Gavin Au-Yeung

With the University of Toronto’s 186th academic year underway, �Թϱ�� asked Nick Mount, Yu-Ling Cheng and Mark Kingwell - three members of the University’s Teaching Academy - what they loved about teaching and what advice they would give to students and teachers just embarking on their academic careers. (Learn more about �Թϱ��’s Teaching Academy)

Professor Nick Mount of English

What do you love about teaching?

Many things. Perhaps weirdly, one of them is preparing to teach something, before class time. I love finding or figuring out the perfect example, discovering just the right window on a problem or a book, the moment when it falls into place for me and I hope for them.

What advice would you give to new students beginning their university studies?

Don't take so many notes. Just write down the a-ha moments: yours, not the professor's. Those are the only notes that matter. Pretty much everything else is on the Internet or at Robarts, so you can always look it up.

What advice would you give to new teachers beginning their �Թϱ�� careers?

Funny you should ask. I happen to have on my shelf the third edition of Mistakes in Teaching, prepared by one James L. Hughes. It's undated, but since it belonged to my grandfather, I'd say it's from the 1920s. Here's some sound advice from Dr. Hughes:

"It is a mistake to censure trifling errors too severely. Some teachers pour out their 'vials of wrath' to the last drop on the heads of those whose offenses are not of a very serious nature. Their sternest countenance, and harshest language are called into requisition to find fault with the little unfortunate who carelessly lets fall his slate, or turns to look at his neighbor behind him. Pupils of such teachers soon learn to disregard even a command, unless it is accompanied by a thunderbolt..... It is of the utmost importance that the teacher should never confound the accidental with the intentional, or thoughtlessness with design."

For the curious, Dr. Hughes also has a whole chapter on how to whip a student effectively. Apparently it's all in the wrist.

Professor Yu-Ling Cheng of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry

What do you love about teaching?

I love interacting with students who are eager to learn, and I learn a lot myself when I have to know something well enough to explain it and to answer tough questions from very bright students.

What advice would you give to new students beginning their university studies?

University is about a lot more than what happens in the classroom. Get to know professors by going to their office hours and look for opportunities to do research or do an internship, or participate in clubs.

What advice would you give to new teachers beginning their �Թϱ�� careers?

Try to make it fun. Teaching can be hard work - I don't know anyone who enjoys marking for example, but it can also be a lot of fun to interact with students and to think of clever explanations for difficult concepts.

Professor Mark Kingwell of Philosophy

What do you love about teaching?

Pretty much everything, except maybe grading! Being in the classroom or lecture hall is when I feel most alive, that sense of connecting with students, with ideas, with the process of thought itself. It’s intimate and public at once. I suppose that’s one reason I’m skeptical of online teaching: I can’t, myself, imagine being happy without the sense of shared space, being in a room together, thinking.

What advice would you give to new students beginning their university studies?

Read even more than you think you should. I mean, read all your required course materials, and then read some more, and some more. Read everything, fiction, history, science, biography, poetry, philosophy. You will literally never get this chance again, to live your interior life 24 hours a day, seven days a week. (I know many students have to work as well as study. Look for a job where you can read.)

What advice would you give to new teachers beginning their �Թϱ�� careers?

As Johnny Cade says in The Outsiders: “Stay gold, Ponyboy!” There are lots of things that challenge the intellectual enthusiasm that got us here in the first place: institutional duties, publishing pressure, performance stress. I just try to remind myself of the pure joy that is at the heart of all intellectual life. Cultivate a sense of irony. Also, make sure you have a beer or a glass of wine every now and then.

picpath

sites/default/files/advice-fromprofs-13-09-06.jpg

Meet three new professors at �Թϱ��

sgupta — Tue, 03 Sep 2013 14:20:18 +0000

Meet three new professors at �Թϱ�� sgupta Tue, 09/03/2013 - 10:20

Cutline

Professors Kamboureli, Fu and Becker begin teaching at �Թϱ�� this September

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Our Faculty & Staff

iSchool

Back to School

Faculty of Arts & Science

Subheadline

Profiling new faculty from Political Science, English and Information Studies

September marks a new beginning for the more than 14,000 students joining �Թϱ��— as well as for the newest additions to the university's teaching staff.

