Pedagogies of Care: Bringing it All Together – Sharing Our Stories

Date and time: Tuesday, April 1, 2:00 p.m. to 2:50 p.m.

Join us for a series of four monthly 50-minute sessions designed for graduate students, instructors, and professors committed to exploring pedagogies of care. These sessions offer strategies that foster care, inclusion, and broaden perspectives in higher education, including insights into how brain science can enhance teaching effectiveness. Each session will provide practical tools for creating inclusive, engaging, and empowering learning environments, drawing on research into neural connections, brain plasticity, and how these processes affect learning, memory retention, and student engagement. Whether you’re teaching in-person or in an online format, this series will equip you with neuroscience-based strategies and pedagogical approaches that cultivate caring and inclusive educational spaces.

During the Bringing it All Together – Sharing Our Stories Spaces session:

• Participants will collaboratively share their experiences and insights, synthesizing the pedagogical strategies learned throughout the series to create an integrated teaching approach.
• Participants will discuss their practices through storytelling, identifying ways to further develop their teaching practices.

Register for the Pedagogies of Care workshop

Decolonizing Classrooms: Start here

Date and time: Wednesday, April 2, 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

As part of the Decolonizing Classrooms Series, “Decolonizing Classrooms: Start Here” is designed for those beginning their journey in decolonizing and reconciliatory learning. This workshop offers foundational knowledge about Indigenous Peoples, their Knowledges, and the important relationships we all maintain with the Land in what is now commonly known as Canada. Participants will learn about colonization and processes of decolonization, and identify initial steps to engage in important decolonizing and reconciliatory processes. This workshop will equip you with the necessary information to meaningfully engage with Indigenous pedagogies and foster ongoing learning and action. Additionally, it provides the background necessary for full participation in other workshops in the Decolonizing Classrooms Series.

Register for the Decolonizing Classrooms workshop

From Theory to Practice: Using the UM Competencies Framework to Level Up Experiential Learning

Date and time: Friday, April 4, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Have you thought about the kind of people you want your students to become upon graduating? You might envision them as empathetic listeners, critical thinkers, effective collaborators, or team players. How can education use Experiential Learning (EL) to move beyond traditional content delivery, actively nurturing these skills? Join us as we dive into the dynamic combination of EL and the UM Competencies Framework, equipping educators to foster real-world skills, growth, and empowerment in students.

Register for From Theory to Practice: Using the UM Competencies Framework to Level Up Experiential Learning

Experiential Learning Community of Practice Brown Bag Lunch Conversations: Experiential or Active Learning What’s the Difference?

Date and time: Tuesday, April 15, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Bring your lunch and connect with other members of our community of practice! There is no formal agenda for these casual meetings just good people and conversation! Everyone is welcome to share their thoughts and experiences as we explore different topics in experiential learning.

Topic: Experiential or Active Learning what’s the difference? Are they different approaches, or different names for the same approach? Come tell us what you think!

Register for Experiential or Active Learning What’s the Difference?

Universal Design for Learning in Practice: Represent a Diversity of Perspectives and Identities in Authentic Ways

Date and time: Thursday, April 24, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Join us for the last Thursday of each month in an ongoing series, where participants will review discreet elements of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Participants will work together to develop pedagogical practices that align with the UDL principle being discussed that month.

Topic: The session will focus on CAST’s UDL principle of representing a diversity of perspectives and identities in authentic ways and how it can be directly applied to pedagogical practice. There will be a brief presentation of the core elements of this principle followed by a question-and-answer session where participants can collaborate with the facilitator to develop their practice. 

Register for Universal Design for Learning in Practice: Represent a Diversity of Perspectives and Identities in Authentic Ways

In its first year, the Social Justice Hub is supporting three groups of student organizers in developing campaigns that build community and address challenges faced by the QTBIPOC community (queer and trans Black, Indigenous, People of Colour), anti-xenophobia, and accessibility/disability community.

