Patricia's Biography
Patricia Clark graduated from the University of Ottawa with a B. Sc. Computer Science in 2000. Over the next 10 years she was employed at Alcatel-Lucent where she designed software for their 5620 Network Manager. During this time, Alcatel-Lucent accommodated Patricia’s desire to pursue her Bachelor of Education and in 2010 she left Alcatel-Lucent to become a full-time secondary teacher. Patricia is currently the Head of Mathematics and Computer Science at a secondary school in Kanata, a suburb of Ottawa, ON. She has been teaching Mathematics, Computer Science and Computer Engineering to high school students for the past 10 years. In her spare time she enjoys travelling, biking and spending time with her family and friends.
My job title is Head of Mathematics and Computer Science, but my primary role is as a teacher of Mathematics, Computer Science and Computer Engineering.
For many future IT professionals, their introduction to Computer Science and Engineering happens in a school. Schools play one of the most important roles in sparking interest in, and fostering development of, future Canadian IT professionals.
Designing an activity or task for my students and seeing the excitement on their faces when they develop an understanding of the concepts. I really enjoy helping students design and implement their own projects in Computer Science and Computer Engineering. The goal is to have students experience the product development lifecycle before leaving high school. My industry experience in software design lends itself to guide students through this process. Currently, I have a student building a quadcopter that will be controlled by a Raspberry Pi with software he has designed and implemented. It is exciting to see the project through the different phases.
The students, they keep you young.
It sets young people up for their future.
Opportunities will present themselves to those who follow their passion.
