This is my professional blog, a part of an assignment for PIDP3100. Welcome to my page, and enjoy my reflections.
Creative Commons License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Since 2007, Dennis’s leadership experiences have spanned across the continuum of care in Health and Social Services, Education, and Justice. Dennis’s focus is organizational development, mental health and addictions, and quality improvement. A self-declared northerner, a two-time immigrant, and a seasoned senior government executive with extensive experience in health, education, social, and public safety services. Originally from Greece, Dennis moved to the USA in 1994 accompanying his parents in their pursuit of medical education. Dennis immigrated to Canada in 2003 to pursue his own educational, professional, and personal dreams. Ever since, Dennis has focused on working with people in rural and remote communities in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario, Alberta, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and British Columbia. While in Canada, Dennis has earned graduate degrees, a graduate certificate, three professional designations, lived in parts of the country that many people only dream of visiting, and has connected with communities and cultures which have enriched his life personally and professionally. Dennis enjoys outdoor activities, and has taken on activities such as mountain biking, running, hiking, and cross country skiing.
Dennis in Education
In 2022, Dennis shifted his career focus to the field of education. While this seems to be a big change - it is actually not. In his past experience as a leader, Dennis was responsible for educating all those around him. Dennis thinks that teaching and learning go together. In his classroom, Dennis is teaching learners just as much as he is learning from them. It is a two way street - an approach that he has used for his whole career, and will continue to. Dennis becomes a better teacher when he is a better student.
From personal experience, I can speak to the merits of learner empowerment. As a child growing up in Greece, learning was based on memorizing facts and taking tests. One of my relatives joked that to get into university after post-secondary school, depending on which Greek university you were hoping to get into, you must memorize the textbooks and the periods, commas, and semi-columns. Learning by doing was not within the intention of designing the Greek education system. The instructors' knowledge was also questioned based on their lesson preparedness. In my experience, instructors often read from the book while teaching class and encouraged learners to memorize the material word for word. This type of teaching was not engaging. The learning mostly took place outside the classroom, raising the question about the usefulness of learners attending class. In summary, this was the least engaging experience and did not empower learners to seek their learning outside of memorizing the textbooks.
Kolb & Kolb (2017) speak to the instructor’s ability to direct attention away from themselves. These approaches to learning move the learner away from memorization and enhance the need to explore resources in search of answers. By searching for those answers, learners expand their source base and learn more than needed for their courses. They develop a level of expertise that can then be shared with their colleagues in the classroom and the instructor. As a result, while the instructor is technically still the subject matter expert, learners in the classroom also become subject matter experts because they have been empowered to search for sources that will expand their learning horizons. I feel that empowering learners in and out of the classroom helps expand their knowledge base, enhancing their expertise in subjects of interest to them.
References
Kolb, A., and Kolb, D. (2017) "Experiential Learning Theory as a Guide for Experiential Educators in Higher Education," Experiential Learning & Teaching in Higher Education: Vol. 1: No. 1, Article 7. Available at: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/elthe/vol1/iss1/7
Becoming a full-time academic three years ago, after 17 years as a senior healthcare executive and a part-time academic, was an eye-opening experience in many ways. One of those ways is using a learning management system (LMS) for online courses and traditional courses taught in the classroom. When I began teaching online in 2013, we used an online platform that was challenging for both the instructor and the learners. I often printed hard copies of materials to read, mark, and provide feedback offline and by email. This process seemed redundant, and explaining the point of it all to learners was also challenging. In 2022, I was puzzled when I was informed that an LMS was the learning tool for in-person classes until I realized that it was a different LMS, one that was easy to use and that it was a helpful tool.
Literature
Reid (2019) discusses recent trends in adult education, which have characterized the introduction of LMS systems as a “game changer” in delivering educational programming. The author also discusses the change in student bodies, which are moving away from traditional in-person education to a model that supports distance learning. The LMS makes that transition possible in ways that distance learning previously never did. For example, an LMS system allows instructors to keep the information up to date for courses without having to re-create a course or keep track of the changes. Any changes are maintained electronically, which allows for future consultations of past materials effectively and efficiently. It also allows for asynchronous education, where learners can study from anywhere without speaking to someone or attending class in person.
