Making Connections in and Through Arts-Based Educational Research

Hala Mreiwed, PhD is an Assistant Professor in Childhood and Youth Studies (CYS) at King’s University College at Western. Her research interests in children’s rights, impact of war-trauma on education, teacher education and training, community-building within classrooms, children’s media and creative drama come from her experiences in Canada and abroad. She is the recipient of several awards including the P. Lantz Fellowship for Excellence in Education and the Arts (2015), the Outstanding Leadership & Service Graduate Award (2019) from McGill University, and the FRQSC Doctoral research scholarship (2017-2020). Mreiwed is currently Vice-Chair of the Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children (CCRC), Children's Rights Advisor to the Centre for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR), and Co-President of the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies (CACS). Her most recent co-edited book is Art as an Agent for Social Change (2021) by Brill | Sense. 

Mindy R. Carter, PhD is an Associate Professor and Director of Teacher Education Programs in the Department of Integrated Studies in Education at McGill University (Faculty of Education). Carter’s SSHRC, MEES and FRQSC funded research focuses on using drama and theatre education to explore critical societal issues, teacher agency and curriculum through arts-based educational research. Carter is the (2021) recipient of the ARTS publication award through the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE) and the (2022) Mentorship award winner from CSSE. Carter’s latest book Smallest circles first: Exploring reconciliatory praxis through drama education was released Spring 2022 by the University of Toronto Press.

Sara Hashem, PhD is the co-founder of the Artful Inquiry Research Group (AIRG) at McGill University. She is an educator and a museum specialist with extensive international experience in educational programming and museum development. She currently holds the position of Pedagogical Advisor for Curriculum and Faculty Development at Champlain College Saint-Lambert. She is also a Lecturer in the Department of Integrated Studies in Education at McGill University (Faculty of Education). Academically, her work is grounded in arts-based educational research methods, museum studies, teacher education, technology in education, curriculum studies, arts education, and arts leadership.

Candace H. Blake-Amarante, PhD is is the Knowledge Manager at Equitas―Centre international d’éducation aux droits humains, International Centre for Human Rights Education. She is an artist-researcher, who specializes in writing children’s stories and plays. In most of her stories, she pursues two main goals: bringing awareness of children’s rights through the arts and incorporating, in children’s literature, the voice of children with chronic illnesses. Her most recent work includes: a dialogue, “Let’s not talk about it anymore” (Questions: Philosophy for Young People forthcoming Fall 2022); a children's book, The Dream Machine (in collaboration with Dr. Argerie Tsimicalis and Shriners Hospitals for Children-Canada; Tellwell Publishing, forthcoming); a children's poem, "The Sky Smiles at Me" (LEARN Quebec, My Goodnight Bag 2021); a play on children’s rights, The Ugly Ones (with Chelsea Woolley; Staged Reading Geordie Theatre Fest 2020); and a play for young audiences, You, Me and Victor Hugo! on the concept of censorship (Artist Mentorship Program at the Black Theatre Workshop 2018-19). She has published a short children’s story, The Blunder Family: Now Where’d I Put the Pork? (East of the Web 2020), and a children’s book, The Pheasant’s Tale or … Was it its Tail? (Green Bamboo Publishing 2017). Amarante holds a PhD in political science from Columbia University, NY. Currently, she is a member of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children.