Standard 7 – Educators engage in professional learning
The teacher Education Program through the University of Northern British Columbia has provided many opportunities for my growth and development as a professional.
In January, Indigenous Professional Development Day provided the opportunity for so much rich learning. I knew that for my Practicum I would be teaching English First Peoples 11/12, English 12 and Appreciation of Film 12, and so naturally I signed up for Indigenous Cinema to learn more about the films that the National Film Board had that I could use in my Practicum and teaching practice. I also took part in the Fireside Chat hosted by Jordin Tootoo following his keynote as many of the students I had had in the previous Practicum were student athletes and played hockey; turns out this time around I did not have as many hockey players but it was still very beneficial.
Thank you to @SD57PG and PGSS for hosting today’s Indigenous Pro-D! It was a powerful time of learning and connecting. Thank you to @waneekhm and @Jtootoo22 for sharing your powerful stories, I will not forget them. #unbced pic.twitter.com/cvipZ9HaEm
— Naomi Broadhead (@NR_Broadhead) January 28, 2020
For the Provincial Professional Development Day, our cohort was able to take part in the Professional Development offered within Nechako Lakes; learning about the importance of social emotional development within a middle years context.
We were also given the chance to explore the school including the flight simulator!!
The Humanities cohort took part in Professional Development with School District 57 exploring the Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada – Giant Floor Map! There was a lot of deep discussion that took place both on and around the map, considering the ways that the map could be used with students as a powerful teaching tool for both pre-service and practicing teachers.
In September this year, the Humanities cohort of our program had the chance to take part in professional development with SD91 focusing on the importance of Indigenous Education within our schools in the first annual SD91 Aboriginal Education Conference. Monique Gray-Smith and Dr. Dustin Louie led the keynotes with powerful stories and ideas of ways to Indigenize education systems.
In May 2019 I was given the chance to take part in a symposium hosted by the University of Northern British Columbia. This symposium brought together educators, administrators, school district staff, recent graduates and teacher candidates to discuss and innovate ideas for rural education. It was a powerful learning experience with many different school districts and schools represented, each with their own unique changes and triumphs. And while this picture might not be all that serious, we did do a lot of hard work.
