Dr. Christine Ho Younghusband

November 1, 2026 – A Practice Reflection

What I am trying to do this year is to reflect (aka., make a blog post) when I ask my students this term to reflect on different learning activities and experiences. Last week on Monday, October 26, 2026, we went to Cottonwood Island Park. I’ve been bringing teacher candidates here for about 5-years to introduce BC’s Curriculum and using PLACE as the inspiration. I felt super lucky that we came on a day that was not snowing. It was a bit chilly, but snow did not fall until the next day. Normally, I’d try to get the class out earlier in the term, but having my class now on Mondays, the pace and rhythm has changed. I find that facinating. All the little factors that go into planning. Also, I learned that day that another instructor was using one of the resources I refer to as required reading, another instructor just took this cohort out to Cottonwood Island Park last week, and another instructor has planning for some groups to come here at the end of the week. These factors also tap into how a lesson is designed and facilitated.

The message I sent out to the Teacher Candidates was, let me know if there is any overlap in our courses… I am happy to pivot and adapt. Although there was some overlap, the use of PLACE and readings were dealt with differently. That said, it can be perceived as “the same” curriculum, which can be frustrating for students when they are going to different classes within the program. There is no question, in lots of ways, teacher work in silos. Ironic in many ways because I like to teach my class that the collaborative and co-constructed. Nonetheless, I was grateful that the class enjoyed going outside even though it was the second time of possibly three over a span of a week or so. Some groups handed in their adapted lesson plan, while others could take the week to complete the task. I was taken by the responses in our closing circle. Lesson planning is structured, rigorous, and time consuming. This is time invested to understand that planning for teaching does take time and INTENTION to create a lesson that is cohesive.

That is the primary purpose of the role of a teacher… teach the curriculum… but in doing so, you need to know the students, the subject matter, and yourself to create a lesson that is innovative, engaging, and thought provoking. Getting out on the land and being in place was to provide the context of the lesson planning assignment, which was not clear at first. Thank goodness for the connection of technology and one student sent a message on Discord to let everyone know. For me, I am realizing that I need to tweak this aspect of my course syllabus. There is nothing wrong with change. It’s either I initiate the change or someone else will. I used to do the Fire Circle for the last handful of years just before the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in September. Another colleague wanted to do it, and well, the person who was central to that learning passed away. It seemed almost serendipitous, but I learned that students did not do it anyway. Last year, I had to adapt that day, and this year was also a scramble.

In the end, I was super grateful to get outside. I love introducing curriculum on th land, and I feel that where a class goes is exactly where it needs to be. No need to overthink or feel apologetic. You just have to do the best that you can with what you know and what you have. That’s all you can do. PS. I love teaching!!

October 31, 2026 – Reflecting on Workload

I’m not sure why I have chosen a food pic of delicious Miku sushi, but I think it attempts to depict what I am going to describe in this blog post. On this dish, there is an ebi sushi, a spicy tuna sushi, and salmon sushi. They are packaged somewhat the same and presented beautifully on the plate. However, their origins, how they are prepared, and how they taste are unique and different.

My job assignment this term is composed of three different components as well: (1) teaching EDUC 394; (2) supervising for final practicum; and (3) research. All three areas I love to do… but all three components require a different type of thinking, different time commitments, and different inputs and outputs. During my time at the university, I had often had two of the three, either teaching and practicum or teaching and research. This term, I have all three activated along with service work as well. Service has always been an underpinning of my work and often recommended to reduce my service contributions as I may be exceeding the 20% of my workload to service. That said, the teaching and practicum are part of my 70%, and I have 10% for research as a term member.

One of the things that I love about my work at the university is the autonomy and agency to determine how the courses are taught, what research you engage in, and the service choose to be involved in. For practicum, you are assigned a number of students, but my role is specifically titled, the Practice Evaluator, so my role is to “evaluate” student teachers during their 10-week practicum. Although I love all three aspects of teaching, practicum, and research, I am finding that each of these areas require different thinking and energy from me. It’s like juggling three balls in addition to service work in the background. I love all three. I love to teach, I love to see teacher candidates putting what they have learned together into practice, and I love learning via research that involves teamwork, writing, and conferences.

