Sound Inquiries with Dr. Rob Simon and Doug Friesen

In this episode, Matt Sroka chats with Doug Friesen and Dr. Rob Simon as we explore the role of sound in the classroom and in the world around us. Join us as we explore how we can help our students be more attune with these sounds and the bodies that produce them. This conversation stems from Doug Friesen and Dr. Rob Simon’s article, “Making Fahrenheit 451 ‘Come to Life’: Sound Inquiries with Youth and Teachers”. 

Rob Simon is associate professor and Associate Chair of Student Experience in the Department of Curriculum, Teaching, and Learning at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), University of Toronto, and has been a teacher educator since 2003.  At OISE, Rob teaches courses in critical literacy and practitioner research. He is also academic director of the Centre for Urban Schooling (https://cus.oise.utoronto.ca) and director of the Toronto Writing Project (https://www.torontowritingproject.com). Rob began his career in education in 1998 as a founding teacher of Life Learning Academy (http://www.lifelearningacademysf.org), a high school for youth who experienced struggles in traditional school settings. Rob’s current research explores how teachers and students inquire into and co-research issues of social justice, and how they use the arts, film, writing, and other creative mediums to share their findings with the world.

Doug Friesen is a teacher and musician based in Toronto and has worked as a classroom teacher and consultant in public schools since 2002. During this time, he has also taught a number of post-secondary and additional qualification courses for teachers. He is currently an adjunct professor at Queen's University and is finishing a PhD on sound and listening pedagogies with a focus on critical practitioner research and collaborative inquiry.