Faculty of Education News Bulletin | Faculty of Education

Tuesday, October 31, 2023

Top Stories

York University’s ‘Right the Future’ domestic online advertising campaign features the Faculty of Education – York University’s broad-based awareness campaign went live this past September and allows prospective students who click on the online ads to navigate through to each Faculty’s respective page. Read more

York researchers receive federal funding for knowledge mobilization projects – Associate professor Nombuso Dlamini was one of four York University researchers who received a Connection Grants from the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). Read more

Thank you to everyone who attended the last Cake and Tea with the Dean event on October 4 to celebrate York U Spirit Day

Assistant Professor Natalia Balyasnikova co-organized the York University Summit on Generative AI in Higher Education – Hosted by the Teaching Commons, the Institute for Research on Digital Literacies, and York University Libraries October 18, 19 & 20, the summit featured presentations by assistant professor sava singh and course director Elena Rakitskaya. Colleagues Michael Geusen and Hannah Reuten from our partner university PH Freiburg, Germany along with students from both the BEd and BA Educational Studies programs also presented

Students in course director Jafar Hussain’s Child and Adolescent Health and Development course recently participated in an activity on the subject of behaviorism – The presenters started their presentation with an activity to allow students to express what they already knew about the subject of behaviorism. After going through some of the ideas they had given, they discussed the behaviorist approach and the contributions of 3 famous behaviorists: Pavlov, Watson and Skinner. They then proceeded to explain how behaviorism affects pedagogy as well as the different behaviorist learning technologies. The presentation itself was the behaviorist approach in action as engaging questions were posed to the audience. The students were permitted to revisit their previous thoughts on behaviorism by writing down something new that they learned during the presentation

UNESCO Chair Charles Hopkins spoke at the 2023 Global Conference on Sustainable Development held October 4 and 5 in Hong Kong. During his talk Hopkins discussed how to transform higher education towards embracing sustainability and elevate action to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Program Office Updates

Dean’s Office

Top 30 Alumni Under 30 nominations open – looking for Education nominees – York University’s Top 30 Alumni Under 30 program recognizes inspiring and diverse alumni 29 years old and younger who are driven to make a difference locally and globally. With past recipients pursuing careers in science and technology, anti-Black racism in Canada, and disability rights, we are honoured to recognize and engage these changemakers and shed light on their inspiring work. Learn more

The following Impact stories related to our Faculty were shared in the 2023 President’s Annual Report:

York’s Canadian Observatory for Homelessness (COH), led by Faculty of Education Professor Stephen Gaetz, is leading multiple research projects focused on addressing homelessness

Walmart Foundation donated USD $750,000 to York University to support a groundbreaking research project led by Prof. Carl James, the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora in York’s Faculty of Education

The 2022 federal budget contributes to York’s Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora

Student Services Office

This year’s Ontario Universities’ Fair (OUF) was held October 21 and 22 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and over 80,000 guests attended the fair. Over the weekend, the Faculty of Education team (staff, FESA students and faculty) spoke with over 700 students who were looking to find out more information about the programs we offer. The YU central recruitment team received positive feedback from attendees about the service provided at the York booths

_{Thank-you to our FESA volunteers}

York University will be hosting Fall Campus Day (Keele campus) on Saturday, November 18 – The Faculty of Education Student Services team will be at the Second Student Center from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. to chat with students and families who will be visiting the campus to learn more about York’s programs, specific program requirements and to go on a campus tour. Learn more

Academic Programs Office

Updating your Faculty Profile – Faculty Profiles are an important resource for both students and colleagues to learn about your interests and pedagogy. You can find your profile on our website and populate/update it by referring to the attached document

Professional Learning Office

Winter 2024 AQ session open for registration – Registration for our winter Additional Qualification (AQ) session is now open! Take an AQ, Additional Basic Qualification (ABQ) or Principal’s Qualification Program (PQP) course with us this winter. Courses are offered online in two formats: blended (synchronous/asynchronous) and fully asynchronous. Learn more