“The first time I heard about �Թϱ�� was on the most momentous plane trip of my life,” says Professor Diana Fu, recalling her immigration from China to Canada as a child.

“I distinctly remember overhearing Chinese passengers on the plane talking about Toronto. They were going there because they had spouses studying at the University of Toronto. And from the tone of their voices, I could sense that Toronto was a big, dynamic city.”

This fall, Fu joins the University of Toronto at Scarborough as an assistant professor of political science.

“My main project is completing a book manuscript on state control and civil society contention in authoritarian China,” says Fu, who specialises in comparative politics, with an emphasis on China.

A native from China, Fu will bring her global experience to the classroom as she has lived and studied in areas as diverse as Manitoba, Minnesota, the United Kingdom and California.

Last year, as a Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University's Walter H. Shorenstein Asia Pacific Research Center, Fu worked to better conceptualize the governance in China and the United States.

Fu says she is glad to finally be at the school which initially piqued her curiosity as a child.

“I look forward to exploring the three campuses, to stimulating conversations with students and colleagues, to breaking new ground in my research, and to engage with the broader community.”

The Department of English will benefit from Professor Smaro Kamboureli's arrival. Kamboureli, a Canada Research Chair at Guelph before moving to �Թϱ��, now holds the position of Avie Bennett Chair in Canadian Literature. Her past work has focused on multicultural and diasporic texts, landscapes of the Canadian literary marketplace and humanities research, and more.

“I’ll do what I love doing the most, teach CanLit to undergraduate and graduate students and continue my research on the field,” says the �Թϱ�� professor who began July 1st.

Born in Thessaloniki, Greece, Kamboureli considers Winnipeg her Canadian hometown.

She attributes the calibre and size of �Թϱ�� to what attracted her to Toronto.

“I wanted, at this point of my life, to have the opportunity to work in a bigger graduate program and in a program that has more people working in Canadian literary studies.”

Her past teaching experience speaks for itself. Kamboureli has taught overseas and across Canada including 17 years at the University of Victoria and eight years at the University of Guelph.

“I’ve always thought of �Թϱ�� as a city within a city. So, I look forward to getting to know its particular culture, especially its student body,” says Kamboureli. “This is the best way to figure out what an institution is all about, through its students, as well as the structure of its programs, how things get done.”

Christoph Becker will bring an interdisciplinary skill set, combining information studies, engineering and computer science, to the Faculty of Information.

Becker will be teaching Information Systems Design and Digital Preservation while looking to expand his research on the challenges in information systems and digital longevity.

“Keeping digital information alive across time and space is a big challenge in a whole number of areas – almost anywhere from electronic art to scientific data, health care, and of course private life,” Becker says.

Raised in Salzburg, Austria, Becker spent the last decade and a half in Vienna at the Vienna University of Technology as a senior scientist at the department of Software Technology and Interactive Systems at the Faculty of Informatics.

When the Faculty of Information created the position of Digital Preservation, Becker jumped at the opportunity to bring his expertise to Toronto.

“�Թϱ�� really is an incredibly rich environment where lots of different ideas meet and combine to make great things happen,” says Becker.

“I am really looking forward to working with students and colleagues with diverse interests and backgrounds.”

picpath

sites/default/files/New-Profs-2013-13-08-30.jpg

Five �Թϱ�� programs that strengthen the Toronto community

sgupta — Tue, 03 Sep 2013 12:14:42 +0000

Five �Թϱ�� programs that strengthen the Toronto community sgupta Tue, 09/03/2013 - 08:14

Cutline

Volunteers at IMAGINE Clinic, the first student-run and student-led health clinic. (photo courtesy of Enoch Ng)

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Features

Back to School

Local

Subheadline

Service learning opportunities available across several disciplines

Using university-acquired skills to improve lives in the community doesn’t have to wait until after graduation. For many students at �Թϱ��, enlivening the city with expertise and passion is already a part of their studies—benefitting both their learning process and the community around them.

