Year in Review 2018
I cannot believe 2018 is coming to an end. I had some amazing moments in 2018 that happened to me professionally, but also some NOT so amazing moments. I know that it’s all about learning and the learning process but some events were so traumatizing that I am still working on it. That said, I walk away from 2018 with lots of gratitude. I took the the opportunity to review my 2018 photos on my phone and selected one photo per month as highlights of my 2018 year, which I briefly describe each event below:
January 2018: This was an excellent way to start the year. I presented my dissertation as a poster at the Hawaii International Conference on Education (HICE) in Honolulu. I also presented a paper on behalf of Dr. Daniel Laitsch and presented our paper on BC School Trustees and their use of research and information for decision making.
February 2018: I wasn’t working… and very thankful. Karma has a funny way of working and I had the time to take care of my mom full-time. My mom was not well for months (if not years). We reached a moment where we went to emergency and within 20 days she passed away from cancer in the liver. I was grateful to have this time with her.
March 2018: I was PUBLISHED in the Education Canada magazine. Woohoo!!! I attended a couple sessions in Vancouver looking at “The Signals of Change” in education. Participants were encouraged to submit a 300 word article and mine was 1 of 5 published in the magazine. https://www.edcan.ca/articles/signal-questioning-pedagogy/
April 2018: A TSN Turning Point in my School Trustee career. It was an “all or none” situation for me and I ran for President of the BCSTA… and lost. No loss though. I learned a lot during that AGM conference weekend and seized the opportunity to say what wanted to say about public education, educational leadership, and school boards in my speech.
May 2018: Decided to change my trajectory and opted to walk away from organizations that I was involved with to pursue another direction in education. I was unexpectedly nominated as the VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR at the Sunshine Coast Community Futures. Serving on the Board of Directors as director for 5-years was very rewarding.
June 2018: This was my last speech to give to the Chatelech Secondary School Graduates on behalf of the SD46 (Sunshine Coast) Board of Education. I taught math at this school for 16-years and served in the district as school trustee for 7-years. It was time. Saying Goodbye… and HELLO. https://christineyounghusband.com/saying-goodbye/
July 2018: Flew up to Prince George for an interview at the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC). It was an amazing experience. It felt right from the beginning. I had an other interview a few days after this one. It wasn’t good and didn’t feel good. I got the position at UNBC (and not the other). A one-year, full-time contract here I come.
August 2018: I taught an amazing course during the summer. What I hoped to achieve in this course was to design and facilitate student led learning that was competency based, which used current content knowledge. I was so proud of what this group accomplished. It could have been better, but it was my WORST COURSE REVEW EVER.
September 2018: I moved to Prince George and started teaching in the Teacher Education Program at UNBC. I taught a secondary Year 1 cohort, an elementary Year 2 cohort, and a research methods class. The learning curve is huge and rewarding. Love the people I’ve met and continue to meet within the School of Education and Prince George.
October 2018: Presented at the Northwest Math Conference in Whistler. I loved reconnecting with fellow math educators and meeting new ones. I presented on my teaching and learning experience from a couple summers ago on Quantitative Approaches to Environmental Education. I had about 200 attendees and positive reviews. Reassuring.
November 2018: The fall term ends at UNBC School of Education with the inaugural EDUCATION FAIR 2018. Students from all 4 cohorts volunteered and demonstrated their term’s learning to fellow classmates, university instructors, local educators, and the public. I was proud that half a dozen of my students presented their IGNITE presentations.
December 2018: I feel very lucky to be mentored by and to work with Deb Kohen at UNBC. She invited me to partake in a collaborative event with Vancouver Island University’s (VIU) Dr. Paige Fisher and the Ministry of Education. Together with other instructors and teacher candidates from each university, we went to the Vancouver Public Library to collectively learn more about Place Based Education in Teacher Education.
“I eat a little bit of Everything and not a lot of Anything.”
Giada De Laurentis (Giada Vegas 2018)
It’s been an amazing year. I am so happy to have the people in my life who help me rise.