Features

This program opened the door to creative thinking about literacy and technology that invigorated my passion for teaching and my students’ passion for learning.

As educators, most of us have taught a student with a disability. We are well versed in and aware of the range and types of accommodations that are made for students every day. We also work with colleagues who have disabilities.

Nine-year-old Chris Hadfield was spending a typical summer at his family’s island cottage in southern Ontario when he observed an event that set his life’s direction.

As I walked out of the Edinburgh airport on July 30, 2013 and felt the Scottish wind on my face, my dream of doing a teaching exchange became a reality.

Understanding the difference between equality and equity can be difficult. A simple activity in which a group of people sit in a circle and place their shoes in a pile at the centre can demonstrate the difference.

Participation in political rallies gives ETFO members an important opportunity to support their union’s bargaining position; it gives them a public voice on how contract provisions directly affect classroom working and learning conditions. ETFO members find themselves once again compelled to protest the government and employer stance at the bargaining table.

In September 2014, ETFO began central table discussions with the government and the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association (OPSBA) to negotiate renewed collective agreements for our teacher and occasional teacher members.

“Why are we learning outdoors? … To wake up our brains” is the loud chorus from my Grade 2 students at Little Falls Public School. Outdoor learning is an integral part of their daily lives. These students come to school prepared; dressed in layers, with their water bottles, hats and splash pants, they are ready for a day of active learning.

ETFO’s annual leadership conference for women, … and still we rise (ASWR), is known for providing inspiring ideas women educators can use to make a difference in their classrooms and communities.