Citizenship Education in action & People for Education 2018 annual report

Grade 8 students deliver feminine hygiene products to Indigenous women in northern Ontario https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/pink-project-care-boxes-park-dale-school-1.4720764 

Although the headline is quite catchy, there is a lot to be said about this.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontatrio-education-report-mental-health-special-1.4720766

In my Principal Qualification Part 1 course, which I am still working on completing, you often hear that the Principal is the curriculum leader for the school.  Advocacy group People for Education agree with this but have found that Principals are often bogged down with other tasks that take them away from ensuring that the best learning, and fostering a greater sense of wellness, is taking place in the school.  The report can be found at this website:  https://peopleforeducation.ca/reports/

I have not read the 83-page report and taking my cues from the Canadian Press article (posted on the  CBC page) article that highlighted the report.  The report is called "the new basics for public education," were summarized in the last section of the article involving the development of "skills in creativity, in citizenship, in social-emotional learning...[which need to be] embedded in curriculum and available for all kids."

Congratulations, Class of 2018

The Plug: a program taking aim at Anti-Black Racism in schools

Globe and Mail reporter Dakshana Bascuramurty explored a program that works to combat the Systemic Racism and Anti-Black racism that exists in our school systems.  It sounds like an excellent advocacy group assisting parents and students who are often pathologized.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/toronto/article-programs-aimed-at-helping-black-students-facing-disciplinary-issues/

Adverse Childhood Experiences: What they are, how they effect children and what we can do

In 2012, I had the pleasure of listening to author Paul Tough discuss aspects of his new book, How Children Succeed, to an engaged and packed auditorium at The University of Toronto Schools.  There are longer videos of Paul discussing his book but this is a nice summary of it.



In the book he introduced the idea of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE).  According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), in Atlanta Georgia, ACE are "events in childhood, like abuse and neglect, that can increase risk for future problems, but they don't have to" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gm-lNpzU4g).

Here is a visual representation of how ACE can work.  This image comes from the CDC-Kaiser Permanente-Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study:

https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/acestudy/about.html

I am providing this background information to introduce a segment from the CBC program, Quirks and Quarks.  Host Bob McDonald spoke to a couple of guests about the recent practice of the US government of separating children from their parents at the border with Mexico.  A lot of people may have seen the horrific scenes of the children being housed in temporary "homes."

The discussion explores the concept of ACE and how it relates to brain development and how it may influence DNA.  I only listened to the show once and will have to go back to process it on another level.  Here is a link to the story:

http://www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks/june-23-lasting-effects-of-trauma-in-children-s-brains-and-catching-criminals-with-bacterial-fingerprints-1.4715604

The CDC video, along with the Quirks and Quarks episode, offer up some suggestions for countering the effects of ACE.  I would not want to leave this post on an entirely pessimistic note:

Geography & History, The Ward and remembering Judge George Carter

Close to 2 weeks ago, my friend's father, Judge George Carter, passed away at the age of 96.

from http://www.crestwood.on.ca/ohp/carter-george/

In History class, we looked at The Ward neighbourhood.  During the teaching, I learned and shared with the classes that Judge Carter grew up there.







Here is a modern map with the boundaries sketched in by me (sorry for the shaky hand):

from https://www.google.ca/maps/@43.6560195,-79.3852103,16z

Most of you would recognize Old City Hall and see the community bumping up on it.

from http://heritagetoronto.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/ser372_ss0032_s0372_ss0032_.img_assist_custom.gif

Judge George Carter was the son of immigrants from Barbados, who arrived after the First World War, and are pictured in this wedding photo, from 1926.  This church, the British Methodist Episcopal Church was in The Ward on Chestnut Street.  He was born in 1921 and noted as an avid reader when he first attended school at Hester How PS.  He would later go on to Harbord Collegiate, Trinity College at UofT and Osgoode Hall Law School, where he graduated in 1948. 

from http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/block-by-block-exhibit-celebrates-untold-history-of-the-ward-1.4349332

