

10 Impact of negative peer relationships: A case study of Columbine and Virginia Tech Michelle Evangelista

11 Motivation: What dissuades high school students in the English classroom? Gillian Blitzer

12 Personality: how does it affect one’s learning? Kristyn Horn

13 Understanding students misbehavior: What, why, and how? Nicole La Rosa

14 How does classroom environment affect elementary school students’ learning? Christopher Lodise

15 Special kids: How do they behave in the regular classroom? Josh Korder

16 Where I am from and how I learn: The impact of race/ethnicity on learning Emanuel Messina

4:40pm-5:00pm Break & entertainment: Saw-playing Chelsea Winter

17 Why they don’t want to learn: Understanding adolescent motivation Sean O’Brien

18 What motivate today’s adolescents to learn? Ilyssa Adelman

19 Lost voice: Exploring gender bias in the adolescent classroom setting Dana LaRose

20 What are the dispositions towards literacy for males? Demitra Georgalas

21 Greater teacher, better learning? Examining the impact of great teachers on learning Jennifer Grenville

22 How to motivate students to learn: Importance of bringing pop culture to the classroom Brooke Rosenfeld

23 Do teachers have certain expectations for certain races/ethnicities in the classroom? Priscilla Alvarez

6:30pm-7:00pm Closing: Special Presentation Dr. Dengting Boyanton

Poster Presentations
1:00pm-2:00pm
May 2, 2009 (Sat)

24 Introducing effective classroom management strategies for novice teachers Ruth Henry

25 Popularity: How does students’ social rank affect their academics performance? Alyssa Katz

26 Are foreign students discriminated in the elementary classroom setting? Louiza Mark

27 How can teachers teacher based on students’ learning style thus to increase their confidence to learn? Scott Mines

28 Examining racial discrimination in the elementary classroom Marjorie Contessa

29 Bullying: How bad is it in the elementary classroom? Joseph Scauzillo

30 Behavior modifications for student’s with Asberger Syndrome in the classroom setting Cassie Ann Dunn

31 “I don’t want to talk about it!” The importance of understanding adolescent’s emotions and feelings Christine Bruckner

32 Gender bias: Do boys and girls really learn different in high school? Lindsay Springer

33 How does parental involvement affect adolescents’ motivation to learn? Matthew Montanino

34 Who am I and how do I learn? Understanding the role of identity in adolescents’ learning Daniel Barone

35 Does intelligence equal success? Elyse Capozza

36 Introducing effective methods to create a positive learning environment in the classroom Christopher Barone

37 Are you a nerd or a jock? Exploring the influence of identity on adolescents’ learning Thomas Brouillard

38 Testing: why should teachers make it fair and how? Leidy Leon

39 “This is not how I learn!” Importance of considering students’ learning styles when teaching a lesson Caroline Schipani

40 How to manage misbehavior effectively in the music classroom? Chelsea Winter

41 What can teachers do to create a positive learning environment in the kindergarten classroom? Chiu, Lu-Chun

42 What can PE teachers do to help students with different (e.g., aggressive) personalities? Peter Severin






5th CESTL Event Summary

CESTL: An Unforgettable Learning Experience!
Summary of the 5Th Conference of Elementary-Secondary Teaching & Learning

On May 2nd, 2009, the 5th CESTL took place in the Long Island Room of the Chapel Lounge at the Long Island University C. W. Post Campus for the second time. The CESTL was organized by Professor Dengting Boyanton and her students who are taking her courses EDI 15A Psychological Perspective: Teaching & Learning, EDI 17 Psychology and Development of Adolescent Students, and EDI 600 Educational Foundation in Education in Spring 2009.

This conference was intent to be completely student-centered and family-oriented focusing student research on elementary secondary teaching and learning. For the first time, the CESTL Committee was established at C.W. Post and it consisted of 5 highly motivated and competent students including both graduate students and undergraduate students. These student committee members helped with coordinating the CESTL such as event planning, publicizing, and inviting guest speakers. “It has been a great experience to work with the CESTL committee. Although most of them felt like they didn’t help much and would like to be more involved. The truth is that they helped a lot and their help made my job so much easier.” Said Dr. Boyanton, founder of the CESTL.

It is estimated that a minimum of 96 people attended the 5th CESTL conference. Among them, 40 were education major student presenters (both graduate and undergraduate students); 42 were students’ family members (parents, spouses, boyfriends/girlfriends, children); 6 were professors/family members, 5 K-12 guest speakers, and 3 other Post student participants. It was the first time that CESTL had more family members than student presenters in the past three years. “I enjoyed meeting the family members and I was amazed by the tremendous amount of support that they provided for our students.” Dr. Boyanton said.

In addition to student presentations, Dr. Mark Birchette keynote address Passion to Teach and five professors’ (Dr. Arnold Dodge, Dr. Mark Birchette, Dr. Lynn Cohen, Dr. Dr. Efleda Tolentino, and Dr. Dengting Boyanton) invited symposium Teaching & Learning: Perspectives from LIU Professors were also highlights of the 5th CESTL. Also, the special K-12 Student Panel on Teaching and Learning, initiated by Dr. Boyanton for the first time at CESTL received very positive feedback. “I also really enjoyed listening to the guest panels, I thought it was such a SMART idea to have the high/junior high school students and professors there. I loved it so much!” Said graduate Priscilla Alvarez.

Also, our culture performance saw-playing with Piano by undergraduate Chelsea Winter and her friend Kathryn Feibusch was certainly an eye-opening experience for all. “I found the saw player to be very interesting as well since I have never heard saw-playing before.” Undergraduate Eric Morris shared his impression. The professional Irish dance provided by Colette Squillante and her mom Ms. Nancy Squillante was also a thrilling experience for the students. “I was so fascinated by how fast they were moving their legs. I was so distracted that I even forgot to take the pictures.” Said the CESTL photographer Stephen Boyanton, a Ph.D student in History from Columbia University.

As previous three CESTLs which were all held at the University of Texas at Brownsville, the 5th CESTL was also a huge success at LIU. It has received overwhelmingly positive feedback from the students, the professors, and family members. All student presenters (100%) reported that they enjoyed the CESTL tremendously and described this experience as “nerve-wrecking” “exciting” “inspiring” “educational” “informative” “interesting” “meaningful” “enriching” “respectful” “positive” “community” “well-organized” “amazing” “professional” “great” “awesome” “impressive” “phenomenal” and “powerful!”

Although many student presenters were very nervous about presenting at the CESTL, most of them felt calm after they arrived and their anxiety became excitement because of the accepting, warm, and respectful CESTL spirit. “Although I was a bit nervous about presenting my research and findings, I have to say that I was surprised by the acceptance that I felt during the conference. Everyone was very friendly and interested in what I had to say. That warm environment made all of my anxiety disappear and I just focused on enjoying myself.” Said Louiza Mark, a graduate presenter.

