Educators engage in career-long learning. Educators engage in professional development and reflective practice, understanding that a hallmark of professionalism is the concept of professional growth over time. Educators develop and refine personal philosophies of education, teaching and learning that are informed by theory and practice. Educators identify their professional needs and work to meet those needs individually and collaboratively.
Evidence 1: Reconciliation through Indigenous Education Course
In January 2017, I began the process of auditing a course out of UBC entitled “Reconciliation through Indigenous Education.” This course occupied roughly four hours each week of my free time, and was completed voluntarily in addition to the full-time post baccalaureate course load I carried at VIU. This course allowed me to learn about reconciliation through the perspectives of indigenous voices, view art and media that deconstructs colonization, and learn about the dark history of the residential school system. It also taught me how to honour indigenous ways of knowing in my pedagogy and classroom practices in a way that is holistic, reflective, experiential, and relational (FNESC, 2007).
In spite of the significant time commitment, I believe that taking this course has allowed me to engage in professional development that will only serve my future students, whether indigenous or settler. This course helped me understand the long-term ramifications of intergenerational trauma, how to move forward in the journey of reconciliation and the indomitable resilience of Canada’s First Peoples. Moving forward in education, it will be important that we reframe our understanding of Canada’s colonial past, and not shy away from a dark chapter of our collective history. If education was used to attempt to colonize, erase, ‘other’ and subdue, then it must also be the vehicle used to decolonize, affirm value, assign presence, and empower.
My experience auditing the “Reconciliation through Indigenous Education” course helped me develop and refine my personal philosophies of education, teaching, and learning. In identifying my professional needs and being willing to work to meet those needs, I found myself signing up for a course that would truly challenge my thinking about First Peoples principles of learning. For a long time, I believed that it would be my job as an educator to integrate indigenous content into my lesson plans and practices via a series of checkboxes and formulas. This course helped me realign my thinking about education and good practice. In order to authentically embody the practice of reconciliation, we are welcomed to bring indigenous ways of knowing into our classrooms in a way that encompasses every lesson plan, teaching strategy, and pedagogy. In order to decolonize, this way of being must inform every choice we make in the profession.
Through this course, I’ve learned that indigenous ways of knowing are something I welcome and anticipate bringing to every aspect of my classroom. I have learned that First Peoples principles of learning are based in the exploration of personal identity, recognizes the role of story and memory, and is “holistic, reflexive, reflective, experiential, and relational” (FNESC, 2007). These learning principles are deeply embedded in my credo and personal sense of identity, and are qualities I welcome in every aspect of my practice and pedagogy.
As I continue to grow in the profession, I know I will continue to have learning experiences that will challenge my thinking and paradigms, collaborate with others, and create further connections between theory and practice. Ultimately, everything I learn will be toward the goal of serving my students, and giving them the tools to create personally satisfying lives that reflect their identities and values. As I continue to develop professionally and critically reflect on my practice, I know I will always be open to feedback, open to further shifts in my paradigms, and continually striving to give my students the best of what I have to offer professionally.
During my post baccalaureate degree at Vancouver Island University, I was privileged to act as the Master of Ceremonies at Ed Expo 2018. During this incredible event, students throughout the bachelor of education program (including myself) set up booths and presentations related to professional development, innovative pedagogies, and ways to best serve students. In addition to acting as MC and volunteering with setup and cleanup, I collaborated, researched, and ran a booth dedicated to “Preventing Procrastination and Increasing Motivation.”
My participation in Ed Expo 2018 allowed me to both individually and collaboratively assist my peers in developing our pedagogies, growing professionally, and reflect on our current and future practices of teaching. While not presenting at my station or acting as MC, I had the great privilege of attending multiple professional development presentations, exploring various booths that helped inform my pedagogy, and engaging in meaningful conversations with other students about to enter the profession. My participation in Ed Expo 2018 has impacted my understanding of teaching and learning relative to TRB Standard 7 because it taught me that my understandings of teaching are informed by both theory and practice, and represent a collaborative journey in which each educator assists their peers.
Creating a booth and participating in professional development seminars during Ed Expo 2018 is the right evidence piece for TRB Standard 7 because the expo allowed me a unique opportunity to assess my professional needs and gave me the tools to work to meet those needs (specifically through my participation in a variety of seminars intentionally chosen to broaden my pedagogy and understandings of good teaching). I was also able to address my professional needs during this event by researching an area I was keen to learn more about for my own interest, and by further developing my public speaking skills as a Master of Ceremonies. My willingness to take a visible role at this event, in spite of my initial hesitation, represents my competence and commitment to professional growth and development as it relates to TRB Standard 7.
Through my experience researching, presenting, and actively learning at Ed Expo 2018, I learned how important it is to engage with other educators professionally, collaborate for the common good of our students, and actively reflect our roles as life-long learners. It is this active reflection and engaged collaboration that are the underpinnings of good practice. The experience at Ed Expo was a truly unique one; it was wonderful to see my peers effectively lead groups and teams, assume the mantle of expert, and to observe my friends and colleagues in their long-held vision of being teachers. The energy in the room was palpable. Through this experience, I learned how important it is to develop as a professional, as a life-long learner, and as a collaborative group with other teachers. I have also learned how equally important it is to take the time to reflect on our journeys as learners and teachers for the sake of our practices and students.
TRB Standard 7 is important to my practice because I know I will continually be developing professionally throughout my career in education. Developing my theory and practice, as well as active reflection, will be important as I grow as a teacher because they will help me adjust to new pedagogies and curricular changes as they arise, and also help me address the unique and ever-changing needs of students. As I continue to grow as a teacher, I will hold TRB Standard 7 true by actively participating in professional development opportunities with gusto and enthusiasm, knowing that these opportunities will help me adapt and transform my practice for the benefit of students. It also means that as I continue to grow as a teacher, I will welcome opportunities to share my knowledge and experience to benefit others in the profession. This may look like leading a seminar as it pertains to my subject area, welcoming a student teacher into my future classroom space, or pursuing a master’s degree to further myself professionally. TRB Standard 8 has taught me that developing as a teacher is a life-long process in which there is always something new to learn or share, and that this individual and collaborative process that benefits students, teachers, and the entire community.