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Youth Development

Education week and empowering modern learners

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BY: KATHY MCDONALD 

April is always an exciting time at school boards across Ontario. It’s Open House season as Education Week is celebrated usually in the latter half of the month. This is a great opportunity for parents, guardians and the community to celebrate the achievements of students. Parents, please visit your children’s school board website for the details regarding the dates for your children’s open house. Education week affords teachers and students the opportunity to showcase their teaching and learning. It’s an occasion for parents to get a first-hand glimpse into the classroom and witness their children’s learning. It is important for teachers to make their students’ learning visible so that all stakeholders can actively participate in the learning continuum.

At open houses, valuable information can be obtained. At the Peel District School Board (PDSB) on March 24th, well over a thousand parents attended our annual parent conference. Such conferences happen at many boards across the province. I would strongly recommend that guardians find out when their children’s school board host such events and attend. It is a great day of learning, lunch is provided and it’s a great way to get exposed to the latest in the educational realm. There are often many publishers, authors, educational experts, resource and service providers, and vendors selling various educational manipulatives. Dwayne Matthews, an educational strategist, was the keynote. The Empowering Modern Learners (EML) conference gave parents a glimpse into what learning looks like today. Hey, don’t despair if you did not attend. You can participate in a host of education week activities and learn all about EML.

EML is a philosophy. Today’s educators are preparing students for jobs that don’t even exist yet. As such it’s of utmost importance to arm our students with the gift of critical thinking. Today’s students must be collaborative, lifelong learners who are open and willing to adapt to an ever-changing environment. EML is not all about technology.  The competencies for the modern learner are creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship, collaboration, communication, learning to learn, global citizenship and critical thinking and problem-solving. The modern learning document lists six innovative elements that are essential to teaching and learning in today’s classroom. They are as follows: Learning Culture, Informative Assessment, Access to Technology, Twenty-First Learning Competencies, Learning Environments and Models of Learning. These six elements promote a growth mindset, encourages continual learning while supporting the well-being of each learner in an inclusive space utilizing an instructional approach that is differentiated to meet the needs of all learners.

Did you know that all boards have a Parent Involvement Committee (PIC)? The Ministry of Education has mandated that all boards should have a committee comprised of parents, trustees and the director of education. The purpose of the PIC is to “ support, encourage, and enhance meaningful parental involvement within schools and across the district, seek advice and ideas of school councils and other parents and partners as they plan and implement strategies to involve more parents at the regional level, work collaboratively with the school board, develop strategies for increasing parental engagement and outreach, including parents who find involvement more challenging and support student success”.

On April 11th, the PDSB PIC will be hosting their Family Affair Conference for School Councils. These conferences allow parent council representatives to network and share information which is then brought back to local school councils. The information that is shared is often very valuable. Did you know that members of the public can apply to join any of the sub-committees of the PDSB PIC? I would encourage parents to join their children’s school council as in this venue you get exposed to a lot of learning opportunities regarding education and the nuances of your children’s school. If parents or guardians are unable to attend the parent council in person a great alternative would be to sign up to receive the parent council and or school newsletter

It would be remiss of me not to comment on the fact that it’s refreshing to see that there are still politicians that are willing to stand up for what is right. I am referring to Whitby’s Member of parliament Celina Caesar-Chavannes. Dismantling and calling out racism can be isolating work and it’s encouraging to see that people are willing to call it out regardless of the fallout. Isn’t it ironic, how, by calling out racism you are often accused of being racist or always seeing things through a “black lens”? Such incidents reinforce the need for parents, guardians and the community to stay the course and arm our youth with an education so that our children, African, Black, Caribbean and any marginalised child can take their rightful place in society. So. journey with me as we Empower Modern Learners. Walk Good! Belle Marché.

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Youth Development

Understanding the multiple layers involved in navigating education spaces Parents of Black Children launch Navigating the Education System

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BY PAUL JUNOR

The work of the advocacy group Parents of Black Children (PoBC) has made a significant and revolutionary difference by bringing issues to the forefront that help Black families at all levels.

For over two years now, it has organized events, workshops and initiatives that have provided important information to the Black community to bring empowerment, knowledge and deep understanding of the multiple layers of the complex dynamics involved in navigating education spaces.

There are five core principles that underlie PoBC understanding of racism:

  1. Racialization
  2. Racism is about power
  3. Critical racial theory
  4. Our stories matter
  5. Racism is founded on White supremacy

On Tuesday, November 23rd, 2021, they launched the document Navigating the Education System,” which was a very empowering, enriching and inspiring tool for diverse Black families. Kearie Daniels, one of the cofounders of PoBC and author of the document, moderated the launch. Furthermore, Claudette Rutherford, one of the cofounders of PoBC and author gave an extensive presentation of the details of the document, sharing useful insights, practical knowledge and interesting information.

PoBC shared a pdf document subsequent to the launch, which provided additional details in a fifty-three-page package. It contained relevant, contextual and vital resources. PoBC’s Advocacy Team supported the document, which includes Charline Grant and Xavier McLaughin.