Almost everybody was impressed by how knowledgeable and professional each presenter looked. “All the presenters were so knowledgeable about their topics and passionate. They spoke with such fervor that allowed you to see what they saw during those observations and how they felt about their topics. I did not see fear, though I knew some were, but because of how they presented, they looked like ‘pros’ as one would with any topic and be well informed at the same time.” Graduate student Keisha Adamson-Kogle described her impression of the CESTL student presenters.

“The CESTL was a HUGE success in my book!!! I learned so much about other interesting topics, which are going to come in handy when I have my own classroom! I loved the conference so much! I had such a great time, and I cannot wait for the conference next year!” Graduate student Priscilla Alvarez expressed her excitement.

“The CESTL was a long day but well worth it. I had such an amazing time at the conference!!! I will definitely come again next year and maybe present again, too!!” Joseph Scauzillo, a graduate student from EDI 600 course shared his experience. “I had such a great time at CESTL. It was definitely worth the day. I walked away with so much more information than I would have ever gained through my personal experiences.” Yun Lee, another graduate student said.
Undergraduate Chris Leodise believed future education students should definitely attend the CESTL conference because “it is a great opportunity to learn many things about the field of education as well as becoming a teacher.” “I am really glad that Dr. Boyanton wanted us all to do the CESTL. I feel that it was a very rewarding experience and I am more confident in myself now than I ever was. I truly enjoyed this course with Dr. Boyanton and I would recommend it to everyone and anyone who is majoring in education.” Said undergraduate Nicole Larosa.
As previous CESTLs, most students felt a strong sense of achievement and increased self-confidence after presenting at the CESTL. “When looking back on yesterday, I am shocked. I never thought I would be able to do something like this. I now know that if I put my mind and heart in accomplishing something, it will be worth it.” Said graduate Michelle Evanngelista. Undergraduate Gillian Blitzer shared how CESTL experience increased her self-confidence, “The CESTL experience was completely rewarding. I’ve gained confidence in myself that I can accomplish assignments that I had once thought I could never be able to do. The CESTL conference only makes me want to excel my academics much further than I had preconceived entering college.”

More good news about that CESTL is that through presenting at the CESTL, opened new doors for our student presenters. Undergraduate student Vivett Hemans, after giving a presentation about the race and black students’ achievement in a dominant white environment, immediately received a job interview from a local school district in Long Island. “I am very thrilled about this job opportunity! I am so glad that I presented at the CESTL. I had doubts if I could do it at first and I was angry when you encouraged me to do it. Thank you for pushing and believing in me, Dr. Boyanton.” Vivett expressed her gratitude to Dr. Boyanton afterwards.

To summarize this experience, “I can’t really describe what I felt after presenting and watching others present at the CESTL. Words fall short. I am immensely proud of each and every one of us: the poster-makers and the PowerPointers.” Undergraduate student Chris Barone said, “The CESTL marked a turning point for me. My whole outlook on life has shifted. EDI 17 has made an optimist out of me. I leave this class a changed person with a reinvigorated passion for education, both in front of and behind the desk. I am eternally grateful to the CESTL, our class, and Dr. Boyanton.”

“I was in awe of the level of research and the deep scope with which my peers pursued their research assignments. All of the topics were very interesting and definitely research-worthy. Each person that presented, although nervous, got up to speak with authority about their subject matter. They were engaging, well-spoken, knowledgable, and most of all fun! The posters that I viewed were so neat, eye-catching and well put-together. Whether it was a powerpoint or a poster presentation, I left today's class with a sense of pride. The members of community of respect that we formed just a few short months ago really did a fabulous job. WAY TO GO! CESTL WAS AWESOME! AN UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE!” Undergraduate Vivett Hemans summarized her CESTL experience.

To learn more about the CESTL: http://www.cestl.blogspot.com/
To view CESTL pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/cestl.liu
Questions/Comments: dengting.boyanton@liu.edu

5th CESTL Evaluations by EDI 15A students

5th CESTL Evaluations
By EDI 15A Psychological Perspective: Teaching & Learning
Long Island University, C.W.Post
Spring, 2009

At first I was really nervous about the CESTL. I was really anxious all day and especially when my friend was not answering his phone to make sure he was coming. But he did and I was so happy. I learned that I have some friends who would do anything for me. Then after watching a few students go, I started to relax.

I learned a lot from Scott and Gillian's presentations. I really did not know the dropout rate was so high. It really is alarming. I felt like I was very prepared for the conference because I really did a lot of research for this project. Thirty-two hours of observations and interviews is definitely thorough research. The challenges I had were having good eye contact and just trying to not look nervous. I was told that I did a very good job so that made me feel great.

My parents said I said "umm," a lot. I did not realize I was doing that and I think it was because I was trying to think of what I wanted to say next instead of having to read from my paper. I basically had my whole presentation memorized. I practiced it at home a few times.

I am really glad that Dr. Boyanton wanted us all to do the CESTL. I feel that it was a very rewarding experience and I am more confident in myself now than I ever was. I truly enjoyed this course with Dr. Boyanton and I would recommend this class to everyone and anyone who is majoring in education. I think I came to like this class because not only did I learn about education, but I learned about myself as well. I learned that I am self-motivated, strong-willed, and confident. I would have never thought these things about myself before taking this class. Thank you Dr. Boyanton!
(Nicole Larosa, 5/3/09)

Today I attended the CESTL conference and I felt that overall this was a great experience. I was both really excited and happy about being a part of this year’s conference. I believe that I have learned many things today. Also, I feel that I have gained a lot of information and some more knowledge about teaching from this conference.
When I first arrived at the conference, I was still a little bit nervous. But as the other students did their presentations, my nerves started to calm down and I did not feel nervous anymore and was ready to present the poster that I had done for my project. I feel that everyone did a great job with their presentations and I felt that our class did an excellent job with our projects as they showed that we had really worked hard on doing our research and doing the projects.
I also felt that all the guest speakers that were at the conference were all great people to have them speak at the conference. I learned many things just by listening to them tell their stories as well as how they answered questions they were asked.
Some advice that I would give to future students that take this course would be that I think they should definitely attend the CESTL conference because it is a great opportunity to learn many things about the field of education as well as becoming a teacher. Finally, if there was one thing that I had learned from taking this course, it would be that I learned that when I am teaching, I need to look at each student as an individual person because all students have their own learning styles and they all understanding things in different ways. (Christopher Lodise –May 2, 2009)
============
I felt nervous and overwhelmed, but kind of excited because I wanted to do well on my project. I worked hard on it and was ready for any questions that anyone had about my poster. I was very prepared. I had my friends come over and made them ask questions as if they were at the CESTL. This would be a little warm up exercise.