What does that mean for my practice?
While I am aware of these trends and what I call an early adopter, I would like to share some of the lessons I have learned over the past several years. For one, learners and instructors like routine. Imagine being a learner and taking five courses and having course LMS sites, each organized uniquely. I have taken classes like that, and they drove me crazy. I found it challenging to locate course materials as courses were never organized similarly, and it took more time to find the materials than to do the work. To expand my learning, I have taken many online courses and have found that if courses are organized using the same template, the learning process is much smoother. Learners are focused on learning and not figuring out the institution’s bureaucratic politics, resulting in happier learners and faculty. In reaching that conclusion, I have taken many courses and have been a happy learner when I do not have to figure out the structure of a course repeatedly every time I register for a new class with a professor I have had before. So, I have adjusted my courses to all using the same template. This means the format is the same, although the materials are different for every course. When learners take my course once, the subsequent courses with me will all have the same format.
As Instructors, we must realize that LMS is a tool that will be around for a while. The best choice we can make is to embrace it and use it to its full potential. Both literature and experience allude to that, so we might as well realize it and keep moving forward to support learners in our classrooms.
References
Reid, Lester. (2019). Learning Management Systems: The Game Changer for Traditional Teaching and Learning at Adult and Higher Education Institutions. 19. 1. 10.34257/GJHSSGVOL19IS6PG1.
Interesting Links
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Canada continues to experience shortages in the health field. Doctors, nurses, and other healthcare providers are in short supply across our communities, which leads to challenges. Smaller communities in rural and remote areas are negatively affected because people must travel to bigger communities for diagnostic tests and procedures. Over the years, rural and remote Canadians have lived with the promise outlined by the Canada Health Act (CHA), which speaks to all Canadians having access to equivalent healthcare services (Health Canada, 2025). Meanwhile, how can the government promise that a fly-in community of 300 can have the same timely access to health services as those living in big centres? While the answer seems simple, it is complex.
Canada began and continues to be built with immigrant labour. Statistics Canada shows that most of the country's population growth is due to immigration (Statistics Canada, 2024). Important announcements in the past few years regarding licensing times for nurses and doctors in Nova Scotia (Nova Scotia College of Nurses, 2023; CBC News, 2024)were made. It seems there is a commitment to ensure that internationally trained providers are licensed with quicker turnaround times. This will likely help sustain the healthcare system with qualified professionals and reduce shortages. It will likely also result in Canada importing more internationally trained professionals to fill needs country-wide. Whether this will address the level of shortages Canada is currently experiencing remains to be seen.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information presents data showing that while Canada has had more luck recruiting doctors, nurse practitioners, nurses and other healthcare professionals from abroad, the numbers exiting practice are high enough that retention of healthcare professionals and recruitment in high numbers remains vital for the sustainability of the systems (Canadian Institute of Health Information, 2024).
