Ukrainian Teachers Conference Held in Edmonton
29 May 2014
Ukrainian Teachers' Conference Held in Edmonton
29 May 2014-The second national conference of Ukrainian Teachers of Canada was held in Edmonton, 2‒4 May 2014, in conjunction with the 40th anniversary of Ukrainian bilingual education in Alberta. It was organized by the Ukrainian School Council of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, with support from Alberta Education; Alberta Foundation for Ukrainian Education Society; Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village; Ukrainian National Federation (Edmonton branch); and the Ukrainian Language Education Centre (ULEC) at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, University of Alberta. Alberta teachers were represented through Teachers of Ukrainian: Special Interest Group-Alberta Teachers' Association, Edmonton Catholic Schools, Elk Island Catholic Schools, Elk Island Public Schools, and from the Institute for Innovation in Second Language Education at Edmonton Public Schools. The conference united eighty-one participants from across Canada-teachers, students, community members, and parents-to address vital issues of Ukrainian language and culture education in the twenty-first century. At the conference, ULEC was recognized as a leading centre in supporting the development of Ukrainian education. It was represented by six participants. In her presentation at the opening round table (2 May), ULEC acting director and associate professor in the Department of Modern Languages and Cultural Studies, University of Alberta, Dr. Alla Nedashkivska, addressed the challenging question of the future of Ukrainian education from the perspective of teaching and learning of Ukrainian at the post-secondary level. On 3 May, Dr. Nedashkivska, along with her two graduate students, Olena Sivachenko and Oksana Perets, organized a panel on "Digital Technologies, Blended-Learning and Students' Motivation: Ukrainian at the Post-Secondary Level." Sample on-line resources were also on display. In her keynote speech, Dr. Olenka Bilash, ULEC senior academic advisor, professor in the Faculty of Education, University of Alberta, and North American representative to LINGUAPAX, spoke on "Global Best Practices: Effective 21st Century Language and Culture Learning Strategies." ULEC participation in the conference was accompanied with an impressive display of its resource materials including Nova, Tut i tam, and Budmo series, the ULEC Publications Catalogue, and other enrichment resources, which teachers could buy or order. Hands on support from ULEC team members Halyna Klid and Mykola Soroka was welcomed by attendees.
Photo: (1) (l‒r): Mykola Soroka, Olenka Bilash, Halyna Klid, and Alla Nedashkivska; (2) (l‒r): Oksana Perets and Olena Sivachenko; (3) ULEC display.
