Name
Article 1
The name of the organization is Jido Gogaku Kyoiku Kenkyu Bukai（児童語学教育研究部会）in Japanese and the Teaching Children Special Interest Group in English and its abbreviation is TC SIG.
Affiliation
Article 2
1. The Teaching Children SIG is a semi-autonomous group within NPO JALT (The Japan Association for Language Teaching).
2. In the conduct of its activities, the Teaching Children SIG shall comply with the policies and directives of the JALT National Executive Board, and act in accordance with the provisions of the national constitution and bylaws.
Raison D'etre
Article 3
With the possibility of English being introduced into elementary schools
as a core subject, in response to the growing interest of parents in having
their children learn to speak English and other languages, and in keeping
with Japan's increasing internationalization, there is a growing need for
resources and information to help teachers of children. Our philosophy
is reflected in the name of our publication, Teachers Learning with Children:
We see learning as two-way communication and recognize the importance of
teachers teaching to the whole child, taking into account child development
levels and best practices to create a cooperative classroom atmosphere.
JALT, as a national organization of teachers, provides the umbrella under
which the Teaching Children SIG may grow and flourish.
Purpose
Article 4
The Teaching Children SIG is a nonprofit organization whose purposes are
to foster research, hold periodic meetings and forums, issue publications,
cooperate with interested professional organizations, including other JALT
SIGS and Chapters, carry on other activities for those interested in the
improvement of children's language teaching and learning, and contribute
to the development of activities in language teaching and learning, social
education, and international cooperation.
Membership
Article 5
Individual voting membership shall be open to any JALT National member upon payment of the annual SIG membership fee currently set by JALT.
Annual General Meeting
Article 6
The Teaching Children SIG shall hold an Annual General Meeting (AGM) at
the JALT International Conference. The time and place shall be announced
to all Teaching Children SIG members at least one month in advance of the
meeting. Each Teaching Children SIG member shall have an equal voting right
at the Annual General Meeting. Members of the SIG present at the Annual
General Meeting will constitute a quorum. At this meeting, SIG officers
will report on the state of the SIG's treasury, programs, membership, and
publicity during the period since the last Annual General Meeting. Officers
for the coming year will be elected at the AGM. Members may also vote for
officers via the Internet preceding the meeting.
Executive Board
Article 7
The Executive Board shall be the chief policy-making body of the Teaching Children SIG. The Executive Board consists of officers. Each officer shall have an equal voting right at the Executive Board Meeting. All proposals and motions shall be approved by majority vote of the officers attending the meeting. In the event that voting cannot resolve the issue because the Executive Board members are equally divided on the issue, the Chairperson shall cast the deciding vote.
Officers
Article 8
The Teaching Children SIG has the following officers: Coordinator, Treasurer,
Membership Chair, Program Chair, Publicity Chair, and Publications Chair.
Officers shall be elected and approved at the Annual General Meeting held
at the JALT International Conference. Members may also vote for officers
via the Internet preceding the meeting. The term of office shall be for
one year. An officer shall begin his or her term of office immediately
following JALT's Ordinary General Meeting and perform his or her duties
until the election at the following year's Annual General Meeting. However,
reelection shall not be prohibited. Any officer may hold more than one
officer position. However, the coordinator and treasurer positions shall
not be held by the same person.
Remuneration
Article 9
Officer’s expenses needed to perform his or her duties shall be reimbursed.
Publication
Article 10
The Teaching Children SIG shall produce at least three publications, including online versions, per year.
Financial year
Article 11
The Teaching Children SIG’s financial year shall begin on 1 April and end on 31 March.
Amendments
Article 12
Amendments to this Constitution must be proposed by at least three members of the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board or at least 5% of the Teaching Children SIG members.
The proposed amendment(s) shall be ratified in a procedure clearly explained to all Teaching Children SIG members in writing and delivered online. The proposed amendment(s) must be ratified by a simple majority of the members voting at the Annual General Meeting. Voting by absentee ballot will be possible.
Bylaws of the Teaching Children SIG
I. Officer Duties and Committees
1. Coordinator: The Coordinator shall have general responsibility for coordinating the activities of the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board and for directing the affairs of the Teaching Children SIG. She/he shall preside at the Teaching Children SIG Annual Meeting and at other Teaching Children SIG sponsored events. In the absence of the Coordinator, another officer appointed by the Coordinator shall chair the meeting. The Coordinator will serve as liaison to other similar organizations. The Coordinator shall submit an annual report to JALT.
