Discussion Session of SD46 Strategic Plan Public Forum
Today is a day of celebration. This morning, our Board Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary-Treasurer, and Superintendent were in Victoria with Education Minister George Abbott to sign for the Gibsons Elementary expansion project. This has been under works with two previous Boards. Thank you to all those who made this happen for our kids and community. We were granted 14.3 million dollars for the project. A step in the right direction with construction to start in a year or so. Looking forward.
Tonight, we had our public forum at Chatelech regarding the 2012-2015 Strategic Plan. This was an opportunity for community members, parents, and SD46 staff to give their 2-cents on where they would like to see our District in the next few years. The plan provides direction and a framework for the school district. I was pleased to see tonight’s attendance. It is good to know so many people in our community want to contribute to public education and the strategic plan. Thank you everyone who participated.
People ask me if I miss teaching or if I like being a school trustee. First, I am still teaching. Second, I am learning. Third, I work in the school district I love. Fourth, I continue to work with great people. All is good.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 25th, 2012 | 4 Comments »
We can all get “busy” in our lives. I know that I do. My husband had recently told me that he has given up on keeping track of my day-to-day schedule. This is a very sad indicator. A small part of me believes that things will get done. Just one more “thing” to do, then I will… what? “Things” never seem to get done. There will always be another “thing” to do. It’s like weeding a garden.
MAKE THE INVESTMENT. There is no question in my mind I will continue doing my business. Some days I am out of town at a conference, other days I am at a meeting. When I am home, I am cleaning the house, doing chores, or making dinner. Other times, I want to completely zone out with Facebook, Bejeweled, or Oprah. Everything is good in moderation. The point is… moderation. I took for granted what is truly important to me… making and maintaining relationships.
When you have a supportive family, fantastic friends, and awesome colleagues to work with and be with, it’s easy to believe that they will always be there for you. Here’s my AHA… the relationship is reciprocated. I’m one-half of that relationship. It’s a partnership. So, I have reconnected with friends, had meaningful conversations, spent time with family, and took the time to listen. It’s not to say that I didn’t do this before, but now I am deliberate with my time. How I use my time matters.
Time can be easily wasted and under-utilized. Certainly, there must be a balance between productivity and leisure, but I am feeling rejuvenated by spending my time focused on relationships to get “things” done rather than focusing on the “thing” itself. I feel more connected to my family, friends, colleagues, clients, community members, and my dissertation (believe it or not). Busy work is a waste of time. Make the intention… and DO IT. The outcome is not the reward, it’s the journey.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 24th, 2012 | 1 Comment »
You put your thoughts and wishes out there into the universe and they will come back to you in spades. The tricky part is that you have no idea how it will come back to you. That’s the scary part. So, make sure whatever you put out there has good intentions behind it. Otherwise… look out!
I’ve been meaning to write this blog entry for quite some time. As you may know (or not), I have been working on my doctoral thesis proposal for quite some time. It’s been frustrating and easy to avoid. I have gone through great lengths to “clear the way” so that I could get my writing done in an expedient way. Here’s some news… you can’t get the job done unless you are completely focused on the task. My deepest apologies to all those out there who are “waiting” for me to finish. It’s in progress.
What I am realizing is… everything was meant to happen. It’s strange to believe that when I’m in the midst of writing limbo and people in my life are “waiting.” No pressure. In the big picture, I needed to have the 16 years of teaching experience to write about professional learning and mathematics education; I needed to deal with adversity in the workplace to disembed and engage in other educational leadership opportunities; and I needed to embark on self-employment to take risks and BLOG to restore my confidence in my writing and passion for my teaching practice.
In the small picture, I was reworking my research question. I was unfocused with my writing with full intentions of “saving the world” and “making a difference.” I needed to divorce myself from many of the ideas I wanted to write about to harness my deepest desires and rewrite a research question that is doable and contributes to academia. In the midst of re-evaluation, I bumped into a former colleague of mine on the ferry. It was good to see him. He’s a great teacher, mentor, and PhD recipient. I mentioned a research question I was considering and he responded with “sounds specific, what’s the so what?” This was so great! Formative feedback from someone I did not expect.
