Incoming teacher candidates are placed into cohorts that are led by a Field Advisor (FA). Your FA will mentor and support you throughout the 16-month program. FAs also assess and provide feedback to candidates and interns during their field experiences, and collaborate and support mentor teachers and school administrators.

Jennifer Laminger, Field Experience Coordinator

Jenny Laminger has been a teacher for more than 25 years, teaching grades 2-7. She has always been interested in the connection between numeracy and literacy and loves bringing the two together. Over the years, she has worked with teachers across the province in order to assist the development of their mathematics instruction. In 2013, she was part of the BC Ministry of Education’s curriculum development team for the new BC Mathematics Curriculum.

In 2019, she joined the OSE as a field advisor and in 2021 she started her role as field experience coordinator. As the coordinator, Jenny oversees the Field Experience Program and is the School’s representative in the school districts and regional communities.

In her free time, she loves to read, travel, and spend time with her family.

Carl Ruest, Field Experience Coordinator, French

Carl Ruest has enjoyed his career as an educator in both university and public school contexts. Before joining the Okanagan School of Education, Carl worked at UBC-V where he taught in the B.Ed., as well as in the M.Ed. in French Education. He was also a teacher and a coordinator of the French Immersion program in a Richmond secondary school. Carl is interested in intercultural education and in the learning of French as a second language in authentic contexts using innovative practices. He is currently finishing his Ph.D. which explores adolescents’ development of intercultural competence during interprovincial exchanges. His research highlights the importance helping students make sense of their varied experiences while they live and study in a second language.

Besides his passion for education, Carl loves swimming, cross-country skiing, traveling and visiting his family in Mont-Joli, Québec.

Lynne Gibson, Field Advisor

Lynne Gibson has just returned from some international experiences where she was the head of school in the Dominican Republic and previously in South Korea. She has served as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, and head of school for over 30 years. She has also been involved with accreditation reviews for a variety of institutions over the past few years. Lynne has four grown children and nine grandchildren whom she is immensely proud of.

Lynne’s passion in education revolves around ensuring all learners are engaged participants in their own learning, using their interests and curiosities to drive that learning. She believes the recent pandemic offers an opportunity for education to look different for our students … something educators have been working on for years. It is an exciting time to be an educator. She is very excited to be part of the OSE team and looks forward to the opportunity to serve future educators.

Kyle Hamilton, Field Advisor

Kyle Hamilton is a passionate educator having taught at the middle, secondary and post-secondary levels. He values complex teaching and learning environments that seek to initiate “complicated conversations” (Pinar, 2011) at the confluence of the “lived” and “planned” curriculum (Aoki, 1986/1991)—grappling with human well-being, agency, diverse knowledges, reflection, subjective reconstruction and democratization. His masters’ work explored the philosophy of cosmopolitanism in relation to K-12 settings and his PhD work focuses on foregrounding K-12 classrooms and schools as sites for developing more democratic and more just societies. Hamilton has served in several roles at the Okanagan School of Education including as a faculty advisor, intern observer and intern advisor. He has also served as a SD23 district human rights committee member, Central Okanagan Teachers’ Association (COTA) social justice chairperson, Social Studies department head. He loves mountain biking, hockey, soccer and travel.

Amber Hartwell, Field Advisor

Amber Hartwell has teaching experience in both the K-12 British Columbia and Alberta school system, and has experience as a research assistant, teaching assistant, and sessional instructor in post-secondary. In her various roles, she has been responsible for the transformation of libraries to library learning commons and coordinated Indigenous education opportunities including elder classroom visits, land-based learning opportunities, and nsyilxcən language lessons. In 2019, Amber was nominated for the Prime Minister’s Award in STEM education. Amber is currently completing her Doctor of Education through the University of Calgary.