References
Canadian Institute of Health Information. (2024, December 17). Health workforce: Recruitment and retention. Retrieved January 11, 2025, from Canadian Institute of Health Information: https://www.cihi.ca/en/the-state-of-the-health-workforce-in-canada-2023/health-workforce-recruitment-and-retention#international
CBC News. (2024, October 08). Nova Scotia to reduce assessment time for licensing internationally trained doctors. Retrieved January 11, 2025, from News: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/nova-scotia-to-reduce-assessment-time-for-licensing-internationally-trained-doctors-1.7345969
Health Canada. (2025, January 10). Canada Health Act. Retrieved from Health: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/health-care-system/canada-health-care-system-medicare/canada-health-act.html
Nova Scotia College of Nurses. (2023, March 16). NSCN Announces a First in Canada Licensure Process for Nurses Coming to Nova Scotia. Retrieved January 11, 2025, from Nova Scotia College of Nurses: https://www.nscn.ca/explore-nscn/news-and-media/news/2023/nscn-announces-first-canada-licensure-process-nurses-coming-nova-scotia
Statistics Canada. (2024, December 17). Canada's population estimates, third quarter 2024. Retrieved January 11, 2025, from The Daily: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/241217/dq241217c-eng.htm
Canada's population was estimated at 41,465,298 on October 1, 2024, an increase of 176,699 people (+0.4%) from July 1. This was the slowest
NSCN Announces a First in Canada Licensure Process for Nurses Coming to Nova Scotia HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA – As Nova Scotia’s nursing regulato
Nova Scotia is launching a new medical program that will certify internationally trained doctors more quickly to work in the province's heal
Nova Scotia is launching a new medical program that will certify internationally trained doctors more quickly to work in the province's heal
The PIDP program has been eye-opening. Through it, I have learned how to design my lessons to meet the needs of a wide audience of learners and become more learner-centered. I want to focus on this aspect of my continuing learning.
Complimentary to PIDP, I have been taking graduate courses at the University of the People (UoPeople), a tuition-free online school. This program will lead to a Master of Education (M.Ed.) in Advanced Teaching. While nothing in life is free, this school has minimal fees, and when I began looking at it, my search was more of an experiment than anything else. There are certain things about this program that I am really enjoying so far, which are also complimentary to the PIDP program and are informing my practice at Northern Lights College (NLC).
At NLC, as Chair of the University Arts and Sciences (UNAS), I am responsible for course quality. While our courses have excellent content, we are not using Brightspace, the institutional LMS system, to its full potential. This means that at UoPeople, courses in every program are organized similarly, and learners can find their materials easily, as they are the same for every course. For example, the syllabus and course policies can always be found in the same spot, and every week, there is an agenda with lectures, readings, and assignments listed similarly. At NLC, each course follows a unique sequence, and learners often have difficulty finding course materials. This is an area of quality improvement that I am keen on, and I would like to work with my colleagues to create an “NLC standard” that will be used for all courses. Of course, this is one of many examples.
As a lifelong learner, I am keen to continue my education by taking courses past PIDP and M.Ed. in various institutions. For example, I am interested in becoming an effective online instructor. Thomson Rivers University (TRU) has a graduate certificate in online teaching and learning that I am keenly interested in taking. While most of my education has been in person, I have taken many courses online. Initially, I was increasingly skeptical of the effectiveness of online education. However, I have learned more about the benefits, using my learning as evidence. While it is only effective for some learners, it is a practical way of learning when living far from physical colleges and universities, and it provides an essential pathway to education when no others are available.
As evident, I am keenly interested in following more of an institutional pathway to continuing education. This is a result of my comfort level with identifying learning opportunities. Moreover, this pathway allows me to follow an already-made plan that expands on my learning step-by-step.
My favourite TED Talk of all time is by Dr Amy Cuddy. Dr Cuddy describes her own story after having a major car accident that resulted in a brain injury that lowered her IQ. In this TED Talk, she speaks about a transformation using an old cliché, “Fake it until you make it,” which transforms into “Fake it until you become it.” Today, I want to share a bit of my own story.
I grew up in Greece with my grandparents until the age of 13. During this time, I had no success in the Greek educational system and barely passed my classes. I was utterly overwhelmed and had no energy to catch up. It did not matter how much tutoring I got or how much encouragement or punishment came with each report card; the results stayed the same. At 13, I moved to the USA to join my mother, who was completing her medical residency in Houston, Texas, at the time. I spoke no English, and it was apparent that I would have to stay behind in school to catch up. I spent the first year feeling sorry for myself and did the bare minimum to survive. This changed after my mother had a very blunt conversation with me about my responsibilities as an adult. At that point, while I was initially insulted, I decided that I would put in effort no matter what. I chose not to give up, and after a few tries, my high school experience changed utterly. Five years later, I graduated from high school with numerous awards and attended university. Four years later, I graduated from university, ranking number 2 in my graduating class, with multiple offers to attend graduate school. The rest is history.
