SELS Dialogues Journal Volume 4 Number 1

SELS Dialogues 

School of English and Liberal Studies Journal 

Volume 4, No. 1 | 2024

Land 

Acknowledgement 

Table of Contents 

Acknowledgements.. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 2 

Managing Editor’s Note by Sherry Hejazi... ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 3 

Centennial College is proud to be a part of a 

rich history of education in this province and 

in this city. We acknowledge that we are on the 

treaty lands and territory of the Mississaugas 

of the Credit First Nation and pay tribute to 

their legacy and the legacy of all First Peoples 

of Canada, as we strengthen ties with the 

communities we serve and build the future 

through learning and through our graduates. 

Today, the traditional meeting place of Toronto 

is still home to many Indigenous People from 

across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have 

the opportunity to work in the communities 

that have grown in the treaty lands of the 

Mississaugas. We acknowledge that we are all 

treaty people and accept our responsibility to 

honour all our relations. 

Pedagogy and Critical Thinking .. ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ......4 

Lead Your Students to Think Creatively with TIM by Dr. Renée Sgroi . ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 4 

What is Wrong with the Hamburger Format? by Paul Taborsky... ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 7 

Critical Thinking in ESL Classrooms by Tahmina Anwar. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 10 

Bringing ESL Information Gap Activities to Mathematics Courses by Damon Erickson .... .. ... 12 

“Zoom Fatigue is Real” By BJ Jumnadass . ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 14 

Writing Motivation in Online Communication Courses by Sohana Haque .... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 16 

Technology Is Not a Thing but a Mindset by Ron Schafrick .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 19 

Research Initiatives ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ......21 

Enhancing Teaching and Learning Through (SoTL) by Shahla Noor AL-Deen... ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 21 

How a Meaningful Experience (ME) Originates Through WORD by Charan Batra... ... .. ... .. ... 24 

Investigating the Impact of MML on College-Level EAP Learners by Ivan Su... ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 26 

Creative Pursuits .. .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ...... .... ......30 

The Old Woman and the Wave by Margot Van Sluytman.... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 30 

REVIEW: The Dark Side Behind the Moon by Ilana Lucas . .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 32 

An Old Deer and His Deputy Peer by Golam Dastagir. .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 35 

SELS Dialogues Editors .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 37 

Call for Submissions: SELS Dialogues.... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ... 40 

SELS DIALOGUES | 1

Acknowledgements 

Managing Editor’s Note 

by Sherry Hejazi 

The SELS Dialogues editorial team would like to 

express its gratitude to both James Papple and 

Meera Mather, whose constant support has helped 

our journal continue its journey. Our editorial team 

is also grateful to our staff and faculty for their 

enthusiasm in engaging in so many discussions 

and projects to make ongoing contributions to the 

journal. Hope you enjoy reading this volume! 

Welcome to SELS Dialogues, Volume 4, No.1! To 

begin reading this round of articles, in the pedagogy 

and critical thinking section, we get to read a thought 

provoking article, written by Dr. Renée Sgroi, elaborating 

on increasing student creativity by leading them 

towards thinking creatively as educators. Next, Paul 

Taborsky’s opinion piece invites faculty to revisit the 

teaching approach to college writing. Additionally, 

Tahmina Anwar encourages faculty to include more 

philosophical discussion topics in order to engage 

students in academic integrity practices, while Sohana 

Haque’s article adds to the discussion by suggesting 

strategies for motivating college students in writing 

and communication courses. Damon Erickson, on the 

other hand, draws a fabulous connection between 

Mathematics and ESL, introducing Information 

Gap activities to enhance students’ mathematical 

communication. This is all continued by Bhavesh 

Jumnadass’ critique of an article written on Zoom 

Fatigue, which is relevant to many educators of the 

current world. Finally, Ron Schafrick has written 

a fabulous, deep analysis of the current impacts 

of technology on language teaching, which invites 

educators to rethink their pedagogical practices 

in the classroom. 

In the research section, we get to read a reflective 

piece written by Shahla Noor AL-Deen, who elaborates 

on her SoTL journey and shares the outcomes of her 

research experience. Charan Batra’s piece, on the 

other hand, is an open invitation to a group research 

project that delves into Meaningful Experience (ME) 

through an approach called WORD towards language 

teaching. Additionally, Ivan Su provides us with a 

detailed breakdown of his action research project on 

integrating a mobile-micro learning platform, EdApp, into 

his curriculum. 

Our creative pursuits section has also been enlightened 

by Margot Van Sluytman’s narrative, where she 

encourages her readers to embrace aging through 

exploring and celebrating its accompanying wisdom, 

resilience, and finally surrendering to the beauty and 

richness of life. Golam Dastagir’s poem adds to the 

section by elaborating on a cautionary tale about the 

importance of humility, cooperation, and respect for 

authority. Finally, Ilana Lucas’s play review of “ Behind 

the Moon” explores the complicated experience of 

immigration and the universal human desire for a 

better life. 

SELS DIALOGUES | 2 SELS DIALOGUES | 3

Pedagogy and Critical Thinking 


Lead Your Students to Think 

Creatively with the Torrance 

Incubation Model (TIM)by Dr. Renée Sgroi 

In 2021, Centennial College’s Academic Plan 

identified the ‘Wildly Important Goal’ to “Encourage 

students’ creativity and inquiry through innovation, 

entrepreneurship and changemaking” (p. 33); a 

goal that is paramount in today’s world. Similarly, 

the Conference Board of Canada and the provincial 

government have directed Ontario’s higher learning 

institutions to incorporate creative thinking in education 

(Preece et al., Acar, 2017). Current employment trends 

recognize creative thinking as a key 21st century skill 

necessary for gaining and maintaining successful 

employment in an uncertain work economy (Puccio, 

2017; Puccio & Lohiser, 2020; Vincent-Lancrin et 

al., 2019). Beyond employment concerns, creativity 

research demonstrates beneficial effects of creativity 

training for both students and organizations (Puccio et 

al., 2006; Puccio et al., 2018; Sawyer, 2019), as well 

as positive benefits (including mental health and wellbeing) 

that result from engaging with creativity (Acar et 

al., 2020; Conner et al., 2018; Forgeard, 2013; Puccio 

et al., 2018; Puccio et al., 2019). 

In terms of teaching, however, how many of us really 

feel like creative innovators? Are we stuck in that 

old teaching model of the professor standing at 

the front of the room delivering a lecture (when the 

same information is readily available to students on 

the internet), a model which is actually no longer 

sustainable (Sawyer, 2019, pp. 5-6)? As society 

progresses, and as students and teachers continue 

to adapt to an ever-changing post-pandemic world, 

educators can continue to support student learning in 

meaningful and transformational ways by engaging with 

their creativity. 

One way to accomplish creativity and innovation is by 

utilizing the Incubation Model for Teaching (Torrance, 

1979; Torrance & Safter, 1988), which Murdock 

and Keller-Mathers (2008) built on and renamed 

the Torrance Incubation Model, or TIM. According to 

Murdock and Keller-Mathers, “the TIM contains three 

basic stages that must occur within some period of 

time that is not pre-set or specified by the model itself: 

(1) Heighten Anticipation, (2) Deepen Expectations, 

and (3) Extend the Learning” (p.11). In each of these 

stages, learners are challenged to engage their own 

imaginations with open-ended questions that lead to 

creative thinking and innovation, or what Sawyer (2019) 

calls “Question Finding” (p. 24), which produces “[t]he 

most surprising creative ideas” (ibid). By incorporating 

one of Torrance’s creativity skills into the use of the TIM 

(Murdock & Keller-Mathers, 2008), creative thinking is 

further engendered. 

How does it work? Imagine you are teaching a lesson 

on writing thesis statements. From among Burnett 

and Figliotti’s (2020) “creative thinking skills” (which 

build on those identified by Torrance), you choose 

the “Highlight the Essence” creativity skill. You then 

“Heighten Anticipation” by sending students a teaser 

video a week before class that sparks their curiosity 

about essay writing. Next, you “Deepen Expectations” 

in class by asking students to explore a set of exemplary 

thesis statements, and have them highlight what makes 

those statements strong and effective. (You’ll probably 

also ask students to write their own thesis statements 

too!) And finally, you “Extend the Learning” beyond 

class time by asking students to practice “Highlighting 

the Essence” throughout the week. This can be 

accomplished by encouraging students to practice 

summarizing news reports they hear, or by writing a 

one-sentence plot summary of a movie they might watch 

over the weekend, which they could then share in class 

the following week. 

As a student of creativity and a creativity educator, 

I have seen the positive effects of implementing the 

TIM in my own teaching. By leading students through 

TIM, and by incorporating a creative thinking skill, you 

will not only engage your own creativity, but you will 

positively model what innovative thinking looks like. An 

added bonus is that by sparking curiosity, you’ll heighten 

students’ intrinsic motivation and willingness to learn, 

which has been shown to support creative thinking 

(Murdock & Keller-Mathers, 2008; Puccio et al., 2011; 

Sawyer, 2019). As a result, students will be better 

equipped to engage their own creativity while more 

effectively practicing and demonstrating course learning 

outcomes. 

As noted creativity researcher Vlad Glăveanu (2021) 

wrote, “To educate for the future rather than the 

present requires an understanding of creativity and the 

importance of flexibility, anticipation, and improvisation 

within the curriculum” (p. 92). So get creative. Anticipate 

your own and your students’ creativity. Be flexible. 

Extend the boundaries. Play. Have fun. And don’t forget: 

imagine where your own creativity and innovation can 

take your teaching. 

For more suggestions about incorporating creativity into 

your classroom, check out the list of references, or feel 

free to connect with me for more creativity possibilities. 

References 

Acar, S., Tadik, H., Myers, D., van der Sman, C., & Uysal, R. (2020). 

Creativity and well-being: A meta-analysis. Journal of Creative 

Behavior, 55(3): 738-751. DOI: 10.1002/jocb.485 

Burnett, C. & Figliotti, J. (2020). Weaving creativity into every strand 

of your curriculum. Creativity and Education. 

Centennial College. (2021). Academic Plan 2021-2025. 

https://www.centennialcollege.ca/about-centennial/ 

college-overview/academic- plan-2021-2025 

Conner, T.S., DeYoung, C.G. & Silvia, P.J. (2018). Everyday creative 

activity as a path to flourishing. Journal of Positive Psychology, 

13(2): 181-189. DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2016.1257049. 

Forgeard, M. (2013). Perceiving benefits after adversity: 

The relationship between self-reported posttraumatic growth and 

creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity and the arts, 7(3): 

245-264. DOI: 10.1037/a0031223. 

Glăveanu, V. (2021) Creativity: A very short introduction. Oxford. 

Murdock, M.C. & Keller-Mathers, S. (2008). Teaching and learning 

creatively with the Torrance 

Incubation model: A research and practice update. 

The international journal of creativity and problem solving. 

18(2), pp. 11-33. 

Preece, M., Katz, Y., Richards, B., Puccio, G.J., & Acar, S. (2017). 

Shifting the organizational mindset: Exploratory evidence for the 

positive impact of creativity training and strategic planning. 

The International Journal of Creativity and Problem Solving, 

27(2): 35-52. 

Puccio, G.J. (2017). From the dawn of humanity to the 21st century: 

Creativity as an enduring Survival skill. The Journal of Creative 

Behavior, 51(4): 330-334. DOI: 10.1002/jocb. 203 

Puccio, G.J., Firestien, R.L., Coyle, C., & Masucci, C. (2006). A review 

of the effectiveness of CPS training: A focus on workplace issues. 

