April 21, 2023

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Staffing Announcement

We would like to welcome Conrad Kesek to UTS who started today and will be covering Kris Ewing’s classes until the end of this academic year in June. Conrad comes to UTS with a degree in Kinesiology and has recently completed his Master of Teaching focusing on Intermediate/Senior Health and Physical Education and Geography.

We wish Kris a speedy recovery, and look forward to seeing her around the school more often, as she transitions back.

Teaching Assignment Preferences

If you are a member of the OSSTF BU, please complete this form to provide your DC with guidance for your teaching assignment preferences for next year.

We hope to release the timetable and assign teacher schedules in May.

Micro:bit Maker-in-Residence Series @ Lang Innovation Lab

Please join the Innovation Team after school on April 24, for the start of the second Maker-in-Residence series in the Lang Innovation Lab. Tess Butler-Ulrich is working towards her Masters in Education at OTU, with a focus on making and STEAM education. The subject of this series will be microprocessors such as micro:bits; this first workshop will introduce the micro:bit and go over how to connect it to a device, inputs, outputs, and setting up micro:bit and explore coding through a series of challenges and debugging activities. (E.g., create a simple shape using the LEDs on the micro:bit, write a short message using the LEDs)

Please sign up here if you are interested in joining us.

UTS Charity Week

Monday: Used clothing and book collection (will run all week)

Tuesday Lunch: Music performances and busking

Wednesday Lunch: Samosa sale (Staff, please submit your pre-orders here by Monday April 24!)

Thursday Lunch: Thrift shop and used book sale

Friday Lunch: Donut sale

Please drop by the Fleck Atrium at lunch to make a purchase or donation in support of Interval House! The Online Auction will continue to run throughout the week. Bidding closes Friday April 28 at 9pm!

Toronto Public Health Vaccine Clinic

Toronto Public Health will be returning to UTS on May 17 to complete the second doses of school vaccinations for the Foundation students.

Techers, please do not schedule any assessments for Foundation students on May 17.

F1 & F2 Teachers: Please Minimize Homework for May 3-7

All F1 and F2 students will be participating in virtual field trips and synchronous online learning activities for YLLT on PTI days.

In the interest of student wellness and to free up their time and energy so that they can be fully present at these sessions, kindly minimize homework for May 3-7 PTI weekend.

F1 YLLT

May 3 (Day 1), 12:30-1:00 p.m. online learning: All F1 students will be required to join a brief online learning session, in preparation for the next day’s virtual field trip.

If you teach F1s in period 4 (block D), please remind them to login to the F1 YLLT Zoom link which will be posted in the F1 YLLT Google Classroom.

May 4, 9:00-11:30 a.m. online learning: All F1 students will be participating in a 90-minute virtual field trip to the Former Mohawk Institute Residential School. UTS Social Workers will be on hand to provide student support as needed. After the virtual field trip and a break, the students will engage online, to delve into ongoing Truth and Reconciliation learning.

Might this experience provide a window of opportunity to connect with what you’re doing in your F1 course, by any chance? Maybe a classroom conversation? Feel free to reach out to Cresencia for support or idea-jamming on this.

OISE Special Event: Generative AI and the Future of Education

April 24, 3-5 p.m. Nexus Lounge, 12th floor of OISE.

A series of presentations and a panel discussion.

Register here (free).

“As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to advance, educators are rapidly being presented with opportunities and challenges for which they are largely unprepared. The release of ChatGPT, a large language model trained by OpenAI, caught many educators off-guard, and more powerful iterations of generative AI language technologies are expected to follow soon. With the ability to understand natural language and respond in real-time, generative AI has the potential to revolutionize the way we approach assessments and learning…

Participants will gain a deeper understanding of the potential of generative AI in education and how these changes push us to re-examine the meaning and value of learning. Participants will also have the opportunity to engage in thoughtful discussions and exchange ideas with other professionals in the field.”

Curipod

Curipod is a generative AI tool to support teacher creation of interactive slide decks for teaching.

