WA-ACTE 2026 Summer Conference

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10:00am PDT

The Safe-to-Fail Lab: Resilience over Perfection

Wednesday August 5, 2026 10:00am - 10:45am PDT

Cross-Curricular Seminar / Interactive Workshop for any CTE lab — whether you teach welding, culinary, math, or anything in between. We know the fear of making a mistake can shut down creativity. This session shows how to create a high-accountability, low-anxiety space where students learn to pivot when things go wrong and build real on-the-job resilience. Let’s embrace a bit of mess while keeping everyone safe and supported.
Key points:
The "Red Line" vs. the "Gray Zone": Clear safety rules that are non-negotiable (Red) and separate areas where students are encouraged to experiment and learn from failure (Gray).
Grading the Recovery: Shift the emphasis from just the finished product to how a student diagnoses an error and adapts — rewarding problem-solving and growth.
Psychological Safety: Using a "Wall of First Tries" to normalize the learning curve. Let students showcase early attempts and failures as milestones, not shameful moments.
Designed Micro-Failures: Intentionally provide low-stakes situations where things go wrong so students can practice troubleshooting in real time.
Takeaway: You’ll leave with a Recovery Rubric and a set of Growth Mindset scripts to replace high-pressure lab language — practical tools to make your CTE space safer, braver, and more creative - increasing achievement and growth from all students.

Speakers

Meloni Courtway

Lead Culinary Instructor, Bainbridge Island School District

Meloni Courtway believes that the kitchen is the ultimate classroom for life. An experienced private chef, writer, and CTE educator, Meloni spent years honing her craft across the U.S. - from Hawaii to Washington - before transitioning into secondary education 10 years ago. Her accolades... Read More →

Wednesday August 5, 2026 10:00am - 10:45am PDT
Cedar Ballroom

Multiple Sections