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Peer Tutor Tuesdays with Alison Smith

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Alison Smith

Name:        Alison Smith

Program:  Nuclear Medicine

What attracted you to becoming a Peer tutor?

I tutored students during my university education and found it most rewarding.  Having attended tutoring last year, I wanted to help my fellow students and provide them guidance about my experiences in the program.

How has tutoring helped you?

Tutoring has helped me become better at problem solving.  I have also come to better appreciate the different ways we learn. Not all students learn the same way, so I have to think of different angles to approach each problem. This ensures I am changing the student’s perspective on the problem and finding a new method that they understand.

If you could give one piece of advice to a BCIT student what would it be?

Take time to reward yourself (exercising, watching a movie or getting some fresh air) after finishing assignments. It is a great way not only to relieve stress but also maintain a high level of concentration on each topic.

What would your dream job be when you leave BCIT?

My dream job would be to working as a full-time Nuclear Medicine technologist, hopefully with all of my classmates. I have made such great friends and will miss being around them everyday after we graduate.

If you had a free day, how would you spend it?

I enjoy baking. Whenever I have free time I like to try making extravagant desserts. My newest challenge is to try to make a croquembouche.

We hope Alison and her friends find their dream job as Nuclear Medicine technologists and are able to celebrate with a homemade croquembouche!

A warm welcome to …

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James Rout

Please join us in welcoming James Rout the new Director, Library Services starting April 1, 2016.

James is joining the institute following six years at Emily Carr University, where he has most recently served as Associate Vice-President, Learning Services, Information Technologies and University Librarian. James has more than 20 years of library experience, and has also been involved in the design of several significant campus development projects.

During his previous 11 years at The Banff Centre, James was involved in the planning and transition to a new state-of-the-art library and archives facility in the Kinnear Centre for Creativity. More recently, he has been deeply engaged in the planning process for a new campus for Emily Carr University. He has served on numerous boards and professional organizations, and he has led the development of several innovative projects, including an award-winning streaming media system.

We are excited to see what James has in store for the Library given his broad knowledge of all aspects of teaching, learning, technology and librarianship.

Peer Tutor Tuesdays with Jonathan Bond

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Jonathan Bond

Name:        Jonathan Bond (yes, really, my parents didn’t name me James)

Program:  Technical writing

What attracted you to becoming a Peer tutor?

I love to talk about writing with other people and believe that being able to write competently will help you, no matter who you are.

How has tutoring helped you?

Tutoring helped to remind me that while I enjoy sitting down and knocking out four or five pages, writing can be a special kind of hell for others. But it has to be done and doesn’t have to be agony.

If you could give one piece of advice to a BCIT student what would it be?

No one will follow this advice, even if it will make their life immensely easier: as soon as you get an assignment…..START! Starting is the hardest part but you know what’s harder? Rebounding from procrastination. Finish 3-4 days early and reread your work.

What would your dream job be when you leave BCIT?

A job where I make the rules and then I can have a coffee mug at the office that says “The buck stops here” or something equally trite.

If you had a free day, how would you spend it?

I would write exactly what I wanted, eat tacos, go for dinner with friends and somehow fit in a surprise trip to San Francisco with someone who I thought was super nifty.

Thank you Jonathan! We hope you get your ideal free day soon!

 

BCIT Archives – new search!

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The BCIT Archives is pleased to announce the launch of our new online search.

Screenshot of BCIT Archives & Special Collections homepage. 'Search' and 'Browse by' circled.

Screenshot of BCIT Archives & Special Collections database homepage. ‘Browse by’ and ‘Search’ circled.

This change is exciting for many reasons:

  • It allows the BCIT Archives to make all descriptions and digital objects available in one place.
  • It allows us to show relationships between records and between records and their creators.
  • Researchers now have access to an Advanced Search feature which allows for easy filtering of searches and easy adding of additional search criteria.
  • Researchers can now easily browse digital objects, subjects, authority records (creators) and archival descriptions.
  • There is a ‘Popular this week’ feature that show what other people have been clicking on.

The BCIT Archives will continue to invest time and energy into making more digital objects available as well as describing the textual records in our holdings. At the same time our goal is to provide useful context for all of these materials.

Explore BCIT Archives

Some favorite collections to browse include: The BCIT Historical Photograph Collection and the BCIT Student Association fonds, which includes digitized versions of the BCIT Yearbooks and the Link Newspaper.

The BCIT Archives would like to thank iSchool@UBC Professional Experience student Sarika Kelm for her fruitful time in the BCIT Archives in the summer of 2015. Kelm’s main project while here, was the rehousing, arrangement, and description of the Fernando Vachon series. For access to these, or any other original archival materials in our holdings, please contact the BCIT Archivist.

A note about citing BCIT Archives materials

Screenshot of the file level description of 'BCIT and its place in education for the Canadian mining industry.' Reference code and nested hierarchy circled.

Screenshot of the file level description of ‘BCIT and its place in education for the Canadian mining industry.’ Nested hierarchy’ and ‘Reference code’ circled.