I was very satisfied with my performance at the CESTL because I knew my poster inside and out. I had index cards with the information so I could read them to the people. I was ready to answer the questions.

I think the CESTL was a great learning experience because we had great speakers that answered everyone’s questions. I really liked Dr. Mark Birchette. I think he is a great speaker and a great role model for young/new teachers.

I believe Professor Boyanton did a great job this term. My suggestion for future students is not to be afraid of the work because it is not as bad as it seems. This will be one of the best classes and best professors they will have at C.W.Post. One thing that I learned this class was how to have a debate with others in a respectful manner. (Emanuel Messina 5/2/09)

============
I was a little nervous about the CESTL conference at first, but once I got there and the poster presentations began, I was no longer overwhelmed. Although only a few people came over to my poster, I received positive feedback. People seemed to enjoy my research and found it worthwhile to study.
One woman in particular spoke with me for a few minutes and said she agreed with my findings and thought I did a great job. It was nice to get such great feedback from teachers and to begin networking with others. I was happy that I decided to present at the conference even though I was not going to initially.
One thing I think might help improve the conference in the future is to have a wider range of panel guests. I noticed that the students were all from pretty wealthy parts of Long Island. It might be cool to incorporate wealthy and poorer schools and to compare the different views students have and see how money affects education.
Also, since it took a while for the audience to think of questions, maybe everyone can be asked beforehand as a class assignment to prepare a question so that there are no lulls and so that we can make the most of the time we have with the panel. (Chelsea Winter, 5/3/09)

=============
The CESTL Conference was very interesting. I enjoyed listening to my classmates’ power point presentations. They were all very good because they all put in a lot of effort. I was at the conference for a long time which really advanced my intellect. Dr. Boyanton deserves a lot of credits for putting together such an awesome conference. I feel that every person there really enjoyed the conference.
The student panel provided me with a wealth of information regarding my research topic. I asked them different questions that pertained to substance abuse and text messaging during class. They provided us with excellent honest opinions. The teacher panel was also very good because they are all experts in the field of education. One of the educators described how he selected the teachers who he hired for jobs. It was interesting to hear his input because in three years I will be applying for a job. The first speaker from the Brooklyn campus provided us with a wealth of information. I enjoyed listening to his stories regarding his biology class and how he handles poor behavior.
The posters were great because the students really put in a lot of effort into making the posters. Our class is awesome and I am sad that the semester is over because we have had a fun time this semester. Overall this conference was really an awesome experience for me.
At around three I presented my work to the group. I was very nervous because I was following a great group of students. I feel that I did an awesome job because I had a lot of confidence in myself as a lecturer, and educator in the topic of behavior management. I feel that I deserve a real high grade for my presentation. I mentioned my observation hours and the interviews during the presentation. Dr. Boyanton seemed very impressed by my power point presentation. I appreciate the help that she gave me in order to develop the effective presentation. I also received around five questions at the end of my presentation. This was very impressive because this means that the people really enjoyed listening to my presentation. I received the most questions out of any of the power point presenters! I feel that the majority of the students there enjoyed listening to my presentation. There may have been a few who did not but it’s hard to get a 100% approval from everyone. I feel that I was limited by the time limits during the presentation.
A lot of people told me afterwards that I did an excellent job. Overall I feel that I have learned a lot about the topic of behavior management. I hope that the students apply the information from the conference into their work as teachers. Also I appreciate the education and data that Dr. Boyanton has provided us with this semester. I hope that I have her as a teacher in the future. Have a great summer! (Scott Fialkoff, 5/2/09)



The days leading up to the CESTL conference were accompanied by a lot of nerves and anxiety because I was unsure of what to expect from the conference. I knew that I had worked extremely hard on my poster and that I was prepared but at the same time I get nervous having to present my work in front of large groups of people. What if they didn’t like it or could not understand some of the information that was on the poster? What if I could not answer a question that somebody had for me? I worked hard on the poster and wanted to show everyone that I did a good job. Once I arrived at the CESTL on Saturday morning and saw a few of my classmates were also setting up their posters, it comforted me because I could tell that I was not the only person in the class that was nervous about the conference. I knew I was prepared which certainly helped calm my nerves.
I learned a lot of different things at the CESTL conference. For example, a classmate of mine did a presentation on misbehaviors, what they are, and what techniques teachers can use in order to prevent and stop these misbehaviors. Although some of the techniques I already knew, there were some things that were new to me, and I am glad that I attended the conference otherwise I never would have known some of them. All in all I felt that the CESTL conference was a great learning experience for me. I got to learn from peers of mine and it was very interesting hearing what young people have to say based on their research. Also, doing the research on my topic helped me to gain a lot of knowledge on inclusion classrooms and special education students in general. I really enjoyed the CESTL conference and thought that it was run very smoothly. (Josh Korder, 5/3/09)

All semester has lead to the completion of the CESTL conference, and that day had finally arrived yesterday. I was excited to present my research to professionals and my fellow classmates. I chose to do a power point presentation because I felt I had put so much effort into my research and my research paper, that to put together a poster wouldn’t satisfy me. I wanted to make sure people heard my findings from me, and seeing as not everyone saw every poster, I didn’t want mine to go unnoticed.
The days leading up to the conference were hectic. I prepared my power point the best I could. On the day that our class had practice presentations I found that my speech was five minutes too long, and had to be shortened. I thought this would be a simple task but it would not. Professor Boyanton’s feedback was probably the most helpful to completing my presentation. The reorganization of the slides made perfect sense and accentuated my findings. But, to my disappointment, when I attempted to present the slides in that format, I found that my presentation was twenty minutes long! Now it had been double shortened. I spent hours upon hours editing out what was not entirely necessary for my speech. I was up until 2:00 a.m. the night before practicing my speech, timing it, editing it, etc.
I woke up early and got to school by 9:30 a.m. and found my class to sit with. I enjoyed listening to everyone’s presentation. Lunch was good because we got pizza and little finger sandwich’s. As the time approached for me to present, I only became more and more nervous. When it was time for me to present I had too many butterflies in my stomach. As I went through my presentation it seemed all to be a blur, but according to everyone else including my parents (who arrived just in time to watch me present) said I did a great job. That made me relieved.
The CESTL experience was great and completely rewarding. I’ve gained confidence in myself that I can accomplish assignments that I had once thought I could never be able to do. Thank you, Professor Boyanton for providing me with this experience. The CESTL conference only makes me want to excel my academics much further than I had preconceived entering college, going for higher diplomas and doctrines, achieving higher GPAs, and conducting more research on my own. I really appreciated this experience, and I am also sad to leave your class. (Gillian Blitzer, May 4, 2009)