Can sign up for a free account with your UTS Google account
Curipod is an interactive slide tool that builds slides for teachers through artificial intelligence (AI). In seconds, Curipod can create a 10-slide presentation, complete with bullet points, images, interactive questions and even rest breaks. After editing, it's done in minutes.
This could save a bit of time/energy, and provide a start to any lesson slides that any teacher could further modify to fit with their instructional goals.
Blog post about Curipod

The Learning Innovation team has been curating a set of AI resources and apps.

Digital Literacy Webinar Wednesdays

Delve into digital literacy with webinars that could inspire ideas for your classroom.

Explore Webinar Wednesday topics (applicable across all disclipines) from Let’s Talk Science.

Sustainability Learning: Free Cross-Curricular Teaching Resources and Student Events

During Travel4Climate, students drive towards solutions that reduce emissions while improving their local conditions. This curriculum-aligned free experience allows participants to reimagine their communities while developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

How climate change is affecting what’s on your plate? A symposium connecting food and climate.

The C lothing4Climate project encourages youth in Grades 7 to 12 to learn about the science behind climate change and the impact our clothing system has on the environment. Focusing on clothing gives participants an engaging entry point to this global problem. Then, by taking action to make systemic change through meaningful and sustainable clothing choices, the project empowers youth to make a difference while focusing on solutions relevant to their own lives.

IALS Conference

UTS has the honour of hosting 2 visits from IALS conference delegates on April 26 & 27. IALS = International Association of Laboratory Schools (UTS is a member of IALS). Conference delegates are from international lab schools (Canada, USA, Puerto Rico, UK, Finland), and are teachers, instructional leaders, university professors/researchers, school leaders/administrators. The visitors are interested in seeing how UTS approaches the use of spaces, curricular/co-curricular program, student supports, etc. to design a culture of learning at UTS.

April 26 (9:30-11:30 a.m.): 10 visitors. Jon Bitidis (F1 Math), Mike Farley (F1 Geography), Isabella Liu (S5 AP Chemistry), Paul Harkison + Nat Cannistraro (M4 World History engaging in Making in the Innovation Lab) will host classroom observations. Kim Tavares, Garry Kollins, Garth Chalmers, Jenny Pitt-Lainsbury, and Cresencia Fong will host admin chats.
April 27 (1:30-3:30 a.m.): 27 visitors. Charline Wan, Garth Chalmers, Kim Tavares, Kara Lysne-Paris, Cresencia Fong + Kim MacKinnon will lead 5 tours through the school (groups of 5-6 visitors). Period 4 (block H) classes along the tour route include: S5 Physics (Hall), S6 Biology (Straszynski), M4 Chemistry (Cescon), M3 Science (Andrew), M3 Art (Pullen), F1 Drama (Keene), Lang Innovation Lab (Cannistraro), Library (Choi), S6 Music (Shugarman), F2 Music (McLeod).
If you would rather the tour groups not enter your classroom please let Cresencia and Kim M know as soon as possible.

Thanks to all for your support and collaborative effort to host these esteemed visitors!

AERA 2023

On April 13-15, Jaya Choudhry (S6), Simon Goleszny (S6), Akshita Nath (S5), Kiran Oberai (S6), and Curtis Yeung (S6) - all members of Action Against Gender-Based Violence (AAG) student committee; travelled to Chicago and presented at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) conference.

There were 17,000 conference delegates (university professors/researchers, educators, school and system leaders) from all over the world. This was the first year of AERA’s new Youth Teams in Education Research (YTER) program. Of the 100 youth teams who submitted conference proposals, only 13 teams got invited. Of these, most were from the US, 1 team from Spain, 2 teams from Canada (UTS + a team from Alberta). The AAG students presented work from our ongoing co-design research collaboration with Dr. Faye Mishna and her team at the UofT Faculty of Social Work: “Online Sexual and Gender-Based Harassment and Abuse” - here is the research poster.

Big thanks to Dr. Faye Mishna, Alessia Petrella and their research team; we look forward to continued collaboration on this ongoing co-design research adventure.