Whenever crediting BCIT Archives materials as a source please quote the Reference code. The Reference code for all levels of description can be found at the top of each description in the ‘Identity area.’ The Reference code is a neat nested summary of each file or item within a collection, fonds, series or subseries – proceeding from highest level to lowest.

For example, a file level description Reference code of: F01-s02-ss13-f1, would break down as follows: F01 British Columbia Institute of Technology fonds, s02 BCIT Office of the President series, ss13 Subseries Executive presentations, f1 BCIT and its place in education for the Canadian mining industry file. The top left corner of any description you are looking at will display the relationships. You can expand or minimize levels using the triangle icons.

Why this software

The BCIT Archives chose the open source software AtoM for several reasons:

  • AtoM was developed under the guidance of the International Council on Archives using international archival standards.
  • Starting from archival standards ensured that the end result would be a software that was able to reflect the complex nature of archival records.
  • It has an active community of users worldwide.
  • This active open source community means that updates are frequent and user-driven.
  • And finally, the lead developers on AtoM, Artefactual Systems, are our neighbours, based in New Westminster.

Happy Open Education Week!

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Not sure what you’re doing to observe Open Education Week? We’ve got some suggestions for you…

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Peer Tutor Tuesdays with Gurinderpal Singh Dhillon

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Gurinder Dhillon

Name:       Gurinderpal Singh Dhillon

Program:  Electrical and Computer Engineering Technology (ECET), Power Option – Level 4

What attracted you to becoming a Peer tutor?

I like to teach other students. I want to know how other people think and how they tackle any problem.

How has tutoring helped you?

It’s a good way to review all the stuff I learned in previous semesters.

If you could give one piece of advice to a BCIT student what would it be?

I know a lot of BCIT students just study all day and night and don’t pay much attention to their health. My advice to them would be don’t stress out too much. Go to the gym or do other physical activity and stay healthy because your health is the most important. You can be a lot more productive if you stay healthy.

What would your dream job be when you leave BCIT?

I would like to work as an Electrical Technologist/Designer/Field Service Representative.

If you had a free day, how would you spend it?

I would workout, hang out with friends.

We wish you all the best Gurinderpal and hope you find that dream job!

Time Capsule sealed until BCIT 75th Anniversary

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The honoring ceremony begins.

The honoring ceremony begins. Joanne Stone-Campbell explains the BCIT Aboriginal Services blankets that cover the bentwood boxes. Photographer, Scott McAlpine

On February 29, 2016, Leap Day, a few people from the BCIT community gathered for a ceremony to honour the artist James Michels and to seal the two bentwood boxes that he made for this purpose. The boxes will not be opened until BCIT’s 75th Anniversary in 2039-2040.

Feather and Smudge shell on top of one of the Blanketed cedar bentwood boxes.

Feather and Smudge shell on top of one of the Blanketed cedar bentwood boxes. Photographer, Scott McAlpine

 

The honouring ceremony began with a cleansing Smudge lead by Alf Dumont, BCIT Aboriginal Services Elder and BCIT Aboriginal Services Advisor. He offered the smoke from tobacco, cedar, sage, and sweet grass to all who were there, as a way of preparing ourselves for the experience we are going into. “This allows us to focus on what is about to happen,” Elder Alf said. “We are putting memories of our community into these boxes, we are all responsible to carry memories.” Everyone present was invited to sweep the smoke over themselves and draw it into their hearts.

Smudge ceremony

Mirabelle Rohatgi taking the Smudge offered by Alf Dumont. Photographer, Scott McAlpine

Joanne Stone-Campbell, BCIT Aboriginal Services coordinator, spoke about the significance of the boxes. They were made by artist James Michels of the Cree and Metis nations, in the traditional Northwest Coast method of steaming and bending a single plank of cedar wood into the shape of the box. Stone-Campbell explained that the blanketing ceremony honours “the importance of our gifts to be put in the time capsule.”

The boxes housed within the bentwood boxes are fireproof and waterproof. They hold memories and stories of the BCIT community as we celebrated our 50th Anniversary. More than fifty items have been included in the 2014/2015 time capsule. These include local and national news articles about BCIT during its’ 50th year, 50th anniversary promotional items and memorabilia, as well as letters to the future. Some highlights include a replica vintage ‘I *heart* BCIT’ button, three banners representing the different BCIT 50 years colours, the special edition BCIT & Beyond Link Magazine 2015, The Vancouver Sun, Saturday, October 4, 2014,’BCIT: 50 years and counting: Institute broke new ground and launched thousands of careers,’ and the gorgeous, limited edition, BCIT 50 Years viewbook (only 60 copies printed). BCIT Aboriginal Services graciously contributed many special items and photographs including a wood box representing a bentwood box, decorated with the Aboriginal Services logo, designed by Chief Ian Campbell, Squamish Nation. The design represents mind, body, spirit and the Coast Salish welcome, hands held up. This item was given to grads and special guests for the June 2014 Aboriginal Graduation Ceremony.

Time Capsule boxes as they were being packed.

Time Capsule boxes as they were being packed. Photographer, C. McLellan

Bill Their and Rene Jacques sealing the boxes.

