Project Team

Lead Writers

John is the co-author of Media Literacy: A Resource Guide for the Government of Ontario and the host/writer of Scanning the Movies, which ran for ten years on Bravo! He is the President of CAMEO and the Director of the Jesuit Communication Project.

Carolyn is the President of the Association for Media Literacy in Ontario and co-author of the best-selling textbook, Mass Media and Popular Culture. She is a Prime Minister’s Award winner for Teaching Excellence and was on the writing team for the Ontario Ministry of Education’s Media Literacy curriculum.

Project Writers

Neil has taught film and/or media studies in high schools for over 30 years. He has been a computer resource teacher, helping teachers integrate technology into their curricula, and has given numerous educational keynotes and workshops across Canada, in the US, Asia, Australia and Europe. Andersen has taught media courses for teachers at the University of Toronto, York University and at Mount Saint Vincent University. He is an executive member of the Association for Media Literacy and on the Boards of the Media-Awareness Network and the Journal of Media Education. He has made movies and videos, authored student textbooks, teacher resource books including Scanning Television, journal articles, over 200 study guides, and designed interactive CDs, websites, programs, and posters. Currently, Neil is a presenter, consultant and writer.

BA, MA (English); BEd. York Region District School Board.
Carol has been teaching English and Media Studies at Unionville High School in York Region District School Board, Ontario, for 15 years. Carol wrote and has taught the OISE Additional Qualifications Media Studies Part 2. She has been a member of the Ontario Association for Media Literacy since 1994 and edits the AML’s online newsletter.

Maureen Baron has a B.A. in Sociology, Diploma in Education from McGill University, and an MA in Educational Technology from Concordia University. Maureen was a pedagogical consultant for the CBC and the National Film Board of Canada, an elementary school teacher, the Coordinator of Educational Technology for the United Talmud Torahs Schools and is currently with the English Montreal School Board. As well, she teaches Educational Media in McGill University\’s Faculty of Education. She is a past president of AMTEC and in 2004 won the AMTEC (Association for Media and Technology in Education in Canada) Leadership Award.

Wayne Blair lives in Edmonton, Alberta. He is a teacher with interests in mathematics, science, and education media and technologies. Since 1994, when he left the Alberta Department of Education, he founded the ALTIS Group and became an independent education consultant, writer, researcher, evaluator, and planner. He has training and experience in strategic planning, curriculum development, management and a wide variety of media and information technologies such as: print, radio, film, television, computer software, telecommunications, libraries, distance education, media education and information systems. He and his wife have six children and nine grandchildren. He has had extensive experience in Kindergarten – Grade 12 and post-secondary education in British Columbia and Alberta as a teacher and educational administrator. He is a co-founder of the Alberta Association for Media Awareness.

Dan Blake is President of the Canadian Association for Media Education (BC). He has taught English, Media Studies and Film Studies in the Surrey School District. Currently he is an Assistant Director in the Professional and Social Issues Division of the BC Teachers’ Federation. Dan has written numerous articles on media literacy over the last ten years. He has also written a Film Study Guide for The Sweet Hereafter, which was published by Pacific Cinematheque as part of their Film Studies Guides Program. Dan has presented workshops for teachers on media literacy throughout British Columbia over the last ten years.

Barry Duncan is an award – winning teacher, author, media consultant and founder and past president of the Ontario based Association for Media Literacy. Retired, he teaches part time at York University and the University of Toronto in the Additional Qualifications course on Media Studies. He continues to produce “Barry’s Bulletin”, a media education newsletter, for the Media-Awareness Network.

Ian Esquivel is a high school teacher and instructional leader in the English and Literacy Department of the Toronto District School Board. He has additional responsibilities as a media specialist, which takes him into elementary and secondary schools. He also teaches and wrote the Additional Qualification Media, Part 1 and Media, Specialist courses for OISE/UT. Ian has been an executive member of the Association for Media Literacy and president of the Toronto Council of Teachers of English.

Mike Gange teaches Media Studies and Journalism courses at Fredericton High. He earned his B.A. at UNB in 1978, then worked for five years in radio, television and print at news media outlets in Winnipeg, Toronto and across New Brunswick.. He continues to contribute to the media by calling play-by-play on UNB’s hockey and basketball games, and writing book reviews and articles for magazines and newspapers. His close connection to the mass media allows him to regularly put into practice his belief that students need to have hands-on experience in the media in order to understand the media. As a result, his students are frequently in the press box with him at sports events, or at his suggestion, get their work published in newspapers. Mike has been a professional presenter at teachers events across New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, and at a variety of conferences in the U.S. Mike was awarded the Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence in 2004, the most prestigious award available to a public school teacher.

Alex Hickey has a broad scope of experience in K-12 education. He has taught all grades in the K-12 system and teaches part-time in the Faculty of Education at Memorial University. He has worked in many settings including eight years as a sole-charge teacher in a one-room school; as a high school art teacher; as an art and technology education coordinator at the school district level; and as a curriculum consultant at Department of Education. He is a former Director of Program Development (English and French) for the Department of Education in Newfoundland and Labrador and is currently the Coordinator of the Virtual Teacher Centre, an online professional development entity for teachers. Alex is a practicing visual artist with an obsessive fascination with digital technology, media education and peering over the horizon of invisibility.

