News and events

  • GALLERY: Brock delegates build bridges in India

    Thursday, February 13, 2025 | By

    A group of people stand shoulder to shoulder smiling in a conference room.

    Brock hosted its inaugural Indian Market Agent Appreciation Event during a recent visit to the country by Provost and Vice-President, Academic Arja Vainio-Mattila was joined by Mary-Louise Vanderlee, Dean of the Faculty of Education, and Alisha Koumphol, Manager of International Recruitment and External Operations. From left are Trueman Laisram, International Recruitment Officer based in India; Koumphol, Vainio-Mattila, Vanderlee; and Pawandeep Singh, Relationship Manager based in India

    WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2025 | by

    A Brock delegation recently made a visit to India to build the University’s relationships with local institutions and recruitment consultants.

    Arja Vainio-Mattila, Provost and Vice-President, Academic, travelled with Mary-Louise Vanderlee, Dean of the Faculty of Education, and Alisha Koumphol, Manager of International Recruitment and External Operations. The group was joined in India by International Recruitment Officer Trueman Laisram and Relationship Manager  Pawandeep Singh, who are both based in the country.

    The trip — which took place from Jan. 10 to 18 — was the first time Vainio-Mattila has represented Brock internationally since she joined the University last summer.

    “Being able to connect with international peers and stakeholders was invaluable as we explore potential strategic partnerships and expand Brock’s global reputation,” she said. “I was deeply impressed by the efforts of my Brock colleagues to develop positive, productive relationships that will strengthen the University’s impact in India.”

    As well as several recruitment consultants, the delegates met with Chandigarh University, Chitkara University, Amity University, Lovely Professional University and the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute, which has more than 150 member organizations from India, Canada and other countries.

    “Trips like this allow the University, and its Faculties, to explore a range of potential research, recruitment and education partnerships that would help us bring the world to Brock and Brock to the world,” said Vanderlee.

    The trip also included Brock’s inaugural Indian Market Agent Appreciation Event, which recognized the dedication and contributions of the University’s recruitment agents in the country.

    To view the full gallery, please visit The Brock News.

  • Re-Storying Education: Decolonizing your practice with a critical lens

    Friday, February 07, 2025 | By

    A woman sits outside wearing a brown straw hat and a white coat with fur.

    Book talk with Speaker, Author and Indigenous academic Carolyn Roberts

    Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025 at 4:30 p.m., RFP 214/215

     

    Re-Storying education focuses on integrating Indigenous narratives and perspectives into the curriculum of our current education system. By dismantling old narratives and using story to create new narratives, this approach emphasizes the importance of using a critical lens, truth telling, and stories as methods for teaching and learning.  By recognizing the value of Indigenous knowledge and teacher practice in how we can reimagine education, Carolyn aims to create a more inclusive and culturally relevant curriculum that honours Indigenous people, histories and knowledges.

    Carolyn Roberts uses her voice to support Indigenous resurgence through education. She is a St’at’imc and Sto:lo woman belonging to the Thevarge family from N’quatqua Nation and the Kelly Family from the Tzeachten Nation and under the Indian act she is a member of the Squamish Nation.

    Free event, please register through ExperienceBU.
    Presented by Indigenous Educational Studies, Faculty of Education.

  • Lecture series to spotlight research, innovation in education

    Friday, February 07, 2025 | By

    A collage image shows two headshots of a man and woman in professional attire.

    Distinguished Professors of Educational Studies Louis Volante (left) and Susan Drake will speak at the first lecture in a new research-focused speaker series showcasing research and innovation in the Faculty of Education.

    Researchers from Brock’s Faculty of Education will shed light on critical issues facing the global educational landscape during a public lecture series celebrating the University’s 60th anniversary.

    The in-person lectures will share key insights on the advancement of digital technology in classrooms, understanding Indigenous research methodologies and themes of equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI).

    Kicking off the series on Wednesday, Feb. 12 are Distinguished Professors of Educational Studies Susan Drake and Louis Volante.

