Olivia and I have been working on a toolkit for teachers. The toolkit basically outlines information on learning e-Portfolios, benefits, etc. Here is an image that encapsulates some ideas that Lucas helped us come up with:
Uploaded by AJC1 on Flickr, Creative Commons.
Nice picture to get ideas flowing. For some reason it has been hard to put all those ideas into sentences…hopefully Olivia and I can get it together soon! Adios for now.
Filed under Uncategorized
Uploaded on Flickr, Creative Commons by Peter Nijenhuis.
Cindy Underhill had asked Olivia and me to create a lesson for elementary aged students for a digital tattoo project. The lesson objective is to create awareness of the traces people leave behind on the internet. Because footprints might be a more relatable concept for young children, we used the term “digital footprints” instead of “digital tattoo.” Also, we aimed the lesson at younger kids because people start surfing the net, etc. at increasingly younger ages.
Feel free to adapt this lesson as you see fit. Enjoy!
Click on lesson here: DigitalTattooLesson-Grade 2 & 3
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Olivia and I learning about traditional Musqueam place names.
I was super excited to visit Musqueam, and I wish we could have stayed longer, but Olivia got called into an interview. It was the first time either of us had been on a reserve, and we didn’t know what to expect. While tentatively lurking around the entrance of the new recreation centre, a man named Brad with nifty tattoos spotted us, and he could tell that we were out of our element. He welcomed us, and kept saying, “Don’t be shy,” every time we bumped into each other thereafter. He broke the ice for us a little and made us feel welcome. I hope that I can personally thank him for that some day. My overall experience was great. People were happy, and I witnessed numerous warm and tender exchanges. During the welcoming ceremony, smoked salmon filled the air, drums were sounding, and to my delight, other Asian brothers and sisters were enjoying the day there too. One thing that I really liked was the reverence with which elders were treated. Respect for elders seems to be lost in general nowadays. Though I enjoyed my experience at Musqueam, there was a point at which I asked someone an ignorant question, and I felt somewhat silly afterwards. I was looking to buy some silver rings, each of which were engraved with different animals. I was asking the woman selling them about the different meanings, and how one knows which animal suits them. She told me that families have a crest, or you could choose one yourself after doing some research. After a brief silence, I asked, half out of curiosity, half because I wanted to disrupt the silence, “So which one do you like?” She replied that it’s not about “liking,” but that her family has a crest. I felt embarrassed because she had just told me that families have their own crests, so it seemed like I wasn’t listening to her. The lesson I learned from this exchange was:
Moving along, I ended up getting this hummingbird ring:
“The hummingbird represents healing which can be physical, spiritual, or relational. Often called ‘The messenger of Joy.'” Design by Richard Krentz.
After more wandering, being shy, and not knowing how to talk or who to talk to, Sarah Ling finally showed up and was kind enough show us around and introduce us to people. I am so glad that we went on this visit and I’m regretful that after 24 years of living here (I spent 3 years in Montreal), I’ve never gotten to know the Musqueam community, nor even knew where the reserve was (and one of my best friends is Musqueam!). I hope I can sneak in another visit before I head north.
Filed under Reflecting
Kevin Wilson, lurking between some mysterious tree trunks at Vandusen Garden.
Kev and I have been friends for about six years now, and I can honestly say, I don’t think I’ve ever had a dull conversation with him. Our talks can range from toilet humour, spouting off goofy neologisms, to gingerly teasing out and analyzing anything from literature to race and identity. One could say that we’re sort of like intellectual kindred spirits. Like bacon and chocolate, we seem like an odd pair, but it just works (if you haven’t tried chocolate covered bacon, do it. Seriously.) Anyway, we hung out on Saturday and I told him all about the work I’ve been doing with Amy Perreault, and about what I’ve been learning regarding Canadian history and Aboriginal issues. I told him about all the questions I had in terms of how I relate to this country. I was born here, but on unceded territory, so was I born as a guest? Can I call it my homeland? If not, I surely couldn’t call Hong Kong or China my homeland. Plus, my paternal grandma (who I privately refer to as mi abuela) is a Cuban born Chinese while I apparently have Spanish roots on my mom’s side. While listening to my little identity crisis, Kev, who is of Musqueam and Irish descent, said, “Yah I have the exact same questions.” His comment gave me a lot of insight into the complexity of identity and this weird thing called race. Though I can’t conclusively verbalize the details of that insight yet, I will end this post with a point to contemplate:
What can I conclude from the fact that a Musqueam-Irish-Canadian male asks himself the exact same questions about identity and place that I as a Chinese-Canadian female asks?
How’s that for a conversation starter? ¡Chau por ahora, amigos!
Filed under Identity, Reflecting
“Future Home — Nunavut” by Dani Lau (Acrylic)
Original in colour.