Hester Howe PS was the school of The Ward opened in 1912 and closed in 1953.  Although a few year old, here is an image of the original school and the site, which is now occupied by The Hospital for Sick Kids.

from http://urbantoronto.ca/news/2013/01/then-and-now-hester-how-public-school more information on the school can be obtained here:  http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/edu/ViewLoitDa.do;jsessionid=2A2C9F983A816CBE0F819CDEB826262B?method=preview&lang=EN&id=26328

Judge George Carter was a pioneer of Black Lawyers in Toronto and in Canada.  He was called to the bench (to serve as a judge) in 1979 and only retired at the age of 75.  Some of the information for this post came from John Lornic's Obituary from The Globe and Mail from June 18, 2018 (https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-trailblazing-judge-george-ethelbert-carter-embodied-ethics/).

It seems fitting that in a community where he spent some of his time growing up, a new courthouse is being built in downtown Toronto.  As we learned -- hopefully -- in class, this community really reflected the diversity of the city:

I forgot to mention that he was a wonderful man, always with a smile, with a lot of positivity.  You will be missed but your legacy continues to inspire countless people in this great city.

from http://www.crestwood.on.ca/ohp/carter-george/

Audio and video files of Justice Carter, including some memories from growing up in The Ward, can be heard at this website:  http://www.crestwood.on.ca/ohp/carter-george/.

Bloor and Dufferin development (some new items in the news) & the discussion around "Discovery Math"

The future of Dufferin and Bloor?

This was a topic of discussion -- and a possible example for a Geographic Inquiry -- in the early part of 2018.  Recently, in the Toronto Star an article raised a series of questions from Build a Better Bloor Dufferin (BBBD https://www.buildbloordufferin.ca/), a community group who want to make sure the area remains affordable for all residents in the neighbourhood.  The article can be found here:
https://www.thestar.com/business/2018/06/15/residents-push-for-more-public-space-in-private-development.html

3/4 of the concepts of Geographic Thinking can be found in the article and in the photo I posted from the article:  spatial significance, who will be able to afford to live in this space; geographic perspective, looks at the positions of the residents and what the developer has to say; interrelationships, how will the issue of space be negotiated, given the population increase in the community?

Over the past week, there was a great discussion on Ontario Today on the debate over the best method to teach Mathematics.  This YouTube method comes from CTV in Winnipeg from 2016.  The 51 minute show on CBC radio is worth a listen; it does not suggest that any one method is correct.  In my opinion, there should be a mix of both methods but the foundational skills really should be developed so students feel confident and competent.  I think this will make the exploring that much more exciting!  

Here is the link to the show, hosted by Rita Celli:  http://www.cbc.ca/listen/shows/ontario-today/episode/15550737

Douglas Coupland's Vortex installation takes a look at plastics in our oceans

Original article can be seen here:  https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-dear-canadians-your-addiction-to-plastic-needs-a-cure/

Personal statement and some notes on Recycling & Geographic Thinking

It has been a couple of months since I have posted consistently on my blog.  I have been on a Medical Leave and benefiting from the time I have been away from the classroom.  I haven't stopped thinking about school and have often thought about posting items but have shied away from doing so.  My teaching and thinking mind is hardly ever at rest.

I appreciate the support.  

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In terms of Geographic Thinking, the issue of recycling and plastics touches on all of the concepts in our chart.

Working from the top left and moving in a clockwise direction:

spatial significance- plastic waste being dumped in oceans and not being recycled and taking up space in landfills and storage spaces

interrelationships- human impact on the natural world with the careless disposal and overuse of plastics

geographic perspectives- this issue looks at the issue of recycling from environmental and social perspectives (there are more)

patterns and trends- sadly, this issue of problems associated with recycling and plastics are on an upward trend; apparently, there are multiple collections of plastic waste (forming "islands" found in the ocean that are held together by ocean currents)

related articles:

Why 'recyclable' packaging sometimes isn't http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/recycling-labelling-confusion-1.4614975 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/10-kinds-of-packaging-that-are-a-pain-in-the-blue-box-1.4658988