Students of the field of education present their projects at the republican conference

The University of Winnipeg's Faculty of Education sent eight undergraduate students to the 2024 Western Canada Student Teacher Conference (WestCAST) at the University of Calgary earlier this month. They were accompanied by Wayne Davis, director of student learning, Brenton Button, assistant professor, and Will Burton, instructor.

WestCAST provides an exciting opportunity for teachers across Western Canada to reflect on their research-based teaching practices to a wider audience while learning from their peers.

Winnipeg students Sajjani Joykutty, Teresa Ledbetter, Gabriel McLellan, Carson Ouellette, Joel-Jay Serrano, Alexandra Skwarchuk, Kyla Tomlinson and Doreen Valkyrie were selected to present their independent research projects along with dozens of other student faculty from across Western Canada. The topics covered a range of relevant issues for today's teaching.

We believe that these pre-service teachers will enter the state system and have a significant impact on the lives of young people in their classes.

Will Burton

Students chose topics that were relevant to them to help enhance their learning experience. The presentations highlighted the breadth of issues facing K-12 education today, including: the need to increase the number of certified educators entering rural education; the right of young people from different cultural backgrounds to receive support in the public school system; and, how settler educators can work in ways consistent with the Truth and Reconciliation 94 Calls to Action.

Research is clear that K-12 classroom teachers are the most important factor in increasing student achievement and ensuring that every child has a caring adult in their life.

“Teachers make thousands of decisions every day about what and how they teach and engage with our young people,” Burton said. “Educating pre-service teachers firstly to make decisions based on research (“What needs to be worked on?”), and secondly, to reflect on their own experience (“What went well and why? What did not go well and why?”) Experience is very important for future teaching” .

The Faculty of Education has been working with these students for the past eight months Request advanced training programs, A fifth course designed to improve their presentation skills, as well as developing and researching a response partially informed by their classroom experience with other professional development sessions.

Burton is a WestCAST veteran who now shares his experience with his students. Students like Burton expressed the value of attending the conference as a learning experience that provides professional development and opportunities to connect with ideas that can be used in future classrooms.

“WestCAST was a great opportunity for student teachers to improve their practice by learning from the research and experience of other student teachers,” concluded Skwarchuk.

Ouellette added, “On a personal note, presenting at WestCAST is valuable public speaking experience, a critical skill for educators. Professionally, my research has increased my interest in education, especially in rural areas.'

While Joykutty was reminded that being a teacher is first and foremost a student, they all expressed a passion and dedication to teaching that is reflected in WestCAST.

“I feel very fortunate to get to know my students and work with them on the journey of recognizing their talents, developing their skills, and becoming more compassionate citizens,” Svarkchuk said.

These students and their participation in WestCAST represent the future of teaching.

“We believe these pre-service teachers will enter the public system and make a significant impact on the lives of the young people in their classrooms,” Burton shared.