John Joseph M Ed B Ed Dip T

John Joseph has an inspiring story to tell. He left school at age 14 to undertake an apprenticeship in the trade of solid plastering. John worked in the family business for eleven years before returning to formal education where he graduated from the University of South Australia with a Masters Degree in Science and Mathematics Education. He taught across junior primary, primary and high school year levels and eventually lectured at teacher-education universities. John also held a system position as Project Officer-Retraining with the Department of Education and Children’s Services in South Australia. In this position, John worked with a colleague to construct teacher training and re-training initiatives for people undergoing significant change to their workplace or duties. A consistent theme within this target group was high workplace stress and low coping strategies.

John’s vast experience with young people with challenging behaviour and poor attachments to school underpins his desire to formulate change. His thinking about education results from the rich interplay between his coalface experiences, his own schooling, his systemic experience, the years of lecturing at universities, his prolific reading of current research and the face -to-face interactions he has undertaken over the past decade.

Between 1997 and 2009, John Joseph presented keynote addresses, conferences and workshops sessions to more than 300,000 people representing more than 3,000 schools across 20 countries. Week after week, he facilitates full-day workshops for student groups where he challenges young people to learn about learning, behaviour and emotions. John uses stunning computer-generated graphics and actual brain dissections to engage kids. He has facilitated the dissections of more than 120, 000 sheep brains! Little wonder that people refer to him as “The Brain Man!

 
Academic and Trade Qualifications
Master of Education, (Mathematics and Science Education) University of South Australia, 1994
Bachelor of Education, (Middle Childhood) SACAE Underdale, 1984
Diploma of Teaching, (Middle Childhood) SACAE Underdale, 1983
Solid Plasterer: (apprenticeship 1969 – 1973)
 
Countries of Paid Speaking and Training Experience
Australia, Malaysia, South Africa, Tonga, New Zealand, India, China, Japan, Turkey, Germany, The Netherlands, Thailand, UAE, Korea, Hong Kong, Wales, England, Singapore, Borneo and Romania
 
Professional Experience
Jan 1998 – Present: Director, Focus Education Australia Pty Ltd     Director, Mind Webs Pty Ltd
Jan 1996– Dec 1997: Project Officer: Retraining, Department of Education, Training and Employment (DETE) South Australia
·         Manage state-wide retraining/in service training needs for 22,000 employees
·         Conduct training needs analysis and implementation across DETE system
·         Design and deliver on-the-job in-service/retraining programs according to systematic needs
·         Produce educational support materials for teachers’ professional training
Feb 1992– Dec 1995: Lecturer, School of Education, University of South Australia

Course Coordinator, Graduate Diploma in Education (Secondary),
1983 – 1992: Teacher, Reception (5-year-olds) – to Year 12; General Classroom Teaching, Social Science,   General Science, Biology, Environmental Studies, Mathematics, Photography
 
Focus Education Consultancies – January 1998 – 2008
·         Over 1,400 part or full-day workshops and seminars across all Australian states and 19 other countries for more than 230,000 education and parent delegates
·         Over 400 workshops for more than 130,000 student delegates
·         Over 100 corporate seminars for more than 5,000 delegates
·         Educational papers and ministerial briefings for Education Departments in South Australia, Victoria and ACT
·         over 200 Conference Keynote Addresses for principals’ associations, subject associations, Independent, Lutheran and Catholic schooling systems across the world
 
Corporate clients include: Australian Federal Court and Supreme Court Judges, Boeing Australia, SENTIS, Adelaide Children’s Hospital, Spina Bifida Association, Edwards Marshall (accountants) Gibson Green (accountants) Relationships Australia, AUSNet (Real Estate) Stoma Nurses Association, S. Kidman, Mr Rentals, Crippled Children’s Association, Focus Events, Acquired Brain Injury Association of Australia, Department of Health, Disabilities Services, The Executive Connection (40+ TEC groups comprising more than 600 company CEO’s across Australia)