Effectiveness of creative problem solving training, 15(1): 19-33. 

Puccio, G.J., Mance, M. & Murdock, M. (2011) Creative leadership: 

Skills that drive change, 2nd. ed. Sage. 

Puccio, G.J., Miller, B., & Acar, S. (2018). Differences in creative 

problem-solving preferences across occupations. Journal of 

Creative Behavior, 53(4):576-592. DOI: 10.1002/jocb.241 

Puccio, G.J., Szalay, P.A., Acar, S., & Boyer, A. (2019). Understanding 

the intersection between well-being and creative process: 

An exploratory study of creative-thinking preferences and aspects 

of mental health. The International Journal of Creativity & 

Problem Solving, 29(2): 5-15. 

Puccio, G.J., Burnett, C., Acar, S., Yudess, J.A., Holinger, M., & Cabra, 

J. (2018). Creative problem solving in small groups: The effects 

of creativity training on idea generation, solution creativity, and 

leadership effectiveness. Journal of Creative Behavior, 0(0): 

1-19. DOI: 10.1002/jocb.381. 

Puccio, G.J. & Lohiser, A. (2020). The case for creativity in higher 

education: Preparing students for life and work in the 21 st century. 

Kindai Management Review, 8: 30-47. 



Pedagogy Educational and Critical Technology 

Thinking 

Sawyer, K. (2019). The creative classroom: Innovative teaching for 

21 st -century learners. Teachers College Press. 

Torrance E. P. (1979). An instructional model for enhancing 

incubation. The Gifted Child Quarterly, 23:23-35 

Torrance, E. P. & Safter, H. T. (1988). Making the creative leap 

beyond. Creative Education Foundation. 

Vincent-Lancrin, S., González-Sancho, C., Bouckaert, M., de Luca, 

F., Fernández-Barrerra, M., Jacotin, G., Urgel, J. & Vidal, Q. 

(2019). Fostering students’ creativity and critical thinking: What 

it means in school. Organisation for Economic Cooperation and 

Development (OECD). https://doi.org/10.1787/62212c37-en 

What is Wrong with the Hamburger 

Format? 

by Paul Taborsky 

Author’s Bio 

Dr. Renée Sgroi (she/her), who teaches GNED 

113, “Creative Genius”, in the Humanities and 

Social Sciences department, recently added a 

Master of Science degree in Creativity and Change 

Leadership from SUNY Buffalo State to her 

academic profile. Her articles on creativity have 

appeared on the Creativity and Education website 

and in Questioning Creativity: Modern Explorations 

in Creative Thinking. 

The so-called hamburger essay / paragraph format is 

used to train beginning writers in the basics of essay 

writing. Here’s a typical example (in the paragraph 

version): (Norris, 2016) 

Paragraph Terms 

Topic Sentence = a general statement that indicates the 

subject and focus of the paragraph (main idea) 

Supporting details = information that clarifies the 

main idea. 

Major support = aspects of the topic that show how it 

supports the main idea of the writing. 

Minor support = specific examples of the major 

support, which gives the reader a mental picture of the 

idea the writer wants to convey. 

Summary sentence = a statement that reminds the 

reader of the point of the paragraph. 

The hamburger essay format provided above is for a 

paragraph, but the essay format differs in no essential 

details.This format is not flawless, and we need to stop 

teaching it right away, at least to college students. In this 

opinion piece, I would like to elaborate on my criticisms 

which apply to both ‘hamburger essays’ and what might 

be called ‘hamburger paragraphs’. 

Now, a common criticism is that the problem with this 

format is that it is too rigid and leads to mechanical, 

pattern-based, formulaic writing. There may be 

something to this complaint, but that’s not the focus of 

my criticism at all. 

I would like to make a completely different kind of 

point. The terminology and approach typically used 

in this format, especially in the un-adapted versions 

taken straight from K-12 education, are misleading, 

inadequate, and lead to poor writing. 

To show how, let’s take a more detailed look at this 

model in its paragraph version: Topic sentence = A 

general sentence that indicates the subject and general 

focus of the paragraph (main idea). 

To start with the basics, it is crucially important to 

understand that sentences don’t ‘indicate’ things; they 

‘say’ things. The difference is vital because it underlies 




the difference between thoughts expressed in language 

and without language. Since we are presumably 

teaching students how to write and to use language, 

we want them to understand the peculiarities of 

language, and how it functions in a way different from 

non-linguistic communication. For example, it can be 

said that the red-light at a traffic stop indicates vehicles 

are to come to a stop; a cat’s meow indicates that it is 

hungry, annoyed, or frightened; certain kinds of clouds 

may indicate an approaching storm. Language alone, 

however, does more than this: it says things; it makes 

claims. 

The ‘topic sentence’ of a paragraph (a really unfortunate 

label, but it’s too late to change it), thus, does not simply 

‘indicate’ subject, focus, or ‘topic’; it puts them together 

by making a claim. 

If we want students to understand the difference 

between waving their hand and writing a topic 

sentence – in other words, between non-linguistic 

and linguistic communication, and that language can 

both indicate or show, and assert or claim, then the 

difference between describing something, and claiming 

or asserting something, is crucial. Language can also 

describe, be used to make promises, to articulate goals, 

to make lists, and much else as well. Understanding 

the difference between all of these is important in 

understanding what a topic sentence does, which is to 

(uniquely) make a claim and how it differs from these 

other things, which other non-topic sentences might do. 

Now, a slightly improved explanation of what a topic 

sentence does is to state that a topic sentence (or a 

thesis statement, in the essay version) combines a topic 

and a controlling idea. But, this is a rather complicated 

formulation that still mischaracterizes its function. 

lot of poor student writing. For example, typical student 

responses to a question asking them to identify the 

thesis statement of a standard reading in our curriculum 

(Lamphier 2014), combine the three ideas above. 

1. ‘Depression and negative consequences for the 

economy’ 

2. ‘The writer wants to illuminate the relation between 

depression and negative consequences for the 

economy’. 

3. ‘Depression should not affect the economy in a 

negative way’. 

However, in none of these three is a claim being made 

(aside from a claim about the writer’s goals, in the 

second example), so none of these could be a topic 

sentence. 

Moreover, the idea of ‘control’ in a ‘controlling idea’ is 

not much better. To say that an idea controls a topic is 

just too vague – a theme can control a song, a colour 

can control a portrait, an emotion can control a story, 

a person can control another. But, none of these 

situations are adequate substitutes, nor shed any light 

on the unique linguistic function of assertion that occurs 

when we use language in a sentence, when one thing is 

said of or asserted of another, which is what happens in 

a topic sentence. 

Supporting details 

‘Supporting details’ is also a completely misleading 

phrase that needs to be banished from writing 

instruction . It needs to be stressed, again and 

again, that topic sentences / thesis statements are 

not supported by ‘details’, ‘points’, ‘aspects’,, but by 

arguments. 

An argument is not a detail! That the gas canister 

had a capacity of 5L is a detail; that I am 5’4’’ tall is 

a detail. Arguments are, however, combinations of 

assertions that support a thesis. Facts and details are 

not arguments, by themselves. Failure to understand 

this leads to the kind of writing that substitutes a list 

of ideas for an argument. None of the other synonyms 

used by Norris (2016)– ‘information’ , ‘aspect’, ‘mental 

picture’, are any better. That’s because neither pictures, 

nor aspects, nor information (by themselves) are 

arguments; in other words, a picture may be worth a 

thousand words, but only if one is writing a novel, and 

we are not teaching students creative nor descriptive, 

but analytical writing. 

To sum up, the problem with the hamburger essay / 

paragraph model is not that it leads to formulaic or 

pattern based writing. The problem is that by taking 

what might be called a ‘descriptive’ approach to writing, 

seen in the use of the familiar and repeated terminology 

that pervades this kind of approach : ‘indicate’, ‘focus’, 

‘support’, ‘detail’, ‘aspect’, ‘convey’, ‘point’, and similar 

expressions that are essentially metaphors, students 

miss out on understanding just what topic sentences, 

and so-called ‘supporting details,’ actually do: They 

make arguments and articulate claims, and these 

differ from all the other kinds of nuances that writers 

also apply in language, which to name a few can be 

recommending, advising, describing, and stating goals. 

A student will understand how to write an essay or an 

analytical paragraph if they are immersed in descriptive 

language that confuses all of these. It is this descriptive 

language that is the problem with the hamburger 

approach. 

References 

Lamphier, G. (2014, Aug. 14). Economic cost of depression is 

staggering. Edmonton Journal. https://edmontonjournal.com/ 

news/local-news/lamphier-economic-cost-of-depression-isstaggering. 

Norris, T. (2016). Supporting details. (https://slideplayer.com/ 

slide/12478367/) 


Paul Taborsky has been teaching in the 

English department for many years, and he 

is the author of a number of publications 

in academic philosophy and philosophy of 

science. 

Additionally, sentences don’t ‘combine’ things in 

the way that coffee and milk are combined, or that 

pictures are combined in a photo album, for example. 

In a sentence, something is said of something else; 

a sentence isn’t just a putting together of things. For 

example, ‘depression and negative consequences 

for the economy’ is a combination of several ideas – 

‘depression’ , ‘negative consequences’, and ‘economy’, 

but this phrase is not a topic sentence or thesis 

because nothing is asserted or said of anything else. 

Failure to understand this, or failure to understand the 

unique function of assertion in a sentence leads to a 

In these schemas, both arguments and the examples 

that support them are referred to by the same 

terminology. Norris (2016) labels arguments as ‘major 

support’, while examples are ‘minor support’. Other 

versions of this approach refer to major and minor 

‘details’. But to label arguments (or more correctly, 

reasons for, or premises of, arguments) together with 

examples, as ‘support’ or ‘details’, is to misconstrue 

the vast differences between the two, comparable to 

conflating sentences with words. The difference is a 

difference in kind, obscured by calling one ‘major’ and 

the other ‘minor’. 


Pedagogy Research and Initiatives Critical Thinking 

Pedagogy Educational and Critical Technology 

Thinking 

Critical Thinking in ESL Classrooms 

Including Philosophical Topics in COMM Course by Tahmina Anwar 

Cognitively engaging students in English as a Second 

Language (ESL) classrooms is often a challenge, 

especially with the advancement of Artificial Intelligence 

(AI). This paper argues that ESL classrooms should 

integrate philosophical topics that emphasize critical 

thinking and ethics for engaging interactions. 

Background of ESL Students 

To address disengagement and plagiarism issues in 

the ESL classroom, it is important to understand the 

background of our diverse group of students at a tertiary 

level, which includes recent high school graduates 

from different countries with varying curriculum and 

learning styles, adult learners who have already had an 

established professional career in their home country, 

and students with different cultures. Therefore, they 

differ in terms of their needs, challenges, proficiency, 

and motivation. Since the ultimate goal of any language 

classroom is to equip learners with a linguistic repertoire 

which will allow them to channel their knowledge in 

diverse fields, it is imperative we integrate philosophical 

topics which will not only resonate with their moral 

beliefs but also boost a learner’s confidence as a critical 

thinker (Rezaei et al., 2011). Thus, it may enhance 

student engagement in ESL classrooms. 

Including Philosophical Topics 

Integrating philosophical topics into the curriculum is 

often challenging due to time constraints, pervasive 

use of AI, lack of motivation, and poor vocabulary of 

students, to mention a few., However, if philosophical 

topics are added to the curriculum, student engagement 

may increase while developing critical thinking skills and 

establishing ethical thinking (Siegel, 1985). 

