Call for Nominations | Herbert T. Coutts Distinguished Service Award

CSSE inaugurated The Herbert T. Coutts Distinguished Service Award for outstanding service to the Canadian Society for the Study of Education in 1997. Pete Coutts (1907-1996) was the first president of CSSE, from 1972 to 1973, and CSSE honours their founding president through this award.

The award is for outstanding service to CSSE, rather than for service to an individual association, or to the profession in general. It will be awarded at most once a year, but may not be awarded in any given year. The award consists of all expenses (travel, accommodation, registration) to attend the annual meeting of CSSE, and presentation of a plaque at the meeting. For 2018, the presentation will be at the University of Regina.

A nomination should include a detailed letter of nomination, explaining the significance of the individual’s contribution, and three letters of support from academic colleagues, which need not be as detailed. The committee would prefer receiving the entire package at once.

The selection committee, consisting of members of the current Board of Directors, is chaired by the immediate past president or president-elect. Nominations should be sent electronically to the Selection Committee, The Herbert T. Coutts Distinguished Service Award, c/o CSSE.

The deadline for nominations is March 31, 2018.

Inaugural Canadian Women of Worth Grant Award Program

By domansky

Congratulations to Faculty of Education alumna Carol A. Todd (BEd (Elem) ’84) on being named one of ten Honourees for the inaugural Canadian Women of Worth Grant Award Program. Women of Worth honours extraordinary women who selflessly volunteer their time to serve their communities, with each Honouree receiving a $10,000 grant from L’Oréal Paris for her non-profit organization. One Honouree will also be named as the National Honouree, receiving an additional $10,000 grant to further support her charitable work.

Honourees will be recognized at an Awards Gala to be held on March 8, 2018, International Women’s Day.

About Carol Todd and the Amanda Todd Legacy Society (from the Women of Worth website):

“Carol Todd has impacted the world immensely as an educator, parent, and leader for social action to alleviate the impacts of bullying and cyber abuse. In 2012, Carol’s daughter Amanda took her own life at the age of 15, following the posting of a YouTube video that detailed the severe cyberbullying and sexual harassment she endured. From this place of tragedy, Carol has shared Amanda’s story with global communities. She has channeled her grief to become a voice of change.

In memory of her daughter, Carol founded the Amanda Todd Legacy Society which is focussed on building informed awareness about bullying/cyberbullying, internet safety, gender-based violence and conversations related to mental health and wellness. She speaks internationally about her experience as a parent and her daughter’s struggles, and focuses on the education of youth and their families. Her work has encouraged people to come forward with their own stories. “It sometimes takes a tragedy to make a difference in the world” are words we often hear. Little did Carol know these words would place her in the spotlight as a global advocate. As a result of her courage, determination and ultimately the love of her daughter, Carol continues to share the words that Amanda wanted others to hear but never had the chance to speak about herself.”
— Women of Worth website

Graduate Defense – Balsam Alrasheed

By domansky

Balsam Alrasheed, Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership and Policy)

Composing Journeys: Understanding the Lived Experiences of Saudi Arabia’s Female Early Childhood Educators
Supervisor: Prof. André Mazawi
Wednesday, February 28, 2018 | 12:30 p.m. | Ponderosa Commons Oak House, Room 1306A, 6445 University Boulevard

Abstract

Within the country of Saudi Arabia, all early childhood education (ECE) teachers in both public and private schools are female. Despite this demographic fact, there has been little academic study into their professional journeys, challenges, and ambitions. This study brings the voices of these women forward. Through the methodological technique of “portrait” based narrative inquiry inspired by cultural anthropologist Mary Catherine Bateson, and building on the framework of Urie Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory, this study explores how six female educators working in Saudi Arabia’s ECE have entered the field and negotiated their professional journeys throughout the years. In this study I argue that the narratives composed from the six women I interviewed illustrate the complexities and contradictions that underpin Saudi Arabian ECE. The study reveals the overwhelming influence of patriarchal norms, policies, and practices in Saudi Arabia and how they intersect to shape the capacity of women educators to bring about social change, as well as a restating of what it means to be a Saudi Arabian citizen, as daughters, siblings, wives, mothers, and educators. These narratives challenge the perception of Saudi Arabian ECE as an environment filled with apathetic teachers who are completely dominated by patriarchal systems and unable or unwilling to engage productively in discussions of reform. At the same time, these narratives offer a window into the world of subordinated women and the marginalization of their pedagogical thought, particularly in an educational system that is frequently trapped in centralized policies and where professional opportunity and upward mobility for women are often limited. The implications of these findings for our understanding of the prospects and contributions of ECE in Saudi Arabia are subsequently examined.