What I am saying is, big picture or small picture, it was all meant to happen. No one could have road-mapped this journey, not even me. My dad told me that as a child, I had always wanted a PhD. I do remember writing my name out with “letters” after my name. I had no idea that life would work out the way it did. Put it out there to the universe and it resolves itself in ways you cannot expect. A good friend reminded me of Steve Jobs’s 2005 address to Stanford University… You can’t connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect the dots looking back. The dots are connecting.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 18th, 2012 | Comments Off on Meant to Happen
Some highlights from the 2012 Sun Run IN Training… it took me just over 80 minutes to complete the 10K race. It was a great day for running. No rain. No wind. And, almost 50,000 participants!
I much enjoyed taking photos en route and Facebooking my progress. Thank you Sun Run IN Training group (Gibsons). It is a great opportunity to train, learn, and meet new people. Here are a few pics (or highlights) of my run. Next time, I will post running updates on Twitter @ChristineYH.
First Nations Drumming and Singing… a Sun Run first
Cambie Street Bridge and One More Kilometre
A few of us from the Gibsons Sun Run IN Training Group
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 17th, 2012 | 1 Comment »
One of my daughter’s favorite restaurants is SUBWAY. She would rather construct her own ham sandwich at Subway than order one of six Happy Meals with toy from McDonald’s. Who am I to argue? Sandwiches it is!
After her swimming lessons on Saturday, we went to Subway. All of a sudden my parental role changed from chauffeur to hero. It’s the small things we do as parents to make things a little brighter in our child’s life. It was lunchtime and she was famished.
At Subway, I love how my daughter knows the routine of ordering a sandwich. First, we walk into the restaurant. She stands in front of the line and begins ordering the kind of bread she would like, 6″ or 12″. Then, she asks for the kind of sandwich she desires: HAM with cheese. She likes the white cheese instead of cheddar and she asks them not to toast her sandwich. She slides over and asks for lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives with salt and pepper. No sauce please. With a big grin on her face, they wrap her sandwich in paper. To close the deal, she asks for “the meal.” Her biggest decision is whether or not to go for a bag of chips or 2 cookies. A tough choice indeed. That day, she chose baked potato chips. Once that decision was made, she heads to the soda fountain to make herself a ‘swamp water’ (that is, a mix of soda pops). I don’t have to nag her about eating vegetables or policing the choices she makes. She makes good choices and in the end, she is happy.
How does this relate to learning? As an educator, I think the Subway sandwich is an excellent metaphor of “personalized learning.” Personalized learning is about making choices that are personally relevant. At Subway, every consumer will walk out with a sandwich (or soup, or both). In the educational system, learners will walk away with something. This ‘something’ looks different from student to student, much like the Subway sandwich, depending on what was chosen en route of the educational journey. Although the number of choices may be limited, the combinations are infinite. Furthermore, how the sandwich is filled will vary too. My daughter could have just chose the bread, ham, and cheese. That’s it. Or, she could have added mustard or jalapenos to the sandwich she had originally composed. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that she is enjoying the sandwich. Personalized learning is about choices. When choices are limited, personal relevance is minimized.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 17th, 2012 | Comments Off on Subway Sandwich Learning
A day of gratitude… First of all, it’s a beautiful sunny day. I cannot complain about that. Blue skies, the sun is shining, and the birds are singing. It’s a beautiful spring day. Second, it’s the day after my CUTL completion. CUTL is the Certificate of University Teaching and Learning program offered at the Teaching & Learning Centre at SFU. It doesn’t matter how long you have been teaching (for me, 16 years), you an always learn more about the teaching practice. It feels great to be accepted into and complete the program. CUTL shifted my views of teaching and learning in higher education, adult education, and K-12 education. Third, I spent the morning with the Superintendent of Schools touring schools on the south end of the Sunshine Coast. It was a unique opportunity as a former employee and new school trustee to see school principals, teachers, support staff, and students in action. I loved visiting the schools and feeling the energy each school provides. Furthermore, I am grateful to see the entire school district as a collection of distinct school cultures and communities. I feel very lucky to be a part of School District No.46 (Sunshine Coast) as school trustee. The day concludes with an engaging committee meeting at the Board office with the Superintendent and Trustee Mewhort. There nothing I like more than to talk about education (it’s true… ask my husband). The best part of my day is hanging out at the pool to watch my daughter swim while I remote blog to share my gratitude with you. Thank you for reading, Bloggies. Happy Friday the 13th.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 14th, 2012 | Comments Off on Friday the 13th
Ever since she was born, my daughter oozed FREEDOM CHILD. At the hospital, moments after her birth, the nurse wrapped her up tightly in a blanket to stay warm and secure. My daughter managed to wriggle her way out of the swaddle. She never liked being wrapped (or smothered) in a blanket. She didn’t like being “trapped” in her crib. And, she doesn’t like to snuggle. The best time to hug her is when she is almost sleeping, otherwise she wants her FREEDOM. I remember sending her to my friend’s place for child care when I returned to work. My daughter was just over one, her stomach was her main mode of transportation, and she muttered a few words like “muck” and “mum.” After one day of child care, my friend reports back to me with my child’s mantra: “You’re not the boss of me.”
