Postdoctoral Research Day – September 17

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SAVE THE DATE for the Postdoctoral Research Day hosted by the UBC PDA

All postdocs, research associates, PhD students, and faculty are welcome.

When: Wed Sept 17, 2:00pm-6:00pm (with food and beverage to follow)
Where: UBC Life Sciences Centre, Room LSC3 and West Atrium

This event will be an opportunity for interested participants to showcase their work, meet peers, and increase their visibility! Registration to present a talk or a poster will open in mid-August. Stay tuned for more details on our website,Twitter, or Facebook page.

Interested guests can send their questions to ubc.postdoc@gmail.com.

Please help distribute widely! We look forward to strengthening connections within the research community.

GSS cIRcle Award – Applications are Open!

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Submissions are now open for the next instalment of the GSS cIRcle Open Scholar award, a lottery-based award that recognizes exemplary non-thesis manuscripts or projects from UBC graduate students.

The Award is based on a lottery system held twice a year. A random selection will be made from items submitted to cIRcle during the previous 6 month period – four awards will be made per annum, two in April and two in October.

The deadline for submissions is September 24.

New UBC Publication in T.A. Development

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A new paper examining the effectiveness of traditional methods of TA training and development has been published in the Kwantlen teaching and learning e-journal, Transformative Dialogues.

TitleTeaching Assistants Thrive in a Collaborative Team: A TA Development Case Study

Authors: Alice Cassidy, Jaclyn Dee, Vivienne KY Lam, Ashley Welsh, Joanne Fox, University of British Columbia

Abstract: It is time to critically examine how Teaching Assistants (TAs) learn to teach and how they develop as educators. This exploration informs the design of courses to effectively foster TA professional development and deliver the best possible quality of instruction for undergraduates. Here we describe how the collaborative and multi-disciplinary First-year Seminar in Science (SCIE 113) educational team at the University of British Columbia (UBC), composed of graduate students and faculty members who teach the course, and a staff member who coordinates and supports the course, learn from and with each other. Our team approach creates a unique environment for TAs to grow and develop as educators, a higher level than the more common TA training. We describe multiple unique roles that TAs play in this course, showing that as contributing members of a team, they learn about teaching, curriculum development, mentorship, and leadership through observation, practice, collaboration, and reflection. The result of this approach is TAs who are well-prepared for the immediate demands of the classroom, have experienced and contributed to curricular design, have the opportunity to create and reflect on their own teaching philosophies and to apply the skills, knowledge and attitudes honed in SCIE 113 to other teaching endeavours.

(Link to full document)

International Symposium on Agroecology for Food and Nutrition Security – Sept 18-19, 2014

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FAO will host an International Symposium on Agroecology for Food Security and Nutrition from 18th to 19th September 2014 to explore recent scientific research and knowledge and promote open dialogue while showcasing existing experiences and programs on Agroecology. The event brings together international experts in the field of Agroecology and within the new FAO Strategic Framework and Strategic Objective 2 to “Increase and improve provision of Goods and Services from Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries in a sustainable manner”.

Dru Yates receives NACTA award

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Congratulations to MSc alumna Dru Yates (supervised by Assoc. Prof. Maja Krzic) who is this year’s recipient of the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA) Graduate Student Teaching Award.

The award is given in recognition of meritorious efforts in postsecondary teaching by a graduate student. Dru is a double alumna of Land and Food Systems, having completed her BSc in Global Resource Systems in 2010, and her MSc in Soil Science this past spring.

(Original post: http://reachout.landfood.ubc.ca/2014/06/26/dru-yates-receives-nacta-award/. Re-posted with permission.)