Murray Sasges, Field Advisor

Murray Sasges was born and raised in Vernon B.C. along with nine siblings. He owned and operated a Gravel Quarry before taking up teaching at the age of 40. His second year of teaching was at an international school in Shenzhen, China. Always having a keen interest in community engagement he brought this passion to his teaching. He co-created a 5-month full-time Global Ed program for grade 11’s based on sustainability and social justice issues which included a 3-week field study in Nicaragua. More recently he co-founded with Kim Ondrik an innovative school within School District #22 called the Academy of Inquiry and Adventure Okanagan (aiao.ca) which is grounded in the new B.C. curriculum and the core competencies from grades 7-12.

He loves to fix up old bicycles and is currently restoring an old farm to honor its productive and cultural heritage.

Whether you’re interested in applying for the Bachelor of Education program this year, or in the future, here are a few tips to guide you along the way.

1. Start reviewing the admission requirements early!

The most often asked question is ‘what courses do I need to get into the program?’

The admission requirements are listed on our Bachelor of Education page.

As part of your application and to assist you in reviewing (and checking off) the academic admission requirements for your chosen pathway, there are self-assessment worksheets: Teaching Children and Teaching Adolescents. You will submit these self-assessments during the application process.

If you have questions about whether or not your course meets the course requirements, please contact Academic Advising, please visit the Student Advising Services webpage to contact them or book an appointment.

2. Gain experience working with the age group you think you want to teach

A minimum of 75 hours of practical experience (volunteer or paid) working with children or youth is required. We recommend you work/volunteer with the age group that you wish to teach. You will be asked about your experience when you submit your Supplemental Application Form.

On this form, you will also be asked to write a personal essay: Becoming an educator opens doors to many opportunities to teach, learn, and contribute in a variety of contexts including but not exclusive to schools. What are your goals as an educator? Highlight and provide examples of the qualities and experiences you bring to the challenge of becoming an educator.

TIP: We understand you might change your mind about what you’ve written. We do allow you to re-submit a Supplemental Application Form. However, you must resubmit as a fully completed application. We recommend you save copies of your written answers in a word document, so if you wish to modify your answers, you don’t have to re-type everything.   

TIP: Once you have submitted your summary of experience (up to three experiences can be listed), and moved on to the next experience or Personal Essay question, you will not be able to go back to edit your experience on the supplemental application form.

A range and variety of instructional experiences is encouraged to better prepare for the program. Typical experiences for applicants include but are not limited to working in school classrooms as a volunteer or assistant, teaching dance, coaching team sports or working as a summer camp counselor.

TIP: Not sure where to go for experience? You can contact your local school district, recreation/community centre, youth group, art gallery or museum to see if they have any opportunities. 

3. References

You will need two professional references from individuals who have personally observed you working with children and/or youth in a face-to-face or online instructional capacity, either in a group or with an individual.

References must be credible authorities who can speak to your abilities, experiences and interests relevant to the teaching profession. They cannot be a family member or friend.

Examples of appropriate references:

• An individual who has personally observed you in a face-to-face (as opposed to an online) context where your primary role was to instruct or interact with children and/or youth
• School administrator (e.g., principal, vice-principal)
• Teacher at an elementary, middle or secondary school
• Camp director
• Daycare program coordinator
• TA-supervising professor

You will send each of your references the link to the Confidential Report on Applicant, your student number and name as provided in your BEd application, the pathway you are pursuing and email address. Once your reference has submitted their confidential report, you will receive a confirmation email.

This form is confidential and is only used for admission purposes. As the applicant, you should not see the completed form.

Interested in teaching French?

To apply for the French pathway, you’ll need to meet the admission criteria for either the Teaching Children or Teaching Adolescents Pathway (please see the criteria above). In addition, you’ll need to submit one of the following:

• Successful completion of the Diplôme d’études en langue française (DELF) and/or Diplôme approfondi de langue française (DALF) OR
• A written assessment by faculty of the French Department of a Canadian university that you have demonstrated knowledge of the French language to indicate you are capable of conducting all French language teaching OR
• Demonstration of completion of all of your education in the French language OR
• A letter from a Francophone Education Authority indicating your proficiency

Questions related to the French Pathway may be directed to the BEd Coordinator, French, Carl Ruest, at carl.ruest@ubc.ca or (250) 807-8196.

