Download the Call for Contributions
Vivacqua Rodrigues, Melissa
About
Research Interests
Indigenous peoples and environmental governance, interculturality in education, ocean literacy, Postcolonial studies, Socio-environmental conflicts, socio-environmental justice, transdisciplinarity and complexity
Individual research Interests
Bio
I am an assistant professor at Federal University of São Paulo, where I work at the Institute of Marine Sciences and in the Indigenous Intercultural Teaching Degree program. I am also a researcher at the Kaapora Chair of Traditional and Non-Hegemonic Knowledge.
Holding a PhD in Political Sociology, I have experience in transdisciplinary research in the Brazilian coastal zone, where I have worked for over 20 years in collaboration with various traditional communities and researchers from different fields of knowledge. Since the beginning of 2025, I have been a visiting scholar at EDST, where I am conducting a research on Decoloniality and Interculturality in Ocean Literacy.
Research and Education
Education
Research Projects
Selected Publications
EDST Activity
Courses taught
Additional
Graduate Academic Assistant – Student Internship, Journal Editing
Graduate Student Opportunity
Department of Educational Studies – Faculty of Education
POSITION TITLE: Graduate Academic Assistant – Student Internship, Journal Editing
DESCRIPTION: Seeking one EDST graduate student at masters or doctoral level to work with the Editor-in-Chief of Philosophy of Education.
COMPENSATION: The GAA will receive an hourly wage of $28-$30. The starting date is July 1 2025, and the position is up to 5 hours a month for up to 12 months.
NATURE OF WORK: Work will include administrative duties, assistance to the Editor-in-Chief and Assistant Editor, copyediting, typesetting, and workflow assistance.
QUALIFICATIONS:
Education:
The applicant must be currently enrolled in a masters or doctoral program in the Department of Educational Studies at the University of British Columbia.
Experience:
Some copy-editing and typesetting experience and familiarity with the Chicago Manual of Style would be an asset.
Skills:
- Collaborative work ethic
- Ability to work productively, both independently and in groups
- Knowledge of the Zoom platform (e.g., setting up and hosting meetings, screen sharing)
- Ability to problem-solve technical issues that arise
- Strong organizational skills and ability to follow timelines and meet deadlines as required
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
Please submit:
A cover letter of no more than one page in length that speaks specifically to qualifications for the position, current Curriculum Vitae.
Please submit all materials by email and as a single document to Sam Rocha (sam.rocha@ubc.ca).
DEADLINE: June 6, 2025
For accessibility requests or requirements, please contact Sam Rocha: (sam.rocha@ubc.ca)
Mary DeMarinis – EdD Dissertation
Please join us in congratulating Mary DeMarinis who successfully defended her EdD Dissertation on May 13 of 2025.
Title:
Using Institutional Ethnography to Explicate the Story of Student Affairs Professionals Doing the Work of Supporting Students with Disabilities
Abstract:
This study explores the practices of student affairs professionals as they do the work of accommodating students with disabilities within one BC post-secondary institution. It examines the widely used accommodation model that is based on the idea that disability is a medical condition that needs to be remediated. The very model that is intended to assist students with disabilities access higher education acts as a barrier to their participation. Students report that accessing accommodations is complicated, and invariably makes them more visible or “othered” in the classroom. The number of students using accommodations, and the complexity of their needs, is increasing at an alarming rate, and the accessibility offices are not adequately resourced to meet the demand. Faculty also feel overwhelmed by the growing diversity in their classrooms and the volume and complexity of accommodation requests. Both staff and faculty recognize that change must happen. However, they report being so busy maintaining the accommodation apparatus that they lack the time to explore how they could change the ways they do their work. An “expectant inertia” exists, whereby administrators are waiting for the accessibility staff to lead change, accessibility staff are waiting for faculty and curriculum designers to embrace change, and faculty and staff are looking to administrators to lead the change. This research uses institutional ethnography (IE) to explicate the invisible rules that explain this expectant inertia. IE is both a conceptual framework and a methodology that explores the rules and regulations that structure and limit day-to-day work, making it an ideal framework to explicate this phenomenon. What I discovered through this research is that the accommodation model is based on human rights law and is maintained because it is a system that works for the institution. The various forms and work tools that have been developed help workers process students as cases, but have negative and unintended consequences for students. This research revealed that the desire to change is not enough; it will take the concerted effort of administrators who align their exposed values on equity, diversity, and inclusion with resources to champion change.
