Category Archives: Reflections

Since 2002

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This blog post is a short summary of my thoughts and feelings since 2002 when I was a grade 6 student and BC teachers were in stage 2 of job action. The writing and sharing was spurred by a post on Facebook where a wife of a teacher considers going into education. Her post is met with mixed responses of “do” and “don’t”, which is something I have heard a lot as I considered going into teaching. You can read the post here: https://m.facebook.com/groups/203565789706890?view=permalink&id=746676858729111
This post is not so much focused on the history of BCTF bargaining or the current dispute, but is my personal experience and pathway because of the two.

I was in grade 5 in 2002 and I organized a student walkout at my school. Although I didn’t really understand what was going on, I knew something was wrong, and I knew for some reason my teachers “couldn’t” or “wouldn’t” write us report cards or continue with extracurricular activities. I, along with other students, were written about in the local paper as being “juvenile delinquents” and as acting for our parents. That was not the case. We were just confused, upset students caught in the dispute, as many currently are.

In 2005, when I was in grade 10 we had another strike and I enjoyed the two weeks “off” school and spent it riding my horse to visit my teachers on the picket line. Even though we missed two weeks, the teachers and administrators of my rural high school, as elsewhere in the province, made modifications to the year schedule to ensure we learnt what was required. I have continued faith in their ability to do that now, as needed, when students return to school.

I graduated high school with no major damage due to job action. Throughout my Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology I did a lot of work with youth in various settings: nature school, outdoor summer camp, GeneSkool, Vancouver Aquarium AquaVan, etc. I knew I was destined to work with children in an educational setting. However, I never thought the public school system was for me. The biggest stumbling block was that I didn’t want to be involved in the politics of the job that I had faced as a student. Many teachers told me not to go into teaching, or to go to another province. There were still a few that relentlessly suggested it though.

After I graduated university I received a job teaching English in a public francophone school in New Brunswick. I took it primarily for the opportunity to travel and to improve my French. But when I finished I was completely inspired by a plethora of passionate, loving, talented educators, and by an amazing, inclusive elementary school culture. This led me to apply to UBC’s Bachelor of Education program for the 2013-2014 school year. I still didn’t think I would ever pursue work in a BC public school though. I thought I would go elsewhere for work.

During my ten week practicum the lock out occurred and job action began, teachers voted on striking, and the strike began. I saw things from the other side, from the inside. I was upset and I was discouraged but I had finally seen the need for improved class size and composition, and for specialist teachers. I saw the struggles teachers faced in the classroom and how much time teaching actually took. I saw teachers confused, unsure to vote on a full scale strike to improve classrooms, knowing it would disrupt graduation activities for students.

I left to teach in Kenya for the month of June and I returned with a new outlook and global perspective on what it means to fight for education. My summer has now been filled with following the dispute between the BCTF and the BC Liberals. In the discouraging darkness I have found hope. The teachers have inspired me for holding their ground. They have made so many personal sacrifices in an attempt to improve the schools for our students.

I didn’t complete my BEd this year as I prioritized improving my French proficiency. As a result, next week I will be moving to Alberta to work for the Council of Ministers of Education Canada for their Official Languages programs. Despite being sad to leave BC at this point in time, I’m excited for this position and believe it will make me a better teacher. Next summer I’ll be finishing my BEd and I hope in the fall I’ll be making a difference in the BC public school system. In the meantime, I stand in support of our teachers.

Long story short: I cannot wait to return to BC and be a teacher here. I cannot wait to make a difference in the province that educated me from preschool through to university. I want to honour the teachers that are fighting for every child’s right to an education and for their future. Thank you to every educator who has been a part of my life, and a huge shout out to our BC public school teachers whom I believe are making history.

To the current students caught up in the dispute – I’m sorry it’s this way, but know you’ll be okay. The teachers are fighting for you now, and when you finally get back in the classroom they’ll still be fighting for you and you’ll learn what you need to learn. In the meantime, don’t be afraid to be loud, this is YOUR education. And, if anyone calls you a juvenile delinquent, I would say you’re actually just being an involved citizen.