One the one hand, I feel very lucky to be doing all of these things in my career. On the other hand, I need to figure out how to switch gears effectively and efficiently so that I can maximize my work/thinking time without burning out or doing a poor job at what I would like to (and need to) do and accomplish. It’s a challenge, for sure. I am also balancing wellness, sustainability, and joy in what I do as well. I can’t get too caught up on the details, but I do need to be patient and compassionate with myself moving forward, and being reasonable of what can get done and still get 8-hours of sleep while eating balanced meals, etc. Sometimes I make mistakes. Sometimes I will be late on some tasks. And, sometimes, things may not get done in a timely manner. My ego will have to suck that up. What I do know is, I am trying and doing my best. That’s all I have. HAPPY HALLOWEEN. 🙂

October 22, 2026 – Love this Place

Whoa… it’s been awhile since I’ve been blogging on this site. There has been a lot that has been happening at work and not-work such that every minute is spent either keeping on task, catching up, or throwing in the towel and accepting the consequences. It’s been a challenging couple of months, and prioritizing sleep, for example, is a huge victory for me. My body needs the sleep and I find that when I do, my productivity the next day is so much better. Anyway, this idea of slowing down and being present brings me to one of my favourite places in Prince George… West Lake Provincial Park. I love how accessible West Lake is to me, and I love how the slapping of the water reminds me of the ocean. I am so connected to the idea of place and identity. I was born and raised in Prince Rupert. You don’t seem to understand the impact of place until you move to a different place. In most of my adult years, I lived in the Lower Mainland or the Sunshine Coast. Both places are near the ocean. Even though the mainland and Sechelt are not the same as Prince Rupert, they are both by the ocean. Admittedly, I would consider myself a #CoastalGirl and I identify with the ocean.

Living in Prince George has been good, and I do appreciate the confluence of the Nechako and Fraser Rivers. There are so many beautiful places in Prince George, and I love how the colours change in the fall. It’s just beautiful. But, there is something about how the ocean speaks to me in comparison to the rivers, it’s like a foreign language. I am learning how to love the river and the big, beautiful blue skies, but there is something about the slapping of the water at West Lake that makes me feel like I am at home. My EDUC 394 class went to West Lake Provincial Park on October 5, 2026. Wow. That’s been awhile ago, and we learned about land acknowledgements, land as teacher, the First Peoples Principles of Learning, and a walking curriculum. I love experiential learning. My mom would say, “you like learning how to do things the hard way.” What I am realizing is, I like to learn experientially versus being told what to do.

Learning experientially can result in positive outcomes and not so positive outcomes. Either way, I am learning. That day, I tried something new. I am often astounded why I spend so much time on planning and prepping, thinking about new ways to do something. And with experiential learning, you don’t know until you try. This year, I wanted to use Ziploc bags and put the handouts and a journal in each bag for small groups to use and refer to. As you could see in the previous paragraph, there were a few learning objectives for that morning. So, I put different handouts, ordered in sequence, into the bag along with a workbook. In my head, it seemed like a good idea. In previous years, I would just pass out pieces of paper, if needed, per activity. I thought that took a bit of time, so the bag may offer some agency, autonomy, and independence. To make a long story short, the use of Ziploc bags did not meet expectations. Well, I tried. 🙂

I love West Lake and it was a gorgeous day that day. Sunny, a bit cool, and windy. I just love the wind. I feel that it’s talking to me, and caressing me, in a way that is comforting and reassuring. It must be a coastal thing, because when I mentioned the wind to one of the students, they felt the exact opposite to me. They felt that the wind was getting in their way and blowing their hair into their face. I could see how that would be annoying, but I also understand that it’s not that windy in the central interior (or rainy). Truth… I love it when it rains!! Now that’s the Prince Rupert / Vancouver person in me. You’ve got to love the rain.

I am so grateful for West Lake and having the opportunity to bring my class outside and on the land to learn about concepts with the land. I feel very lucky.