It is not to say that my daughter does not like rules. She loves rules and regulations. In fact, I would often take her aside to say, “Stop policing your friends. You’re not the boss of them.” Ironic, I know. She has a huge desire for justice and values her freedom to choose and make decisions for herself. She prides herself on being INDEPENDENT. Just the other morning, my daughter greeted me when I woke. “Good morning Mom! Can I make you breakfast? Would you like an omelette or a pancake? Doesn’t matter. I’ll make both.” She even made me a cup of coffee to go with. Amazing or what? I often think that she is my mom instead of it being the other way around. I feel very lucky.
Why do I even bring this up? During spring break, my daughter opted to participate in ‘hockey for girls’ with HOCKEY FOR HEROES. I was somewhat skeptical if she would like hockey because of the equipment but inspired that she was motivated to try. My husband plays hockey, refs hockey, watches hockey, hockey pools, and formally coached hockey… bottom line, he’s a hockey guy. I was encouraged that my daughter wanted to play, but I was worried about the EQUIPMENT. So much gear for my daughter to put on (and off) just to play hockey. All I can say is, my intuition was right. She liked playing but she was a grump before and after hockey. I wonder why? Freedom child.
On the other hand, my daughter loves to swim. She has been swimming since she was a little baby. She loves the water. Right now, she swims four times a week. There is minimal equipment (i.e. suit and goggles) and she is in and out of the pool with no problems. Often, she would beg after each lesson to stay longer in the water. If she could, she would swim every day of the week. Seems excessive, but when you love something… why not? She loves the freedom and the rules. It seems like a good fit. When her swim club coach asked if she would swim competitively, her face lit up.
What’s my point? When my daughter says to me… “I don’t like colouring at school. I mean, I like colouring, but you can’t colour the ocean yellow”… makes me wonder, what is her need? She will question and test the boundaries until she understands or negotiates a deal. She will follow the rules, but demands to know why and expects others to follow. This behaviour could be perceived as defiant. Sometimes she gets “in trouble” for questioning or doing otherwise. Or, this behaviour could be perceived as critical thinking or creativity. It should be celebrated and nourished. My advice: Don’t be constrained by “the rules” or expectations. Sometimes, rules are meant to be broken.
Life is about doing the right things, not about doing things right.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 12th, 2012 | Comments Off on Freedom Child
What do I really care about? This is the BIG QUESTION. I’m not being existential, but I’m contemplating what’s the SO WHAT to my dissertation. I lost focus and may have stepped away from my project for a bit too long. Now, I am given the opportunity to redefine what I want to research. This is scary. It’s almost feels like where I was two years ago, faced with the same question. I think that I have found myself in the dissertation trap… I want to ‘save the world’ with one research project. A bit too ambitious and unrealistic. This is a bit of a reality check. At this point in time, I am open to reconsidering my proposal but I am not sure what I truly care about. I care about K-12 mathematics education… I care about quality teaching… I care about student success. So… what’s the SO WHAT?
I hate that mathematics is always the subject that people feel OK about to ‘dis’ in conversation. It seems culturally OK to say, “I hate math.” It’s a mantra that resonates with many and I hate that. It almost seems everywhere I am… watching television, on a school trustee tour, or shopping in a women’s clothing store… when the topic of mathematics comes up, people will often say (1) I was never good at mathematics. Or, (2) Wouldn’t you rather do this than go to math class? Ugh. I don’t feel that way. In fact, I think math is fun. I wonder why kids or people in general hate mathematics so much. When I started my doctorate program I was always curious of people’s math stories and what traumatized them in such a way that they carry such strong negative beliefs about mathematics.
