CIES Computer and Accounting Programs

CIES provides practical job-ready training programs in both computers and accounting in order to enhance employability and job awareness in Canada for newcomers.  Intermediate to Advanced courses are offered on a part time basis, both evenings and weekends, at both our SE Location in Forest Lawn and our NE location in Whitehorn. Give us a call at 403-235-3666 or come on down to and see us for more information.

CIES Launches Help Nepal Campaign

Here at CIES we are truly an international family. It is for this reason that we hold a heavy heart today with the news out of Nepal. Many of students here at CIES are Nepalese and we offer out deepest condolences and all our hope. Our very own Suman Khanal, the CIES Settlement Services and Facilities Operations Manager, was born and raised in Nepal. His family was luckily spared but like so many now find themselves without a home.

As of this morning, more than 3,200 people were confirmed dead after Saturday’s 7.8 magnitude quake - the tiny mountain nation's worst in roughly 80 years.  The quake tore through a broad swath of Nepal, damaging the historic heart of Kathmandu, flattening remote villages and triggering an avalanche on Mount Everest.

We will be setting out donation boxes for victims of the tragedy in both our SE and NE location, with no donation being too small. CIES has also set of an online campaign simply titled "Help Nepal" where donations of any size or currency can be made 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Please click here to donate now, or donate directly at either of our locations. If you want to know what else you can do to help Nepal, contact Suman sumankhanal@welcomeimmigrants-calgary.ca.

Help us Help Nepal.

Congrats From CIES

C.I.E.S. has been a part of the city of Calgary landscape for some 30 years. That's why we were excited to see our Flames make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in six years! And now our boys have won their first play-off series in 11 years having beaten the Canucks 4 games to 2. Once again congrats to the entire Flames organization for all the excitement and pride you have provided our great city. Bring on the next victim! 

New Era, New Logo? Part V

Once again, thanks to all those who offered feedback on the logos at this week's staff meeting. Two things stood out as a result. There is a strong contingent who want the full name of the organization. Some have also questioned our current tagline "Building the Future" and we have included our alternative tagline of "Information, Education, Employment" as a result.  That said, and hot of the presses, below is the latest incarnation of our latest logo proposal. As always, it is your feedback is invaluable.

CIES Celebrates Earth Day

Earth Day is an annual event created to  raise public awareness about pollution and celebrate the beauty of our environment. Every year on April 22 Earth Day is observed the world over with conferences, outdoor activities and projects. The idea for Earth Day was originated with former American Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin and was first celebrated in 1970. Now an internationally coordinated event Earth day is celebrated by 192 countries.

Earth Day started out as a small grass roots movement and garnered public support for the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). They have contributed to the passage of the Clean Air Act, the Water Quality Improvement Act, the Endangered Species Act and several other environmental laws.

In the photo below, you can see CIES students and staff pitching in with street clean up along 17th avenue.You can see a few more pics of CIES in action this Earth Day by clicking here.

CIES Lesson Planning - PBLA is Here

Lesson planning can sometimes seem anywhere between tedious and overwhelming. Teachers often lament the task of lesson plans, unsure of how to supply an advanced and detailed design with regards to such an organic, fluid and differentiated environment like that of an ESL classroom. There is one way around this however, that carries with it the potential to make things easier for all concerned.

Following a standardized lesson plan format, with uniformed and clear expectations, along with the support and guidance from school leadership, will keep teachers more organized and make the overall classroom experience a less stressful, more positive one. CIES is now moving to establish Portfolio Based Learning Assessment as our method for classroom preparation.

Following such a lesson plan format will allow us to maintain control of the pedagogical formulation process. Once in the habit of effective PBLA lesson planning, creating interesting lessons and material for your students, both as a class and individually, will actually become easier and easier.


What is Lesson Planning?

Lesson plans are a necessary and vital part to any teacher’s weekly duties. Without some form of a plan, instructional time can become little more than an arbitrary variety of activities with little methodology behind them. Lesson planning involves both mental planning and written documentation. One is entirely ineffective without the other. Consider the questions you will pose to students and what they may ask in return, reflect on topic at hand and visualize the lesson’s progression. The short outline that is your lesson plan is what follows and is based on your mental planning.

Essential Parts of A Lesson Plan

Learning Objectives / Focus
As teachers, we must decide, each and every lesson, what our intended goals will be. These objectives or aims are the heart of your lesson and like a thesis statement in an essay, all activities should relate back to it, again and again.

Motivation
Finding ways to motivate students can no doubt be challenging at times, but this should very much be central to any planning we do. What is often referred to in academia as an anticipatory set, teachers must try to relate course material to personal experiences, local or global issues, statistical charts or graphs, or even anecdotes - anything that will grab the much-needed attention of your students.

Questions
Arriving at your learning objectives is paramount to any lesson being successful, but a close second is the type of questioning you plan to use. Efficient questioning of students should be intended to develop learning styles and habits, fuel higher-level thinking and over time, will allow teachers to evaluate the progress of their students. Student orientated questions, questioning through games, and role-playing are just some ways to use questioning in the classroom.

Bloom’s Taxonomy
Using Bloom’s Taxonomy goes hand in hand with the types of question you plan to develop for your lesson. A quick review of the hierarchy is below:

• Knowledge based question: What are the health benefits of jogging?
• Comprehension based question: Compare the health benefits of jogging vs. weight training.
• Application based question: Which kinds of exercises are best for building muscle and why?
• Analysis based question: List four ways to exercise with weights and explain which have the highest health benefits. Provide references to support your statements.

Evaluation

When the lesson is over, don’t simply move on but evaluate what you've just done. Clarify to yourself whether or not your lesson objectives were realistic, had enough variety, and came off as organized and clear. Most of all, ask yourself if students understood the lesson and why it was they learned it. 

CIES Receives Committee of 10,000 U of C Grant

The Committee of 10,000 collects a small levy from the 27,000 undergraduate students of the University of Calgary to give to charitable causes throughout the city of Calgary. The Committee of 10,000, comprised of students, gives away approximately $19,000 annually, with up to $5,000 per group. The intention of the committee is to build relations with the community outside of the university.

CIES submitted an application to the Committee for the purpose of an Information Technology upgrade and was awarded a funding package for their efforts. Below are CIES executive director Dr. Sally Zhao and Drop in ESL and Volunteer Manager Melissa McKinnon (front and centre), along with members of the Committee of 10,000. Great job guys and keep up the great work!