The next discussion in the Research Speaker Series, hosted by York’s Faculty of Education in collaboration with the York Centre for Education & Community, will examine community education.
Researching and Building Community in Education: A Panel Discussion on Community Work, Research and Schooling will take place Thursday, Feb. 11 from 2 to 4pm in the Renaissance Room, 001 Vanier College, Keele campus.
The panel discussion will include Don Dippo, associate dean of preservice in York’s Faculty of Education, and York education Professors John Ippolito (MEd ’98, PhD ’03) and Sandra Schecter, as well as York PhD education student Lorraine Otoide.
Left: Don Dippo
Dippo will talk about the Jane-Finch community masters of education project Masters in Malls, developed in consultation with schools and community organizations in the Jane-Finch neighbourhood. It builds on and extends a successful pilot project offered at Firgove Public School. The Jane-Finch project is designed primarily to address the academic and professional development needs of teachers, community members and social service providers in the community, but it is open to any qualified applicant with an interest in the relationships among universities, schools and communities.
Right: John Ippolito
Ippolito will explore the idea of education in the new urban environment through one of his current research projects, "Building School-Based, Community-Referenced Decision-Making Capacity for Minority Families". In this research, Ippolito looks at the role cultural and linguistic minority families can play in the education of their children and in the governance of their schools. The project, a collaboration between the Faculty of Education, the Toronto District School Board and the York Region District School Board, facilitates an extended dialogue between schools and families. Dialogue takes shape in ongoing community forums and as an extended effort to train and facilitate school-based, parent-driven research groups.
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Left: Sandra Schecter
Schecter and Otoide will present their visual literacy study at an urban primary-junior school in Ontario. The researchers used photography to ascertain caregivers’ perceptions of their children’s everyday experiences. Photographs, logs and discussion sessions document the culture-filtered understandings and sensibilities of caregivers as they reflect on children’s educational experiences in their newly adopted country. These data sources also serve as conduits professional educators can access for additional knowledge regarding spheres of influence in children’s lives. The data also helps immigrant parents to access, and better understand, the diverse resources their children call upon as they navigate various aspects of their diaspora experiences.
To RSVP, contact Julia Lalande, a research officer in the Faculty of Education’s Research & Field Development, at jlalande@edu.yorku.ca or ext. 88633.
For more information, visit York’s Faculty of Education Web site.