Dr. Sreemali Herath, Dr. Lauren Goegan and Dr. Xiaoxiao Du are among the tenure-track professors joining the Faculty of Education this year.
Six new faculty join Education
This summer, six new faculty take the next step in their careers with the Faculty of Education at University of Manitoba.
“Our diverse new faculty members bring a range of world-class expertise that helps the Faculty of Education to better represent the changing face of education in Manitoba and around the world,” said Dean Karen Ragoonaden.
A brief bio of the new professors and instructors follows:
Dr. Christopher Charles: Tenure-track assistant professor, mathematics education
Dr. Charles received his PHD in the area of mathematics education from the University of Alberta. Charles explores themes of interactive teaching and inquiry-based learning not only in his teaching, but also in his research. He has taught for more than 20 years in Dominica, at both elementary and secondary education levels. During that time, he also served as a numeracy specialist, head of the mathematics department and as assistant principal. While in Alberta, he contributed to the creation of new curricula and taught at the post-secondary level. He will make a strong addition to advancing mathematics education in the faculty and the province.
Dr. Diane Driedger: Tenure-track assistant professor, disability studies
Dr. Driedger is no stranger to the Faculty, and we are delighted that she has now gained a tenure-track position within our faculty. Driedger has been on a renewable contract for several years and has now converted to a tenure-track position. Driedger is about to have her eleventh book published and is the recipient of many grants and awards. Driedger has been at the forefront of the disability rights movement, and has been instrumental in the development of the UM disability studies program. The Faculty of Education welcomes her continued expertise and institutional knowledge as we strive to make this program grow.
‘Our diverse new faculty members bring a range of world-class expertise that helps the Faculty of Education to better represent the changing face of education in Manitoba and around the world.’
Dr. Xiaoxiao Du: Tenure-track assistant professor, literacies education
Dr. Du received her PhD from the University of Western Ontario’s Faculty of Education, with a focus on language and literacy education. Dr. Du’s experience includes early childhood education and international-language education in both China and Canada. She has received several awards, including the Ontario Graduate Scholarship, the INSPiRE Doctoral Intensive Scholarship on researching professional practices and the LANCHART doctoral scholarship on sociolinguistics from Copenhagen University. Du has done extensive service work within education, serving as a senior copy editor, manuscript reviewer, and book reviewer for different journals for over 10 years. Du and her family have just completed their move from Ontario and are settling in for a beautiful Winnipeg summer.
Ms. Lucy Fowler: Lecturer, pending completion of her PHD in Indigenous education
Ms. Fowler is in the process of completing her PHD at the University of Saskatchewan where she has been working with her supervisor, Dr. Alex Wilson. Her research focuses on the use of hip-hop music as a means of educating and as an expression of culture by Métis Youth. Fowler received the Indigenous Graduate Student Leadership Award and a graduate research fellowship from the University of Saskatchewan. Her previous experience includes work as an elementary teacher in the Dominican Republic, victim-services coordinator for the Métis Nation of Ontario, academic advisor for the Faculty of Social Work, and most recently as a sessional instructor for the UM Department of Native Studies.
Dr. Lauren Goegan: Tenure-track assistant professor in inclusive education
Dr. Goegan holds a PhD in psychological studies in education from the University of Alberta (UA). Her research and teaching focused mainly on important inclusive pedagogies, such as universal design for learning, self-regulated learning, differentiated instruction, and social and emotional learning. Goegan is currently completing a post-doctoral fellowship at UA, working with her supervisor, Dr. Lia Daniels. Her recent work focuses on the mindset of students with learning disabilities and the impact of COVID-19 triggered changes to instruction and assessment on university students’ self-reported motivation, engagement and perceptions.
Dr. Sreemali Herath: Tenure-track assistant professor in teaching English as a second/additional language
Dr. Herath is a critical scholar and educator with a PhD in language and literacies education from OISE, University of Toronto. Her doctoral research focused on the role of second-language teachers in post-conflict reconciliation. She comes to us from a full-time teaching position at the Postgraduate Institute for English of the Open University of Sri Lanka where she has taught curriculum and material development, applied linguistics, socio-linguistics, teaching methodology, and research methods in applied linguistics.
Read more of our faculty and staff profiles here