4. Sending in transcripts if you are not currently a UBC student

Submit your official transcripts for any post-secondary studies at institutions other than UBC by mailing them to:

The University of British Columbia
Undergraduate Admissions
2016 – 1874 East Mall
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T 1Z1

For more information on sending transcripts visit you.ok.ubc.ca

5. Need help?

If you have questions about your application or need assistance please visit the Student Advising Services webpage to contact them or book an appointment.

Applying to UBC Vancouver

If you are applying to the UBC Vancouver Teacher Education program, you will need to submit two references and your personal essay to them directly.

We are pleased to share that Dr. Sabre Cherkowski has been awarded a Tier 1 Principal’s Research Chair in Leadership, Learning, and Wellbeing.

In her role as Chair, Dr. Cherkowski will focus on research that examines wellbeing from an organisational perspective, paying attention to leadership and professional learning from the perspective of work cultures, organisational systems, as well as team and individual processes for promoting and sustaining flourishing in schools.

“I’m excited to collaborate with others to build and grow this research to contribute to improving wellbeing for all at work,” says Dr. Cherkowski, “This research is timely and significant, not only in contemporary educational contexts where all levels of the system are challenged to create conditions for wellbeing at work, but also in the larger societal context.”

Wellbeing is linked to overall health, and influences learning, creativity, collaboration, among other qualities necessary for ongoing improvement of leading and teaching. Dr. Cherkowski’s research on positive leadership and professional learning contributes to the growth of research on wellbeing at work at all levels of the education system. Her research offers an innovative approach to combatting stress, depletion and burnout at work through an evidence-based approach that combines theories and processes from positive psychology, positive organisations, professional learning, and change leadership.

Congratulations Dr. Cherkowski!

Learn more about the Principal’s Research Chairs Program at research.ok.ubc.ca.

The air feels heavy as temperatures hang around 40C in the Punjab village of Rurka Kalan, India. Dr. Stephen Berg has travelled to the region several times before, but feeling that heat in late May doesn’t get any easier.

The last time he had visited the area, he had brought teacher candidates as part of their Community Field Experience in 2019. The group had travelled with the UBCO Women’s Soccer team for Sport for Development India: Empowering Children through Sport and Play program, offered through UBC Go Global. The program works in partnership with the local non-profit organization Youth for Change (YFC) to offer soccer education and it provided an opportunity for candidates to offer workshops on wellness, physical literacy, cooperation and leadership.

Now, in April 2022, Dr. Berg was asked by YFC if he could develop and teach curriculum for a new program, Playing for Peace, the organization would be coordinating with Common Goal.

The program educates youth and young adult leaders (approximately ages 17 to 22) to become ‘peace agents’ as part of their role as sports coaches for children and youth.

“The vision is that these young people are empowered to create positive change in their communities by learning leadership skills,” says Dr. Berg, “So while this training program was held in India, it had participants from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.”

A month to prepare curriculum for a global program was a tight timeline, but fortunately Dr. Berg had developed some similar courses in the past that he could build upon and adapt. The classrooms in the rural community are basic with only a handful of chairs, a fan and a flip chart easel. As the Wi-Fi is very sporadic Dr. Berg had to design activities that could mainly be done without access to the internet. At times, because of the heat, the power would go out in the entire village.

“You need to work with what you have,” says Dr. Berg. “In addition, for planning for no to low resources, we also needed to overcome a language barrier. A majority of the youth leaders had some level of English and we were fortunate to have a few translators, but it would often mean I would deliver my instructions and then there would be a pause and you wouldn’t know if everything you said was understood.”

In one of his activities that focused on cooperation, he used bean bags, balls and small objects to have the students experience what it means to cooperate and trust each other to be successful.

