Category Archives: Events

The Past – A Movie That Leaves You Wondering — What would I do?

Events, Reflections, ,

Movie Poster The Past

We (Clare and Clive) went to see the movie, The Past which has been called a “domestic drama with all the tension of a thriller.” It is the latest movie by Asghar Farhadi the Iranian director.The movie is fantastic because it is well directed, you can relate to the characters, it captures the complexity of life, shows how decisions we make are often based on incomplete information, and the story is captivating. The quality of the acting is good you cannot believe the actors are actually acting. Below is a summary of the story:
·      Coming back France to complete the divorce procedure, Ahmad an Iranian man, arrives in Paris after four years to meet his ex-wife and her daughters from her previous marriage. He notices his ex is in a relationship with an Arab named Samir who also has a son and a wife in a coma. The relationship of the older daughter and her mother is deteriorating because the daughter thinks her mother is the cause of Samir’s wife comatose state. The affairs get more complicated when the older daughter discloses something heinous she has done. From IMDB http://www.imdb.com/media/rm456776960/tt2404461?ref_=tt_ov_i#
·      For a full review of the movie go to the Globe and Mail link:http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/film/film-reviews/the-past-domestic-drama-with-all-the-tension-of-a-thriller/article16435003/

·      Here is the linkfor a conversation with Asghar Farhadi who said, “All the films I’ve made … I have faith in.”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/film/a-conversation-with-asghar-farhadi-all-the-films-ive-made-i-have-faith-in/article16467505/
By the way, Farhadi directed The Separation which won an academy award for best foreign film a few years ago.
If you are looking for a non-Hollywood movie which captures day-to-day life and leaves you wondering what you would do when faced with certain dilemmas, I would highly recommend The Past.

Olympics: Focus on the Athletes or Putin

Events, Reflections, Social Justice, ,

I (Clare) always love watching the Olympics but this year is different. Olympic RingsActually, I was not even sure what day they began. The travesty of the Putin Games has really been off-putting: the $50 billion cost, the impact on the environment, the anti-homophobia rants and  …. The cost of the games is staggering when you think of the millions of Russians living below the poverty line. Is this a good way to spend so much money? I saw a little feature on the Olympic Village that left me shaking my head. The beds for the athletes are only cots. The athletes have devoted years to preparing for the games and have sacrificed so much but they will not even have a proper bed. Sorry to sound so simplistic but I think the focus should be on the athletes. I watched a few minutes of the parade of athletes in the opening ceremonies that further cemented my view that the focus of the games seems a bit misplaced. The women leading in each contingent are dressed in skin-tight white outfits with a very revealing slit. I live in a cold climate and you do not see women parading around in such revealing outfits. Do we really need sexy, hot babes at the opening ceremony?  All that said, I hope these games go off without any incidents and each athlete has a personal best. Clare

Tim Fletcher Comment

Events, teacher educators, Uncategorized, ,

Hi Everyone,
Tim Fletcher posted the following comment. Thought that I would put it in a blog post in case you missed it.
Clare

Thanks very much for all the kind words. I was lucky enough to learn about researching teachers/teacher education from two of the best (Clare & Clive)! BTE was also such a powerful experience for me — here is a link to an article I wrote with my UK colleague Ash Casey (founder of another teaching blog: http://www.peprn.com ) about how strongly BTE influenced my thoughts about learning to teach teachers: http://journals.humankinetics.com/jtpe-back-issues/jtpe-volume-31-issue-4-october/trading-places-from-physical-education-teachers-to-teacher-educators.
Loving the blog by the way!
Tim

