Dr. Nikhil Arora (Physics) and Dr. Nenad Radakovic (Education) join host Chris Carlton to discuss the 2024 total solar eclipse. Listen to find out more about the solar eclipse, what to talk about in your classroom, and more!Resources: Queen's 2024 Total Solar Eclipse

Wondering how to navigate equity in your classroom? Our own Dr. Alana Butler joins us to answer questions like: How do you support diverse students in your classroom without putting the spotlight on them? How do you navigate and address offensive comments in the classroom – and how do you bring it up with the entire class? Alana and Chris talk about representation, focusing on individual strengths (versus deficit), belonging, culturally relevant pedagogy, and so much more! Resources: Anti-Racism and Diversity in Teaching Resources from Queen’s Faculty of EducationDisability Resources from Queen’s Faculty of Education Gender Diversity Teaching Resources from Queen’s Faculty of Education Social Justice resources and information from the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario Educator’s Equity Toolkit from the Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association Equity from the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation Useful Links for Equity and Inclusive Education from Ontario Teachers’ Federation Dr. Alana Butler joined the Faculty of Education in 2017 and currently teaches both Bachelor of Education students and graduate students. Her research interests include the academic achievement of low-socio economic students, equity, diversity, and inclusion policies and practices from k-12 to higher education, at-risk children/youth and their educational attainment, and multicultural education. Find out more about her on the FookNConversaton Podcast.

Listen to Dr. Chris DeLuca, Professor of Educational Assessment and Associate Dean - School of Graduate Studies, talk about AI in the classroom - ways to leverage it to enhance student learning, why we shouldn't be afraid of it, and how to get started using AI. Find out more about Chris DeLuca. ResourcesLeveraging AI to enhance learning Kappan Online ArticleHow can teachers integrate AI within schools? EdCan Online ArticleQueen’s Generative AI Teaching & Learning ResourcesHow to Cite ChatGPTMagic School AI (AI for Teachers)UNESCO: Artificial intelligence in educationUNESCO: ChatGPT and AI in higher education – Quick Start GuideIntelligent Classrooms: What AI Means For The Future Of Education Frobes ArticleEducating in a World of Artificial Intelligence Podcast Harvard Education

On this podcast, we talked with registered social worker Laura Conboy, who is the Mental Health Lead at Limestone District School Board. Laura discusses mental health as a continuum, strategies for mental health in the classroom - both individually and as a group, how to create caring conditions, what a circle of care looks like, how to navigate the tiers of intervention, creating brace spaces, and she provides some really great tips on how to take care of yourself as a teacher. Resources for Mental Health in the Classroom ONE CALL Desk ReferenceGuiding Questions to Build a Mentally Healthy Classroom Community Mental Health Literacy Course for Educators The Third Path OCT Professional Advisory Introduction to Children and Youth Mental Health: Skills for Educators Personal Resiliency Tips  Brene Brown Podcast on Compative Suffering, the 50/50 Myth and Settling the Ball 211 Ontario Good2Talk Laura Conboy is a registered Social Worker and has been working as the Mental Health Lead for the Limestone District School Board since 2017. As part of her role, Laura creates and implements Limestone’s Mental Health and Substance Use Strategy and annual action plans. Prior to coming to Limestone, Laura worked as a hospital social worker in several departments including the emergency department, high-risk obstetrics, and child and adolescent psychiatry. When Laura is not working, she can be found reading, traveling, or learning to play pickleball.

Lauren Smart-Lampl, Indigenous Teacher Education Program Coordinator and current Master of Education in World Indigenous Studies in Education student, joins us to talk about Truth and Reconciliation in the classroom drawing on her experience teaching in Nova Scotia. She discusses how she talked about residential schools in her classroom, how to indigenize your classroom, the importance of Indigenous languages, and more.  Head to our website for a full list of resources and to find out more about Lauren.

