EDUCATORS GATHER IN IOWA TO EVOLVE AGILE LEARNING FOR FUTURE STUDENTS

Denver, Colorado, May 31, 2017 -- DENVER, CO — Scrum Alliance®, a global professional membership and certification association representing Scrum and Agile practitioners who are transforming the world of work, today announced Agile Education Gathering: Switzerland, taking place July 27–29 in Leysin, Switzerland. This is the second global gathering of educators pioneering Agile to evolve learning for the 21st century.

Leysin American School (LAS) is hosting the event this year and hopes to bring Agile to their whole school. LAS Education Research (LASER) Director Paul Magnuson and resident Agile expert Bill Tihen are leading the effort to bring Agile to LAS. This gathering is one of the many research projects supported by LAS Education Research (LASER) in an effort to explore education ideas and innovations in depth and enrich academic involvement for all involved. Key individuals from EduScrum and Agora Roermond will also be in attendance.

LAS Director Paul Magnuson said, "I hope this event is the start of a long, hard look at Agile here at the Leysin American School. There is something very compelling about the Agile mindset — the fit with education seems very good. Maybe it’s Agile that can help us past the initial hurdles to a much more self-regulated manner of teaching and learning."

"My goal at the gathering is to see us all learn from each other and share practical experiences of how to apply Agile," said Bill Tihen, Makerspace teacher at LAS. “I have seen the amazing benefits of applying Agile in my classes here, and I want others to see the vast potential and embrace it so we can spread the word about Agile to other educators globally.”

All the objectives are not established yet, because the bigger theme is how these educators can work together to deepen the discovery of what Agile education truly means for them and for the students they teach. Once that is clearly defined and understood, the group will be poised to successfully spread the movement throughout the world.

“The purpose of this event is to inspire each other to continue our work to inspire the world about how Agile can help transform the world of education,” said John Miller, Certified Enterprise Coach and Agile Classrooms founder. “Our plan and main goals are to begin formalizing and solidifying an ‘Agile in Education Alliance’ across the globe."                   

“Scrum Alliance is very excited and proud to be a part of the Agile education movement with this ever-growing group of educators. Our involvement with John Miller began in the U.S. a few years ago, with one high school he was coaching and bringing Agile and Scrum into to see if it could help students better learn and engage in education. To see it evolving and expanding so quickly around the world is truly inspirational,” said Scrum Alliance CEO Manny Gonzalez. “Education has always been a passion of mine and I am thrilled to see where John is going with this effort. His dedication and passion for this initiative will help inspire other educators and help transform the future of education in the world, in my opinion.”

LAS Educational Research (LASER) is the capstone experience for professional learning at LAS. The goal of its resident scholar program is to provide support for creative and driven staff to explore educational issues in depth, in its school context, to enliven their experience of professional development at LAS while they enrich the academic environment for all involved. The goal of its visiting scholar program is for LAS faculty and external academics to rub shoulders and exchange ideas so they all can experience the excitement of new ideas and feel the commitment to lifelong learning.

About Leysin American School and LASER

Located in picturesque Leysin, facing the panorama of the Southern Alps, Leysin American School has both a strong academic ethos and an inspirational setting.  Founded in 1961, the school is a family-run international coeducational boarding school for ages 11 – 19.  LAS is a truly international, multicultural community made up of 340 students from more than 60 countries.

LAS Educational Research (LASER) supports faculty, professional development focused on progressive teaching techniques and using technology wisely, and supports resident scholars: LAS teaching faculty - who pursue research and curriculum work over the course of the school year.

About Scrum Alliance

Founded in 2001, Scrum Alliance® is the largest, most established and influential professional membership and certification organization in the Agile community. Scrum Alliance is a nonprofit association with more than 500,000 certified practitioners worldwide. Its vision is to "Transform the World of Work" with a mission to guide and inspire individuals, leaders, and organizations with practices, principles, and values that create workplaces that are joyful, prosperous, and sustainable. For more information, please visit scrumalliance.org.

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Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ca32c56d-1ded-48fa-abad-144ba84b9a04

Heather Leigh
Scrum Alliance
720-443-7314
[email protected]