NEW TEACHER TRAINING VIDEOS CONFIRM WE HAVE THE BEST PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR OUR TEACHERS
Recognizing the benefits of having excellent training resources available to Maple Bear schools at all times, Maple Bear Global Schools’ faculty has been diligently working on six foundational videos that are due to be released globally in January of 2021. These videos have been designed and led by our faculty for new teachers and for teachers who just want to refresh and review the basics.
TRAINERS CAME TOGETHER TO DEVELOP TOPIC RELEVANT VIDEOS
Drawing upon our talent pool of Canadian educators, these training videos were developed collaboratively. Jocelyn McPike, Director of Training and Quality Assurance called together a committee of very experienced trainers and leaders (Claire Maxwell, Beverley Bennett, Arpi Babaian) to discuss and identify priorities, then flesh out the topics that would constitute the core foundational areas. The guiding aim was to enable Maple Bear teachers just starting out on their journey to bring our globally recognized and highly sought after Canadian program to life in their classrooms.
The committee identified six key areas that would best serve teachers new to Maple Bear, and those wishing to review the essentials of Maple Bear practice.
6 TOPICS WERE SELECTED TO HELP OUR TEACHERS SUPPORT THEIR STUDENTS
The next step was recruiting faculty with expertise in those areas to design, develop and then present the six foundational videos. Here are the six topics and the educators presenting the Foundational Training videos:
- Immersion Learning- Learning a Second Language the Maple Way – Carole Kuryk
- Student-Centred Learning – Robyn Rosaasen-Milligan
- Classroom Management – Leah Obach
- The Connection Between Planning, Assessment, The Continuums and Report Cards – Cathy Gamble
- Math for Early Childhood and Math for Years/Grades 1- 7 – Colleen MacDonald Macleod
- Balanced Literacy – Beverley Bennett
A guide has been written to accompany the six videos. It will be a companion piece, a support to assist teachers to not just watch the videos, but to interact with them by thinking deeply. There will be guiding questions for consideration, discussion, and planning. Each section will have links to additional resources to encourage teachers to explore the topics in-depth.
These six new Foundational Training videos and the guide will be distributed to all Maple Bear schools in December. They will also will be made available on the Maple Bear Global School Intranet and the Maple Bear Digital Learning Community MBDLC.
Each teacher who reviews all six videos will receive a completion certificate from Maple Bear Global Schools, further reinforcing the importance we place on the professional development of our teachers.
These new online teacher training tools are just one example of how Maple Bear is responding to COVID-19 and assisting its teachers globally as they continue to offer the best of a Canadian education for a global future to their students.
