Spotlight on Dr. Joseph Levitan

Spotlight on Dr. Joseph Levitan

Welcome to our Spotlight Series! In the following episodes, we're featuring a short segment on each of our team members so you can get to know us a little better. Everyone was asked the same five questions: 1. [00:43] Why are you interested in school change? 2. [02:02] What brought you to this project? 3. [03:04] What do you bring to this project? 4. [03:33] What excites you most about NEXTschool? 5. [04:44] Beyond NEXTschool, what other hats do you wear? In this episode you'll hear from Dr. Joseph Levitan. Joe is an Associate Professor in the Department of Integrated Studies in Education at McGill University. His research interests include leadership, teaching, and policy for social justice in education, collaborative education development with marginalized and Indigenous communities, curriculum and pedagogy, responsive educational policy development and leadership, culturally grounded education, and intersectional analysis of culture, identity, and learning. In the NEXTSchool project, Joe focuses on how relational dynamics and communication patterns influence change processes. For more info about our team and this podcast, jump to [06:22]. A transcript of each podcast, citations, and additional information accompany each podcast and are also available on our website at nextschoolquebec.com [http://www.nextschoolquebec.com/]. Music is by Neal Read, he's at nealread.ca. [https://nealread.ca/]

Spotlight on Noel Burke

Welcome to our Spotlight Series! In the following episodes, we're featuring a short segment on each of our team members so you can get to know us a little better. Everyone was asked the same five questions: 1. [00:38] Why are you interested in school change? 2. [01:58] What brought you to this project? 3. [03:27] What do you bring to this project? 4. [06:57] What excites you most about NEXTschool? 5. [10:56] Beyond NEXTschool, what other hats do you wear? In this episode you'll hear from Noel Burke. With over 50 years in education, Noel has become a recognized champion of Lifelong Learning, a successful agent of change, and a sought-after consultant and speaker on educational and institutional innovation. He is recently retired and developing the NEXTschool project which aims to transform the high school learning experience. He is currently a sessional lecturer for the Graduate Certificate in Educational Leadership at McGill University. As the founder and principal partner of nEDworks Consulting, Noel continues to provide consultation services to educational stakeholders, Leadership Coaching to educational administrators as well as Career Coaching to transitioning youth and adults. For more info about our team and this podcast, jump to [11:36]. A transcript of each podcast, citations, and additional information accompany each podcast and are also available on our website at nextschoolquebec.com [http://www.nextschoolquebec.com/]. Music is by Neal Read, he's at nealread.ca. [https://nealread.ca/]

Spotlight on Dr. Lisa Starr

Welcome to our Spotlight Series! In the following episodes, we're featuring a short segment on each of our team members so you can get to know us a little better. Everyone was asked the same five questions: 1. [00:39] Why are you interested in school change? 2. [04:01] What brought you to this project? 3. [05:25] What do you bring to this project? 4. [07:43] What excites you most about NEXTschool? 5. [09:00] Beyond NEXTschool, what other hats do you wear? In this episode you'll hear from Dr. Lisa Starr. Lisa is currently the dean of the Faculty of Education at the University of Lethbridge and the Principal Investigator on McGill's NEXTschool Research Team. Lisa's passion for the study of education focuses on relational leadership/pedagogy and innovative approaches to K-Graduation education in Canada. She is dedicated to improving education by facilitating and/or generating deep understanding around the complex issues present in today’s schools. She studies the complex barriers that impede educational change and how those barriers impact student engagement and educational change. For more info about our team and this podcast, jump to [13:16]. A transcript of each podcast, citations, and additional information accompany each podcast and are also available on our website at nextschoolquebec.com [http://www.nextschoolquebec.com/]. Music is by Neal Read, he's at nealread.ca. [https://nealread.ca/]

Student voice and school change: Why not ask the kids what they think?

The NEXTschool initiative is concerned with involving kids in the process of school change. In order to do so well, there are many things to take into account like relational power dynamics and social context. Vanessa, Aron, Lynn, and Joe talk about student voice, how we can think about involving students in change, and ethical considerations of student voice research. This episode adds nuance to our conversations about student success and engagement. The five questions guiding this topic are:  1. [01:00] What is student voice? 2. [07:28] What are some of the ways researchers and practitioners conceptualize or think about student voice work? 3. [15:17] What does student voice look like? And also, what are some ways students can be involved in decision making processes, specifically in the context of school change? 4. [21:18] Within the particular context of school change, why should we be involving students in change? And why might this be important? 5. [24:02] What are some of the ethical considerations when engaging in student voice work? For more info about our team and this podcast, jump to [33:13]. A transcript of each podcast, citations, and additional information accompany each podcast and are also available on our website at nextschoolquebec.com [http://www.nextschoolquebec.com/]. Music is by Neal Read, he's at nealread.ca. [https://nealread.ca/]

Student Success - more than just a grade.

Most of us have experienced getting report cards assessing our success in school. Vanessa, Ellen, Lisa, and Aron talk about how we can understand and evaluate student success in other ways. Building off of the previous conversation on student engagement, they consider how we can do best by the young people that we've been tasked with helping educate. The five questions guiding this topic are:  1. [01:40] What is student success? 2. [10:54] Why is student success important? 3. [17:07] What are we measuring success for? 4. [24:26] What are some ways that students can demonstrate or achieve success? 5. [29:12] How might a school go about defining student success for their context? What kinds of things could be considered? For more info about our team and this podcast, jump to [34:14]. A transcript of each podcast, citations, and additional information accompany each podcast and are also available on our website at nextschoolquebec.com [http://www.nextschoolquebec.com/]. Music is by Neal Read, he's at nealread.ca. [https://nealread.ca/]