This is the first time I have attended and presented at CSSE. I had a great experience during seven days of the conference under different roles. Prior to CSSE, I have attended different international conferences but not an online one, so I was curious how it works, how people organize it with the help of technology. That’s why I registered to work as a volunteer not only to join the team to support the organizer to run the rumble chat and the greeting lounge, but also to learn and gain more knowledge on how an online conference is different from an offline one in terms of different tasks, roles, procedure, and the organization. Additionally, I worked as a member of the knowledge mobilization team whose role is to tweet about different sessions and spotlight events during the conference. This was an amazing opportunity for me to attend different presentations and learn from the presenters not only how they conduct their research but also to open my network to have more friends and have a chance to discuss, share, and exchange ideas with them. For me, I learn not just by “doing”, but by attending, presenting, and discussing during the conference.
As an international student living and studying in a foreign country, I have been experiencing different challenges over the first year of the program. I understand clearly how lonely it is taking all my courses online. Sometimes I feel lost and disconnected, and I want more interaction or live discussions with my classmates in online classes/courses. Therefore, I was more interested in presentation sessions from Canadian Community of Graduate Students in Education – CCGSE. The session that I found closely resonated to me is Session 7.10, the roundtables on Self-study and Reflexivity including four presentations of graduate students from different universities. International students’ learning experience is one of my research interests, so I saw myself and my own experience clearly in the study from Yina Liu and Emma Chen “A Holistic Perspective: Reimagining Graduate Students’ Well-Being Amid and Beyond the Pandemic” and in another study from a group of graduate students and faculty members (such as Beverly FitzPatrick, Kelvin Quintyne) named “Situating the self through sketching: First year doctoral students finding their way”. I am aware of the importance of students’ well-being and mental health in an online class, and how it helps them to overcome difficulties on their journey.
Another presentation that resonates with me as a teacher is “Examining Teachers’ Perspectives on Issues of Equity and Inclusion in Online Teaching during COVID-19” from Julia Forgie, Lisa Dack, and Mikayla Boccalon. They discussed the interviewees’ perspectives on the unique challenges and opportunities for equitable learning that they encountered when teaching online. The instructors also discussed how they were able to balance the problems of access to technology, home as the learning environment, and family participation and support, as well as the benefits of collaboration, differentiated learning, and accessibility in their post-pandemic classrooms. This study has identified various educational implications that contribute to the body of work on the influence of online learning on equitable learning outcomes by changing the focus to the viewpoints of instructors who are on the front lines of student learning. Furthermore, this study makes a novel contribution to existing research by identifying unique potential for improving equitable learning experiences in online learning environments. The findings of this study highlight the significance of teacher advocacy in the fight for equal learning opportunities and outcomes for all students. This research provides me with lots of useful knowledge and implications for my own teaching experience.
CSSE 2022 brought together experts, professionals, researchers, teachers, and students from all over the world. It has been the most professional online conference I have ever attended. The conference leaves an unforgettable memory in my mind, and I am really looking forward to the CSSE 2023 – hopefully in person – at York University.
Thu Le
PhD student in Educational Studies, Faculty of Education, University of Windsor.