“A lot of these participants were in conflict countries, like India and Pakistan. We begin the activity by talking what it means to cooperate and conflict resolution. We then toss the bean bags back and forth as a group and you keep adding in more objects so they need to work as a group to be successful.”

Following the activity, the group sits down and reflects on what they learned. Following the program, the group takes the activities and concepts they’ve learned back to their countries and implements the lessons with the teams they coach.

“It’s really a global connection, and there are children in Brazil, Pakistan and Germany right now doing these activities and learning about conflict resolution, peace building and leadership skills which more than ever are important right now.

It’s estimated that there will be 5,000 children and youth that will go through this program around the world. In November, Dr. Berg will go back to India for a summit on the program — and he can’t wait.

“India keeps drawing me back and it’s largely because of the people. They are some of the nicest, genuinely amazing people I’ve ever met.”

The Okanagan School of Education is pleased to welcome Dr. Sumer Seiki to the faculty in the position of Associate Professor.

“I’m excited to work with new colleagues and students,” says Dr. Seiki. “I am looking forward to meeting folxs personally and working alongside teachers. BC also has such lovely gardens, I’m looking forward to integrating the classroom and garden.”

Dr. Seiki has served in education for well over twenty years. For her research contributions to teacher education and interdisciplinary research, Dr. Seiki won the 2020 American Education Research Association Early Career Award from the Narrative SIG. Prior to joining UBCO, she was the Assistant Dean and Director of Teacher Education Programs at the University of California, Riverside School of Education. In this role, she directed the teacher education credential programs and partnered with local school districts. She was also an associate professor of teacher education at the University of San Francisco exploring familial curriculum, ethic studies, community cultural wealth, and science teacher education. Dr. Seiki has a breadth of knowledge of teacher credentialing, earning her multiple subject teacher credential from the bilingual multicultural teacher education program. She is dedicated to creating more inclusive schools and classrooms.

She is currently part of a research project with the University of California, Berkely Lawrence Hall of Science that focuses on transformative curriculum. The project is working with pre and in-service teachers on how to rewrite science curriculum to make it more inclusive by accessing the curriculum through personal histories, stories and culture.

“Part of this project is looking at ways that science concepts are taught early on within our families and cultures,” she says. “For example, cooking practices may have taught them different scientific concepts such as plant cycles or the energy transfer process. We’re looking into the science behind these actions and revisiting an old gift given by loved ones.”

In addition, she has a strong record in plant biology. She earned her Master of Science and Bachelor of Science in Plant Biology. She taught introductory plant biology and biology courses at a few California universities. She brings her years of plant research and teaching to our campus.

Dr. Seiki will be teaching EPSE 468: Creating Positive Learning Environments for Inclusive Education in September, 2022 and will be part of block 4 and 5 in our Bachelor of Education program starting in January, 2023.

Congratulations to Camille Rivard-Sirois, one of our two Madeline Korfman Memorial Scholarship recipients!

Here is what her nominator had to say:

“Camille is obviously passionate about teaching. Whether classes are online or in person, Camille is always engaged and inquisitive about the concepts brought forward. In field experiences, Camille has developed close relationships with her students and planned great experiences for them; she was really reflective about her practice.”

“It really touched my heart to receive this award and I feel very privileged. Going back to school to receive my Bachelor of Education has involved a lot of sacrifices for myself and my young family, and so having this incredible recognition feels like this journey and those sacrifices have been worth it. It’s such a good feeling, like a warm blanket!” says Camille with a smile. “At the end of the day, teaching is all about love. The love for the children, and teaching itself and all the time that goes into it.”

***

After graduating from university in Quebec with a degree in Biology and specialization in ecology, Camille Rivard-Sirois began her career as a biologist – and then decided to move across the country.

Despite never visiting the Okanagan before, Camille took a chance and accepted a job opportunity with the Okanagan Nation Alliance in Penticton, B.C.