At the Social Justice Hub Open House on December 10, UM community created artwork for the theme, “A different world is possible,” which invited students and staff to portray the just world they hope to work towards.

Through the Social Justice Hub, students gain knowledge on how to put anti-oppression and EDIA into action and develop skills through training workshops and hands-on campaigns. Organizer teams are exploring how they can create safer spaces for QTBIPOC, challenge xenophobia and racism experienced by international students, and advocate for a sensory-friendly campus for neurodivergent students.

Having the chance to address inequities that directly affect students and their communities is one of the most impactful parts of the Social Justice Hub, and plays an important role in the development of future leaders and change-makers.

Elinam Okae-Yeboah, a fourth-year student in Women and Gender Studies and English, reflected on the impact of participating in the QTBIPOC team: “The university has many commitments to equity, diversity, and inclusion, but it seems like the administration falls short when it comes to making material change or decisions that will support marginalized students. I think the Social Justice Hub is important because it provides marginalized students with the training that can help them advocate for themselves.”

The wider UM community is invited to participate in the Social Justice Hub by attending our upcoming events. Join us for the Social Justice Hub Drop-Ins on the last Thursday of each month from 3:30 to 5:00 p.m. to engage in critical conversations on community organizing and social justice work. Register in advance or drop-in.

Upcoming Social Justice Hub Drop-Ins:

• February 27, 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. – Self-care is community care, community care is self-care (CEL Office 203 – 55 Chancellors Circle)
• March 27, 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. – Group agreements, safer spaces, and relational accountability (CEL Office 203 – 55 Chancellors Circle)
• April 24, 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. – The revolution will be from bed (virtual) 

To receive notifications about other Social Justice Hub events, sign-up for our mailing list and follow @CELumanitoba on Instagram to learn about more upcoming workshops, programs and events from Community Engaged Learning.

At this year’s Teaching Café, hosted May 1 by The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, four UM panelists presented basic concepts of accessibility, shared thoughtful approaches for the classroom, and encouraged both small, cumulative actions and strategic planning to bring about positive change.   

Removing the burden of proof for everyone’s benefit

Event moderator, The Centre’s Johnathan Bevan, opened the session with a series of broad definitions and invitations to help set a foundation for discussion.

As an Educational Developer specializing in accessible course design, Bevan acknowledged that the topic of accessibility presents a complex narrative, and moving toward accessibility in teaching begins with recognizing that universities are inherently ableist in their design. Institutions have often excluded individuals based on arbitrary barriers such as mobility, sensory impairments, cognitive and psychological diagnostic criteria, and many other categories.

“We want to examine our practices, examine how we are interacting with each other and how to make room for all kinds of people,” he said.

Accessible design benefits both those who identify as disabled and those who do not; for example, a noisy HVAC system in a classroom can negatively affect those who don’t identify as hearing impaired, or some people may be disabled for short periods of time due to illness or injury. Inclusivity, noted Bevan, helps those who don’t know that they might need accommodations to be successful and also those who don’t know how to ask for help.

“Embracing accessible pedagogy means respecting people’s right to exist,” he offered. “When we begin from a place of trust and move to design courses to be inclusive, we remove the burden of proof regarding a disability from the individuals.”

Rethinking classroom practices for a positive impact

Panelist Dr. Stephanie Hladik, Assistant Professor in the Price Faculty of Engineering, has successfully introduced inclusive practices in her teaching. She described how a defining moment came for her last year, on the topic of lecture slides. She had been wrestling with whether to post her slides online for students before or after each lecture, and she had decided on the latter, thinking that would encourage students to attend class.

She changed this practice after a student whose first language was not English let her know (in an anonymous survey) that having the slides ahead of class would help them prepare and allow them to better follow along in class.

