EdCan’s New Theory of Change
When the beginning of the pandemic closed schools and left district leaders like me in a constant state of disruption, I joined a small working group of EdCan Network staff and colleagues from our Advisory Council for an important virtual planning process. We engaged in a series of sessions to get to the heart of the impact that our Network can achieve to support K-12 educators across Canada. After many iterations, our creative team wholeheartedly endorsed the following three priorities to respond to the rapidly evolving opportunities and challenges that our education systems are currently facing:
- Increasing workplace well-being for K-12 staff, to make it a top policy and investment priority via our Well at Work initiative.
- Engaging and empowering students to lead societal change through meaningful learning and discovering their crucial role in solving local, regional, national, and global problems. Our upcoming awareness campaign on the potential for educating with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals will help to kickstart this focus.
- Equipping K-12 staff by informing them on emerging issues and actionable strategies to support the shift from knowledge to action. This magazine provides relevant and timely ways to support all our stakeholders as we rethink how we can “do education” in a better way for all students.
These priorities were the focus of our virtual December 2020 EdCan Advisory Council Meeting. (The first ever gathering of the CEA was in 1891 in Montreal.) We will continue to explore how we can align our focus with supporting Ministries of Education, faculty, and school district leaders, principals, teachers, and staff throughout 2021 as we strive to increase the capacity, self-efficacy, and well-being of our 110,000 members, and through them, to heighten every student’s well-being and opportunities for meaningful learning to help them discover their purpose and path in life.
For more information about EdCan’s Theory of Change, Intended Impacts and Strategic Priorities, please visit: www.edcan.ca/aboutus
For a list of the education and philanthropic leaders who serve on EdCan’s Advisory Council, please visit: www.edcan.ca/council
First published in Education Canada, January 2021
Meet the Expert(s)
Denise Andre
EdCan Past Chair - Executive Director, Eastern Ontario Staff Development Network
Denise Andre is Executive Director of the Eastern Ontario Staff Development Network and retired Director of Education of the Ottawa Catholic School Board.
Denise Andre, directrice générale, Eastern Ontario Staff Development Network, et directrice de l’éducation (retraitée), Ottawa Catholic School Board
