https://edst.educ.ubc.ca/events/event/a-class-by-themselves-audiobook-launch/
Jelana Bighorn’s MA Defence
You are invited…
To: Jelana Bighorn’s MA defence on Wednesday, April 29th at 12:30pm
Title: Transgressing white supremacy in education: A Lakota Baha’i approach
Via Zoom: Please join the link between 12:15-12:30pm
Co-supervisors: Drs. Hartej Gill and chuutsqua Rorick
University examiner: Dr. Lee Brown
Join Zoom Meeting for Jelana Bighorn’s MA defence:
https://ubc.zoom.us/j/63919275639?pwd=Yz2oFwvarvhrxrzlqNGNbMaEjNiBm8.1
Meeting ID: 639 1927 5639
Passcode: 858550
All welcome!
Shukria,
Hartej
Abstract:
The purpose of this research is to examine the behaviors, attitudes, and actions of white students and staff members towards decolonization and anti-racism praxis in public schools located in British Columbia. This thesis employs a spiritually based, Indigenous decolonizing methodological approach that emerges from a theoretical framework based on Lakota principles, Baha’i teachings and critical pedagogy. These three distinct paradigms comprise three separate tipi poles under which the sacred moments method is implemented. Sacred moments method creates a defined space for action, reflection and consultation with a cherished relative who has passed on. The imagined conversations examine personal experiences with white students and white teachers within educational settings to learn what understanding and/or awareness of systemic oppression is present. The intention of this research is to maintain a focus on the behaviors, attitudes, and actions of the oppressor rather than the oppressed. Decolonizing and anti-racism public educational praxis in British Columbia is largely delivered by white teachers yet there is limited research on the effectiveness of their engagement or their commitment to its goals. The four key themes in the findings include: (1) the centrality of truth telling, (2) the desire to dream, (3) from fragility to hostility, and (4) the specter of forgiveness. This research aims to contribute new insights into white teacher resistance towards decolonization and anti-racism suggesting that as long as white relatives refuse to meaningfully engage in their own spiritual healing, anti-racism and decolonization initiatives within educational settings will continue to fail. As such this study issues a call for relational accountability. It remains to be seen who will respond to this call and when…
Congratulations to Xinyue (Harriet) Dai on a Successful Oral Defence (M.A. Thesis)
Please join us in congratulating Xinyue (Harriet) Dai who successfully defended her M.A. Thesis on April 16 of 2026.
Title:
Studying Up: Researching Contemporary Academics of Chinese Heritage at Canadian Research Universities
Abstract:
This thesis researches Chinese professors’ experience and identity in Canadian universities. Taking theoretical insights from the scholarship on “patterns of adaptation” from Philip Kuhn’s work on overseas Chinese marginal experience in North America, as well as Hannah Arendt’s concept of the “conscious pariah”, I structure the cultural analysis of interviews with four Chinese professors with a life history narrative approach. My main research questions are: To what extent and how do Chinese diasporic academics see their circumstances as “conscious pariahs” in Canadian society and the Chinese community respectively? And how do their cultural identities change over time? Drawing on interview data and participants’ published writings, this study synthesizes participants’ perspectives on their cultural identity, and their experiences of marginalization. These four professors can be categorized as conscious pariahs (self-critical outsiders), and parvenus (submissive social climbers) to a different extent. This research provides insight into the experiences of Chinese professors, and makes an original contribution to research on Canadian universities. The study also provides an example of “elite interviews,” in which research interviews become vibrant scholarly dialogues.
Supervisory Committee:
Dr. Claudia Ruitenberg, Educational Studies
Dr. Qiang Fu, Sociology
We are thankful for the University Examiner‘s contribution and expertise.
Dr. Amy Metcalfe, Educational Studies, University Examiner
With special thanks to Dr. Tim Cheek for all his support in the earlier phases of the research.
Congratulations Xinyue (Harriet)!
EDST Office Ergo Representative – Geno Mendoza
The Assistant to the Head, Geno Mendoza, is now officially appointed as the EDST Office Ergo Representative. The main goal of this position is to help improve staff wellbeing, health, and safety, and to help ensure EDST colleagues feel comfortable and supported in their workspaces. You can find more information on Office Ergo Reps by clicking here.
EDST and I are very grateful to Geno for taking on this crucial community-oriented role, a role that ensures that physical conditions within EDST promote everyone’s safety and well-being in the workplace. Thank you, Geno!
