Educator Development Workshops

Calling all teachers, principals and guidance counsellors!

The University of Waterloo Stratford School of Interaction Design and Business invites you to attend one of our Professional Development Days!

These sessions were created with your professional growth in mind.

Why Attend Our Workshops?

Purpose-Led Learning: Learn from leaders in their field about topics impacting the learning environment right now

Upskilling: Develop your teaching skills to help you build an engaging classroom

Collaboration: Work alongside other educators in thoughtful discussion, and interactive exercises

Workshops are hosted at the Stratford School by our Faculty between 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. These sessions are 1.5-3 hours, but you’ll have a private on-campus space booked for a half-day.

Current Workshops

Innovation Through Assumption Reversal: Unlocking Creative Solutions in Business

Facilitated by Dr. Will Zhao

This workshop introduces the concept of assumption reversal as a powerful tool for fostering innovation in business contexts. Participants will learn how to identify and challenge underlying assumptions in their current practices, enabling them to discover creative and unconventional solutions to common problems. The session will include interactive exercises for integrating this approach into classroom teaching, helping students to think critically and innovatively about business challenges.

Available Dates: January 31st and March 31st

From Academic to Professional: Helping Secondary Students Effectively Elevate

Facilitated by Dr. Noorin Manji

This workshop will focus on preparing high school students for the transition from secondary to post-secondary life, and beyond. Through interactive and engaging discussions, the session will explore key themes including, how to enhance professional communication, ways to build a stand-out professional portfolio, and how we might engage young entrepreneurial minds for future success.

Available dates: October 11th, October 25th, November 1st, November 15th

Exploring Creating Coding: Equipping High School Teacher with Open-Source Programs for Engaging Technology Education

Facilitated by Dr. Karen Cochrane

Creative coding, which uses programming as a tool for artistic expression and interactive projects, is an exciting way to engage students in technology education. This session will teach high school teachers about free Integrated Development Environments (IDEs) that support creative coding and programming. Starting with user-friendly platforms like Scratch and Blockly, which introduce block-based programming, educators can help students build foundational skills through visual logic and problem-solving. As students advance, environments like p5.js and Processing allow for more complex creative coding, enabling the exploration of interactive visuals and animations. Teachers can further introduce Repl.it, an online IDE that supports multiple programming languages, offering flexibility for text-based coding in courses such as Python or JavaScript. Tools like Thonny, with its beginner-friendly Python interface, provide a structured, approachable transition to text-based programming. The Arduino IDE offers a gateway into microcontroller programming for physical computing and electronics, while Pure Data introduces more advanced students to multimedia and sound synthesis. Platforms like Code.org round out the toolkit by integrating curriculum-aligned activities that combine block-based and text-based coding. By equipping teachers with this diverse range of IDEs, we empower them to deliver engaging learning experiences that cater to students' varied interests and skill levels.

Available Dates: November 1st, and November 15th