Session 1: Nov. 7, 2022
With thanks to support from the Ministry of Education, BC’s Rural Education Advisory, UBC’s Edith Lando Virtual Learning Centre, and the Greater Victoria School District invited educators in BC to join in a shared conversation about literacy learning in the secondary years. Sessions had a blend of current thinking, examples from practice, and time to process and personalize ideas. See how reading, writing and thinking grow from oral language.
Denise Augustine, Superintendent of Indigenous Education: Denise Augustine (Swee’alt) is a Coast Salish woman with mixed ancestry. Both her and her husband, Greg, were raised in the Cowichan Valley and this is where they also raised their two girls Skye and Arianna. Denise has been an educator for over 20 years and has worked with children and youth from pre-school through grade 12. More recently, as the district principal of Aboriginal education, Denise has been working closely with teachers, administrators and support staff. In side-by-side coaching, action research, and experiential workshops, Denise carefully weaves story and research together, inviting adults to open their hearts and minds and imagine a community that values diversity and inspires innovation.
Emma Milliken, Teacher at Spectrum Community School: Emma Milliken is from the Kettle and Stony Point First Nation in Ontario, with Anishinaabe and Scottish ancestry. She has been an Indigenous Education support teacher for fifteen years, and is a member of the Indigenous Education District Team in SD 61 (Greater Victoria). Emma is grateful to be working with Indigenous youth, and to have found a home with her own family on Lkwungen territory for the past twenty years. She is currently working on projects to support school staff in their journeys to understanding and practicing reconciliation personally and professionally. In her own teaching practice, her focus has been on both pedagogy and assessment, and how Indigenous approaches in these areas can benefit all children in our schools. Emma lives in Victoria, BC.
Erica Fitton, Teacher: Erica is a English and Social Studies teacher at Princess Margaret in Penticton. For the past 8 years she has primarily been teaching English 10 and 12 First Peoples. She is passionate about building a strong community in the classroom, transporting her classes to land based learning experiences all over Penticton in a 24 passenger mini bus and helping student foster a knowledge of their role in Truth and Reconciliation. She is currently furthering her education through and MED at UBC in Curriculum Studies.
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