Note: Some footage used in this video was filmed prior to the pandemic and may not depict social distancing measures.
Transcription – Debbie Mar, 2020 Prime Minister's Award for Teaching Excellence
[Close-up of woman in an interview setting. Music playing.]
"There have been many challenges this year. And there's been a great deal of loss, and a great deal of fatigue. And a lot of different struggles for different people, and we're really missing connections. And what I found to be really important was to have a restorative plan for my students. To really focus on their wellbeing."
[Fade to black and then up to white with medium shot of woman, smiling, on the left side of the screen, with the following words appearing, line by line, on the right: Debbie Mar, Upper Sumas Elementary School, Abbotsford, British Columbia. Fade to black and then up to close-up of Debbie in the interview setting.]
"For example we have held an outdoor Garden of Remembrance Ceremony to honour our veterans. And that was very powerful. And we have thought of the seniors who are struggling and are in isolation. And sent cards of joy with them, with words of encouragement that we are thinking of them.
[Cut to photos, with voice over. Photo: A student examining Debbie's eye.]
"And all of that has brought so much goodness back to the students."
[Cut back to close-up of Debbie in the interview setting.]
"It gives us an opportunity to learn how to care for yourselves, and to care for others. "
[Fade to black and then up to Debbie in the interview setting.]
"I am most proud of my ability to use student voice, and to incorporate that into my curriculum. "
[Cut to photos with voice over. Photos: A student taking eggs out of fish; a close up of a student working on a lap top; students taking part in a ceremony.]
"For example at the start of every year we identify each student's talent. And we post them visually in the classroom so that students can turn to those in times of need. So that sense of purpose is developed very early on."
[Cut back to Debbie in the interview setting.]
"I believe that students are brilliant, and they carry with them such rich potential, and rich resources. And once they are able to use that into your curriculum. It just provides for such meaningful activities. And I just stand back, and I listen to the sparks. The sparks of genius in the students' blood of their knowledge, their questions, their misconceptions. And I document these. And then I use that to co-create the curriculum with them."
[Fade to black and then to photos with voice over. Photo: Debbie and students outside in the forest.]
"The number one factor that contributes to student success is having a sense of purpose. "
[Cut back to Debbie in the interview setting.]
"And I believe that it is my job as a teacher to empower students, and to provide them with learning opportunities that matter to them, and that they are emotionally connected to."
[Fade to black, with the Government of Canada FIP and then the Canada Wordmark appearing in white.]
Year: 2020 — Province: British Columbia
Certificate of Excellence Recipient
Upper Sumas Elementary School
All subjects, grades 3 and 4
Abbotsford, British Columbia
[Mrs. Mar] has been able to reach into our son's creative outlet and help him enjoy school to an amazing level. We … couldn't be happier to hear and learn all the things she [does] to make our son's learning more intriguing and challenging, taking his academic excellence to a new level.
Debbie Mar has triggered security alerts at her school more than once when she has stayed well past 11 p.m. creating resources and planning lessons. Even after 26 years in the classroom, she passionately pursues her job of changing young lives and getting students to believe they can make a difference.
Teaching approach
Debbie believes her role as an educator is to be passionate about introducing the wonder of the world to her students. She seeks to inspire her students to love and care about themselves, each other and their learning, recognize their strengths and move forward, overcoming obstacles with courageous optimism.
In the classroom
- Uses STEM projects to engage students: they learned robotics by building LEGO animals (it was so popular that Debbie led after-school sessions so intermediate students could try it); students learned coding skill, designed their own video games and showed other classes how to play.
- Follows student interests to develop meaningful learning opportunities: a gift of 75 tulip bulbs led students to learn about Canada's Second World War link to Holland, meet and speak with a veteran, visit the local cenotaph and soldiers' graves (decorating them with construction paper tulips they had made), learn about their lives and pay tribute to them at the Remembrance Day assembly and on video
- Brings real-world learning into her classroom through engaging, hands-on experiences: students learned about the life cycle and the scientific method by raising salmon in their classroom and then shared their knowledge with other students using facts, diagrams and games.
- Sets a high standard for student achievement: students keep reading and writing journals and meet weekly with Debbie to set goals for both skills; she meets families to create home-reading plans for children not yet meeting expectations; students follow the draft/revise/publish process for their writing.
Outstanding achievements
- Spearheaded efforts to improve student literacy: worked with public library staff to form teams of students to take part in book-based trivia challenges; avid readers meet with Debbie weekly at lunch to prepare.
- Persisted in learning to code, taking a night course, even though it didn't come naturally to her; immediately taught her Grade 3 students what she had just learned, using herself as example of perseverance and the growth mindset that students need when they get stuck or frustrated.
- Partnered with a homeless advocate who had just opened a new shelter for older adults; her class decorated it for Christmas; students willingly gave up their Secret Santa exchange in order to fill stockings for shelter residents, and wrote a poem together called "Reaching Out" to place in each stocking.
Get in touch!
Upper Sumas Elementary School
36321 Vye Road
Abbotsford BC V3G 1Z5
604-852-3900
uppersumas@abbyschools.ca
https://uppersumas.abbyschools.ca/
Facebook: @uppersumaselementary