2021 EGS Conference

The 8th Education Graduate Students (EGS) Conference is an annual conference organized by the team of Peer Advisors at the Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP). This year’s conference has moved online due to the global pandemic. It took place on March 19, 2021.

 

This conference’s primary purpose is to showcase the work undertaken by graduate students within the Faculty of Education. We tried to present the wealth of research by the graduate students in all its diversity of subjects and conceptual approaches to theory and practice. This event is also aimed at providing a community space for participants to receive feedback from peers and an opportunity to practice in preparation for academic conferences.

 

The theme for this year’s conference was Transformation and Translation: Curriculum and Change. The participants presented their thoughts on changing situations in education and discussed how they could productively engage with them.

 

The conference had consisted of four sessions. Dean Blye Frank opened the conference with warm regards. The EDCP Head Prof. Samson Nashon addressed the participants with the speech titled: COVID-19 Pandemic: Implications for the Educated Citizen. The EDCP graduate advisory committee chair Dr. Marina Milner-Bolotin welcomed the graduate students. The second part was the panel discussion. Drs. Anne Phelan, Harper Keenan, Shannon Leddy, and Susan Gerofsky from the EDCP department presented their thoughts on this year’s theme: Transformation and translation. Each panelist elucidated the subject by providing theoretical insights, describing their academic career, Indigenous perspectives on transformative practices, and interdisciplinary classroom ideas. The conference’s third session consisted of the concurrent break-out sessions, two panels, and a workshop followed by two simultaneous panels. In the sessions, a total of 15 presenters (all graduate students) shared their research. The conference has wrapped up with thanks to those who were able to participate.

 

This year’s conference attracted 54 participants, some of whom were located overseas despite facing the challenge of navigating different time zones. A few of the participants were incoming graduate students who took full advantage of the conference’s online format and had a unique opportunity to get to know their future peers in advance.  The 14 graduate student volunteers helped organize the conference, including doing peer reviews and moderating conference panels. With such an excellent environment, the 8th EGS conference was a great opportunity for all participants to get positive and productive feedback from peers and faculty members, refresh their thoughts, and get inspired.

 

Submitted by EDCP peer advisors | Angela Baldus, Qiaochu Xu (Joy), Naoki Takemura, and Nashwa Khedr

 


 

View the Conference program: EGS 2021 Translation and Transformation Program

 

 

You can view the recording of the first section, including panel discussion.