School of Education Newsletter - September 2017
The September 2017 edition of the 'School of Education' newsletter welcomes cohort 6, a new administrative assistant, and faculty updates from the summer.
Back: Noelle Bulleid, Vivian Clayton, Joel Ewald, Catherine Barrette, Tom Netzel, Shayla Billy, Marie-Claude Blouin, Jon Doane, Kendra Mouland, Alyssa Scott.
Front: Rebecca Greaves, Teana Imbeau, Jessica Mailhot, Josiane Currer-Briggs, Linda Wilson. Not present: Lothlan Olson.
Welcome Cohort #6!
This year we are thrilled to welcome 16 new teacher candidates to our Bachelor of Education program. These students have come together from all walks of life and are setting out on a journey to transform themselves from student to teacher.
As many know, this is not an easy task as BC teachers are held to high standards (see the TRB Standards for Educators below). However, these students have already overcome their first hurdle – getting accepted into UNBC’s B.Ed. program.
Looking forward, our students will have many experiences and will face many challenges over the next two years. May these experiences help them to begin their journey towards becoming professional teachers.
Best of luck to our new cohort on this journey!
B. Ed. Practicum Placements
The experiences that our future educators will gain in these placements are invaluable. No doubt these experiences will be rewarding for all involved, as past Cooperating Teachers have noted that they “had an amazing experience” with their student teacher.
Our practicum placements have been made possible by a number of individuals. A big thank you to our acting Practicum Placement Coordinator Sam Lambright.
New Administrative Assistant
My name is Caitlyn Eide and I was hired as the Administrative Assistant for the UNBC Northwest Region School of Education on September 1st, 2017. This was not a giant leap, as I was a Casual Administrative Assistant for the UNBC Northwest Region for two years prior. Nevertheless, I am very excited to become a fulltime member of the UNBC family! I look forward to contributing to the development and expansion of post-secondary education in our region, especially in the area of Education. I feel passionately about what we do here at UNBC and I hope that my own post-secondary education experiences at Grande Prairie Regional College, Northwest Community College, and Simon Fraser University aid me in my new position, while also enabling me to better serve our students.The TRB Standards for Educators in BC:
- Educators value and care for all students and act in their best interests.
- Educators are role models who act ethically and honestly.
- Educators understand and apply knowledge of student growth and development.
- Educators value the involvement and support of parents, guardians, families and communities in schools.
- Educators implement effective practices in areas of classroom management, planning, instruction, assessment, evaluation and reporting.
- Educators have a broad knowledge base and understand the subject areas they teach.
- Educators engage in career-long learning.
- Educators contribute to the profession.
Faculty News
- Alex Lautensach and Sabina Lautensach attended the International Conference on Education, from June 4 – 7, 2017. This conference took place in Stockholm, Sweden. They presented a paper entitled “Learning Sustainable Cultural Safety in a Crowded, Warming World.” Abstract:
Among all the pressing needs for educational innovations that we face today, arguably the most imperative is the need to elicit learner’ active collaboration towards a ‘Great Transition’ into a secure and sustainable future for humanity. Among the numerous challenges that this endeavour entails, the anticipated arrival of unprecedented numbers of climate refugees will severely challenge the capacities of host institutions to maintain human security - connecting to a second pressing need, namely to promote and maintain cultural safety for newcomers and hosts. (p. 231). (For full proceedings visit https://www.cluteinstitute.com/conference-proceedings/sh17proceedings.pdf, page 231). - Marian Kotowitch-Laval and Ed Harrison presented at the 2017 UNBC-CNC Teaching & Learning Conference in Prince George on August 30, 2017. They presented a workshop on the Truth and Reconciliation Report, and Marian was also part of the Conference’s keynote panel presenting on the Perspectives of Teaching.
- Dr. Verna McDonald is on sabbatical. Both Sue Spalding and Karen Scales are teaching in her place.
Pubic Presentations
Kicking off this semester’s public presentations:
- Quinn Barabash - “A Fish Based Economy" (September 27, 2017 @ 12:00pm - 1:00pm)
Watch for the rest of our Public Presentation Fall Line-up!
Important Dates
September 20
- Last day to add/drop May Semester courses without financial penalty.
October 3 – November 21
- Practicum Observations
October 9
- Thanksgiving Day, University Closed
October 26
- Last day to withdraw from September Semester courses without academic penalty, 50% tuition refund