“That flipped my thinking,” she says. She then began analyzing her other classroom practices. “It came down to my values. Am I worried about students who are trying to game the system? Is it worth it to stop one student from gaming the system if I now have 10 students who are struggling to keep up in lectures? That reflection has been helpful for me. I would like students to learn what I am teaching, in a way that works for them.”

She has also instituted a “late pass” system where her students can hand in late work five times per term, no questions asked. Students have told her they appreciate the flexibility as they juggle workloads from other courses. And she now also receives much fewer emails from students asking for assignment extensions.

“It’s about making students feel valued and welcome,” she says.

Dialing down the power dynamic

Carolyn Christie is the Director of UM’s Student Accessibility Services (SAS), working to support students identifying as having a disability – who now number 2,700 across UM campuses. SAS looks at all aspects of a student’s university journey, from recruitment, application, access to online and physical spaces, the classroom experience, program requirements, and how they’re progressing – all the way to convocation or whatever their journey’s end might be.

Christie emphasized how important a student’s relationship with an instructor is for their success. “What are we doing in the classroom to engage all students?” she asked. “When students report back to us about how their year went, their relationship with faculty is the main thing, and not so much about this or that door didn’t open.”

She invited instructors to consider the power they have, how students feel when they approach them, and whether that promotes learning. “Students are often extremely scared. We run coaching sessions with students, on how to talk to their instructor if they don’t understand an assignment.” Building positive relationships is key to empowering people to ask for help.

Thinking strategically to make meaningful change

Panelist Dr. Tina Chen serves as UM’s Vice-Provost (Equity), the newly created position to advance the university’s vision and work around all kinds of equity and anti-oppression for students, staff and faculty.

“We are becoming better informed,” she said. “My office helps support people in their understanding of ableism as a system of oppression, to begin to identify actions they can take and then to support collective transformation within units.”

Chen suggested that instructors who are taking steps toward inclusive practices should advocate to have accessibility principles embedded in ongoing department or unit EDI strategic plans, so that ableism is identified as a system of oppression, along with the many other barriers that exist at institutions.

“Get some real commitments in there, because that is the opening for you to be the advocate among your colleagues to think about how you might change practices,” she said.  

Learn more about accessibility

At The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, we will collaborate with you to make your pedagogy more accessible for everyone who comes into your classroom. Whether you need a review of a specific element of your course or a full overhaul, we will be there to help you design for inclusion.

Learn more about accessible course design coaching

Learn more about the Teaching and Learning Certificate Program

The Teaching and Learning Certificate Program has been specifically designed to accommodate the busy schedule of faculty: limited classroom hours, flexible workshop offerings, supportive mentoring and individualized teaching feedback.

Learn more about the Teaching and Learning Certificate Program

These identities can affect teaching behaviour and expectations in the classroom in explicit and implicit ways.  

In the new UM Learn module “Understanding social identities among faculty and students,” instructors can learn to recognize their own identities and those of their students, to help them develop strategies that promote engagement and success in the classroom.  

The 35-minute self-study module is the second of six modules for Incorporating EDI into Your Course and Teaching, a course to help instructors apply equity, diversity and inclusion concepts in their teaching. Each module provides strategies and teaching techniques and additional resources for those who wish to take their learnings further. It is available to all UM instructors and staff. 

Brandon University’s Kristen Hardy, authored the module. “I hope that those who engage with it come away with a stronger sense of how they can make connections with their students as whole, unique people, and feel more confident about their ability to use inclusive practices in their classrooms,” she says. 

The EDI course was created by the Manitoba Flexible Learning Hub (MB Hub) at the request of six partner institutions through the Flexible Learning Advisory Group. Over 10K instructional and support staff across the province have access to the course via the learning platform at their respective institutions. 

The MB Hub is part of The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning and provides instructional design and digital media support to partner institutions across Manitoba. Partner institutions participating in the EDI series include Assiniboine Community College, Brandon University, University College of the North, Red River College Polytechnic, University of Winnipeg and the University of Manitoba. 

