Media Releases

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Good Things Are Happening
EDMONTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS ANNOUNCES EDWIN PARR NOMINEE

Superintendent Edgar Schmidt, Board Chair Don Fleming, Edwin Parr nominee Andrea Harrison and Spruce Avenue School principal, Chris Morris.

At the regular public board meeting on March 23, the Edmonton Public School Board recognized Andrea Harrison from Spruce Avenue School as the district's representative for the Edwin Parr Award for first-year teachers. The board also honoured the five other first-year teachers who were nominated by their schools.

Andrea teaches Grade 7 language arts and Grades 7 to 9 social studies at Spruce Avenue School. By recognizing that students have diverse learning styles, Andrea ensures all her lessons combine visual, auditory and kinesthetic elements. Her practice of having students create cartoons depicting their perspectives of historical events is just one of the many engagement strategies she employs.

Her Grade 7 class consists of a cohort of 55 per cent of students who, in Grade 6, did not achieve the acceptable standard in their provincial achievement test in social studies. This year, the midterm exam that covered half the social studies curriculum revealed over 95 per cent of the students met the acceptable standard. These results are amazing.

In the words of Principal Chris Morris, "Andrea is an excellent young teacher who has brought so many positive things to our school that it is difficult to give her impact true justice. She has the remarkable ability to connect with some of the most socio-economically disadvantaged students in our District, and to push, pull and drag them to success."

"The teachers being recognized this evening were nominated by their principals based on the knowledge, skills and attitudes they have demonstrated in their dedication to students," says Board Chair Don Fleming. "In their own unique way, they get their students excited about learning - excited about the arts, math, science and social studies - they instil in youth a sense of self-confidence and self-worth - which are priceless gifts to give students of all ages, backgrounds and abilities."

Each year, the Alberta School Boards Association (ASBA) honours six outstanding first-year teachers to represent five zones throughout the province. These new teachers demonstrate excellence in utilizing a variety of instructional strategies to accommodate different student learning styles.

For further information, contact:
Jane Sterling, Supervisor
Communications
Edmonton Public Schools
(780) 429-8290