Schools are competing for students both locally and internationally. Superintendents are finding their roles have expanded to include marketing and recruitment.

Guests

Monica Frank,M.A.

Department Head of Student Services, Burnaby School District

Dan Laitsch, Ph.D.

Education Assistant Professor and Director of the Centre

for the Study of Educational Leadership and Policy, SFU

Schools are competing for students both locally and internationally. Superintendents are finding their roles have expanded to include marketing and recruitment. Should business management skill be a basic criterion for our education leaders?

Guests
Robin Brayne, Ed.D.

Adjunct Professor of Education, SFU

Geoff Madoc-Jones, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor,

Coordinator of the Ed.D. Leadership Program, SFU

The enrollment crunch in BC universities and colleges has resulted in some of our post-secondary institutions modifying their admission requirements. What do these changes mean for the next group of high school students aiming to obtain a university degree or college diploma? What do parents need to know in order to best support their children who are pursuing a successful post-secondary experience?

Guests

Nancy Johnston

Senior Director,Student Learning and Retention, SFU

Tim Rahilly

Senior Director of Student and Community Life, SFU

In an age driven by success, results and outcomes, assessments to measure school and student performance and their use in school rankings have become a controversial issue. Do tests only measure what students are able to memorize or can they accurately assess what a student knows and is able to do? What are the positive and negative impacts of testing on student morale or the way teachers teach the curriculum? What do educators see as the appropriate design and use of assessments?

Guest

John Nesbit, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, SFU

The drop in birth rate, diversity in the classroom, government policies, even the retirement crunch of our current school administrators all contribute to changes on the education landscape. Teachers are pressured to keep up with these changes while maintaining a high standard of teaching quality, this makes the bridge between teacher education programs or professional development and classroom practice that much more important.

Our current and future teachers need to be well prepared for the realities of classroom practice. What is being done to ensure that this will happen?

Guest
Susan Lambert

First Vice President, BC Teacher's Federation

School Leadership Crunch

The Ministry of Education and other educational stakeholders are collaborating to develop and deliver a program to help develop the essential skills, knowledge, theories, and attitudes for successful leadership in BC schools. What can we learn from what is happening now in order to best prepare school leaders of the future?

Guests
Les Dukowski

President, BC Principals & Vice-Principals Assoc.

Sandi Lauzon

Vice Principal, Alpha Secondary School

Economic growth and social advancement require knowledge and ideas, as well as a rising generation of new citizens to pursue and advance society. Michael Stevenson, President of SFU, provides his expertise on the importance of investing in post-secondary teaching and the cutting-edge research universities do.

Guest
Michael Stevenson

President, Simon Fraser University

BC teachers and education leaders are opposed to the use of standardized test results to measure student performance.Teachers want a more accurate depiction of effort both for themselves and their students. Is it a matter of the tests or how the test results are used?

Guests
Bruce Beairsto

Superintendent, Richmond School Board

Glen Hansman

President of the Vancouver Elementary School Teacher's Association

Whether a child is beginning kindergarten, or making the transition to high school or embarking on a new journey in higher education, parents and the public in general expect our public institutions and education leaders to be working to provide the best for their students. Society in general benefits from an educated workforce and responsible citizens. Yet, what we often hear about are the problems in the public education system, such as, funding cuts, school closures, oversized classrooms and insufficient resources for overworked teachers. What has been done to address these issues and what more can be done to ensure all students benefit from quality public education?

Guests
David Cubberley
NDP Education Critic

Awneet Sivia
Program Coordinator, Faculty of Education, SFU

We are all aware of the link between health and learning. But it's an issue that goes beyond junk food in schools. Health Literacy holds the promise of getting students interested in and able to make healthy life choices. What can each of us do to ensure our communities are raising healthy children?

Guests
Chris Kelly
Superintendent, Vancouver School Board

Laura MacNiven
Graduate Student, Faculty of Education, HEPA Program