Access the course today 

1. Login to UM Learn with your staff email
2. In the main navigation menu, select “Self Registration” 
3. Under Course offering code, select CENTRE_IEDIYCT_022024 or under Course offering name select Incorporating EDI into Your Course and Teaching: Module 2 

Other EDI courses and resources 

The course Equity Diversity Inclusion Accessibility – EDIA: Foundations (EDIA 0100) is an 18-hour hybrid or online course for UM students, staff and faculty. It introduces participants to the skills of critical self-assessment, social location, and diverse perspective-taking that are foundational practices in EDIA work and describes the content necessary for such skill development. It is offered in partnership with the UM Office of Equity Transformation and with the support of the UM President’s Office. 

If you want more help applying EDI to your teaching practice, connect with The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning for one-on-one consultations. 

Learn more about the Manitoba Flexible Learning Hub. 

To Moore, it seemed as if the voice came from under the car. Shrieking, she hit the brakes.

Regaining her composure, she realized the Danes used children’s voices on GPS notifications to alert drivers once they’ve entered school zones.

Then it hit her—bolt out of the blue. She could use this.

Students, families get a role

Now a leading thinker and lecturer on inclusive education, at the time, Moore was working in British Columbia with K-12 students who had exceptional learning needs. She was working to reform the Individual Education Plans (IEPs) meant to assist students with special needs.

Getting back to that school zone in Denmark. Moore realized in that moment, the student’s voice was missing from the plan. In other words: If she would slow down in a school zone because a child’s voice asked her to, would teachers respond to learning plans if the children’s voice was included in writing them? From that moment forward, Moore worked to ensure students and their families had a role in writing the IEPs. 

Speaking to some 360 Manitoba educators over two speaking engagements, Moore shared her experiences, her frustrations and eventual success in reforming BC’s IEPs to become a student-focused two-page document from a 27-page irrelevant bureaucratic form.

‘Revolutionary’

It took her seven years and the backing of over 30 school divisions to convince the province to change IEPs from a totally self-contained specialized program to an inclusive program where all kids in the school had access to both electives and academics from grades 8 to 12.

“Every student now has access, which, if you’ve been in a high school, is revolutionary,” Moore said.

Moore realized the problem with IEPs when a student presented her with a report card that came with no feedback. In consulting with teachers, she realized that the education plans contained information about the student’s ability to use a bathroom independently, but no goals related to curriculum or specific classes the students are attending.

“We went from zero-per-cent teacher participation to 100% teacher participation in one term once we figured that out,” Moore said. “Because, all of a sudden, we’re not inviting teachers to talk about bathroom goals, we’re inviting teachers to talk to them about their curriculum. All of a sudden, they saw purpose in the IEP. This was huge.”

The solution was several-fold:

• Change the IEP’s focus to a goal and strength-focused statement aligned with the curriculum of their peers from a deficit-focused stat document that focused on the student’s challenges.
• Make the IEP flexible and responsive to the places where high-school students are in a day.
• Include input from parents and students.

“This document represents a person,” Moore said. “Not accountability. Not a policy. Not all of the political things that it’s become, but this is a person that we’re responding to.”

Moore said she is working on a book scheduled to be published this year that speaks to her experience reforming IEPs.

• • •

The faculty next hosts Dr. Elyse Eidman-Aadahl, executive director, National Writing Project (NWP) University of California, Berkeley. Details as follows:

What: Dr. Elyse Eidman-Aadahl, executive director, National Writing Project (NWP)University of California, Berkeley

When: Friday Evening, April 24,

Time: 5 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Where: Room 224, Education Building, Fort Garry Campus, U of M

• Register here.
• Paid parking at University parkade.
• Free parking available on campus at St. Andrew’s College.

For more information, contact:

Charlie McDougall, communications coordinator, Faculty of Education, 204 474 7402, or email: Charlie [dot] McDougall [at] umanitoba [dot] ca

A group of unconventional students huddled around makeshift kitchen tables at the University of Manitoba’s Indigenous learning centre on Saturday for a lesson in Michif.

