Congratulations to Teacher Education program graduate Ashweena Kissoon-Rumajogee, winner of a 2021 Helen G. Mitchell Award. Ms. Kissoon-Rumajogee received her award at the Ontario Modern Language Teachers’ Association's virtual spring conference held on April 24th, 2021 during which she offered this eloquent acceptance address.The annual OMLTA award honours outstanding graduating students from each faculty of education in Ontario.Ms. Kissoon-Rumajogee completed her degree with a specialization in French second language teaching at the Junior/Intermediate level. Learn more about her teaching journey and follow her on Twitter @Madame_KR.
“To be the recipient of the Helen G. Mitchell Award from the Ontario Modern Language Teachers’ Association is an indescribable joy and encouragement for me. Teaching is much more than a profession; it is a vocation, a passion! At the end of my career, I would like to tell myself that I made the right choice by choosing to be a teacher out of all the opportunities I had to contribute to humanity. I see myself as a teacher who promotes respect, empathy and understanding, while regularly improving my teaching skills through professional development opportunities. I want to encourage all of my students, taking into account their individual needs. Moreover, through education, I want to make others' lives fairer and to value every human being. I want to thank the OMLTA for this immense honour, and I would also like to thank all the professors at the Faculty of Education. They have accompanied me on this extraordinary journey over the past two years and have given me the strength to look trustingly to the future. It is, therefore, with fortitude, confidence and enthusiasm that I prepare for this wonderful adventure that awaits me.”
-Ashweena Kissoon-Rumajogee
About the Helen G. Mitchell Award
"This award is to honour one graduating student from each Faculty of Education in the Province of Ontario who best demonstrates the attributes of a potentially outstanding Classical / FSL / International language teacher at the Faculty of Education of the respective nominee. The candidate demonstrates excellence in the academic program and the practicum. The recipient applies effective second language methodologies which lead to success in the classroom."