Major Keynote addresses and Full Day Conferences in 2007 and 2008:
Combined Isolated Schools, Full day conference, Katherine Northern Territory (275 delegates))
Combined Catholic Colleges, Keynote and workshops, Brisbane (175 delegates)
Special Educators Conference, Darwin (185 delegates)
Independent and Catholic School Combined Annual Conference, Darwin (136 delegates)
Middle Years Relationship and Integration Conference, Darwin (150 delegates)
International Baccalaureate Organisation, Keynote and workshops, Istanbul, Turkey (370 delegates)
School of Isolated and Distance Education, Perth (125 delegates)
Seventh Day Adventist Annual Conference, Melbourne (170 delegates)
Annual ACT Principals’ Conference, Canberra (80 delegates)
Yooralla’s Society for Disabilities, Melbourne (183 delegates)
Junior School Heads’ Association of Australia, Keynote and workshops, Sydney (154 delegates)
Western Sydney Primary Principals’ Association Annual Conference, Sydney (71 delegates)
Anglican Church Ministers’ Annual Conference, Keynote and workshop, Adelaide (171 delegates)
Leadership Conference – Transforming Schools, Canberra (168 delegates)
Catholic Education Office Annual Conference, Keynote and workshops, Perth (350 delegates)
Boys in Education Conference, Hunter Valley (156 delegates)
Muster Cluster Annual Conference on Student Learning, Keynote and workshops, Gympie (612 delegates)
Western Sydney Principals’’ Association Combined Annual Conference, Keynote and workshops (262 delegates)
2007 KORCOS and DoDDS Annual Conference, Keynote and workshops, Korea (800+ delegates)
Tools for a Backpack – Conference for the Middle East, Keynote and workshops, Dubai (700+ delegates)
School Culture and Pathways to Manhood, Keynote and workshops, Melbourne (255 delegates)
2007 United World College, Staff and student conferences, Atlantic College, Wales (340 delegates)
Student Welfare Consultants, Central Coast New South Wales, Full day conference (185 delegates)
Deputy Principals of New South Wales Conference, Full day conference (105 delegates)
Council of Parents and Citizens Annual Meeting, Keynote, Queensland (169 delegates)
Rural and Distance Education Conference ‘Connecting the Dots’, Keynote Sydney (351 delegates)
Learning with the Brain in Mind Conference for 10 schools, Keynote and workshops (370 delegates)
Early Childhood Teachers’ Conference, Keynote, Brisbane (485 delegates)
Gifted and Talented Students and Parents’ Conference, Full day conference, Armidale (147 delegates)
Riverina Primary Principals’ Conference, Wagga Wagga, Keynote (112 delegates)
Canterbury High School and surrounding Schools, UK, Full day conference (133 delegates)
Blacktown District Annual Conference, Full day conference, Sydney (451 delegates)
Plumpton District Annual Conference, Full day conference, Sydney (255 delegates)
Rockhampton High Schools Annual Conference, Full day conference, Rockhampton (196 delegates)
Sandgate District High School Cluster Conference, Full Day conference, Brisabne (163 delegates)
NESA Spring Conference, Keynote and workshops, Bangkok Thailand (761 delegates)
Abbotsleigh, Barker, Arden and Tara Schools Annual Conference, Keynote, Sydney (212 delegates)
Abbotsleigh, Barker, Arden and Tara Schools Student Conferences, full day workshops (652 students)
Australian International School Hong Kong, 3-day residential student workshop, Lantau Island (66 students)
Central Coast Schools’ Annual Conference, Full day conference, New South Wales (231 delegates)
2007 and 2008 Pymble Ladies College, Annual Year 8 Full day Student Conferences, Sydney (244 students)
Prince Alfred College Conference, Adelaide, (101 delegates)
EARCOS Administrators’ Conference, Keynote and workshops, Borneo Malaysia (911 delegates)
2008 KORCOS and DoDDS Annual Conference, Keynote and workshops, Seoul Korea (885 delegates)
United World College, Parent Seminar, Singapore (300 delegates)
2008 United World College, Staff and student conferences, Wales (415 delegates)
Roxby Downs Schools, Teacher and student conferences, Roxby Downs South Australia (356 delegates)
St Patrick’s College, Staff, Student and parent seminars, Ballarat Victoria (483 delegates)
2007 and 2008 Bunbury Catholic College Annual student conferences, Bunbury Perth (211 students)
Fraser Primary School, Student conferences, Canberra ACT (394 students)
2007 and 2008 Palmerston and Dripstone High Schools Annual Student workshops, Darwin (495 students)
2007 and 2008, Perth College and Guilford Grammar Annual student workshops, (225 students)
Maningrida, Nhulunbuy and Groote Eylandt Indigenous Conferences and workshops (463 delegates)
2008 AUSTAFE Australia Conference, Workshops ( 86 delegates)