1.. Critical thinking 

Since the COMM171 course allows teachers to 

select articles of their choice for the Critique Essay 

Assignment, I try to find articles with philosophical 

issues such as love, happiness, justice, society, and 

morality that may be appealing to students’ interests. 

More importantly, they will require students to analyze 

different perspectives on the provided social issues 

and evaluate observable evidence to form their own 

opinions. Although one of the best gifts of AI-powered 

language apps is its personalized language learning 

materials that suit individual learners’ needs, it is still 

not capable of critically examining the quality of an 

article. As a result, students can engage in evaluating 

evidence, analyzing arguments, developing their own 

ideas through various critique essay assignments in 

COMM171, which may result in enhancing their critical 

thinking and language proficiency while receiving 

personalized feedback from teachers. 

2.. Ethical Value 

Philosophical topics can help build up moral conscience 

amongst students. Siegel (1985), argues that 

philosophical inquiry requires students to analyze, 

evaluate, and make an informed ethical choice based 

on the moral implications of their choices. For example, 

if all COMM courses can create tasks and activities 

on academic integrity and ethics, it may help students 

develop a habit of making informed ethical decisions 

both personally and professionally. Additionally, 

students often come across as rude in the tone of their 

emails, which in most cases is unintentional and is a 

result of being under-exposed to real-life situational 

English and context-appropriate language.” For example, 

the article “The problem of thinking in straight lines” 

by Yates (2023), which explores the implications of 

linearity bias on one’s ethical behavior, has the scope 

to be used to facilitate student’s ethical decisionmaking 

by generating logically challenging prompts and 

situations. 

Some prompts to stimulate class 

discussion are: 

• Do you think the consumerist society is the result 

of linearity bias? 

• Can you think of some character traits which are 

conditioned by it? 

• Imagine a situation of ethical dilemma and discuss 

how you have addressed the issue. 

Therefore, philosophical topics like these may help 

students become self-reliant in thinking critically, 

including sharing their personal opinions constructively 

and resisting the temptation to submit plagiarized work. 

Conclusion 

My teaching philosophy is to create a learner-centered 

classroom where students would feel relaxed enough 

to not equate their performance with grades but 

participate actively in meaningful class discussions for 

intrinsic purposes. Moreover, since language teachers 

are preparing students for a workforce dominated by 

AI, ESL students should be taught to think beyond the 

box to create their space in today’s job market. AI is 

never a threat to humans if people know how to use it 

ethically. Creating logical minds with conscience has 

become more important than creating a technologically 

advanced world for greater peace and harmony. 

Technological development can take a pause for a 

while, but the human mind needs to evolve perpetually. 

Finally, if Philosophy is argued to be the mother of all 

sciences, then language is the tool used in constructing 

that science. Our ability to think critically, feel various 

emotions, or express ourselves through language makes 

us different from all other creatures (Foucault, 1972). 

Therefore, as language educators, we have the moral 

responsibility to encourage ESL students to be critical 

thinkers. Language is one of the most dated art forms, 

but its impact in our life is immense as it is the key to 

success in any career field. 

References 

Foucault, M. (1972). The Archaeology of Knowledge. London: 

Routledge. 

Rezaei, S., Derakhshan, A., & Bagherkazemi, M. (2011). Critical 

Thinking in Language Education. Journal of Language Teaching 

and Research, Vol. 2(4), pp. 769-777. 

Siegel, H. (1985). Educating Reason: Critical Thinking, Informal 

logic, and the Philosophy of Education. Informal Logic, V.2 & 

3. Retrieved from file:///C:/Users/Centennial/Downloads/ 

tblair,+7(2)p69-81.pdf 

Yates, K. (2023). The problem of thinking in straight lines. BBC. 

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20231229-the-problem-ofthinking-in-straight-lines 


Tahmina Anwar has been working as a 

teacher, tutor, and PASS advisor since 2015 

at Centennial college after completing 

her second MA in Applied Linguistics 

and Discourse Studies from Carleton 

University, Ottawa. She has over 15 years 

of ESL teaching experience at the tertiary 

level including University of Ottawa, YORK 

University (YUELI) and other institutions. 

Her research interests are second language 

acquisition, assessment, and discourse 

studies. She enjoys journaling and spending 

time with her daughter, friends, and family. 




Math Communication 

Bringing ESL Information Gap Activities to Introductory Mathematics 

Courses by Damon Erickson 

Many of my students in introductory mathematics 

courses feel that mathematics is a study of problems 

that needs solving. These students often do not feel 

comfortable using mathematical language to express 

their ideas or they may have developed imprecise 

terminology for expressing mathematical concepts. 

I want my students to see math as a language that 

they can use to express and share mathematical 

ideas. I want them to be precise in their use of 

mathematical language to increase the accuracy of their 

communication. 

When I consider mathematics as a language, I find there 

is a strong correspondence between math activities and 

ESL activities. Information Gap activities are one type of 

ESL activity that I have adapted to my math classrooms 

to foster mathematical communication and to provide 

formative assessment regarding their communication. 

Information Gap (Hidden Information) 

Information Gap activities, also known as Hidden 

Information, are a common ESL activity for eliciting 

communication practice among students. A typical 

Information Gap activity involves placing students in 

pairs where one student has a menu, pamphlet or some 

text, and the other student must ask for information, 

requiring communication practice in a particular format. 

The practice format in ESL courses might emphasize 

simple phrases such as “I would like ____” or “How 

many” vs. “How much” or complicated information 

including detailed instructions or opinions. 

As an Information Gap activity unfolds, the professor 

can provide quick formative assessments to 

conversations in progress and the students often 

provide feedback to each other as they practise the 

target skills. 

In order to foster similar mathematical communication 

between students in my introductory courses, I 

frequently use a similar Information Gap set-up. I place 

my students into pairs, and each student in the pair 

receives a worksheet labeled “A Sheet” or “B Sheet”. 

The A and B sheets have different pieces of information 

that must be combined to solve the problems. 

In these math activities, students work together to 

solve problems. They must speak the language of the 

problems correctly to each other and must use precise 

writing to solve the problems. 

Basic Example of Information Gap 

Math Activity 

For a quick and simple in-class practice using this 

A-Sheet and B-Sheet model, I start with a basic 

worksheet and split each of the problems into two 

parts. For example, if the topic is fraction multiplication, 

I create an A-Sheet that has half of each problem as 

follows: 

A-Sheet 

1) 3/4 × [see B-sheet] 

2) [see B-sheet] × 4 1/8 

Then, I create a corresponding B-sheet that has 

matching question numbers that feature the other half 

of each question as in the following example: 

B-Sheet 

1) [see A-sheet] × 5 1/3 

2) 2 2/9 × [see A-sheet] 

With the students paired up, I may allow them to view 

each other’s sheets, or I may require them to keep their 

sheets hidden and only speak the values that they find. 

I have similar worksheets for topics in algebra, such 

as evaluating expressions where one student has an 

expression or formula, and the other student has the 

variable values. For example, the A-sheet might look as 

follows: 

A-Sheet 

1) 1 2x – 3y + 12 [see B-sheet for variable values] 

2) 2 m = -6, q = 2.4 [see B-sheet for expression] 

The corresponding B-sheet would have matching 

question numbers with the required information as 

follows: 

B-Sheet 

1) 1 x = 5, y =8 [see A-sheet for expression] 

2) 2 m^2 – 3q ÷ (2m) [see A-sheet for variable values] 

Advanced Information Gap Activities – 

Role Play 

Several introductory-level topics lend themselves to 

a more sophisticated A-sheet, B-sheet setup that 

involve role play in the student pairs. One such topic is 

percentages when we work with markup, discount, or 

compound interest. 

When creating worksheets for these activities, I use a 

scenario where the A-sheet asks the student to be a 

banker or store clerk and the B-sheet asks the student 

to be a client or customer. The B-sheet client brings 

information such as an investment balance or requested 

discount and the A-sheet must use the information to 

calculate. Of course, the B-sheet student must verify the 

calculations! 

In these scenarios, I always have the students switch 

roles, so typically the reverse side of the worksheet will 

be a second scenario where the B-sheet becomes a 

banker and the A-sheet becomes the client. 

Summary 

In my classes, the students do find the A-sheet, B-sheet 

format a little unusual at first. Because I repeat the 

same format several times, after a few weeks the 

students quickly recognize my A-sheet, B-sheet activities 

and can start and complete the in-class tasks quickly. 

Students enjoy these Information Gap activities, often 

taking particular interest in the role-play scenarios. 

Because all the students are practicing at the same 

time, I am able to circulate the room and offer 

feedback quickly when stumbling blocks emerge. Most 

importantly, I see the students communicating with 

each other with mathematical ideas, encouraging each 

other with their successes and offering corrections to 

each other when they make mistakes. 

I find ESL activities adapted to math create a positive 

learning environment with increased cooperation among 

students. These Information Gap activities encourage 

students to view and use mathematics as a language 

of expression, requiring precision to accurately express 

their ideas so that others can understand. 


Damon Erickson is a math educator with 14 

years of experience in pre-apprenticeship, 

pre-health and adult upgrading programs 

at Centennial College. He has a special 

interest in helping students overcome math 

anxiety and a research interest in developing 

effective, evidence-based teaching strategies 

for adult students of mathematics. 




“Zoom Fatigue is Real” 

By BJ Jumnadass 

Over the past few years, Zoom has been a tool used 

by many educators worldwide. An article by Bailenson 

(2021), entitled, “Nonverbal Overload: A Theoretical 

Argument for the Causes of Zoom Fatigue” discusses 

nonverbal overload as a potential cause for fatigue. The 

author discusses four arguments that outline how using 

Zoom may lead to psychological consequences. Zoom 

fatigue refers to the mental and physical exhaustion 

that many people experience because of lengthy video 

conferencing sessions. 

After doing some research, I found that there are a lot of 

empirical studies out there that look at human-computer 

interactions, and communication that examines 

behaviour during video conferencing. Unfortunately, 

there hasn’t been any studies that look at the many 

consequences of spending hours a day on a video call. 

A few strengths in Bailenson’s article are focused 

on four possible explanations of Zoom fatigue which 

include close-up gaze, cognitive load, increased 

evaluation from staring at oneself and the constraints 

on physical mobility. 

If we look at close-up gaze, Bailenson provided 

an example of an elevator to teach the non-verbal 

behaviour. I’m going to say most of us tend to look 

away from others’ faces by looking down and avoiding 

eye contact in an elevator, at least I do. Zoom is very 

similar. A study conducted by Argyle & Dean (1965) 

also collaborated with Bailenson’s work on eye gaze 

and interpersonal distance. Cognitive load looks at 

sending and receiving signals or cues. For example, 

users constantly use nonverbal behaviour like nodding, 

centering oneself in the frame and trying to make direct 

eye contact with the speaker. In addition, most users 

speak louder on a video conference call than they do in 

a face-to-face interaction. The all-day mirror effect can 

also lead to stress. Zoom causes a self-evaluation, and 

Zoom users are seeing reflections of themselves at a 

frequency and duration that hasn’t been seen before in 

the history of media and likely the history of people. By 

pointing out these four factors, Bailenson has provided 

a means for companies and individuals to understand 

some of the root causes of this fatigue. 

I also wanted to point out that this study also has some 

practical implications. Companies and individuals can 

use these strategies to lessen the effects of Zoom 

Fatigue. For example, you can get up and move around 

or reduce your screen size. 

