University-level teaching

 

University of Toronto (New College, OISE, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures)

Language and Literacies Education in Multilingual Contexts (graduate)

Exploring Multilingual Toronto

Language Freedom and Power

Language & Diversity I

Language & Diversity II

Intermediate Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian I

Intermediate Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian II 

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Kathleen O’Connell Teaching Excellence Award  finalist for 2017/2018, The University of Toronto

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York University

Linguistics and Applied Linguistics 

Languages in Contact (graduate) 

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Faculty of Education

Educational Assessment

Teaching English Language Learners in Mainstream Classrooms

Multilingual Education (graduate)

Language in the Cosmopolis: Theory and Method (graduate)

Literacy and Social Context (graduate)

New Media Literacies and Culture (including online)

Studies in Popular Culture 

Education as Communication 

Inclusion, Disabilities and Education

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University of  Guelph (School of Languages and Literatures)

Introduction to Linguistics: Phonetics, Phonology, Morphology, Syntax 

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Teaching philosophy

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The key descriptors of my teaching philosophy and pedagogy are relevance, engagement and creation/application.

 

The first parameter addresses the initial stage of course design and the selection of reading and teaching material, depending on the type of program (e.g., teacher education, language learning, technology) and level (college, undergraduate, graduate) involved. To this end, for each teaching assignment, I devise an approach that makes the teaching content and teaching material meaningful and relevant to support concrete learning situation and learning aims.

 

The second parameter describes my propensity for a student-focused teaching and learning, which scaffolds student’s very own experience beyond their micro world to attain and produce knowledge also of benefit to others. The student is in charge of their learning, which I facilitate by trusting the student with responsibilities and by delegating agency to the student.

 

The third parameter describes my course design, curriculum execution and desired learning outcomes that integrate every reading, activity, assignment and learning outcome into a cohesive and connected whole. Each piece is woven into a thread, and each thread has a function that holds knowledge sharing.

 

Finally, summarizing all three parameters, I approach each teaching assignment as an opportunity to create. Teaching itself is an art form. It is a composition. My research informs my teaching.

 

 

Student advising

 

MEd Major Research Projects Reader

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Racco, Alyssa, MEd, 2018. Foster the Social Inclusion of Syrian Refugee Millenials: A social Media Approach.

Godin, Neil, MEd, 2017. A variety of literacy practices: Extending learning beyond a functional classroom.

Vujinovic, Sanja, MEd, 2017. How do three immigrant women from former Yugoslavia perceive the role of accent in intelligibility and comprehensibility in the Canadian workplace?

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Linguascaping Project Mentor

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Violetta Cupial

Jamie Arfin

Tizina Ceccato

Natasha Nguyen

Lurd Shamon

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Select student testimonials and course evaluations

 

'Professor Ivkovic’s enthusiasm and encouragement towards our research has inspired us to continue with writing and research beyond the graduate course where we initially met him. Professor Ivkovic’s intellectually supportive character has also contributed to our consideration of pursuing further graduate work. Further, he has helped us navigate the world of academia. This allowed us to understand the parameters of academic conferencing, publishing, and generating research. As a university Professor he has gone above and beyond his role as an instructor and stepped into the role of a research mentor for us. Through our work with Professor Ivkovic, we have had the opportunity to grow as upcoming researchers in the field of educational linguistics and ultimately gain the confidence in our own personal research.' (Testimonial by Jamie Arfin, Tiziana Cecatto & Violetta Cupial. Language in the Cosmopolis: Theory and Method/York University)

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This course was incredibly engaging and made me a proactive learner. It gave me many skillsets about methodology, theoretical frameworks and also how to expand my mind about signage and languages in our communities. (Anonymous evaluation, Multilingual Education, York University)

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The course is structured in the same way that teachers are encouraged to teach units in school. There is a hook and activities to let students immerse their identities into the course subject. Then, the concepts and skills are modelled by the instructor before ultimately being handed off for the students to take the reins of the course. (Anonymous evaluation, Multilingual Education, York University) 

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The professor was knowledgeable about the latest teaching strategies- it was very interesting the way he was engaging the students and giving them varied tasks. Dejan's teaching is informative without ever being droll. He uses student discussion to drive the ideas of the class, and adds supplementing suggestions to support student learning. (Anonymous evaluation, Multilingual Education, York University) 

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The instruction of this course was superb. This course gives students the opportunity to gain knowledge about linguistics and apply it to various projects. In my opinion, the application of the concepts makes them so much more memorable. This class was a lot of fun, and I will keep these memories for a long time. (Anonymous evaluation, Language and Diversity II/University of Toronto)

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This course was absolutely excellent and definitely one of my favourites among my university experience thus far. Professor Ivkovic seamlessly blends together learning and fun so students like me can walk away with great memories of the course along with a wealth of knowledge. (Anonymous evaluation, Language and Diversity I/University of Toronto)

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'Professor Ivkovic is an extremely approachable instructor who truly cares about his students and their learning goals. He provides a lot of different methods catered to individual needs regarding the learning of a language, and is always there to help you attain your goals' (Anonymous evaluation, BCS I/University of Toronto)

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'Dejan was a terrific instructor and really wanted us all to succeed. Classes were always fun and we all became so close it was like having a second family at U of T.' (Anonymous evaluation, BCS II/University of Toronto)

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'Professor Ivkovic was an amazing professor and really took the time to understand each student's learning style in the class. I felt like my education in the class was quite personalized and helped me better understand the materials used for the class.' (Anonymous evaluation, BCS II/University of Toronto)

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'I appreciated how the course engaged with ways of making education and teaching accessible in the modern world.' (Anonymous evaluation, Popular Culture and Teaching/Faculty of Education, York University)

 

'The course taught a lot about combining my teachable resources and techniques with others while analyzing and studying how to make it current and exiting for my students.' (Anonymous evaluation, Studies in Popular Culture/Faculty of Education, York University)

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'The assignments allowed the learning community to engage not only with the various texts, but with each other. The evaluation process was clear and thoroughly explained. I loved the fact that the professor willingly answered our many questions and was open to meet with us on an individual basis to discuss our inquiry topics.'

(Anonymous evaluation, Literacy and Social Context/Faculty of Education, York University) 

 

'The overall structure and organization of the course was very accommodating of the students' input from start to finish. This kind of pedagogical undertaking is one which I prefer when compared to a teacher centered lecture.' 

(Anonymous evaluation, Literacy and Social Context/Faculty of Education, York University)

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Other teaching related

Foundations of Education (TA, blended)

Models of Education (TA)

Language and Literacy (grader)

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Instruction Skills Workshop (ISW) Certificate, York University, Summer 2014

(30 in-class hours)