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The Faculty of Education at UBC is advancing educational research and understanding in ways that celebrate diversity, equity, and innovation, and welcomes international collaboration in an increasingly borderless world.

UBC’s Faculty of Education, one of the world’s leading education faculties, has served the local, national, and international education community through leadership in research, teaching, service and advocacy for more than 60 years. As the largest Faculty of Education in British Columbia, it plays a critical and influential role in the advancement of education in the province, shaping and participating in education’s possibilities and potential as a social good. 

Today, the Faculty of Education creates conditions for transformative teaching, innovative learning, and leading-edge research guided by the highest standards of scholarship and the principles of collaboration, social justice, inclusion and equity. Offering undergraduate and graduate programs, as well as professional development opportunities, the Faculty of Education enrolls thousands of students each year on two campuses and ranks 10th in the world, according to QS World University Rankings (2021).

UBC’s Faculty of Education prepares more than 45% of the elementary and the majority of secondary educators in British Columbia, and a significant proportion of British Columbia’s school counsellors, administrators, special education professionals, and school psychologists. With more than 57,000 alum located in 100 countries, the UBC Faculty of Education truly is a global entity. 

The Faculty of Education is home to four departments (Curriculum and Pedagogy, Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education, Educational Studies, and Language and Literacy Education) and two schools (the School of Kinesiology and the Okanagan School of Education).

Mission
To advance education's role in the well-being of people and communities.
 

Research Facilities

We provide outstanding research facilities for faculty and graduate students that promote leading-edge research. Our Education Library is a specialized resource with access to all of UBC’s research and special collections, including the X̱wi7x̱wa Library with materials produced by Indigenous organizations, tribal councils, schools, researchers and publishers.

The Faculty’s Education Research and Learning Commons at Ponderosa Commons features technology-enhanced teaching and learning spaces and also informal learning spaces. A number of faculty manage their own research labs, situated throughout campus. 

Many of our PhD students have been selected as UBC Public Scholars and have received other honours.

Research Highlights

https://ivet.educ.ubc.ca/Notable strengths are in literacy education and multilingualism; struggling and marginalized youth; Indigenous education, decolonization, and research; transformational program and curriculum design and inclusive pedagogies for schools, community organizations and higher education; sexual orientation and gender-identity inclusive education; social-emotional learning and well-being; autism; exercise physiology, socio-cultural aspects of health; neuromechanical studies; and multidisciplinary research in diversity, health, early childhood education, and digital media. The School of Kinesiology ranks 1st in Canada and 4th in the world by QS World University Rankings (2021).

UBC’s Faculty of Education is the national leader in the number of education graduate student fellowships received from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). Additionally, the Faculty of Education is home to six Canada Research Chairs, one CIHR chair and nine donor-funded research chairs and professorships. 

Graduate Degree Programs

Recent Publications

This is an incomplete sample of recent publications in chronological order by UBC faculty members with a primary appointment in the Faculty of Education.

 

Recent Thesis Submissions

Doctoral Citations

A doctoral citation summarizes the nature of the independent research, provides a high-level overview of the study, states the significance of the work and says who will benefit from the findings in clear, non-specialized language, so that members of a lay audience will understand it.
Year Citation Program
2016 Dr. Launeanu's research examined how people make decisions when they respond to survey questions. The results suggest that respondents' answers are shaped by cognitive as well as personal and sociocultural factors. These findings will inform the development of better survey questions, and will contribute to an accurate understanding of what the survey responses mean. Doctor of Philosophy in Measurement, Evaluation and Research Methodology (PhD)
2016 Intrigued by the learning possibilities that food gardens offer, Dr. Urueta explored the identities constructed by urban youth who had participated in a one-year, intergenerational garden-based learning project at the UBC Farm. Her findings contribute to understanding the pedagogical possibilities and challenges of food gardens. Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD)
2016 Dr. Daniels compared the personal memories from Aboriginal students of public schools and of Indian residential schools. By examining these intergenerational memories, she gained insights into Indigenous peoples' education in Canada. This research opens up possibilities for decolonizing present-day educational research, policies and practices. Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy (EdD)
2016 Dr. Deschambault examined the impact of fee-paying international students on BC's public schools. His analysis calls into question current understandings of international students in educational policies and practices, and acknowledges the important role English language learning plays in their school experiences. Doctor of Philosophy in Teaching English as a Second Language (PhD)
2016 Dr. Robinson studied the integration of Indigenous knowledge at three Aboriginal post-secondary institutes in BC. Her research highlights the critical role of Elders in academia, the role of partnerships, and the resiliency of Aboriginal post-secondary institutes. This research will benefit Aboriginal education policy in Canada. Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Studies (PhD)
2016 Dr. Anderson examined the academic socialization dialogue of international and permanent resident Chinese PhD students at a Canadian University. His research highlights the importance of providing support and mentorship opportunities for culturally and linguistically diverse doctoral students to increase access into their respective academic communities. Doctor of Philosophy in Language and Literacy Education (PhD)
2016 What roles should digital technologies have in universities? Dr. Gratham's research found that answers were related to place in the system. He found that policy treats technologies as means to a more efficient and competitive system. In contrast, many professors experience technologies as distracting to their aims of building relationships with students. Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and Policy (EdD)
2015 Dr. Conn studied the factors that helped or hindered police officers as they tried to maintain life roles outside of policing. Personal standards were the strongest helping factor and work hours were the strongest hindering factor as they sought to achieve balance. This research helps us understand the work-life balance practices of police officers. Doctor of Philosophy in Counselling Psychology (PhD)
2015 Dr. Goessling studied the ways in which youth activists in a social justice organization construct meaning from their experiences. This research resulted in a set of narratives describing what it means to be a youth in a neoliberal society. These stories of young people's engagement with society reveal ways in which youth transform it, and themselves. Doctor of Philosophy in Human Development, Learning, and Culture (PhD)
2015 Dr. Campbell studied change in the culturally diverse students in engineering design teams. Buying into teamwork, claiming viable roles and navigating team perspectives were found critical to early professional development. This suggests a need for an explicit curricular focus on teamwork, intercultural and communicative skills, and formative assessment. Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD)

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