Lakehead teacher Lisa Dampier wins ETFO Anti-Bias Award

The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) has presented Lakehead teacher Lisa Dampier (BA '92, B.Ed. '93) with its 2017 Anti-Bias Award for her work in teaching global citizenship and social justice to grades 7 and 8 students.

The award is presented to an ETFO member or group of members who develop and teach units, and/or incorporate practices which work toward the elimination of bias.

A teacher at Westmount Public School, Lisa established a Learning Academy for her students in which she taught all subjects from the perspective of global citizenship and social justice. Students learned about different cultures and important world issues and developed respect for and appreciation of differences. They studied the negative impacts of bias, racism and stereotypes and in the process developed compassion and acceptance of others. 

Student broadened their horizons by studying different religious and cultural celebrations and exploring equity issues such as availability of clean water and other essential resources around the world. They also repaired and restored bicycles to give to local needy children. Additionally, Lisa had her students prepare videos for social media that addressed youth issues such as bullying, racism and the rights of children. The videos were designed to inspire others to make the world a more inclusive place to live. Several were posted on You Tube. 

“What’s exciting is that Lisa embedded this focus on global citizenship and social justice across the curriculum in all subjects,” said ETFO President Sam Hammond. “Lisa’s work embodies the social justice principles that our members are teaching to ensure that public elementary students value inclusive and supportive classrooms and communities.” 

(credit: ETFO.ca website)