    Drake, who has extensively explored curriculum design and assessment, will discuss the positive role education can play in helping to solve troubling global issues through the lens of transdisciplinary problem solving in classrooms.

    Volante, whose interdisciplinary scholarship focuses on the global governance of education, will discuss findings from a recent statistical analysis of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic learning outcomes, and consider implications for education policy and large-scale reform.

    On Thursday, March 6, Assistant Professor Mohammed Estaiteyeh and Associate Professor Leanne Taylor, who both hold Brock’s Chancellor’s Chairs for Teaching Excellence, will weigh in on technology and EDI, respectively.

    Estaiteyeh will explore technology in relation to current trends, challenges and opportunities and highlight strategies for equipping educators with the mindset and skills needed to navigate the digital classroom of the future.

    Taylor will share her current research which focuses on key EDI themes and challenges within teacher education during an era marked by complex societal shifts and increasing resistance to equity initiatives.

    During the final talk on Wednesday, March 26, faculty members in Brock’s Indigenous Educational Studies programs will share insight on Indigenous research methodologies.

    Professor and Director of Indigenous Educational Studies Sheila Cote-Meek and Assistant Professors of Indigenous Educational Studies Jeannie Martin and Sherri Vansickle will discuss the cultural practices and traditional teachings embedded in two distinct regalia: the Ribbon Skirt and the Gustowah Haudenosaunee Men’s Headdress.

    All research talks are free and open to the public. The Brock community is encouraged to register through ExperienceBU. More information can be found on the FOE speaker series web page.

     

    Categories: Events, News, Uncategorised

  • OPINION: Louis Volante, Don Klinger and Joe Barrett discuss the future of education

    Thursday, January 09, 2025 | By

    Two children interact in a classroom setting.

    Louis Volante, Professor of Educational Studies at Brock University; Don Klinger, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Education and Professor of Measurement, Assessment and Evaluation at Murdoch University; and Joe Barrett, Associate Professor of Educational Studies at Brock University, recently published a piece in The Conversation about the need for compulsory education systems to adopt more multifaceted understandings of educational excellence in the future.

    MONDAY, JANUARY 06, 2025 | by

    This piece written by Louis Volante, Professor of Educational Studies at Brock University; Don Klinger, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Education and Professor of Measurement, Assessment and Evaluation at Murdoch University; and Joe Barrett, Associate Professor of Educational Studies at Brock University, originally appeared in The Conversation.

    In Roman mythology, Janus was the god of doors, gates and transitions. Able to see in two directions, Janus was associated with passages, beginnings and endings.

    In January, the month named for him in the western calendar, it’s fitting to consider how, in many respects, compulsory education systems require new beginnings in terms of envisioning broader objectives for their student populations.

    While students need to read, write and do arithmetic, the “back to basics” approach to promoting educational excellence, formulated hundreds of years ago by the Prussians, will no longer suffice.

    Schools and societies have seen seismic technological, environmental, cultural and social changes. Kindergarten to Grade 12 systems must embrace a more multifaceted vision of educational excellence that includes the promotion of both cognitive and non-cognitive skills.

    These “two faces” — cognitive and non-cognitive — helps prepare students for their futures, not our past.

    Cognitive versus non-cognitive skills

    Achievement in traditional subject areas like English and French, mathematics and science has long been recognized as important for students’ cognitive skills. Many parents, teachers and policymakers become concerned when provincial or national test results suggests deteriorating or stagnant performance in these curriculum areas.

    Yet even the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is now quick to point out that cognitive achievement is necessary, but insufficient, for student success. The OECD, which runs the largest and most influential international test of reading, science, and mathematics — the Programme in International Student Assessment (PISA) — is also considering the value of other kinds of learning.

    A recent working paper published by the OECD, Beyond Literacy: The Incremental Value of Non-Cognitive Skills, points out how a broad category of non-cognitive skills predict important life outcomes such as educational attainment, employment, earnings and self-reported health and life satisfaction.