On the other hand, there are some limitations to 

Bailenson’s study. The author doesn’t discuss such 

things as individual differences, the meetings’ purpose 

and even the overall work environment. These 

contextual factors may influence some results, and they 

are important to be critiqued. 

Another factor to consider are the technological 

advancements. Some of the findings will become 

obsolete because of the improvements that will be 

made to address Zoom Fatigue. For example, new 

platforms could address the mirror view and eye contact 

issues. The use of an immersive Zoom experience is 

also a tool that allows the user to get up and move 

around during a video call. In addition, the sample size 

and the demographics of the participants were not 

mentioned in the study. This raises questions about 

different populations surveyed, and if the study results 

are the same across the globe. 

Lastly, since Zoom Fatigue is a relatively new concept, 

it will be interesting to see what the long-term effects 

would be. Some of the long-term effects would include 

mental health and social relationships which are very 

important, but unfortunately, they aren’t included in 

this study 

As an instructor and a graduate student, I found the 

reading to be very relatable. I use Zoom almost every 

day for classes and work, and I can see how I relate to 

Bailenson’s arguments. One of the key points is mobility 

which involves constant reminding to get up and stretch 

or to move around. It is also important for students to 

realize this and to move when they get a break. 

I hope this study invites more research in the field of 

Zoom Fatigue. Educators would like to see research that 

looks at both short-term and long-term effects involved. 

Mental health is a key topic in our society, and it would 

be interesting to see how it will be impacted by 

Zoom Fatigue. 

References 

Argyle, M., & Dean, J. (1965). Eye-contact, distance and affiliation. 

Sociometry, 28(3), 289–304. https://doi.org/10.2307/2786027 

Bailenson, J. N. (2021). Nonverbal Overload: A Theoretical Argument 

for the Causes of Zoom Fatigue. Technology, Mind, and Behavior, 

2(1). https://doi.org/10.1037/tmb0000030 


BJ Jumnadass holds a master’s in 

Education, a BA with a Major in Psychology, 

TEFL/TESOL, Coaching Certificates and 

is a Fellow with The Fellowship of Higher 

Education Academy in the UK. BJ is a 

Professor and PASS Advisor at Centennial 

College. He teaches Communication, 

Humanities, and Social Sciences courses. 

He is currently completing a second 

master’s in applied Linguistics at York 

University. His research interests include 

positive psychology, technology and adult 

education. 




Writing Motivation 

Getting Students Engaged in Online Communication Courses 

by Sohana Haque 

In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we were 

forced to move towards the online modality of teaching 

within a very short notice. We were not ready for this, 

and undoubtedly online courses are very different from 

traditional courses as the students and faculty do not 

meet in-person. Since our communication courses are 

designed to be highly interactive , we had to figure out 

how to approach this very quickly. Besides learning 

the language, technological literacy occupies a greater 

space behind the success of online communication 

courses. Moreover, when it is about a highly complex 

area like writing, it takes even more concentration and 

effort. After the emergency period of the pandemic, we 

literally diverged into different modalities of teaching, 

for instance, synchronous, asynchronous, in-person, 

and hybrid. Whatever the modality is, writing always 

remains the most challenging part of teaching our 

communication courses. Without being motivated, being 

successful in a writing assignment is nearly impossible. 

“Motivation is the first condition to take on a learning 

task and is the engine that powers the process” (Meşe 

& Sevilen, 2021, p. 12). I have experienced that when 

it comes to teaching online, students require extra 

motivation to be engaged with the course learning 

materials, and to feel accomplished as writers. 

Practicing Mindfulness 

The first effective strategy to motivate the students is 

to establish mindfulness among them while learning. 

Our COMM 171 course requires a student to delve into 

critical thinking, rhetorical context analysis, and creating 

coherence while integrating and contextualizing sources. 

In summary, the concept of being engaged in this 

process makes the course challenging for the students. 

In my classes, I experienced that many students feel 

demotivated because of their fear about not being able 

to apply these writing strategies. To motivate them, I try 

to make them mindful about the current situation and 

the context of writing the specific assignment. In other 

words, I try to train them to live in the moment being 

free from any outside thoughts. Chapman clarifies this 

nicely in her wonderful book, “Letting go of whatever 

we’re thinking and returning to the object of attention 

is training in nowness” (Chapman, 2012, p. 28). By 

encouraging students to ignore the old fear or not to 

worry about the future results, I place their minds into 

a comfort zone, which leads them to be engaged in 

the moment. It is at this point when the motivation for 

writing starts. 

Learning Outcomes and Interactive 

Discussion 

The second effective strategy I apply to keep the 

students motivated is to engage them into interactive 

discussions regarding the importance and expectations 

of the course. In my COMM 161 and COMM 171 

courses, I always try to set clear goals and expectations 

early on. I try to be precise when summarizing the 

Course Learning Outcomes (CLO) and the Essential 

Employability Skills (EES). Then, I try to clarify and 

discuss my plans with the students for achieving those 

goals as a team. I have seen that when students see 

the precise expectations along with the directions of 

achieving them, they realize that their voice is heard, 

and they feel motivated. Meşe and Sevilen (2021) also 

recognize that lack of social interaction and a mismatch 

between expectations and content are the main 

obstacles behind online education. I allow students to 

discuss the feasibility of the planning process, and the 

way I could be a true facilitator in their learning process. 

By doing that, though they understand the challenging 

factors of these courses, they feel esteemed, and they 

usually are motivated. 

Appropriate Learning Materials 

Choosing the appropriate learning materials is one of 

the most important jobs for any instructor to keep the 

class motivated and engaged. While choosing topics 

or materials, I try to take care of the interest of the 

students because when they can relate to the material 

or topic, they automatically get motivated. To gauge their 

interest, in my first class of COMM 171, I informally ask 

students about subjects that they can relate to. Çebi 

and Güyer (2020) identify a strong correlation between 

the students’ engagement with course material and 

their motivation. Letting them work on something that 

interests them strongly helps students to engage faster. 

In my class, I try to provide them with articles on the 

subjects they chose as their areas of interest in the 

very first class. For instance, in the current semester, 

my articles are about Generated Artificial Intelligence 

(GenAI), trending topics on social media, workplace 

conflict management and resolution, recent mental 

health issues like anxiety or depressive disorder, and 

the current economic conditions of Canada. I try to give 

students materials that are current and meaningful, 

so they can communicate clearly with peers and the 

instructor. 

Constructive Feedback 

Undoubtedly feedback controls a strong part behind a 

learner’s motivation. Feedback is “a process through 

which learners make sense of information from various 

sources and use it to enhance their work or learning 

strategies” (Carless & Boud, 2018, p. 1315). I provide 

two types of constructive feedback in my courses 

to motivate students; one is through implementing 

rubrics, and the other one is providing them with inline 

feedback. In my class, I clearly discuss the specific 

rubric and expectations before my learners start the 

learning process, and this makes them accountable 

for their performance. The additional feedback I 

provide includes spelling mistakes and punctuation 

that are in my inline feedback to make the students 

more focused about the areas that need improvement. 

Another important feedback the students receive is 

from their peers throughout the semester. “Peer review 

in the classroom can enhance numerous employability 

skills such as critical appraisal, writing skills, reflection 

practices and collaborative experiences” (Gaynor, 2019, 

p. 758). We do the peer review mostly in the discussion 

board where not only the instructor, but the peers 

also suggest improvements to other peers. Feedback 

should be clear to students, it should teach instead of 

justifying the grade, and overall feedback in the shared 

written document motivates the students in a writing 

class (Dawson et al., 2018). I have noticed that even 

if students are not happy with their grades, they are 

motivated to make their writing better next time as they 

clearly know the areas they need to improve. 

So far, these strategies have helped me to keep my 

students motivated and engaged while teaching writing 

in our online communication courses. 




References 

Carless, D., & Boud, D. (2018). The development of student 

feedback literacy: enabling uptake of feedback. Assessment & 

Evaluation in Higher Education, 43(8), 1315–1325. 

https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2018.1463354 

Çebi, A., & Güyer, T. (2020). Students’ interaction patterns in 

different online learning activities and their relationship with 

motivation, self-regulated learning strategy and learning 

performance. Education and Information Technologies, 25(5), 

3975–3993. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-020-10151-1 

Technology Is Not a Thing but 

a Mindset 

by Ron Schafrick 

Chapman, S. G. (2012). The Five Keys to Mindful Communication: 

Using Deep Listening and Mindful Speech to Strengthen 

Relationships, Heal Confli cts, and Accomplish Your Goals. 

Shambhala Publications. 

Dawson, P., Henderson, M., Mahoney, P., Phillips, M., Ryan, T., Boud, 

D., & Molloy, E. (2018). What makes for effective feedback: staff 

and student perspectives. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher 

Education, 44(1), 25–36. 

https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2018.1467877 

Gaynor, J. W. (2019). Peer review in the classroom: student 

perceptions, peer feedback quality and the role of assessment. 

Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 45(5), 758–775. 

https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2019.1697424 

Meşe, E., & Sevilen, Ç. (2021). Factors influencing EFL students’ 

motivation in online learning: A qualitative case study. DergiPark 

(Istanbul University). 

https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/pub/jetol/issue/60134/817680 

Nelson, M. S., & Schunn, C. D. (2008). The nature of feedback: 

how different types of peer feedback affect writing performance. 

Instructional Science, 37(4), 375–401. 

https://doi.org/10.1007/s11251-008-9053-x 


Sohana Haque is a TESL Canada certified 

professional, and she has been teaching 

COMM courses at Centennial College for 

more than six years. Her experience in 

teaching ESL at the tertiary level has crossed 

its 20th year in 2023, and during this time, 

she has taught in three different countries 

including Canada. These experiences have 

offered her a diverse real-life opportunity 

in teaching. Sohana works towards 

fostering and maintaining an open, honest, 

communicative, and supportive classroom, 

in which each student feels at ease, secure, 

special, and appropriately challenged. 

For Heidegger (1977), the essence of technology “is 

by no means anything technological” (p. 4). For him, 

technology is a mindset, a way of looking at the world 

as “standing reserve” (p. 17), a stock of exploitable 

resources. He calls this mindset “enframing” (p. 19), 

and it’s something that has encompassed everything. 

A river, for instance, reveals itself as a power supplier 

(p. 16); a tract of land “reveals itself as a coal mining 

district, the soil as a mineral deposit” (p. 14). Enframing 

has even encapsulated man (we are, after all, in the 

eyes of Big Tech the sum of our data). And now, as 

demonstrated by the advent of ChatGPT, enframing 

has swallowed up language, turning it from a uniquely 

human and magical thing into a large-language model 

and a complex series of statistical outcomes. 

Others have put forth similar ideas: there’s Marshall 

McLuhan’s (1966) famous dictum: “The medium is the 

message” (p. 23), as well as Walter Ong’s (1982/2012): 

“Technologies are not mere exterior aids but also 

interior transformations of consciousness” (p. 81). Or, 

as Caitlyn Flanagan (2021) put it in a piece for The 

Atlantic, “Twitter didn’t live in the phone. It lived in me” 

(para. 13). 