“I accepted the job without really knowing anything about the Okanagan. I went on Google Earth and saw the lakes, the rock-climbing area and thought this place looks like paradise,” says Camille. “It was love at first sight with the Syilx territory.”

Camille was part of the team that worked on restoring the sockeye salmon habitat in the Okanagan, and was involved in various other ecological projects over 14 years. During that time, she met her partner and had two children. While she enjoyed her work, she found herself growing increasingly interested in the field of education.

“I had always been attracted to education. When I was younger, I enjoyed teaching swimming, sports and math to different age groups,” she says. “I also wanted an opportunity to reconnect with my francophone culture by sharing my love for the language with others.”

Now more than halfway through the program, Camille is looking forward to her internship at a francophone school in Penticton. She, along with her peers, recently reflected on what they’ve learned and experienced in the last eleven months at a Celebration of Learning.

“When I was in school, it was a much more traditional transceiver-receiver model of education and now I’ve been introduced to so many other ways of teaching and learning that are more inclusive, engaging and really put children at the center.”

In addition to having her perspectives of education shift, she’s found a new interest in drama and music.

“I was given a ukulele and have started to learn to play it,” says Camille with a laugh. “I never really liked drama or music in school, but now for the first time in my life I’m so drawn to it. The program has opened me up to new learning opportunities and introduced me to so many incredible people.”

For those interested in pursuing their Bachelor of Education degree, Camille encourages students to invest time in their organization system.

“We’re exposed to so many ideas, resources and materials in this program. Find a system that works for you to organize your strategies, lesson plans, resources and references because you’re only exposed to a little bit of a huge universe, and having a good system to organize yourself allows you easy access to those tools when you need them down the road.”

About the Scholarship

This scholarship has been endowed through a bequest by Madeline Betty Korfman to honour her love for teaching. Madeline Korfman taught school in southwestern Saskatchewan before relocating to the Okanagan in the mid-1900s. This scholarship is awarded to two teacher candidates who significantly demonstrate a “love for teaching” based on the recommendation of Okanagan School of Education faculty.

Congratulations to Julie Bertles, one of our two Madeline Korfman Memorial Scholarship recipients!

Here is what her nominator had to say:

“She exudes a love of teaching and learning, with a deep compassion for students and a clear understanding of the importance of building strong relationships to enhance student learning. Julie has been like a sponge, soaking up information and using feedback from her instructors, her FA, her mentor teacher and the students she works with to improve her instruction and practice.”

“This award is such an honour,” says Julie. “It’s really affirmed for me that I’m on the right track and this is the work I was really meant to do. I’m so excited to see what’s up and coming for our society, and the great passionate minds we have coming up into this world.”

***

Before entering the Bachelor of Education (BEd) program, Julie Bertles was a child and youth support worker who was feeling frustrated that she couldn’t enter school property to help her young clients.

“I was hearing from my clients, mostly adolescents, that where they needed the most support was in school,” says Julie. “That feedback is what draw me to pursuing my teaching degree.”

But the BEd program hasn’t been what she expected.

“It’s been different in the best possible way. Education isn’t anything like how it was when I was student. I had a vision of how I would love my classroom to be and I was prepared to ruffle feathers, but this program has been exactly what I envisioned for myself. It’s very social emotional focused, student centered and whole-body learning.”

Her original plan was to receive her BEd degree and go on to pursue her master’s in counselling to be a high school counsellor, but the more time she spends in the classroom, the more her mind is changing.

“I’m falling in love with teaching and the work that teachers do in the classroom,” she says. “I’m always learning something new from my students and in some ways, I think I learn more from them than they do from me.”

For Julie, one learning opportunity has come to her while she standing in front of the classroom.

