A speaker should approach his preparation not by what he wants to say, but by what he wants to learn.
- Todd Stocker
When I give a presentation, I invite the audience into a conversation. I have as much to learn from them as they have to learn from my PowerPoint slides. If you look over at my "Teaching" page, you'll see that people like to call me 'infectious'.
...I'm going to take that in the positive sense of the word (is there one?)
There's nothing better than being in a room with people who have high expectations of you, and who will respond with enthusiasm when you deliver. I'm always looking for my audience's non-verbal cues to see how we're relating to each other, and I get excited about the questions that they ask.
Lately, I've been getting more and more unsolicited advice that I should actually become motivational speaker. It's a great compliment, but I think that this stems from me being really excited to tell other people about what I have researched and learned. Then I want to know what they think about it. Then it's back to the drawing board to make it more relevant and useful, and the cycle continues. I think that this is the best form of knowledge translation.
You'll see that most of my presentations have something to do with what fascinates or frustrates me at that moment in time - gender roles in dance, black racial identity and achievement, how to survive comprehensive exams, and most recently, mental health. As a person with lived experience, it has been incredibly rewarding to open up the space a little bit for people who have struggled but still want to find success in this world.
Here's a list of my recent presentations:
· Co-Creating Curriculum with Youth Partners for Mental Health Literacy for Teacher Education Students
Workshop Presentation at the Canadian Psychological Association Annual Convention, Ottawa, June 4th, 2015
· From Surviving to Thriving: Mental Health and Well-Being in Graduate School
Workshop Presentation at the Future Professor Workshop Series, Western University, April 27th, 2015
· Why Can’t We Be Colourblind?
Paper Presentation at the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE) Annual Conference , St Catharines, May 25th, 2014
· An Evaluation of Mental Health Literacy Learning for Bachelor of Education Students: Mental Health Day 2014
Panel Presentation at the Mental Health Education Integration Consortium (MHEDIC) Spring Meeting, Chicago, May 14th, 2014
· Structuring the Unstructured: How a Type-A Student Survived Comps
Panel Presentation at the Doctoral Seminar Series, Western University, March 20th, 2014
· What Can We Learn From Those Who Made It?
Panel Presentation at the Moving Forward African Canadian Conference, London, Ontario, November 22nd, 2013
· Establishing Your Presence in the Classroom
Panel Presentation at the Future Professor Workshop Series, Western University, October 29th, 2013
· Who Are Our Western Students?
Panel Presentation at the New Faculty Orientation, Western University, August 15th, 2013
· “It comes back every time”: The Intersection of Race and Achievement in the Canadian Classroom
Paper Presentation at the Black Canadian Studies Association Conference, St Catharines, May 26th, 2013
· Can They or Can’t They? Shifting Discourses in the Academic Outcomes of Black Students
Paper Presentation at the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE) Annual Conference , Waterloo, May 28th, 2012
· Dance Like a Man: Interrogating Media Representations of Masculinity in Dance
Oral Presentation at the Western Research Forum, Western University, March 27th, 2012
...I'm going to take that in the positive sense of the word (is there one?)
There's nothing better than being in a room with people who have high expectations of you, and who will respond with enthusiasm when you deliver. I'm always looking for my audience's non-verbal cues to see how we're relating to each other, and I get excited about the questions that they ask.
Lately, I've been getting more and more unsolicited advice that I should actually become motivational speaker. It's a great compliment, but I think that this stems from me being really excited to tell other people about what I have researched and learned. Then I want to know what they think about it. Then it's back to the drawing board to make it more relevant and useful, and the cycle continues. I think that this is the best form of knowledge translation.
You'll see that most of my presentations have something to do with what fascinates or frustrates me at that moment in time - gender roles in dance, black racial identity and achievement, how to survive comprehensive exams, and most recently, mental health. As a person with lived experience, it has been incredibly rewarding to open up the space a little bit for people who have struggled but still want to find success in this world.
Here's a list of my recent presentations:
· Co-Creating Curriculum with Youth Partners for Mental Health Literacy for Teacher Education Students
Workshop Presentation at the Canadian Psychological Association Annual Convention, Ottawa, June 4th, 2015
· From Surviving to Thriving: Mental Health and Well-Being in Graduate School
Workshop Presentation at the Future Professor Workshop Series, Western University, April 27th, 2015
· Why Can’t We Be Colourblind?
Paper Presentation at the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE) Annual Conference , St Catharines, May 25th, 2014
· An Evaluation of Mental Health Literacy Learning for Bachelor of Education Students: Mental Health Day 2014
Panel Presentation at the Mental Health Education Integration Consortium (MHEDIC) Spring Meeting, Chicago, May 14th, 2014
· Structuring the Unstructured: How a Type-A Student Survived Comps
Panel Presentation at the Doctoral Seminar Series, Western University, March 20th, 2014
· What Can We Learn From Those Who Made It?
Panel Presentation at the Moving Forward African Canadian Conference, London, Ontario, November 22nd, 2013
· Establishing Your Presence in the Classroom
Panel Presentation at the Future Professor Workshop Series, Western University, October 29th, 2013
· Who Are Our Western Students?
Panel Presentation at the New Faculty Orientation, Western University, August 15th, 2013
· “It comes back every time”: The Intersection of Race and Achievement in the Canadian Classroom
Paper Presentation at the Black Canadian Studies Association Conference, St Catharines, May 26th, 2013
· Can They or Can’t They? Shifting Discourses in the Academic Outcomes of Black Students
Paper Presentation at the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE) Annual Conference , Waterloo, May 28th, 2012
· Dance Like a Man: Interrogating Media Representations of Masculinity in Dance
Oral Presentation at the Western Research Forum, Western University, March 27th, 2012