Excellence in Education 2008: Future Minds, Paris-France (July 1-4, 2008)

Conference Proceedings

Foreword

"And in order to succeed in later life, you need creative skills because look at how fast the world is changing."

Robert Sternberg

"It is the tension between creativity and skepticism that has produced the stunning and unexpected findings of science."

Carl Sagan

On behalf of both the International Centre for Innovation in Education (ICIE) and the Université Paris Descartes, I would like to welcome you to our conference proceedings entitled "Excellence in Education 2008: Future Minds and Creativity".

This conference was an arena in which we shared our concerns, innovative educational practices, strategies and theories as we envision new horizons for a different world.

While somewhat bleary eyed from editing well into the night and over weekends, and extremely grateful to those of you who actually read the precise conference paper instructions, we are overwhelmed and excited by the vastness of our field, by the fascinating and important studies we undertake, by the global scope of our work, by the community connections we make, by the thought-provoking questions we ask and by the diverse dynamic theories with which we engage.

Within the framework of the "Excellence in Education 2008: Future Minds and Creativity", we have slotted only one paper presentation into each 30 minutes time period. This means, however, that with a conference this size - 235 papers, three symposia and 17 posters - we have more concurrent sessions which makes choice difficult. In an attempt to address this, we have arranged for quite diverse themes and topics in each block. We have also incorporated elements into the overall design of the conference which are intended to enhance informal discussions, dialogue, and enjoyment.

No conference happens without the tireless work of many people and we conclude by acknowledging those who were truly on the front lines. We are most grateful to the members of the organizing committee.

Many thanks also go to those who took the lead in organising the pre-conferences, including: Sandra Linke, Sonia White, Heinz Neber, Donald J. Treffinger, Ken McCluskey, and Todd Lubart.

We are extremely grateful for the participation of each of our presenters and our keynote speakers: Joan Freeman, Jerome Clayton Glenn, Robert J. Sternberg, Joseph S. Renzulli, Ken McCluskey, Steve Smith, Donald J. Treffinger, Douglas A. Bernstein, and Jean-Pol Tassin.

We are also most grateful to Françoys Marty, Université Paris Descartes (Directeur de l'Institut de psychologie), for his kind support.

The conference excelled due to the critical and enthusiastic guidance of Todd Lubart (Head of the Organizing Committee) who shared responsibility and brought ideas, energy and skills to both the conference and the Proceedings. From the moment he came on board and his wisdom became clear, we simply implemented the old proverb: For those who excel at their work we have nothing to give, but more work.

We were also exceedingly fortunate to have the assistance of Sandra Linke.

Finally, a note of thanks to all of you for attending this year's conference. As conference attendees participated in various conference strands, they were challenged to reflect upon the meaning of "excellence in education" and its impact within educational systems and educational communities, and think about ways they can help support, mentor, and encourage both instructors and learners.

On behalf of the International Centre for Innovation in Education, I would like to congratulate all the participants for their valuable contribution to the conference. Without the energy and input of the delegates, no conference can succeed.

Based on feedback from the participants, I believe that we all left the Conference very much inspired by what we had heard and discussed. I also believe that the Conference has paved the way for further dialogue, interaction and international collaboration to reinvent educational systems towards more participatory and sustainable development. I hope that we have collectively started the process of removing the walls that often surround education institutions.

This volume, a collection of keynote speeches and papers presented at the Conference, will serve to continuously remind and inspire us to keep that vision alive.

I recommend these proceedings to you; and take the opportunity to extend an invitation to all to join us for the upcoming conference to be held in Ulm. Both Ulm University and the International Centre for Innovation in Education (ICIE) are very excited about the upcoming conference at Ulm, Germany (August 24-27, 2009). Action plans are certainly underway.

Taisir Subhi Yamin

Editor, Director, ICIE, Ulm-Germany

To get your e-copy of this conference proceedings entitled: "Excellence in Education 2008: Future Minds and Creativity", click here

Reference

Subhi-Yamin, T. (Ed.). (2009). Excellence in Education 2008: Future Minds and Creativity. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the International Centre for Innovation in Education (ICIE) held in Paris-France (July 1-4, 2008). Ulm-Germany: ICIE. [ISBN: 978-9957-476-03-8].