The 2014 Complementary Educational Services (CES) Symposium—Caring for the Whole Child: A Multi-faceted Endeavour—attracted some 130 participants from English school boards across the province this past October.
Artist Sara Heppner-Waldston captured the day’s themes.
Dr. Stanley Kutcher is widely recognized for his work on mental health literacy.
Dr. Stanley Kutcher, department head of psychiatry at Dalhousie University, delivered the keynote talk, “Addressing Mental Health Literacy: Developing Mental Health Considerations in the School Setting.” The workshops that followed covered five themes that fall under the CES banner:
- Sexuality education and healthy relationships
- Guidance-Oriented Approach to Learning (GOAL)
- Social responsibility and good citizenship
- Addiction and high-risk behaviours
- Safe and healthy schools
GOAL well represented
Marsha Gouett, the MELS consultant responsible for GOAL in the English sector, brought attendees up-to-date on the 28-school pilot project that is preceding the introduction of compulsory GOAL content in schools as of September 2015.
Later, the LBPSB’s Nancy Battet and Lily Sacco used practical examples from their board’s schools to show how educators can use GOAL to instill an entrepreneurial spirit among their students.
The CES symposium is held every two years. Watch for the next one in 2016.
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