✅ What an Office Ergo Rep does:
- Offers information about available ergo resources
- Educates about risk factors and prevention strategies
- Provides assistance for optimal workstation set-up
- Assists with the office ergo self-assessment checklist
- Liaises with the Ergo Team
🚫 What an Office Ergo Rep does not do:
- Carry out workplace injury incident investigations
- Provide ergonomic assessments
- Prepare accommodation plans
With best wishes,
André
2026 Faculty of Education MA Thesis Prize – Arushi Goswami
EDST’s Arushi Goswami has been selected as the recipient of the 2026 Faculty of Education MA Thesis Prize for her study, Deconstructing the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) Framework and the Happiness Curriculum in the Context of Educational Neoliberalism and Emotional Governance. The thesis was supervised by Dr. Mona Gleason with committee member Dr. Taylor Webb. Dr. Lindsay Gibson (EDCP) acted as external examiner.
Awarded annually to one MA student in the Faculty of Education who makes an important contribution to their field of study, the members of the Faculty Adjudication Committee “were impressed by many aspects of (the) thesis, including its theoretical rigour, timeliness, and significance for educational studies.”
Congratulations, Arushi!
Faculty Wellbeing Champions Recognition
Congratulations to Dr. Glory Ovie for her nomination to the Faculty Wellbeing Champions Recognition.
Dr. Glory Ovie was nominated by students as a Faculty Wellbeing Champion in acknowledgement of the meaningful role she plays in supporting student wellbeing and academic success in the classroom. The nomination marks Dr. Glory Ovie’s fostering of inclusive learning environments, promoting wellbeing-focused teaching practices, and supporting students holistically.
The event will be held on Tuesday, April 7th from 3:00–5:00 PM at the Ponderosa Ballroom (RSVP required).
Well done Dr. Ovie !
Congratulations to Margaret Paxton on a Successful Oral Defence (EdD Dissertation)
Please join us in congratulating Margaret Paxton who successfully defended her EdD Dissertation on March 23 of 2026.
Title:
The Heart is the Loom: Principals and Vice Principals Leading for Social Justice in British Columbia
Abstract:
Principals and vice principals in British Columbia’s public schools work to ensure that schools are socially just places of learning. They must abide by provincial and school district laws and policies including those that protect the human rights of students and staff. Their work often entails complex situations when tensions related to race, ability, sexual orientation, gender identity, poverty, and colonization arise, for example. As well, they work to create the conditions in which all students and their families have equitable resources, opportunities, representation, recognition, and respect. This research sought to answer these questions: How do BC principals and vice principals lead for greater social justice in their schools? How do they define social justice, and what actions do they take to address conditions that marginalize and oppress different groups of students? What sustains them in their work? This research was conducted as a narrative inquiry with six principals and vice principals from around the province, recommended to the researcher by third parties who know the suggested participants to be effective leaders for social justice in their schools, who are committed to equitable recognition, representation, and respect, as well as the equitable distribution of resources and opportunities. Once the participants had agreed to be interviewed, they were asked about their understanding of social justice and invited to share stories about the actions that they have taken. In doing so, they described some of the challenges that they face and the strategies they employ to overcome those challenges. The participants share, despite their different contexts, leadership qualities of adamance, generosity, attentiveness, creativity, and reverence.
Supervisory Committee:
Dr. Sabre Cherkowski
Dr. Mark Edwards
Dr. Deirdre Kelly
Dr. Lisa Bernoties
We are thankful for the Examining Committee’s contribution and expertise.
Dr. Ann Lopez, University of Toronto, External Examiner
Dr. Fei Wang, EDST, University Examiner
Dr. Leyton Schnellert, EDCP, University Examiner
Dr. Nuno Porto, Chair of Examination Committee
Congratulations Margaret!
Guest Lecture: Exemptions from sex education: Parental right or regulatory prerogative?
Date: Thursday, April 2nd, 2026
Time: 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Location: PCN 2012
Co-Sponsored by: Department of Educational Studies, Teacher Education Office, The Robert Quartermain Centre for SOGI-Inclusive Excellence in Education
Description:
Several educational jurisdictions around the world have introduced opt-out provisions for sex education to accommodate some parents’ religious and moral convictions. The provision of such exemptions is often framed as a matter of respect for parental rights. This paper examines whether governments are legally obliged to provide exemptions or whether opt-out for sex education are better understood as discretionary accommodations. Drawing on international statutory law and a selective review of European and U.S. case law, the analysis shows that courts have generally rejected challenges to mandatory sex education based on respect for the parental right to educational oversight. Legal doctrine indicates that compulsory sex education does not infringe this right when instruction is objective, neutral, and educationally justified. The paper concludes by outlining implications for rights-respecting curriculum design and pedagogy.
Bio:
Bruce Maxwell is Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Montreal. A former humanities teacher at the college level and ethicist by training, he teaches courses on education law, professional ethics, and the history of educational ideas. He has produced a number of written works on these topics including, most recently, the coauthored book Professional Ethics and Law in Education (Canadian Scholars Press, 2022) and, as editor, the six-volume series Foundations of Education (Bloomsbury, 2023).
RSVP link: https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9AIHl62MdM2m7Ai
