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Intercom is published regularly and serves to inform Vanier staff and teachers of notices and special events. It is posted on the Vanier College Website and distributed electronically. Submissions should be sent to intercom@vaniercollege.qc.ca. Submissions should be in WORD, and sent as an attachment. No formatting or bullets. Deadline: 4:00 p.m. on the Wednesday preceding publication.

Science Publishing Group: Call for manuscript submissions for Special Issues

Special Issues are an important component of Science Publishing Group journals. They deal with more focused topics with high current interest falling within the scope of the journal in which they are published. The following Special Issue may be of interest. Special Issue on Language Teaching and Learning Key Principles Lead Guest Editor: Mozhgan Alsadat Ghaffarzadeh Hassankiadeh

This issue will concentrate on language teaching, learning, testing and any analysis of language that will be related to classroom situations in schools or institutes. The focus is on second or foreign language but first language acquisition can also be included. In other words the aim of the issue will be to achieve the top goals of language learning in classrooms as much as possible. Any new method, strategy or thought in this area will be welcome. For more information, please visit: http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/info/specialissues.aspx

Nora Boyadjian, Institutional Development & Research Office

Confirmation of Attendance Fall 2013 - DAY Students

According to the Régime budgetaire et financier des Cégeps, Vanier College must show proof of attendance for each student attending.

The confirmation of attendance period for the Fall 2013 semester is from September 20 to September 26. Students must sign on to Omnivox to indicate attendance in each of their courses. Any queries should be addressed to the Registrar’s Office (H-100).

Olga Mardas, Registrar’s Office

Music’s Catrina Flint de Médicis, presents at Les Journées Charles Bordes in France

The following is a note of interest from Catrina Flint de Médicis, of the Vanier Music Department, who is currently on sabbatical and relocated to Freiburg (Germany) for the current academic year.

“In September I was invited to take part in a three-day long celebration marking the 150th anniversary of the birth of Charles Bordes (1863-1909), a French composer and founder of the Schola Cantorum. The "Journées Charles Bordes" were organized by the Centre d'Études Supérieures de la Renaissance, which is a branch of the French Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.

A total of nine musicologists from England, France and Canada took part in three days of intensive discussions and presentations intended to lay the groundwork for a multi-authored work about Charles Bordes.

My contribution consisted of presenting and interpreting legal documents and personal correspondence pertaining to the Bordes and the Schola Cantorum that had not been previously discovered. This was my second invitation to the Lorraine region since 2009.”

Catrina Flint de Médicis, Music Department

Faculty Representative To The Vanier College Board Of Directors

Congratulations to Caroline Woolrich as a Faculty representative to the Vanier College Board of Directors.

Sam Kay Director of Administrative Services and Secretary General

Volume M 11, Issue No. 5, September 23, 2013

2013 VCSA Welcome BBQ

Romanian Students Study at the Language School

As a direct result of Vanier’s partnership with Mircea Cel Batran College in Constanta, Romania, the Vanier College Language School hosted 7 students and their accompanying teacher, Steluta Andreii, for 2 weeks at the beginning of the semester. While here, the students studied advanced English, traveled to Ottawa, Quebec City, and Toronto, and participated in several excursions in the city. One of the students wrote a testimonial: “Studying at Vanier is an amazing experience thanks to the friendly staff and the organized schedule. It is an amazing building; extremely well-equipped and easy to walk through. I loved studying here and I wish I would never leave.” Gabriel Bulgarea (Physics), with the support of International Education, traveled to Romania last fall to develop pedagogical and active learning research contacts. A delegation from the Romanian College came to visit Vanier and the partnership was formed soon after. Another beneficial result of the partnership was the Virtual Chess Competition that took place in May between Vanier and Romanian students which served as a pilot test to create a framework for establishing future virtual mathematics and science competitions.

Chris Hall, the Language School

Mathematics & Science Centre

The Math & Science Centre hosts a number of competitions each semester to promote student involvement and learning beyond the classroom. Here are a few that are coming up this semester: Bridge Building Competition

Registration is now open for the annual bridge building competition. Students can sign up in teams of up to 4 people. All materials are provided for free by the Math & Science Centre as of Monday, September 23

rd.

Canadian Open Mathematics Contest (COMC)

The COMC is Canada's premier national mathematics competition that is open to any student with an interest in mathematics. The purpose of the COMC is to encourage students to explore, discover, and learn more about mathematics and problem solving. The deadline to apply online is October 7

th. Practice

sessions will be held on October 16th

and 30th

.

Canadian Senior Mathematics Contest (CSMC)

The CSMC is a contest designed to give students the opportunity to have fun and to develop their mathematical problem solving ability. The deadline to apply online is October 31

st. A practice

session will be held on November 13th

. Students can register to the above mentioned competition at: http://www.vaniercollege.qc.ca/msc/event-registration.php Thank you for passing on the information to your students. Students from any academic program are welcomed to take part.

Haritos Kavallos, Math & Science Centre

Last call for the new Universal Complementary course: Le Nord: territoires et imaginaires

A new Universal Complementary course entitled Le Nord: territoires et imaginaires, will be offered in Winter 2014. Since it will include a 10-day road trip along the north shore of the St-Lawrence River, in this region called "Côte-Nord", we invite students to attend the info session and learn more about what this special multidisciplinary course implies. Note that it will be taught in French by two teachers (Catherine Duranleau, French, and Myriam Mansour, Geography) but students will be able to submit their work in English. Under the main theme of "Nordicity" such sub-themes as indigenous cultures, northern lifestyles, nature-based economies, ecosystem fragility and local literature will be explored. Registration deadline: October 4, 2013 Please invite students to contact Myriam Mansour (x7329) or Catherine Duranleau (x7436)

Myriam Mansour, Geography Department

Third-year Improvisation Recital

Time once again to put your music ears on and come down to the Auditorium this Wednesday, September 25 during Universal Break. The special event? It is the first of four free recitals by the 2013-2014 Jazz Improvisation students in the three-year Professional Music and Song Techniques program.