Hear from Dr. Patty Douglas, Associate Professor of Disability Studies and Exceptionalities and the inaugural Chair of Student Success and Wellness at the Faculty of Education. In the podcast, Patty discusses how her experience as a classroom teacher gave her a fire in her belly and led her to become a researcher. She discusses what neurodiversity-affirming practices are and what makes it different from the medical model of disability. She discusses the slogan, "nothing about us without us" which comes from disability activism and out of the racial justice movements - and how it can apply to neurodiversity in the classroom. She ends the discussion with some practical tips for implementing neurodiversity-affirming practices in your classroom. Links and resources: Re•Storying Autism - Re•Storying Autism is an interdisciplinary team of makers, artists, researchers, educators, whānau (family and kin), and practitioners transforming deficit understandings of autism and practices in education. Re*Storying Autism Project - Re•Storying Autism in Education (2019-2023) is a multimedia story making project directed by Patty Douglas that brings together Autistic people, family members, educators, practitioners and artists to rethink inclusion in ways that desire the difference of Autism. The overall aim of the Re•Storying Autism project is to transform deficit understandings of Autism in education and create new approaches that centre the perspectives of Autistic people and their/our supporters. The project holds in-person and online storytelling workshops and events in Ontario, Manitoba, Canada, Aotearoa and England.About Patty Douglas: Patty Douglas is an Associate Professor of Disability Studies and the inaugural Chair in Student Success and Wellness in the Faculty of Education at Queen’s University. Her research focuses on reimagining educational practice and care in neurodiversity affirming ways through critical, decolonial and creative research. She is the director of Re•Storying Autism in Education, a multimedia storytelling project that brings together Autistic students, family and educators in Canada, England, and New Zealand to rethink education in ways that that desire the difference of autism. She is currently publishing her book Unmothering Autism: Ethical Disruptions and Affirming Care with UBC Press. Patty is also a former special education teacher in Ontario and British Columbia. She identifies as neurodivergent, and is the mother of two sons, one of whom is autistic.

Dr. Tiina Kukkonen joins us to talk about why every teacher should integrate art into their classrooms - and how to make that happen.  Resources: Arts IntegrationArts Infusion CommitteeKennedy CenterArt Canada InstituteArts Integration and 21st Century Skills: A Study of Learners and Teachers (article) Institute for Arts Integration in STEAMMontreal Museum of Fine Art EDUCART Platform Teaching Artists Resources Places to Find/Connect with Teaching Artists  School board artist partnership programsToronto District School Board’s “tdsbCreates” with the Toronto Arts CouncilLimestone District School Board’s “Arts in (Edu)Action” program with Kingston School of Art  Organizations that partner teaching artists with communities and schoolsMASC (Southeastern Ontario/Western Quebec)Prologue Performing Arts (Ontario)inPath (across Canada)Art Starts (Toronto):  ArtStarts (BC)Artist in the School (Yukon) Visual Arts Nova Scotia (Nova Scotia)PERFORM! (Nova Scotia)Writers Federation of Nova Scotia (Nova Scotia)Funding Sources:Ontario Arts Council (Ontario) SK Arts (Saskatchewan)First Nations Education Steering Committee (British Columbia) Culture in the Schools (Quebec) Artists Inspire Grants (Quebec)Artists in Schools (Manitoba)ArtsNL Grants (Newfoundland and Labrador)Alberta Foundation for the Arts (Alberta) Arts in Schools (New Brunswick)

MEd students Beck Watt and Alex O'Leary joined us to talk about being a 2SLGBTQ+ ally in the classroom, how to address difficult topics in the news, and bringing representation into the classroom every day. ResourcesThe Faculty of Education's Gender Diversity Resources2STLGBQIA+ Lesson Plans from the Manitoba Teacher's SocietySupporting Transgender and Gender Diverse Students in Manitoba SchoolsBiosBeck Watt is a tattooed teacher of music and active flutist from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Beck currently teaches in Winnipeg’s inner city developing a grade 7-12 band and music appreciation program. In addition to their work within the Manitoba music community, they have been a guest speaker and lecturer on allyship and supporting transgender and/or gender diverse students in Manitoba since 2018. Beck is currently working on completing their Master’s thesis through Queen’s University exploring gender in Western instrumental music practices through the experiences of transgender and/or gender non-conforming instrumental musicians.Alex O'Leary is finishing their Master's in World Indigenous Studies in Education while also teaching at the Junior High level in Halifax, NS. Their thesis looks at the friendships between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous educators in public education and how these relationships play a role in education settings. Alex is also passionate about fostering classroom spaces where all students and staff feel seen and celebrated in all their identities.