So, what happened? I got mad and stubborn and decided that no matter what happened, I would always work hard. The outcomes were positive and encouraging, and I met some excellent teachers and professors along the way who became my mentors and, later, my closest friends. So, I can relate to Dr. Cuddy’s statement, “Fake it until you become it.” This is precisely what happened to me. I kept trying and never gave up. It has paid off. I still love this TED Talk.
In the next five years, I would like to complete some of my goals, which are currently either in progress or collecting dust. As I am “newer” to education, I am currently in the last 3 courses of the Provincial Instructor Diploma Program (PIDP). While this program is going by fast, I have learned a great deal, especially since some of the program learning outcomes are new tools for my toolbox. In addition, I am working on a Masters in Education focusing on teaching, which keeps me super busy, but it is also exciting and rewarding. Since it is a self-paced program, I can read and learn about things I care about. My biggest nemesis is my unfinished doctoral dissertation. It has been collecting dust, and I would instead do anything but finish it. This is something I want to complete. With my teaching and research, I would like to continue teaching different courses and become better at the versatility of college teaching. I get to teach many new classes, and I am also developing some, which gives me a fantastic experience. I would also like to begin by writing a book about workplace safety topics, focusing on workplace culture and how to create positive work environments. I keep an open mind and adjust my plans as things shift. Many surprises are on the horizon, and I cannot wait to see what life will bring.
Understanding Students' Resistance to Learning (Week 5)
Küçükkaragöz and Meylani (2023) define learners' resistance to learning as "a learner's unwillingness or incapacity to absorb new knowledge, ideas, or abilities—even when given sufficient opportunity and support" (p. 72). I am familiar with this feeling, as I was once that learner. Imagine studying for exams, purring in your heart and soul, and making an honest effort. One feels that one is learning a lot and expanding one's body of knowledge. Confident in the knowledge, the exam is harder than one thought possible and comes out completely deflated. What is next? If you put in more effort, something will happen numerous times. At that point, it seems that nothing one does makes a difference. This is the exact point where learners often give up.
This was me many years ago until I met teachers who became my strongest advocates and supporters. Growing up, Math was not my favourite subject. In fact, it was my worst and most hated subject. Reasons included that people kept telling me how hard it would be and that I would have to always memorize concepts to do well. My biggest fear was that I don't do well when asked to memorize concepts. Memorization does not equal understanding to me, which is an area I have struggled with all my life. This was until grade 10 when I met a teacher who clarified that memorization was unnecessary in her class. I did not believe this at first, though she seemed so confident that I was willing to try it. Well, she was right. By removing the need to memorize concepts and enabling me to come up with formulas by thinking them through, I could go from an F to an A math student.
So, what happened? It's pretty simple: I developed trust with an educator willing to give me a chance, and I gave her a chance. As a result, not only did I succeed in math in high school, but I also took math classes in university as electives because math was easy for me after that. Also, I tutored math as an adult for extra money in university. If it seems that it is all about trust, that's because it is. I felt this teacher was on my side and wanted me to succeed. She believed in me, so I decided to start believing in me. That is my secret to success in math, and I am very grateful for these experiences.
References
Küçükkaragöz, H & Meylani, R. (2023). Resistance to Learning: A Comprehensive Review of Contributing Factors.
Teaching at Northern Lights College (NLC), has made me become more sensitive to diversity. This is surprising because as a person of diverse ethnic background I thought I was already very sensitive to diversity in the classroom. This is a topic that I find increasingly interesting as I speak with international students, and the skills that they come with. As most people know (or perhaps don't), writing in North America is formal. School essays and papers must be properly formatted and cited, and while the content is important, the format plays a large role.
Growing up in Greece, I was taught that writing is about the content, and about the substance. The formatting comes after the content has reached the finishing line. This is something that I had to adjust to when I reached North America. So, why did I find it challenging to have this aha moment with my students? While the answer is complex, I feel that it has taken a while to understand that others might have faced the same challenge as me. While I was going through the difficult period of adjustment, all I could think about was survival. When I came out of that period, all I could think about was the fact that I survived.