Sept. 27 & Oct. 4, 2026 – Making Bread

I started writing this blog post last week and jotted down a bunch of ideas about my Metaphor for Teaching (and Learning) for EDUC 394. I’m teaching EDUC 394 this term with the Elementary and Secondary Cohorts, and I have returned back to e-Portfolios again this year in this course as an assessment tool. This course is about pedagogy, curriculum, and teaching. The metaphor for teaching was an idea that my friend and her colleague implemented in their program for undergraduate students. Although I adapted the idea, I love the notion of a metaphor to describe what teaching and learning is. These teacher candidates are at the beginning of the program and they will be returning to this metaphor at the end of the term. Although I don’t get them all year, I think I will be using e-portfolios for EDUC 394 to practice the professional standards for BC educators.

My metaphor for teaching and learning is MAKING BREAD. This year, I’m really embracing the idea of kneading bread. Making bread is a science and an art. You need to be measured out correctly, you have to have the right ingredients, and you have to implement a particular sequence of mixing the ingredients together (i.e., like the dry ingredients sifted together in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another bowl). You also have to have the right conditions, meaning that the oven is a the correct temperature, yeast is bloomed at room temperature, and the dough can rise at a certain temperature for a period of time. And the techniques… kneading the bread, and knowing when the dough has been made and when it’s ready to rest and rise before baking. There is little room for error, but lots of room for personalization. No loaf is ever the same.

Another thing about making bread is, you are always trying your best. Cutting corners is not ideal and will impact the final product, but sometimes there are short cuts. Also, with practice, you will develop and expertise for making bread such that the process will feel more natural and automatic, so less time is needed. That said, you can build your skills over time so that you can be more creative and try new things to hone your craft. You can learn new techniques from other people. You can find the joy in making bread knowing that every loaf will have its own uniqueness. The work is rewarding and will be rewarded with the product. And, throughout the process, there is constant formative feedback. For example, if the bread does not rise, a key ingredient is missing. Or if the bread is too salty, you might have measured the salt incorrectly. You need to notice these nuances to know if the bread turned out alright or not, and you also have a vision of how the end product should be. You have targets and goals.

The best part of making bread is the bread… hot out of the oven with some butter and maybe a bit of jam. AMAZING. You know that the bread turned out when the holes in the bread are uniform, the crust is crisp and the break itself is moist and chewy. Oh… the smell of the bread would be so inviting and the taste of the bread to be savoured and celebrated. Lots of hard work went into making that bread and in the end, the hard work, thoughtfulness, and planning paid off. So making bread, much like teaching and learning, takes time, love, care, effort, patience, and technique. There is no “perfect” bread, but the hard work invested in making the bread was perfect. There is so much joy and satisfaction not only with a well executed product, but also with the process, creativity, and planning. Who doesn’t love homemade bread? Making (and eating) bread is the joy. 🙂

September 19, 2026 – Fall 2026 Term

Wow. It’s my 9th season at the university. It’s truly a new year. My kid is graduated from the nursing program, she is working full-time, and she has bought her own place and living independently. AMAZING. I could not wish for anything better for her, and she continues on with her journey into adulthood. For me, I’ve just started teaching EDUC 394 at the university and have made several changes to the course because it has changed days, there’s less time, and I am returning back to e-portfolios as an assessment tool in this course. I’m not sure why I do that to myself. Actually, I know why. Teaching is also about design. I like to tinker and make the most of the course. I am grateful that this might be the sixth time I am teaching this course, and I know that the students are never the same, but the course (and myself) also changes. Of course, there are some aspects that remain consistent, so folks from year to year could have conceptually similar experiences. What’s different from year to year is the nuance, the order, the pace, and the weather.

I have already taught my first class of EDUC 394 last Monday, and we are already pivoting. I have a tendency to over plan (just in case), but also you don’t know who the students are until you meet them. The nature of creating the course syllabus months in advance and not knowing the students create a beautiful opportunity for the disclaimer at the end of the course syllabus, “dates/times/topics are subject to change.” This disclaimer serves an exemplar for teaching. You have to be reflexive and reflective to adapt to your class and their needs. Of course, the job is to meet and achieve the course outcomes, but how you get there cannot be accurately predicted on the course syllabus. This year’s cohort is about 10 students larger. The room looks packed, and well, how the class moves will be different from last year… and that’s ok. All is good. The class is going very well.