I have to say that when I got to the CESTL conference, all of my anxiety had gone away. As usual, I feel that when I hear Professor Boyanton talks she has a lot of passion in her voice. She talks about how much she loves to teach and her stories make me laugh and realize that you can have fun in your class and still have the students’ respect. When we later moved down to the poster presentations, I had gotten a huge ego boost. Not only did my boyfriend tell me how good my poster looked, I had a lot of different people come up to me and tell me how knowledgeable and enthusiastic I was about teaching. I think this is one quality that is going to make me a great teacher! Overall, the CESTL conference was great, I had a good time and it is something I would like to participate in again. I took my poster home, and since I was so proud of my accomplishment, I have it poster up right in my den for everyone to see! (Caroline Schipani, May 4, 2009)
=============

5th CESTL Evaluations by EDI 17 students

5th CESTL Evaluations
By EDI 17 Psychology & Development of Adolescent Students
Long Island University, C.W.Post
Spring, 2009

I can’t really describe what I felt after presenting and watching others present at the CESTL. Words fall short. I am immensely proud of each and every one of us: the poster-makers and the PowerPointers. We have all come a long way from the group that initially sat in class on the very first day, all spread out and silent. We have grown in two ways: first, we have grown closer together, as I see lifelong friendships being made as a result of the course; second, I believe we’ve grown up, and we’ve all grown closer to becoming teachers. I can only speak for myself, but this course has changed me significantly more than any other education class I have taken. It is all because of CESTL, all because of Dr. Boyanton.

The CESTL was great in that it made us stop being education majors and really step up to the plate and become future educators. We weren’t college students while we were up there; we were educators. There it was -- our future! -- right in front of us. And not one of us shied away from it. It’s amazing what we were able to accomplish in just a few short months. Every poster and every presentation were full of new, interesting information. What’s more, there was evident passion behind each one: a passion for educating, and a passion for learning.

By constantly challenging us and pushing us to our limits, this course has strengthened my self-confidence. I mean, I spoke at a conference. I SPOKE! At a CONFERENCE! And the world didn’t end. No one was physically harmed; I didn’t get nervous and pass out; I wasn’t booed off stage. Like I said before, words fall short. The CESTL marked a turning point for me. My whole outlook on life has shifted. EDI 17 has made an optimist out of me. I leave this class a changed person with a reinvigorated passion for education, both in front of and behind the desk. I am eternally grateful to the CESTL, our class, and Dr. Boyanton.
Thank you for everything. (Chris Barone, 5/3/09)
===========

I'm still on a high from yesterday's CESTL conference! What an experience! If I wasn't sure before, I'm confident now that teaching is my calling, my passion! I had an awesome time yesterday and attendees, people who had no idea who I was, were engaged in my presentation and valued the work that I did. I was so nervous, though! My heel even broke while I was walking around taking questions. I tried to remain cool and go with the flow. I think it worked.

Aside from my own performance, I'm so pleased with that of my classmates, as well! Everyone did a great job. What I really appreciated was the support that we showed one another. We really became a family over this semester. Some of us have even become friends on Facebook and keep in touch outside of the classroom.

All of us who had Dr. Boyanton share a bond and I felt supported not just by EDI 17 class members but members of the other classed you teach, as well. The entire experience was great. I was even offered an opportunity to work in the Wyandanch School District by someone in attendance at yesterday's CESTL who has the power to make that a reality. That is major. I learned so much. I especially enjoyed the discussion with the 6th-12th graders. Their input was on the pulse of what we as (new) educators need to know. I want to be that "great" educator that Jennifer Greenville presented on. I believe I will be for the passion needed is there, burning inside of me.

I was in awe of the level of research and the deep scope with which my peers pursued their research assignments. All of the topics were very interesting and definitely research-worthy. Each person that presented, although nervous, got up to speak with authority about their subject matter. They were engaging, well-spoken, knowledgable, and most of all fun! The posters that I viewed were so neat, eye-catching and well put-together. Whether it was a powerpoint or a poster presentation, I left today's class with a sense of pride. The members of community of respect that we formed just a few short months ago really did a fabulous job. WAY TO GO!

CESTL WAS AWESOME! AN UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE! (Vivett Hemans, 5/3/09)

=============

I thought the CESTL Conference went great! Unfortunately I was not able to be there for the entire length of the conference but I was able to be there for a lot of the day’s events. I thought Professor Boyanton did a great job organizing the event and it was a complete success. Everyone looked really professional and was very knowledgeable about their topics.

I though all the posters looked great and it was obvious that everyone put a lot of hard work into them. One of my classmates was telling me how his project was ruined the night before by the rain, had he not told me that I would have never known. It was obvious that he put a lot of work into redoing it.

I also thought the power points all looked really well too. Of course some of us did have a slight disadvantage because of the blue wall but I felt it was better having a bigger projection field.
My favorite part of the entire event was the panel discussion with the high school and middle school students. Most of us were in high school only four or five years ago but that is still enough time for things to change. I thought the audience asked great questions and was happy that the students gave honest and real answers.

I want to thank Professor Boyanton for the opportunity to present at the conference. It was a great experience and allowed me the chance to research a topic which I truly wanted to learn more about.

My only advice for improving the CESTL conference in the future would be to find out what kind of background the power points will be projected on ahead of time. This way, students can design their projects accordingly.

CONGRATULATIONS PROFESSOR ON A GREAT CONFERENCE! (Ilyssa Adelman, 5/3/09)
===========

I found the Conference of Elementary-Secondary Teaching and Learning to be extremely enlightening, engaging, and inspiring. I am very glad that I went early to the conference so that I would not miss anything because I truly enjoyed every moment of it. I have gained and learned so much from this conference from hearing what everyone had to say, including the research that people have performed. In fact, I found this conference to be so inspiring that I would like to come back next year and attend the 6th conference.

As for the beginning of the conference, I really enjoyed Dr. Birchette’s speech on passion to teach especially considering I am a math major because he mentioned a few great points about math. I was very interested when he told us how a student once asked him why a negative number when multiplied by another negative number gives you a positive number as a result and how he was so stunned by the student’s question because he could not answer it. This goes to show that quite too often; we learn passively or just for the sake of cramming knowledge into our heads without taking the time to really try to understand deeper meaning and concepts.

This means we need to be good learners ourselves and most importantly, passionate about teaching in order to get our students to want to learn. I completely agree with his speech that we must always be passionate about our teaching no matter what because passion is the key to success. Having passion allows us to motivate our students and also to pass on that passion and instill it in our students.

Another thing that I really liked from the conference was the panel discussion. I thought that the entire panel was very knowledgeable and had a lot of great things to say but I particularly liked and agreed with what Dr. Boyanton had to say. Dr. Boyanton told us that no matter what the circumstances are, we must always find a way to like each and every one of our students and that student-teacher relationships are extremely important in order for success to be achieved. I couldn’t agree more because I can see why this is extremely important. Like she said, there is always a specific reason as to why students act in the ways that they do.

