Working in the five focus areas of our strategic plan — innovation, the francophonie, Indigenous rights, educational technology, and equity and social justice — these emerging researchers are making a difference in scholarly and partner communities. They have received prestigious scholarships from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Ontario Graduate Scholarship program, the Consortium Nationale de formation en santé, and other external public and private funding bodies.
Scholars in education
Our Scholars in Education series highlights the inspiring research carried out by current graduate students and recent alumni, each project advancing knowledge in education.
Meet our emerging researchers.
Indigenous
What can the Métis sash teach us about truth, and then reconciliation, for educators?
Métis scholar Madelaine McCracken (MEd ’21) knew she wanted to be a teacher when she was just eight years old. What she didn’t know was where her yout…
Mental Health
Conversations for reflection: Amplifying 2SLGBTQI+ voices and mental health
The moment Sarah Hobson (MA '25) picked up the textbook in her high school psychology course, she had a feeling her career path would somehow lead to …
Research
The influence of women in STEM as social media role models
“Growing up in a society with quotas limiting women in fields like engineering, yet seeing many still pursuing these disciplines, inspired my research…
Mental Health
School transitions, bullying and mental health
The shift from elementary to high school is a defining period of adolescence. It shapes how young people perform academically and how they learn to co…
Education
Transforming how schools and families work together in Franco-Ontarian communities
Drawing from her own experience as a teacher and a mother, Awa Ndiaye’s research explores how schools and families can collaborate in meaningful ways.…
Education
Designing online education for connection and belonging
Vivien M. Slezak’s work in diverse college classrooms has fuelled her dedication to teaching and learning from people with different perspectives.
Education
Exploring digital promise, uneven practice in complex educational settings
Through years as an elementary school teacher and, later, work in business and entrepreneurship, Ijeoma Aboaja developed a lasting interest in how peo…
Education
“Make or break”: Supervising therapists in training
A personal loss was pivotal in guiding Shawna Button (MAEd '25) toward a career as a psychotherapist and in deepening her commitment to mental health …
Mental Health
Research on discrimination and mental health supports for Black students in Ontario
Dr. Aly Julien’s early-career interest in the brain was inspired by people close to him who suffered with epilepsy and schizophrenia. “I witnessed the…
Education
Deepening our understanding of inclusion
Inclusion researcher Virginie Abat-Roy (PhD ’24) says ableism (the discrimination of those with disabilities) is a daily obstacle for people with assi…
Research
Listening to Black youth in Franco-Ontarian communities
Elie Ndala was six years old when his family fled a civil war in their home country and landed in a refugee camp. When he and his parents finally immi…
Education
Teachers, tech and language learning
Cameron Smith, a fourth-year PhD candidate in the Faculty of Education, recalls a childhood in Europe immersed in a linguistic “hat trick” of English,…
Research
Sex ed in Canada: Equipping teachers to talk about consent
A passion for learning about child development led Béatrice de Montigny to a career as a schoolteacher. Now, after a decade in elementary classrooms, …
Research
Learning by yourself versus learning together
Adam Kaszuba’s research shows how making connections and collaborating with others enhances learning. Findings from his doctoral study, funded by a So…
Wellness
Digital narrative gerontology: Wellbeing through storytelling in the later years
What is digital narrative gerontology? It’s based on a simple idea: bring two people together from different generations and combine the power of stor…
Faculty of Education
Transforming math education through virtual reality
Could virtual reality (VR) reshape the way future teachers learn to teach math? Babak Yazdani-Fazlabadi thinks so. As a doctoral candidate in the Univ…
Education
Improving teleconsultation services for Francophone communities
Transformative innovations in teleconsultation accelerated during the pandemic. When Michelle Dorion (BHSc ’99; ’03, PhD ’24), a physiotherapist, part…