JALT2018 Plenary Series: Judith B. O'Loughlin: Three Strategies for Fostering Learner Resilience

We have uploaded the video of Judith B. O’Loughlin’s plenary session from JALT2018. You can watch this plenary on YouTube. This is the third in our series of four plenary videos.
Judith B. O’Loughlin was one of the plenary speakers at the 2018JALT International Conference. Her title was, “Three Strategies for Fostering Learner Resilience,” and the session took place on Sunday November 25, 10:25 AM – 11:25 AM. Her talk was sponsored by JALT, Soka University, and the JALT Teaching Younger Learners SIG.
Plenary Session Abstract:
For young learners, whether traditional newcomers or students with limited literacy, to become resilient, schools must create “havens of resilience” (Henderson, 2013) helping learners discover their own internal strengths, the “I Have, I Am, I Can” (Grotberg, 1995; Davis, 2014). Learners discover how to draw on three strategies to develop their internal strengths and external resources to succeed emotionally and academically in the English language classroom and beyond. Resilience isn’t a specific program or curriculum, but a process. Helping students develop resilience is about how teachers communicate and connect with learners, rather than what they teach (Truebridge, 2009). The presenter describes the model, connecting to the conference theme of addressing diverse student populations and helping to create an inclusive learner-environment. She provides numerous examples of “I Have, I Am, I Can.” A personal connection between teachers and English language learners is vital to the development of resilience for newcomers and at-risk students with interrupted formal education (SIFE) (Rana, Qin, Bates, Luster, & Saltareli, 2011). Developing positive interactions between teachers, students, and families, showing that one cares, aids English language learners. Psychologist Edith Grotberg, in her research, believes that all learners need a reminder of the strengths they possess. In the “I Have, I Am, I Can” model, learners are able to develop and recognize the unique strengths they possess. Component examples include:
I Have – strong relationships, role models, external supports 
I Am – inner strengths, positive characteristics. 
I Can – solve problems, know how to/where to seek help, develop skills
Bio Statement: 
Judith B. O’Loughlin has taught in K-12, adult education, and graduate university TESOL endorsement programs. She consulted and taught for U.S. federal and state grants to train ESL and Special Education teachers. As a consultant, her focus is on standards-based differentiated curriculum, collaborative teaching, and newcomers with interrupted education. She is the author of the Academic Language Accelerator (Oxford) and co-author of Students with Interrupted Formal Education: Where They Are and What They Need (Corwin).
The theme of JALT’s 44th Annual International Conference on Language Teaching and Learning & Educational Materials Exhibition was “Diversity and Inclusion.” JALT2018 was held at the Shizuoka Convention & Arts Center (Granship) in Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, from Friday, November 23, to Monday, November 26, 2018. 
For details on JALT’s upcoming conference as well as other past conferences, please see the conference page on our website: https://jalt.org/main/jalts-international-conference .
JALT2019 will be held at WINC AICHI in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, from 1 – 4 November 2019. Our theme in 2019 is “Teacher Efficacy, Learner Agency.”