November 22, 2024

The Government of Ontario is investing $510M over the next three years to enhance specialized education and training for nurses. This funding will support more than 20,000 health-care learners by providing hands-on experiences in hospitals and community care organizations; helping streamline registration for internationally educated nurses; and assisting registered nurses with tuition as they train to prescribe medications for certain conditions. “By building on our actions to date to bolster the nursing workforce, we are strengthening health system capacity and ensuring Ontarians continue to have access to timely, high-quality care, where and when they need it,” said ON Deputy Premier and Minister of Health Sylvia Jones.

The Institut national de la recherche scientifique and the Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue are collaborating to launch new master’s and PhD programs in Indigenous Studies, which they say will become Canada’s first French-language graduate programs in this field. The joint programs will be offered through INRS’s Centre Urbanisation Culture Société and UQAT’s École d’études autochtones starting in Fall 2025 and use innovative pedagogical approaches that integrate Indigenous and scientific knowledge. “Thanks to their complementary expertise and close ties with local partners, UQAT and INRS faculty members will contribute to training a generation of researchers committed to a more just and equitable society, by promoting social innovation and the democratization of knowledge,” said UQAT recteur Vincent Rousson.

The University of Calgary’s Faculty of Science is piloting the contract grading method, a teaching approach that bases grades on the student’s fulfilment of a “contract” with the instructor. For example, an instructor may let a student choose from 12 assignments, agreeing to award a B+ if they complete eight of them. UCalgary Assistant Professor Steve Sutcliffe likened the method to the realities of working in industry, where an employer would hire a contractor to do a certain amount of work. The benefits include reduced stress, deeper learning, and increased autonomy, though challenges can arise in larger classrooms or when adapting results to fit traditional grading systems.

Six Nations Polytechnic has announced its intent to change the name of its STEAM Academy to SNP Secondary School. At a recent meeting of the Six Nations Elected Council at the General Council, SNP STEAM Academy Director Judy Reuban and Development Officer Kali Anevich explained that the community felt there was a lack of clarity around the school’s name. The new name is intended to emphasize the school’s identity as a high school, more clearly demonstrate its relationship to SNP, and better reflect its breadth of programming. The secondary school’s new name will be formally announced in March 2025 with a community event, which will be followed by a social media campaign.

The University of Manitoba will review its communications protocols after some students raised concerns about the institution’s response to reports of an armed individual on campus earlier this week. UManitoba and the Winnipeg Police Service worked together to address City News, CTV News, Winnipeg Free Press