Research Office

Announcement of Recent Grants Awarded:

Susan Winton:

Program: SSHRC Partnership Development Grant (PDG) November 2022 competition
Project Title: The Public Education Exchange

Lisa Farley:

Program: SSHRC Partnership Engage Grants (PEG) March 2023 competition
Project Title: Children’s museums and the role of storytelling in learning from difficult knowledge

Nombuso Dlamini:

Program: SSHRC Connection Grant – Research Data Management Capacity Building Initiative
Project Title: Exploring Connections between Black Youth Civic Participation & Identity” was approved for funding

Deaf and Hard of Hearing Office (DHH)

Faculty from the DHH Program attended the Together, We CAN! Conference hosted by VOICE For Children Who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing on October 13 and 14 – Professor Connie Mayer participated in a panel discussion of services available in the community for children who are deaf and hard of hearing and their families

Professor Connie Mayer gave an invited presentation, “Literacy Achievement of School-aged Deaf Learners”, on October 6 at the Pento Audiologisch Centrum Utrecht in the Netherlands

Teacher candidates have been out visiting various DHH classrooms across the province – This helps inform their understanding of what it’s like to work with deaf and hard of hearing students before their fall practicum begins on November 20

The DHH Program will be hosting an Information Night on Monday November 6, 6 -7 p.m. online via Zoom, for certified teachers who are interested in learning more about the application process for the DHH program. Applications will be available on our website in mid-December and are due March 21, 2024. Learn more

New Publications

Associate professor Qiang Zha has a new article titled ‘Reimagining China–US university relations: a global ‘ecosystem’ perspective’ in Studies in Higher Education

Assistant professor Stephanie Fearon has an article titled “Storytelling in Adult Literacy Programs: Affirming Black Mother Learners’ Identities” in the Fall 2023 issue of the Adult Literacy Education Research Journal

Assistant professor Natalia Balyasnikova has an article titled “Unlocking Creativity for Adult Language Learning” in the Fall 2023 issue of the Adult Literacy Education Research Journal

Assistant professor Rachel Silver and co-author Alyssa Morley have a new article titled “Returns at Risk: Girls’ Education and the Gendered Racial Vernacular of COVID-19,” in the Comparative Education Review

Assistant professor Rachel Silver and co-author Steve Sharra have co-authored an article titled “History of Primary and Secondary Education in Malawi” in Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History

UNESCO Chair Charles Hopkins was mentioned in the following articles in University World news:

In the Media

Canada-India diplomatic relations cast shadow over Indian students at U of T – Associate professor Roopa Desai Trilokekar was quoted in an article in The Varsity on Oct. 16

News from the York Community

York holds strong in top five for ‘Maclean’s’ university ranking – York University’s reputation continues to shine in the 2024 Maclean’s comprehensive rankings with an impressive fourth-place in Canada. Read more

President’s 2023 Annual Report reinforces York’s commitment to driving positive change for a better future – Some of York University’s many achievements are captured in the 2023 President’s Annual Report – from pedagogical innovation to interdisciplinary research and more. Read more

Nominate faculty for President’s Research Excellence Awards – The Senate Committee on Awards invites current or emeritus tenure-stream faculty members to nominate colleagues for the President’s Research Excellence Awards. Learn more

York’s Annual Take Our Kids to Work Day – York staff, faculty and instructors are invited to bring their Grade 9 students to work on Nov. 1 to offer insights into career paths in the post-secondary education sector. Learn more

Register for Employee Learning Opportunities at YU Learn – Welcome to YU Learn, York’s first employee Learning Management System! With this system co-developed by Organizational Learning and People Excellence (OLPE), HR and UIT Innovation Lab, employees and managers may more purposefully and easily navigate careers, develop skills and build performance by registering for, tracking, and recommending learning opportunities, as well as working towards digital credentials and program certificates. Learn more