The Professional Learning Series (PLS)
Updated: December 22, 2025
To complete the Bachelor of Education (BEd) Degree and be recommended to the Ontario College of Teachers for certification, teacher candidates must meet the expectations in all areas of the teacher education program including a 70% cumulative average. This means that candidates must successfully complete their course work, field experience (each teacher candidate must receive a pass in EDUC-5499 as a prerequisite for both the BEd degree and recommendation for certification to the Ontario College of Teachers), and the professional learning series activities (for reference, see: Academic Calendars | University Secretariat: Faculty of Education - Program Information and Regulations - Standing Required for Continuation).
2025-26 Academic Year PLS Event Schedules
Please see the schedules below for event dates, times, locations, and descriptions.
Year 1 Bachelor of Education Professional Learning Series Schedule
Year 2 Bachelor of Education Professional Learning Series Schedule
Recommended Professional Development Events
The Faculty of Education invites teacher candidates to participate in additional professional development events that will take place during the month of November. Each of these sessions will offer valuable insights, practical skills, and spark meaningful conversations and connections that will support the success of future educators in the classroom and beyond. Actively participating in these opportunities isn’t just encouraged—it’s a key part of ongoing growth as an educator and as a globally-minded citizen.
Lesson and Unit Planning - Open Workshop
Description: This collaborative session will provide an opportunity to explore practical approaches to lesson and unit planning. Teacher candidates in the course EDUC 5208-22: Assessment and Evaluation will share exemplary unit and lesson plans they have developed thus far under the instruction of Dr. Danielle Desjardins. These exemplars will highlight effective strategies for aligning curriculum expectations, assessment, and instructional design.
Teacher candidates are welcome to view the following three (3) sample designs shared by students in EDUC 5208-22:
Date: Monday, November 10, 2025
Time: 2:30 – 4:20 PM
Location: Erie Hall, Room 1118
Audience: Year 1 and 2 B.Ed. teacher candidates
What is Learning FOR? Agency in a Time of AI Hype
Presenter/Facilitator: Dr. Bonnie Stewart, Associate Professor, Faculty of Education
Description: This is a complex and challenging era in education, with expanding digital infrastructure and rising disengagement. How do we understand and navigate the forces attempting to shape learning and knowledge? We are told our students will need to understand Generative AI in order to be 'ready for the future,' but what does that narrative mean? And what does it mean for teaching, learning, and assessment? This session will unpack the uses, limitations, and cognitive risks of GenAI in education, and will outline how AI hype operates in service of digital power infrastructures. The presentation will offer brief but practical pathways for resisting AI hype, while fostering student agency, critical digital literacies, and the capacity to be ready for whatever futures await.
Date: Thursday, November 13, 2025
Time: 10:00 – 11:30 AM
Location: Leonard and Dorothy Neal Education Building (the Faculty of Education), Room 1101
Audience: Year 2 B.Ed. teacher candidates
Electives Teaching Fair
Description: This event will showcase the final project, inquiry, or research-based assignments of second year B.Ed. students in new electives courses, including Sustainability in Education, Gender & Sexuality in Education, Democratic & Global Citizenship Education, Family, Community, & School Partnerships, and STEM Education. Students, community members, and educators are invited to come, celebrate, and learn from the students’ hard work throughout this semester.
Date: Thursday, November 13, 2025
Time: 3:30 – 5:00 PM
Location: CAW Centre – Commons & Marketplace
Audience: Year 1 and 2 B.Ed. teacher candidates