ISF Speakers —Apply Now!

Do you love to travel? Do you love sharing what you have learned during your years of teaching or in your field of research? Your fellow DKG members would love to hear all about education in your country as well as other topics relevant to our members. Now is the time to apply to be an International Speaker. From July 1 to September 15, the ISF Speaker Application Form can be found on the Apply/Submit page at www.dkg.org. The following are some tips to help ensure success as you fill out the form.

• Inform your chapter and state organization presidents of your plan to apply to be an ISF speaker
• Include the name of a professional reference who has heard you speak
• Indicate if you are willing to present virtually if unable to travel
• Include dates you are unavailable to present

Debating Amendments--How fast do I have to talk?

Before the proposed amendments are presented to the assembly for consideration, Rules of the Convention will be read. They will also be published in the program book. Seek them out to familiarize yourself with what they say.

All attendees at the convention reserve the right to speak to any amendment.

So, once I get to the microphone how fast do I need to talk? That depends on how much you have to say. Try to get your thoughts organized into a logical sequence so you can best present yourself as informed and not emotional. Debate is limited to two (2) minutes for each speaker. Timekeepers will be timing each speaker.

When you get to the microphone, you will need to request the proper card from the microphone monitor. (The purpose of each colored card was discussed in a previous blog). If you are speaking for an amendment, you would request a GREEN CARD—think ‘go ahead’. If you are speaking against an amendment, you would request a RED CARD—think ‘stop’.

The proposer of the amendment has the right to speak first to the amendment (a blue card). Each speaker can speak only once on a question as long as any member who has not spoken desires the floor. A speaker can speak again only at the consent of the voting body. This might happen if a question is posed to another speaker after she has spoken the first time.

Discussion on each amendment is limited to ten (10) minutes. Doing the math, you see only five (5) speakers will speak to each amendment. The presiding officer will recognize speakers at the microphone alternating pros and cons (done so by seeing the colored cards).

There are times that an amendment warrants more discussion. At that time, time for discussion may be extended. This request can be made by requesting a YELLOW CARD—think ‘wait a minute’ from the microphone monitor. This card is also used to request more information, express a point of order, or voice a parliamentary inquiry. The presiding officer, at her discretion, may also ask if we wish to extend discussion.

An important thing to remember is to pay attention to the discussion that has gone on before. The point you want to make may have already been voiced. No need to repeat it.

Knowing the rules for debate will expediate discussion and move business forward.

Credentials for the DKG Bulletin: Supporting Professional Growth

 

The DKG Bulletin publishes in two formats: the journal and the magazine. The journal focuses on academic articles, including research-based pieces, and is generally the format pursued by members working at the college and university level for whom publication is an imperative for advancement and/or tenure. Supervisors of members at this level sometimes ask for the journal’s credentials, which are readily and happily provided. 

Aside from confirming the issue date of the published article, the credentials letter includes the following:

     The Delta Kappa Gamma Society International is a professional honorary society of women educators. With a membership of more than 55,000 in 17 countries, DKG promotes the professional and personal growth of its members and excellence in education. Its members come from all grade levels, subject areas, and facets of the education profession.
    The Bulletin is the official journal of the Society and promotes professional and personal growth of members through publication of their writings. Manuscripts for the Bulletin, a refereed journal, are reviewed by its editorial board and the Society editorial staff. Selection is based on relevance of the topics addressed, accuracy and validity, contribution to the professional literature, originality, quality of writing, and adherence to submission guidelines. The acceptance rate is 30-40%. The journal is included in the ProQuest educational database and is recognized as an academic journal by Ulrich’s Periodical Directory. 

    Editorial board members are doctoral level educators who are active at the post secondary level. They review and rate submissions in a blind process, assessing each article’s focus, organization, development, readability, and accessibility to the general audience of Bulletin readers, which includes not only Delta Kappa Gamma members but also international educators.

Members who are published in the Bulletin can request a formal, personalized credentials letter from the editor, Dr. Judy Merz, at bulletin@dkg.org. All members can use the credentials information to publicize the importance of this key Society publication.

