OLPC Canada in Saskatchewan
Years ago I bought two XO laptops from the OLPC program. I got one, and the other went to a child in Mongolia or another country where technology is scarce.…
Education
Globe & Mail: Save Costs by Increasing Class Sizes
I offer this post not to distract people from the robocall crimes, but to remind everyone that there are other scandals going on as well. Readers in BC probably already…
Homophobic language from an Ontario Catholic School Board
A Toronto area Catholic school board has recently released a blueprint to combat a wide range of discrimination. Laudably it includes a robust defense of the need to combat homophobia.…
Education versus war – Friday Film Pick: War Made Easy
As students wage a massive strike in Quebec, over proposed tuition hikes that will nearly double rates in a few years, and with police responding like violent fascists—blinding the eye…
A No Era for British Columbia
The British Columbia Liberals promised a number of things when they aimed to form government in 2001. This is from page three of their 36-page campaign document A New Era…
New school rankings!
The Fraser Institute school ranking have been released and Pleasant Park PS has moved up the scale considerably! Congrats! I am not a huge fan of these rankings (nor of…
Dishonourable and unscrupulous – but consistent
Currently, the internet is alive with discussion of public education in British Columbia and I’ve gathered a few elements from different sites to create a composite of opinions that reflect…
BC Liberals Need To Stretch the Truth, They Already Know We Don’t Believe Them
There is a lot of rhetoric going around in the current BCTF/BC Liberal Government battle over teachers contracts. To set a context; BC teachers have been without a contract since…
BC Liberals Need To Stretch the Truth, They Already Know We Don’t Believe Them
There is a lot of rhetoric going around in the current BCTF/BC Liberal Government battle over teachers contracts. To set a context; BC teachers have been without a contract since…
What do YOU want from education?
A young woman, for whom I have unlimited regard, sent this message to me. She is a very experienced school teacher with a Masters degree in education. She knows more…
BC isn’t broke: putting teacher bargaining in perspective
Last Monday, BC teachers held a Day of Action in communities across the province to protest the BC government’s decision to legislate a contract and put an end to their…
The first Pink Shirt Day at Canterbury was a roaring succcess!
And I think this may become an annual thing. Thanks to all of the volunteers and the following organisations who sponsored this event: Trashy, Ottawa, Ontario
The Affordability of Post-Secondary Education
Carleton University’s Ted Jackson teaches a graduate seminar course on post-secondary education in Carleton’s School of Public Policy and Administration. Earlier this month, I was invited to give a guest…
New Generation of Thinkers Link Inequality, Innovation and Prosperity
<em>This guest blog was written by Mike Marin and Anouk Dey. It originally appeared in the Toronto Star on February 24. The authors are part of a team that produced…
Dear Leader Has Finished His Book (And We Should All Praise It!)
Because as a historian I don’t get many chances (har har) to read books by paranoid manipulative megalomaniacs, I’ve been on the edge of my seat for months now as…
Teach safe sex
I was sent this neat info-graphic that discusses the need for comprehensive sex ed in the USA. We can be a bit more smug here in Canada, but we must…
I’m A Climate Scientist
After the last week’s revelations and counter-revelations regarding the Heartland Institute’s campaign against climate science and climate scientists, here’s an appropriate reminder (language warning!) * Don’t forget to go to…
Letter from the trenches
I have received a letter from a student who obtained his doctoral degree with me a few years ago, and after one postdoctoral appointment decided that their heart was really…