    Growth mindset

    Non-cognitive skills, sometimes called “soft skills,” include attributes such as “growth mindset.” This refers to a general belief that success is based on hard work and dedication, and is less related to innate and fixed qualities.

    A person with high-growth mindset would agree with the statement: “Math doesn’t come easy to me, but if I try hard, I will be successful.” Interestingly, countries that have relatively higher levels of growth mindset also tend to do better academically.

    Emotional intelligence

    Another frequently noted non-cognitive skill includes social-emotional learning or what is sometimes referred to as emotional intelligence. The latter allows students to self-regulate and ultimately become more resilient in the face of adversity and changing times.

    Although there are various factors that shape a child’s emotional makeup, social-emotional learning can be developed in classrooms with the right supports.

    Physical health and well-being

    Finally, physical health and well-being is also a critical non-cognitive ability, one that is often overlooked in Canadian education systems.

    As our research with colleagues suggests, provincial systems devoted relatively little policy attention to the development of physical health during the initial waves of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as during the recovery phase.

    Admittedly, this disturbing trend existed well before the outbreak of COVID-19. In some respects, we are now facing an impeding epidemic of mental and physical health in our schools without the benefit of adequate interventions.

    Ideals and practices

    Each province in Canada is fully autonomous in developing and implementing education policies, as well as outlining the main purposes of education.

    In Ontario, for example, the provincial Education Act says “the purpose of education is to provide students with the opportunity to realize their potential and develop into highly skilled, knowledgeable, caring citizens who contribute to their society.” Other provinces provide similar education guidance that underscores the importance of developing students’ knowledge, skills and attitudes.

    What is clear from these various legislative mandates is that provinces have seemingly endorsed a holistic view of student development. Unfortunately, goal statements that align with holistic student development may look good on paper but are rarely realized in practice.

    Teacher education programs, for example, vary significantly within and across Canadian provinces and American states, with limited attention devoted to mental health-related certification standards, including socioemotional learning.

    Fragmented approaches

    Provincial approaches to assessing non-cognitive skills are also fragmented, suggesting more innovative and integrated assessment systems are needed. It is hard to address a problem without the benefit of reliable and valid data sources.

    Similarly, less than half of Canadian children meet daily physical activity requirements, despite mandatory policies in provinces such as Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia. Given the close association between child and adult obesity rates, lack of attention to physical activity will have lasting negative consequences.

    Research also suggests no new mental health policy developments occurred in half of Canadian provinces in the aftermath of the pandemic. It appears provincial education systems have been lagging in targeted policy developments and implementation efforts related to non-cognitive skills.

    Clearly, there is an urgent need to embrace, in concrete terms, the dualities of cognitive and non-cognitive skills within our schools. Sometimes being two-faced can be a good thing.

  • Professor Trevor Norris appointed Editor-in-Chief of Philosophical Inquiry in Education

    Tuesday, December 17, 2024 | By

    A man wears a jacket and scarf while standing outside smiling a the camera.

    Trevor Norris, Professor of Educational Studies in Brock’s Faculty of Education, was recently appointed Editor-in-Chief of the prestigious journal Philosophical Inquiry in Education (PIE) commencing on January 1, 2025 for a three-year term.

    Norris brings extensive expertise to the international peer-reviewed journal, notably having served a six-year term as Editor-in-Chief for the Brock Education Journal where he won the first Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) grant for a Brock University journal.

    PIE is associated with the Canadian Philosophy of Education Society and has been published for almost 40 years. The journal publishes three issues a year covering a range of topics and intellectual traditions promoting broad philosophical approaches to foundational educational questions.

    Recent topics include empirical approaches to educational research, moral education, the role of well-being in education, published in both French and English. The journal also publishes in an Open Access format, meaning there are no fees incurred to authors, libraries or readers.

    With research specialization in the philosophy of education and humanities-oriented research, Norris was also recently elected to serve as Director of The Posthumanism Research Institute (PRI) effective July 1, 2024.

    As PRI Director, Norris oversees several academic activities and events throughout the year. Its membership is comprised of faculty and graduate students from across the University and associate members from external institutions.