When we think about literacy we often think about literature and poetry – but what about non-fiction? The National Council of Teachers of English put out a powerful statement (with recommendations) about the importance of non-fiction literacy and the value it has in the classroom. Non-fiction children’s author Lindsey Carmichael joins us to talk about how non-fiction can engage students who may not engage with other literature, some of her favourite moments with non-fiction in classrooms, some tips for integrating non-fiction into the classroom, and talks about her new book. Resources: NCTE Position Statement on the Role of Nonfiction Literature (K-12) List of Resources for Teaching with Non-Fiction created by LE CarmichaelThe study that gave a model of how to integrate non-fiction organically into learning: Maloch and Horsey (2013) Living Inquiry: Learning From and About Informational Texts in a Second-Grade Classroom. The Reading Teacher 66(6): 475-485The study that discusses kids reading above their level when they’re interested in the topic: Caswell and Duke (1998) Non-Narrative as a Catalyst for Literacy Development. Language Arts 75 (2): 108-117A study that emphasizes the validity of NF as “real” reading, focused on upper grades: Hynes (2000) “I Read for Facts”: Reading Nonfiction in a Fictional World. Language Arts 77 (6): 485-495Lindsey Carmichael's website lecarmichael.caLindsey's webpage on the KidsCanPress website

Katrina Carbone, PhD student, talks about her research and how mental health, wellness and assessment are intertwined – and how assessment can be used to support student flourishing. She also discusses research she completed during her Master of Education centred around assessment identity and how our own experiences as students can shape how we practice as teachers. She ends the podcast with some great tips on how to implement assessment practices into your classroom. ResourcesQueen’s Assessment and Evaluation Group: queens-aeg.ca/Teacher Assessment Identity (Looney et al., 2018): doi.org/10.1080/0969594X.2016.1268090Katrina’s MEd Thesis: qspace.library.queensu.ca/handle/1974/29415Seligman’s PERMA+ Model Explained: A Theory of Wellbeing: positivepsychology.com/perma-model/

​Historian Deirdre McCorkindale (PhD ABD), Assistant Professor of History at the University of Guelph, joins us this month to discuss the history of Black History month itself (did you know it has over 100 years of history?), some of the problems with how Black history is taught in school, and how to keep your Black history lessons local. ​Bio: Deirdre McCorkindale is a historian interested in the history of Race in North America with a focus on the African Canadian and African American Experience. Her current research currently concerns the history of intelligence testing in North America focusing on a racial intelligence study preformed southwestern Ontario in the 1930s. Deirdre has appeared in several documentaries talking about the Black history of Ontario specifically the Chatham Kent region and is a proud member and consultant for the Chatham Kent Black Historical Society.Resources and More informationChatham Kent Black Historical Society and Black Mecca Museum - this is a community-run, non-profit and I'm a little biased towards it because I am a member and my grandmother is currently the President. Josiah Henson Museum of African Canadian History (formerly Uncle Tom's Cabin) The Buxton Historic Site and Museum - has a virtual tour but I recommend going in person. Guelph Heritage Hall Amherstburg Freedom Museum ​

Dr. Nenad Radakovic, our newest Faculty member, joined us to talk about transdisciplinary approaches to math education - or using math to explore big questions - like how we tackle climate change or how we make musical compositions that are pleasing to everyone. He talks about math classes he taught in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in which the students looked at the risks of different types of power plants and explored the responsibilities of the different organizations. The lesson touched on all kinds of different disciplines. LinksNenad Radakovic PhD thesisTransdisciplinarity in Mathematics Education: Blurring Disciplinary Boundaries Border in Mathematics Pre-service Teacher Education