“Working in the community keeps us connected to the heart of why we are studying in the first place,” says Enoch Ng, a fourth-year in the combined MD/PhD program.

Ng is involved with IMAGINE (Interprofessional Medical and Allied Groups for Improving Neighbourhood Environments) Clinic, Canada’s first student-run and student-led health clinic. The clinic promotes and provides holistic healthcare for those with little social support in downtown Toronto.

“Applying what we learn in the classroom to the community is what really consolidates learning so it is not just words in a textbook, but something we have seen with our own eyes, felt the impact of with our own hearts, and used to make a difference with our own hands,” says Ng.

(Learn more about IMAGINE Clinic)

Service learning – the combination of formal learning and in-community service – has become popular among eager students wanting to impact the community while studying.

Especially for upper-year students, egaer to put their skills to work and restless from years in the classroom alone.

“After so many years of education, we become much too familiar with the chairs inside the lecture halls that we sometimes become disconnected from the world outside,” says Gary Yang, a third-year student from University of Toronto Mississauga’s Academy of Medicine.

“Whether we are learning to be lawyers, engineers, architects, musicians or gymnasts; our future is intertwined with our community.”

Yang hopes to do so through Adventures in Science, a Mississauga-based community outreach program. The scientific engagement program aimed at youth has influenced more than 300 students in the Peel Region.

(Learn more about Adventures in Science)

Engineering students can partake in the Engineering Strategies and Practices (ESP) course which incorporates service learning by following through with a design project from start to finish.

“ESP was one of the most useful courses, simply because it was practical,” says Maria Xirui Xie, a first-year electrical and computer engineering student. “This course created an environment very similar to the environment that engineers may potentially work in.”

Through ESP, students are assigned to local clients where they put their engineering expertise to work. In the past, students have taken on projects such as designing safer scaffolding for construction sites, making a house more dog-accessible and devising a new process that makes it easier to package dried foods.

“Students find the experience of the course extremely challenging. But after a few years – and more real world experience – they often say that ESP was where they learned the most important basic skills,” says Peter Weiss, ESP communication coordinator.”

(Learn more about ESP)

New College’s Community Engaged Learning Program (CEL) allows students to work a few hours each week with a community partnered organization. Students integrate classroom knowledge with workplace experience to explore ethical and social justice issues present in the workplace.

“My service learning experience allowed me to connect on a personal level with a marginalized population that I had previously learned about only through my academic work,” says Kousha Azimi, a human biology student who had a placement with The Coffee Shed and Common Ground Cooperative.

“As a science student, I have rarely been exposed to questions of social justice and community activism in my academic work,” says Roman Zyla, a pharmacology student who worked at Toronto General Hospital through CEL. “The class discussions and assignments in the CEL program were pivotal in introducing me to the importance of these concepts and strongly shaped the way I reflect on issues in the biomedical field."

“CEL course assignments prompt students to make meaning and think critically about all aspects of what they are experiencing, to identify and question their own and others’ assumptions, to figure out the relationships of power and inequality that lurk in the way that social contexts are shaped,” says Linzi Manicom, CEL coordinator.

(Learn more about CEL)

The Faculty of Arts and Science offers service learning opportunities embedded into many courses including, Cornerstones in Social Justice for St. Michael's One program students and New College's Buddhism and Psychology.

“The best part of service learning is how efficient it is,” explains Jessie Ji Huang, a third year architectural studies undergraduate student.

Huang previously enrolled in Introduction to Urban Studies—a course which features optional service learning with non-profit organizations such as food banks, community shelters and community centers.

“It's this rare activity where you simultaneously reify class concepts, explore others' lives, contribute to the city, and get class credit, and meet new people,” says Huang.