Manitoba Association for Media Literacy
Brian Murphy has been a teacher and a school administrator in a career in education which spans over thirty years. He holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Education, both awarded by the University of Manitoba, and a Bachelor of Education from the University of Toronto. During his teaching career, Brian has taught courses in Canadian and American history, English literature and media studies at the high school level, as well as a course in media literacy education as a sessional instructor at the Faculty of Education, University of Manitoba.

Brian is the founding president of the Manitoba Association for Media Literacy (MAML) and serves on the Board of the Canadian Association of Media Education Organizations (CAMEO). As president of MAML, Brian has given presentations and workshops for many schools, school divisions and parents’ associations in Manitoba. As well, he was a member of the writing teams which were responsible for the development of the current senior years English Language Arts curricular documents which mandate the inclusion of media texts in the provincial ELA curriculum.

Media Literacy Saskatchewan
Bob has been Vice president of Media Literacy Saskatchewan MLS), representative for Saskatchewan Teachers of English and Language Arts (STELA), and long time CAMEO representative for MLS and STELA) He is a long-time Writing Project Teacher/Consultant and a 1960s member of the New American Cinema in Dallas. He has also taught Design and 3D Computer Graphics.

Brian Pittman is the Systems Administrator / Programmer for the Virtual Teacher Centre. His expertise is in online learning applications relating to Teacher Professional Development

Dr. Lee Rother is a multi-award winning educator with 30 years of experience teaching, consulting and designing curriculum at the school, university, provincial and international levels. His doctoral dissertation explored Media Literacy curriculum with at-risk adolescents. He led a provincial commission on transforming classroom culture through integrating literacy and ICT into curriculum and using multi-media technologies to enhance teaching and learning. He has participated in a wide range of curriculum review and development initiatives at primary, secondary and teacher education levels. Currently, Dr. Rother is program developer, head teacher of the Alternative Career Education Program in Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board, where his mandate includes use of ICT, literacy, English Language Arts, and Media Education, school climate, practice and problem analyst, among other areas. His awards include two-time winner of the Conference Board of Canada and Royal Bank Award, The Quebec Association of Applied Educational Technology Award of Excellence, The Learning Channel and Videotron Award of Excellence in Education and The Sony of Canada Award for Excellence in School Use of Media and Technology.

Media Literacy Nova Scotia
Peter Smith has spent many years teaching English language arts, film and video production, and theatre to high school students. He is currently Consultant for Youth Pathways and Transitions with the Nova Scotia department of Education where he has developed curricula for many career-related courses and established career development programs in Nova Scotia secondary schools.

During his 35 career in education René has been a teacher, school administrator, district program coordinator, and both full-time faculty member and sessional instructor with Memorial University’s Faculty of Education. At Memorial University (MUN) he taught undergraduate and graduate courses in instructional technology and media studies. In 1998 he joined the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers’ Association as Administrative Officer for Professional Development, a position he held for nine years. For many years René has been involved in educational technology and e-learning, was one of the founders of the Virtual Teacher Centre, and has given presentations at e-learning conferences in Canada, Australia, and Austria. Currently he is Project Manager, Killick Centre for E-Learning Research in MUN’s Faculty of Education.

Project Producers

The Jesuit Communication Project

Media Education is concerned with “helping students develop an informed and critical understanding of the nature of the mass media, the techniques used by them, and the impact of these techniques” (Ontario Media Literacy Resources Guide, 1989). To be media literate is to watch carefully and to think critically about any media text.

The Jesuit Communication Project (JCP) is working in response to this call by providing a variety of resources and services for teachers, parents, church groups, school boards, students, and other interested groups. The goal is to encourage, promote, and develop Media Education across Canada.

The JCP provides workshops and talks on many media topics. Such presentations have been given across Canada, in Australia, New Zealand, Europe, and the USA at in-services, summer schools, conferences, and conventions. The Project has helped in organizing major North American conferences on Media Education. The project also provides a consultancy service for media professionals, school , churches, and other social agencies throughout the world.

The JCP has a research library of over 4,000 books and periodicals on the media. Files of materials on Media Education programs from around the world and numerous clippings on a variety of media topics are also available for researchers.

Face to Face Media

Face to Face Media Ltd is a production company which specializes in documentaries for television and the educational market. We are the producers of the popular Media Literacy resource kit SCANNING TELEVISION (2 editions), as well numerous compilations for Nelson Education, Pearson Education, and Harcourt-Brace. The directors of the company are Betsy Carson and Gary Marcuse

Betsy Carson

I’ve been a producer and director for over 35 years, and my passion is collaboration. My work is defined by the incredible directors I’ve had the privilege to work with, including Nettie Wild, Mark Achbar, Velcrow Ripper, Hugh Brody, and Gary. My role is to help bring innovative, important stories to the screen, from theatrical features like The New Corporation and Surviving Progress to public art installations. For me, it’s about getting these necessary conversations started.

Gary Marcuse

My background is in environmental planning, which has shaped my path as a journalist and filmmaker. For me, it’s always been about the intersection of environmental protection and human rights. I’ve been fortunate to work as a broadcaster for CBC Radio and TV, and to create documentaries with Betsy—like our series on environmental movements in Russia (Arktika) and China (Waking the Green Tiger). My current focus is the Global Environmental Justice Documentaries project, bringing these critical stories to universities.