Find out how you can get access to teaching resources at Queen's University's library, what is available to you as a teacher at public libraries and more in our latest podcast! October is library month in Canada - with the theme: one card one million possibilities. We were lucky to have a chance to talk with two different librarians this week - Kristen Lemay, Acting Manager, Programming and Outreach, from the Kingston Frontenac Public Library, and Brenda Reed, Head Education Librarian at Queen's.Resources - Kingston Public Library Events Calendar- KFPL Teen Reviews- KFPL Volunteering at the Library- Sign up for KFPL's newsletter- Forest of Reading -  Peggy Collins - Harley the Hero- education.library@queensu.ca - email to get a Queen's Education Library Card- Queen's Education University Library Research Guide- Queen's Education University Library Kristen Lemay's Bio  Kristen Lemay is a librarian with the Kingston Frontenac Public Library. She is currently the Acting Manager, Programming and Outreach. She works with a programming team of librarians and programming assistants to bring programs and awareness of library services to the community. Brenda Reed's Bio  Brenda is the Head Education Librarian at Queen’s University Library where she has worked for over 20 years.  Before moving to Kingston, Brenda grew up in Gander Newfoundland, went to Western University in London, worked at St. Mary’s University Library in Halifax and Bishop’s College School Library in Lennoxville, and then at Queen’s Education Library ever since.As an Education Librarian Brenda gets to work with people who are dedicated to teaching, learning, and research, from teacher candidates to graduate and faculty researchers.  This means that every day is full of learning and sharing and the challenges that come with figuring things out – which really works for Brenda since she loves persisting to try to get to the end of a puzzle.  Coming to work every day is pure joy – what other job lets you come in the front door and be greeted by a wall of brand new books – every one of which you’d like to read! – and then work with a team of colleagues all day who are passionate about learning and especially reading.  It’s a dream job for sure.For the past 10 years or so Brenda has also served on the Silver Birch Express Steering Committee and is excited to be Co-Chairing that Committee again this year – check out the Forest of Reading book lists that were released last Friday – you’ve got a winter reading list for K-12 right there!

To celebrate Science Literacy Week, award-winning Canadian science children’s author Dr. Lindsey Carmichael joined us to talk about what science literacy is, why it is important, and what role books play in science literacy.To celebrate Science Literacy Week, award-winning science children’s author Dr. Lindsey Carmichael joined us to talk about what science literacy is, why it is important, and what role books play in science literacy.Helpful Links and Resources:Lindsey's website Kids Can Press - Publisher of Lindsey Carmichael's books The Boreal Forest (2020) and Polar (2023)Sci/Why - a group blog run by Canadian children's science authorsMelissa Stewart's Celebrate Nonfiction Blog - author, editor, and advocate for children's nonfictionJoyce Grant - author and teacher of media literacy for kids - Teaching Kids News Erica Fyvie - author of Mad for Ads

Smile big or go home! We are thrilled to have Lynda Colgan join us to talk about the upcoming Science Rendezvous event – and the very exciting highlights, what resources are available for teachers to use in their classroom, online workshops, and what makes this event special for kids and adults. Intro Music by: Trevor […]

Earth Day is coming up on April 22, 2022. The theme this year Celebrate Every Day! And we couldn’t think of a better person to have on our podcast and talk about sustainability in your classroom than Dan Hendry. On this episode, he’ll talk about sustainability projects big and small – and how to work with […]

Not sure how to handle social media in your classroom? Find out from Dr. Claire Ahn, Assistant Professor of Multiliteracies at Queen’s Faculty of Education. Chris and Claire discuss three big questions with lots of ideas for the best way to integrate conversations into your classroom sprinkled throughout the podcast: Why is it important that […]

We are thrilled to have Rosalie Griffith (https://twitter.com/msrgriffith), Secondary School Principal with the Toronto District School Board, join us to talk about Black History month. She shares her personal experience growing up as a black student in Ontario schools and answers three questions for us. What is black history and its history in Canada?  What […]

Join new host Chris Carlton as he speaks with outdoor education enthusiasts and Queen’s alumni Erik Vreeken and Paul Gifford about the benefits and opportunities of taking teaching and learning outdoors! Erik Vreeken (Ed’92) currently teaches grade 6 for the LDSB and bring 29 years of teaching experience. I Paul Gifford (Ed’94) is a consultant […]

Vulnerable youth are being impacted by the pandemic. Faculty member Dr Ian Matheson, who researches students with exceptionalities, discusses ways that the pandemic has positively and negatively affected students with exceptionalities and talks about some strategies teachers and parents are using to navigate teaching in a pandemic environment. Please note this podcast was recorded in May 2021.