In the introduction to the document the mission of PoBC is to “Provide support to parents of Black children across Canada and the United States. We advocate and work towards change and concrete action in our education system and adjacent systems such child welfare and the justice system.”

The launch of this vital document is a culmination of all the advocacy and activist work that PoBC has been extensively involved in. It serves to remind members of the Black community that there are resources, tools and supports available to ensure that Black children are able to thrive academically, excel mentally and flourish intellectually in spaces that may not be welcoming to their presence.

The document states that the navigate guide is “Geared towards families in Ontario, but the information can be applied to any jurisdiction where there are Black children and families.”

The document “Table of Contents” is useful and helpful. There is vital information on:

  • School board terms you need to know
  • Education organization you need to know in Ontario
  • Black families and the Child Welfare System
  • Black families and the education system
  • Black students and Individual Education Plans (IEPs)
  • Black students in High School.
  • Developmental delays in learning exceptionalities
  • Supporting students with learning exceptionalities
  • Selecting a school system
  • System abuse

PoBC presented a webinar on “System Abuse”. The document states,

“The system is not neutral. These systems were designed as part of a colonial framework that must be dismantled.” Furthermore, the document “Serves as a means to demystify the pitfalls within the education system and light a path towards a decolonized education system.”

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Youth Development

Toronto prepares families for COVID-19 vaccination of children

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Photo by Charles Deluvio Library on Unsplash

BY PAUL JUNOR

There have been concerns, fears and anxieties as parents, caregivers and guardians anticipate the possibility of having their children under twelve vaccinated.

The Boston Globe reported on Friday, October 29th, 2021, that the FDA approved the administration of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to children between the ages of five to eleven. These children will receive one-third of the dose administered to teens and adults.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention met on Tuesday, November 2nd, 2021, in order to finalize details with respect to which children should be vaccinated first. In anticipation of these developments, Team Toronto has initiated a series of outreach and education sessions, as well as town halls in order to inform the Toronto community.

Parents of children between the ages of five to eleven who attend public schools will be receiving an email and an invitation to respond to a survey to “Support vaccine planning.”  This invitation will also be extended to parents whose children attend private independent schools as well. The survey will be administered by Toronto Public Health (TPH) and the City of Toronto VaxTO in order to “Better understand parents’ intent to vaccinate their children, how they would prefer to have their children receive their COVID-19 vaccine, and to obtain critical information on socio-demographic factors such as race and income.”

John Tory, Mayor of Toronto, is optimistic and positive about this development. He states in the press release, “While our work to get 90% of eligible residents vaccinated is continuing, we are also readying for when the vaccine will be available to protect kids five to eleven. We want to hear from parents, so we made sure we designed a vaccination program that works for kids and their families. This is just one more example of the outreach we are doing to prepare for this effort. This work is so important and will help us get kids vaccinated so they have the best protection against COVID-19 and so our schools can be as safe and as open as possible.”

Councillor Joe Cressy, Chair of Toronto’s Board of Health who has been at the forefront of advocating for the vaccination of margnizalied and at-risk communities is supportive of this campaign. He states, “At every stage of our immunization campaign, connecting with people on the ground has been critical to our success. Now, as we prepare for the rollout of vaccines to children aged five to eleven, we’re committed to engaging directly with parents, families, and community leaders to have active conversations about vaccinations for kids.”

In addition, Dr Eileen De Villa, Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health is a strong proponent of this campaign. She states,” When vaccines are approved for use and when we have supply we will ensure that we bring every resource to bear on this critical component of the vaccination campaign.”

The survey will be available as of Sunday, November 7th, 2021. It consists of fifteen questions that will be available online at s.tphsurvey.chkmkt.com in multiple languages. Parents and guardians will receive them from their children’s public school boards. In addition, there will be town halls for specified multilingual communities as well as neighbourhood-based telephone halls to ensure that the public has access to timely, necessary and relevant information for informed decision-making.

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Youth Development

Act as if what you do makes a difference. IT DOES

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BY SABRINA S. – 12 YEARS OLD

The school year is coming to an end, I’m sure that this year was hectic for everyone. Last year, we had a pandemic strike in the middle of the year and the world was sent into lockdown.

We didn’t get to go to school for the rest of the year.

Many students got to choose if they wanted to do school in-person or online, I chose online since I didn’t feel safe.

First day of school was very weird, most people don’t turn their cameras on, don’t even get me started on the wifi issues. I would lag out of the google meet many times and miss most of the instructions on the assignment. That is when friends come in handy, though I don’t get to see my friends that often, we still connect with some online games and phone calls through snap chat.

I don’t know where the time went, it just flew by. Last month was September and suddenly, I feel like we skipped eight months. I only have a week of school left! Because it is the last week of school, I have a lot of homework and final assignments to do but I know I’ll get through them and finish the school year.

I haven’t had time to go outside as well, I’ve been too busy with my assignments.

If my school year was this hectic, imagine the teacher’s year. I’m very grateful for everything my teachers have done for me and my classmates this year, they definitely deserve the three-month summer break. I’m sure my teachers doubted teaching online, but everything went okay and I learned lots.

“No matter how hard it is, or how hard it gets. I’m going to make it!”

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