“It's studying in Robarts except more fun, more effective, and better for your city.”

picpath

sites/default/files/service-learning-13-08-29.jpg

How to travel abroad at �Թϱ��

sgupta — Mon, 26 Aug 2013 13:13:52 +0000

How to travel abroad at �Թϱ�� sgupta Mon, 08/26/2013 - 09:13

Cutline

Biology major Charise Currier spent five months in New Zealand, where she encountered kiwi birds, penguins, dolphins and giant boulders (all photos courtesy Charise Currier)

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Subheadline

Back to School... in Asia, Europe, South America

With its emphasis on global citizenship and a wide variety of opportunities and programs, the University of Toronto encourages students to travel abroad - while earning credits towards their degrees.

Travelling can be a challenge, but as Faculty of Arts & Science undergraduate Charise Currier says in a blog she kept during an exchange to New Zeland's University of Otago:

"This time I had a community in which to belong: my university. Maybe it was just easier because this time I was ready for it: I expected culture shock. But what ever it is, I have had the chance to learn about myself, meet new people, and see a part of the world that is so beautiful and unique, and usually so inaccessible. I have lived more in these few months than I have in the last two years. It has still had it’s hard moments. I have still missed home, but it is all worth it. I wouldn’t trade it for the world."

Here are just a few of the opportunities for students – new and returning alike – to explore new cultures, gain international experience and put theory into practice.

Summer Abroad

“Seeing a whole different culture than what we normally experience in Canada was very exciting,” says Madeline Klimek, a history and international relations student, “I immensely enjoyed our trip to Bosnia during the second portion of the program where we had 10 days to travel throughout the region and to do research for our final essay.”

Klimek travelled through Summer Abroad, a program designed to help students participate in meaningful learning experiences and engage with the world outside the classroom.

“The most rewarding part about the program was being able to experience first-hand the region we were studying,” says Aditi Ratho, a specialist in international relations, part of the Southeast Europe program last year. “The most challenging part of the program was trying to fit in so much knowledge in so short a time.”

Summer Abroad includes 45 courses across 18 countries and allows students to complete a �Թϱ�� course in four to six weeks.

“Students are able to relate what they learn in the classroom to real-world situations abroad through critical analysis and synthesis of the course materials,” says program Director Sarah Witol. “They become ‘knowledgeable global citizens’ which should be an advantage in today’s competitive environment.”

(Read more about Summer Abroad)

Centre for International Experience

Through the Centre for International Experience (CIE), students have the opportunity to study at one of �Թϱ��’s 150-plus partnered global institutions while earning credits toward their �Թϱ�� degree.

“This is a great way for our students to internationalize their degree, expand language skills, or develop international contacts in industry or academia,” says Loraine Au Tham, a CIE exchange officer who oversees outbound students. “We strongly encourage all our students to take advantage of the opportunities offered through the student exchange program and ‘experience the world’.”

CIE students can choose study period durations of an entire academic year, a single semester, or throughout the summer.

“The wonderful part about being abroad is that most of your days are distilled, concentrated versions of life,” writes Charise Currier in her CIE blog."You feel like you just don’t have enough time to do and see everything, and so you have to experience the most you can before the clock runs out,"

A third year biology major, Currier (pictured centre) recently spent five months on an exchange with the University of Otago in New Zealand. Among her experiences: exploring caves lit by glow worms, while tubing.

"I would have never enrolled without encouragement…but I’m so glad we did!" Currier writes. "Basically, the adventure is composed of suiting up in a wetsuit and helmet, grabbing a tiny inner tube, and climbing into an underground cave. THEN, without hesitation, we all jump backwards off a waterfall into cool, dark, eel-infested waters. Okay, so it was a small waterfall, and the eels are pretty friendly. But still."

(Read more about CIE)

International Course Module Program

Through week-long excursions, the International Course Modules (ICM) program provides ways to enhance student learning while providing an innovative method to integrate learning beyond the classroom.

