As educational organizations pivot to a post-pandemic future, the landscape will be forever changed. Leaders in school systems must be ready to shift to meet known challenges that have become even more urgent at this unprecedented  time and to face new challenges that  require innovative and creative leadership thinking. 

This free series, sponsored by the Catholic Principals Council of Ontario (CPCO)Learning Forward Ontario and the Ontario Principals’ Council (OPC), is designed to engage school leaders and administrators in conversations related to the emerging issues in educational leadership in a VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous) world. The sessions will maximize participant connection and the sharing of ideas. Each session, facilitated by CPCO, Learning Forward Ontario and OPC representatives will feature short articles from the three association publications for participants to consider that reflects relevant topics to contemporary school leadership and learning.

Upcoming Sessions

Save the dates!

Leading Change / Implementation - October 22, 2024 

Description: Confirmed to join us to discuss their articles are Stephen Katz and Usha James.

Date: Tuesday, October 22, 2024

Time: 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. EDT

Cost: Free

Register

Articles for Discussion:

Leading in a Digital World - January 14, 2025 

More information will be available soon. 

Data, Self-awareness and Professional Trust - April 8, 2025 

More information will be available soon. 

Past Sessions

2023-24
Game Changers: Leading in times of Transformational Change - October 24, 2023

Description: During this session, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its implications for education and leadership will be examined.

Date: Tuesday, October 24, 2023 

Panel: 

  • Dr. Don A. Klinger, Pro Vice-Chancellor of Te Wānanga Toi Tangata Division of Education, University of Waikato
  • Dr. Louis Volante, Faculty of Education, Brock University

Session 1 Articles for Discussion:

Volante, Dr. Louis, Deluca, Dr. Christopher and Klinger, Dr. Don A. May 15, 2023. Forward-Thinking Assessment in the Era of Artificial Intelligence: Strategies to facilitate deep learning Education Canada (web exclusive), Summer 2023

Additional Resources:

Sylvester, Mark. 2023, May 3. Dr. Philippa Hardman: The AI Education Revolution is Coming - or is it? Facebook live recording by TEDx Santa Barbara Salon

On Learning Design and AI - A Conversation with Dr. Philippa Hardman, Future Learning Design Podcast, June 27, 2023

Selects: AI in Education with Chris Dede (S5E4), Learning Futures Podcast, March 8, 2023

Trauma-informed School Leadership - January 16, 2024

Description: Spurred on by the pandemic, the idea that schools are not only places of learning, but should also be places of “healing,” trauma is now a widespread educational aspiration.  But how are we, as leaders, actually doing when it comes to genuinely supporting students and others who experience trauma?

Date: Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Panel: Dr. David Tranter, Professor, Lakehead University

Session Two Articles for Discussion:

Trépanier-Bisson, Dr. Nadine, Tratner, Dr. David and Pollock, Dr. Katina. 2023. Trauma Informed Practice: Why Educator Wellbeing mattersEducation Canada (web exclusive), Fall 2023

Leading Transformational Change: Students as Agents of Change - April 2, 2024

Description: Join us for a thought-provoking discussion session focusing on the urgent need for education to adapt to the rapidly changing global landscape. This session will  examines key challenges such as demographic shifts, climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the rise of populism, intolerance, and fake news. We will also look at the role educators play in preparing students for these challenges by fostering critical thinking, creativity, and social responsibility.

Date: Tuesday, April 2, 2024

Panel: Dr. Ann E. Lopez, Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy in the Department of Leadership, Higher and Adult Education at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto.

Session 3 Articles for Discussion

Lopez, Ann E. 2023. Students as Agents of ChangePrincipal Connections, Winter 2023

2022-23
What Does Leading for Equity Look Like? - November 3, 2022

Date: Thursday, November 03, 2022

Session 1 Articles for Discussion:

Lopez, Anne E. Navigating Equitable Leadership in Schools

Learning Forward. 2022. Standards for Professional Learning

Planche, Beate, Elliott, Sue, Hobbs-Johnson, Audrey and Campbell, Carol. 2022. The View from Canada: Different terminology, but a shared commitment to professional learning. The Learning Professional, June 2022, pp. 48-51. 

Singh Dhaliwal, Kulbir. 2022. Anti-Oppressive Education: Adapting to the demands of educational and social reform. The Register, Fall 2022. pp. 22-25

Facilitating Professional Learning for Equity - February 28, 2023

Date: Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Session 2 Articles for Discussion:

Rodway, Dr. Joelle, Campbell, Dr. Carol, Lopez, Dr. Ann, Moore, Dr. Silvia, Ng-a-Fook, Dr. Nicolas and Schnellert, Dr. Leyton. 2023. Decolonizing Professional Learning: Gathering together for educational changeEducation Canada, Winter 2023

Bocala, Candice and Holman, Rolesia. 2022. Identity is at the Heart of Facilitating for EquityThe Learning Professional, April 2022, pp. 66-70.

Educating the Next Generation - April 13, 2023

Date: Tuesday, April 13, 2023

Panelist: Josh Fullan, MFA, BEd, OCT, IAP2

Session 3 Articles for Discussion: 

Schmidt, Dr. Bonnie. 2020. Designing Schools of the FutureThe Register, Summer 2020, pp. 15-21.

Fullan, Josh. 2022. Citizenship for a New AgePrincipal Connections, Winter 2022, pp. 8-10.

2021-22
The Right Drivers for Whole System Success - October 21, 2021

Date: Thursday October 21, 2021

Guest Facilitator: Michael Fullan - Author, Speaker and Educational Consultant

Session 1 Article for Discussion  

Fullan, Michael. 2021. The Right Drivers for Whole System Success. Victoria, Australia: The Centre for Strategic Education

Navigating Educational Equity in the Time of COVID-19 - January 20, 2022

Description: OPC and Learning Forward Ontario will be joined by guest Dr. Vidya Shah for the second session of the article series. This session will examine how we navigate the pandemic that has amplified the many longstanding inequities inherent in school systems that created even more significant gaps. How can we mitigate against this? As Vidya Shah asks in one of the articles we will use as a jumping-off point - "Who will we choose to be and how will we choose to live? How will it influence the how and why of schooling? "

Date: Thursday January 20, 2022

Guest Facilitator: Vidya Shah - Faculty of Education, York University

Session 2 Articles for Discussion:

Shah, Vidya. 2020. Opportunism or Opportunity? Navigating educational equity in the time of COVID-19. Education Canada, Winter 2020

The Leadership Academy. 2020. Leading an Equity-Focused Response Through and Beyond COVID-19

Supporting School Leaders Beyond Wellness and Resiliency - April 12, 2022

Description: Principals’ and vice-principals’ work has intensified. Professional leadership learning predominantly focuses on individual personal wellness and professional leadership strategies. However, changes in the education system structure may provide more long-term solutions to the work environment. How can school leaders bring about these system changes?

Date: Tuesday April 12, 2022

Guest Facilitator: Dr. Katina Pollock - Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy in the field of Critical Policy, Equity, and Leadership Studies at the Faculty of Education, Western University.

Session 3 Articles for Discussion:

Pollock, Dr. Katina and Wang, Dr. Fei. 2020. Principal Well-being: Strategies and coping mechanisms in times of uncertaintyThe Register, Summer 2020, pp. 22-27.

Pollock, Katina, Nielsen, Ruth and Bir Singh, Shanker. 2023. School principals work intensification and resilience - A call for structural change. Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, No. 203, pp. 2-12.