The OISE TEFL Course Designers

Ero Siouga - Lead Program Coordinator

Ero Siouga has taught at the elementary and the secondary levels for the Toronto District School Board for 20 years. In addition, she has been an Instructional Curriculum Leader for the Toronto District School Board for an additional 10 years, consulting with schools on issues of curriculum and teaching methodology. Ero has also assisted the Ontario Ministry of Education in implementing curriculum throughout the province of Ontario.

Ero’s post-secondary career began as a lecturer and cohort coordinator for the Initial Teacher Education Program at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. She also served as the Coordinator of Special Education and ESL Personal Development Courses for OISE (Ontario Institute for Studies in Education).

Ms. Siouga has a BEd from the University of Toronto, and a Master in Curriculum Design and Implementation from Brock University.

 

Andrew Gryfe - 'Introduction to English Language Teaching'

With a passion for both language and travel, Andrew Gryfe has had the great fortune to travel and teach all around the world at all the elementary grade levels, including junior and intermediate ESL courses. Along with his ongoing professional participation within the public school system, Andrew continues to educate university level and adult English Language Learners in Ontario. Additionally, Andrew has led professional development sessions for educators and has delivered talks at education conferences.

Mr. Gryfe  focuses on the birth, evolution, and specifics behind English, and why it works the way that it does. He is interested in how language instruction has evolved over the years, and how to evolve accordingly with it. Through the study of influential figures such as Noam Chomsky, Steven Krashen, Lev Vygotsky, and James Cummins, Mr. Gryfe is versed in the elements necessary to achieve communicative competence.

Mr. Gryfe has a B.A. from the University of Western Ontario, a B.Ed. from University of Ottawa, and a M.Ed. from University of Calgary.

 

Shelley Chislett - 'Teaching Language Skills'

Shelley Chislett is certified elementary school teacher in Ontario, Canada. She began teaching in 2003 and since then has taught everything from Kindergarten to Grade 8. Shelley feels that teaching is an exhilarating and challenging profession, and it provides her with numerous opportunities to use her energy, sense of humour, creative abilities and enthusiasm for life.

Shelley has a passion for teaching that has only increased during her time instructing English Language Learners. In 2006, she completed her Additional Qualification Specialist training for English as a Second Language. The knowledge Shelley has acquired through specialist courses has elevated her day-to-day teaching methods to advanced levels.

In addition to teaching elementary school, Shelley has worked as an instructor to adult English Language Learners. Since 2009, she has started instructing Additional Qualification courses for licensed public school teachers, regulated by the Ontario College of Teachers.

 

David McCormick - 'Teaching Language Skills'

David McCormick’s introduction to ESL teaching began in an EFL environment several decades ago when he was fresh out of university with an undergrad degree in Linguistic Anthropology. With English as his passport to see the world, David landed his first job teaching EFL to IBM executives using The Berlitz Method – a method that focuses on drilling and immersion in conversational practice.

Deciding to stick with what emerged as a knack for language teaching, David returned to Canada to pursue undergrad studies in Linguistics, which he followed up two years later with courses in Applied Linguistics at the graduate level. The next year, David completed his B.Ed. and began teaching ESL full-time, paying particular heed to his favorite teaching adage: “Theory without practice is sterile; practice without theory is blind.”

Today, that same interest in taking the theory into the classroom continues for David. He is particularly interested in how improvements in grammar actually transpire. Do ESL students learn better by translating or by interacting? Should one method be consistently employed, or is eclectic approach more suitable? Should grammar be taught differently at a beginner, intermediate, or an advanced level?

 

Sandra Mills-Fisher - 'Resources and Materials' & 'Structuring and Delivering Lessons'

Sandra Mills-Fisher has been teaching English as a Second/Foreign Language for almost twenty years. She is currently an Instructional Leader with the ESL/ELD Department of the Toronto District School Board. In this role she is responsible for supporting teachers in deepening their understanding of best practices in program modifications, teaching methodologies, and assessment and evaluation strategies that support elementary school-aged English language learners.

Ms. Mills-Fisher has been a part of the writing team that edited the province of Ontario’s framework for tracking the progress of individuals acquiring proficiency in English. She has also taught English as a Second/Foreign Language to teenage students visiting from Europe and South America as part of a summer camp as well as adult students learning English at night.

 

Shirley Hu - 'Resources and Materials' & 'Structuring and Delivering Lessons'

Shirley Hu has been teaching and supporting linguistically diverse students for the past fourteen years in Ontario public school boards. She has taught various groups, from convention refugees to professional immigrant adults.

Ms. Hu is currently an Instructional Leader with the ESL/ELD Department of the Toronto District School Board. In this role she is responsible for supporting teachers in deepening their understanding of best practices in program modifications, teaching methodologies, and assessment and evaluation strategies that support elementary school-aged English language learners.

Prior to working in Ontario, Ms. Hu taught in three private schools in India for eight years. She has conducted many workshops, including presenting at the Toronto District School Board’s Annual ESL Conference, the Annual Language Arts Conference, and the Coalition for Inclusive Curriculum Conference. She has also taught personal development courses in ESL at the Ontario Institute of Studies in Education.

 

Rick Chambers - 'Managing Your Teaching Environment'

Rick Chambers is a former secondary school English teacher and department head who, for more than 26 years, taught in several schools in Dufferin and Waterloo counties in Ontario as well as with the Department of National Defence in Europe.

In 1997, Mr. Chambers joined the Ontario College of Teachers where he managed the Professional Learning Program and served as a program officer in the Accreditation Unit. Since 2004, he has worked for Agriteam Canada on a teacher professional development project in South Africa; for the United Church of Canada on a project to develop standards of practice, ethical standards and discipline processes for ministry personnel; and as a Coordinator with OISE/University of Toronto in their Continuing Education Department.

Mr. Chambers is a past chair of the Conference on English Leadership in the National Council of Teachers of English in the United States, and has made presentations and contributed articles on English teaching, assessment, literacy education and professional development nationally and internationally.

Currently, Rick writes and conducts courses for Pearson Professional Learning, a division of Pearson Education Canada. He is a co-author of the Literacy In Action series of books for grades seven and eight, and he is the Canadian consultant for the Stepping Out resource, professional development courses and materials focused on middle and secondary school cross-curricular writing, reading and viewing. He has delivered courses on the Stepping Out resource in all parts of Canada.

Rick holds degrees from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario and the University of Calgary in Alberta.

 

Sara Gogani - 'Teaching Abroad'

Sara Gogani is a veteran educator who has spent many years exploring second language acquisition.  Teaching English as a second language has been an ongoing focus throughout her career at both the Toronto District School Board and at international schools across the globe—notable countries she taught in include the United Arab Emirates and South Korea.

Excited and passionate about education around the world, Sara also instructs the ESL qualification course at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education where she supports educators in developing skills for teaching English as a second language, and being culturally responsive to the diverse needs of learners.

Ms. Gogani has earned a Masters degree in international education with a focus on collaborative inquiry, and is currently exploring the issues around English language learners with special education needs.