However, if we as teachers try to discover and work around the problem, then students can build trust for us just as we have built trust for them. Teaching and learning is reciprocal, meaning that learning is a two way street and it goes both ways. Therefore, it is up to us as teachers to build strong and positive relationships with our students. (Daniel Barone, 05-02-09)

==============

I really enjoyed the CESTL. I learned a lot and thought the topics covered were very interesting. I was a little less than satisfied with my performance at the CESTL. I didn’t think it went bad, but it did not go as well as I had hoped. I never realized how much I say “umm” and “like” when I am nervous (that is going to be my next self management project).

After watching the first two presenters, I was afraid that I was not going to finish my presentation in the allotted time and as a result, I rushed through. I didn’t realize that Dan never gave me a two minute warning and I could have showed my movie clip. I was also upset that I forgot to talk about certain things, such as where the literature came from. The literature on bullying, depression and suicide ideation came from three different countries which stresses the fact that bullying is a worldwide problem.

I was a little disappointed with my presentation but overall, the CESTL was a very positive experience. I would definitely present again, if I had the opportunity (and I would definitely be more prepared). I enjoyed being a part of the CESTL Committee as well. At first, I was a little disappointed that I did not contribute much to the CESTL; I felt that I was not a part of the committee and didn’t deserve to be acknowledged.

However, after being asked to give the keynote speaker a ride from the train station, donating food, and introducing the K-12 panel (which went horrible), I felt like a big part of the committee and was honored that I had the chance to be part of such a wonderful and exciting experience. If you ever need a helping hand in preparing for the 6th CESTL, I would be more than happy to lend a helping hand.

One suggestion I would like to give is that instead of doing the presentation rehearsal for the class in our normal classroom, I think it would be more beneficial to do the practice run in the room that the CESTL will actually be held in (if that’s possible). I think it would make the students feel more confident knowing the set up of the room and any other variables. Thank you for the amazing experience and I hope to see you on campus next semester! (Andrea Garcia, May 4, 2009)
============

Once again, I was very impressed with all my classmates and the amount of effort they put into their CESTL presentations. I thought everyone did such a good job, especially the people presenting. They were very poised and engaging. I thought it was a good experience because I learned a lot of information through everyone’s research. I realized it was not as intimidating that I thought it would be especially with support from my mother and boyfriend as well as my classmates.

Although I have learned much through everyone’s projects, I feel I have learned more from my classmates than they know. Everyone is so supportive of each other and willing to help each other and I am very grateful that I was lucky to be in a class with all these people. I have had classes in the past where students were manipulative and mean just so they would get a higher grade then someone else in the class. I would never expect this from any of my classmates in this class, in fact, I know my classmates would be willing to help one another to better someone else’s grade, not their own. I think this quality is what will help our class to become better teachers.

Overall, I enjoyed the CESTL and enjoyed being there for my classmates. Everyone looked so professional and passionate and it made me happy to see everyone this way. No one was shy and everyone was in a good mood. I think this experience was well worth it. I wish Dr. Boyanton luck with her future CESTL presentations and hopefully spreading the CESTL to more colleges and universities to further students learning and strengthen their ability to work together. (Dana LaRose May 3, 2009)

==========
The CESTL was a great learning experience, more than anything I was anticipating. For starters, the keynote speaker’s welcome address “The Passion to Teach” was incredibly powerful and very inspirational. I found it so interesting, yet so true, that true passion entails grief, frustration, and suffering, along with the joy and happiness. I strongly agree that having a true passion to teach is overcoming challenges with your students as Dr. Birchette described, such as becoming angry for a class for continually having side-conversations. I have to admit that part of me was excited for the conference, while another part of me was just looking forward to the points. However, once I started listening to Dr. Birchette’s speech I completely forgot about the points and was so engaged by the educational aspects of the conference.

All of the presentations were so informative and interesting, and it never felt like I was listening to the same thing over and over again.

The panel of professors who answered questions was great as well, because it gave perspective to certain questions that I would normally only have looked at from a students point of view, and showed how a teacher would view it. Even the atmosphere of the conference, things like being in professional dress, and everyone sharing knowledge and ideas about education, made me feel more comfortable, and even more excited and passionate about teaching. (Shannon Lehosky, May 3, 2009)
===========

I really had a lot of fun at the CESTL conference. I learned a lot of things and enjoyed it a lot. This conference will definitely help further my knowledge in education and my professionalism as a teacher. There was a lot of information by the students and variety of topics that touched upon a lot of issues that educators will run into.

I really enjoyed the conference and did not feel overwhelmed at all. Everything just flowed really well and I think my poster and my research was done very well and that I had a lot of information to talk about with my poster. I kept my poster neat and not a lot of charts and writing because I felt that I could talk more to the person than rather show them my poster and let them read them so it was a person interaction not a person/poster interaction.

Overall this course has taught me a lot of things about adolescents that I will need to know. Everyone in our class was really great in sharing their opinions and not putting down anyone. We learned a lot of different things that as future teachers we will run into like gender and stereotypes among students. I will really miss my classmates and our teacher because this was by far the best education class I have ever taken in college. (Lindsay Springer 5/3/09)
==========
I felt really excited for the conference. I spent a long time doing my research and felt really confident that my presentation would go well. I think I spoke to 3 people in total about it.

I learned without a shadow of a doubt that to be a teacher you have to love what you do. Not only do you have to love it you have to love it everyday. You must wake up every day and say I want to be here. That happens to be one of my rules with relationships now everyday you have to wake up wanting to be there.

The difficulty I had was finding time to do observations. Along with that I then had to come to a conclusion about my research from the little observations I did. I would actually like to research my topic a little more. (Sean O'Brien 5/3/09)

Overall I think the CESTL conference went very well. Not just for myself personally but I think everyone did a good job. There were very few bumps in the road and that fact made it a smooth day. It was a day jam packed with a lot of interesting and insightful knowledge for all current and future educators. I particularly liked the round table discussion with various administrators such as Dr. Cohen and Dr. Dodge. All of them provided the audience with a lot of good advice for their future career in teaching.

The majority of presenters did a thorough and superb job in presenting their topic to the conference members. The only real common criticism for some of the speakers was that there were some that could not break the habit of fumbling and saying “uh or um”. Of course it is very hard to speak in front of people and with the good job they did, I would not fault them for that. I thought Vivett’s presentation stood out the most to me. She had everyone engaged and interested. Her presentation went on longer than it was suppose to, but that was a good thing because it was the audience that was stretching it out longer. It seemed everyone spoke up about her topic and it got people talking.