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WestCAST Recap

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A bit delayed on sharing my WestCAST conference experience, but better late than never, right? What I thought was just Winnipeg’s dry cold atmosphere affecting my breathing turned out to be a nasty bug, but I’m doing a lot better and am happy to be back to school. Technology has been great for keeping me in contact and up to date with all course work, but when it comes down to it, collaborating in person is my preference. Besides, following the #BCTF2014 hashtag for the BCTF New Teachers’ Conference was no where near as inspiring as I assume attending in person would have been!
Anyways, what an interesting and diverse conference WestCAST was! Besides the eight UBC student teachers in attendance, were also three faculty members from UBC. Upon arrival on Wednesday night there was a poster session by students from various education faculties. The poster session included topics such as banned books in high schools, units of bringing farming into schools, incorporating Aboriginal perspectives, mandatory physical activity, positive future mentoring program (at the elementary level) and much more. Unfortunately us student teachers at UBC missed the deadline to submit proposals to share posters or leads sessions. I’ll definitely be leaving in the Education Students’ Association transition report a note on making timely organization for the 2015 conference so that UBC students can present. The 2015 conference is to be hosted in Saskatchewan.
One thing to note about the conference was the myriad of red-shirted volunteers from the University of Winnipeg. They were everywhere, friendly and immensely helpful. Furthermore, our hosts sure kept us entertained over the course of the conference with a huge diversity of presenters and opportunity to take part! On Wednesday night there was a stringband and Ceili band, and Irish dancers followed up by a Manitoban barn dance, where yes, we were pulled onto the dance floor! Thursday morning the Peaceful Village Drummers had us out of our seats at breakfast, clapping along. A choral group, La Vox from Gordon Bell High School (my mother’s grade 12 school!) sang their own renditions of current popular songs during lunch. On Thursday night their Education Students’ Association hosted a dinner where we were further entertained by an improv group, and then by a DJ that facilitated us dancing the night away.
Both Thursday and Friday mornings we had various EdTalks to open the days. I have to say that for me, they were hit and miss. All the speakers were powerful, eloquent speakers, but I found some of the talks to be incredibly dreary. I realize that when speaking of global issues in developing countries such as poverty and lack of health care and education, or sustainability in general, the reality can be dreary, but as a room of enthusiastic educators, in a conference with the theme “Be the change”, I would have loved some sort of closure on what we can do to address these issues. One EdTalk that I really enjoyed was that by @KevinLamoureux “Those Other Kids…”. His speech on on that “everything in education comes from a perspective” sent me into reflection, and a renewed outlook on assumptions and perspectives, and their implications. Kevin Chief, Minister of Children and Youth Opportunities, as well as an MLA in Winnipeg, also had a powerful speech on “Building Resiliency”. It was inspiring to hear of his interactions with students and on who are “role models”. As educators we need to see others that are role models, and support them in that. For example, Mr. Chief took a high school student into an elementary school with him for a in-class reading, and who were the young students most interested in? Their interest and questions were for the older student he brought in.

Sessions were led by current student teachers, and faculty from various universities. One of the sessions that really resonated with me was titled “ADHD; Disorder or Gift?” by Dean Ken McCluskey. His family’s story had me crying and laughing and questioning our perceptions of all disabilities.

Another session I enjoyed was a report on the “Longitudinal Examination of Pre-Service Teachers Perceptions of Preparedness” at the University of Lethbridge. What interested me the most though, was hearing about different teacher education programs. The variety across Canada is so great. I recommend to anyone considering a program to do their research and talk to students in the respective programs.

Dean David Mandzuk from the University of Manitoba had an interesting presentation on “Myths, Bandwagons, & Moral Panics as ‘Unwarranted Certainties’: Implications for Beginning Teachers”. As a pre-service teacher I do feel overwhelmed by the plethora of resources and ways of doing, the “do this, and whatever you do, don’t do this” warnings, etc. His presentation left me with more confidence on researching for myself whether something potentially falls into one of these categories.

A session on the use of Twitter didn’t really strike me after the presenter didn’t use Twitter herself, or really support its use in the classroom. Sure, it allowed me to think of its limitations and downfalls, but for me Twitter is a huge source of inspiration and support via my PLN.

