Toronto the good. These words have never been more fitting as they were the day I walked into the halls of Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau elementary school. Looking out from the window of the third floor, one can see the CN tower, seemingly shining a light on the good work of educators at this institution. Named after the former Prime Minister of Canada, Pierre Elliott Trudeau, this is a Viamonde board bilingual eco-school. The building entrance is filled with posters of student art and mosaïques to remind visitors and students alike of the core values of the school. My focus for this placement will take me on a journey to discover citizenship in action, part of which encompasses caring for the environment. I chose this school as I am bilingual and wanted to see citizenship education represented in the area of language learning both inside and outside the classroom, as well as themes of promoting well-being and student engagement in the city. Unique to this school is its history of equality, justice, integration and diversity, established by the former Prime Minister after who the school is named. I hope to see this diversity represented in the student body and in the curriculum content studied.

For this community engaged learning placement, I was paired with a grade 4 class. Children are very creative and some of the expectations I have going into the classroom include finding creative models of engagement and innovation. I hope to be able to connect with students through language learning, and to find out what school and community initiatives are available for them to find their voice as local and global citizens. As a teacher-researcher I hope to see evidence of the policies on equity and inclusive education, and environmental education carried out at the school level. I will also be looking for examples of language education outside the classroom. Some of the questions that I hope to have answered relate to student identity and language and gender equity in the classroom.

Citizenship education can take many forms such as care for the environment, collaboration, cooperation, and a respectful and caring classroom community. Globally, the United Nation’s sustainable development goals gives member states direction on international standards to achieve. Locally in Ontario, the expectations for citizenship education are outlined in the curriculum and students focus on areas of identity, character and values education, active participation and power systems within societies (2018 Ontario Social Studies Curriculum grades 1-6). Collaboration with educators is also an important part of this placement and I hope to be able to connect with teachers who are focused on delivering the curriculum in an equitable way.

During my 5 weekly visits, I will work as a classroom aide and then transition into a teaching role in week 4. My main task will be to help students finish up work assigned, and to support those who show specific learning needs. I also hope to model and teach the broader character traits of empathy and care for the student community and self-regulation in order to achieve tasks.

One challenge I may encounter is finding ways to connect with the students as I am only at the school once per week. A personal challenge is taking the community philosophy I have learned at this school with me into my future teaching.