What, then, is the mindset that governs our wordprocessing 

technology? For one thing, spelling, 

punctuation, and grammar no longer matter. Ask any 

student and you will discover that in the medium of 

texting, the idea of proper capitalization, punctuation, 

and even proper spacing are frowned upon, even 

regarded as prissy and pretentious (though these 

are not the words they used). A period, I’m told, is 

seen as “aggressive” or a display of anger. It comes 

as no surprise, then, that this mindset is reflected 

in the Respondus quiz environment, or in the handwritten 

work of many of our students: work in which 

everything is in lower-case, including the first-person 

pronoun; apostrophes that are nowhere to be found; 

strange, idiosyncratic spacing choices before and 

after punctuation; and lines that begin with a comma 

or period. And let’s not even get into the issues of 

grammar and spelling. (Even my own spelling, I’m forced 

to confront week after week when standing at the 

whiteboard, has atrophied as a result of auto-correct.) 

Is this simply laziness or do the students really not know 

the rules? 

The answer, of course, is both. In a world in which 

hitting the shift key or space bar is too much effort, 

and our reliance on auto-correct, auto-fill, Grammarly, 

and now AI, have come to dominate, the technological 

mindset that Heidegger (1977) identified means that 

there is no real incentive to even know the rules in the 

first place. In fact, little needs to be remembered or 

internalized. Carelessness is the norm, attention to 

detail is no longer valued, and independent thought can 

now be outsourced to technology whose vast sweep has 

beguiled all of us to varying degrees. 

If technology is a mindset, it means that a kind of 

somnambulance governs the classroom, and English 

class in particular: one need not pay attention (or even 

attend) if online classes are recorded, which can later 

be watched and rewatched at 1.25 speed, skipping 

all the “boring bits.” Note-taking, too, has become 

obsolescent because PowerPoint slides and videos 

are available, and, more recently, so are AI-generated 

summaries of the lesson. And if notes are required, 

students will often take photos of the whiteboard or 

screenshots in an online class. Even the idea of writing 

by hand has become alien, not just to our students but 

for many teachers as well. (Although many other issues 

are at play, one thing is certain: when we abandoned 

the teaching of cursive, we did so because we believed it 

no longer served a practical purpose; but what we didn’t 

realize was that it specifically taught those things that 



Research Initiatives 

are currently lacking: attention to detail, the importance 

of rules (and their internalization through frequent 

repetition), the appreciation of beauty, and to strive for 

it. It taught us that even the physical act of writing—the 

tangible feel of it—can be a joy.) 

We call all our technological changes convenience and 

delude ourselves into believing this is “progress,” yet 

we fail to realize that the tyranny of convenience has 

a corrosive effect, for we do not seem to realize that in 

making things easier and more convenient, we also do 

away with accountability and motivation. In fact, the 

technological mindset only instills the idea that reading 

and writing are tedious, difficult, and boring. But as all 

know, there needs to be a degree of difficulty, of pain— 

of failure—without which there can be no learning and 

ultimately no reward. No pain, no gain, as they say. After 

all, anything worth doing or having must be difficult to 

achieve. But, if the very basics haven’t been learned 

and internalized, if remembering anything is onerous, all 

learning will only become insufferably difficult, not less; 

and what gets taught in the classroom will necessarily 

have to become increasingly remedial—“dumbed 

down,”.. This is not speculation! 

But there is another, more insidious, effect: when 

even language itself has become subject to enframing 

and reduced to something that can be mobilized via 

a computer program to answer the most esoteric 

prompt in the form of a well-written essay in a matter of 

seconds, language itself is cheapened and our curiosity 

is deadened. This is the real danger. When all reading 

and writing become difficult and boring, who will want 

to explore the great works of the past? Who will even 

know of them or be interested enough to read them, 

be inspired by them, and driven to write or think about 

them? Who will be excited by books or take pleasure 

in them and their ideas? If technology is not a thing 

but a mindset, that mindset has increasingly been 

characterized by apathy and indolence. And if the most 

recent PISA report—in which student scores in literacy, 

math, and science have, for the first time ever, shown an 

“unprecedented drop in performance globally” 

(Thompson, 2023, para. 3)—is any indication, it’s that 

we stand on the brink of a worrying trend, one in which 

literacy and the concentration it demands will cease 

to be taken for granted as it is now but will become 

a highly valued skill that, just like in the Middle Ages, 

might once again be held in the hands of a small, 

elite class. 

References 

Flanagan, C. (2021, July 5). You really need to quit Twitter. The 

Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/07/ 

twitter-addict-realizes-she-needs-rehab/619343/ 

Heidegger, M. (1977). The question concerning technology and other 

essays (W. Lovitt, Trans.). Harper Perennial. 

McLuhan, M. (1966). Understanding media: the extensions of man. 

Signet. 

Ong, W. (2012). Orality and literacy: The technologizing of the word. 

Routledge. (Original work published 1982) 

Thompson, D. (2023, December 19). It sure looks like phones are 

making students dumber. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic. 

com/ideas/archive/2023/12/cell-phones-student-test-scoresdropping/676889/ 

Wolf, M. (2018). Reader, come home: The reading brain in a digital 

world. Harper. 


Ron Schafrick’s fiction has been published 

in a number of literary journals and 

anthologies, including The New Quarterly, 

Best Gay Stories 2015, The Journey Prize 

Stories 27, and elsewhere. He is also the 

author of Interpreters, a collection of short 

stories published by Oberon Press. 

Enhancing Teaching and Learning 

Through the Scholarship of Teaching 

and Learning (SoTL) 

A Transformative Journey by Shahla Noor AL-Deen 

Engaging in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning 

(SoTL) has proven to be a transformative and enriching 

experience, providing unique insights into the dynamics 

of teaching and learning. This article explores my SoTL 

journey, detailing the process of research, analysis, 

and practical application in the context of curriculum 

development, student engagement, and professional 

development. The article emphasizes the impact of 

reflective practice, evidence-based teaching strategies, 

student-centered learning, and Universal Design for 

Learning (UDL) principles on educational outcomes. The 

title of the SoTL research that I have conducted is “How 

are Online GNED Courses Contributing to Development 

of Critical Thinking Skills in Centennial College 

Students?” 

Participating in SoTL has allowed me to develop a more 

profound understanding of the dynamics of teaching 

and learning. Through rigorous research and analysis, 

I have gained insights into the diverse learning styles 

and preferences of students, enabling me to tailor my 

teaching methods for a deeper and more meaningful 

learning. Building on the insights gained through SoTL 

analysis, I have revised and developed the course, 

GNED 126, Occupational Health and Safety, to align 

with the principles of student-centered and Universal 

Design for Learning (UDL) learning. The curriculum 




emphasizes interactive learning activities, promotes 

critical thinking, and accommodates diverse learning 

styles. By incorporating evidence-based practices, 

the course aims to optimize student engagement and 

facilitates deeper understanding of the subject matter. 

I presented the results and findings to the department 

of Humanities and Social Sciences in the school of 

English and Liberal Studies (SELS) and presented 

them to the Centennial Research Network group. It 

was received with a high level of engagement, and 

we revised the course, GNED 126, based on the 

results and findings from the final report. We listened 

to our students and addressed all the issues and 

concerns of the students. The Humanities and Social 

Sciences Department was receptive to the revised 

course. By applying the principles and foundations of 

the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL), the 

experience has been enriching and transformative. It 

provided me with a unique opportunity to delve into 

the intricacies of teaching and learning, and to explore 

innovative approaches to enhance the educational 

experience for both students and educators. After 

engaging in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning 

(SoTL) process, I recognized the immense potential to 

translate research findings into practical applications. 

This led to the revision and development of the GNED 

126 course that embodies evidence-based teaching 

strategies, with a focus on student-centered learning 

and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles. 

SoTL encourages a culture of continuous improvement 

in pedagogical practices. It has instilled in me a sense 

of curiosity and a commitment to lifelong learning. 

The process of examining my own teaching methods, 

gathering feedback, self-reflection, and implementing 

changes has become a regular part of my professional 

development. Engaging in SoTL has provided 

opportunities to collaborate with fellow educators 

who share a passion for enhancing the teaching and 

learning experience. Through discussions, workshops, 

and collaborative projects, I have been able to exchange 

ideas, share insights, and collectively work towards 

improving educational outcomes. Conducting and 

disseminating SoTL research allows for the sharing 

of knowledge and best practices with the broader 

educational community. 

It contributes to the collective effort to advance the field 

of teaching and learning, making a meaningful impact 

on education at a larger scale. 

One of the most rewarding aspects of the SoTL 

experience has been witnessing the positive impact 

on student engagement and success. Implementing 

evidence-based strategies identified through SoTL 

research has resulted in increased student participation, 

improved comprehension, and higher levels of 

achievement. Through workshops and collaborative 

discussions, I encouraged fellow educators to reflect on 

their teaching practices from a student’s perspective. 

This exercise promotes empathy and a deeper 

understanding of the diverse needs and preferences of 

learners. By incorporating student feedback and actively 

seeking ways to enhance the learning experience, 

educators can create a more inclusive and effective 

teaching environment. 

Recognizing the importance of hands-on experience, 

I had the opportunity to mentor a research assistant 

student during their internship, providing them with 

valuable hands-on experience during the SoTL research. 

This opportunity empowered them to actively partake in 

data collection, analysis, and interpretation, nurturing 

curiosity and refining research skills to gain a thorough 

grasp of the SoTL research process. 

The research assistant student informed me that he 

learned a lot on the practicum and what he learned from 

this experience was far more than what he learned from 

the theoretical curriculum. According to the student, it 

was hands-on and a very rewarding experience. 

The SoTL journey has not been without its challenges. 

Navigating through research design, data collection 

and analysis, and the approval of the Research Ethic 

Board (REB) can be demanding, but it has taught 

me the value of perseverance and resilience in the 

pursuit of educational excellence. The journey from 

SoTL analysis to practical application has been a 

deeply rewarding and gratifying experience that has 

enriched my understanding of pedagogy, improved 

student outcomes, and fostered a sense of community 

among educators. Through the SoTL research process 

and fostering reflective practices as an educator, I 

have witnessed the tangible impact of evidence-based 

teaching strategies. 

This holistic approach not only elevates the educational 

experience for students but also empowers fellow 

educators to embrace a culture of continuous 

improvement. The continuous pursuit of excellence in 

teaching and learning through SoTL is an endeavor I 

plan to carry forward in my educational journey, with 

a renewed dedication to making a positive impact on 

the lives of students. Moving forward, I am dedicated 

to further engaging in more Action Research and 

expanding on these initiatives, ensuring a sustained 

positive impact on the teaching and learning community. 


Shahla Noor AL-Deen holds a bachelor’s 

degree in English Literature, an 

M.A. in Linguistics, and an M.Ed. 

in Leadership,Higher and Adult 

Education. Shahla is a dedicated faculty, 

demonstrating a passion and commitment 

to teaching and learning in higher 

Education. Shahla is recognized for her 

expertise in conducting the Scholarship 

of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) research, 

employing action research and reflective 

practice methodologies. Her focus is on 

evaluating students’ critical thinking in 

the general education (GNED) courses to 

promote student engagement and improve 

teaching practices. 



Educational Research Initiatives Technology 

Figure 1. WORD Framework 

How a Meaningful Experience (ME) 

Originates Through WORD 

by Charan Batra 

The following passage is an invitation to the Centennial 

College Community for collecting a group of researchers, 

who are interested in developing a higher Meaningful 

Experience (ME) among both students and educators in 

their learning journey. 

To conduct this research, a new framework is proposed 

in which the term WORD is explored as an acronym. At 

the elemental and conceptual levels, various individual 

letters of WORD are reviewed by assigning new 

meanings and values to create new knowledge. The 

letter “W” is equated with visuals; the letter “O” signifies 

oral functionalities; the letter “R” describes all types of 

research inquiries and reflection capabilities, and finally, 

the letter “D” is associated with decision making and 

problem-solving pieces. 