    A new initiative for 2024-25 includes a reading group entitled Marx in the Anthropocene.

    “The reading group model is intended to drive discussion regarding current questions about the Anthropocene, especially how humans engage with and impact nature,” Norris said.

    The reading group was capped at 20 participants with members spanning the academic field and beyond, including filmmakers, psychoanalysis’s, lawyers, and PhD students from around the globe.

    Norris said while many research institutes around the world host traditional academic events like guest speakers, a reading group is an unusual pedagogical intervention that allows the group to slowly read a text over the course of a year.

    “What is doubly unique about this reading group is that it will culminate in the arrival of the author, who is highly sought after and often declines speaking invitations but was attracted by the opportunity to engage directly with a group who have read his book closely,” he said.

    Many of the PRI’s events can be viewed on the YouTube channel, and the PRI welcomes applications for affiliation and can be followed on Facebook for updates about upcoming events.

    These academic initiatives employ many Brock University students, and helps situate the University as an important leader in academic research with real world impacts.

  • Brock Education Journal: Promises and Perils: Generative Artificial Intelligence’s Role in Shaping Education’s Future

    Monday, November 11, 2024 | By

    An empty classroom shows three chairs and blank computer screens.

    Brock Education Journal Vol. 33, No. 3 (2024)

    Emerging as a dynamic and game-changing force in education, Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) has sparked a whirlwind of activity as the sector races to forge inventive paths and embrace this transformative technology. Its boundless potential to reshape teaching methodologies and learning experiences is unquestionable. It has stirred a flurry of activity as the sector grapples with and invents or adopts innovative solutions to integrate and respond to this emergent technology. As Marks (2022) identified, we currently inhabit a moment suspended between the Peak of Hype and the Depth of Cynicism. We need to locate that complex juncture which requires both careful examination and thoughtful action. For example, we have witnessed cases of ChatGPT being banned in places over privacy and a fear of wholesale plagiarism, only to be accepted and restored subsequently.

    To view the full issue, please visit the online journal.

  • Global learning in Italy’s city of love

    Tuesday, October 29, 2024 | By

    A group of women stand shoulder to shoulder in Verona with a blue sky in the background.

    A group of Brock Teacher Education students recently expanded their global educational horizons during a teaching field experience in Verona, Italy.

    Faculty of Education (FOE) teacher candidates, accompanied by Professor Darlene Ciuffetelli Parker and Assistant Professor Dane Di Cesare, travelled to the famous setting of Romeo and Juliet to teach at local schools and experience the city’s culture and history.

    Madeline Boucinha (BA ’24, BEd ’24) said the international teaching experience helped her to develop cultural competency, language skills, adaptability and innovative teaching practices. The trip also influenced her philosophy on mental health and well-being, lessons Boucinha says she will take with her in her future career as an educator.

    “I grew not only as a teacher candidate, but as a person. I gained a sense of independence, resilience and self-awareness living and working in a new country,” she said.

    Beyond the rich planning and teaching experiences in ten diverse schools throughout the city, Ciuffetelli Parker said the students were immersed in everyday culture as a way of living and learning, from exploring history, literature and local Italian cuisine to working alongside mentor teachers and giving back to the Veronese community.

    A group of people sit around a table, each person leans forward in concentration over their work as they hand-write letters.

    Students visited Club Giulietta (Juliet’s Club), a community initiative where
    letters about love and loss are received from people all over the world.

    “Activities included a special volunteer session at Club Giulietta, or Juliet’s Club, where real letters about love and loss written to Juliet by people from all over the world were responded to by our group and mailed back to the senders, providing an emotionally engaging and authentic literacy experience,” she said.

    The Verona practicum course was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for Patrisha Shiga (BA ’24, BEd ’24).

    “I had the privilege to enter numerous classrooms in three different schools, working with students of a variety of different age groups. I experienced an entirely different school system and learned how teachers in Italy foster their learning environments to improve learning,” she said.

