General Questions
Paradise Based Learning is a great opportunity for all educators from all grade levels and types of schools to dive deep into professional learning focused on high-quality PBL, STEM Engagement, Culturally Responsive Classrooms, and more. We welcome teachers, curriculum specialists, school and district leaders, instructional coaches, school counselors, and teacher preparation faculty to join other like-minded colleagues on their PBL journeys.
Paradise Based Learning is a one-of-a-kind, multi-day event focused on student-centered pedagogies and educator professional development. We are bringing together educators — K-12 teachers, instructional coaches, school counselors, and school and district leaders — who want to be inspired by the setting of the Island of Hawaii and begin and advance their professional practice and connect with a community of like-minded peers.
This event isn’t your ordinary conference with a variety of short sessions by many different presenters. It’s an immersive professional learning experience focused on supporting educators as they create projects and plans for improving their practice within their classrooms, schools, and districts. You’ll be actively engaged in deep, focused, real work with your peer collaborators. We believe student-centered pedagogies transform students – and Paradise Based Learning transforms educators.
Paradise Based Learning is brought to you by Educators of America. Paradise Based Learning is one of the many ways we promote our vision for all students to be inspired by authentic lessons and all teachers to be empowered with the ability to create culturally responsive learning environments, leveraging student-centered pedagogies.
Event check-in will take place onsite at Courtyard King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel. Check-in is open for participants joining us for the Conference during these times: Monday, June 17, 7-8am or Tuesday, June 18, 7:30-8am. We encourage Conference participants to arrive in Kona before the first day of the Conference on Saturday, June 15, or Sunday, June 16 and check in Monday morning.
Your learning will be guided by a member of our expert National Faculty, who are prepared to bring you an engaging and highly interactive experience. Each workshop day has designated time called Tropic Talks for our cohorts to mix and learn with one another, in addition, the whole group will be sharing breakfast each morning, and lunch each afternoon.
Please plan to bring a laptop and charger to the event. The event site will provide free Wifi access for all participants. Prior to the conference, you will receive an email from your facilitator outlining the technical needs for you to be fully engaged in your workshop.
In June, Kailua-Kona tends to be sunny and can be very hot and dry during the day. We encourage you to bring sunscreen and a reusable water bottle. We also recommend bringing a jacket for workshops that are held in air-conditioned rooms at King Kamehameha.
Note: Not all workshop rooms will be air conditioned but the architecture of schools is made to generate cool air flow breeze.
General admission: $1,399 (Monday, June 17, 2024, Tuesday, June 18, 2024, Thursday, June 20, 2024)
Immersive track: $1,649 (Monday, June 17, 2024 – Thursday, June 20, 2024)
For all travel-related questions, please visit our Travel page for more information.
Registration
Registration Questions
The cost to attend one of our 3-day workshops is $1,399. The cost to add a 1-day immersive experience to your registration is $249. Registration includes workshop participation, materials, and resources; catered continental breakfast and lunch; keynote speeches; and an opportunity to attend a special Opening Hawaiian Protocol. Please note: Travel is not included in registration costs. Participants are responsible for booking their own travel and lodging. See the Travel section for more information.
If you are interested in being with your school or district colleagues in the same workshop session, we encourage you to register together as a group. We will do our best to honor these requests, and there are no guarantees.
Changes to registrations are permitted until Friday, June 7, 2024. To change your registration:
Log in to your account using the email address you used to register, and your confirmation number.
Click the Modify Registration button, then click “scroll down” to change your workshop.
You will receive a modification confirmation email showing the changes to your registration.
Group Leaders: Log in using your email address and the group confirmation sent to you.
Click the Modify Registration button, then click the Registration link next to the participant’s name.
Modify the participant’s registration as needed, then follow the onscreen directions to complete the modification.
The registrant will receive a modification confirmation email showing the changes to their registration.
Changes to registrations are permitted until Friday, June 7, 2024. To change your registration:
Log in to your account using the email address you used to register, and your confirmation number.
Click the Modify Registration button, then click “scroll down” to change your workshop.
