AGIS Conference 2026 Potsdam: Full Schedule

Working Together To Support Learning

9:00am CEST

AGIS Librarians Working Group: Best practices in school libraries

Friday September 18, 2026 9:00am - 3:45pm CEST

Join us for a day of connection and creativity at the AGIS librarians’ pre-conference! This event is all about bringing school librarians together to share ideas, experiences, and challenges unique to our international school settings. Many of us work solo in our schools, so this is a wonderful chance to exchange stories, pick up fresh ideas, and be inspired by one another. Come ready to chat, collaborate in small groups, and take home new strategies to help your students thrive.

Draft schedule (subject to change!)
10:00 - 10:15
Welcome
12:30 - 13:30
Lunch
10:15 - 10:30
Ice Breakers
13:30 - 14:30
Success Stories
10:30 - 11:00
New Tools
14:30 - 15:30
Breakout Groups
11:00 - 11:30
Book Sources
15:30 - 16:30
Book Talks
11:30 - 12:30
Challenges
16:30 - 17:00
Wrap Up

Session Outcome(s)

Connect and build community – Meet other AGIS librarians and strengthen our professional network. Together, we can turn isolation into collaboration and support.
Share ideas and best practices– Exchange tips, resources, and experiences on everything from library management and literacy programs to sparking student curiosity.
Solve challenges – Explore real-world issues faced in international school libraries and uncover creative solutions through lively group discussions.
Be inspired – Pick up new ideas for using technology, promoting reading, curating collections, and linking the library to the curriculum.
Grow professionally & confidently – Engage in meaningful conversations that boost confidence and reaffirm the impact of our work.
Collaborate across schools – Open doors to future partnerships, joint projects, and shared initiatives—like the Sora eBook Consortium or Battle of the Books collaborations.

Speakers

Elaine Smith

Librarian, Extended Essay Coordinator, Franconian International School

Librarian and Extended Essay Coordinator

Friday September 18, 2026 9:00am - 3:45pm CEST
0.237 Am Luftschiffhafen 1, 14471 Potsdam

Full-Day Workshop

Audience Whole school for educators
Subject Transdisciplinary

9:00am CEST

Evidence-based, Explicit teaching of Executive Function and Study Skills for IB Students

Friday September 18, 2026 9:00am - 3:45pm CEST

0.214

The explicit teaching of Executive Function (EF) skills such as planning, goal-setting, memory, flexible thinking and self-regulation, builds the foundation of effective Study Skills and makes rigorous inquiry accessible to all IB students. In this workshop, participants will connect the International Baccalaureate (IB) pedagogical framework with explicit instruction of Executive Function (EF) and Study Skills. By aligning these we further empower students with the skills to move towards true Autonomy, Agency and Engagement. Participants will leave the workshop with the necessary resources to implement Executive Function explicit instruction into their daily practice.

08:30-9:00 Welcome Coffee
9:00-12:45 First Session
Overview of evidence for the explicit teaching of Executive Function skills, with emphasis on Executive Function Skills as the foundation for study skills;
Model, discuss and develop explicit teaching strategies of Executive Function Skills, with a focus on Emotional Regulation.
12:45-13:45 Lunch
13:00-15:45 Second Session
Traditional study skills, with a foundation in EF skills, as the bedrock of lifelong learning.
Teaching and learning methodologies for guiding students on how to incorporate emerging technologies and AI within study skills.
Aligning Executive Function with ATL Approaches to Learning and IB Learner Profile attributes

Discussion: establishing a European Executive Function & Study Skills Working Group which could meet annually at AGIS

Speakers

Lise Fines

EAL and LS Team Lead and Learning Support Teacher, Bonn International School

EAL and LS Team Lead and Learning Support Teacher

Geena George

Upper Primary Team Lead and Grade 5 Teacher, Bonn International School

Upper Primary Team Lead and Grade 5 Teacher

Dr. Reece Wartenberg

Founding Director, LearnFire

Friday September 18, 2026 9:00am - 3:45pm CEST
0.214 Am Luftschiffhafen 1, 14471 Potsdam

Full-Day Workshop

Audience Whole school
Subject Transdisciplinary

9:00am CEST

From Alignment to Action: Collaborative Leadership in the PYP

Friday September 18, 2026 9:00am - 3:45pm CEST

0.233

Participants (PYP Coordinators) will engage in dialogue and joint planning around key areas such as transdisciplinary learning, learner agency, assessment, and inclusion, while examining how aligned vision translates into consistent, high-quality PYP practice. The round table provides dedicated time and structure for coordinators to learn from one another, share challenges and successes, and co-construct strategies that are responsive to their unique school contexts.

Speakers

Ashlee Krantz

PYP Coordinator, International School Augsburg

Carolyn Henry

Lower School Vice Principal & PYP Coordinator, International School of Ulm / Neu-Ulm

Friday September 18, 2026 9:00am - 3:45pm CEST
0.233 Am Luftschiffhafen 1, 14471 Potsdam

Full-Day Workshop

Audience Early Years Learners aged 3-6, Elementary/Primary Learners 6-11, Administrative staff
Subject Transdisciplinary
global Y

9:00am CEST

Student Support Full-Day Conference: aligning student support practices through different frameworks, requirements towards student-centred approaches and biopsychosocial model

Friday September 18, 2026 9:00am - 3:45pm CEST

Lake View Room

This full-day workshop introduces the biopsychosocial model (Engel, 1977) as a unifying framework to align counsellors, learning support teachers, school psychologist, nurses, progress leaders, and leadership across. Participants will explore how biological (health, neurodevelopment), psychological (cognition, emotion, identity), and social (culture, family systems, peer context) factors intersect to influence learner agency, wellbeing, and academic access.
The workshop explicitly addresses how to plan within the school and support all stakeholders, integrate documentation requirements, access and inclusion arrangements, safeguarding expectations, and external accreditation standards of each country/region into one coherent process, through cross-divisional case analysis and systems mapping, participants will design aligned referral pathways, case meeting protocols, and documentation templates that meet multiple frameworks while maintaining a learner-centred approach and keep the standards regulated from both the educational and local frameworks.