Major Statistics for 2007 and 2008:
369 paid speaking engagements
Over 50 opening keynote addresses
Over 60,000 combined adult and students delegates
Facilitated conferences for 239 schools across 10 countries
Facilitated conferences for 26 individual corporate events
 
Major Products by John Joseph:
*Joseph, John (2004)  Model Brain (High quality 8-piece kit including life-size skull with removable cranium and beautifully illustrated full-colour booklet). Housed in a strong aluminium case. Adelaide, Focus Education.
*Joseph, John (2004)  Plastic moulds for building and painting model plaster brains. (Available in class sets). Adelaide, Focus Education Australia.
*Joseph, John (2008)  Mind Your Brain on DVD (Teacher level with accompanying workshop notes and teacher guide, all of John’s remarkable brain images. For classroom use ONLY). Adelaide, Focus Education
*Joseph, John (2007)  What’s Your Style? Discover Your Learning Styles on CD Rom Version 2.2. Adelaide, Focus Education Australia
*Joseph, John  (2002)  Brainy Parents – Brainy Kids 2nd Edition.  Adelaide, Focus Education Australia.
*Joseph, John (2001)  Journey into the Vulnerable Brain. Adelaide, Focus Education Australia.
*Joseph, John (2006 2nd Edition)  Learning in the Emotional Rooms: How to Create Classrooms that are Uplifting for the Spirit.  Adelaide, Focus Education Australia.
*Joseph, John  (2006)  Learning in the Emotional Rooms – A1 POSTER. Focus Education Australia.
*Joseph, John  (2006)  Your Amazing Brain – A1 POSTER. Focus Education Australia.
*Joseph, John  (2008)  Information Processing Model – A1 POSTER. Focus Education Australia.
*Joseph, John  (2008) Mind Your Brain DVD-ROM. Adelaide, Focus Education Australia

Testimonial from Bryan Hughes

21 June 2007

John Joseph, affectionately known as “the brain man’, is one of the very few Educational Consultants I have heard that is able to captivate his audience but also presents with the credibility of actually getting his hands dirty in the classroom doing action research projects with schools and teaching students in the ‘classroom’. He presents knowledge about the brain through hands-on practical activities like cutting up a brain, designing a brain out of plasticine, looking at incredible graphics and listening to real life stories allowing for a very wide range of learning styles to be connected to real life experiences.
John has journeyed to Katherine in the Northern Territory three times over the last 12 months working with students, parents and teachers in our urban town, remote schools and school of the air. Each visit he has left us wanting to know more and with a new level of understanding of ‘how the brain works’ and thus an increased capacity to achieve the core business of education – the teaching and learning of ALL kids in our classroom.
I recommend John to you as someone who will make a significant impact to your learning and I look forward to working with him in the future.

Bryan Hughes
Principal
Clyde Fenton School
Katherine
Ph 08 89721122
Fax 08 89723067
bryan.hughes@ntschools.net
NT DEET