Sabrina Ngo

Educational Theory & Practice: Curriculum & Pedagogy doctoral student in the Faculty of Education

A paralegal by trade, I began my instructional career hired as a subject-matter expert to develop and instruct paralegal courses at the University of the Fraser Valley. Once there, I found myself in the position of needing to know more about educational theory and pedagogical practices if I were to successfully develop and instruct courses that sought to enable students to develop their own deeper connection to the content. With little by way of instructor preparation or education to attend to this dilemma, this was further compounded when institutionally faculty and staff were mandated to begin the task of indigenizing our programs and practices. I decided then to embark on my own instructor education preparation, commencing with the Provincial Instructor Diploma at Vancouver Community College (VCC). Traversing an unorthodox path to a PhD program via the Provincial Instructor Diploma and an MEd, I sought to stay connected to my roots in vocational education by focusing my doctoral research on learning from other vocational educators how they conceptualize what it means to decolonize their practices within their programs. While decolonization is a well-researched and studied area in higher education, similar studies related to decolonizing pathways in vocational education specifically are not as forthcoming. As a white settler, understanding what it means to decolonize my educational practices was a topic that I struggled to grasp a better understanding of to facilitate productive and meaningful change. Through this research, I have gained a stronger awareness of the deeper connections of colonization to vocational education in itself, as well as the role classism, racism, and capitalism have all played in sustaining the enduring structure of settler-colonialism.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO COME TO SFU?

In 2018, after completing the Provincial Instructor Diploma at VCC, I began a community-based MEd Program between SFU and VCC. SFU provided the opportunity for me to rely upon my previous educational and practical experiences as a Legal Administrative Assistant and as a Paralegal to begin the next step of my journey as a junior scholar. These previous experiences of learning legal concepts, researching case law, analyzing legal principles, and applying the same to fact patterns gained from both a paralegal certificate program and real-life work experiences shaped my ability to focus on academic research and writing extensively, providing unconventional ways to think about and locate research. Two years in this program was not enough for me, and soon after completing my final project, I applied for the PhD program in Educational Theory and Practice, with a focus on curriculum and pedagogy. I had identified early on two professors within the Faculty of Education who I would like to work with, and I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work with Dr. Wanda Cassidy prior to her retirement, and now Dr. Özlem Sensoy.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR RESEARCH OR YOUR PROGRAM TO A FAMILY MEMBER?

Decolonization as a concept and term is largely connected to indigenization. While there is an inherent relationship between the two, if we as settlers focus too closely on this one aspect, we risk alleviating the responsibility we have in connection with truth and reconciliation by shouldering the work to dismantle colonialism on Indigenous Peoples. Looking at decolonization through the lens of vocational education, an educational system that is traditionally rooted in facilitating a student’s path towards employment, we can further look at the connections between the sociopolitical and economic structures that strongly root vocational education in industrial capitalism; a system that is not only embroiled in principles of classism but also deeply located within the ideologies of settler-colonialism. By directly looking at the connections of capitalism and settler-colonialism, we can shift the understanding, and thus the work of decolonization, towards a more salient and impactful approach and within the scope of settler responsibility.

WHAT ARE YOU PARTICULARLY ENJOYING ABOUT YOUR STUDIES/RESEARCH AT SFU?

As a student of Dr. Sensoy’s, I continue to be mentored under her guidance in capacities outside of my dissertation, including as the Centre Coordinator and Lead Research Assistant in the Cassidy Centre for Educational Justice. Here, together with other faculty members and junior scholars, there is a continued opportunity to be part of various research activities that support the Centre’s mandate to advance justice and an equitable, democratic society through education. Working in this Centre while completing my graduate degree has provided me with a unique opportunity to observe how a research centre operates, while also facilitating a deeper connection to the faculty and my overall research purposes.

HAVE YOU BEEN THE RECIPIENT OF ANY MAJOR OR DONOR-FUNDED AWARDS? IF SO, PLEASE TELL US WHICH ONES AND A LITTLE ABOUT HOW THE AWARDS HAVE IMPACTED YOUR STUDIES AND/OR RESEARCH.

I was recently awarded a SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship valued at $20,000 per year for two years. Not only has this funding enabled me to focus more on my research, in many ways being chosen as a recipient continues to validate the place vocational education and vocational research has within academia.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR PROGRAM/POSTDOC POSITION TO SOMEONE STILL SEARCHING FOR A PROGRAM OR POSTDOC POSITION?

Finding strong mentorship with many inspirational female scholars who continue to push forward in having their voices and research heard, I have often relayed to many of my colleagues and my own students that being a graduate student in the Faculty of Education has truly been one of the best experiences of my personal and professional life. I would encourage anyone who has a desire to engage in their passions and pursuit of education to explore a graduate program in the Faculty of Education, particularly if they are coming from a place of lived experiences in conjunction with their own unorthodox education, as they will find themselves engaged, driven, and cultivated into strong education scholars.

Contact Sabrina: sabrina_ngo@sfu.ca