Welcome
My name is Phil McRae and I am a Canadian educator, scholar, and interdisciplinary explorer in the field of education. I am regularly engaged in keynote addresses, public lectures or on expert panels, across Alberta, throughout Canada and internationally. This site provides a biography and some samples of my research, writing, scholarship and presentations.
Biography
Dr. Phil McRae (World Innovation Summit)
Dr. Phil McRae is Executive Staff Officer and Associate Coordinator, Government-Research with the Alberta Teachers’ Association and Adjunct Professor within the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta where he earned his Ph.D. He was the Director of the internationally recognized Alberta Initiative for School Improvement (AISI) at the University of Alberta from 2005-2009, and taught several graduate courses in the Master of Education in Educational Studies program.
Phil has worked in many secondary and post-secondary educational contexts while living and teaching in the Middle East (United Arab Emirates), Asia (Japan), Europe (Spain), and in Alberta, Canada with the Lethbridge Public School District and at Red Crow College with the Blood Tribe (Kainai First Nation). The Blackfoot honoured him with the name Áípapomm, which means lightning.
Phil is the past winner of the Alberta Excellence in Teaching Finalist Award, the University of Alberta’s Queen Elizabeth II Doctoral Scholar Award, Minister of Education's Innovation Award, and the ATA Provincial Educational Research Award. He represents the teaching profession and field of education on several provincial and national committees and as Director on several Boards, including Harvard's Centre on Media and Child Health, and is former President of the Education Society of Edmonton (Estd. 1927).
Phil has worked in many secondary and post-secondary educational contexts while living and teaching in the Middle East (United Arab Emirates), Asia (Japan), Europe (Spain), and in Alberta, Canada with the Lethbridge Public School District and at Red Crow College with the Blood Tribe (Kainai First Nation). The Blackfoot honoured him with the name Áípapomm, which means lightning.
Phil is the past winner of the Alberta Excellence in Teaching Finalist Award, the University of Alberta’s Queen Elizabeth II Doctoral Scholar Award, Minister of Education's Innovation Award, and the ATA Provincial Educational Research Award. He represents the teaching profession and field of education on several provincial and national committees and as Director on several Boards, including Harvard's Centre on Media and Child Health, and is former President of the Education Society of Edmonton (Estd. 1927).
Recent Publications and Projects
In my presentations and writing I often ask audiences to engage with different perspectives on emerging technologies, dimensions of educational leadership, changing landscapes of education systems, and/or the informed transformation of teaching and learning around the world. Below are some links to recent publications.
- Artificial Intelligence, Automation and the Future of Public Education A 2019 public lecture and discussion on the potential impacts of artificial intelligence and automation.
- We The Educators - WeTheEducators.com An international initiative designed to stimulate a rich public dialogue, and greater professional scrutiny, to the datafication of education systems & the (de)personalization, privatization & standardization of student learning.
- Growing Up Digital (GUD) Alberta Preliminary Data (2016) and Summary Infographic (2016) Joint initiative of Harvard Medical School, Alberta Teachers' Association & University of Alberta researchers
- The Future of the Principalship in Canada: National Research Study (2014) Joint research project of the Alberta Teachers' Association and the Canadian Association of Principals
- Growing Up Digital (GUD): Groundbreaking Harvard/Alberta Study to Follow Alberta Children
Editorials Edmonton Journal and Calgary Herald 2014 - Researching the Impact of Technology on Health and Learning
ATA News Article - Rethinking School Leadership: Creating A Great School for All Students
- The Politics of Personalization in the 21st Century
ATA Magazine October 2010 (Volume 91 No. 1) - Impact of Digital Technologies on Teachers Working in Flexible Environments
Large Scale Provincial Research Study May 2011
- Essential Practices that Sustain School Improvement
ATA Magazine June 2011 (Volume 91 No. 4) - The Future of Teaching in Alberta
Policy to Practice Summary 2017