On February 8th, 2025, Academic Coordinator of the Glendon Bachelor of Education degree (BEd) program, Muriel Péguret, co-organized a dynamic Open Educational Resources (OER) creation workshop, bringing together experienced French as a Second Language (FSL) teachers and first-year Bachelor of Education (BEd) students. This unique event, funded in part by Camerise, aimed to support prospective and current teachers in developing inclusive, engaging classroom resources while fostering collaboration across the FSL community.
Participants explored the Camerise Project–an online hub designed to support FSL teachers in sharing and adapting classroom resources, learned about Open Education, Creative Commons licensing, and effective strategies for collaborating online.
The workshop included a panel discussion featuring experts in FSL education, who shared insights on the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference), the action-oriented approach, and ways to incorporate diverse Francophone perspectives into teaching materials.
First-year Glendon BEd students played an important role in the workshop. Having completed the Camerise online asynchronous course on Creative Commons licensing and resource sharing (available here), the students contributed valuable knowledge to experienced teachers who may be new to open licensing practices. The students also collaborated with teachers to co-create classroom resources, giving them an opportunity to apply their learning in a practical setting.
“This collaboration offers mutual benefits: experienced teachers gain fresh insights from students engaged in current research, while BEd students gain a deeper understanding of real-world classroom challenges”, said Muriel Péguret Co-lead of the Camerise Project (FSL hub) which has been funded for the past five years by MOE and Heritage Canada. “By working together, participants created resources that are not only effective but also responsive to the evolving needs of FSL classrooms”.
The resources that were created will be shared publicly via the Camerise Repository, allowing other educators to re-use, adapt them and re-share their adaptation for the benefit of the community.
The workshop’s broader goal was to build a community of practice that connects future and experienced educators. By fostering dialogue and collaboration, the workshop helped BEd students to feel connected to the profession before they officially enter the classroom. For experienced teachers, this opportunity to exchange ideas and collaborate with peers outside their school boards encourages fresh approaches to lesson planning.
By combining the expertise of seasoned educators with the fresh perspectives of Glendon BEd students, the workshop aims to build a community of practice to generate high-quality resources that will enrich FSL classrooms. The initiative highlights how resource sharing can save teachers time while enhancing student learning in FSL classrooms across Ontario.