Two scholars from Edmonton honored by Ukraine's Academy of Pedagogical Sciences (09/17/06)

Two scholars from Edmonton honored by Ukraine's Academy of Pedagogical Sciences

EDMONTON - Drs. Michael Rodda and Roman Petryshyn from Grant MacEwan College's Faculty of Arts and Science have been recognized for their international research and program development work. Both have been voted in as foreign members of the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences of Ukraine (APSU). Membership allows Drs. Rodda and Petryshyn to participate in academy meetings, receive reports and vote on resolutions.

APSU is a government-financed umbrella uniting 17 institutes, centers and programs that conduct research, award doctoral degrees and make national recommendations to government on changes in Ukraine's system of primary and post-secondary education. The academy has 168 members, of whom 51 are full members, 83 corresponding, 26 foreign and eight honorary members.

In 2005 the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences of Ukraine employed 1,253 researchers conducting 239 projects. These were in five fields: theory and history of pedagogy; information technology; child development and special psychology; pedagogy and psychology of vocational education; and higher education.

During this year members of the academy published over 3,000 titles, including: 53 monographs, 213 textbooks and handbooks, 179 teacher guides and 2,332 peer-reviewed articles. Over 500 students were working on their Ph.D.s in the academy in 20 different fields.

Drs. Rodda and Petryshyn have worked most closely with the Institute of Special Pedagogy (ISP) in Ukraine, whose role is to improve education for children with disabilities.

In 2004 MacEwan, ISP and the department of educational psychology at the University of Alberta signed a cooperation agreement that formed CURT - the Canada Ukraine Research Team. CURT has focused on issues of sign language, fetal alcohol syndrome and inclusive education.

Additionally Drs. Rodda and Petryshyn also helped to establish the voluntary society, Canada Ukraine Alliance for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons, of which Dr Rodda is currently president. This society has sponsored 20 summer-camp training institutes in Ukraine for over 1,000 deaf children and their parents and teachers over the past six years.

Dr. Rodda currently teaches psychology courses at Grant MacEwan College. Dr. Petryshyn is director of MacEwan's Ukrainian Resource Center and Development Center.

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