Community Speaker Series in Education - Nov 2025
Community partners, alumni, scholars and practitioners visit campus to discuss ideas, trends and professional journeys in Education.
Open to all Education students. Light snacks served at each event.
RSVP here.
PLEASE NOTE: *All events will be held in-person at the Learning Commons in the Faculty of Education (Rm 121). In the case of a continued public transit strike, events will be delivered online. Please RSVP to be informed of any changes**
Thursday, November 13 – 5 - 7pm
No One Told Me That… - Conversation on the First Five Years of Teaching
(panel conversation, Q&A)
Panel of four current teachers discussing their first five years of professional practice working in various educational settings and what they wish they could tell their younger selves. The conversation and Q&A will explore various themes related to wellness, relationships with students and the school ecosystem, managing expectations and how to make the most of those first five years where 20-30% of teachers in Canada leave this essential vocation.
Read article: Why Canadian Teachers Are Working Like No One Else by Heidi Yetman - Canadian Teachers Federation, May 2025
Guests:
Karina Capano – Secondary ESL, École secondaire Antoine-de-Saint-Exupéry
Haneefa Corbie - Secondary Science (grades 7,8), Selwyn House School (private)
Yilin Guo - Elementary, Arts Plastiques (currently English Montreal School Board)
Gary Purcell - English Language Arts (currently PACC Adult Education Centre and Vocational Training); Executive Director, Suspicious Fish Storytelling Hub
Moderator:
Sabi Hinkson – Math & Science Educator, Founder of STEM with Miss Sabi, 3rd Year PhD Student at McGill University (in DISE)
Friday, November 21 – 12:30-2:00 *SESSION FULL*
Emotional Labor: Strategies for Awareness and Resilience as Teachers
(interactive workshop)
This interactive workshop invites teachers to explore the emotional dimensions of teaching through mindfulness, reflection, and arts-based methods.
Participants will examine emotional labour, engage in scenario-based discussions, and create personalized self-care toolkits. The session fosters emotional awareness, professional identity development, resilience, and sustainable engagement in teaching practice.
Facilitator:
Laura Taylor is a full-time secondary-level teacher for an alternative program for at-risk students aged 16-20 and a third-year PhD student in the Department of Integrated Studies in Education. Her research explores teacher emotional labour and disengagement through arts-based and affective frameworks.
Tuesday, November 25 – 12:00-1:30
Sustainability in and beyond the curriculum
(panel & group dialogue)
Learning in the 21st Century inevitably means confronting complex sustainability challenges like the climate crisis. Critics have increasingly called for schools and universities to do more to help learners understand and act on these challenges, but we also know how important it is to support action beyond the classroom. In this panel we'll hear from educators and change-makers working to confront sustainability challenges in Montreal and beyond. We’ll learn about the challenges and the opportunities for pursuing sustainability inside our schools, universities and beyond.
Read article: Creating a space for sustainability in the curriculum by Patrick McDonagh - McGill News, May 2025
Guests:
Brooklyn Frizzle & Mozhdeh Babagoli - Co-Coordinators at ECOLE Project
Dr. Mitchell McLarnon - Assistant Professor, Education, Concordia University
Kristen Perry - Urban Agriculture Manager - The Depot (NDG), Consultant, Facilitator, Farmer
Justus Wachs, PhD Candidate and Facilitator, Faculty of Education, McGill University
Moderator:
Dr. Blane Harvey – Associate Professor, Integrated Studies in Education, McGill University