Another twist to my job assignment this year, which was a last minute change, was working with teacher candidates during the 10-week practicum. It’s been about 4-years since I have worked as a practice evaluator (faculty associate) at the university, and I did not expect to return to practicum any time soon. That said, here I am. The “pods” for each practice evaluator was recently announced and I have 8 elementary candidates and 2 secondary candidates to supervise. Ten students is a healthy load, and I look forward to supporting and supervising this crew along with teaching on Mondays with the teacher candidates who’ve just entered the program. It will be a busy term. I am also working on a few research projects, as PI or co-investigator, and I need to get some of my own single author projects out (of which I do not prioritize, and I should). This term will be busy.

A few other changes to my teaching assignment this year is that I am not teaching any graduate study courses. We have just started the new MEd cohort in Inclusive Education, so I am not part of that initiative this year, and I am teaching courses in the spring and summer in 2027. They are new courses to me: (1) ADST in the Elementary Years; (2) Career Education (Secondary). So, I do not have a non-teaching term this year to focus on writing and research. I had the last two years doing that, so maybe it’s a good thing to teach all year, despite what the Collective Agreement states. As I’ve been told, my position is precarious. Yes, I had to look that up… LOL. (AI Overview: Precarious means not safe, unsteady, or likely to fall, fail, or get much worse.) PS. Google highlighted the definition. Oof… it’s bleak!

((Deep breath)) It’s not the time to feel comfortable, but rather, be open to what’s ahead. I have accomplished a lot in the last 8-years and my kid is on her way. I can only feel satisfied, and I feel very grateful for all of the people I’ve met along the way. I’ve learned so much about myself, what I can do, and what’s possible. I am stronger than I thought I was. I too am living alone, in my place with my cat, and I am financial independent. For that, I am grateful. I love to teach, I love to learn, and I love to meet new people. I get to do that. And you know what, it is most likely that I will do the same thing in the next thing that I do. As I look back, teaching, learning, and meeting new people were key aspects of my professional work.

So, staying and being in the present are important. Life is good. I will keep an open mind, focus on my health and happiness, and adapt or PIVOT when/where I need to. Life is not for me to take too seriously, but to enjoy and savour. I feel like I have finally arrived, and as I look back at my life/career span, every 7-8 years seems like a prime time for change, so I’m open. What’s different this time is, I’m not scared.

September 13, 2026 – Back to School

Look at the weather… doesn’t it look like fall? It was a somewhat chilly and damp day, but this week was the welcome back to school routine for the school of education where the outgoing cohorts in Prince George facilitate various indoor and outdoor activities for the incoming cohorts. This feature of the B.Ed. program is unique such that the newly inducted teacher candidates have an opportunity to connect and learn from “seasoned” teacher candidates who are just finishing up their coursework and heading into their final 10-week practicum.

It’s fun for me as a course instructor and observer to see this transition from the beginning of term 1 to term 4 within the program, and how caring and thoughtful the outgoing crew is to the incoming crew. The shift took only 12-months to get to where they are… from unsure to confident… and I am so hopeful for the K-12 school who have the opportunity to have one of these teacher candidates in their classroom, for either practicum or as their teacher. There are many amazing people who come through our teacher education program and the kind of learning they embark on, formal or informal, is humbling and inspiring.

I also had the opportunity to pop into the outgoing cohorts final classes for their cross-cutting courses where they had an opportunity to share their final projects to their peers and course instructor. These classes on Thursday and Friday are generally open to department members (and incoming cohorts), so I wanted to see what they had produced and listen to what they had to say in terms of their final projects and their learning. Of course, I was not able to see or listen to all of the students, but I was grateful to hear a handful of projects from each course and chat with the teacher candidates as they head into their final semester.

For the last couple of years, I have been teaching the teacher candidates for only the first two terms of four, so reconnecting with each of them at the beginning of their final term is awesome for me to see how they are growing and to see how they are doing in the program. This year, I will be working with a group of these teacher candidates to supervise their final practicum. It has been at least a few years since I have worked with teacher candidates in practicum in this program, but I am looking forward to working with the group who will be assigned to me. I am more excited about the transformation near the end of practicum. It happens around Week 8, and all of a sudden I’m standing with a colleague.

