"Teachers need to know more than the 3 R's; if you don't know the community your students live in—the social, the racial dynamics—you won't be as effective. Teachers aren't meant to be tourists in the neighbourhood they teach.”
- R. Patrick Solomon, PhD (Founder of Urban Diversity Program, York University)
- What is the Urban Education Partnership (UEP)?
- The UEP Difference
- What Can I Expect to Gain From the Urban Education Partnership?
- UEP Guiding Principles
- A Sample of Our Local Partnering Community Organizations
What is the Urban Education Partnership?
Academic service-learning is a course-based, credit-bearing educational experience.
The Urban Education Partnership (UEP) is a collaborative community-based school and university partnership that aims to connect teacher candidates from the Faculty of Education at the University of Windsor with selected elementary schools within lower socioeconomic or urban working class communities in Windsor. It allows teacher candidates the opportunity to become active members of the school and community, as they learn about the school’s needs and strengths as an integral part of learning to teach. The partnership with local school boards and community organizations permits teacher candidates opportunities to not only be immersed in service learning opportunities within schools but also within their surrounding community environment, allowing for a critically rich, comprehensive teacher education experience.
The UEP Difference
- Exploration of Issues of Equity, Diversity and Social Justice within core curricular areas (Language Arts, Math, Science)
- Placements in select UEP schools in Windsor-Essex (in partnership with GECDSB & WECDSB)
- Practicum supervised by core faculty team members
- Collaborative workshops and PD sessions with the local school boards
- Service learning opportunities within select UEP schools and local community based organizations
What Can I Expect to Gain From the Urban Education Partnership?
- Practicum placements in collaborative Urban Education cohort groups of Teacher Candidates
- Opportunities to work with diverse student populations within urban working-class communities
- Critical reflective teacher practice that is responsive to the needs of students
- Differentiated learning to help facilitate the unique learning style, needs, interests and opportunities in urban working-class communities
- Opportunities to be involved in extra-curricular activities and community service in the school community and local community organizations
- Opportunities to network within local schools and different organizations in order to seek employment opportunities within and beyond the traditional K-12 field of education
- UEP Certificate of Program Completion
UEP Guiding Principles
An ethic of responsibility to others is the guiding principle in this service learning course. It provides teacher candidates with opportunities for social entrepreneurship and leadership development in service to our local communities.
Reflection and reciprocity are integral aspects of this course. Purposeful and critical reflection is at the core of enhancing the learning experience for each candidate. Reciprocity is important because it encourages those providing service and those being served to learn with and from each other.
A Sample of Our Local Partnering Community Organizations
- Sandwich Teen Action Group (STAG)
- Game On! (Big Brothers Big Sisters of Windsor Essex)
- Drouillard Place
- The Youth Connection (Windsor)
- On Track to Success (United Way Student Support Program)
- United Way Social Justice Theatre Project
- Scouts Canada
- Multicultural Council of Windsor and Essex County
- Windsor Women Working With Immigrant Women (W5)
- Glengarry Homework Club
- MH100
- The Windsor-Essex County Humane Society
- The Canadian Historical Aircraft Museum
We continue to expand this list as the network of community organizations widens in response to the need for service in our community.
"Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.”
- Muhammad Ali (Legendary Global Ambassador for Peace and Social Activism, Legendary World Boxing Champion)
For more information, please contact:
Prof. Aamer Shujah
Coordinator, Urban Education Partnership
Faculty of Education, University of Windsor
Email: ashujah@uwindsor.ca