When I see learners struggling, I do understand that the struggle is real. By allowing them to express their need for help, I can simply understand how I can address their needs more effectively. How I can pair students in groups that can help out one another, and how I can adjust my teaching to share content that I normally would not. For example, I now spent time in teaching the APA style that I until recently assumed everyone had education on. Reaching out to several of the international students, they said that they had never seen it before. It is now part of my curriculum.
Brookfield identifies numerous methods to teach in diverse classrooms. As the teacher, I have responsibility to set the tone, however, I don't have to do all the teaching alone. I can rely on methods such as team teaching, and use the opportunity to learn to read what students are trying to tell me with their silence. By staying silent, I can perhaps more easily hear their struggles and challenges, and can come up with ways that will be helpful to them as they grow in a different country. Aha - this is what I needed when I first arrived and everything was new to me, and this is what my teachers did to build me to succeed.
References
Brookfield, S. (2015). The skillful teacher: On technique, trust, and responsiveness in the classroom (Third ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Chapter 2 discussed the four characteristics of a skillful teacher. According to Brookfield (2015), the characteristics are:
A teacher must do what the student needs to learn;
A teacher must always reflect upon their own practice;
A teacher must always be aware of students' learning outcomes and perceptions of the teacher;
College age students are adults.
While all the characteristics are insightful, the last one is the most interesting, focusing on treating college students as adults. As a college student, I lived at home with my mother. We had developed this roommate relationship, and I could come and go as I pleased. While Mom was discreet in her fears, I knew that every morning, she looked in the driveway to see if my car was parked there, and that made her worry less.
Treating people as adults allows them to rise to the task of adulthood. This is not desirable or sustainable. It is undesirable because the young adult will experience significant delays in growing up, burdening them and their parents. It is unsustainable because when people are all grown up, they care for themselves financially. If they are unable to reach that goal because they have never grown up, then they will develop dependancies.
The student-teacher relationship in the classroom is both different and similar. It is different setting, and because of the t is similar because teachers must also let students grow up. For example, students often "test" their teachers when asking for exceptions to deadlines or assignment requirements. Depending on the school's policy, if the teacher allows them to avoid following the syllabus, the student will never understand that doing timely work is part of growing up. This will ensure that they grow up to be responsible adults.
In closing, students must be treated as adults and expected to act as adults, whether at home, school, or the workplace. While they may not receive this message positively at first, it will pave the way for their life success.
References
Brookfield, S.D. (2015). The Skillful Teacher: On Technique, Trust, and Responsiveness in the Classroom (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Since 2007, Dennis’s leadership experiences have spanned across the continuum of care in Health and Social Services, Education, and Justice. Dennis’s focus is organizational development, mental health and addictions, and quality improvement.
A self-declared northerner, a two-time immigrant, and a seasoned senior government executive with extensive experience in health, education, social, and public safety services. Originally from Greece, Dennis moved to the USA in 1994 accompanying his parents in their pursuit of medical education. Dennis immigrated to Canada in 2003 to pursue his own educational, professional, and personal dreams. Ever since, Dennis has focused on working with people in rural and remote communities in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario, Alberta, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and British Columbia.
While in Canada, Dennis has earned graduate degrees, a graduate certificate, three professional designations, lived in parts of the country that many people only dream of visiting, and has connected with communities and cultures which have enriched his life personally and professionally. Dennis enjoys outdoor activities, and has taken on activities such as mountain biking, running, hiking, and cross country skiing.
Dennis in Education
In 2022, Dennis shifted his career focus to the field of education. While this seems to be a big change - it is actually not. In his past experience as a leader, Dennis was responsible for educating all those around him. Dennis thinks that teaching and learning go together. In his classroom, Dennis is teaching learners just as much as he is learning from them. It is a two way street - an approach that he has used for his whole career, and will continue to. Dennis becomes a better teacher when he is a better student.
