Sad chapter of Canadian history

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When I first heard about the Out from Under exhibit last spring I was really excited. Here is an interesting and engaging exhibit about an emotional and real issue.

The team at the Ryerson School of Disability Studies has done a fantastic job putting the exhibit together. It displayed last year at an abilities art festival and was so well received they were offered the opportunity to display this spring (April-July) at the Royal Ontario Museum.

It's a huge success and I think a really significant moment for historians in Canada. I think it demonstrates a real need for further research and study into the unique field of early abilities activists.

They have also done a great job putting together some podcasts which are available on the ROM's website and through iTunes. I've always considered podcasts as a great way to reach the visually impaired - in particular many aging Beaver magazine readers.

What they have done for this exhibit is provide a full podcast describing the exhibit (which is really worth the full listen) and a full video podcast that provides sign language for with hearing impediments. They have also provided large print pdf editions and written transcripts.

Not just in research, but in action, this exhibit is coming out from under.

They read my blog.

I will admit this is a bit of sorry excuse for a blog post, but I'm going to indulge. I mentioned Speaking of History on Friday and was back on the site on Monday. The site has a tracker of who is visiting the site and how they go there.

Sure enough when I visited again today, a few notches below Winnipeg from google.ca (that was me), was Halifax, Nova Scotia arrived from digitalhistoryeducation.blogspot.com! It's easy to write a blog and pretend like no one reads it. But it's a small point in the development of a blog when you gain some readership, whether it was just passing through or a diligent reader.

Cheers Halifax, Nova Scotia arrived from Digitalhistoryeducation.blogspot.com, that made my day! I hope you enjoyed Speaking of History as much as I did.

Speaking of History Teacher's Who Blog.....

Speaking of History is a blog/podcast out of Liberty, Missouri, run by 8th grade American History Teacher Eric Langhorst. Not only does Eric have the sharpest looking header of any blog that I've seen, it's a great set up and looks like a terrific blog. I just listened to his post on a video called Please Vote for Me, a video about democracy in China that looks amazing.

I realized with this post and on Dan McDowell's that I need to start keeping track of these great history blogs so I'm adding a new sidebar with specifically history teachers who blog. In this case they happen to also blog about using technology in the classroom, but that doesn't necessarily have to be the case.

After speaking with Vincent Massey Collegiate I'm realizing more and more how these tools are so important to professional development and keeping in touch with amazing teachers like Eric and Dan. Welcome to Canada guys!

A History Teacher - Dan McDowell

One of the best things I have had the opportunity to do since I arrived at the History Society was to sit down and interview the six recipients of the 2008 Governor General's Awards for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History. The interview is on YouTube.



I'm just working with some of the winners again right now to get their great work out to a larger audience and I read this post from Dan McDowell who blogs at www.ahistoryteacher.com out of San Diego. Dan has been nominated for teacher of the year and with good reason. I've just started reading his blog on a more regular basis and he has a faithful following. Great teachers cut to core values that I think Dan has also tapped into here.

The post just reminded me of sitting down with our GG winners last October. Great teachers and incredible people all around, can't wait to see this year's list of nominees.