What a day to be in Oslo at the Nobel #Peace Centre. I don’t take it for granted.

I was asked yesterday about workload. I told preservice educators the unpopular truth: the needs of their students/families and expectations of their school board and Ministry of Education cannot be met by only working within paid hours, especially in the first years.

#WesternU profs are changing lives through discovery - from brain-inspired AI and heart disease breakthroughs to more inclusive music and solutions for nuclear waste storage and gender-based violence. Meet the Western Research Excellence Awards recipients.

2026 Western Research Excellence Awards - Western News - Western University

Western Research Excellence Awards 2026 go to Western University faculty for achievements in AI, health, music, chemistry and social impact

news.westernu.ca

Where are all the men. Part 8. "Men, we need to do better, dads, we need to do better!"

Time for this classic again.

Rereading this for a paper I am writing. It was written ten years ago- and it really makes me wonder what we will see in the next 10 years. Prescient. Asked “what kind of people are we becoming though our habitual use of technology?”

Today’s news on #CBC says that more people are seeking emergency care for gambling - mostly men and boys. Why do we create conditions for people to become ill (addicted) and then act surprised when our hospitals are overrun? At what point will we fight for a healthy society harder than for profits?

The Toby Award will open for submissions on Monday -- a unique Canadian award for Best Mystery Novel by a self-published Canadian author! ISBN *must* be in the author's name to be eligible. For other criteria, check out tobyaward.wordpress.com on Monday!

Toby Award

Canada's newest literary prize for mystery fiction

tobyaward.wordpress.com

“Ontario taxpayers should be asking: Why should money intended for public classrooms be funneled through a U.S.-based, private-equity-owned corporation, rather than strengthening the public education system itself?” #OntEd

The Grind@thegrindto.bsky.social · last mo.

The Ontario government is forcing public school teachers to buy classroom supplies through Staples, a major U.S. corporation. This won't fix what ails schools, not by a long shot, argues Nigel Bariffe of the Elementary Teachers of Toronto.

I know that Paul Calandra says #OntEd teachers shouldn't post our complaints about his shoddy deals, but after I posted and was interviewed by the lovely Lorenda on the CBC, Staples quietly changed the prices on items I highlighted. Here's what they look like today on the Staples portal:

Kimiko Shibata@eslfairy.bsky.social · last mo.

Our taxpayer dollars are being spent at an American company (in the middle of a trade war) that offers better deals to folks walking in off the street than to teachers ordering through the Ontario Ministry of Education portal. Make it make sense!!! #OntEd

Thank you to @CBCLorenda for reporting on this story today for the CBC. For the record, I don't actually post on "TikTok", @PaulCalandra, and school principals do not actually have the power to change prices at Staples. youtu.be/53BsQeqcv3A?... #OntEd

Ontario’s new supplies portal for teachers is live, but some say prices are higher than in stores

YouTube video by CBC News Toronto

youtu.be

Kimiko Shibata@eslfairy.bsky.social · last mo.

Our taxpayer dollars are being spent at an American company (in the middle of a trade war) that offers better deals to folks walking in off the street than to teachers ordering through the Ontario Ministry of Education portal. Make it make sense!!! #OntEd

Timeline cleanse! Meet Ruth Bader! She is as lively as her namesake!

73% of #OntEd teachers are planning to leave the profession. Only 34% of these are due to retirement. 59% of teachers leaving say it’s due to the impacts of teaching on their mental health or feeling unsafe at school. Full OCT report: click.oct.ca/ext/click/go...

“For years, Ontario's firefighters warned that our wildland fire program was understaffed and under-resourced. Those warnings were ignored. And now people have lost everything.” Powerful message from our next Premier @maritstilesndp.bsky.social youtu.be/ltwvWKD8Bwk?...

Northern Ontario is burning

YouTube video by Marit Stiles

youtu.be

Sending love to the people of Namaygoosisagagun First Nation who have been displaced from their homes. Here is the link to donate to support these folks as they rebuild after the wildfires. Please share widely. an7gc.ca/donate/

As an academic, I have decided to pre-empt AI taking my job, so I am going to take ITS job! I am going to start hallucinating, lying to my students, and drinking 700,000 litres of water

This is the first time I have seen the inclusion of a “lived experience research advisor”! Is this becoming more common? #MedSky

Dr. Genevieve Eastabrook, MD FRCSC (she/her)@placentadoc.bsky.social · 3mo ago

New Study Provides First Evidence of Dopamine System Injury in the Brain of Long COVID Patients A brain imaging study led by researchers at CAMH shows long COVID associated with injury to dopamine-releasing neurons in the brain

If you’re in the USA and you distrust the FDA under RFK, please know that the Canadian government has very extensive health information on their websites, so when you’re concerned about these outbreaks and such, you’ll find some info on the gov’s Canada.ca website. www.canada.ca/en/public-he...

Understanding NAEP: A Reader open.substack.com/pub/paulthom...

Understanding NAEP: A Reader

"In short, different tests or standards can produce different grade levels." David Reinking and Peter Smagorinsky

open.substack.com

It’s summer in Canada, and Lyme disease is out there. We’re lucky to live in the most beautiful country on the planet and should be outside as much as possible. 🇨🇦 Laura Brehaut discusses a few simple steps for Lyme prevention. Link: tinyurl.com/e6rzaxdf

Lyme disease is on the rise. Here's how to prevent it and what to do if you get bitten

Canadian Lyme disease cases increased by 3,934 per cent in just 15 years

tinyurl.com

It's just common sense. That's all. And it works. Caring for the welfare of others does not take away from you, in fact it will enrich your life. Try it out. #Pinks #ProudBlue

Thrilled to be part of this show shorturl.at/waTDo

"A strong, supported Public Education system is the way to encourage every child to become the best version of themselves. And that means that we need to start investing in the things that will fix public education". Excellent piece by Dr. Berman @bermanpcmd.bsky.social. #OntEd

Hershl Berman@bermanpcmd.bsky.social · 4mo ago

As my youngest child graduates from High School, I reflect on the changes I’ve seen in our Public Education system since I was a student, and this is my plea for public education open.substack.com/pub/hershlbe...

This. #OntEd

Teacher Well-Being: Trauma- and Violence- Informed Classrooms Curriculum equiphealthcare.ca/tvic-foundat...

I worry about anyone who says our public healthcare needs to be more “competitive”. Public healthcare is not a business competing for market share. It is a public investment that pays dividends in healthier people, stronger communities, and a more equitable society. globalnews.ca/news/1190427...

Ontario Liberal leadership candidate vows to make health care more ‘competitive’ | Globalnews.ca

Eric Lombardi, who launched his leadership bid last week, has been receiving support from a range of political voices, including many who say they've never voted Liberal

globalnews.ca

Unacceptable

AFT@aft.org · 4mo ago

NEW: In a Time op-ed, @rweingarten.bsky.social makes the case for raising teacher pay and describes challenges members are facing affording basic necessities. Underfunding public education and attacking collective bargaining are making teaching a profession people cannot afford to enter or stay in.

"The personal and professional commitment that must exist at the heart of any new changes and reforms is absent...Quite plainly the driving force for these changes is not educational at all. The impetus is a corporate drive to colonise public education as a site for profit accumulation." #EduSky

Ian McKellen Reads a Passionate Speech by William Shakespeare, Written in Defense of Immigrants

Ian McKellen Reads a Passionate Speech by William Shakespeare, Written in Defense of Immigrants

The identity of William Shakespeare has been a literary mystery for four hundred years, inspiring theory after theory, book after book.

openculture.com

The most important “data centres” to invest in will always be public schools.