Carbonear Collegiate only school to win two teaching awards

By Mark Squibb / July 21, 2023

Danielle Doyle and Denise Hogan of Carbonear Collegiate have both been recognised by the provincial government for their dedication to their students and fellow staff.

Hogan, head of the school’s math department, was named a 2023 Premier’s Award for Teaching Innovation recipient.

“It was quite the surprise,” said Hogan. “I had no idea I was nominated. It had been a nomination done by a parent who is on the school council whose daughter I had taught in Grade 9 and then again this year in Grade 12, and whose son I’m teaching now in Grade 9. So, it was very exciting. And a lot of time, what teachers do goes unnoticed or it’s not mentioned, so it was really nice to hear that the nomination came from a parent.”

The award recognizes teachers who have demonstrated innovation in their teaching and have prepared their students well for future success.

“Once I found out who nominated me, I contacted her to thank her, and one of the things she said was that having a daughter who’s going into engineering this year, and knowing that over the last four years we have had females graduate from Carbonear collegiate who have been very successful in these engineering programs, she felt that in order for them to do that they needed a strong, female role model in the sciences, technology and maths. And she said that’s something that she saw in me and wanted to recognise me for it.”

In her classroom, Hogan incorporates technology as often as she can.

When teaching statistics, Hogan showed students how to use Google Sheets to employ codes to reach answers and graph data, and while teaching finances, Hogan encouraged students to use dealership websites to craft their dream cars. Students very quickly realized their dream cars won’t fit their budgets and learned to adjust accordingly.

One day, Hogan, who was discouraged that students seemed inclined to give up on something if not immediately successful, set aside a class hour to teach students that sometimes you have to fail in order to succeed, sharing stories of her own failures, and how those failures pushed her to do better.

Hogan says she can be true to herself while building relationships with students, and that a little fun in the classroom isn’t a bad thing.

“My students call me a math nerd, and I’m okay with that,” said Hogan. “I have, I don’t even know, how many math shirts, but students know that every Friday is Math Shirt Friday, so Ms. Hogan is going to have on one of her cheesy math shirts with some kind of saying that relates to what I’m teaching.”

Student Services Department Head and Instructional Resource Teacher (IRT) Danielle Doyle, meanwhile, was named a 2023 Minister of Education’s Award recipient.

“I was very surprised, and very humbled to be thought of as someone to be nominated for this award, and very honoured,” said Doyle. 

The award recognizes inspirational and compassionate teachers who have demonstrated a commitment to supporting the social, emotional and mental health of others.

“Carbonear Collegiate staff are very much a team,” said Doyle. “Anything I have accomplished, or any programs I’ve been able to develop, like our Unified Special Olympics programming, has been done with the tremendous support of my administration and my colleagues on staff. I wouldn’t be able to do a lot of what I do if people didn’t help.”

As a resources teacher, Doyle works mostly with students with disabilities.

“You certainly learn to have a different perspective on life,” said Doyle. “It’s a constant reminder not to sweat the small stuff.”

While school is out for the summer, Doyle recommended local businesses consider hiring a special needs student for summer employment.

“Often, when these children are given an opportunity to show what they can do, they surprise everybody,” said Doyle. “They have a work ethic and they’re generally very happy to go to work. And it’s one of the rewarding aspects of my career, seeing how proud they are of their accomplishments. When they started to get jobs back in June, they couldn’t wait to come in and tell me that they were going to work.”

Employees in the metro region interested in hiring a student can reach out to Avalon Employment; those in Conception Bay North can contact the Mariner’s Resource Opportunities Network (MRON.)

All told, six teachers from across the province were named 2023 Premier’s Award for Teaching Innovation recipients, while nine were named recipients of the 2023 Minister’s Award for Compassion in Teaching. Carbonear Collegiate was the only school in the province to have an award winner in both categories.