Standard 4

Standard 4: Educators value the involvement and support of parents, guardians, families and communities in schools.

Educators should consider the effect of guardian, family, and community involvement on student learning, and always encourage their involvement for student development.

During my first practicum, I was given the opportunity to attend Parent-Teacher Night with my Coaching Teacher at CHSS. This was definitely a professional development opportunity, as well as a great opportunity to connect the student’s parents. Many students attended and were involved in the meeting, which provided a lot of self-reflection on the students part. The image is from the sign that hung above my placement, where I discussed with student guardians about how their student was doing in the course, and a few specific things I noticed about their work ethic etc. I was also able to lead Parent-Teacher conferences at Fort St. James Secondary School, where I met with students and we discussed student progress and work habits.

A large part of the community in the education field is the teaching community, which is why we brought in many community members, Elders, and speakers to talk to students about Scientific Journaling, interconnectedness, species diversity, and conduct labs with the students.

A large part of my learning journey has involved the feedback and collaboration with TRIAD members from the Education School. These triad meetings were opportunities to voice any potential concerns and recognize how we can become better teachers for our students. Often our TRIAD collaborated and provided advice to each other.

During my substituting experiences, I’ve had an Elder in the classroom to share about the traditional indigenous medicinal uses of botany. This was a great learning experience, not only for my students but for myself. I learned about the use of counter irritants, and other creative methods that were utilized for healing.