Chair of Examination Committee:
Dr. Cynthia Nicol
University Examiners:
Dr. Rachelle Hole, School of Social Work, UBCO
Dr. Shauna Butterwick, EDST, UBC
External Examiner:
Dr. Donna Hardy Cox, Memorial University
Supervisory Committee:
Dr. Alison Taylor
Dr. Fei Wang
Dr. Deirdre Kelly
Congratulations Mary!
SESSIONAL LECTURER POSITIONS for Winter Session – 2025/2026
The Department of Educational Studies will offer sessional lecturer positions for the 2025/2026 Winter Session.
Winter Term 1 – 3.0 credits per section, September 2 to December 10, 2025
Education, School and Social Institutions – In person
EDST 401/002 – Mondays & Wednesdays 9:00 AM to 10:30 AM (Secondary)
EDST 401/004 – Mondays & Wednesdays 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM (Secondary)
EDST 401/005 – Mondays & Wednesdays 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM (Secondary)
EDST 401/007 – Mondays & Wednesdays 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM (Secondary)
EDST 401/008 – Mondays & Wednesdays 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM (Secondary)
EDST 401/009 – Mondays & Wednesdays 2:30 PM to 4:00 PM (Secondary)
EDST 401/010 – Mondays & Wednesdays 2:30 PM to 4:00 PM (Secondary – French)
EDST 401/101 – Wednesdays 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM (Elementary – CITE)
EDST 401/102 – Tuesdays 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM (Elementary – IB-PYP & ABC)
EDST 401/105 – Tuesdays 1:30 PM to 5:30 PM (Elementary French)
EDST 401/107 – Wednesdays 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM (Elementary – Indigenous Education & Outdoor Learning)
EDST 401/109 – Wednesdays 1:00 PM to 4:30 PM (Elementary – TELL-3C)
CITE: Community and Inquiry for Teacher Education
IB-PYP & ABC: International Baccalaureate, Primary Years Program, Arts Based & Creativity
TELL-3C: Teaching English Language Learners through Cross-Curricular Case-Based Inquiry
Winter Term 2
EDST 403: Education, Knowledge, and Curriculum
We are currently not advertising for any 403 sections at this time
To be eligible to teach courses at 400 level, applicants must hold a doctoral degree (or have achieved doctoral candidacy) in a discipline relevant to the course title. Preference will generally be given to applicants with relevant elementary or secondary teaching experience or with other demonstrated achievement in interpreting the content of the disciplines in relation to the concerns of beginning teachers. Course instructor duties may include: teaching, holding regular office hours, marking assignments and exams, reporting grades, and attending orientation meetings as well as follow-up sessions, where applicable. Duties may also involve some or all of the following functions: preparation and involvement in seminars, lectures, discussion periods, and tutorials; invigilation duties; and academic counseling of students during office hours.
Application Procedure
Returning sessionals:
Please complete the Returning Sessional Application Form. No supporting documentation required.
New sessionals:
Letters of application should contain the following items: the Department Sessional application form, a current CV, the Post Secondary Teaching Experience Form and teaching evaluations if available. New applicants should also include the names, e-mail addresses and phone numbers of three referees.
Forms are obtainable from the department website at http://edst.educ.ubc.ca/jobs/
Please note that, as per the Germaine Agreement on the conditions of appointment for sessional and part-time faculty members (February 29, 2012), doctoral candidates and applicants with completed doctoral degrees will be adjudicated together in one pool of applications http://www.hr.ubc.ca/faculty-relations/files/115-5-Jan-2012-Agreement-re-Sessional-Agreement.pdf
All positions are subject to enrollment minimums and budgetary approval, and are governed by
Part 7 of the Collective Agreement on Conditions of Appointments for Sessional Faculty Members. The remuneration for the assignment will be paid at the sessional pay scale at http://www.hr.ubc.ca/faculty-relations/collective-agreements/salary-agreement/#4
The offers made to doctoral candidates are subject to permission from the research supervisor and Graduate Advisor.
Please send applications electronically to: edst-jobs.educ@ubc.ca
Holly-Kate Collinson-Shield, Administrative Manager
Department of Educational Studies
Faculty of Education
Education Centre at Ponderosa Commons
6445 University Boulevard
Vancouver B.C. V6T 1Z2
Deadline for applications: Thursday, May 29th at 11:59PM, 2025
Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority.
If you require any accommodations during the application or hiring process, please contact Holly-Kate Collinson-Shield.
Due to the number of applications we receive, we are not able to confirm receipt of submissions over the phone or by mail, nor can we provide the status of applicants except to those who are selected.