    Shiga designed and facilitated lessons to develop her skills in teaching multi-language learners, adjusting content and finding new and creative ways to explain concepts.

    Di Cesare said the international teaching placement deepened students’ understanding of diverse educational practices enrichening their approach to teaching.

    “Hearing the candidates reflect on their experiences, for me, highlighted the value of such immersive experiences in shaping adaptable and culturally responsible educators,” he said.

    The group also explored their lived experiences as pre-graduation teacher candidates by engaging in a narrative inquiry research study that deepened their understanding of educator growth from a global perspective.

    Ciuffetelli Parker and Di Cesare will be leading a second Verona teaching experience in May. All interested students are invited to attend an online information session on Wednesday, Oct. 30 from 12 to 1:15 p.m. on Teams. The Verona field course experience is open to final-year teacher education students who have completed their practicum.

  • Equity and Social Justice Committee and Indigenous Educational Studies Event

    Thursday, September 26, 2024 | By

    A photo shows four women standing shoulder to shoulder smiling at the camera. Three women are wearing orange shirts. One woman holds a baby in an orange onesie while Dawn Hill holds a copy of a book inspired by her life.

    Pictured above, from left to right: Leanne Taylor, Associate Professor of Educational Studies and Chair of the Equity and Social Justice Committee in Brock’s Faculty of Education; Lorrie Gallant, storyteller, artist and educator in Brock’s Indigenous Educational Studies programs; Baby Rosie (Lorrie’s granddaughter); Dawn Hill, teacher, mother, grandmother, sister, volunteer; Sherri Vansickle, Assistant Professor in Brock’s Indigenous Educational Studies programs.

    The following was written by Leanne Taylor, Associate Professor and Chair, Faculty of Education Equity and Social Justice Committee

    On September 23, 2024, the Equity and Social Justice Committee (ESJC) and the Indigenous Educational Studies programs in the Faculty of Education hosted an event to commemorate the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation. Held at the Goodman School of Business Atrium, the event featured a book reading and speaker session of The Day I Became Number 54. The gathering brought together more than 80 faculty, students, staff, and community members.

    The event spotlighted author and illustrator Lorrie Gallant, who read from her book, followed by an impactful talk from Dawn Hill, whose experiences in the residential school system inspired the book. Dawn, a Turtle Clan member of the Mohawk Nation and active board member at various organizations including the Survivors Secretariat, shared poignant insights from her 11 years in the residential school system and offered guidance for reflection and future actions. Lorrie Gallant, Haudenosaunee of the Cayuga Nation and a part-time instructor in the Indigenous Education Program, also shared her perspectives as a storyteller, artist, and educator.

    This gathering served as a unique platform for reflection on the vital role educators play in advancing knowledge about the legacy of residential schools. The event encouraged personal awareness and self-directed education on the complex histories and ongoing challenges faced by Indigenous Peoples, highlighting the need for these efforts to extend beyond September and become a year-round commitment in our teaching and community engagement practices.

    The event concluded with an engaging Q&A session where Dawn Hill further elaborated on her experiences, providing attendees with deeper understanding and actionable insights. The session ended on a communal note with a blanket draw, courtesy of the Hadiya’dagénhahs First Nations, Métis and Inuit Student Centre, symbolizing warmth and unity.

  • Brock Professor of Music Education announces publication exploring trauma and music education

    Wednesday, June 05, 2024 | By

    A woman with a bright blue shirt and curly hair stands at Brock University with her arms crossed, smiling warmly at the camera.

    Faculty of Education Professor Shelley Griffin’s co-edited collection entitled Traumas Resisted and (Re)Engaged: Inquiring Into Lost and Found Narratives in Music Education was recently launched in Dublin, Ireland, at the 9th International Conference on Narrative Inquiry in Music Education.

    Originally published in December 2023, the collection was co-edited by Nasim Niknafs, Associate Professor at University of Toronto Faculty of Music and published by Springer Nature.

    The collection draws on the research work Griffin has been engaged with over the last four years, uniquely merging the field of trauma studies and narrative inquiry in music education.

