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Priscilla Theroux – Author of
www.enhancelearning.ca
Born in South Wales and educated in London, England, Priscilla first came to Canada on vacation in 1967. While here, she met her future husband and decided to stay in Alberta where she has been living and working for 44 years. Having received a BA in Fine Arts in 1966 and a postgraduate Diploma of Education in 1967 from the University of London, Priscilla began her career with the Calgary Catholic School District and the Banff School of Fine Arts the following year. In 1981 her she was assigned to work with students who were extremely bright, but not necessarily achieving up to their potential. Long before educational researchers and literature made them fashionable, Priscilla was exploring, developing and documenting strategies and methodologies we now associate with differentiated learning. As the first, and for a time, only teacher of Gifted and Talented students in the city of Calgary, Priscilla led the creation of Gifted and Talented team and shared knowledge and best practice through the development of many documents and inservice sessions. Her passion for meeting the needs of her learners led her to read, research and continually modify and experiment with her practice. Priscilla claims that her students insisted that she start using technology in the mid 80s. Long before the Internet and the “Connected Classroom”, Priscilla had begun her exploration of how technology could be used by teachers to enhance student learning. Realizing that her students needed to inquire, and communicate, to think both analytically and creatively, to identify and solve real problems and to make good choices through informed decision making, Priscilla found ways to use technology to reach these goals. Between 1996 and 2001 years, Priscilla worked with a small team of teachers to develop and sustain a district-wide professional development project aimed at leading teachers in applying inquiry and problem-based learning strategies, differentiated learning techniques, and information and communication technologies to improve student learning. Recognized as a provincial leader in the development and review of the Information and Communication Technology program of studies, Priscilla continued to develop manuals, write articles, give presentations, and facilitate groups of teachers in developing and implementing advanced student learning projects in their classrooms until her retirement in 2007.. This site, www.enhancelearning.ca, is the collected wisdom, experience and research of a lifetime of reaching and serving students and it includes links to many of her favorite websites. The author embodies the qualities of the “lifelong learner” as she continues to add, modify and refine these collections, resources and explanations based on classroom experience and results. As Priscilla says, “I just do it, and constantly modify what I'm doing until it works.” These pages are intended to be used as resources, inspiration and guidance to help educators reach their students in meaningful and powerful ways. Moreover, they are a recognition of the lived philosophy of their creator; education is not about what is taught, but what is learned.
Written by John Wasch, Educational Technology Consultant, Calgary Catholic Schools |
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P Theroux,
Teacher, These web pages were assembled for teachers. There are well over 100 pages on this site and all have a similar format. All pages that vary in appearance from this page are linking off site to the work of others. Every effort is made to validate the educational substance of these sites. Please remember that the dynamic nature of the Internet requires each of us to use caution when presenting web sites to students.
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