For two other student blog posts on WestCast2014 check out:

@MmeHibou #WestCAST2014 (Adventures in Winterpeg) 

@ms_wirzba Joy in the classroom – WestCAST Reflections


I opted to spend the weekend after the conference in Winnipeg. I never thought or knew much of you before, but Winnipeg, you are awesome! The history, the culture, the winter, the people are so vibrant and alive. I felt like I was back in high school social studies, but this time the history was real, it wasn’t simply pictures and words in a textbook. Francophone culture was very prominent throughout the city, and celebrated at the Festival du Voyageur. Festival du Voyageur was to me like a combination between Carnaval du Quebec, and the Acadian Village. It was both a celebration of culture with traditional food, music, and activities, and also included a historic fort complete with interpreters. The Forks was an amazing venue where people came together to embrace winter, skating, snowshoeing, playing hockey, and even biking through the snow path alongside the frozen river trail. I spent over three hours skating the Red and Assiniboine Rivers.
On Sunday I attended the Winnipeg Jets outdoor practice. I’ll be completely honest that I’m not an engaged NHL fan, but since I drove through Winnipeg in the summer 2012, the summer after their first season of having a NHL team back, I was captured by the passion of the people for their team. So, when I went out to the outdoor practice, it wasn’t with the intention to see NHL Winnipeg Jets players, but to see NHL Winnipeg Jets fans. They did not disappoint. The temperature was well below -30 but there were over 3000 fans there. I am huge sap for excited people and this event made a mark with me. As I stood there watching the people I couldn’t help but think that they each have a unique story of what having their team back means to them. There were children in their teens that I imagine will always remember that year they got their team back. There were young children who will never know otherwise, but are sitting on the shoulders of parents who are undoubtedly happy to have a team back to share with their child. Oh, and did I mention this practice was the same day Canada took home the gold in hockey? It was just one of those days where you can’t help but feel connected as a Canadian. My visit to Winnipeg was educationally and culturally diverse and I recommend both the WestCAST conference, and the city, to anyone interested in the above!

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From the mind of an engineer

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When thinking about discussing education my mind diverts to going on Twitter or to the staff room or to workshops and speaking with other “educators”. The other day when I logged into my Facebook account, a social media I use primarily for contact with friends and family around the world, I found this post by my friend Mikel Gomes, an engineering student:

“I think we need to stop telling kids to write neatly, especially where math and science are concerned. Exploration is messy. When a pupil is doodling or writing chicken scratch they are exploring the bounds and possibilities of their knowledge truly and honestly and in their own domain. In this chaos is potential; the potential to discover things in a meaningful way to the individual which promotes true understanding. It is when you remove this exhilaration of discovery and exploration that the beauty of the task is diminished. By making a student subscribe to your preconceived notion of what a warehouse packaged correct answer should resemble you extinguish scientific curiosity and if you love science as I do you will understand how heartbreaking that is. It encourages skipping ahead to the preexisting solution. And if perchance you can’t read the writing it is a wonderful opportunity to sit down with the student and discuss what went through their head in the process. I realize this is perhaps impractical… But what if that kid grew up to invent fusion?”

I love these thoughts and the thinking it led me to (as well as the eloquence of his writing!). The other day in my language arts/literacy course we had a discussion along these lines. We weren’t necessarily looking at the issue through a science or math subject area lens, but were questioning when we need to expect legible grammatically correct work, and when we can let students simply allow their ideas to flow such as in journal writing, or writing a story.

In my reflection to both this post, and our class discussion, I think it is so crucial to allow kids (or anyone!) to express themselves and their ideas in a variety of ways. For some, doodles or models may make more sense than written output. I feel like there is a current movement in education towards making, maker faire for example, and applying concepts. To me, it is exciting and I am optimistic in the sense that we are working towards giving students more freedom of expression and opportunity to explore. I do believe students need to learn a variety of skills, including clear written communication, but throughout this learning process I think they need the time for messy dabbling with concepts. From here they are discoverers and creators. How they disseminate their understanding or knowledge is simply another 21st century skill they need to be equipped with.

