Intersection Education

In this episode we speak with Felicia Ochs. Felicia is currently the Wellness Coordinator at Parkland School Division in Stony Plain, Alberta. She has a Bachelor’s degree in English from the College of Saint Benedict and a Master’s degree in Education from Seattle University. She also holds certification in a number of other areas, including being a certified Yoga Instructor.

Wellness is the main topic of our conversation. She helps all people in the division where she works to model wellness and to understand what that might look like. 

As teachers, we often get caught up in the strict pedagogy of assessment or literacy and forget to see learning as dependent on some of the basic wellness issues that Felicia addresses in her work.

If you like this episode, please connect with Intersection Education on our website (www.intersectioneducation.com), on facebook or on twitter (@intersectioned). It also helps us out when you rate and leave a review on iTunes.

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Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz
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Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/7dswC8QFiwU

Additional Editing by Mike Brazeau (http://www.reelaudio.ca/)

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Joanne Blannin.

She is currently the Digital Learning Leader at the Graduate School of Education at The University of Melbourne. She recently completed her Doctorate of Education – looking at teachers and schools using the Internet in their classrooms.

She has taught in England, France and Michigan in the USA before settling down in Australia.  She has been a teacher in private and public schools, in outdoor education and in foreign language settings.

Before moving to the university, she had a leadership role in a school and in the Department of Education supporting the use of laptops, iPads and interactive whiteboards. She helped teachers find learning opportunities in the classrooms.

Jo sees technology to be a powerful force for learning, but also recognizes the hurdles and challenges parents and teachers face in the day to day use of technology.

She is a self-confessed tech nut, but what I really appreciate about Jo is her balanced perspective, she understands that technology is a tool, but is not always the best tool for learning.

You can connect with Dr. Blannin on twitter (@joblannin) or on her website (http://www.thetechknowparent.com/)

Music Information:
Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0
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Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/7dswC8QFiwU

Additional Editing by Mike Brazeau (http://www.reelaudio.ca/)

In this episode we hear from Shelagh Pyper.

Shelagh is our first guest who is not a teacher. Rather, she is a scientist who works with schools to promote nature based play and learning. From 2007 – 2012, she was the Director of DiscoverE, a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) outreach program of the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Engineering. In that time she initiated and implemented new programs around STEM.

Her passion is teaching, and she approaches all projects from an educational lens.  This makes her especially effective when working with schools to bring about better programming and structures that will enhance play and learning.

Shelagh is a certified trainer of the HIGH FIVE Principles of Healthy Child Development and has directed and instructed summer camps for Family and Community Support Services, 4-H, Ringette Camps, DiscoverE (as mentioned) and Explore Français French Nature Camps (which we hear more about in this interview).

Essentially, Shelagh is an expert on nature based play for students. She has not only the science and research background on this subject, but she also has the lived experience of guiding learning in the outdoors. She talks about strategies that each school can use to make better learning and healthier students in this interview.

To connect with Shelagh, send her an email: [email protected]

Music Information:
Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0
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Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/7dswC8QFiwU

Additional Editing by Mike Brazeau (http://www.reelaudio.ca/)

In this episode we speak with Bronwyn Ryrie Jones.

Bronwyn is currently a Doctoral candidate in Education at the University of Melbourne, Graduate School of Education. Although currently on a maternity leave, she is still working with schools in the Melbourne area. 

The area where I think Bronwyn has the most to share with other teachers is in the area of assessment. You’ll hear in our conversation that she has some practical ways to make assessment useful to instruction and has some ideas to help us use data to inform our practice. We get into all sorts of strategies and practices from rubrics to progressions. I think you will find our conversation useful and interesting.

Music Information:
Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0
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Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/7dswC8QFiwU

Additional Editing by Mike Brazeau (http://www.reelaudio.ca/)

In this episode we hear from Dr. Amy Samuels.

Dr. Amy Samuels earned her doctorate of Education from the University of South Florida. She is currently an Assistant Professor in Instructional and Teacher Leadership at the University of Montevallo in Alabama. Amy teaches courses in curriculum, social justice, and professional development.

She has won teaching excellence awards at almost every level of her career, both in the classroom and at the university.

Her area of passion is in culturally responsive pedagogy and making schools great places to learn for all students. I think she hits at a really important question: How do we make schools great for everyone, regardless of the colour of their skin or their cultural background. She gives us some things to think about to ensure that we are making classrooms and schools that serve all.

Intro Music Information:
Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz
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Additional Editing by Mike Brazeau (http://www.reelaudio.ca/)

In this episode we speak with Dr. Duncan Symons who currently teaches at the Melbourne Graduate School for Education, University of Melbourne. Duncan does research in Primary Mathematics Education, Higher Education and Teaching Methods.

Duncan is passionate about inquiry and we speak at length in this episode about practices around inquiry that can improve student learning. We also get into some discussion around rural education and how to improve student’s perceptions of themselves as Math & Science learners.

Although at the University of Melbourne now, Duncan started his career in the class. He understands the practical aspects of teaching and learning, this shows in our conversation.

Intro Music Information:
Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0
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Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/7dswC8QFiwU

Additional Editing by Mike Brazeau (http://www.reelaudio.ca/)

Randy Hetherington is currently assistant professor at the University of Portland in Oregon. He joined the UP faculty from Alberta, Canada and has served as an educational administrator for 17 years. He earned his EdD in 2014 from The University of Alberta in educational administration and leadership. His current teaching assignment includes educational research courses at the graduate level.

Randy’s areas of research include the Superintendency, organizational efficacy, and school improvement. He is the recipient of a Distinguished Leadership in Education award, co-facilitated the Educational Leadership Academy in Alberta for 7 years and served on teaching quality practice review boards in Alberta.

Outside of all of his personal accomplishments, Randy is one of the most caring and thoughtful educators I know. Our conversations are always great and I think this one is no exception.

Intro Music Information:
Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/7dswC8QFiwU

Additional Editing by Mike Brazeau (http://www.reelaudio.ca/)

“We can all improve at what we do.” -Kristie O’Neill

Kristie has been helping teachers meet the needs of students by using Learning Sprints for the past few years. She has special insight into how to get into classrooms and move student learning forward. Her success is due to a balance between building relationships and using data to inform practice.
Kristie is truly doing the work she talks about. As a practitioner, the suggestions she makes have been honed through trial and error. You can learn through her, and the teachers she works with, hard work.

You can connect with Kristie on twitter at @ONeillKristie or on Instagram at teach_m8. You can also follow her on her Learning Sprints Stories page on Agileschools.com.

Intro Music Information:
Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/7dswC8QFiwU

Additional Editing by Mike Brazeau (http://www.reelaudio.ca/)

Terri Lynn is a lead learner who serves as a Principal with Evergreen Catholic Schools in Spruce Grove, Alberta. She is an avid consumer of knowledge and seeker of change. In her more than 20 years in education, Terri Lynn has explored learning in all grades, from kindergarten to grade 12, and as a result brings a systems focused mindset to school based problems of practice. In this episode, we will focus on Learning Sprints. This is a way of organizing teacher learning in short cycles with the goal of improving student success. A learning sprint first involves a team learning about a practice that they believe will positively affect student performance. Then, running a sprint, which means to put the practice into place and evaluate the impact. Intro Music Information: Scandinavianz- Vacation (Vlog) D-L by Scandinavianz https://soundcloud.com/scandinavianz Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/7dswC8QFiwU