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West Nile, back to school
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August 24, 2009
West Nile in B.C.
The West Nile Virus has been detected for the first time in B.C. according to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control. The centre reports that a mosquito pool sample collected in the South Okanagan has tested positive and two people from the Kelowna area have symptoms that tested positive for the virus. SFU biologist Carl Lowenberger studies mosquitoes and the West Nile Virus and can shed light on the findings.
Carl Lowenberger, 778.782.3985; carl_lowenberger@sfu.ca
Back to school: Learning in Depth project
SFU education professor Kieran Egan specializes in imagination and learning and can provide details of a pilot project called Learning in Depth, set to go into some Vancouver, Victoria and Langley schools in September. “The idea is that during the first week of school, each child will be given a particular topic to learn about through his or her whole school career, in addition to the usual curriculum,” Egan explains. Topics might include such things as apples, ships, the circus, cats, the solar system, etc. Students will meet regularly with supervising teachers as they build personal portfolios on their topics. “The aim is that each child, by the end of his or her schooling, will know as much about that topic as almost anyone,” says Egan. The expectation, he adds, is that the process will transform their understanding of the nature of knowledge.
Kieran Egan, 778.782.4671, 604.261.1533; egan@sfu.ca
Back to school: Friends of Simon reach out
An SFU Faculty of Education program that helps newcomers to Canada improve their literacy skills is expanding into more schools this fall. The program will support students at Coquitlam’s Banting Middle School, while in Surrey, student tutors will be part of an after-school program beginning at Lena Shaw Elementary School. Project coordinator Angela Flumerfelt says the number of SFU student tutors involved has more than doubled since the program began two years ago. Education professor Paul Shaker can talk about the program’s success and how the effort is benefiting more than 200 immigrant and refugee students from K-Grade 7. Tutor Tiffany England can talk about her work at Coquitlam’s Roy Stibbs Elementary School. See www.sfu.ca/~fosimon
Paul Shaker, 778.782.3148; pshaker@sfu.ca
Tiffany England, tae@sfu.ca
Angela Flumerfelt, 778.554.9995; angela_flumerfelt_2@sfu.ca
The West Nile Virus has been detected for the first time in B.C. according to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control. The centre reports that a mosquito pool sample collected in the South Okanagan has tested positive and two people from the Kelowna area have symptoms that tested positive for the virus. SFU biologist Carl Lowenberger studies mosquitoes and the West Nile Virus and can shed light on the findings.
Carl Lowenberger, 778.782.3985; carl_lowenberger@sfu.ca
Back to school: Learning in Depth project
SFU education professor Kieran Egan specializes in imagination and learning and can provide details of a pilot project called Learning in Depth, set to go into some Vancouver, Victoria and Langley schools in September. “The idea is that during the first week of school, each child will be given a particular topic to learn about through his or her whole school career, in addition to the usual curriculum,” Egan explains. Topics might include such things as apples, ships, the circus, cats, the solar system, etc. Students will meet regularly with supervising teachers as they build personal portfolios on their topics. “The aim is that each child, by the end of his or her schooling, will know as much about that topic as almost anyone,” says Egan. The expectation, he adds, is that the process will transform their understanding of the nature of knowledge.
Kieran Egan, 778.782.4671, 604.261.1533; egan@sfu.ca
Back to school: Friends of Simon reach out
An SFU Faculty of Education program that helps newcomers to Canada improve their literacy skills is expanding into more schools this fall. The program will support students at Coquitlam’s Banting Middle School, while in Surrey, student tutors will be part of an after-school program beginning at Lena Shaw Elementary School. Project coordinator Angela Flumerfelt says the number of SFU student tutors involved has more than doubled since the program began two years ago. Education professor Paul Shaker can talk about the program’s success and how the effort is benefiting more than 200 immigrant and refugee students from K-Grade 7. Tutor Tiffany England can talk about her work at Coquitlam’s Roy Stibbs Elementary School. See www.sfu.ca/~fosimon
Paul Shaker, 778.782.3148; pshaker@sfu.ca
Tiffany England, tae@sfu.ca
Angela Flumerfelt, 778.554.9995; angela_flumerfelt_2@sfu.ca