What I do...

Thom Markham

As a psychologist and educator, my goal is to assist teachers and school leaders by presenting workshops on project based learning and designing new systems for teaching and learning that foster personal rigor, creativity, purpose, and optimism in our youth. All my work incorporates three themes that I consider essential to the education and development of young people: communication, collaboration, and compassion.

I focus on two aspects of education. First, I offer materials and methods to educational leaders and teachers for organizing schools as high-performance learning communities that support positive youth development, encourage inquiry-based learning, teach career skills, and develop critical thinking. My expertise includes training and facilitation in culture-building, teacher development, project based learning, personalized learning environments, habits of mind, and innovative school organization. Most of this work is conducted through extended partnerships with individual schools, districts, or governmental organizations such as Ministries of Education. In recent years, I have focused on the development of STEM education academies or other career academies, such as those sponsored by the National Academy Foundation. I also offer specific workshops for teachers and students interested in increasing their skills and capacities for peak performance, collaboration, and innovation. All workshops of this type include information on the newly emerging science of the heart, which shows participants how emotions and physiology interact to affect our attitude, thinking, relationships, and ability to envision a global future.

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