Since I’m northern bound (heading up to Rankin Inlet, NU), Lucas Wright was thoughtful enough to arrange an informal meeting with his retired father, John Wright, who has been a revered teacher and principal up in Whitehorse for many years. We had a gem of a conversation. Mr. Wright said a lot that made an impact on me, and I regret not writing all this all down sooner because some of the details are a bit blurry now. However, I’ll try to stitch the images in my mind back together. One of my questions for Mr. Wright was, “How do I respectfully enter the community?” After telling me that he could only speak for Yukon First Nations, he then told me about some potlatch protocols. He said that when an outsider goes to a potlatch, it really touches the community. “Just go, if you wait for an invitation, you might not ever get one,” he told us. He strongly suggested staying for the whole thing, right ’til all the story telling and gift-giving happens. Sometimes he felt embarrassed because he would leave potlatches with his arms full of gifts that little kids gave him — I would too, given my cultural background (I’m not sure if it’s my Chinese culture or my Canadian one, either). I don’t know if they do potlatches up in Rankin, but it’s good information nonetheless. Mr. Wright shared a lot of wisdom with us in those 45 minutes, but there was one story that really struck my heart — partly because of the tenderness with which he told the story, and partly because the story revealed so much about what it is to be a good teacher. He was walking somewhere when an “oldish” looking guy called out, “Mr. Wright! Mr. Wright!” After a split second of confusion he realized that this was a former student of his. At some point, the forty-something-year-old revealed that Mr. Wright was his favourite teacher, so he asked why. “Because you took me ice fishing,” the man replied. It wasn’t his fabulous unit on Shakespeare, or his superior teaching skills that this man remembered. It was that he took him ice fishing. It’s that personal connection and care that students remember, and that’s the type of thing that will set one teacher apart from the others. I hope that I can be that kind of teacher, going beyond the curriculum, connecting with and influencing students in an indelible way. Before I end up writing a tome here, I’ll end this post with some other points that Mr. Wright left with me:
I can’t say how much I appreciated this talk. I will definitely keep Mr. Wright posted on my career as a teacher.
Stay tuned for the next installment of Good Talks! 🙂
Filed under Reflecting, Teaching
What does Truth and Reconciliation (TRC) mean to me?
To me, TRC means hope for everyone whose lives have been affected by residential schools. It means starting to untangle the convoluted mess that years of systematic discrimination has created, and it means hope for bringing both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people together to move forward in a positive way.
After viewing the Indian Reservation School Initiative (IRSI) website:
1. Create a series of reflective questions that students in the Faculty of Education could use as points of reflection as they engage with this initiative on campus.
2. Write a reflective article for the IRSI website that could speak to your experience as students in the Teacher Education program learning about the TRC and UBC initiatives.
I think that the TRC and UBC initiatives are wonderful because these are important issues to learn about and understand, especially as Canadians. It also reaches another level of importance for us as educators, no matter what subject we’re interested in teaching. We are part of a system, the school system, that has viciously tried to annihilate nations of people and reproduced harmful perceptions, thereby contributing to a cycle of oppression and violence upon the rightful inhabitants of the country that we call Canada. Shouldn’t we at least acknowledge and learn the history in order to begin reversing these pernicious effects and discourses? The power of acknowledgement can go a long way.
Filed under Identity, Reflecting, Teaching
I am a second generation Chinese-Canadian, completing the Teacher Education program at the University of British Columbia as a guest on the unceded territory of the Musqueam people. For as long as I can remember, I had always felt a deep sense of injustice on behalf of Aboriginal people, but I did not have the words and understanding to articulate why. I knew something was wrong, but because of the lack of candid education about Canadian history, and the lack of respectful discussion surrounding Aboriginal issues, I was left in a place where I felt helpless. How do I negotiate between my position as someone who benefits from a system that is based on systematic oppression and a desire to make a positive change for Aboriginal people and other Canadians? As I reflect on my convictions and sociohistorical positioning, I also wonder, at what point did I diverge from mainstream attitudes regarding First Nations, Inuit and Métis people? Somewhere along the way, someone said something that stirred up my social conscience regarding human issues, and here I am now, finally beginning to see how I can plant seeds of change in the path that I walk as an educator. At some point in my career, I hope that I can be that person who says or does something that inspires a student to have compassion for other human beings, and then act upon that compassion.
When asked about why she wanted to become a doctor, my friend, Dr. Sasha Ho Farris Nyirabu, wrote that her mission is to:
[…] Prosper a deeper sensitivity and appreciation of our humanity, grasped through the propinquity of others’ suffering, struggles, and needs, recollecting the contributions of visionary physicians who possessed profound moral inner convictions and resolute integrity, who, in the face of personal hardships and disappointments, selflessly sacrificed time, talents, and resources for the good of the sick, needy, and disenfranchised (2013).
Though Sasha is a physician, I can relate to her sentiments through the lens of an educator. A point worth reflecting on is that the “sick” and “needy,” in my mind, may not necessarily only refer to those who are visibly oppressed, but to those in privileged places. In short, for anyone who is interested in making change, there is a lot of work to be done.