Many others commented on this post, touching on points from the time it would take but what it could be worth, the importance of legible handwritten communication in engineering firms, the constraints on imagination, discovery, and curiosity by putting pen to paper, and the skills of organizing, synthesizing and communicating.

The questioning and reflecting for me is continual, and it is approaching me frequently in more and more forms.. Just a first thought above! Thanks for reading and I would love to hear your opinion in the comments below.

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My Journey in Education From Letter Grades to Pass/Fail

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I have been thinking a lot about letter grades and motivation, and Sunday’s @bcedchat on report cards really got me questioning some of my experiences and resulting views. The session’s topic moderator @brynmw was encouraging me to share this journey, and I figure it is time to organize and share them.

Sometimes I think I am entering the teaching profession in a time of great change, where report cards are debated, curriculum is evolving, and technology is being integrated into classes. However, I’m sure the system has probably always been in flux, with educators, policy makers, parents and students all advocating for what they believe will create a better education.

What I can speak to though, is the transition I have experienced in my education, and the questioning it has led me to on the topic of letter grades. Passing through the public education system I received letter grades from grades four to twelve.

When letter grades first started appearing on report cards I remember a close friend getting straight A’s. The reason I remember it so clearly was because my dad gave her a package of licorice and told her “Great work.” Being a young child I associated it as a cause and effect relationship, and felt jealous and ashamed of not achieving the same level. In reality, my dad would always give us licorice when he came to pick me up. But for me, an association had been made that I was worse than someone else and my dad knew it.

I also distinctly remember as a child receiving, what I perceived to be, a low letter grade in PE and consequently thinking I was not good at it. I definitely wasn’t one of the most coordinated or brave students when balls were flying around, but for me to think I was not sufficient at being active was far from the truth. I spent afternoons playing outside, climbing trees, and walking the trails of the forest or the shores of the beach. I was also in a gymnastics club and on a swim team. I remember disliking PE because it was something I thought I was not good at and I was embarrassed about that.

When high school began and the honour roll was introduced I began to strive for higher grades. Extrinsic grade-based motivation? Certainly. But where did that previously come from, and what was it leading to? In high school there was definitely the push to achieve if you wanted scholarships and to get into university. In the end, I truly believe I was awarded at graduation on more than just the merit of my grades, but also from my extra-curricular activities with the school in sports and leadership. The university I was accepted to, however? All they needed to see were my percentages for entry.

Now, here I am in a time of personal change in my education. I am now in a program without grades, based on a pass or fail system. What does this mean? Well, it states that the cut off for a pass is 76%. Because of this, some professors have given us percentages. Last term I received “82% – pass” on a group presentation. In another course the rubric has a column of the assignment requirements and then three columns headed by a “-“, “check mark”, and “**”, but there is no explanation on the difference between the check and the two stars. Do I understand exactly what my prof meant in these markings? Not often. I received all checks and wondered what it would take to get a double star.

Also, now where does my motivation come? I will be completely honest – I miss being tested and graded. I miss that challenge of regurgitating course material. I could “prove” my “learning” then, but if you handed me one of the Biology exams from my undergrad now I’m not sure I could even pass it, because information wasn’t retained. I’m not sure if letter grades are just naturally how I am motivated, or if this motivation is a result of how I was educated. Now, when I complete an assignment it’s hard to know where to draw the line at “good enough.” I know when I’ve achieved a pass and theoretically could stop. If I were going to be receiving a grade, however, I wouldn’t stop. The difficulty lies in where and when to stop. I could go on forever but I question if my prof will know the difference. Now I have to decide what is more important to me: continuing to work on an assignment, or doing something for myself such as exercising or spending time with a friend. Before, I feel the amount of work I put in to something was related to my quest for a high grade, but now the battle of motivation is solely mine because only I know if I have done my best.