For myself personally I thought I did a good job with my poster and the topic that I researched. I had a very nice conversation with Dr. Cohen when she came and visited my poster. I was nervous about the poster presentation, but I was able to battle those nerves and I felt I was able to successfully speak confidently in what I was presenting. Confidence is key when public speaking. I thought the conference was a success, even though there were a few things that could be changed. Next time I think there should be less presenters, I only say that because some of the presenters were not the only ones talking about their topic. Maybe in the future people can do joint presentations if they have a similar topic in order to help with time. But overall I thought it was well done.

Overall I liked the class very much. I would like to possible have a role in the conference next semester if there is another one. As I stated in my last class journal, the class was very fun and interesting, and I think our class really worked well together. Everyone got along with one another, which is hard sometimes with different personalities. Once again thank you professor for a good semester and good luck in the future with the CESTL conference. (Thomas Brouillard, 5/3/09)

==========
I enjoyed the CESTL conference yesterday. I found the keynote speaker to be very inspirational and make be feel good about becoming a teacher. I enjoyed the powerpoint presentations and thought that each presentation had something that I can take with me when I start teaching. I found the saw player to be very interesting as well since I have never heard saw-playing before. It looks really difficult to play and I could tell that she must have practiced a lot to be able to play so well.

One thing from the conference that really stuck with me was from a lecture from a grad student on teachers attitude. I found it interesting to see the correlation between teachers that were energetic about their teaching and the success of those students and the correlation between teachers that weren't passionate about their class and how the class as a whole didn't try as hard to do well.

One advice that I would give to students who will take this course is to stay on top of your work and assignments so that they don't fall behind. (Eric Morris 5/3/09)


Overall, I really enjoyed my experience at the CESTL. There were many things at the CESTL that I greatly enjoyed. I was really touched by the keynote speakers’ speech about motivation. I really learned a lot from him and I feel more confident about being the student in the classroom and also being the teacher in the classroom.

The panel discussion answered many questions that I really wanted to know and really cleared up confusion I had about certain myths and stories about teaching. I also think all of the power point presenters did very well and completely blew themselves away in comparison to what they presented during class. All of the posters were really awesome and very creative. There were so many different topics to look at and all of the poster presentations were very insightful and very informative. Although I did not stay the entire time, I am sure that the rest of the presenters from our class did a great job.

I really liked the set up of the CESTL and I really liked how smoothly it ran. The only thing I would change would be the evaluation set up. I would have an envelope by each person’s poster in order to avoid confusion with everyone’s folder in a box with a crowd of people around it. I would also make the audience sit up close, although this may be hard, but it will create a more personal atmosphere and people would feel more comfortable. All in all, it was a very rewarding experience at the CESTL and I would definitely love to see more students’ presentations in the future. (Elyse Capozza, 5/2/09)



5th CESTL Evaluations by EDI 600 students

5th CESTL Evaluations
By EDI 600 Psychological Foundation of Education
Long Island University, C.W.Post
Spring, 2009

There were many aspects of the CESTL conference that were inspiring. The Associate Dean , Dr. Lustag, made me feel proud of my choice of professions when discussing how as teachers we can leave a legacy. Our Keynote speaker, Dr. Mark Birchette, was excellent. He told many interesting life stories and related them to how they influenced his ideas of teaching.

One of the stories that stayed in my mind is the one Dr. Birchette told about being a boy and not understanding the word “aunt” when it was pronounced as “ant”. In that story he told how a teacher can have the great ability and role of making sense of the world to a child. I also came away remembering the story you told of the unpopular kindergartener who wanted to play a pig in the play Cinderella. From that story I learned the value of children experiencing success to further motivate them. I also learned the importance of a good teacher being flexible.

The panel discussion addressed a lot of practical questions we may have about teaching. I agreed with Dr. Boyanton’s answer about what to do if your teacher is not passionate or motivated. It is true that when the student shows enthusiasm for the subject matter, it may positively affect the teacher as well. Certainly at this level of education I am seeking to get the most out of my classes that will enhance my abilities as a teacher. If I am not lucky enough to have an inspiring teacher like you, Dr. Boyanton, I will get as much as I can from the required readings or projects and be an active participant in the class discussion.

Lastly, I just want to thank you, Dr. Boyanton for all your obvious dedication to making this class such a wonderful learning environment. I will not forget the fun, interactive lessons you taught or the great model of a teacher you provided. (Donna Brody, 5/3/2009)

=================
Prof. Boyanton,

Thank you very much for the entire semester it has been a true joy and experience. I believe that it was an eye opener, insightful and educational.

Thank you very much for this wonderful educational experience and exposure to great people. It was truly and insight and great success. The CESTL yesterday was a success and you should be very proud.


Brooke, 5/3/09

========
Professor!

Thank you so much for your motivation and dedication this semester. This was my first semester back in school after 5 years and you really gave me the confidence and push that I needed. I learned a great deal not only from your classroom exercises but from your interactions with us as well. You are an excellent instructor.

I will never forget you and this class.

I had such a great time at CESTL. It was definitely worth the day and by attending the conference I walked away with so much more information than I would have ever gained through my personal experiences. I definitely would like to be kept informed regarding the conference.

Thank you so much.

And if it isn't too much of a burden, I hope that you will allow me to contact you if I have any questions regarding my studies.

Sincerely,

Yun Lee
5/3/09

============
The CESTL was well-organized and there were great quality of presentations and speakers. You should market this event to local elementary/secondary schools—parents can learn a lot! Excellent! Thank you for allowing me to participate!—Evdoxia (Evi) Gounelas, 5/2/09

=========
Yesterday, I was filled with anticipation to present my research, conducted from this past semester. I was very nervous, but when I got up there it was not bad at all. I got in front of the audience and was actually more comfortable than during my practice presentation in class. I left the conference, not relieved due to it being done and over with, but content that I was so strong to get over my fear of public speaking.

I really enjoyed the entire CESTL. I thought my peers did an excellent job. I was not able to view the morning presentations, but the power points by Scott Failkoff and Gillian Blizter were amazing. I commend them on a phenomenal job well done. I learned so much from their presentations and admire how easy they made it look, to speak in front of all those people.

I also loved Gillian’s slides. It also made me aware of how computer savvy younger students are.
As an undergrad at the University at Albany, classes were filled with 300-500 students in a lecture hall. Especially as a psychology major, there were never small enough classes to give such intellectual presentations. I may have had to give 1 or 2 power point presentations my whole undergraduate career. This conference brought to my attention, the importance of being proficient with modern computer programs. I give future presenters the advice of putting together a well-rounded power point slide show, and if you know your research; the day will be a breeze. You will be able to concentrate more on other presentations and be less fearful of messing up on your own.