Bill Their and Rene Jacques sealing the boxes. The storage boxes were packed with foam, then a layer of plywood, more Styrofoam, tape and then a fast-drying sealant. Once dry they will be topped with the artist-made solid cedar lids that are painted to match the House Post. Photographer, Scott McAlpine

BCIT Aboriginal Services thanked everyone involved in the process of the safe housing of the Time capsule; from the artist to the people from facilities who did the planning for the sealing and the labour.

Once Their had smoothed the concrete Dumont was given the honour of marking the wet sealant.

Elder Alf Dumont

Elder Alf Dumont getting his hand dirty for posterity! Photographer, Scott McAlpine

The date, Dumont’s handprint and signature.

The date, Dumont’s handprint and signature. Photographer, Scott McAlpine

For the sealing of the second box everyone got in on the fun. Writing in wet cement is harder than you might guess. Donna Woo made it look easy!

Everyone signs the second box!

The ‘I LOVE BCIT’ sticker fell off Sandra Matsuba’s jacket and there it stays for the next 25 years! Photographer, Scott McAlpine

Group shot!

Thanks to everyone who made it a special event! And a heartfelt shout out to those who had other places to be. Photographer, Scott McAlpine

Where will you be in 2039-2040? What significant changes do you see happening to BCIT in the next 25 years? If the people planning the unveiling plan it just right they can do it on a Leap Day. See you on February 29th 2040!

I was honoured to be a part of this project and delighted with my silk scarf decorated with the Aboriginal Services logo. As an archivist I spend a fair amount of my time looking back at history. I believe that looking back is a powerful way to plan and be ready for the future. Putting together this Time Capsule invited us to meditate on where we might be in 25 years. I will end with the quote about Archives and the power of Archives that I used at the end of the ceremony. A dear friend and fellow archivist in the UK, Geoffery Yeo:

Archives and records are important resources for individuals, organizations and the wider community. They provide evidence of, and information about, the actions of individuals, organizations and communities and the environments in which they occurred. They extend and corroborate human and corporate memory and play a critical role in maintaining awareness of how the present is shaped by the past…they are among the tools we can use to help us understand where we came from and where we are going.

 

 

Peer Tutor Tuesday with Andrea Hoegler

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Andrea Hoegler

Name:       Andrea Hoegler

Program:  Sustainable Resource Management

What attracted you to becoming a Peer tutor?

I have always had an interest in teaching. Prior to coming to BCIT, I worked as an ESL teaching assistant in a middle school and also tutored adults who had not completed high school. Having not yet worked with people in my own age group or at the post-secondary level, I saw peer tutoring as a new challenge and exciting opportunity.

How has tutoring helped you?

Tutoring has definitely made me realize that all students have different strengths and weaknesses when it comes to learning, and it has even helped me to recognize my own. As both a student and tutor at BCIT, I have also really learned to appreciate working with and helping others to achieve common goals.

If you could give one piece of advice to a BCIT student what would it be?

Manage your time well, and get some rest!

What would your dream job be when you leave BCIT?

I’m still figuring out what my dream job is, but I’m hoping to work in the field of urban forestry and/or environmental education and outreach.

If you had a free day, how would you spend it?

Hiking, followed by eating lots of sushi!

Andrea can definitely help you develop your writing skills. To book an appointment, visit the Writing Centre online.

Peer Tutor Tuesdays with Charles Gallagher

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Charles Gallagher

Name:       Charles Gallagher

Program:  Mechanical Engineering Degree

What attracted you to becoming a Peer tutor?

I was attracted to becoming a peer tutor to improve my leadership skills while helping others to succeed.

How has tutoring helped you?

Tutoring has helped me to work with and understand a variety of people coming from different directions and backgrounds.  My learning and teaching skills have improved and tutoring sessions act as a great way to review previous course material.

If you could give one piece of advice to a BCIT student what would it be?

Read your textbooks on the bus; you paid for them!

What would your dream job be when you leave BCIT?

My dream job after leaving BCIT would be a junior engineering position with a Vancouver-based start-up company in the clean energy transportation sector.

If you had a free day, how would you spend it?

If I had a free day, I would go for a nice long day hike.

Charles is a welcome addition to the Learning Commons and we wish him all the best!

 

Power Hour with Dr. Rajiv Jhangiani – The future is open

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All staff and students are welcome to attend Power Hour this Thursday, February 25th from noon until 1:30 with Dr. Rajiv Jhangiani in Student Council Chambers, SE2, 324.

Rajiv Jhangiani teaches psychology at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Vancouver, BC, where he conducts research on open education and the scholarship of teaching and learning. An author of two open textbooks, Dr. Jhangiani serves as an OER Research Fellow with the Open Education Group and Associate Editor of Psychology Learning and Teaching.

“Open educational practices” is a broad term that encompasses the creation and adoption of open textbooks and other open educational resources, open course development, and the use of “non-disposable assignments.” This presentation will make a case for why the move away from traditional (closed) practices is not only desirable but inevitable, and how students, faculty, institutions, and our communities all stand to benefit greatly from this transformation.

You can also participate online:

Go to www.bcit.ca/live
Login using your BCIT ID and password
Once the live video is available, use the field below the video feed to post questions. (Note: your name will display with any questions you post.)