Theme set for 2009 MTS conference

The theme for the next MTS-sponsored education conference is Student, Citizen, Community - Beyond the 3 Rs. Sessions for the April conference will span areas from technology to equity.

University of Winnipeg paying kids to learn

The University of Winnipeg has begun a program aimed at closing the “graduation gap” for hundreds of students traditionally under-represented at university by providing kids funding before their even finished high school.

The “earn as you learn” approach is unique for a university in Canada, designed to assist Aboriginal children, young people from war-affected nations and refugee populations, and students from inner-city neighbourhoods – obtain financial help and encouragement to be successful in school, the university says.

Students create own human rights museum

Boiling down as complex a topic as human rights into a simple concept can be difficult. Gerald Bohemier hopes that if there is one message his students at Ecole Seven Oaks Middle School have grasped, it’s that human rights equal human respect.

They took the words and with them built their human rights museum.

Kid's book on Manitoba penned by local teacher

Gwen Smid, a Winnipeg English and Social Studies teacher has written a book she hopes will “provide the antidote for students who feel disconnected with the outdoors.”

A teacher at Kildonan-East Collegiate, she says the book, Mary’s Atlas: Mary Meets Manitoba, focuses on the diverse geography of Manitoba through the lense through a story involving flying bison and the north wind.

Vice-principal honoured as Woman of Distinction

A vice-principal at St. John's High School in Winnipeg's North End is the winner of a YWCA-YMCA 2008 Women of Distinction Award for Education and Training.
Chris Penner "has brought a unique culture of compassion to students, parents and grandparents by developing programs that answer their needs."

Two public school teachers win Prime Minister's Awards

Two public school teachers in Manitoba have been honoured with the Prime Minister’s Awards for Teaching Excellence.

One received a certificate’s of  achievement and the other a certificate of excellence.

Teachers working to help people in Cuba

Long stretches of sandy beach, turquoise seas and salsa music draw in thousands of tourists to Cuba every year.

The country is not just a resort destination however – it’s a place brimming with history, culture and political struggles, and two retired Winnipeg teachers want people to discover “the Real Cuba”.

Diane Zack is a semi-retired Winnipeg School Division teacher, who’s also been acting as the president of the Manitoba-Cuba Solidarity Committee for the last few years.

Chamber sparks students' vision for the future

The president and CEO of The Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce is passionate about Winnipeg and even more so about the next generation.

“We’ve got to stop being satisfied with mediocrity and strive to be No. 1,” Angus said prior to LeaderCon 08, a day-long conference that attracted more than 200 high school students, teachers and business people and set the stage for a new era of communication between business and the workforce of tomorrow.

Teachers and the perception of professionalism

As an MTS staff officer, I get to travel across Manitoba and work with many wonderful teachers who are members of The Manitoba Teachers’ Society. What continually surprises me is the small percentage of teachers that do identify themselves as professionals. Now what I understand about being a professional is that one’s first and primary concern is his or her clients or in the case of teachers, to his or her students.  This is clearly reflected in the Society’s Code of Professional Practice that establishes standards of conduct for teachers.  The first of 13 standards of the Code states that “A teacher’s first professional responsibility is to her or his students” while the second indicates that “A teacher acts with integrity and diligence in carrying out professional responsibilities”.