I am looking forward to meeting the new incoming crew in my class tomorrow morning. I switched days, so normally I would have started last week, but now I’m starting this week. I do appreciate the slow immersion back to school. That said, I am realizing that Monday classes come with a different set of challenges (i.e., long weekends, less classes, first class of the week, etc.). It’s nothing that a little planning could not handle. Also, this year’s group is a bit larger that last years group, which provides another set of challenges, but hey, it’s all in the work that we do in education. It keeps the work exciting and new. All is good.

September 6, 2026 – How Many?

Huh. I just bought these eggs from a vendor at the CN Centre parking lot at the outdoor “Sweater Weather Market.” I chose this carton because of the colours and size of the eggs. As I look at this photo, it makes for the perfect “how many” number talk activity. Hmm. I might just use this image for my numeracy class next term. Right now, I’m getting ready for this term as I write this blog post on Labour Day Long Weekend. I am learning how to pause, self-regulate, and reflect as the new school year approaches. I’m not sure what to say right now.

I am loving the cooler weather and my sleeps have been incredible with the fresh cool air (and no fans blowing in my face at regular intervals). I am super excited to reconnect with the outgoing teacher candidates of our program, and look forward to meeting the incoming teacher candidates. I have redesigned my course in first term, and I’m returning back to long practicum as one of the evaluators. My job/position has taken some twists and turns, but also I’ve been open to new opportunities and conversations. There is a lot to look forward to.

I am learning how to STAY FOCUSSED. There are so many distractors that can steal your time away. I don’t ask for these distractors, but they just happen. I need to take ownership of how I steward my time. For years, I was so motivated by what I perceived what others wanted from me. I was worried about what they thought about the quality of my work or my opinions. I spent a tonne of time ensuring that I was “fitting in” as best I could, without actually belonging. As a result, I was self-sabotaging, insecure, burning-out, heartbroken, and alone.

What a horrible place to be?

Over the last couple of years, after almost burning out trying to live up to someone else’s expectations to seek approval or validation, I just stopped. I had to accept who I was, the work that I was doing, and who I truly wanted to be. I learned how to be kind to myself, compassionate, and take the time to figure out what was really important to me. I have now nestled into my “be a person” day, which is Saturdays and I don’t do any work. I go to bed at a reasonable hour, I make meals at home, and I am going outside or to the gym for some exercise.

I am happy living alone with my cat, and I love to thrift. Who knew? I am also working with some incredible people in research and I love what I do in my teaching practice. I feel very connected to who I am, and I belong TO ME. I don’t have to “fit in” or be someone who I am not. I strive for happy, and I take great joy in the little things. I am recognizing my trauma responses and learning how to slow down, breathe, and pause for a moment before taking any action. I am safe and secure. I have options, and “the only person looking out for me, is me.”

Big lessons to learn before the school year begins. As a result, I have bought myself a new smartphone and desktop computer, I have made my home office a place where I love to work that is separate from my bedroom and living room, and I am RETURNING HOME to my love for mathematics and teaching practice in my research, and working with folks who build me up and vice versa. I love Kirkness and Barnhardt’s (2001) Four R’s of respect, responsibility, relevance, and reciprocity. To me, these are 4 pillars to good and authentic relationships.

Happy long weekend and welcome back to school!!

August 28, 2026 – I love learning

First of all, I cannot believe that it’s the end of August. Where has the time gone (when you are in you non-teaching term)? LOL. I’ve had a great spring/summer. I had a tonne of wonderful intentions, and I got to some of them. I have a few more to go, but I love what I do. Part of what I do is going to and presenting at conferences. At the end of May/beginning of June, I went to the University of Winnipeg to attend and present at the Canadian Society on the Study of Education (CSSE) Conference. I presented twice at the Canadian Association for Teacher Education (CATE) Conference, and served as the program manager for the Canadian Association for Action Research in Education (CAARE). The program went great… and I was so inspired by other people’s work, affirming that my work is very aligned to action research, leadership, and system change.

