June 16, 2018

Letter of Reference: on behalf of Jocelyn Dufresne

I was the University of Lethbridge Consultant for Jocelyn in her 2018 PSII practicum at St. Mary’s School in
Medicine Hat. Jocelyn immediately distinguished herself as an accomplished and mature student teacher. Her
depth of knowledge, pedagogical innovation, care for and ease with students, and “can-do” mentality are clear
markers of excellence in teaching!

Speaking to one of these key areas more directly, Jocelyn has significant strength in human relations. Her
strong sense of self allows her to value and empower others; her calm, supportive heart generates a powerful
classroom climate. One of the hallmarks of Jocelyn’s classroom climate is the humanity shown in her
interactions with students. She avoids reactionary responses that lead to escalation of problems, using a direct
yet caring approach designed to build intrinsic student strength. Furthermore, she believes in building a
classroom where all students can learn, involving differentiation and high levels of collaborative interaction to
strengthen student capacity. Her empowerment of peer formative interaction through excellent collaborative
learning strategies is complemented by constant formative interaction with her students. Her deep-seated belief
in building a community of strength and shared responsibility is powerfully realized in her classroom!

A notable part of this learning climate that calls for further highlighting is the collaboration built into Jocelyn’s
strongly inclusive classroom. Her ease with collaborative strategies was a pleasure to watch: the wonderful flow
of interactive activities in her class, the strong sense of student engagement and personal accountability, and the
rich involvement of students as they took part in sharing understandings and working to build capacity. Her
classroom was a vibrant orchestration of learning!

Another key aspect of Jocelyn's personality which recommends her is a passion for learning. She fills the
classroom with purpose and enthusiasm, being deeply creative in her approach to learning, an approach firmly
grounded in constructivist and humanist tenets. Subject area expertise is taken very seriously; she is highly
capable in designing engaging learning sequences founded on enduring understandings from the curriculum and
then acting as a deeply knowledgeable mentor in students’ ongoing construction of meaning through activity-
based inquiry learning. Jocelyn creates a learning environment that is innovative and engaging, founded on
building essential understandings from the curriculum.

Jocelyn is a wholehearted professional who commits herself to excellence in her classroom, demonstrating a
strong growth mindset and work ethic.

James Rempel, MEd

University of Lethbridge Consultant/Instructor
Email: james.rempel2@uleth.ca