Sources: http://www.cair.ca/en/news/spotlight/index.php?r=8
Filed under Identity, Reflecting, Teaching
After our meeting with Hanae and Michael, we were given some questions to think about. Here are the questions that I have addressed:
1. Do you see your relationship with this place differently after going through the timeline?
Going through this timeline has deepened my understanding of Aboriginal people’s issues and just how intricately entangled those issues are. I did not understand the depth to which their identity was tied up with legal rights. Reading about the measures that the government took in order to limit Aboriginal people’s freedom and basic human rights scared me as well as gave me clarity about how much I, and many others, do not understand of our history. As I said in another blog post, “How do I negotiate between my position as someone who benefits from a system that is based on systematic oppression and a desire to make a positive change for Aboriginal people?” In regards to how I see my relationship with UBC, I have come to understand the importance of acknowledging that I am a guest on
The post on the right has “BRITISH COLUMBIA” on it backwards, and also reads, “TODAY YOUR HOST IS LIL’ WAT.”
Consider the nature of “host” and “guest” relationships.
Musqueam territory. I deeply appreciate that I have the privilege to pursue my studies here, but that appreciation is inevitably counterbalanced with traces of guilt. How could it be otherwise, given the circumstances by which my privilege has been made possible? That being said, as Amy Perreault has discussed with Olivia and myself, we need to move past guilt. I think a starting point is to begin building on the work that people such as Amy, Sarah Ling and others have been working on, even if we only contribute in small ways–a nail hammered in a place where it is needed may be a tiny thing, but an important thing.
2. How does this learning/reflecting process speak to the education you have received?
I do not think that I came out of an education system that does Canadian citizens justice. Most of us do not know the detailed truth about how Canada got to where it is now. Furthermore, by sinister processes, it seems to me that many Canadians have developed a subtle, visceral aversion to knowing the truth about colonialism and the lasting impacts that it has had on a large population of human beings that we share this land with, often casting it off as the “past” and “irrelevant” to current society. This history is not just an Aboriginal issue; it’s a human issue that all Canadians should start thinking about.
3. How do you think the timeline is relevant to your teaching?
As a teacher, and especially one with a focus on elementary school teaching, I think it is my duty to try to make my students see the importance of knowing our history. Having this timeline is brilliant because it enables us to visualize what happened at certain points in time. Also, the timeline helps us begin to insert our own family history into it, thus making it easier to see how everything is connected. As Olivia alluded to in her reflection, what was happening in Canada in the past “made a huge impact” on her ancestors’ descendants.
4. How might you use the timeline in your classroom?
I would have students take the timeline, and investigate what their own families were doing during the significant dates listed. For a point of discussion, perhaps students can then choose a specific date, and answer the question, “How do you think residential schools has has affected your family or yourself? If you don’t think that it has affected you or your family, how do you think it affected Aboriginal families?” “If the government never took away Aboriginal people’s rights, and never sent them to residential schools, what do you think Canada would look like now? How would you fit into that picture of Canada?” Another activity that students could do is to take the perspective of an Aboriginal person, and then do a creative writing project or a drama skit on how that person might have been feeling. A lot of times, we discover understanding (or lack thereof) through students’ creative output. There are many other things that one could do, but I will add to this list at a later time. Depending on the age group, there would be varying degrees of support in how to get certain conversations started, and perhaps even modifying the timeline would be necessary, especially for primary students.
Filed under Identity, Reflecting, Teaching
What is a facilitator?
“[…] someone who uses some level of intuitive or explicit knowledge of group process to formulate & deliver some form of formal or informal process interventions at a shallow or deep level to help a group achieve what they want or need to do [,] or get where they want or need to go.”
–Ned Ruete
“A facilitator’s mission/job — to support everyone to do their best thinking” — Sam Kane
Connections
From a teacher’s perspective, this workshop reaffirmed the importance of being well prepared. Also, a similarity that I noticed between teachers and facilitators is that proper front loading is necessary to diminish potential challenges that participants (students or professionals) may encounter. Where teachers may differ from facilitators is that we are not necessarily always neutral. However, I can see how the skills and strategies that facilitators use are extremely helpful because many of the challenges which arise in facilitation sessions also arise in classrooms. For example, how would we as teachers deal with anger, sensitive issues, defensiveness, etc. when it unexpectedly emerges in our classrooms? Having a bank of strategies ready would be worthwhile for anyone to have, especially for those of us who work with people a lot.
Things to consider: rubrics, criteria, expectations, adaptations
Filed under Reflecting, Teaching
Image from http://www.teachingperspectives.com/drupal/
According to the Teaching Perspectives Inventory, I score 33 on Transmission, Apprenticeship, Developmental, and Social Reform. My results favour Nurturing at 36 points.
So what does this tell me (and others) about my teaching perspective and my style as a teacher? As my scores suggest, my teaching perspective is balanced, each category being tempered by factors such as situational context, student needs, and subjects being taught. While I score slightly higher on Nurturing as opposed to other categories, there are moments where I tap into other teaching perspectives in order to meet specific needs. Reflecting on my experience as an educator, I do find that I have vacillated between different frames of teaching with relative ease.
It would be interesting to take this test again in a year, or even in a few months to see if anything changes. I am cognizant of the fact that my understanding of particular things will change, and I’ve come to be at peace with that.