As a student teacher I have yet to assign letter grades to students, so I can hardly begin to understand what effect this has. However, based on my experiences, if we are to stop using letter grades at the elementary level there are two attitudes that need to change. First of all, students themselves need to seek intrinsic motivation for learning, and hold a personal standard of how hard they will work at learning. Secondly, educators will need to really think how they will express their understanding of their students’ learning, and be able to clearly articulate it to both students and parents. I’m not sure removing letter grades is a quick fix solution. Instead, a lot of time and focus will be required to put an effective letter grade-free system into place. But perhaps it’s worth the time and focus…

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Edcamp Delta – Education Unconference

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Today was my first Edcamp (Edcamp Delta), and it was fantastic! I tried to figure out ahead of time what it would be like, but like Tintamarre (a post for another time), it is one of those that can’t really be explained, but needs to be experienced. !

Above you can see the Wordsalad I created (similar to Wordle but an app). The words I included were mainly the types of participants and the types of discussions going on. I included participant terms like students, teachers, superintendents, etc., but you’ll see even larger the term “nonhierarchical”. When I arrived at the unconference one of the things I was told repetitively as a newcomer was that it is nonhierarchical. There were high school students that have attended in the past, and had come back again, saying because it is a time when adults and educators listen to them. I think this is one of the things that made this event so successful – the fact that there was open sharing by everyone, and that everyone’s voices were equally valued.

I really enjoyed the interactive spontaneity of the “things that suck” session by @MsVictoriaOlson. Essentially a topic was put up on the board for with a five minute time limit for discussion/debate, and participants moved to either the “sucks” or “rocks” side of the room depending on their opinion. (Check out her blog post for a further explanation.) I found the variety of participants made this session so interesting. For example, “student teachers” – suck or rock? We had students speaking on experiences with having student teachers, teacher advisors speaking on mentoring teachers, thoughts from parents, student teachers asking how else could we possibly learn? As you can imagine there are a lot of points that can be made for and against.

Other sessions I went to involved:

  • a discussion on what do students really need to know
  • a chance to speak with student trustees @MayaTreuheit and @NickMilum, from SD46 and VSB respectively
  • a huge group on the implementation and assessment of the new curriculum
  • ideas on how to best help students with learning disabilities which was well-attended by students with a lot to share

I got to meet so many people at Edcamp – twitter “friends” and new people. Thank you to all the organizers, volunteers, and participants! April 12th is an Edcamp in Langley – Edcamp35. Register now because it’s going to be great – see you there!

 

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Self-Reflection – BEd Semester 1

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…Self-reflections
…Group projects
…Think, pair, share
…#YTEUBC
…Cutting locks on lockers
…Course evaluations
…These will be a few of the things I’ll be unavoidably dreaming about for the next few weeks of our break.

Despite wanting a break from the term “self-reflection”, I think it is time for a self-reflection! One semester completed in the BEd program: ten courses, and a two-week practicum. It is an accomplishment for sure, but I anticipate that what is next to come will be a much larger challenge. There is so much to look forward to as well though. I have many interesting courses coming up, an inquiry project, edcamp Delta, the WestCAST student conference in Winnipeg (and side-trip to the French Canadian Festival du Voyageur – “hého!”), my ten-week practicum, an international practicum at Little Rock Academy in Kenya, ESA events, and a summer wrap up of courses to pool all my learning and experiences into an e-portfolio. Who knows what else will be added into the mix. I’m excited for all this but looking forward to the break to recuperate and refocus.

The courses I took this past semester were:
EDST 401 – Education, School and Society
EDST 402 – Education and Media
EPSE 307 – Applying Developmental Theories in the Classroom
EPSE 308 – Understanding Diverse Learners
EDUC 440 – Aboriginal Education in Canada
EDUC 450 – Inquiry Seminar I
EDUC 490 – Conversational French
EDCP 331 – Social Studies: Elementary – Curriculum and Pedagogy
LLED 350 – Classroom Discourses: Elementary
LLED 353 – Teaching and Learning English as an Additional Language: Elementary

I learnt so much in each of these courses on the subject material, but also learnt so much from each of the professors who were all very different. The additional course I took for being in the FLAGS cohort was Conversational French. It was a lot of fun and I got many ideas for teaching core French. 2014 is going to bring many methodology ie. Curriculum and Pedagogy courses on subjects such as math, science, PE, art, music, French. I’m looking forward to the variety.

