I’m what you might call a vicarious athlete. I like to think that description sounds slightly better than “armchair athlete,” but it’s basically the same thing. While I try to stay fit and healthy, I’m not skilled in any particular sport so I compete vicariously through the prowess of others. In other words, I love […]

“Research1 shows that boys and girls are able to achieve equally well in math and science at the high school level, yet fewer girls pursue post-secondary studies in STEM subjects, and even fewer continue on to careers in STEM. What would you do to change this?” This was a question asked of every candidate who […]

Dr. Leanne Foster’s Commencement Address to the Class of 2019 on Trafalgar Day: Parent, family members, faculty and staff, students and honoured guests. We are here to celebrate the remarkable young women who make up the Class of 2019. Ladies, I have watched you navigate your way to this moment in time. It has been […]

There’s a debate going on in many schools across North America.  Educators, students, and parents are questioning the value of Advanced Placement (AP) courses.   The debate, long taken up by educators, is gaining broader momentum, spurred on by a recent Washington Post article jointly written by the heads of eight, elite Washington-area private schools.  The […]

The beauty and the pageantry of Trafalgar Castle School’s 112th May Court Festival was on full display last Saturday with flags, banners, and the traditional May Pole dance.  And then there was the goat.  Yes, the goat. And the llama, sheep, ducks, and donkey.  But in my mind, May Court 2019 will forever be known […]

Failure kicked them when they were down and out. They didn’t care. They picked themselves up, stared failure straight in the eyes, and got back to work.  No tears, no self-pity, no excuses.  Just fierce determination and incredible resilience. That’s how Trafalgar girls deal with setbacks. This past weekend, our robotics team headed to Philadelphia […]

When I watched her on stage, I didn’t see the tentative student who typically walks through the hallway, smiling but with books clutched tight to chest.  Nor did I see the diligent but sometimes self-doubting student unsure whether to answer in class, her hand hovering midpoint between straight up and straight down.  When I watched […]

Changes are coming to public schools in Ontario this September, and chief among them is an increase in class size for Grades 4 through 12.  According to Minister of Education Lisa Thompson, employers and professors who took part in Ministry consultations expressed concern that students are lacking coping skills and resiliency.  “By increasing class sizes […]

There’s a quote (incorrectly) attributed to William Butler Yeats that I love even if no one knows who actually said it: “Education should not be the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” If the educational goings on in Ontario last week are any indication, a fire has definitely been lit and […]

Did you hear the one about the space agency that invited two women for a spacewalk but forgot it had only had one suit?  Okay, well maybe it didn’t really forget. Maybe it’s just really bad at forward planning.  Or maybe it thought only one woman at a time would ever go on a spacewalk. […]