“I went on the research project because I knew that having the opportunity to concurrently marry academic studies and real-world applications is well beyond the scope of what any other university can provide you,” explains Assad Quraishi, a recent Computer Science graduate who traveled to the UK in February.

“We were able to move beyond the realms of textbooks and lectures, and actually apply the practices and methodologies.”

Modules are integrated into existing course plans and can be planned to coincide with reading week. Students submit ICM proposals which include a sponsoring faculty member. Past students have travelled to destinations in Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe.

“We are working to provide a wide variety of international opportunities that will allow as many students as possible to integrate an international experience into their academic program,” says Director, International Programs and Partnerships, MP Stevens. “These opportunities allow students to apply the theories and concepts they study in the classroom to sites that are directly tied to their subject area.”

(Read more about ICM)

Munk School of Global Affairs

Students enrolled in the Munk School of Global Affairs’ Master of Global Affairs (MGA) program are required to participate in a mandatory summer internship between their first and second year of the program.

MGA students have been offered placements around the world with institutions such as the World Bank, NATO, Bombardier and the World Trade Organization – to list a few.

“Working abroad offers the opportunity to really immerse oneself in the values and day-to-day habits of other societies,” says Kristen Pue, who is currently in Brussels working for the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada at NATO.

“I really think that this offers a new perspective on Canadian life.”

“[The internships are the] cornerstone of the entire program,” says Smadar Peretz, internship director for the MGA program. “We are pleased to offer a wide range of opportunities which keep expanding because of the caliber of our students.”

(Read more about MGA internships)

Gavin Au-Yeung is a writer with University Relations at the University of Toronto.

picpath

sites/default/files/back-to-school-charise-currier.jpg

What to read this summer

sgupta — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 15:53:21 +0000

What to read this summer sgupta Fri, 08/16/2013 - 11:53

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Topic

With a library system that ranks third in North America, the University of Toronto is home to millions of works.

And, throughout its history, �Թϱ�� has also been home to hundreds of distinguished authors and editors.

The award-winning poets, playwrights, screenwriters, novelists, essayists and journalists who number among the alumni and faculty of �Թϱ�� are too many to list. Sheila Heti, Lee Maracle, Margaret Atwood, Anne Carson, Graham Yost, Guy Gavriel Kay, Atom Egoyan, Rohinton Mistry, Heather Mallick, Michael Cobb and Michael Ondaatje are just a few of today’s writers, following in the literary footsteps of the late �Թϱ�� authors Stephen Leacock, Robertson Davies, Morley Callaghan and Jay Macpherson.

And what of this year’s releases?

At the top of anyone’s must-have list for the personal library is The University of Toronto, A History (second edition) by Martin L. Friedland, University Professor and professor emeritus of Law at �Թϱ��, which traces the history of the University from its origins as Kings College in 1827 to the millennium.

But this year’s books include everything from fiction to non-fiction and texts that represent years of path-breaking academic research.

Robert McGill reimagines the impact of the Vietnam War in his novel Once We Had a Country, Hillary Scharper’s Perdita tells a gothic tale of love and loss, while Ron Deibert’s latest book Black Code explores the dangers of the cyberspace on which our society greatly depends.

Check out Operative Landscapes by Alissa North to learn how landscape can shape a community, explore Colin McCartney’s contributions to Principles and Practice of Regional Anaesthesia and meet The American Pragmatists by Cheryl Misak.

You’ll find more reading possibilities in the photo gallery below. Whatever your interests, there is sure to be a �Թϱ�� author with a book for you.

Happy reading!