“It can be nerve racking being in front of a group of students, particularly older students, for the first time,” she says. “I found the more authentic I could be with them, the more I could let them see that I also make mistakes, the more genuine the relationships I built with them were. I’m a perfectionist myself and I’ve had a hard time not always doing things perfectly, but the more I let my students see that and show them that it’s okay to fail and here is how you can fail safely has been a huge ah-ha for me.”

In addition to a shift in her career path, Julie has found herself building lifelong relationships.

“I’ve made connections with peers in the program and colleagues during my practicum in the school district that are second to none. I’ve made some lifelong friendships with passionate people and it’s been a great environment to be a part of.”

For those interested in pursuing their Bachelor of Education degree, Julie advises going into teaching with an open heart and open mind. She also encourages prospective teachers to lean into the connections they have around them.

“Spend the time to build a network of support around you, because it can be exhausting emotional work and you’ll need a sounding board, you’ll need support.”

About the Scholarship

This scholarship has been endowed through a bequest by Madeline Betty Korfman to honour her love for teaching. Madeline Korfman taught school in southwestern Saskatchewan before relocating to the Okanagan in the mid-1900s. This scholarship is awarded to two teacher candidates who significantly demonstrate a “love for teaching” based on the recommendation of Okanagan School of Education faculty.

Congratulations to the Class of 2022! We are bursting with pride and are excited to see where your journeys take you.

We have a few special acknowledgments:

Congratulations to our Bachelor of Education, Head of Graduating Class, Anica McIntosh!

Anica McIntosh

Read her story

Congratulations to our Maxwell Cameron Award recipients, Dani Rivet and Wilson Hlina!

Dani Rivet

Read her story

Congratulations to our Sharon McCoubrey Award in Visual Arts Teaching recipient, Alex Corrie! 

 Alex Corrie

Read her story

Each year, UBC Okanagan faculties award a student with the University of BC Medal for the Head of Graduating Class. In the Bachelor of Education (BEd) program, this award is presented to the top student based on their academic performance throughout their program.

The Okanagan School of Education is pleased to announce that this year’s 2022 recipient, is Anica McIntosh!

“Anica displayed characteristics of a true scholar-practitioner. She was actively engaging in furthering her professional growth throughout the practicum. While being respectful of her mentors and intern colleagues, she was able to introduce current trends in Math education (based on the work of Dr. Peter Liljedahl) and lead the Science department in reporting student learning by tracking outcomes and curricular competencies.”

McIntosh is part of an exceptionally unique graduating class as, aside from their field experiences, they completed their BEd entirely online.

“There are so many people that I will be meeting them for the first time at graduation,” says McIntosh. “It was an unusual experience as teaching is a career path that requires connections. Being online really taught me how important engagement is.”

McIntosh had long been drawn to teaching. She has taught dance for 11 years, is a rowing coach and was previously a cross-country skiing coach.

“I found I had a passion for being a positive influence in a child’s life,” smiles McIntosh. “Whether that was helping them find confidence in themselves or being the reason they showed up that day.”

While it might seem as though pursuing her teaching degree after receiving her Bachelor of Science was a natural next step, it wasn’t a career at the top of her list.

“I worked in various science related positions after graduating, and found myself at a point where I realized I didn’t want to work for the sake of working. That’s when I decided that teaching would combine a lot of things I enjoy — science, learning and making connections.”

Still, it wasn’t until McIntosh’s first practicum that she felt confident about her decision.

“I had my first practicum experience in a grade six classroom, and I was intending on becoming a high-school science teacher so I was terrified,” laughs McIntosh. “They were so young and they so eager to tell me everything about themselves within the first minutes. It was by the end of that experience that I truly knew I made the right choice.”

This award has an extra special connection for McIntosh as her father had received the same award when he went through the program approximately ten years ago.

For future BEd students, McIntosh encourages you to have trust.

“Trust your ideas! It can be an overwhelming situation where you’re lesson planning with educators who have decades of experience, but we’ve been learning the newest techniques and theories in teaching. Trust that you have meaningful ideas to bring forward.”