I also spent some immense time revising a chapter with major revisions, and I am not quite sure if the direction I took was acceptable, but dang, I learned a lot and continue to learn a lot from “doing.” As much as my mom would tease me about “doing things the hard way,” it has always been in my DNA or biological programming to “learn by doing” or experientially. I have to figure out through action how to do something, make mistakes, and try to make things better. The learning process is iterative, learning takes time and patience, and learning helps me to learn more about myself and what’s important to me. I may have mentioned this before but I heard someone say awhile ago that RESEARCH is ME-SEARCH. At a 3-hour land-based learning workshop at the UNBC Teaching and Learning Conference mentioned at the end of their session is RESEARCH is RE-SEARCH… meaning the iterative nature of searching and researching. Loved it!!

MY MIND WAS BLOWN!!

I have so much gratitude for the folks at UNBC and CTLT who organized, planned, and created the UNBC Teaching and Learning Conference. I had the opportunity to present twice at this conference, once with teacher candidates in a panel presentation and once with my research team for a 1-hour workshop. I was so proud and very thankful for the presentation with the the teacher candidates. Our timing, content, and flow were exceptional, and I appreciated the time, work, and effort by these teacher candidates to make this panel possible to tell their story of the WestCAST experience and their undergraduate scholarly work. It was truly amazing. Last year, I presented with a teacher candidate and a teacher from the local school district about EDUC 376 and numeracy night at one of the elementary schools as a Lightning Talk. The year before that, I co-presented with three teach candidates as a 1-hour workshop and doing a Lightning Talk.

I love working with Teacher Candidates with WestCAST and with other work that extends beyond the teacher education program. I think that working with folks who have the same mindset as me… to try something new, to be independent with mentorship, to collectively sense-make to co-construct knowledge and understanding are up my alley. I feel that I have that with my research team as well that is focused on Recruitment and Retention at rural locations in BC. Our workshop presentation went well despite the low attendance. I loved how the small groups were gaining momentum with each question posed, and their willingness to share their small group discussion with the whole group, and my team’s willingness to co-present with me remotely via Zoom. I feel very lucky.

LEARNING AND LOVING WHAT I DO

During the Teaching and Learning Conference, I went a few sessions (i.e., the lightning talks, teaching excellence, land-based learning workshop, keynote speakers, and public scholarship) and I loved learning something new and to consider how this learning is important to my teaching. The public scholar session seemed like an excellent idea for my EDUC 394 students to participate in as an assignment, and some my opt to take that writing further to an online platform or as an opportunity to further their inquiry in their EDUC 405 class or as a conference presentation at WestCAST. Who knows? I loved the land-based learning session because it allowed me to check out the pit house in the Forest of the World, listen to the work coming from health, and think about what I would like to do in my EDUC 394 class this fall. The condition of the pit house is changing in comparason to the last time I took my class there 6 to 7 years ago.

I just love the Teaching and Learning Conference, as well as any other conference that gets me excited and inspired by teaching and learning. This year, I want to go to the BCAMT (BC Association of Mathematics Teachers) again. It’s been a while, but that group is definitely “my people” and I feel that it’s a good thing to “fill my cup” with learning that not only helps my practice, but also engage in learning more about what people are doing in their practice too. It’s different from an academic conference, of which, I am also exploring, but there is something about “returning home” to your roots or origin story that will not only remind you where you have come from, but inspire you to what’s next. I have a conference to register for as soon as I complete this blog post. I’ve been humming and haaaa-ing this conference. It’s new to me, the conference and travel costs are ones to consider, and I’m not sure what to expect, so why not? Professional learning is my jam.

August 20, 2026 – What motivates me?

Gosh… I’m heading into my weekly blog post a bit early. On the one hand, I am feeling inspired. On the other hand, I like to use my blog to not only reflect but also warm-up to the writing process. I am planning to attend an online writing session for a chapter I am co-writing with a colleague from my past-life in K-12. I wrote about this chapter in my last blog post titled, “Going Back In Time.” I really enjoyed writing (by myself) in a breakout room to some writing done. I have done this before during my doctorate degree at SFU but those sessions were in-person. I don’t think I used those writing times as effectively as I had online last week. I also think I was in a different place as a writer and scholar. That said, I’m still learning and expect that’s how it’s going to be in this work… and I LOVE IT!!