Did we miss you? If you have published or will publish a book in 2013, or you know a �Թϱ�� alumnus, researcher or student with a new book, please let us know. Send an email to uoftnews@utoronto.ca.

picpath

sites/default/files/AuthorBookGallery-13-08-14.jpg

Understanding Biogenesis: how professional sports deal with drugs

sgupta — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 14:38:15 +0000

Understanding Biogenesis: how professional sports deal with drugs sgupta Fri, 08/02/2013 - 10:38

Cutline

Alex Rodrigues (photo by Keith Allison via Flickr)

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Topic

Global Lens

Urban beekeeping at �Թϱ��

sgupta — Thu, 25 Jul 2013 10:41:55 +0000

Urban beekeeping at �Թϱ�� sgupta Thu, 07/25/2013 - 06:41

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Features

Student Life

Local

The Faculty Club at the University of Toronto is a heritage landmark, best known today for its ambiance and exquisite dining. So, why has it become the home for some 150,000 bees?

“Beekeeping is a new and growing phenomenon in Toronto and beyond,” says Alissa Saieva, president of the University of Toronto Beekeeping Education Enthusiast Society (B.E.E.S.).

The student-run club aims to spread the importance of honeybees while providing hands-on beekeeping experience – and the three hives installed in June on the rooftop of the Faculty Club are just the latest example. The �Թϱ�� B.E.E.S. is also in charge of maintaining two hives at Trinity College and one at the Earth Sciences Centre.

Urban beekeeping is very much an active way to save the bee population, as they experience a decline in numbers due to unsustainable agricultural practices and global climate change, Saieva says.

“There’s been a real push to the concern of the loss of the bees,” says Sandy Smith, professor at the Faculty of Forestry. “[Urban beekeeping] makes people more aware about questions on pesticide use, which is one of the big concerns for the loss of bees around the world.”

Smith also believes the growing desire for locally grown and organic food makes urban beekeeping very attractive.

“Honeybees are an integral part of healthy ecosystems; they are responsible for the pollination of 1 out of every 3 bites of food you take,” adds Saieva, a fourth-year undergraduate student in political science and environmental studies.

The �Թϱ�� B.E.E.S. isn’t alone in its commitment to beekeeping at the university. More �Թϱ�� beehives can be found at the Sky Garden, New College, Earth Sciences Centre and at the University of Toronto Scarborough’s Social Sciences Building. (Read more about the Sky Garden.)

Having so many hives on campus may cause unrest among pedestrians who may fear being stung, but Saieva says this is a common misconception due to confusion between honeybees and wasps.

“Unlike wasps, honeybees are ‘vegetarians’ in the sense that they are only interested in nectar, not artificial sweets. This means that those unwelcomed guests at BBQs and picnics are typically wasps,” she explains.

“Although honeybees do have stingers, there are only used when a honeybee feels threatened, after which they die. Wasps, on the other hand, can sting you repeatedly.”

Pieter Basedow, Science for Peace treasurer, works closely with the student club. He hopes the new beehives at the Faculty Club would help generate interest and lead to additional beehives.

And at the heart of Toronto, the St. George campus provides an ideal location.

“We have Philosopher’s Walk, Queen’s Park and a great selection of plants on campus, green spaces and lots of trees,” explains Basedow, who adds the bees can fly within a five kilometer radius of their hives.

“Hopefully we can get together with the property managers and some faculty within the different departments and see how we can expand.”

But for the time being, the Faculty Club is ecstatic about their new rooftop instalments.

“It’s a real pleasure working with the �Թϱ�� B.E.E.S.,” says Leanne Pepper, Faculty Club general manager. “We are very proud to be part of the urban bee keeping.

“The chef is looking forward to creating fabulous dishes with the honey!”

Gavin Au-Yeung is a writer with University Relations at the University of Toronto.

picpath

sites/default/files/bees-13-07-25.jpg

�Թϱ�� expert explores the George Zimmerman verdict

sgupta — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 09:33:18 +0000

�Թϱ�� expert explores the George Zimmerman verdict sgupta Mon, 07/22/2013 - 05:33

Cutline

July 15, 2013 rally in Minneapolis, Minnesota to protest the Zimmerman verdict (photo by Fibonacci Blue via Flickr)

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Topic

Global Lens

�Թϱ�� startup, Ontario government give people a voice

sgupta — Tue, 16 Jul 2013 15:26:44 +0000

�Թϱ�� startup, Ontario government give people a voice sgupta Tue, 07/16/2013 - 11:26

Cutline

Tyler Austin is one of the users of the TalkRocketGo app, from �Թϱ�� startup MyVoice

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Cerebral palsy has always affected Tyler Austin’s abilities to communicate and interact with others. But TalkRocket Go, an app from University of Toronto startup MyVoice, aims to change all that.