During my attendance there, I was also able to listen to the panel of high school/junior high school students. I thought it was very beneficial to us, as novice teachers. These students just made it clearer to be passionate and creative about what we are teaching. They enforced the importance of positive/healthy student-teacher relationships and how teachers who are inconsistent, boring, and do not create a respectful classroom environment, will never get through to their students.

When looking back on yesterday, I am so pleased with the entire experience. I am also shocked. I never thought I would be able to do something like this. I now know that if I put my mind and heart in accomplishing something, it will be worth it. It is true when people say; a teacher’s job is one of, acquiring more and more knowledge as the years go by. This was my first experience, learning more about me, my career and my future students.

I will now enter the rest of my graduate classes with a head held high. In one semester, I did it all. I wrote tons of papers, analyzed so many theories and presented my own research. During the past 4 months, I did not just go to class and fill a seat. Each day I did something productive. I never thought, “I am never going to need this in the future.” I want to be that teacher, who has her students believe, “What Ms. Evangelista is teaching, is something that I will always use.”
One again, CESTL was an amazing experience. I will definitely attend next semester. I regret not being able to get there in the morning, to hear the panel of professors. Thank you, for allowing me to be apart of this event, change my perspective about myself and for teaching me how to become a great teacher! (Michelle Evanngelista, 5/3/09)
=========

I really enjoyed the CESTL conference. I think that everyone did a wonderful job in their presentations and it was interesting to hear the research in which they presented. I give many of the students who presented a lot of credit. It is nerve wrecking to stand up in front of peers and professionals in a field. They did a lot of hard work and it paid off. They spoke wonderfully and really engaged the audience. Some of the topics can be applied in the classroom. It was great to hear the research they found and some of the things they said I will think about when I have a classroom of my own.

The part of the conference I enjoyed most was the panel of professors. It is always wonderful to hear advice and input from people in the field that you are in. All of the panel guests have years of experience in education. This was great because they had a lot of knowledge and input to give. I enjoyed the advice and offerings they gave and I will always think back to the inspirational things they said.

I also enjoyed presenting my research to people at the conference. I have worked hard on this and researched a lot. I hope other people enjoyed what I found out and will be able to use the advice in their own classroom.

The only thing that I think should be changed about the conference is the poster presentation time. I think that since it was during the lunch break most people did not walk around because they were eating and the people who had posters were unable to eat because they had to stand next to their booths. However, on the whole this was a wonderful experience and I am glad I could be a part of it! (Alyssa Katz, 5/3/09)

=========

Although I was a bit nervous about presenting my research and findings, I have to say that I was surprised by the acceptance that I felt during the conference. Everyone was very friendly and interested in what I had to say. That warm environment made all of my anxiety disappear and I just focused on enjoying myself. I met plenty of wonderful people who were genuinely interested in what I had to say. I also met the Director of our program and she was very interested in my work. We spoke for quite some time and I got to know her a bit and she congratulated me on my work. She also encouraged me to continue my research because my topic was deemed to be very interesting.

Overall I had technical issues and anxiety leading up to the conference, but after it was all said and done, I have nothing but fond memories full of learning. I had a wonderful experience and would like to experience it again in the future. (Louiza Mark 5/4/09)

=========

I was very excited for the CESTL Conference. I was not too nervous about the conference, because I was very proud of my poster and felt that my hard work paid off and that now I was going to be able to share my findings with other people, who are just as interested in education and my research topic, as I am. I loved the conference so much! I had such a great time, and I cannot wait for the conference next year!

The only issue that I had with the conference, was that only really REALLY spoke to about 8-9 people on my poster. I would have wished that everyone who attended the Conference was able and willing to see my poster board. I put a lot of work into the board. I did get to speak one-on-one with one of the panel experts Dr. Tolentino, who is a professor at Post (her son was also a guest on the panel). I had such a great conversation with her, in fact she suggested that I keep on researching my topic and try to get some work published! I was so happy to hear that a professor believed in me, and wanted me to excel and do more work on the topic. It meant a lot that she came over to my poster board and spoke with me. I was very satisfied with my poster board and my conversations with others.

Overall, the CESTL was a HUGE success in my book!!! I learned so much about other interesting topics, which are going to come in handy when I have my own classroom! I also really enjoyed listening to the guest panels, I thought it was such a SMART idea to have the high/junior high school students and professors there. I loved it so much!

Maybe, in the future I would suggest more time for people to view the posters, maybe make Lunch time longer or have some more breaks. ALSO, I would suggest that power point presenters not go over the time limit, I would strictly enforce that. Some presenters went way over the 10 minute time limit (ALL Presenters did a MARVELOUS job, but some were longer than others). I would also have all the power point presenters make sure that there slides are perfect. I couldn’t read some slides, because of the colors on the background slides.

All in all, I had a great time and look forward to coming and helping out at next year’s conference, and the years to come! I wanted to say thank you for starting such a great conference at Post, I can tell that you are a teacher who cares about her students and only wants the best for them. You have touched me and I will always remember you! You are a great role model for teachers!!! Thank you again and again for everything!! (Priscilla Alvarez 5/3/09)

=========

The CESTL conference was definitely a learning experience. I think what overwhelmed me the most was that I didn’t know what to expect or how to go about creating a well thought out display of my research. It scared me to actually participate in a conference. That sounded so official and here I was my first class for my master’s degree and now I had to come up with some intelligent display of my research. I was very scared.

I thought it was very helpful that you dedicated an entire class to helping us get prepared for the conference. Bringing in examples of other posters really helped show us what was expected and how to go about preparing such a display. I thought the posters that were prepared at a Staples or Kinkos definitely looked more professional and wished I could have done something like that.

I thought the overall conference was great. I think it is a wonderful idea and hope you continue to have them. It was a great learning experience for everyone and know if I’m ever asked to participate in another conference in the future, will be more prepared and know what to expect a little better. (Cindy Sexton, 5/3/09)

=========
The day of the dreaded CESTL conference finally came and I must say, I survived, and I am now more educated and more confident than before attending the conference. Although I first approached the conference without much love, I left it with a new sense of self-esteem and knowledge.

I lacked so much confidence that I did not want to present at the conference. I felt I should not perform and really was not looking forward to going up to speak. However, my turn came and while I did have the initial feelings of discomfort, I believe I soon found myself and quickly became comfortable, unfortunately, that was five minutes before my time was up.

Another issue I had before the conference was the duration of the conference. I really did not understand how I could possibly withstand the whole time. I must say, however, that I never felt that the time was dragging and in reality, time went by too quickly. Each presentation was more informative and interesting then the prior, and all the poster presentations made by my follow classmates were so interesting and informative. I definitely would have regretted not attending the conference, since I would have missed out on so much.

