professor connie russell and joint phd alumna erin cameron (who is now a faculty member at the northern ontario school of medicine university) co-authored a chapter, "fattening education: an invitation to expand on the nascent field of fat pedagogy" for the 2021 book, the routledge international handbook of fat studies (edited by c. pausé & s. r. taylor). the book was recently named an association of college and research librarians’ “choice outstanding academic title.”

a recently published book co-authored by dr. graham passmore (associate professor, thunder bay campus) aims to provide readers with a deeper understanding of identity structure analysis (isa). the text uses patterns in theoretical data sets to create reports for different isa identity variants. the patterns are then used to uncover guidance for mentorship sessions for the purposes of professional development. the text also introduces an isa mobile app. the app was created to add to the capabilities of an extant analytic isa software in that it will make data collection possible on a phone or other small screen device.

the book was co-authored by julie prescott (university of law, uk), and builds on a prior publication from 2019: identity structure analysis and teacher mentorship: across the context of schools and the individual.

dr. holly tsun haggarty, graduate of the joint phd in educational studies program (thunder bay campus, 2021) has been awarded the 2022 canadian philosophy of education society (cpes) dissertation award. this award recognizes an outstanding dissertation that addresses significant issues in the philosophy of education field.

holly’s dissertation, titled sky, ground and in-between: metaphysical belief systems that underpin epistemologies of arts-integrating research, was described by her external reviewer as a “bold and creative dissertation, a work [that] uses a cogent research design that weaves multiple layers of meaning making into the inquiry and rendering,” an inquiry that is “unique, looking at epistemological underpinnings of two arts-integrating methodologies,” and one that “clearly demonstrates expertise, extensive study and attention to convening research to the audience.”

both the form and content of holly’s work comprise major strengths of her work. the arts-integrating form includes a vividly presented script (for a play), comic illustrations, and poetry. the depth of study and compelling arguments for why metaphysical orientations matter underpin the work’s extensive literary and philosophical overviews, focusing ultimately on elliot eisner’s arts based research and rita irwin et al.’s a/r/tography, and the enactment of philosophy in education settings.

the cpes reviewers of holly’s dissertation offered very positive comments. one noted: “this challenging work confronts our assumptions about how to do philosophy of education and how our ideas can intersect with different genres, including poetry and works of fiction.” and a second reviewer noted: “we rarely think about how to integrate arts-integrated research into the field of philosophy of education. this dissertation provides us with some methodological insights and asks us to think about our own discipline through arts-related methods.”

the dissertation was nominated for the award by committee members dr. pauline sameshima, dr. douglas karrow, and dr. donald kerr.

holly previously won the csea/sces (canadian society for education through art) dissertation award for her work. a copy of the work is available online.

on behalf of the faculty of education, congratulations holly!

chris dube (bed, 2005; med 2009; thunder bay campus), and high school science/outdoor environmental education teacher at lake superior high school in terrace bay, ontario, has been named grand prize winner of the 2022 natural curiosity edward burtynsky award for teaching excellence in environmental education. this annual, national award honours three outstanding educators across canada for their exemplary practices in environmental inquiry.  

chris explains that his philosophy of experiential, environmental education is that “世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 and the school should be an integral part of the community. i believe that local activism, and authentic project-based learning activities, allow 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 to develop their critical thinking and global citizenry.”

chris demonstrates this passion through various hands-on projects he coordinates with 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 , such as the sustainable trail development of the casque isles hiking trail. together, chris and his 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 developed a plan to create 11 permanent camp sites along a 53-kilometre trail on the north shore of lake superior. 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 received a trillium grant to fund the purchase of bear boxes, fire rings, signage, and material to build thunder boxes. they also researched sensitive environmental features of the trail, such as the arctic alpine disjunct plants, to determine appropriate locations for camp sites.

chris has also developed a locally-focused, yet globally relevant multi-credit outdoor environmental science program, based on ontario curriculum documents. the program consists entirely of hands-on, project-based learning activities, employing authentic and alternative assessment methods and indigenous ways of teaching and learning. he notes that the program naturally incorporates four areas of priority: indigenous education, community development, mental health and well-being, and experiential learning.