And the Ontario government wants to help.

“TalkRocket Go helps kids and adults with speech disabilities communicate out loud using an iPad or iPod Touch,” says Alex Levy, MyVoice chief executive officer and lead designer. “For someone with cerebral palsy, aphasia, or autism, TalkRocket Go can be a gateway to education, employment, social life, and the simple joy of conversation.”

Eric and Pam Austin, Tyler’s parents, say their son learned to use the app quickly.

“By using this app in his everyday activities, he has gained a new sense of independence,” says Pam Austin. “This summer, Tyler was able to speak directly to counsellors and fellow campers at sleepover camp. He was able to participate in more activities than ever before.”

Tony Gross, MyVoice community director, recalls Austin’s first encounter with the application.

“Within 20 minutes he was able to order his mother her favourite coffee at Tim Horton’s in a local rehab centre,” says Gross.

“Just like a typical person with no disabilities, Tyler surpassed my skills with the iPad in no time; I was both embarrassed and bursting with pride at the same time.”

The app can be purchased on iTunes for $99.99. However, the Ontario Ministry of Health's Assistive Devices Program will now fund 75 per cent of the cost of a prescribed iPad or iPod Touch installed with the TalkRocket Go app.

“Although TalkRocket Go is already used by thousands of Ontarians with speech disabilities, this new funding will help make the app available to thousands of more families, especially those with limited incomes,” says Levy, who graduated from �Թϱ��’s specialist program in political science in 2010.

“My husband faces communication challenges as a result of a stroke,” says Bonni Scott, whose husband was diagnosed with aphasia. “TalkRocket Go is the best aid we have found to help him be more comfortable and successful in communicating.”

MyVoice is proving to be a leader in the ongoing movement towards innovative technologies for people with speech disabilities, says Levy, adding the new provincial funding is a great vote of confidence.

“Our products began life as a little research prototype in the Technologies for Aging Gracefully Lab (TAGLab),” recalls Levy. “Many of the technologies we developed there are still fundamental parts of our commercial products today.

“�Թϱ�� has been an incredible supporter along the entire journey.”

To access the benefits of the new funding, families must first seek an assessment at one of 26 qualified Assistive Devices Program clinics throughout Ontario.

Gavin Au-Yeung is a writer with University Relations at the University of Toronto.

picpath

sites/default/files/myvoice-rocket.jpg

Understanding the deal: Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaw

sgupta — Tue, 16 Jul 2013 09:50:25 +0000

Understanding the deal: Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaw sgupta Tue, 07/16/2013 - 05:50

Cutline

Loblaw turned a corner July 15 with a $12.4 billion friendly takeover bid for Shoppers Drug Mart (photo by Jay Goldman via Flickr)

Gavin Au-Yeung

Author legacy

Gavin Au-Yeung

Gavin Au-Yeung

A word to the wise

Meet three new professors at �Թϱ���

Five �Թϱ��� programs that strengthen the Toronto community

How to travel abroad at �Թϱ���

What to read this summer

Understanding Biogenesis: how professional sports deal with drugs

Urban beekeeping at �Թϱ���

�Թϱ��� expert explores the George Zimmerman verdict

�Թϱ��� startup, Ontario government give people a voice

Understanding the deal: Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaw

Meet three new professors at �Թϱ��

Five �Թϱ�� programs that strengthen the Toronto community

How to travel abroad at �Թϱ��

Urban beekeeping at �Թϱ��

�Թϱ�� expert explores the George Zimmerman verdict

�Թϱ�� startup, Ontario government give people a voice