It is clear to me that I will be writing about mathematics education. Kids are important to me and their sense of self-efficacy to achieve in mathematics. I am also interested in professional development and quality of teaching. I hope to form my research question soon so that my literature review and methodology can be determined. Thank you for reading my blog. It’s been a good way to sort out my ideas before I commit to a ‘new’ dissertation question that is meaningful, doable, and succinct.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 09th, 2012 | Comments Off on So What?
Do not underestimate the research question. I did. Big mistake. Looking on the bright side, the best part about making mistakes is learning from them. This is the basic premise of Assessment for Learning (AFL). Engage, get feedback, and revise. Guess where I am? I am in the AFL cycle. The biggest hurdle for me is getting feedback. Well, I got it. Strangely, it was not as bad as I thought it would be. Yes, I am in the midst of revision and thinking about what’s important to me, but it was reassuring to hear that how I feel resonates with the feedback I received. This is a good connection. On the one hand, it was deja vu. On the other hand, I heard what was said. This is promising.
As much as I am passionate about teaching mathematics, students learning mathematics, and students LOVING mathematics, I cannot pinpoint what is actually “important” to me in terms of research. What question do I want to know the answer to? That is the question. At first I was looking at out-of-field teaching, secondary mathematics education, quality of teaching, building expertise, content and pedagogical content knowledge, professional learning, and student achievement. Whew. As you can see, it is a mouthful. Although the “topic” is good, what is my entry point?
The underpinning to AFL is exercising the virtues of courage, honesty, and justice (MacIntyre, 1984). Courage means to take risks, honesty is about truthfulness and trust, and justice entails formative feedback from those who are experts in the field. To exercise all three virtues is to strive for excellence and achieve the goods internal to my research and pursuing my degree in Educational Leadership. I need a “good” research question to venture forwards. It is not to say that what I have done so far has been worthless, it is to say that I need to find my focus to make it worthwhile.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 08th, 2012 | Comments Off on The Research Question
Phew. I’m a bit overwhelmed, but Change is Coming. I just finished the last session of the CUTL (Certificate of University Teaching and Learning) program at SFU a few days ago. I received feedback earlier in the week that my literature review met the learning outcomes and I just submitted my “Nugget Notes,” that is, little aha’s of each CUTL session. Now, I am done. Success. Next week is our celebration luncheon and I get my certificate of completion. CUTL closure. Feels good.
After CUTL, I met my supervisor face-to-face at the SFU-Surrey campus. I need to revive my dissertation and I am looking at my committee for some guidance. I feel fortunate that my supervisor has opened his door to rework my research question. It is so true. The research stems from a ‘good’ question. “I’m all over the place.” I feel that in my writing and my supervisor confirmed this feeling. It was reassuring and liberating to get that feedback. A new step forward. Now, I am thinking about… “What’s important to me? What question do I want answered? What do I care about?” Not easy to for me to answer… everything is important. Suggestion: Use a journal to jot your ideas down. Done.
Remember: Good things come in three’s. I had a great CUTL session. I would like to mention that the two guest speakers of CUTL was a sessional I had during my MEd program as SFU and the other is a professor at SFU but also works on the BCAMT executive with me. They were both inspirational. It was good seeing them both again. The second awesome thing that happened was chatting with my supervisor and getting the help I need. Third was having a great day commuting and returning back to the Sunshine Coast to have dinner with both my husband and daughter in Gibsons. Delicious.
Did I fail to mention that there was a full-moon that night? Change is coming. I had a morning meeting with one of my former colleagues in my past life. We had a great chat over coffee. We share similar journeys and share a passion for education. The conversation was equally fantastic and I am grateful that my colleague was giving me a recommendation and recognizes my work in education. I believe he was giving me the “tap” on the shoulder. I feel honoured and humbled. Who knows what’s out there and what’s to come. All I can do is take a chance, take one step forward, and find out.
Written by Christine Ho Younghusband, April 08th, 2012 | Comments Off on Change is Coming
