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The Next Frontier: Special Needs Students in International Schools
Presented by Kevin Bartlett, Ochan Kusuma-Powell, Kristen Pelletier, and William Powell.

This two day interactive workshop will examine the mission of international schools in respect to the provision of education for special needs children. Over the last two decades many international schools have become more sensitive to the needs of children who learn differently. The presenters believe that this trend will and should continue. International education should be inclusive. Great schools compromise neither excellence nor equity. This vision of international education creates challenges for many school leaders. This two-day workshop will address those theoretical and practical challenges. Specifically it will explore the following questions:

• Why should school heads be actively engaged in supporting special needs education?
• What are some of the benefits of being an inclusive school? How can we market the vision?
• What mindsets and attitudes affect our willingness to serve certain children and our perception of our ability to do so? How might these mindsets affect the culture of our schools?
• Where does the expertise come from?
• How can we financially afford to be inclusive?
• What are some of the many faces of student and faculty success?
• What forces can serve as catalysts in supporting schools in becoming more inclusive?
• What are some ways that we can empower our teachers to feel more efficacious in terms of educating special needs children?
• What are some inclusive school models that are successful?