Tate Liverpool Exchange – International Arts Based Research

By domansky

International arts collaboration at Tate Liverpool – ‘From Mittens to Barbies: International Arts-Based Education Research’

Alison Shields, PhD Candidate in Art Education, and Dr. Natalie LeBlanc, PhD graduate in art education and PostDoc Fellow, Department of Curriculum & Pedagogy, University of British Columbia, are artists-students whose work will be part of the Tate Liverpool Exchange program, March 12-18, 2018.

The event, ‘From Mittens to Barbies: International Arts-Based Education Research’, features work by PhD students or post-doc fellows from Concordia University (Canada); The University of British Columbia (Canada); The University of Chester (UK); the University of Granada (Spain) and the University of Lapland (Finland). The universities are participating in a SSHRC Partnership Development Grant lead by Dr. Anita Sinner (Concordia University) with Dr. Rita Irwin as co-investigator. Other co-investigators include Dr. Jeff Adams (UK), Dr. Joaquin Roldan and Dr. Ricardo Marin (Spain) and Dr. Timo Jokela (Finland).

This interactive event has emerged as part of ‘The Pedagogical Turn to Art as Research’ project, which aims to investigate Arts-Based Educational Research (ABER) through a comparative international study of doctoral programmes. The artist-students’ research methods have a wide international range: from Barbie doll installations (UK) to knitted woollen mittens (Lapland); body poetry (Spain) to indigenous identity poems and studios as portals (Canada). Each day will have a different international focus and gallery visitors are encouraged to engage practically and creatively with the themes and social issues brought into focus by the student-artists.

OER Funding for Educators

By domansky

UBC Library Digital Initiatives is pleased to announce a 1-year, TLEF-funded project to promote the creation and use of open textbooks and open educational resources (OERs).

Starting in May 2018, up to 5 grants of up to $1,800 each will be available to UBC faculty members interested in creating or adopting open resources to replace commercial materials in their courses. Funding will support faculty in developing open textbooks and OERs through sub-grants with dedicated Library staff support.

At UBC and elsewhere, textbook affordability is a major barrier with a recent AMS study showing nearly 75% of students have not bought a course text due to cost. This pilot project will promote open resource development and allow the Library to build expertise with platforms such as Pressbooks.

UBC Vancouver faculty are encouraged to apply by April 12, 2018.

Michael Wilkinson

By domansky

Manager, HR and Administration

Scarfe 2611
Tel 604 822 0853
Email michael.wilkinson@ubc.ca

Graduate Defense – Kalbir Heer

By domansky

Kalbir Heer, Doctor of Philosophy (Educational Studies)

Becoming Sikh: Sikh Youth Identities and the Multicultural Imaginary
Supervisor: Dr. Lisa Loutzenheiser
Wednesday, February 28, 2018 | 12:30 p.m. | Graduate Student Centre, 6371 Crescent Road, Room 203

ABSTRACT

This dissertation explores the lives of second and third generation Sikh youth in the Greater Vancouver area in relation to the ways they think about their identities. As racialized youth growing up in a major Canadian urban center, being situated within an array of various ethnic, racial, religious, and gender differences plays an important role in how participants recognize what it means to be Sikh, and the potential to become differently. Particularly relevant in this study is an investigation into the ways competing discourses of multiculturalism both facilitates the way participants “do” their identities, and also shapes the ways Sikh youth come to (mis)recognize the multicultural “others”. Through small group and individual interviews, youth theorizing on the repetition, regulation and re-signification of identity categories is explored. Relying significantly on Judith Butler’s theory of performativity, and Michel Foucault’s discussions of discourse, knowledge, and power, multiculturalism is taken up as an important societal discourse which requires racialized youth to perform their identities in everyday multicultural context such as schools. In other words, multiculturalism is theorized beyond policy and curriculum debates to investigate how youth “do multiculturalism” in different contexts through various embodied practices which constitute and regulate claims to a Sikh identity. Based on an analysis of interview transcripts with 25 self-identified Sikh youth (ages 13-25), I argue that an important consequence of living in a “multicultural” society as understood by participants is the recognition of self and others through three frames of recognition. These “multicultural frames of recognition” include the ways Sikh youth come to recognize a discursive whiteness, discourses about racialized others, and discourses about other Sikh communities. I argue that subjection through the discourses which structure these three “multicultural frames of recognition” contribute to participants’ understanding of the diverse racial, ethnic, religious, and gender identities in modern day Vancouver, while foreshadowing the constitution and constraints of the identification process for Sikh youth within the multicultural imaginary.

