Carla Singer admits that, as a student new to the University of Alberta, she’s still finding her way around campus. But as a Cree speaker and traditional knowledge holder, Singer has been blazing new trails by becoming the first student in the Faculty of Education at the U of A to take some of her exams for required courses orally and in her first language.

Trudy Cardinal has fond memories of the ways in which traditional and cultural knowledge were shared when she was growing up in northern Alberta. That’s why the professor of elementary education wants this generation of young Indigenous women to have a similar opportunity.

“When I was young and we gathered around the aunties, we were always doing something but the thing wasn’t where the teachings laid, it was in the living together, the being together, the eating together,” Cardinal said.

Cathy Adams, a professor in the Department of Secondary Education, has been named the 2018 Vargo Teaching Chair, the first Faculty of Education member to be so named. In the video below, Dr.

Welcome to the Fall 2018 issue of illuminate. It’s been a busy and rewarding time in the Faculty of Education, with an undergraduate program review and renewal underway, the ongoing development of a draft strategic plan, celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the School of Library and Information Studies (SLIS), and continued teaching, research, projects and initiatives for the public good.

How can schools effectively support health and wellness for students and teachers alike to provide an optimal learning environment? The Mitacs Elevate postdoctoral fellow is hoping to help provide answers about how to build healthy school communities for Albertans from kindergarten to post-secondary—then share the model with the rest of the world.

Students from nine different schools across Canada are joining together in a virtual classroom to discuss the meaning of reconciliation—and to learn how to advocate for equity and justice.

The National Youth Dialogue project, based in the Centre for Global Citizenship Education and Research (CGCER) at the University of Alberta, will bring together approximately 700 Grade 9 students from coast to coast to practice a crucial aspect of citizenship they might not learn otherwise.

A unique participatory research project led by a University of Alberta education researcher has enabled teen parents to share the reality of their daily lives and build empathy and support within their communities.

Awareness of how trauma impacts student wellness and learning is growing, with protocols like the Trauma Learning Policy Initiative (TLPI) providing a roadmap for teachers to help create trauma-sensitive classrooms. But a University of Alberta education researcher says such protocols are incomplete without a key element: teachers’ experiences.

Organizers of the first Alberta-wide Camp fYrefly in Kananaskis say the sense of community created among youth from across the province far outweighed the logistical challenge of hosting almost twice the usual number of participants at a single site.

With the end of the semester, the veil of winter has finally lifted. The sun is shining, the grass has changed from brown to green, flowers are in full bloom and birds can be heard singing all over campus. We will be celebrating with our graduates and their families on June 12, and Dr. Raj Pannu, a long-time friend and contributor to our Faculty will be presented with an honorary degree at the afternoon convocation.