Classroom Perspectives

As students transition from elementary to high school, teachers have an opportunity to practice gradually releasing control. Restroom privileges are a good place to start.

It's nice to think of the Internet as a wonderful invention that has made our lives both richer and more efficient. It's a nice notion and it's an accurate one—the Internet has changed our lives for the better. We can now communicate with people from all four corners of the globe. We can share, swap, and gain as much knowledge as we could ever want or need. There are no negatives associated with instant knowledge—or are there?

I avidly recall a second grade class that would excitedly huddle around my rocking chair for story time. Students scrambled around sliding chairs to the carpet where I read heartwarming and sometimes zany tales, they reminded me that story time was counted among the most meaningful and cherished moments of a child’s day. Story time is a child’s portal into endless worlds, kingdoms, and dimensions.

Under the umbrella of Digital Citizenship (DC) are some complex concepts. Netiquette, Internet safety, information usage and cyber bullying are just a few of the topics that teachers explore as they help students unpack what it means to use technology responsibly. Our school went wireless this past January.

As the assistant head of special education at Vaughan Secondary School in the Toronto area, Tim Wesson describes his professional learning journey as one driven by the desire to improve the standard of living for autistic students and to seek ways to build partnerships in the school community.

Can unicycles serve an important educational purpose? Are there good pedagogical reasons for learning to ride them?

I am Teacher. I can wear fifteen different hats on my head and not one of them from the same shop.

It has struck me over the past few years working with senior secondary school students that an ideal approach to guiding them through their academic year is to liken the student group to a sporting team that you are ‘coaching’ through to a successful season. For the past two and a half years, I have served as the Study Centre Supervisor and Academic Tutor [...]