Audience listens to a presenter at the Enhancing Equity in Ontario Elementary Education Symposium
In October 2023, the Enhancing Equity in Ontario Elementary Education (EEOEE) symposium invited participants from Ontario’s publicly funded school boards, education policymakers and stakeholders, along with researchers and students to a shared space for reflection and discussion about promising practices around elementary school-based equity initiatives.
In June 2026, the Faculty of Community Services shared a summary of the event and all of the available outputs from the symposium, including what is currently a 14-episode podcast series of the key insights from the symposium panels and community perspectives along with eight plain-language summary reports of symposium panels.
The fourteenth episode of the Educational Equity podcast, titled Equity for Newcomer Students, is live!
Hosted by Dr. Nicholas Ng-A-Fook, this episode features Hortense Mvuemba, Étienne Parenteau, Sita Jayaraman, and Malini Singh.
In this podcast, participants shared their perspectives on equity for newcomer students. The discussion, which took place in both English and French, was guided by the following questions:
What are some promising approaches to enhancing equity for newcomer students in elementary schools (ages 4-13)?
What are some of the challenges that you/your organization has experienced in working to enhance equity for newcomer students in elementary schools?
In your view, what actions can be taken by education stakeholders in enhancing equity?
To access the English transcript for this podcast episode, click here and to access the French transcript, click here.
The 2023 Enhancing Equity in Ontario Elementary Education symposium invited participation by all Ontario district school boards, education stakeholders, and scholars focused on educational equity and human rights. The hybrid symposium included over 300 participants and created space for reflection and sharing of promising practices around equity-based initiatives, in support of enhanced equity for elementary school students.
To promote further mobilization of the ideas and resources that were shared at the symposium, several outputs have been created, including panel summaries and podcasts with transcripts. Podcasts were generated based on panel discussions, conversations that took place at our onsite voicEd Radio Speaker’s Corner and with others post-symposium. Podcast topics include:
Equity for Black Students
Equity for Students who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour
Equity for Disabled Students
Equity for 2SLGBTQIA+ Students
Equity for Indigenous Students
Equity for Students Living in Low Sociodemographic Neighbourhoods
Faith-Based Equity
Equity for Newcomer Students
Indigenous Perspectives on Learning & Unlearning
Melanin Magic: A conversation about Black joy
Speaker’s Corner: Relationships, dialogue and listening
Speaker’s Corner: Community voices and appreciating the whole fruit salad
Speaker’s Corner: Culturally relevant pedagogy
Speaker’s Corner: Human rights and equity initiatives
For a list of links to all podcasts with transcripts along with panel summaries that have been published thus far,click here.
The thirteenth episode of the Educational Equity podcast, titled Faith-based Equity, is now live!
Hosted by Dr. Sejal Patel, this episode features Elder Joanne Dallaire, Aasiyah Khan, and Leora Schaefer.
In this podcast, participants shared their perspectives on faith-based equity. The discussion was guided by the following questions:
What are some promising approaches to enhancing faith-based equity for students in elementary schools (ages 4-13)?
What are some of the challenges that you/your organization has experienced in working to enhance faith-based equity for students in elementary schools?
In your view, what actions can be taken by education stakeholders in enhancing equity?
The twelfth episode of the Educational Equity podcast, titled Equity for Students Living in Low Sociodemographic Neighbourhoods, is now live!
Hosted by Dr. Sejal Patel, this episode features Yvonne Kelly, Maria Yau, and Michael Kerr.
In this podcast, participants shared their perspectives on equity for students living in low sociodemographic neighbourhoods. The discussion was guided by the following questions:
What are some promising approaches to enhancing equity for students living in low sociodemographic neighbourhoods in elementary schools (ages 4-13)?
What are some of the challenges that you/your organization has experienced in working to enhance equity for students living in low sociodemographic neighbourhoods in elementary schools?
In your view, what actions can be taken by education stakeholders in enhancing equity?
The eighth episode of the Educational Equity podcast, titled Melanin Magic: A Conversation about Black Joy is now live!
Hosted by Jahiem Thomas, this episode features Coleen Dudley, Holidae Robinson, Tiasia Robinson, Dr. Alana Butler, and Dr. Janelle Brady.
In this podcast a panel of Black advocates, students and professors share their lived experiences, insights, and reflections on the meaning and significance of Black Joy in education.
The discussion was guided by the following questions:
What does Black Joy mean to you?
In the face of historical and systemic barriers, how does Black Joy serve as a catalyst for resistance, thriving, and transformational change?
How does Black Joy shape pedagogical practices that combat anti-Black racism and foster Black student flourishing?
How can schools move beyond just addressing barriers and actively foster environments where Black students thrive?
Can you share how your understanding of Black Joy has evolved over time, particularly as you’ve navigated different stages of your educational journey?
Special thanks to Tanitiã Munroe, Research Coordinator, Centre for Excellence for Black Student Achievement and Research & Development, Toronto District School Board for helping us to bring the wonderful youth participants of this podcast together.
To cite this podcast: Thomas, J. (Host), Brady, J. (Guest), Butler, A. (Guest), Dudley, C. (Guest), Robinson, H. (Guest), and Robinson, T. (Guest). (2025, July 9). Melanin magic: A conversation about Black joy (No. 8) [Audio Podcast Episode]. In Educational Equity Podcast. https://www.spreaker.com/episode/melanin-magic-a-conversation-about-black-joy–66918303