You will receive a modification confirmation email showing the changes to your registration.
Group Leaders: Log in using your email address and the group confirmation sent to you.
Click the Modify Registration button, then click the Registration link next to the participant’s name.
Modify the participant’s registration as needed, then follow the onscreen directions to complete the modification.
The registrant will receive a modification confirmation email showing the changes to their registration.
To cancel your registration, please log in to your account using the email address you used to register and your confirmation number, click the Cancel button and follow the onscreen directions. Please note our refund policy:
Registration cancellations by a registered attendee that are submitted November 1, 2023, through February 29, 2024, will receive a 50% refund of registration fees.
No refunds will be issued for registration cancellations submitted after February 29, 2024.
Refunds for canceled registrations will be issued in the same form as the original payment when possible.
Educators of America does not award payment credit towards future services, products or events.
Registrant substitution requests must be received no later than June 7, 2024. After that, any substitutions will be processed on-site at the sole discretion of Educators of America.
To substitute a participant online:
Log in to your account using the email address you used to register and your confirmation number.
Click the Modify Registration button.
Enter the new participant’s name and email address.
The new participant will receive a confirmation email that they will need to bring to check-in at the conference.
To substitute a participant onsite, please bring the following information to the Help Desk:
The original confirmation email with the original participant’s name
Documentation from the original participant or group administrator confirming that you will replace the original participant
Photo identification
Substitute participants must meet prerequisite requirements, and should be aware of any pre-work that was assigned by the workshop facilitator.
Refunds will not be granted to participants who do not complete the pre-work and are thus unable to participate fully in a workshop.
Children will not be permitted to attend any part of the Event and we do not offer any childcare services or facilities to attend to childcare needs. Please make appropriate childcare arrangements during the time at which you will attend the Event. There is no entry for individuals under the age of 18 years old unless attendance is previously authorized in writing by Educators of America, in its sole discretion. If Educators of America does authorize an underage individual to the Event, that individual must have permission to attend the Event from an adult parent or guardian and must at all times during the Event be accompanied by a responsible adult.
Please note no pets or animals are permitted, including emotional support animals. Registered service animals are always welcome. We reserve the right to request appropriate documentation to verify service animal registration.
Payment
Payment Questions
For registrants from the United States, Canada, and Mexico:
Credit cards: Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express are accepted for immediate registration online.
Purchase orders: Payments of $1,000 or more may be processed via Purchase Order. If your purchase is less than $1,000, you must pay by credit card.
Purchase orders must be received within 30 days of registration date. To make Educators of America a vendor, please download a copy of our W-9 form (pdf).
Note: Unpaid registrations are subject to cancellation after Friday, May 31, 2024.
For international registrants (outside of the United States, Canada, and Mexico):
Wire transfer: Wire transfer is the only form of payment accepted for international registrants. Wire instructions will be shown on the registration confirmation page, and sent out via email.
Customer is responsible for paying all associated wire fees, including sender and receiver wire fees. Please ensure the net amount of your wire is in U.S. Dollars and equals the invoice amount.
Registrations from outside the U.S., Canada, and Mexico must be approved by the Educators of America Events Team.
Our refund policy is as follows:
Registration cancellations by a registered attendee that are submitted November 1, 2023 through February 29, 2024 will receive a 50% refund of registration fees.
No refunds will be issued for registration cancellations submitted after February 29, 2024.
Refunds for canceled registrations will be issued in the same form as the original payment when possible.
Educators of America does not award payment credit towards future services, products or events.
Special Accommodations
Special Accommodations
We aim to host events that enable individuals of all abilities to participate fully and equally. We welcome people with disabilities. If you have an accessibility need due to a disability, injury, or special circumstance, please be sure to include this information in your registration. You can also reach out to us directly to let us know what you need at at events@educatorsusa.org. Please include your confirmation number in your message so we can make notes on your participant record.
If you have special food needs, please be sure to include this information in your registration. You can also reach out to us directly to let us know what you need at events@educatorsusa.org. Please include your confirmation number in the email so we can make notes on your participant record.