Congratulations to Maxwell Cameron Award recipient and 2021/2022 Bachelor of Education graduate, Dani Rivet!

During Rivet’s time in the Bachelor of Education program, she didn’t only teach her students about leadership, kindness and social justice. She modelled it.

Driven by her passion for societal change, one initiative Rivet directed was creating Christmas hampers with her students to help those in need with basic necessities and, for some, children’s toys. She reached out to multiple grocery stores and worked with the school’s Parent Advisory Committee to receive donations. In addition, despite her practicum finishing on Dec. 3, Rivet continued to come back to the school to create the hampers with her mentor teacher and students. She also assisted in delivering the packages to families and those living rough in downtown Kelowna.

Why did you decide to enter the field of teaching?

My desire to become an educator was sparked after spending three years working with those experiencing homelessness and individuals with developmental delays. My work involved teaching life skills, addressing mental health and/or substance use, providing basic needs, and helping clients to move forward in their lives. It was not until I began to reflect on who my clients are, where they came from, and who they could have been that I realized how much of a role I could play in mitigating the systematic barriers placed on families today.

I decided I wanted to become an educator when I realized the part I could play in supporting children before the systematic burdens have the chance to take their toll on them. Because of these experiences, one of my main goals is to become a leader for my students, and someone who excites them to become motivated, lifelong learners. Moreover, as I am aware of the diversity of backgrounds existing within our schools, I aim to create an environment where every student can feel safe and comfortable every day. Finally, I hope to continue to have the opportunity to integrate lessons of social justice and empathy into my future practice.

What was your experience at the Okanagan School of Education (OSE) like?

My experiences at OSE were pivotal in the development of my identity as a teacher. The experiences I had throughout the program helped me to blend my existing values and perspectives with those that I discovered along the way. The multifaceted nature of the program opened my eyes to the notion that we are all lifelong learners, which has taught me to embrace everything that I can from every opportunity.

My favourite memories from my time at the OSE are embedded in my practicum experiences. During these experiences, I made countless friendships with mentors, advisors, and colleagues that I will cherish forever. Additionally, I always laugh when I think back to my first practicum and how nervous I was to teach my lessons. By the end, I was able to see how valuable each and every teaching opportunity was as I felt comfortable and confident to begin my career as an independent, yet connected educator.

What does receiving the award mean to you?

Receiving this award is very meaningful to me, as it directly aligns with my beliefs surrounding the importance of raising awareness about social justice and the difficulties people living in poverty face. In my short career as a teacher, I have found that students have at times been unaware of the challenges that people and families living in poverty encounter, and it has been exciting to foster learning around these important societal issues. It has always been important to me to address and inform people of the severe issues of poverty existing in our local community.

I am honoured to be recognized for my efforts around teaching students the impact of selfless acts of kindness, along with understanding that there are ways that we can help those who face challenges in their lives. It was evident to me that the students learned a great deal during our kindness inquiry, and approached each lesson in an empathic, heartwarming way.

What advice do you have for future Bachelor of Education students?

My first piece of advice is to have fun with it, as the program goes by faster than you can imagine. My second piece of advice would be to make connections with colleagues, mentors, and anyone else in your educational circles   all connections will help you in the long run! My third piece of advice would be to enter every experience with an open mind because you never know what experiences will alter and mesh with your pedagogical stance.

About the Maxwell Cameron Award

The Maxwell A. Cameron Award is given annually by the British Columbia Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) to students completing the final year of the Bachelor of Education degree in elementary and secondary school teaching. The recipients of the award are those students who are considered to be outstanding students in the graduating class who have initiated, worked, or participated in a project that created positive change globally or in their local community, and or, been actively involved in issues related to poverty, LGBTQ rights, women’s rights, antiracism, peace, global or environmental issues.

The award is named after Maxwell Cameron who headed the Department of Education at UBC in the mid-1940s. Prior to that, he was on staff as an associate professor and director of UBC’s summer school.