Congratulations Tim Fletcher

Events, teacher educators, team members, , ,

Tim Fletcher and Shawn BullockCongratulations to Dr. Tim Fletcher for being awarded the 2014 AIESEP (International Association for Physical Education in Higher Education) Young Scholar Award. Tim is the first Canadian to receive this award. Tim is doing cutting-edge research on health and physical education (including self-studies of his own practices as a teacher educator). Tim is an Assistant Professor at Brock University. Check out his faculty page for a partial list of his publications. http://www.brocku.ca/applied-health-sciences/faculty-directory/kinesiology/tim-fletcher
Tim has been part of both of our research projects (Clive’s longitudinal study of teachers and Clare’s study of literacy/English teacher educators). He is an outstanding young scholar who is so worthy of this award.
This attached picture is of Tim and Shawn Bullock, another outstanding young Canadian scholar with whom Tim has collaborated. Check out Shawn’s website for a list of some of his publications. Shawn’s work is making a real difference in how we understand teacher education. http://shawnbullock.ca/wp/
Send us pictures from the award ceremony at the AIESEP World Congress being held in Auckland next month.
Clare

Social Justice through Activism in Mumbai

Events, Social Justice, team members, , , ,

Women protesting in MumbaiWhile I (Pooja) was only in Mumbai, India for two short weeks, I was able to observe (and participate in!) acts of social justice through activism. I was pleased to notice so many young women in organizational and leadership roles.

A week before I had arrived the Indian Supreme Court had reinstated a law criminalizing acts of homosexuality (Section 377 in the Indian Penal Code). I, along with many others, was shocked. This was a huge step backwards for India and its people, in my opinion. Within a matter of days rallies were organized all over India to protest. One of the major rallies was held in the park around the corner from where I was staying. Although the news of Section 377 was truly saddening, I was uplifted to see the youth organize themselves so poignantly. This rally received a lot of coverage and gave hope back to many who had been personally affected by this decision.  Below is a link with some images capturing the spirit of the protest in Matunga, Mumbai:

http://www.demotix.com/news/3509928/lgbt-community-rallies-against-supreme-court-decision-mumbai#media-3509482

A few days later, while taking a morning walk, I passed by a large group of young girls Women protesting in Mumbaiprotesting against the treatment of women in India. Over the past year, media sources in India had shed light on a few horrific rape cases from around India. I asked one of the young women protesting what had inspired them to take this injustice upon themselves. She told me they had organized themselves because they wanted to have their voices heard and their message conveyed: “We are not going to stand for the mistreatment of any woman, anywhere.” For the past week they got together, outside of school hours, to make signs and spread the word. In total there were about 100 young women protesting. They had made there message clear. They stood in solidarity with women all across India. Pooja

Happy New Year

Events, Reflections, Visitors, , ,

 Today is New Year’s Eve and newspapers are full of descriptions of resolutions for 2014. I am not one for making resolutions (maybe because I know that I will not keep them) but this year I am motivated to make a few.

Balloons

  • ·      Keep blogging. Much to my surprise this has been a fabulous activity. I hope that our readers are enjoying the blogs as much as we have enjoyed writing them.
  • ·      Do not push myself so hard – in other words, relax a bit. Everything does not need to be done ASAP. Emails and work can wait.
  • ·     Keep learning about digital technology.  Time to take a few more steps integrating DT into my teaching.  Time to learn how to use Twitter!
  • ·      Stay connected to family, friends, and colleagues. They keep me grounded.

Best wishes to all of our readers for a happy and healthy 2014. Clare

Visiting Scholar Program

Events, Visitors, , ,

Dr. Gisela Wajskop We are very pleased that Dr. Gisela Wajskop from the Instituto Singularidades in São Paulo will be a visiting scholar at OISE from January – July 2014. Gisela will be collaborating with Clare on her research on literacy teacher educators. She is doing a similar study on literacy teacher educators in Sao Paolo.

Eureka Launch at UTS

Events, , , ,

On November 11th, there is a “kick off” for the Eureka-sponsored research project at University of Toronto Schools. Clare is one of the organizers of this project which will support teacher-research at UTS.  Shelley Murphy and Pooja Dharamshi will be facilitators. Picture of winding road