Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Educational Development is pleased to announce the theme of this year's annual teaching day -- Fostering Civility in the Teaching and Learning Environment. The day will consist of a keynote address and an afternoon of concurrent sessions. Please note there is a $25 registration fee for Laurier members; a $50 registration fee applies to non-Laurier members. Lunch is provided.

Specifically, this year’s one-day event aims to: 

• provide a forum to share experiences, issues and challenges associated with in/civility
• strategize ways to prevent, respond to, and mitigate incidence of incivility
• acknowledge key institutional individuals and service units whom we can call upon
• strengthen and promote a respectful teaching & learning environment at Laurier

Keynote Speaker

Dr. Zopito Marini is a professor of Child and Youth Studies at Brock University and the recipient of numerous teaching honours including the Brock Chancellor's Chair for Teaching Excellence and the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) Teaching Award. His most important accolades come directly from his students who have repeatedly nominated Zopito as one of Brock University's favourite professors in “The Student's Guide to Canadian Universities”. Professor Marini is an expert on the psychological and social factors that contribute to bullying among adolescents. More recently, his interest in teaching has led him to a new research focus – classroom civility. Transferring his expertise in schoolyard bullying to the university context, Dr. Zopito investigates the impact of uncivil behaviour on the learning environment with the aim of developing strategies to establish and maintain positive classroom norms.