“the majority of the course is spent on the land with first nations members, local community members, peers, and local business and community organizations to learn beyond the walls of the school,” he explains. this enables 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 to understand their role and responsibilities in the community, identify goals for self-development and growth, and actualize projects that have a real impact in their community.

chris wrote an med thesis focused on assessment and evaluation of two secondary school outdoor, experiential environmental programs, under the supervision of dr. connie russell.  

the faculty of education's may 2022 education exchange newsletter is now published.

this issue features an article on the recipients of the teacher education research fund award, introduction to new staff in the faculty, faculty news and profiles, and more.

to access the education exchange newsletter, click here.

melissa chumakov, a recent graduate of the master of education program (orillia campus, 2021) and current secondary business teacher, has received a canadian association for teacher education (cate) recognition award for her thesis, women in mathematics education: pathways to participation.

melissa’s thesis focuses on improving women’s participation in mathematics education at the post-secondary level. as noted on the cate awards website, her work “highlights women’s experiences through storytelling, as a way of understanding how the complexities of gender identity influence the ways in which women orient themselves in various domains of academia.” 

using narrative inquiry, her thesis brings together critical feminist theory, psychoanalytical perspectives, and social constructivist theory to share five women’s “personal pathways—including experiences, thoughts, and stories—to becoming a woman mathematics educator at the post-secondary level. the research questions guiding this inquiry are: why do women decide to teach mathematics education at the post-secondary level? what are the experiences of women mathematics educators who had “overcome barriers”? what are the critical moments along their pathway to participation?”

melissa recently presented her work via a poster presentation at the canadian society for the study of education conference, as part of a panel featuring cate award winners’ research.

lucas johnson (educational technologies facilitator, contract lecturer, and phd student) has been awarded an amtec trust research grant for his graduate research, titled “educational technology implementation influences in ontario k-12 schools.”

his research examines the decision-making processes and factors related to the selection and implementation of education technology in schools.

“it is important to critically examine the factors influencing decision-making, especially in a time when publicly-funded spending on educational technologies continues to increase and technology permeates our lives,” he explains.

he plans to collect data via by surveying boards of education and conducting interviews to garner a larger picture of the scope of the factors influencing technology acquisition and allocation.

with over 20 years’ experience in the educational technologies sector himself, lucas is well-positioned to undertake this study.

the annual amtec trust award is a $3000.00 research grant awarded to a graduate student whose research is focused on educational technology. lucas will present his research at the canadian network for innovation in education conference next year.

as part of the undergraduate conference during this year’s research and innovation (r&i) week, bachelor of education student samantha clay (orillia campus) won a “special category” award for participating on panel and sharing the storybook she created and illustrated, titled the sustainable squirrel.

samantha explains that the storybook introduces young readers to the sustainable squirrel character, who provides lessons in sustainability to fashionable frog, new toy turtle, art ant, and water bottle walrus.

“the storybook focuses on the idea of commercial over-consumption. the sustainable squirrel promotes the concepts of reducing, reusing, and recycling. i envisioned the story as one that could be shared with parents/guardians. 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 could come up with their own characters with alliterative names, then follow the repetitive template of the book to identify more sustainable solutions to throwing an item away,” she says.

samantha was selected by her instructor, elizabeth thomas (curriculum & instruction in social studies - primary/junior) to participate on a nine-student panel that focused on sustainability and growth. she adds that it was an honour to be selected and to be able to combine her interests in this project.

“i’ve always had a passion for the outdoors and the environment, and the ability to apply my artistic side to this project made it especially exciting.”

as part of an undergraduate conference during this year’s research and innovation (r&i) week, bachelor of education student kari clark (orillia campus) was selected by her peers as best panelist on a nine-student panel that focused on sustainability and growth.

her presentation, which she adapted from a social studies assignment, responded to the question: “how does the town of collingwood’s potential water shortage affect the school system, infrastructure development, and growth and sustainability of the community as a whole?”

kari notes that participating in the panel was an excellent opportunity to advocate for teachers using outdoor spaces to teach the social studies curriculum, as a means of promoting sustainability. this connected to the theme of this year’s r&i week: “planetary sustainability.”

as a reward for being selected as best panelist, kari was asked to represent the faculty of education at a lunch with the university president and winners from other university faculties.

she explains that participating on the panel was “an amazing opportunity, especially from an educational perspective. lakehead 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 have a wealth of knowledge, and to be able to witness this learning and growth in relation to planetary sustainability was nothing short of incredible!”

as part of a $3,000,000 cancode grant awarded to takingitglobal, dr. ruth beatty (associate professor, orillia campus) and her indigenous knowledges and mathematics research colleagues will receive $75,000 over the next 2.5 years to continue to explore connections among indigenous cultural practices, mathematics, and lynx coding.

lynx is a text-based coding program available in many languages including anishinaabe, mi’kmaw, kanien’kéha, and oji-cree. for this project, the research team will collaborate with community partners to continue to explore how incorporating coding can help us to further understand anishinaabe and métis ways of knowing mathematics that both align with, and are different from, a western european conception of mathematics.

to date, they have used lynx as a way to investigate the structure of loom beading, circular medallions, and métis finger weaving. the dynamic nature of the software affords 世界杯2022赛程表淘汰赛 an opportunity to explore different mathematical concepts inherent in beadwork or weaving such as computational thinking, patterning and algebraic reasoning, proportional reasoning, and geometric transformations. the current project will extend these previous explorations, and also include other technologies such as birchbark basket making.