This year's groups have been hard at it, rehearsing day and night under the efficient and inspiring leadership of their director, Nick Di Tomaso. The groups will play a variety of jazz vocal and instrumental standards for all to enjoy. Don't follow the white rabbit to this event. He is always running late!

Glen Ethier, Music Department

Teaching Tip: The role of Big ideas in Active Learning

The way we teach often overemphasizes details so that students cannot see the forest for the trees. As a consequence, students generally don’t retain much of the knowledge that they acquired in previous courses. They also struggle with transferring that knowledge to real-life situations. The use of the big ideas in the discipline might help students overcome these hurdles. Big ideas are the core concepts of a subject. They are the most important takeaways from a course, and they need to be uncovered to help students construct their knowledge more effectively. Rather than merely covering the course content, active learning strategies aim to uncover it by using the big ideas in the field as a scaffold. In Chemistry, big ideas revolve around, for example, “why do atoms bond?” and “why do reactions take place?” among others. These big ideas are broad, abstract, nonobvious, and quite often they are even counterintuitive to novices. How to identify the big ideas in your discipline

Think about the 4-5 main concepts that are central to understanding your discipline

Read through your course notes for ideas on the key concepts you want to teach

Check through the chapter headings from your textbook to get other ideas

Check your course competencies

Talk to other colleagues in your department How to create a lesson plan from big ideas

Identify the big idea behind the concepts and skills you

want to teach. How would you summarize this concept

in one sentence?

What should students do to learn this concept or skill?

Create an activity where students talk and reflect about

the experience.

Think about ways you can check if students have learned

this concept or skill. What kinds of assessments would

be appropriate?

In short: The use of big ideas can help students retain knowledge and construct meaning for themselves, allowing them to perceive not only the trees but also how the forest emerges from them. Teaching Tip provided by Jailson Lima, Chemistry Department See this and other Teaching Tips on the PDO web page

Jen Mitchell, Pedagogical Development Office

How to design Active Learning Activities

Friday, September 27, from 2:00-4:00 Room A-401 Are you familiar with the benefits of active learning, but you don’t know where to start? Are you looking for tips on how to design and use in-class activities that promote student engagement and learning? This hands-on workshop will introduce you to the mechanics of design and implementation of effective in-class active learning activities.

Animators: Edward Awad, Biology, and Jailson De Lima, Chemistry

Registration: Please email the PDO at: PDO@vaniercollege.qc.ca

Jen Mitchell, Pedagogical Development Office

Groupe de lecture en français / French book club

Voulez-vous améliorer votre français? Participez à l’un des différents groupes de lecture (débutant, intermédiaire, avance) offerts par le Service de valorisation du français. Pour de plus amples informations ou pour vous inscrire, veuillez contacter Stéphane Giroux avant le 5 octobre à l’adresse suivante : girouxs@vaniercollege.qc.ca

Do you want to improve your French? If so, come to one of the three French Book Clubs (beginner, intermediate, and advanced) offered this semester by the Service de valorisation du français. For more information or to register, please contact Stéphane Giroux before October 5th at the following email address: girouxs@vaniercollege.qc.ca

Stéphane Giroux, French Department

Benefit Evening for Malawi Nursing Exchange

Since 2010, Vanier College in partnership with Kamuzu College of Nursing, Malawi, has offered students experiences in nursing in a global context. Our goal is to open their eyes and minds to the multitude of opportunities that exist in Nursing – in their own countries and beyond.

We invite you to show your support and join us on Friday, October 25

th, at

Casa Grecque in D.D.O. for the Malawi Nursing Exchange Benefit. Come and meet this year’s participants, as well as students from previous years, and support international education and experiential learning. Tickets are $45 ($25 eligible for tax receipt)

Image courtesy of Photokanok/

freedigitialphotos.net

and include dinner and entertainment in a relaxed atmosphere, and the chance to bid on fabulous items from our silent auction.

This year’s entertainment will feature the Williams violin duo with Eva Svensson (formerly of the MSO) and Tom Williams (formerly of the MSO and McGill University). Tickets can be bought in the through Maria Melillo in the nursing department (D468), International Education office (B228) or see Marina Jelavic in the Director General’s office (F-224).

In order to make this event a success, contributions to the silent auction are greatly appreciated; we are looking for items such as gift certificates to restaurants or spas, tickets to events, offers of services, weekend getaways, etc. If you are able to contribute, please contact either Vanier Nursing’s Melodie Hicks (hicksm@vaniercollege.qc.ca), or Sonia Husseindjian (husseins@vaniercollege.qc.ca).

Sonia Husseindjian, International Education Office

Annual Holiday Craft Fair

Our annual Holiday Craft Fair is scheduled for Wednesday, December 4

th from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

If you are interested in participating in this year’s event, please reserve your table with me by Nov. 22

nd. The participant MUST be

a member (faculty, staff or student not a family member or friend) of the Vanier community. All items to be sold MUST BE HANDMADE by the participant. Each participant will pay $15.00 which will be donated to the Vanier College Foundation. For any further information, please call me at ext. 7572.

Nora Soukiassian, FSSCAL