    Currently, there is a special offer to receive 20% off the printed book or eBook by entering the following coupon code at checkout to apply discount (valid May 22, 2024 – Jun 19, 2024):

    Springer Link – Traumas Resisted and (Re)Engaged: Inquiring Into Lost and Found Narratives in Music Education.

    Coupon code: q0qUqLwAhuPQBd

    For more information or to download the coupon code, please see the PDF.

    About this book:

    Cover of Shelley Griffin's New publication.This book focuses on the traumatic experiences within and through music that individuals and collectives face, while considering ways in which they (re)engage with their traumas in educational settings. The chapters delve into the physical, psychological, philosophical, sociological, and political aspects, as they relate to the reciprocal influences of trauma on musical practices and education. Readers are immersed in topics related to societal violence, physical injuries, grief, separation, loss, death, and ways of working through these in educational and artistic situations. In the introductory chapter, the co-editors draw attention to theoretical matters related to trauma through narrative inquiry in music education. The first section of the book, Separation Revisited, brings together notions of separation, focusing on how loss is emotionally and physically manifested when death, grief, and bodily injury are experienced. In the second section, (Re)Engaging with Lost and Found, readers are encouraged to imagine new possibilities considering trauma and loss in educational and musical spaces. These pieces offer deliberate ruminations moving the discourse toward (re)engagement in and through music education and artistic contexts. The co-editors conclude the book by drawing attention to narrative inquiry’s double-edged nature in stories of trauma and how the retelling of lost and found narratives offers a way to imagine lives otherwise—lives not smothered by grief and horror—through the conceivable reliving of unfathomable stories of experience. This book emerges from the 7th International Conference on Narrative Inquiry in Music Education (NIME7), October 2020, co-hosted by Brock University, Faculty of Education and the University of Toronto, Faculty of Music, Ontario, Canada.

  • Latest edition of Brock Education Journal now available

    Friday, May 24, 2024 | By

    The front cover art of the Brock Education Journal is shown. It has a black background and white title lettering and shows an open window to a balcony view.

    The latest edition of the Brock Education Journal, Critical Perspectives on Mental Health in Education: Striving for Social Justice, is now available.

    Current scholarship that analyzes ‘mental health’ as a dynamic, socio-political and cultural construct often leaves out intersectional social factors and determinants of health and well-being. This special issue will bring attention to this need for work in critical mental health within the context of the field of education. Despite increased awareness in the fields of critical mental health studies (Cohen, 2017) and Mad Studies (LeFrançois et al., 2013; Beresford & Russo, 2021), much of the literature pertaining to mental health and well-being in schools adheres to biologically essentialist and reductionist understandings of mental health and well-being. This has the effect of limiting and narrowing understandings of mental health. This depoliticization of mental health can cause conversations regarding mental health in education to not be considered through an intersectional analytic that also considers the ongoing effects of settler colonialism, white supremacy, cis-heteropatriarchy, ableism, sanism, neoliberalism, and capitalism on educators, students, and school communities.

    In this call for papers, we seek contributions that are invested in conversations regarding critical approaches to understanding mental health in schooling and education, with “education” and “schooling” including early years education, K-12 schooling, and higher education. We seek contributions that take into consideration social determinants of health and well-being, critique reductionist understandings of mental health and well-being, and that place inclusive and affirming pedagogies at the forefront. We welcome contributions that centralize lived experiences and challenge dominant positivist approaches to researching mental health.

    Guiding questions include: How can schooling and education centralize the mental health and well-being of children, youth, students, educators, and others in their collective communities through culturally-affirming, intersectional, and critical pedagogies and practices? How might schooling and education perpetuate epistemic harms and injustices relating to the silencing and disenfranchisement of students and educators who experience mental distress, or identify with madness or as Mad? In what ways can schooling and education work with transformative praxis and consciousness-raising practices (Freire, 1970) that can seek the overall health and wellness of all students and educators?

    Categories: Events, News, Uncategorised

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