I was just looking at my CV components on my WordPress websites and I enjoy looking at progress (re: making edits), but I also love working on my portfolios. It’s clear to me that what I include in my classes are aspects of what I love to do and/or believe in. There is no question why I include Parker Palmer’s work on the identity and integrity of a teacher… and the Heart of a Teacher. I love reading that chapter every year and what makes good teaching: (1) knowledge of the subject matter; (2) knowledge of the students; (3) and knowledge of yourself. I love the idea of understanding yourself… or YOUR BRAND… thus, gaining an understanding of what kind of teacher you are going to be and why it matters.

I am enjoying my time working on the chapter with my colleague/friend because I have a unique opportunity to look at my practice, myself, and the work we collaborated on. I wonder about “am I really changing?” or ” is this who I really am?” As much as I struggled with my identity and who I am for many, many years, I am loving now looking back at myself, even though my mindset was different from who I am today. I recently shared with my colleague/friend about finding my reflective journal from my long practicum experience over 30 years ago, to realize the text sounded just like me… it reflected who I was at the time, which is who I am today. I am left to wonder, do we really change or are we just honing who we really are over time with experiences and age. Who knows?

This year, I was charged with developing and facilitating the department’s annual retreat. It was a last minute decision, so implementation needed to simple, aligned to who I am, and useful to my peers with respect to our work. I framed the day to be on the land at West Lake Provincial Park, I invited my friend to start our day in a good way, and used Simon Sinek’s Start with Why. I loved the process for myself and to prep for the day, I did the work myself… what’s my why? And, I used the idea, as suggested online, to brainstorm the people who were important to you, that you wished to be like, or admired. Then, to think about the qualities of these people, then take these reflections to write your why statement: “To _____, so that _____.” I love that Sinek would say, your why applies to personal and professional… there is no difference. There is just ONE WHY. Here is my why:

“To question and challenge the status quo, so that we can feel empowered and liberated to become the change agents we are meant to be in the service of others.”

This why resonates with me deeply. I’ve had versions of this, but the more I read, the more I do, I feel that my why can be nuanced to best reflect me. Anyway, I love the idea of challenging… which is reflective of Enneagram 8… that is me… and I love the idea of change… which aligns to my love for action research (aka. do something)… with the soul purpose in the service of others. Oh ya… this is my drive… who I am… MY WHY. Anyway, this beautiful process allowed me to create a staff retreat that incorporates the land, community building, and collaboration or co-creation… to develop one’s why and the program’s why. It was an opportunity to connect with one another, but also learn a little about each other. I’m reminded that I need to do something with the information that was generated and to share what was created that day.

Anyway, what brought me to this blog post… LOL… was taking the time this week to prep for the UNBC Teaching and Learning Conference with three teacher candidates for a panel session, and my research team for a workshop. I feel very grateful to be co-presenting with both teams and I feel that both sessions represent who I am… rural teaching and early scholarship. I love working with these people and the work we are accomplishing together. The two images included at the top and end of this blog posts are the title pages of the Canva presentations for each session. We are presenting next week on August 27, 2026 for both sessions, at 1pm and 3pm in Room 10-2522 in Prince George. What I love about both sessions is the involvement of students, in leadership and co-construction of the workshop and their willingness to participate.

So, I guess… what motivates me? STUDENT LEARNING. It’s strange… the CV only serves as the wake of my work, yet serves as a demonstration or evidence of your accomplishments. I find that when I look and work on my CV, I am reminded what I still have to do… LOL… but also, I can pause and take a moment to celebrate what I am doing and what I have done. I am TERRIBLE at endorsing myself and celebrating who I am and why it matters (to others), but I can see the value of the CV in terms of the research and pedagogical narrative I am (intentionally and unintentionally) curating. Anyway, looking at MY WHY with respect to my practice (which was also part of the retreat), part of my why is “to improve the student learning experience,” hence I love student involvement and investment. Here’s my “teaching why” and I am really proud of the work I do. 🙂

“To create safe and collaborative spaces, so that students can engage in exploratory learning environments with curiosity and joy to discover, examine, and develop who they are as learners, educators, and leaders.” 

