A Home for Historical Thinking
Aaron Larsen
Curriculum Vitae
Teaching Focuses
My work as a teacher has been largely focused on developing the skills of critical thinking, using the past to generate a greater understanding of the future. As an Historian, I try to interweave the historical narratives with Big Ideas and themes through time. As a Geographer, I try to connect space and place with the past, present, and future while bringing students a greater understanding of the world around them. As an Anthropologist, I try to foster a sense of understanding of the great variety of human life on this planet, how every culture is unique but shares similarities.
It is my goal to give students a broad understanding of human condition and the ability to chart our way into the future.
Pedagogy
My teaching pedagogy goes much deeper than the surface froth of academic learning. In my classroom, I teach students the ability to think critically about historical themes, foster a sense of social advocacy through teaching empathy, and help students develop a sense of identity for themselves, their families, their communities, and their place in a global context.
My dream is to have every student in my class walk away from our time together as a more deeply empathetic person who cares about our world, both the natural world and the human world.
Background
Schooling:
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Bachelor of Arts, UNBC, 2017
Major: History
Minor: Human Geography,
Anthropology
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Bachelor of Education, UNBC, 2019
Major: Secondary Education
Focus: Social Studies
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German A2, Universitat Konstanz, 2018
IBH Bodensee International Summer School
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Master of Arts, UNBC, 2021
Subject: History
Focus: The application of borderlands theory and spatial analysis of the 1737-1738 Witch trials in Zug, Switzerland
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Doctor of Philosophy, University of Oxford, St. Hilda's College, In Progress
Subject: History
Focus: Spatial Analyses of the Witches Sabbath in Switzerland, Germany, and the Basque Country
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Awards:
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UNBC Senate Student Leadership Award for Campus Leadership, 2019
Affiliations:
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Teaching Assistant, History, UNBC, 2019-Present
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Certified Teacher on Call, SD57, 2019-Present
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Teacher, Grade 4/5 and Resource Nusdeh Yoh Elementary, 2019-2020
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UNBC Northern Historical Student Society
President, 2019-Present
Media Coordinator/Advisor, 2014-2018
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Prince George Social Studies Teachers Association Exec, Member at Large, 2019-Present
Member 2018 - Present
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Northern Historical Conference
Co-Founder, 2017
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UNBC Senator, member of Senate Committee on the University Budget, 2017-2018.
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Heritage Elementary Drama Program
Founder/Volunteer Teacher, 2010-2017
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UNBC Education Club
Co-Founder and Co-President, 2018
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BC Heritage Fair Judge, 2018
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Development:
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CPI Workshop, 2017
Child Welfare Workshop, 2017
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Northern Aboriginal Symposium, 2018
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Developing Humanitarian Thinkers: Exploring Humanitarian Law, Spring Fling Conference, 2018
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Level 2 Occupational First Aid, St. John Ambulance, 2018
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Small Schools Symposium, UNBC, 2018
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Place in Education Symposium, 2018
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WestCAST, University of Calgary, 2019
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UNBC Teaching Assistant Workshop, 2019
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Presentations:
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"Improv in Everyday Life"
Student Leadership Conference, UBC Okanagan Campus, January 2017
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"Old Woman of the Woods: Six Mile Mary as a Symbol of Northern Identity"
Northern Historical Conference, UNBC, March 2017
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"Liquid Gold: A Comparative Study of Water Use and Policy in Israel, Jordan, and Palestine since 1967"
Critical Geographies Conference, UNBC, September 2017
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"Beyond the Dusty Bookshelf: Historians of the New Age"
Northern Historical Conference,
UNBC, February 2018
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"Place, Space, and Relationships: Fostering Meaningful Relationships Between Students and their Environments"
WestCAST, University of Calgary, February 2019.
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"Discovering Old Worlds: Conceptualizing Space and Place in Pre-Modern Europe through Archival Source Mapping"
Qualicum History Conference, January 2020
*A revised version of this presentation was given at the Western Division of the Canadian Association of Geographers Conference, University of Northern British Columbia, March 2020. Won Best Presentation in the Master's Category
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"Darkest Forests and Highest Mountains: The Witches’ Sabbath and Landscapes of Fear in Early Modern Europe"
GRACEH, University of Oxford, April 2022