2. Treasurer: The Treasurer shall keep all financial records and collect and disburse all funds of the Teaching Children SIG. She/he shall present an account of the financial status of the organization at the Teaching Children SIG Annual Meeting and submit regular financial reports to the National SIG Treasurer Liaison. The Treasurer shall prepare the financial documents for an internal audit to take place after the books have been closed at the end of each calendar year.
3. Program Chair: The Program Chair shall supervise the planning and organizing of all regular and special programs and provide the necessary information to officers of the SIG or other JALT agencies as needed. S/he shall solicit presentation proposals from Teaching Children SIG members and arrange for vetting them where necessary. S/he shall contact and arrange for speakers to present at the JALT International Conference and SIG Forum and actively offer programs to JALT Chapters, special events of JALT, or other L2 educational organizations within and outside of Japan.
4. Publicity Chair: The Publicity Chair shall foster and coordinate telecommunications (email, Internet) among Teaching Children SIG members and is responsible for the management of Teaching Children SIG’s member listserv, Officers’ Yahoo! group, and SIG website. The Chair shall also make efforts to advertise Teaching Children SIG events in a timely manner in conjunction with the Programs Chair.
5. Membership Chair: The Membership Chair shall be responsible for registering and renewing Teaching Children SIG membership, keeping membership information provided by members, maintaining a comprehensive and up-to-date list of the membership, databasing for internal analysis, and forwarding membership information to the appropriate JALT officers. The Membership Chair shall assist the Publicity Chair and Publication Chair as needed for distribution of Teaching Children SIG publications.
6. Publications Chair: The Publications Chair is responsible for editing and publishing at least 3 official newsletters (TLC: Teachers Learning with Children) per calendar year. Newsletters may be published online, but at least one issue per year will be published in print. The editor is permitted to appoint an assistant newsletter editor and newsletter staff as necessary.
7. In addition to the six required positions, supporting positions may be instituted to identify other important responsibilities such as: Recording Secretary, Website Editor, Member-at-Large, JALT Junior Site Chair, JALT Junior Program Chair, JALT Junior Facilities Chair, etc. Any number of volunteer officers may work together as a team using titles to reflect this sharing of responsibilities such as Co-Publicity, etc.
8. Membership on committees appointed by the Coordinator is open to ordinary TC SIG members. The chair of each committee, however, must be a member of the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board.
II. Nominations, Elections, Vacancies, and Removals
1. Nominations for officers by members in good standing shall be solicited and accepted by the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board, either in writing prior to the Annual General Meeting or in person at the meeting.
2. Candidates must acknowledge acceptance of nomination, and provide relevant biographical information at the Annual General Meeting.
3. The Executive Board members shall be empowered to poll the voting members in the form of a primary SIG election in order to determine a slate of officers to be presented as a motion for approval by the Annual General Meeting. There is no limit to the number of officer positions that can be created or shared. Voting members shall be Teaching Children SIG Members.
4. If no officer positions are being contested among two or more candidates, the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board may present the full slate of officers to the membership at the Annual General Meeting for approval by the members present. If there are contested positions, elections will take place at the Annual General Meeting or prior to the AGM via the Internet, with the results subject to approval by the Teaching Children SIG Annual General Meeting.
5. If for any reason an office becomes vacant, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment by the Coordinator, subject to approval by the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board.
6. An officer who fails to perform his/her duties under the Teaching Children SIG Constitution and Bylaws or the JALT National Executive Board policies may be removed from office by a three-fourths vote of the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board.
III. Language
For administrative purposes, the working languages of the Teaching Children SIG shall be English and/or Japanese.
IV. SIG Activities
In addition to fulfilling its purpose as stated in the constitution, the Teaching Children SIG will place priority on keeping the number of members at 50 or more, the number of officers at 4 or more, and the number of newsletters published per year at 3 or more.
V. Amendments
Amendments to these Bylaws may be proposed by a majority vote of the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board. Any such proposed amendments shall be distributed to the members before the Annual General Meeting. To become effective, proposed amendments must be approved by a simple majority of the members voting at the Annual General Meeting. Alternatively, these Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board.
VI. Management of Meetings
The Coordinator shall recommend procedures for the management of the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board and the Annual General Meeting. In case of objections to such recommendations, the Executive Board members present shall discuss and agree upon rules and procedures to manage the meeting, consistent with the Constitution and Bylaws.
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This Constitution and Bylaws were approved by the Teaching Children SIG Executive Board on 7 March, 2011.
This Constitution and Bylaws were Accepted by the JALT Executive Board on 26 June, 2011.
This Constitution and Bylaws were ratified by the Teaching Children SIG members on __________.