It is believed that using WORD as a frame of reference 

as described above will support the understanding 

of ME from a cognitive, affective, and problemsolving 

perspective within comprehensive linguistics, 

computational linguistics, and learning settings for both 

man and machine learning environments. 

There is a gap in research on WORD within both 

linguistic and artificial intelligence literature; WORD has 

not been firmly explored as an acronym and the way it is 

proposed here. This describes a new position in terms of 

how meanings are derived through proposed elemental 

and functional attributes associated with various letters. 

The purpose of this note is to request starting a 

conversation within the Centennial community to further 

co-create new knowledge on the proposed meaning and 

dimensions within the context of WORD. The proposed 

group of researchers could be called the “WORD circle”, 

where interested participants and particularly language 

researchers will explore what WORD is and how it 

is situated within a language from a comprehensive 

perspective as described earlier. The focus will be on the 

strategic importance of understanding and using WORD 

as an inquiry tool that re-defines conditions of teaching 

and learning. 


Anyone interested in joining the 

WORD Circle, please feel free 

to contact Charan Batra at 

cbatra@centennialcollege..ca 

Charanjeet Singh is an educational 

researcher with the School of English and 

Liberal Studies. His research interests are 

conceptualizing reciprocal language learning 

through entangled narratives of diversityinclusion, 

engagement, empowerment 

and measuring learning outcomes through 

various technologies. He studies how WORD 

is a universal framework for both man 

and machine to accomplish social justice 

objectives. 



Educational Research Technology Initiatives 

Investigating the Impact of MML (mobile microlearning) 

on College-Level EAP Learners 

by Ivan Su 

The following is a truncated excerpt of an action 

research project report conducted in Fall 2023 for 

CFTDI’s orientation program. 

Introduction 

During the Fall 2023 semester, I conducted a semesterlong 

study to investigate the effects of mobile microlearning 

on my full-time EAP (English for Academic 

Purposes) learners. The purpose for undertaking this 

area of action research was due to a need and desire for 

learners to practice language skills asynchronously or 

outside of their regularly scheduled synchronous class 

times. However, most of my EAP learners consisted of 

mature, newcomer or immigrant students who had the 

added responsibility of child-rearing or supporting their 

families through part-time employment. These extra 

responsibilities made it difficult for learners to complete 

certain tasks or homework online. 

Preliminary research led me to an asynchronous 

mobile micro-learning application entitled EdApp, 

which is a mobile learning management system 

tailored for organizations to deliver training materials 

through mobile phones and devices in a micro-learning 

format. Micro-learning is a learner-centred approach 

that focuses on engaging, “bite-sized” content and 

activities. Due to the length of the activities and lessons, 

which average around 6 to 10 minutes, they can also 

increase short-term retention and accommodate busy 

lifestyles (Samala et al., 2023). In addition to Zoom and 

eCentennial that our EAP learners are already required 

to use, I wanted to be able to investigate whether 

MML (mobile micro-learning) could still be effective for 

second language learners who were considered “digital 

immigrants” (Wang et al.,2013). “Digital immigrants” 

as coined by the authors Wang, Myers, & Sundaram 

(2013) were adult users of technology who learned 

about computers at some point in their lives but were 

not technology-savvy like their counterparts, “digital 

natives”. 

Research Approach 

While most of the literature over the past decade has 

advocated for MML, there was not much research that 

focused specifically on its effectiveness for learners 

who were not digital natives, especially mature 

English language learners. The most accessible MML 

application I could find to create MML asynchronous 

exercises for my learners was EdApp which was 

free to use. I decided to focus the MML content on 

pronunciation skills as it complemented what I was 

actively teaching in class. To start, I designed weekly 

micro-lessons through the application to match the 

pronunciation topic that was being taught during that 

period. However, I would also “gamify” the microlessons 

on the app, where after the learner reviewed the 

pronunciation topic (for example – intonation) through 

the app, they would participate in a short quiz to earn 

points or stars. The lessons were exclusively tailored 

for common mobile touch devices such as a tablet or 

the ubiquitous smartphone to increase accessibility, 

convenience, and usage. 

At the start of the semester, I also conducted a needs 

assessment survey to collect student responses on 

their experiences and 

perceptions of learning 

pronunciation through 

other MML applications. 

During the semester, I 

would use the EdApp LMS 

(learning management 

system) to monitor the 

analytics throughout the 

course as the application 

contained many robust 

analytical features such 

as login attempts, activity 

feeds from users, and 

course completions. 

Finally, at the end of the 

semester, I conducted a post-session survey to collect 

student responses on their overall perceptions towards 

using MML applications in improving their pronunciation 

skills. 

Analysis of Data and Results 

Analysis of Initial Survey on Pronunciation and Mobile 

Micro-learning Apps. 

From the initial survey at the start of the semester 

for my EAP class, I used Microsoft Forms to collect 

responses on how our EAP learners felt about their 

pronunciation and how applications such as EdApp 

could help them improve their pronunciation skills. 

Results from the survey showed that 37 out of 54 

respondents (68.5%) thought an MML application such 

as EdApp could help them improve their pronunciation. 

The rest of the respondents were either unsure 

(29.6%) or did not believe it could (1.9%) be helpful. In 

addition, only 21 out of 44 total (47.7%) respondents 

were “somewhat confident” to “very confident” about 

their own pronunciation ability. Finally, 43 out of 54 

respondents (79.6%) expected their pronunciation skills 

to greatly improve by the end of the semester while 

all 54 respondents expected at least a “somewhat” 

improvement of their pronunciation skill by the end of 

the semester. 

Analysis of Completion Rate in EdApp 

There were 12 total pronunciation practice mobile 

micro-lessons created and authored on the EdApp LMS. 

Figure 1: Sample of a Mobile Micro-lesson on a 

Pronunciation Topic Viewed from the EdApp Course 

Authoring User Interface 

Across all my EAP classes, there were 46 registered 

students on the app. Twenty-one students completed 

all or most of the micro-lessons (10 or more) with an 



Educational Research Technology Initiatives 

additional five students completing at least half of the 

lessons (6 or more). In total, 56% (27 students) were 

able to complete at least half the mobile micro-lessons 

available in EdApp. 

Figure 2: Sample Analytic Page on Each User’s 

Progress Throughout the Assigned MML Course 

Analysis of Post-session Survey on Pronunciation 

and Mobile Micro-learning Apps. A Microsoft Form 

was also shared with students in-class during the 

last session of the semester to collect information 

on their overall impressions on using EdApp. The 

total number of respondents was less than the initial 

survey due to some students either dropping out of the 

program during the semester or not attending the final 

session. From the results, there was an overwhelming 

majority of respondents that felt that EdApp improved 

their pronunciation skills. Twenty-six out of 28 total 

respondents (92%) answered a firm “yes” to the 

question. Only two respondents (7%) were unsure if the 

MML app helped or not. 

Another positive result showed how much students 

thought the MML app helped them to improve their 

pronunciation. In fact, 27 out of 28 respondents (96%) 

thought that the MML app helped them improve at least 

“somewhat”. Only one respondent was “not sure” how 

much the app helped improve their pronunciation 

This could have been due to non-participation with the 

app itself. 

A final significant result was the change in student 

confidence over their pronunciation ability at the end 

of the semester. In contrast to the initial survey result 

to the same question where only 47.7% of respondents 

felt at least “somewhat confident” in their pronunciation 

ability, 25 out of 28 respondents (89%) responded they 

felt at least “somewhat confident” (11 respondents) 

or “very confident” (14 respondents) in their own 

pronunciation ability. Only three respondents answered 

with a neutral rating over 

their pronunciation ability. 

Conclusion 

After analyzing the three 

sets of data from the initial 

survey, the analytics on 

EdApp completion, and the 

post-survey, we can observe 

from the data analysis 

that the majority of users 

who continued using MML 

throughout the semester 

felt there were at least some improvements made in 

their pronunciation ability. While the completion data 

collected from the EdApp LMS was low (56%), the postsurvey 

seemed to validate that even some participation 

and engagement in MML helped learners gauge 

their own pronunciation ability before and after using 

EdApp. The results also demonstrated that despite the 

majority of our EAP learners being classified as “digital 

immigrants”, referring to technology users who are not 

as “tech-savvy”, there was a perceived benefit from 

using an MML application asynchronously to support 

their pronunciation skills development. 

Recommendations 

The research shows the positive impacts that MML 

can bring to an EAP classroom. However, for further 

development and implementation of MML within 

the college system or a different department, it is 

important that professors or practitioners can locate 

or build an MML platform that allows more control and 

customization of the content being delivered. Many 

current MML apps market a “freemium” approach 

where the user gains access to basic features but must 

pay to use other scalable features. For example, while 

EdApp has many notable features that are free to use, 

to create class groups or sections it was necessary to 

“upgrade” for a monthly fee. Despite this, EdApp seems 

to offer the most robust features for free such as 24/5 

online support, customized branding, and a free library 

of editable courses. It might be worth booking a demo 

with EdApp to discover what can be customized for a 

college department and determine the cost. 

The allure of MML for convenience and portability 

is commonly promoted by many advocates and 

researchers; however, due to Centennial’s commitment 

to providing accessible and inclusive education for all, 

some MML apps may not follow WCAG 2.0 (Web Content 

Accessibility Guidelines) or be as accessible as initially 

advertised. Again, it is important to scrutinize the claims 

of accessibility made by many MML applications in the 

market today. 

Finally, it is also recommended that those who are 

interested in integrating MML in their courses, make 

sure to survey or conduct a needs assessment with 

their learners prior to implementation. Due to the 

“bite-sized” nature of the lessons, MML cannot always 

be a complete replacement for all asynchronous 

activities, but it can function as a viable complement 

or reinforcement for traditional course content and 

engaging materials. 

References 

Samala, A. D., Bojic, L., Bekiroğlu, D., Watrianthos, R., & Hendriyani, 

Y. (2023). Microlearning: Transforming Education with Bite-Sized 

Learning on the Go—Insights and Applications. International 

Journal of Interactive Mobile Technologies, 17(21), 4–24. 

https://doi.org/10.3991/ijim.v17i21.42951 

Shail, M. S. (2019). Using Micro-learning on Mobile Applications to 

Increase Knowledge Retention and Work Performance: A Review 

of Literature. Curēus (Palo Alto, CA), 11(8), e5307–e5307. 

https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.5307 

Wang, Q., Myers, M.D. & Sundaram, D. (2013). Digital Natives and 

Digital Immigrants. Bus Inf Syst Eng 5, 409–419. 

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12599-013-0296-y 


Ivan Su is a professor in the EAP (English for 

Academic Purposes) program and has been 

a language educator for the past 20+ years, 

teaching in Japan and Canada. He enjoys 

implementing new skills and innovations from 

EdTech in his courses, as well as researching 

new learning strategies in language education. 

His current research interests are investigating 

the impact of mobile micro learning on 

language learning. 


Research Creative Pursuits Initiatives 

Educational Creative Technology Pursuits 

The Old Woman and the Wave 

Sage-ing, Age-ing, Wage-ing Wander and Wonder 

by Margot Van Sluytman 

Joy and justice reside in grace. Thrive in gratitude. 

Find fulminating llanos of miracle, might, and magic 

contoured in story. Etched in song. Sculpted in the 

untempered and unmanacled invitation of HER 

resplendent and resounding voice and vision willing us 

to be the very creative fires we wish to live. To come to 

recognize, at the time of age-ing and sage-ing, the call to 

freedom. 