One of my biggest challenges this semester was in accepting the new commuting style of my life in Vancouver. I have never had to travel very far or long to get to work, and despite not living that far from UBC, the traffic down Broadway in the morning makes it take longer. Since my classes all start so early next semester I am hoping I will be missing some of that morning traffic! Time management in group work was also one of the most difficult parts of the first semester. Since we’re always in different groups, timelines for each project differ and therefore it is hard to find group meeting times. I found that I was often planning to work on individual work during my breaks but that was not conducive to the need to collaborate. I hope next semester to restructure my individual working time and ESA responsibilities to free up the day time for group work while everyone is still at school. Another goal I have for next semester is to take greater advantage of the resources, opportunities, and people available to us. For instance, our library is full of lesson ideas and lesson plans, and very helpful staff to help you find anything. There is also the Scarfe Digital Sand box sessions to explore technology in education.

Above all, I am just so impressed with and proud of my cohort, and our cohort pair, International Baccalaureate/Inquiry-Based Learning. Everyone comes from very different backgrounds and are facing varying challenges external to the program. The resiliency and strength to focus on the program despite extenuating circumstances by my classmates is inspiring. I have also met many others from other elementary cohorts or secondary subject focus groups. These students all have different passions, and are more than willing to share with you what it is they love. I am being filled with ideas for social and emotional learning, seeing great art projects, learning what IB is all about, and getting help on my blog and twitter. These people have opened my mind to many different aspects of the educational realm, and are causing me to take initiative to learn new things and make myself a well-rounded educator. The students and faculty members aren’t the only wonderful individuals at UBC. The staff at the Teacher Education Office do so much for us, and are always greeting us with a smile!

I hope everyone enjoys their break and I look forward to reconvening in Scarfe in 2014. Happy Winter Solstice – the days are only getting longer now!

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Reflecting on my two-week practicum

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Since the end of September I have been attending my practicum school once a week to observe and help with the class. I am in a grade 5/6 split. The teachers at the school do a lot of platooning (for example, for math, our grade sixes join other grade sixes and we take in additional grade fives, and so on for other subjects), so the class composition is often of a straight grade, but the groups of students are generally different depending on the subject. Since I am in the FLAGS program which emphasizes teaching core French I will also be teaching two separate grade seven classes during my ten week practicum in the spring.

I am currently coming to the end of my two week practicum. It has been a truly wonderful learning experience. I am thankful to have seen what the daily routine looks like on days other than Thursdays! Therefore I have observed different subjects being taught. Over the past two weeks I have begun teaching lessons, and have had one of my lessons (math) observed by my faculty advisor.

This two week practicum has allowed me to really get to know my students and student advisor teacher, as well as other the students and staff in the school. I’ve also developed a solid relationship with the photocopier, Rizo, art supply room, etc.! There have been many highlights over the past two weeks. These include:

-School Assembly (recognizing the funds raised for the Terry Fox Run). Names of students who raised a minimum amount of donations were drawn and given a pie to throw at either the principal or vice-principal. It reminded me of my grade twelve year when we organized something very similar – the chance to pie our principal if we raised (I believe) at least $1000 for Relay For Life, which we did!

-Halloween. For Halloween I dressed up as a purple minion from Despicable Me 2. I am happy to report that most students knew what my costume was! In the afternoon there was a school-wide costume parade, and then our class had a mini party.

-Diwali. On Monday a teacher generously donated samosas to the students and put out a lunch spread for staff. Many students were wearing their beautiful outfits, and the week prior we watched a Bhangra dance by the grade fives at the school assembly.

And of course, there were many other highlights. These included the daily little bits and pieces that really show me what teaching is about. We received a new student for some of our courses, I saw how my teacher keeps communication with the students parents, we have begun to set up a new math program, I realized firsthand how sometimes schedules change drastically and you have to be flexible. These are all things we talk about in our program at UBC, but to experience and deal with it is where the real learning occurs for me!

I am looking forward to the remaining two days at my practicum school. Thursday the regular teacher will be absent so I will have the chance to really take lead in the classroom. Friday I will return to my former highschool for observation and volunteering. I will be sure to post on both these upcoming experiences.

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