About Walk Alongside

Intentionally designed by Dr. Debbie Pushor and a team of graduate students, we have chosen to host a think tank rather than a more typical conference. Why a think tank? A think tank is a form of collective intelligence. It is an event where a group of people come together and engage in deep discussion about a specific topic that is of importance to the social good. A think tank is an opportunity to explore current knowledge, research, insights, and ideas, in order to imagine and enact new possibilities.

Focused on the topic of parent engagement, this think tank will bring together parents, educators, and educational leaders with the goal of imagining and enacting a shift to familycentric schools. While 50 years of research evidence attest to the fact that the engagement of parents in teaching and learning enhances students’ attainment of educational outcomes, academically, socially, and emotionally, a systematic approach to engaging parents has not yet been implemented in our school systems. Walk Alongside International participants will be immersed in think tank discussions aimed at re-imagining the school landscape in ways that position parents and families as holders and contributors of knowledge of children, teaching, and learning.

The field of parent and family engagement is exploding around the world. There are so many sites where great approaches and practices are being tried and proving to have high impact for children, families, and educators. Using an outside/inside approach, we have researched and selected influential speakers who will bring cutting-edge thinking and ideas to us in Saskatchewan as seeds of inspiration. At the same time, local educators and parents will share their rich and progressive practices, creating the collective intelligence that will move systematic parent engagement forward for all of us.

Note that there is not a single registration option for this three day think tank. Registration must occur in teams of two or more persons. Our intention is that the ideas that participants generate in the think tank sessions will be moved into practice, through action planning in facilitated team planning sessions with others from your school, division, or organization. Team planning discussions will focus on the questions, “So what? Now what?”

One member of each team will complete registration for the whole group. Space is limited, with a capacity of about 240 registrants, so we encourage you to assemble your group and register as soon as possible.

We are so hopeful that the teams who register for Walk Alongside International will consist of parents, family, and community members, as well as educators, staff, and leaders, whenever that fits the team’s context. We believe strongly in learning with and from parents, families, and community members rather than in learning about them. We embrace the adage, “Nothing about us without us.” Further, we believe that change arises as a result of new knowledge and learning that touches our hearts as well as our minds. To that end, a key element of our program is an offering of community experiences in our core and downtown neighborhoods that will provide you with the opportunity to learn from the voices and stories of a range of diverse members of our Saskatoon community.

Drawing on the framework of the Family Engagement Playbook, produced by the Global Family Research Project and written by one of our international speakers, Dr. Margaret Caspe, our Day 1 theme is Change Mindsets, our Day 2 theme is Build Relationships, and our Day 3 theme is Transform Organizations.

Programming on Day 1 & 2, Thursday, May 11th and Friday, May 12th, will take place from 8:30 am to 4 pm, followed by a late afternoon social/celebration of parent engagement accomplishments until 6 pm. On Day 3, Saturday, May 13th, programming will begin at 8:30 am and conclude at 2:30 pm, so everyone has enough time to travel home.

As well as presenting ideas to us through keynote sessions, most of our invited international speakers will be with us for the full three days, engaging with us in think tanks, team planning, community experiences, and socials. We will have many opportunities to converse and learn with them.