The structure of the full-day session should be based on the following timeline:
08:30-9:00 Welcome Coffee
9:00-12:45 Morning Session
Holistic education
The biopsychosocial model (Engel, 1977) and ICD 11
Ecological systems theory (Bronfenbrenner) and developmental neuroscience
Mapping IB constructs (Learner Profile, ATL, agency, inclusion) onto biopsychosocial domains
From “support service” to “whole-school ecosystem”
12:45-13:45 Lunch
13:00-15:45 Afternoon Session
Sharing of resources and co-planning
Case studies

References
Engel, G. (1977). The biopsychosocial model. Science.
Bronfenbrenner, U. (Ecological systems theory).
Immordino-Yang, M. (Affective neuroscience and learning).
IB publications: Learning Diversity and Inclusion in IB Programmes, Access and Inclusion Policy, Approaches to Learning, and safeguarding guidance.

Speakers

Aristea Mastoraki

Head of Student Support, Berlin Metropolitan School

Placeholder - more to come soon!

Laura Beccherini

Head of Primary Student Support, Berlin Metropolitan School

Placeholder - more to come soon!

Friday September 18, 2026 9:00am - 3:45pm CEST
Lake View Room Am Luftschiffhafen 1, 14471 Potsdam

Full-Day Workshop

Audience Whole school for educators
Subject Transdisciplinary

9:00am CEST

Educating the Whole Child: Brain Science for Everyday Teaching - Learners Have to Maslow Before They Can Bloom.

Sunday September 20, 2026 9:00am - 11:30am CEST

0.239

Teaching for maximum learning requires more than delivering content - it requires understanding how the brain learns best. This session explores the science of the brain and the powerful connection between social-emotional development and academic success. Designed for teachers at every level, the session examines how factors such as relationships, emotion, stress, motivation, and belonging directly influence attention, memory, and learning. Participants will gain practical, brain-based insights into how supportive learning environments and intentional instructional practices can foster both emotional well-being and academic growth. By connecting neuroscience with classroom realities, this session highlights strategies that help educators create safe, engaging, and responsive learning spaces where students can thrive. Attendees will leave with a deeper understanding of why social-emotional learning is essential, not separate, from academic achievement, and how aligning instruction with how the brain works supports the whole child.

Session:
Social Emotional Learning and it´s connection to brain and a workshop
Memory Is Not a Filing Cabinet: How Brains Actually Remember
Reflections, sharing, takeaways

Speakers

Mandy Madnikoff

Primary School Assistant Principal, Leipzig International School

With nearly two decades in education, I’ve come to believe that meaningful learning starts with meaningful relationships. I’m passionate about building authentic connections with students - because when students feel known and valued, they’re far more open to academic growth... Read More →

Liene Leiskalne

Primary School Teacher, Leipzig International School

I am a dedicated teacher, shaping the future one mind and one heart at a time.
I am passionate about fostering student curiosity and I believe that only students that feel safe and accepted in their learning environment can reach their full potential as learners.

I am an experienc... Read More →

Sunday September 20, 2026 9:00am - 11:30am CEST
0.239 Am Luftschiffhafen 1, 14471 Potsdam

Two-Hour Workshop

Audience Whole school for educators
Subject Transdisciplinary
global Y

9:00am CEST

The Learning Design Lab: Practical Tools for Every Learner

Sunday September 20, 2026 9:00am - 11:30am CEST

0.245

We've all had that lesson. The one that flopped. The one where you could feel the room slip away and you kept going anyway, wondering what went wrong.
This workshop is built around that moment.
Bring a lesson that didn't land, or one you've always wanted to do differently. Over the course of the session, we'll dig into what inclusive, accessible design actually looks like in practice: how knowledge gets expressed, how feedback reaches learners, and how the right tools can change what's possible in a classroom. Then you'll redesign it with support, with peers, and with a toolkit you'll keep using long after the conference.
No perfect lessons required. Just curiosity and something worth rethinking.

9:00–9:15 Creative Provocation
Streamlined drawing task
9:15–9:45 Tools & Frameworks Overview
We will consider applications for assistive technology, feedback and data. We will highlight a few high-leverage tools and one feedback framework. We will share case studies.
9:45–10:00 Break
10:00 –10:45 Design Lab
Participants redesign one lesson/assessment using templates.
10:45–11:00 Break
11:00 – 11:30 Gallery Share & Implementation Planning
After exploring others designs, we will have a peer Share, then individual action planning and orientation to the resource site.

Speakers

Irina Bucur-Marcu

Learning Support Teacher, Berlin Metropolitan School

I am a Learning Support teacher and inclusion-focused educator with extensive experience in international schools across Europe, Africa, and the United States. My work is grounded in Universal Design for Learning, co-teaching, and practical systems that help reduce barriers to learning... Read More →

Jenny McManus

Learning Support Teacher, Berlin Metropolitan School

I am a learning support teacher with a background in cognitive science and anthropology. I take an interdisciplinary approach, drawing on neuroscience, culture, and human development to better understand how children learn.I focus on supporting neurodiverse learners through inclusive... Read More →

Sunday September 20, 2026 9:00am - 11:30am CEST
0.245 Am Luftschiffhafen 1, 14471 Potsdam

Two-Hour Workshop