Our Peace Education Project is On the Way

Japan State Organization Hatsue Kitahara

The world situation has been very insecure and troubling. Disputes and conflicts are occurring, and some parts of the world are being trouble-plagued right at this very moment. In this hard era, giving children opportunities to think about peace and global awareness is needed more than ever.

The Japan State Organization has been working on some peace education projects. One of them is our “Blue-eyed Doll Peace Education Project.” We started the project in 2015. Our project members have visited several local elementary schools to give special classes on demand and taught students about the blue-eyed friendship doll. One of our members visited elementary schools in New York and Hawaii as well and gave classes to the local students a few years ago. Due to COVID 19, we have had to refrain from visiting schools.

We use “kamishibai”, picture-cards show, and a children’s song named "the Blue-eyed Doll" in class to draw children’s attention and teach them the importance of peace and friendship. You may have heard of the story of the “blue-eyed dolls” that came all the way to Japan from the US nearly 100 years ago. At the beginning of the 20th century, a large number of Japanese immigrants, who were under economic depression, moved to the then Kingdom of Hawaii, and to the US mainland later, dreaming of a success on foreign soil. At that time there were a huge number of immigrants who flowed into the US from various countries. As the proportion of the Japanese immigrants in working population increased, animosity against them grew among local people in fear of job crises and other issues.

Dr. Sidney Gulick, a missionary and educator, was worried about the harsh relationship between the US and Japan. He believed that children with impartial attitudes and open minds were the key to making progress toward world peace. He thought of sending American dolls to Japanese children as a token of friendship and goodwill, longing for peace.

More than 12,700 dolls in total were sent and delivered to different schools in different prefectures and cities in Japan to encourage friendship between the children of the two countries. For a long time, the blue-eyed dolls were engulfed in the turmoil of World War II and other disasters such as earthquakes, and many of the dolls were destroyed or burned. In our prefecture only one original doll named Emily remains at Sakihama Elementary School. One of our project members visited the school to see the present condition of Emily. She is still alive but getting too old and decaying. We strongly believe that we should keep the message Emily brought to us and pass it on to the younger generations to create a peaceful world.

We are now working on the re-edition of the picture cards show. Our next goal is making the English version of it. And our future goal is publishing our original picture book of “the blue-eyed doll Emily”.

The Importance of Programs

Historically, the DKG Society International has been a key driver for change owing to our interdisciplinary knowledge. However, we must not be complacent, we must always remain relevant and step up to new challenges. In Andrew Wilson’s book, “Ukraine Crisis:  What the West Needs to Know,” Wilson discussed the importance of education to build up a common knowledge and about social challenges as well as democracy. The dynamic educational process guides us as citizens towards solutions for wellbeing, resource management and the global sustainable development goals. Therefore, programs on the chapter level, as well as on conferences and conventions, are the backbone of the Society. They empower us as members and allow us to act for a better world through the education of our students.

What are the current programs that win hearts and minds? Your chapter certainly has a long list already. Some good examples are outdoor learning, psychological effects of distance learning, sustainability and entrepreneurship in science teaching, game as a teaching tool and the reflection of modern literature on society. Outdoor learning is a practical way to let the students experience nature, but spending time outside also increases your students’ health and wellbeing. You can invite authorities and politicians who are responsible for the schools and universities to find out what the educational future looks like.

Choose a theme for a string of meetings. This helps you to concentrate and allows many aspects to be highlighted. This string of meetings can be short, over a semester, or long, over a year.  Write a summary of each meeting on your webpage or Facebook. Then you will build up a library of knowledge. To get more perspectives on your subject as well as a more high-spirited discussion, invite your neighbor chapters to a webinar or extend your network to all the chapters in your region. By sharing program ideas your chapter will have a wider pool of topics to enlighten your members. Last year, the European Director started a common program for all members with a speaker from each of the eight state organizations/countries.

The program can also be a tool to interest potential new members.  Choose a “hot topic” that may be perceived as a barrier in today’s education, i.e. language disorder. Ask a chapter member who has worked with the problem to give a lecture. Invite teachers from a diverse pool of educational institutions, not only schools. I have tried this method in my own chapter and 25 teachers were directly interested.

There are so many opportunities to build interesting programs to empower your members. Remember that DKG is an international organization and your friends worldwide are ready to help and bond with you and your chapter.