The call to be wage-ing pilgrimage and poetry with and 

because of being Grandparents, is a gift SHE bestows 

upon us, often when we are not even aware of the 

liminal’s need of our life’s learnings. 

For several years, I have been reading stories to my 

Grandchildren, as well as to the Grandchildren and 

Great-Grandchildren of family, friends, and colleagues. 

I have been recording treasured books which I yearned 

to share with them so that they come to know about 

Grandparents, as much as they come to delight in 

wonder, adventure, possibility. Myth and magic too. 

Coming to know themselves through story, image, and 

connection. 

Recently, I read a beautiful story entitled: The Old 

Woman and the Wave by Shelley Jackson. I chose this 

particular book for several reasons. Firstly, because 

the expression “old woman” is one that my father 

used since I was a child growing up in Guyana, South 

America. My father’s life ended when he was a young 

man of forty, and I a girl of sixteen; however, the tone, 

timbre, and texture of his voice, along with his love of 

words, myth, adventure, and story continues to live on in 

me. Secondly, the artist’s rendition of the old woman in 

this precious tale is: me. Me in my sleeveless, red, and 

white polka-dotted dress. Me with long white hair, had 

I continued to grow mine. Not only does the old woman 

look like Granny Margot, but her dog, Bones, shares 

part of a name with one of my wonderful sons-in-law. 

He is known by those who love him as: T-Bone. Further, 

love and loving dogs is a visceral fact and act in the 

lives of my Grandchildren. Grizzly, Jasper, and Maeve 

are the Grand dogs who bring such richness to my 

“great” Grandchildren, enlivening their hours with feisty 

cavorting and luscious, dripping licks. These four-legged 

souls are teaching of life’s poignant cycle of birth and 

death. Bacardi is ever-present in their hearts, even as 

his death was several years ago. 

The old woman, too, is part of the cycle. Life’s poignant 

cycle. An abundant cycle of teaching and of learning. 

The old woman’s new learning came in an unexpected 

decision she made. A wild and wonder-full decision. 

A HEaRt decision. Not pre-planned. Not mapped and 

researched. Not discussed, debated, deliberated over 

time. In a flash, staring into the eyes of possibility 

offered in a way she would likely not have chosen, 

she knew what she had to do. She made a decision 

because of love. Because of her Bones. Not her “old 

bones”. Bones her dog. Her love. Bones for whom she 

would do anything. Including risking. Risking: adventure! 

Putting her debilitating fear aside. Doing so because her 

profound love for him meant the time had come for her 

to leap. To leap into the unknown. 

The old woman and HER call to adventure anew, knew 

each other. Knew each other in a flash of a moment’s 

clarity of vision. A flash that demolished the historical 

notion that old womyn are supposed to be finished with 

adventure. Done with creativity’s call, with risk, with 

wonder, and wander. The ponderous and pernicious 

notion that old womyn are supposed to be resting, 

weary, wearying, and wary of life. Notions capriciously 

grounded in imagined and fabricated ideological views 

about cessation and ennui. About an old womyn being 

surfeited upon reliving memories and living in the past, 

awaiting “their time”. 

For generations old womyn have been ridiculed, 

talked over, interrupted, denied, negated, maligned, 

and dismissed. Their Wisdom slowly swallowed by 

patriarchy’s dualistic platitudinous cries of divide 

and conquer. Patriarchy’s creation of exclusionary 

hierarchies of gender, age, abilities, race. Hierarchies 

that diminish, demean, and staunch HEaRt, art, poetry, 

vision, and story. Voice. 

The phrase “old woman” has been used as a weapon 

for waging exclusion and diminishment. However, at 

the very same time as this narrative, if political and 

ideological agenda, has been insidiously spread, 

generations and generations of Grandmothers, 

Grandfathers, Grandparents, and Grandchildren, pay 

little heed. Generations of Elders and Wisdom-Keepers, 

of Canatadoras, Bards, Sangomas, Music-Makers, Story- 

Speakers, Word-Weavers, Spell-Binders, Story-Spinners, 

have continued to teach, to reach, to shape-shift vision. 

To birth burgeoning meaning. Meaning-making. Ever 

awakening. 

And, as this old woman shows us that even though 

for a time her fear and her unconscious imbibing of 

patriarchy’s pronouncements had her stalled, she could 

and would make a choice. A choice grounded in love. 

Love that meant no longer hiding. 

In one brilliant spark of a moment, she recognized that 

her call to answer to love and to wonder surpassed the 

tiny, limited, and limiting patriarchal space and scripting 

of being, and of becoming. Of expectations and fearbased 

perceptions. Of learned behaviors. She learned 

about un-learning. Was open to it. Because of love. 

And the call to answer it in the affirmative. Never for a 

second imagining what her decision to leap because of 

love would bring to her and her life of hiding under the 

dreaded and unknown wave. 

She knew instinctively that sage-ing and age-ing are 

life’s invitation situated in the crucible of Sophia’s moist, 

salty, aliveness to say “yes” to adventure. To say “yes” 

to and for and because of the liminal’s call to go wHERe 

she had not gone before. To do what she had not done 

before. To lean into her life as a gift of time’s invitation 

to move. To move forward. To move forward with her 

courage. And with her grace. On one day. In one 

moment, she knew what she had to do. She leapt. 

In the link below, I share with you this beautiful, 

beautiful story. An expansive metaphor for each of 

us. Old souls. Old spirits. Wisdom-Keepers. And ever 

Wisdom-Seekers. This generous story is an invitation to 

step into our own fears with boldness. With surrender. 

Surrender to the fact that each and every single one 

of us can accept an invitation to thrive. To leap into 

raw-rich surrender to the precious Wisdom that knows 

us. That longs for us to know ourselves each and 

every single day of our one unique, compelling, and 

beauty-filled life. As love contours each step, teaching 

us to embrace the abundant and wonder-full waves 

of wander. And wonder. The wonder-full alive, alive, 

alive rememberings of the Grandchildren that we were 

and the Grandchildren with whom we are bounteously 

blessed. 

Margot Reading: The Old Woman and the Wave 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6VzxRyZ8yA 


Margot Van Sluytman is an award-winning 

Poet and Therapeutic Writing Mentor, Justice 

Activist, and College Instructor. She graduated 

from Centennial College with a Diploma in Book 

Editing and Design, followed by a Philosophy 

Degree from the University of Waterloo, and 

a Master’s of Arts Integrated Studies from 

Athabasca University, where she developed a 

new and award-winning model of Restorative 

Justice entitled: Sawbonna. Recognition for 

her work has included: Alumni of Distinction, 

Centennial College, Alumni of Distinction, 

Athabasca University and, Ontario Premier’s 

Award Nominee. 


Creative Pursuits 


door, even though they remain unseen. It’s hard not to 

draw parallels between this show and Cahoots Theatre/ 

Theatre Passe Muraille’s Our Place, both vibrant yet 

bleak commentaries on the situation of undocumented 

immigrants working in Toronto restaurants (in the case 

of the latter, a Caribbean restaurant, also fully realized 

on stage at Theatre Passe Muraille). The two shows 

form a diptych about the human beings — and human 

cost — behind the diverse food landscape we take for 

granted. 

complex backstory as a man who came to Canada with 

nothing and suffered through societal ostracism, only to 

eventually own more “Moons” than even the Earth. 

In a nice, subtle scene, he chastises Ayub for eating 

chocolate, then proceeds to snap off the remaining 

pieces of Ayub’s small luxury, consuming his chocolate 

bar throughout the scene until it is gone. Uncommented 

on, it’s a powerful visual metaphor for the death by a 

thousand cuts Ayub is suffering. 

Review 

The Dark Side Behind the Moon 

by Ilana Lucas 

In Behind the Moon, playwright Anosh Irani’s 

heartrending and captivating show now playing at 

Tarragon Theatre, undocumented Indian immigrant Ayub 

(Ali Kazmi) is constantly scrubbing the glass counter 

at the Mughlai Moon, the Toronto restaurant that is 

his world. Brandishing his spray bottle of cleaner like 

a weapon, the only defense he has, he polishes the 

surface obsessively. 

It’s as if unclouding the glass surface that customers 

mar with their fingertips while pointing toward their food 

selections will help him find clarity in the choice he’s 

made to leave his wife and child in India and work for 

Qadir Bhai (Vic Sahay), a family friend who has brought 

him here as a “favour” to Ayub’s baba (father), with 

promises of establishing a permanent residency that 

never seems to become permanent. 

As Ayub closes the restaurant for yet another lonely 

night, another Indian immigrant, a taxi driver named 

Jalal (Husein Madhavji), bursts in, claiming an 

emergency need for food from his home country. This 

mysterious stranger pushes Ayub’s small satellite in 

motion, rotating his perspective to give him the clarity 

he seeks. It’s not a happy realization: Irani’s lyrical script 

pulls no punches in showing us the dark side of the 

Mughlai Moon. 

Walking into Tarragon’s Extraspace, audiences are 

greeted by a pitch-perfect representation of a small, 

counter-service Indian restaurant in Toronto, designed 

by Michelle Tracey. From the sign outside, to the blue 

mural on the wall, to the tiles on the floor in which Qadir 

continually demands to be able to see his reflection, 

it’s a place where city-dwellers will instantly feel at 

home. My guest commented that she could instantly 

visualize the basement and stairs beyond the back 

Particularly effective is the way the set opens to the 

ominous, dark outside, which holds mystery, danger, 

and a shaking tree branch. Tracey angles the entrance 

expertly, so that it feels like you could walk directly from 

the stage onto the street, assisted by Thomas Ryder 

Paine’s urban soundscape every time the door opens. 

The only issue with the extremely realistic set is that it 

makes it harder to sell the play’s occasional heightened 

portions of unreality, which could be clearer with some 

lighting cues (designer Jason Hand) to match the eerie 

outdoor effects. 

Irani’s script, directed by Richard Rose, brings us 

humour and tragedy, satire, and humanity, as tightly 

woven together as the carpet Jalal brings Ayub as a 

gift. Opening night audiences particularly enjoyed all 

of Ayub’s derisive comments about the depressing 

nature of Canadian winters. Meanwhile, Jalal’s attempts 

to connect with Ayub are filled with sympathetic 

compassion, getting more and more desperate as the 

latter shrinks further and further inward. 

Almost never all on stage simultaneously, the three men 

still form a powerful acting triad. The change in Kazmi’s 

Ayub between his scenes with Jalal and with Qadir Bhai 

is significant; he goes from a commanding, irritated man 

who rules his domain to a servile and cringing mouse, 

coming slowly unhinged and twitching like a prisoner 

confined to solitary. 

Sahay’s Qadir Bhai, smiling with the insincerely friendly 

audacity of a used car salesman, is obsessed with the 

trappings of success and power; he loves the sound of 

his name in the mouths of the wealthy. His attempts 

at kindness drip with condescension, involving gifts 

of hand-me-down designer products (“Look! Armani!” 

he exclaims), which are not what Ayub truly wants- a 

chance to go home and be with his family. While Qadir’s 

promises to get emptier and emptier, Irani gives him a 

What the script does comment on is how a member of a 

marginalized community can either lift other members 

of their community up with their successes (or despite 

their failures), grind them down once they get the first 

taste of their own power, or do the latter while thinking 

they’re doing the former, reflected in a bitter monologue 

Ayub has about “Indians who think they’re better than 

other Indians.” 

Jalal’s puzzling, magnetic appearances lend the play 

its sense of mystery. Madhavji, best known for the TV 

drama Saving Hope, gives an excellent performance. 