I had an excellent time at the conference. Although I did not get to ask any questions during the two panel discussions, just listening in on the discussions opened up my mind. I was very proud to be a presenter and am extremely proud at all my colleagues for doing such an excellent job. I definitely believe they have the same sense of pride and accomplishment that I have right now. Thank you so much for instilling us with great knowledge and confidence! You are an exact model of an ideal TEACHER! (Yun Lee 5/4/09)

=========

The CESTL conference was really impressive. All the students involved did a great job, and the conference was done very professionally. I’m glad I was part of it. I know Dr. Boyanton took great pride in putting it together, and her hard work showed. It was well put together. I enjoyed listening to the panel of professors, and would have like to speak to them further. I had many questions I would have liked to ask about curriculum, funding and other nuances of state and mandatory testing. I would have liked to have a one on one with Professor Dodge, but he left abruptly.

My question on the economic and political ramifications on state testing left me somewhat dangling. One suggestion in the future would be to have the panel discussion go into greater length. I would have liked to get Professor Dodge’s e-mail to discuss things further. (Scott Mines, 5/2/09)

=========

Since the semester began I have been hearing about the 5th CESTL conference and was happy that I was able to witness half or partial of it on Saturday. I was a bit disappointed that I was unable to present due to prior responsibilities. For the few hours that I was there, I was exposed to some very interesting topics that were very moving, educational, insightful that made you more aware. I especially liked the presentation about the cultural differences in the school “Anywhere USA”. The question that was asked at the end “Where do you want to teach”. That made me think of the students that I can possibly reach in an all white school or the school that is known to be “bad”.

All the presenters were so knowledgeable about their topics and passionate. They spoke with such fervor that allowed you to see what they saw during those observations and how they felt about their topics. I did not see fear, though I knew some were, but because of how they presented, they looked like ‘pros’ as one would with any topic and be well informed at the same time.

I was really happy that I was able to attend and see what the CESTL was all about and to support my classmates as they did for me during class. Though I had to return to work, it was well worth the time spent at the conference, as that would be the last gathering with my classmates, until fall or summer classes. (Keisha Adamson-Kogle 5/4/09)

===========

It is often said that “extraordinary people do extraordinary things”. Professor Dengting Boyanton I think, I have echo these sentiments the entire semester about your teaching skills and abilities, and our conference today continue to define who you are as a person. The C.E.S.T.L presentation did exceed my expectations. It was very easy to tell the students, you prepared for this event, from the ones you did not. I knew this whole event would be successful, so much to, I brought my niece who is currently attending a city college, and her major is education she thoroughly enjoyed the entire even, and as you noticed, she even participated, by asking several questions.

What I particularly liked about the conference today is the fact that the agenda, addressed the needs of every student and professor as well as family and friends. I did admired Dr. Mark Brichette, frank and openness about students in the classroom, and his honesty about confronting behavioral problems in his classroom. What I found in the past is that some professors would, just tell you about how you should conduct you self. Today we heard pure and honest facts, as we would say live stuff; just as it happen in the classroom. These are the type of professors we need to hear from more often.

The Panel discussions, about Teaching and learning was very informative, I think Dr. Aronld Dodge, was very candid with his responses, as we all know the issue of standardized testing will remain one of the more sticky subjects in education. I was also very impressed with the responses given by Dr. Efleda Tolentino about her experiences and what she did to increase her motivation level. Which intern helped her to become a better motivator to her students in the classroom? I left there thinking. If she can do it so can I. Dr. Lynn Cohen also made some very key points about student taking an active role in their education and looking for positive influences. Finally Professor Boyanton, as part of that panel you continue to be great source of inspiration , by sharing so many of your experiences, as you mention about the young man , who was so frustrated and angry about his grades until you were able to get to the root cause of his anger and address the issue. I learn a valuable lesson here. A has to know her students strengths and weaknesses and how to address them.

I thought the Panel, of high school students and a sixth grader was very informative. It was also interesting to hear their points of view about teachers, as well as share these feelings with the audience ,and not holding back anything, I also learned a very valuable lesson , and that is, you always has to keep your students engage in the classroom , the bottom line is if you don’t you will definitely loose their interest .

Our Power Point Presentations were very informative, and for my part all of my peers did well because it is no picnic, standing before an audience, let alone a mass of well educated professionals. As always when you have a race related topic, it almost certainly will attract a lot of attention, and today was no exception. When the topic of Black student achievement & racial identity in a predominantly white learning environment was address, we say the same reaction. Nevertheless, I thought most of the research finding was well proven, well presented and for the most part very engaging.

The Poster Presentations were, very creative and my peers were able to show off many of their great talents. I thoroughly enjoyed their work. What strike me about so many of my peers were the ability to come up with art work related to the research they did. Again it shows how much we have learned in our classroom; today was really a showcase.
I would be amiss if I did not mention the Cultural Performers, Irish dancers and Musical Sawist, what a show!

In conclusion the 5th Conference of Elementary –Secondary Teacher & Learning was a wonderful experience, I came away with a wealth of knowledge, which I hope to share with students in my classroom. As I indicated today this is my first semester at C.W. post, I am looking forward to the 6Th C.E.S.T.L. Professor Boyanton, thanks again for being a great educator. (Jennifer Grenville, 5/2/09)

=========
First I would like to say that I had a lot of fun at the CESTL. It was a long day but well worth it. I really enjoyed our key-note speaker. He was so eloquent and touched upon many things that really hit home. Two of the biggies from his wonderful speech were the whole being afraid to raise your hand in class as well as needing to have that motivation and drive. I think towards the end of Undergraduate I had lost that drive (where school was concerned) but after this semester at LIU I am confident and proud to say that it is back.

I also had a lovely chat with Dr. Cohen who was very nice to answer some of my personal questions (I didn’t want to ask them during the committee because it was personal about getting involved with Autism). Dr. Cohen was nice enough to give me some teachers to email about getting involved.

I think all of the information at the CESTL was so valuable. I wish I had more time to take it all in. I felt like it was such a whirlwind of information. I defiantly think I gained valuable knowledge for the future. And I even learned about a few new uses for a saw. I could not believe the sweet music that she was able to create from the saw. I think my overall performance was good at the CESTL. I explained my poster to a few people who came over and they seemed to like it (I hope). I also tried to be as professional as possible because it is hard enough to get up their and speak; the presenters don’t need any distractions coming from the audience.

I think the class as a whole was amazing. It was a lot of work but all well worth it. I not only learned a great deal but I made some great friends in the class. It also helped me to break out of my shell a little and I can’t thank you enough for that.

I had such an amazing time at the conference!!! I will definitely come again next year and maybe present again, too!! Thanks for everything this semester!!! I had such a great experience in your class!
Thank you again and I hope you have a wonderful summer!! Joseph Scauzillo, 5/4/09