August 17, 2026 – Co-Writing a Chapter

Yes… I do in-person selfies and Zoom selfies. It’s true!! I do love a good selfie. Here is an image of me and a colleague/friend from more than 20 years ago. We worked together on the Sunshine Coast. At the time, she was the District Aboriginal Education Principal and I was a secondary mathematics teacher. We both had a strong interest in professional development. When I was teaching in K-12 schools, I was often took the role of Professional Development School Representative. I loved working with my colleagues, co-creating with my colleagues, and learning something new about teaching and learning. As I look back, I can can really see that I appreciated professional learning and understand why teacher professional learning is part of my research program.

I am writing this blog post as I am reflecting on the conversations that I am having with my colleague/friend in recent weeks and months. We worked collaboratively together to work on a Math 8 project called, Math Embedded: A Tribute to Susan Point. I have written about this project in 2017, as seen inmy friend/colleague’s website titled “ImaginED.” This guest blog post was titled, “Integrating Indigenous Worldviews Into Secondary Math Teaching: A Tribute to Susan Point.” I also wrote about it for a piece for UNBC during Asian Heritage Month titled, “Learning to Embrace Identity” in 2023. I was also the key note speaker at the 3rd Annual Aboriginal Math K-12 Symposium at UBC in 2013. There were so many other opportunities that came about from the Math 8 project, such as “The Journey of a Lesson,” “Focusing on Competencies in Math” with Open School BC, FNESC Math First Peoples Teachers’ Resource Guide (2020), and curriculum development on BC’s Curriculum for Math K-9.

If anything, this Math 8 project took me on a pedagogical journey about teaching and learning, mathematics and culture, and creating something good for all learners, including myself. My colleague and I co-created and co-taught this Math unit on linear and rotational symmetry in 2009/2010, over 16-years ago, when the Math 8/9 Integrated Resource Package (IRP) was updated in 2008. In this provincial curriculum “Aboriginal Education” in math was introduced. At the time, there were so many things happening in the school: (1) 150-hours for Math 8; (2) got a new SmartBoard for my class from PAC; (3) delving into formative assessment practices; and (4) implementation of the new curriculum. I had no idea what I would do with all of the extra time in Math 8. Admittedly, I was a bit frustrated about the 150 hours for math (as the intervention to improve math achievement as students transitioned from elementary to secondary school).

Not be belabour my angst and anger, serendipitously connecting with my colleague shifted my mindset to a place of learning, excitement, and joy. I was very interested in learning about local Indigenous culture and ways of being, and what it meant to incorporate “Aboriginal Education” in to mathematics. Make note, 2009/2010 was well before the creation of the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action (2015) and formation/introduction of BC’s Curriculum (2016). Although the First Peoples Principles of Learning was developed In 2006/2007 with the BC Ministry of Education and FNESC as part of the English 12 First Peoples course (Chrona, 2014), this work was unknown to me as a high school math teacher. Yet, the work done on the Math Embedded project not only led me to professional learning opportunities as mentioned above, but also defined what kind of educator I wanted to be, and believe the educator I am today.

I had the the wonderful opportunity to contribute chapter to a book, alongside with contributors how are current math educators and educational leaders who seek to embedded Indigenous Education into Mathematics (or vice versa). I was honoured and excited to be invited, and I believe it’s the the learning that had come from the Math Embedded project, and it’s lingering effect on my practice, and maybe the impressions made on the editors of the book 13 years ago, that has led to another professional learning opportunity. In past, I would write about the Math Embedded Project from my vantage point, but with this invitation, I extended the invitation to my colleague to co-write this chapter with me. It was amazing to reconnect and we’ve been meeting weekly to share notes and research about the project, the work behind it, and the work that is ahead of it.

I write this blog post with awe and gratitude to look back at who I was as a practitioner, to unpack the math unit and why it mattered, and to figure out how we can once again co-create something like we did 16-years ago. I have been loving our conversations and feel that we are building the same momentum like we did many years ago. I’ve started reflecting on this work, and just listing out a few moments between Math Embedded and my practice today has taken some time to get some of my thoughts out. I am realizing that it will take some immense time to just get my memories and journey on paper, and the task of getting both of our stories woven together into 6000 words or less. It will be a task, but we have taken this road before, and we can do this together again.