Dozens of participants, both young and old, gathered at the Michif kitchen party held at Migizii Agamik on Saturday evening to connect with the traditional Métis language, which is only fluently spoken by about five to 10 per cent of Métis people across the country.

Laura Forsythe, the Métis inclusion coordinator at the University of Manitoba, is bringing people together to keep the mixture of Cree and French words alive.

“The flame has just started now to actually rebuild and reclaim our language as a whole, as a nation,” she said.

Michif is spoken by communities living across Métis homelands, not limited to Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

“They understand that it’s a value and it’s unique to our culture and it’s important,” Forsythe said.

Twenty-eight university students are currently enrolled in the school’s Michif language program, including individuals from Russian, Polish and Filipino backgrounds, Forsythe said. The university has been hosting monthly workshops where they invite elders to teach attendees how to introduce themselves and how to discuss the weather and their families, but it didn’t have a space for everyone to get together and practice their speech.

So Forsythe decided to switch things up — and throw a kitchen party.

Read the full story here.

“You don’t have to change who people are,” Moore said. “It’s really about understanding identities of people and understand that everyone’s diverse, and realize that we need to support teachers to support diversity—rather than just talking about inclusion as a space, and then leaving our teachers to figure it out on their own.”

Moore contends with the common perception among educators that addressing diversity in classrooms adds to teacher workloads.

“I look at it as not more work, but it is different work,” Moore said.

She explained that more work is required if educators try to apply one-size-fits-all, standardized lesson plans. Developing a universal plan up front that accepts that all students are different eliminates the need to make adjustments afterward, she said.

“If we design really well the first time, we don’t have to retrofit afterward.”

Moore cites as an example a Tofino school that includes group work where students choose their own groups and study topics.

“Part of it is helping kids to decide what groups that they are belonging to because … they’re never going to organize themselves by things they can’t do,” Moore said, adding that inclusive lesson plans get students involved and working together. “These are skills that (students) need to learn anyway.”

Moreover, Moore asked the audience gathered at a Faculty of Education lecture hall recently to consider incentives and structural supports that encourage educators to choose inclusion rather than trying to convince more people to attempt inclusion methods.

“How we can help to shift our support models, and help to support teachers to be inclusive, as opposed to supporting individuals in the classroom?” Moore said. “How can we make the choice to be inclusive easier and how do we make that easier for teachers and administrators in school. Just telling them what to do will never work.”

“Homecoming is a great opportunity for alumni, students and faculty to reconnect,” said Dean David Mandzuk, “This year, we’ve planned a full schedule of events, from updating people on new developments in the Faculty, to engaging in discussion on our new recruitment efforts, as well as providing insight on important issues in the classroom.”

The highlight of the evening features a panel discussion on the theme of inclusivity, titled: “Is Education in Manitoba Inclusive Enough? Where we were, where we are and where we want to be?”

The evening will also include an official opening of new science labs, followed by a reception. Those in attendance will then be invited to attend a table discussion about plans to recruit the next generation of teachers.

“Education offers opportunities to learn and work in an innovative and dynamic field, in the community, and in a variety of roles,” said Dean David Mandzuk. “We’re looking forward  to engaging with alumni and students about the benefits of pursuing an education degree at Manitoba’s only research-intensive university.”

What: Faculty of Education, Homecoming 2018: An Evening of Engagement
When: Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2018
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Where: Room 222, Education Building, Fort Garry Campus, U of M

• RSVP optional at 474-9001.
• Paid parking at university parkade.
• Free parking available on campus at St. Andrew’s College.

Get tickets for the Faculty of Education Reception & Panel

For more information, contact:

Charlie McDougall, communications coordinator, Faculty of Education, 204 474 7402, or email: charlie.mcdougall@umanitoba.ca.