Congratulations Small TLEF Award Winners

By domansky

The Faculty of Education is pleased to acknowledge the successful candidates of this year’s Small TLEF Awards:

“Building Digital Citizenship and Critical Digital Literacies in French Program Teacher Candidates through Open Educational Repositories”

Principal Applicant: Yvonne Dawydiak, Faculty-wide Programs Instructional Specialist

Other Applicants: Dr. Wendy Carr, Associate Dean, Teacher Education; Wendy Traas, Reference Librarian, Education Library; Henry Lee, Adjunct Professor, Department of Language & Literacy Education (LLED); Meike Wernicke, Lecturer, LLED.

Awarded $31,720.00 in 2018.

“Strengthening Dissertation and Thesis Proposals through the Creation of Online Theory and Method Modules”

Principal Applicant: Dr. Deirdre Kelly, Professor, Department of Educational Studies (EDST)

Other Applicants: Tamara Baldwin, EdD candidate, EDST

Awarded $21,465.00 for its 1st year of funding in 2018.

“Expanding pedagogical opportunities of 3D learning in UBC Teacher Education”

Principal Applicant: Dr. Marina Milner-Bolotin, Associate Professor, Department of Curriculum & Pedagogy (EDCP)

Other Applicant: Sharon Hu, Instructional Designer, Educational Technology Support (ETS)

Awarded $47,672.00 in 2018.

“The Learning Exchange as a hub of experiential learning”

Principal Applicant: Dr. Alison Taylor, Professor, EDST

Other Applicants: Angela Towle, Director, UBC Learning Exchange; Susan Grossman, Director, Centre for Community-Engaged Learning; Kathleen Leahy, Manager, UBC Learning Exchange; Jill Porter, Community Development Advisor, Centre for Community-Engaged Learning; Dr. Catherine Douglas, Economics, Faculty of Arts; Dr. Kerry Greer, Urban Ethnographic Field School, Sociology and Anthropology, Faculty of Arts; John Yamamoto and Rod Brown, Program Coordinators, Practicum and Field Experience, Faculty of Education; Carrie Krekowski, Practice Education Manager, Office of UBC Health; Stephanie Glick, PhD candidate, EDST; Nasim Peikazadi, PhD candidate, EDST; Alex Chow, BA student, Sociology.

Awarded $15,227.00 for its 2nd year of funding in 2018.

“Developing assessment tools for evaluating key competencies in sustainability across programs at UBC”

Principal Applicant: Dr. Robert Vanwynsberghe, EDST

Awarded $13,784.00 for its 2nd year of funding in 2018.

Congratulations to all!

Reminder: IT Security Training

By domansky

Why is training on privacy & information security so important?
Nearly every UBC faculty and staff member has access to confidential information, including personal and financial information. As the disclosure or loss of this information could be very harmful, it’s important for you to know how to protect it.

Who should take the training?
Faculty, staff, researchers, teaching assistants and other members of the UBC community who deal with sensitive, confidential or personal information should take this training to understand the information security measures needed to protect private and personal information.

How do I get started?
The online course is very simple and should take no more than 30-minutes – it can be found here: privacymatters.ubc.ca/fundamentals-training

The response rates from faculty and staff has been quite low – thus far only 10% of our Faculty has completed the online course. It is very important that everyone complete this course, so if you haven’t yet done so, please take the time to complete it as soon as possible.

Redesign of Scarfe Computer Labs 1006 & 1007

By Julie Oya

February 19, 2018

The Faculty of Education was successful in its UBC Learning Space Improvement Project bid to refurbish the computer labs in Scarfe 1006 and 1007 into flexible teaching/learning spaces effective summer 2018. Students have told us for many years that they lack space to work on collaborative projects, which form such a large part of many courses, particular in the BEd program, and the Scarfe computer labs have become less and less frequently used, especially as most students now have their own devices. The project proposal and adjudication process was rigorous, and our Faculty’s proposal was ranked among the top four across the campus to be funded.

The new design was based in part on UBCO’s Learning Lab and includes very flexible seating as well as several fixed computer stations with some specialized, UBC-licensed software (SPSS, Camtasia, etc.). The two spaces will allow students to work on projects together, practise-teach in small groups, and they will also be bookable by instructors who wish to schedule teaching and learning activities. Wendy Traas from the Education Library and others are keen to model how to teach in flex spaces such as this for anyone interested.

We’d like to invite the participation of faculty, staff and students in an advisory committee that will develop guidelines for scheduling use of the two rooms, evaluate how the rooms are used, and address questions or concerns, etc. If you are interested in serving on this committee, please contact assocdean.teachered@ubc.ca.