Anti-Black Racism

Ontario’s Anti-Racism Directorate defines anti-Black racism as prejudice, attitudes, beliefs, stereotyping and discrimination directed at people of African descent and is rooted in their unique history and experience of enslavement and its legacy. Anti-Black racism is deeply embedded in Canadian institutions, policies and practices such that it is normalized or deemed invisible to the larger white society.” - Ontario College of Teachers, Professional Advisory on Anti-Black Racism, p.1

In this five-module course school leaders will: deepen their understanding of anti-Black racism and the current ways it exists in educational institutions today; and critically examine school practices and approaches through a variety of tangible, researched-based strategies to actively address and disrupt anti-Black racism in their schools and learning environments.

Course Dates: January 13 – February 14, 2025

Synchronous Discussions (Wednesdays): 

1. January 15, 2025
2. January 22
3. January 29
4. February 5
5. February 12

Time: 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. EST

Cost: $350 +HST (Member and Associates), $440 +HST (Non-Members) 

Facilitator: Shelita Walker, Halton District School Board

Course completed. To inquire about future sessions, please contact learning@principals.ca.

*Please note:  

• This program will run on sufficient enrollment. We will notify you after registration closes to confirm. If the course moves forward, we will send a Canvas invitation for access to the course modules.
• There are no assessments or formal completion criteria for this program. If you have any questions, feel free to contact learning@principals.ca.

Antisemitism

This course will support school leaders in naming, stopping, actively addressing, disrupting and dismantling Antisemitism in their schools and learning environments.   

To understand Antisemitism, one needs to start by understanding both historical and contemporary Judaism. Antisemitism is the world’s oldest hate with unique characteristics that distinguish it from other prejudices and hostilities.

In this five-module course, school leaders will:

• deepen their understanding of Antisemitism and its historical and present day manifestations in society and in spaces of education
• participants will critically examine Jewish identity and diversity
• take a trip to Ancient Judea to learn how anti-Judaism first developed
• learn about Antisemitism during exile and the progression of antisemitic ideologies as they morphed from religious to racial Antisemitism
• learn how racial supremacism was combined with socioeconomic discontents after WWI to produce a most virulent strain of Antisemitism during the Holocaust, and
• learn about what Zionism is and isn’t and about the role of Israel in Jewish identity as we look at examples of modern manifestations of Antisemitism.

Course Dates: September 23 to November 29, 2024

Synchronous Discussions *please note date changes: 

1. Tuesday, September 24*
2. Tuesday, October 8*
3. Wednesday, October 30
4. Wednesday, November 13
5. Wednesday, November 27

Time: 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. EDT/EST

Cost: $350 +HST (Member and Associates), $440 +HST (Non-Members)

Facilitators: 

• Aneta Fishman, York Region District School Board
• Emily Caruso Parnell, Rainbow District School Board

Course completed. To inquire about future sessions, please contact learning@principals.ca.

*Please note:

• This program will run on sufficient enrollment. We will notify you after registration closes to confirm. If the course moves forward, we will send a Canvas invitation for access to the course modules.
• There are no assessments or formal completion criteria for this program. If you have any questions, feel free to contact learning@principals.ca.

Details: In partnership with the Centre for Leadership and Diversity, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), University of Toronto we are offering a unique learning experience for principals and vice-principals to participate in an inquiry that focuses on leading for equity.

Through this four-part series, participants will co-create a program which strengthens their agency, confidence and commitment to leading for human rights, social  justice, anti-oppression and the decolonization of educational spaces. 

Visit our Co-constructing Leadership for Equity webpage for full details and to register.

Muslim students have been attending our schools for over a century and have been steadily growing in numbers since the 1960s. As administrators work towards building inclusive schools for everyone, conversations around Muslim students and families need to shift from a focus on accommodations to a focus on inclusive curriculum and responsive pedagogies.

This eight-module course delves deeper into understanding Canadian Muslims by discussing a number of relevant topics for school leaders, such as the diversity of the Muslim community, perspectives of Muslim youth, challenging Islamophobia in schools, considerations of building inclusive schools, addressing contemporary issues, and more. Through the lens of Muslim learners, participants will gain the necessary knowledge to better serve all students, families, and staff in our schools.

Course Dates: March 24 - May 16, 2025

Synchronous Dates (Wednesdays): 

Time: 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. EDT

Cost: $350 +HST (Member and Associates), $440 +HST (Non-Members)

Facilitator: Qaiser Ahmad, Toronto District School Board

Registration is now closed. To inquire about future sessions, please contact learning@principals.ca.

*Please note:  

• This program will run on sufficient enrollment. We will notify you after registration closes to confirm. If the course moves forward, we will send a Canvas invitation for access to the course modules.
• There are no assessments or formal completion criteria for this program. If you have any questions, feel free to contact learning@principals.ca.

Online facilitated learning courses draw from the Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) Ethical Standards and Standards of Practice. Our online facilitated learning courses have a combination of asynchronous and synchronous components. This structure is intended to recognize the demands that school leaders have on their time, while providing essential opportunities to collaborate and engage in discussions to critically reflect and solidify learning. 

Participants in online facilitated learning are expected to: 

• demonstrate honesty, responsibility and trust in the submission and representation of their academic work and related professional experiences 

• be respectful, collaborative and inclusive through their interactions, assignments, synchronous and asynchronous dialogue/discussions and any other form of communication with participants and facilitators

• be open to receiving feedback from facilitators and participants, using it constructively to improve their learning

• Engage in learning activities and complete all required tasks and assignments as outlined at the start of the course and 

• demonstrate a commitment to their own learning and growth throughout the course, actively seeking opportunities to expand their knowledge and understanding by attending all synchronous session and engage in all course dialogue / discussions.

All participants should communicate with the course facilitator(s) if there is an issue with completing coursework, attending synchronous sessions and/or meeting the expectations and standards outlined.