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School Conferences

Damaris school conferences are...

  • both didactic and interactive; both mind stretching and fun (the presenters are very flexible in the way in which they deliver these elements and will move the emphasis as appropriate for the particular students present)

  • geared to run between 2½ and 3½ hours (plus appropriate breaks) for somewhere between 50 and 250 students (we don't really recommend much longer or larger conferences but we can provide them, by negotiation, if you wish)

  • presented by a presenter with expertise in the appropriate area, and full technical equipment (including PA, projector and roving microphone)

  • very easily booked - just by contacting us

Click here to view a short video of a conference

Conference choices

The following school conferences are available now and in the future:

The President for a Day Experience 

Suitable years 12 and 13 (or years 10 and 11 under certain conditions - see below) 

Ethics in an Age of Science Suitable for years 12 and 13 (N.B. this conference was previously called Science, Freedom and Responsibility)

That's a good argument 

Suitable for years 12 and 13 (and, in a special format, for Gifted and Talented students of lower years) 

Please note that we no longer offer the conferences What's the point? and Who can say what's right or wrong?

Goals

Each conference has clearly specified goals which are designed to fit with school curriculum requirements, are printed on the front of the conference worksheet and are assessed by the use of a post-conference evaluation questionnaire. To view the worksheets and questionnaires click here.

Prices

School conferences cost £550. This covers all the team costs, including travel, equipment, materials and royalty-free masters for you to photocopy the worksheets and evaluation questionnaires - however there is a surcharge of 40p per mile for round-trip distances above 200 miles (which is only necessary if there is no local presenter available - and this will be discussed with you before you make the booking).

Terms

  • Once the signed confirmation of booking form has been returned to the Damaris office then this is considered a firm booking.
  • In the unlikely event that the specified presenters become unavailable, Damaris reserves the right to use alternative presenters - but will not change the agreed conference fee.
  • In the unlikely event that the presenter is ill on the day of the conference, he or she will inform the school directly that the conference will have to be cancelled. In this event we will arrange an alternative date for the conference as soon as possible, and give a discount of 25%.
  • In the event of cancellation by the school/organiser up to 14 days before the conference date Damaris will charge an administration fee of £50; if cancellation by the school/organiser occurs after that date then the full fee will be payable.
  • The school/organiser recognises that it is their responsibility to maintain discipline throughout the conference.  The presenter will do what he/she can to encourage attentiveness and respectful behaviour, but has no authority to impose any discipline and therefore relies for this upon the school/organiser.

Key Stage 4

We are very happy to provide our conference the President for a Day Experience for students from school years 10 or 11. However our experience of doing these conferences in the past has led us to make the following alterations for these conferences:

  1. The conference should run for no more than 2½ hours
  2. We recommend a maximum of 100 students - if students are especially bright and well-disciplined, then 150 students is possible
  3. We highly recommend seating the students in groups around tables, with a teacher or sixth-former on each table acting as a facilitator for the group.

These recommendations are the result of doing many conferences for Key Stage 4 students. We have found that students of this age cope much better with shorter conferences and in smaller groups and this enables them to get the most out of the President for a Day Experience.

Booking

Booking a conference is very simple - just contact us

Material

The presenters bring with them all of the material required for the conference except for the worksheets and evaluation questionnaires, because these need to have your school logo printed on them - so we ask you to download the royalty-free masters, add your logo and photocopy sufficient quantities for your students

Commendations

"They have all proved very successful" C. Morgan, Head of RE, Gravesend Grammar School

'It was wonderful to see them considering world issues and enthusiastically participating in the discussions.' S. Johnson, Head of RE, Twyford High School, London

"In 30 + years of teaching RE I have experienced many conferences, but this one was outstanding, in content, presentation and in the team's rapport with the students. The ideas engaged the best A level Philosophy students without losing the interest of their contemporaries - there was breadth, sensitivity, challenge and motivation to continue thinking about the issues raised." D. Derrington, Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School, Rochester

 

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