He plays Jalal with the mildly unhinged, otherworldly 

intensity of an Indian Jason Mantzoukas. His 

gregariousness eventually gives way to a wrenching 

inner pain that motivates him to return to the restaurant 

again and again. 

There are some small aspects of Behind the Moon that 

still feel slightly rough. Because the subject matter 

and some of the stories are so intense, there are times 

where the actors don’t have to push as hard to sell the 

tragedy as they do and can trust in the content alone. 

There are also times when the script grabs a powerful 

moment and takes it to what feels like an unnecessary 

extreme, such as a shocking action in the second act 

that is somehow less powerful than the words that come 

before it. 

As well, women loom at the periphery of the script, 

wives and children, and for the most part Irani does a 

great job of making these unseen women fully realized 

people…which is why it’s disappointing that he also 

quite literally places them on pedestals in a later 

monologue. Trying to elevate the characters beyond 

reproach actually flattens them. 




However, Irani’s adept use of language and metaphor 

more than make up for these minor disappointments. 

Tarragon’s season, consciously or unconsciously, 

seems to be linked by the metaphorical comparison 

of oppressed people to misunderstood animals, both 

in the societal derision and mistreatment afforded 

them, and in their tenacity and ability to survive in the 

face of it all. In Cockroach, a young Chinese immigrant 

to Canada is compared to the titular insect; Redbone 

Coonhound portrays a Black man’s anguish at the racist 

epithets in the name of a dog breed which was likely 

subjugated as a tool to hunt down his ancestors. 

An Old Deer and His Deputy Peer 

by Golam Dastagir 

Once there was an old deer 

Who made friends with a mare. 

In his herd, he was a caring leader. 

He could perceive enemies everywhere 

At times, wild tigers used to appear. 

He could sense them far and near. 

He seemed to have no fear 

Another day, he caught sight of a hunter, 

In Behind the Moon, the metaphor is that of the rat, a 

creature that scurries around basements and streets, 

surviving on scraps, and that is capable of shutting 

down a restaurant if discovered within. Ayub’s horror 

at discovering one of these rodents, a slap in the face 

against his constant hard work and sacrifice, comes 

from the knowledge that the Indian restaurant down the 

street was recently closed due to an infestation. All he 

has done might be for nothing, due to events beyond 

his control. However, he soon comes to sympathize and 

even identify with the lowly rat, singing its praises and 

defending its right to exist and even prosper in the face 

of terrible odds and a miserable existence. 

Like Ayub, Irani’s play movingly finds the beauty and the 

misery entwined in the search for a better life across the 

globe, giving us a world that is simultaneously too vast 

to traverse and too small to contain one man’s dreams. 

And it lets us see those dreams as clearly as the food 

behind a freshly-polished glass case. 


Ilana Lucas holds a BA in English and Theatre 

from Princeton and an MFA in Dramaturgy 

and Script Development from Columbia. She 

has developed several Centennial courses, 

including The Power of Communication, 

The Show Must Go On: Theatre Studies, 

and Professional Business Communication. 

She writes for BroadwayWorld Toronto and 

Intermission Magazine and is currently 

President of the Canadian Theatre Critics 

Association. Her review of “Behind the Moon” 

won the 2023 Nathan Cohen award for 

Outstanding Theatre Review. 

And was revered as a seer, 

Because his vision was clear. 

One day, he helped a puny hare, 

When he was attacked by a vulture. 

So, he used to keep an eye on the rear. 

The deer loved everything in nature, 

For he believed in shared culture. 

Everyone liked his uplifting gesture. 

He used to take a severe venture, 

Just to save another creature. 

He could also foresee the future. 

One day, he sensed a hungry bear, 

Who was giving him an angry stare. 

The old deer asked everyone to disappear. 

Who was approaching with a lethal spear. 

Quickly, he warned his mates to be aware. 

One day, he told his deputy peer 

That they would have to swear 

That they all would stay together. 

But the arrogant peer did not care 

About what was told by his manager, 

For he was greedy to seize the power. 

His feelings towards others were queer. 

And he felt no urge to take care 

Of his herd in their danger. 

One day, there came a fierce jaguar, 

But the old deer lay in a rare slumber. 

The deputy sought refuge, hiding from the danger. 



The little hare nearby whispered to the mare 

Who neighed loudly to alert the old deer. 

That instantly awakened the caring leader. 

SELS Dialogues Editors 

The old deer found his deputy nowhere. 

Instantly, he ordered everyone to disappear. 

Everyone heeded him except the aloof peer. 

After engaging in a fierce fight together, 

The jaguar managed to take down the deputy peer. 

Hunting this deer brought him great pleasure. 

Sherry Hejazi 

Sherry has been with Centennial College since 2014, teaching COMM courses 

in the School of English and Liberal Studies. She has been an educator for 

the past 20 years, and her research interests include program development, 

incorporating EDTech tools in teaching and learning, gamifying education, 

enhancing student engagement and student knowledge production. Sherry 

is a TESL Ontario Blog Team member/writer and a TESL Ontario Conference 

presenter. For Centennial, she has initiated COMM Dialogues, now known as 

SELS Dialogues , piloted new COMM courses, conducted SoTL projects, and 

edited ENG 250 OER “Writing in a Technical Environment”. She is also the 

managing editor of SELS Dialogues. 

While dying, the deputy peer shed a tear 

And said, “I am perishing due to my anger. 

Defying my leader was my crucial blunder.” 


Golam Dastagir has been teaching and 

researching at different universities and 

colleges internationally over the last 34 

years . His areas of interest include Global 

Peace, Intercultural Philosophy, Applied 

Ethics, Mental Health and Addictions, 

and Comparative Religions. Golam has 

a specialty in Sufism on which he writes 

extensively in journals, encyclopedias, books, 

and social media. Three of his books are 

catalogued at the library of the University 

of Toronto. Dr. Dastagir teaches Philosophy 

and Global Citizenship at Centennial. He is 

also actively engaged in community activities 

as the Founder and CEO of Warm Heart 

Foundation in Canada (WHFC) and provides 

mentorship services for the Toronto Region 

Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC). He 

also volunteered as the General Secretary 

and Director of the Board of Directors, 

Birchmount Bluffs Neighbourhood Centre 

(BBNC) in 2023 

Paula Anderton 

Paula Anderton is a professor in the department of Humanities and Social 

Sciences where she has taught and developed general education courses. She 

was project lead and chapter contributor to the current Global Citizenship OER 

and course revisions. Before joining Centennial, Paula worked as a professional 

magazine writer and editor for 17 years, covering a variety of subjects including 

globalization, green technologies and equity issues. She is currently working on 

a book of poetry. 

Zafar Khan 

Zafar Khan is an Academic Upgrading Professor at the School of English 

and Liberal Studies (SELS). He teaches passionately, advocates for student 

success. He has created & delivered ACE (Academic College Entrance) Physics, 

Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry courses over the last 15 years. As an Ontario 

Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) alumnus he actively participates in 

the OISE mentorship program and is an active member of the Ontario College 

Mathematics Association (OCMA). 


Philip Alalibo 

Philip is the interim Chair of the Department of Humanities and Social 

Sciences and had been a professor in the department for the past 14 years. 

Philip has participated in several curriculum development initiatives, including 

the development of several courses. Philip is a published poet and author of 

six books and co-author of a college textbook and children’s story book. He is 

a founding member of Centennial’s Writer’s Circle. 

Ivan Su 

Ivan is a professor in the EAP program and has been a language educator for 

the past 20+ years, teaching in Japan and Canada. He enjoys implementing 

new skills and innovation from EdTech in his courses, as well as researching 

new learning strategies in language education. His current research project is 

investigating the impact of mobile micro learning on language learning. 

Shelley Steele 

Shelley Steele is an entrepreneurial educator, media producer, and personal 

development coach on a mission to inspire personal growth and change. 

She has produced, directed, and hosted award-winning educational 

documentary series , docu-dramas, and projects with TVO, Sick Kids 

Hospital, the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General, the Ontario Ministry of 

Education, and a multitude of community organizations and school boards. 

Shelley is the founder and president of Heartspeak— powering community 

development through mentoring and coaching programs, training, and 

resources (heartspeak.ca). She is a professor in Centennial’s Inclusive 

Leadership Practices and Entrepreneurism Certificate programs; Healthy 

Lifestyle Management; and Global Citizenship. 

BJ Jumnadass 

BJ Jumnadass has over 15 years of teaching experience both locally and 

abroad. He has worked and lived in many different countries like Malaysia, 

Indonesia, UAE, Qatar, Australia, and Brunei. He has held administrative roles 

and has taught at all educational levels ranging from primary, secondary 

and college/university. BJ has a Masters in Education, a BA with a Major 

in Psychology, TEFL/TESOL, Coaching levels 1 and 2 and has obtained a 

Fellowship. He is currently completing his second Masters in Applied Linguistics 

at York University. 

Jill McDonald 

For the past 30 years, Jill has been working at Centennial College in the 

administrative field in the English and Humanities and Social Services 

Department and Student Financial Services. Over time, she has helped many 

students to achieve their goals and progress in their field of academic studies. 


Call for Submissions 

SELS Dialogues accepts submissions on an on-going 

basis. Our goal is to publish twice a year, informing 

staff and faculty about school initiatives, sharing 

best practices, building community, and providing 

professional growth opportunities in the School of 

English and Liberal Studies. 

What’s in it for you? 

• Strengthening your resume as a published scholar 

• Increasing visibility within the college 

• Contributing to your Centennial family 

Journal Sections Open to Submissions: 

1. Pedagogy: Teaching Tips, Innovations in 

Pedagogy, Successful Classroom Practices, 

Classroom Management Techniques, 

Assessment and Learning, Reflective 

Practices on Pedagogy 

2. EdTech Tools: Reflections on Implementing 

EDTech Tool in Teaching and Assessment 

3. Critical Thinking: Teaching and Assessing 

Critical Thinking, Reflective Practices on 

Critical Thinking 

4. Research Initiatives: SoTL projects, 

Conference and Seminar Reflections, 

Research Practices, Building Research 

Capacity in Education, Reflective Practices 

on Research 

5. Creative Pursuits: Short stories, Arts, 

Paintings, Fiction, Non-fiction, Short Essays, 

Poetry,,Creative writing and Literary Reviews: 

Play Reviews, Movies Reviews, Book Reviews 

6. Other 

Newsletter Sections Open to Submissions: 

1. Beyond the Classroom/Academics: Off 

campus staff and faculty pursuits:staff and 

faculty travel, Engagement in Community, 

and Other 

2. Student Work: Student Emails written 

to Faculty, Student Achievements 

Written Submission Guidelines 

• Please follow the Publication Manual of the 

American Psychological Association (APA, 7th Ed). 

• Authors are requested to provide a biography (75 

words) and an image of themselves, and to sign a 

journal submission agreement. 

• Written Submissions should be between 500 

to 1000 words. 

In case a submission is not accepted, we are more than 

happy to connect with authors and provide feedback for 

future submissions. 

Please also feel free to contact our team of editors for 

brainstorming any ideas you might have before creating 

a piece. 

Copyright: Staff and faculty to their work will be 

reserved, and they may publish their work on other 

platforms. A waiver form will be provided once a 

submission has been selected. 

Please submit your paper to: 

using our online submission form 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact 

• Sherry Hejazi: shejazi@centennialcollege.ca 


A1-01-MAR24

SELS Dialogues Journal Volume 4 Number 1

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